Aligning Your Aspirations With His Divine Will
Bishop Henry Fernandez Preached on 11/28/2023Proverbs 16:3
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Summary
Bishop Henry Fernandez explores Proverbs 16:3 to teach believers how to transition from human-driven desires to Spirit-led success. He emphasizes that while the world offers superficial happiness, true fulfillment requires a strategic, spiritual alignment with God's perfect will.
Key points
- •Success is not merely material gain but is found through strategic alignment with God's divine purpose.
- •The people in your inner circle act as either accelerators or saboteurs of your destiny; choose connections that share your values.
- •Distinguish between God's permissive will (driven by human passion) and His perfect will (led by the Holy Spirit).
- •True fulfillment cannot be provided by any human being or material object; it only comes from an intimate relationship with God.
- •God can turn a life around in a short window of time if the believer resolves to return to Him and align their actions with Scripture.
Scripture
Purpose
Obedience
Spiritual Growth
Life application
This week, evaluate your bucket list and current goals against the eight-step alignment checklist, specifically focusing on seeking spiritual guidance and practicing gratitude through kingdom giving.
Reflection questions
- Are your current aspirations driven by your own passions or the nudging of the Holy Spirit?
- Who in your inner circle is currently misaligned with your spiritual values, and how is that affecting your progress?
- In what areas of your life are you currently experiencing 'dryness' that requires a 'panting' after the Living Water?
- What specific 'divine signs' have you been ignoring lately because you are afraid of God's answer?
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Full transcript
0:00Aren't you glad?
0:03Aren't you glad this morning that God
0:04knows your name?
0:06Come on, let's give him a praise this
0:08morning.
0:11Hallelujah.
0:13He knows our name.
0:17And the song says
0:19he walks with me,
0:21he talks with me,
0:24and he reminds us that we belong to him.
0:28Come on, let's give him another praise,
0:30would you?
0:33Amen.
0:36Good morning to everyone, and hopefully
0:38you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.
0:40And if you're like me, you ate a lot,
0:43and we need to repent because we've all
0:45sinned
0:46and fell short of the glory of God.
0:48Amen.
0:49And for those of you are streaming,
0:51we're so glad that you're here this
0:53morning. I do have a word from the Lord
0:55for you today, so I want to read from
1:00one passage of scripture, right?
1:02Proverbs 16
1:05verses
1:06number three. Proverbs 16
1:10number three, and we'll read the NLT
1:14translation. Here's what it says. It's a
1:16very simple verse,
1:18and we'll see where the Lord is going to
1:20take us this morning.
1:22It says, "Commit your actions to the
1:25Lord,
1:26and your plans
1:30will succeed."
1:34Think about that.
1:38Commit your actions, or surrender, for
1:41another word, surrender your actions,
1:45everything you do,
1:47surrender it all to God.
1:49And whatever you're planning,
1:52whatever adventure you are
1:54out to achieve, the scripture says those
1:58plans
2:00will be successful.
2:02So, here we are at the
2:05close of the 11th month of this year.
2:09And you have to ask yourself the
2:10question,
2:11what have you done
2:13so far
2:15in the 11th month or 11 months of 2023?
2:20Are you pleased with where you are?
2:22Are you satisfied or is God satisfied
2:27with you? Let's pray. Father, we lift up
2:30all of our hearts to you now.
2:33And we're hungry for your word.
2:36Speak into our hearts today.
2:39And Father, I pray that when we leave
2:41here,
2:42we'll be so much better
2:45than when we came. Bless your servant
2:48now.
2:49Bless your people in Jesus' name. Amen.
2:53Come on, let's give them another praise.
2:55As you take your seat, God bless you.
3:01Commit your actions, the Bible says, to
3:05the Lord.
3:08And your plans
3:10will succeed.
3:15Since the beginning of this year,
3:18we have been focusing our attention
3:22on the theme of the year, which is
3:25strategic
3:27alignment.
3:30It's really talking about
3:32how God will strategically
3:35align things and people
3:37in your life
3:39to reach a certain objective.
3:43At the end of the day,
3:45all of us wants to be successful.
3:49We all want to
3:52be able to live a fulfilled life.
3:56A fulfilled life
3:58where
4:00we are
4:01blessed
4:02in our personal
4:04uh pursuits.
4:06We're blessed when it comes to our
4:08family,
4:10our relationships,
4:13and even in our finances, but most
4:15importantly,
4:17that we're blessed in our spiritual walk
4:19with God.
4:22So,
4:23I want you to know that who you are
4:28connected to
4:30will impact your life.
4:35Let Let that settle for a moment.
4:38Who you are connected to will truly
4:43impact
4:44your life.
4:47Therefore, it is critical, my friends,
4:50very critical,
4:51who you align yourself with.
4:54That you be careful
4:56of who you say is in your inner circle.
5:02You got to be careful who you've been
5:03camping out with recently.
5:07Cuz if you really want your plans to be
5:10successful, if you want to master all
5:13those things that's on your list, how
5:16many of you got bucket lists? Come on
5:17now. All right, I'm not the only one,
5:19right? You've got a a whole list of
5:21things that you're trying to do before
5:24you die, or let's say before the close
5:27of 2023.
5:30It's critical because who you associate
5:32yourself with
5:34could either help you to advance
5:37and achieve what you're going after.
5:41Or,
5:43it can sabotage your plans.
5:45I I hate to say this, there's some
5:47people they carry an anointing of
5:50sabotage.
5:58They are gifted in that. They are
6:00anointed by Satan
6:04to stop your progress.
6:07And you can no longer be naive
6:10to what I just said.
6:13So, it is very important that you
6:15discontinue
6:16aligning yourself, if you will,
6:20with people,
6:22things
6:24that doesn't have your shared values.
6:30Before you decide to align yourself with
6:32people, you should make sure that they
6:35too are aligned with your aspirations.
6:41Careful.
6:42Whoever you're calling your friends,
6:46do they align themselves with your
6:48aspirations?
6:51Do they have your
6:53uh your shared values, if you will?
6:56The people you're saying you're dating,
7:00I know I know she looks really nice and
7:04he's handsome,
7:07but
7:09does that person
7:11share your values?
7:15Cuz listen, listen, sweetheart, I am
7:17telling you, you have come too far, you
7:21have hustled your way to where you are
7:23now to have some fool
7:34derail your plans.
7:38You're almost at the verge of success.
7:43It's actually lurking in the air. I know
7:47because the more pressure you feel in
7:49life, it is a signal that God is up to
7:52something great.
7:57So, I'm not concerned about the pressure
7:59that you're going through. It's not that
8:01I'm insensitive to that. The fact is, I
8:04am excited for you because God is
8:07getting ready to expose you to
8:10greatness, but Satan is also plotting
8:16to derail your plans.
8:19So, before you decide to align yourself
8:20with people, once again, you should make
8:23sure that they too are aligned with your
8:27aspirations.
8:29So remember
8:30not all aspirations
8:32are good for you, and this is why I want
8:35to talk to you today on the topic
8:38aligning your aspirations
8:41with his divine will.
8:46Bringing all of your aspirations
8:49in alignment with God's will.
8:52Because not everything that you aspire
8:55to achieve
8:58is good for you.
9:00You see, it's a natural human instinct
9:03to
9:05aspire to become great and successful in
9:08your personal life, your family life,
9:11career,
9:12and relationships.
9:14That's normal.
9:16It's normal to want to be successful
9:19in all of those areas of your life.
9:22Whether you're aspiring to achieve
9:23achieve greatness in
9:27uh someone or any of these areas, I
9:30should say, having aspirations
9:33is essential
9:36as they will fuel faith in action.
9:39Whenever you have your you you desire to
9:43achieve something,
9:46faith gets excited.
9:51Whenever you feel something deep on the
9:54inside of you that's pushing you,
9:56nudging you to do something.
9:59Nudging you to start that business.
10:02Nudging you to get out of debt.
10:05And to
10:07secure your future with some
10:09emergency funds.
10:12When you sense something is nudging you
10:15to say get your life right, get your
10:17life in order, there's greatness locked
10:20up on the inside of you.
10:22When there's something nudging you
10:24saying, "Hey, it's time you stop
10:25renting. It's time you own your own home
10:28because you have been renting for 10
10:30years."
10:33And
10:34you keep allowing the devil to tell you
10:36you can't afford to purchase a property,
10:38yet you struggled all the way through
10:41the 10 years paying somebody else's
10:43mortgage.
10:45When you could have used that same
10:47energy and stress to pay yourself.
10:53Whenever there's something nudging you
10:55to do something great, fear is going to
10:58kick in and fear's going to say you
11:00can't do that. That's too risky. But you
11:03see, faith gets excited because faith
11:06loves when God prompts you to do
11:09something and your flesh can't do it and
11:11faith says, "Now, give me a chance. Let
11:13me prove that faith in God will move
11:18mountains
11:20out of your life.
11:22Faith is always looking for an obstacle.
11:25Faith is always looking for some
11:28difficulties in your life so that it can
11:31prove to you that God is real.
11:36You see, whether you are aspiring to
11:38achieve greatness
11:41in any of the areas that I mentioned,
11:43your job, your career, your business,
11:47maybe your love life,
11:49it is going to require
11:52faith.
11:54The moment you aspire to achieve a
11:55particular goal, instantly faith gets
11:59ignited.
12:01Yes, it does, because the only way for
12:04your aspirations to be manifested,
12:08you're going to have to rely on the Holy
12:10Spirit to support you on your journey.
12:15And I want to talk to a few people here
12:16today in the building, and just a few of
12:19you are streaming, because lately all
12:22throughout this year,
12:25you have been pushing.
12:30And you have been screaming to God,
12:34"God why?
12:37Why is it like this?
12:41Here you are in November, and you're
12:43screaming, "God, I thought this was my
12:45year. I thought this was the moment when
12:48I would finally breathe again. I I
12:51thought I would I wouldn't have to just
12:54just just push all the effort that I
12:57have, and I just feel frustrated, like
13:00nothing I have done so far is making
13:05sense." I want to talk to you today.
13:08Because I want to reassure you that you
13:12are in the right position for a
13:14blessing. You're in the right position
13:17for a breakthrough.
13:19Why do you think the devil is attacking
13:22you the way he's attacking you?
13:25If there's nothing in you he doesn't
13:27want you. The mere fact that he's after
13:30you, he's a prowler, it's a sign that
13:34God is up to something big in your life,
13:37and I don't know who I'm talking to.
13:42Reason why you've been scratched, you've
13:45been pulled,
13:47the reason why you've been attacked is
13:50because something good is on the other
13:54side of the trauma. Something good is on
13:58the other side of the battle. Would you
14:00just tap your neighbor and say,
14:02"Something good is on the other side of
14:04your struggles."
14:06Yes, something good is on the other side
14:09of the struggles. You've got to get
14:12through it. You've got to get through
14:14it. You've got to get through it. You've
14:17got to I don't know who I'm talking to.
14:19You cannot quit now. You cannot quit
14:23now. I refuse to see you quit. I don't
14:26know I you see, I want people in my life
14:29that when I feel like I'm out of breath
14:32and I'm going to die and I want to give
14:34up, I want some people to drag me.
14:36Henry, come on, boy. Come on.
14:39You're not going to die here. I'm not
14:42going to leave you dying here. I'm going
14:44to walk you through the process. You've
14:46got to win this time. You are not a
14:49loser. Greatness is locked up on the
14:51inside of you.
14:55You're on the verge of something big and
14:58great.
14:59And you have to see it that way. You
15:02have to see that God is up to doing
15:04something good in your life. None of
15:06your aspirations
15:08will be fulfilled if the Holy Spirit
15:12is not the driving force behind them.
15:16None of them.
15:17Just because you have the desire,
15:21that doesn't mean
15:23that when you achieve them,
15:25that they will bring fulfillment in your
15:28life.
15:30That's why you need to be careful what
15:31you want.
15:34Just because you have the desire doesn't
15:36mean
15:37it will bring you fulfillment.
15:40Listen to me carefully.
15:42I want you to close out 2023
15:45successful.
15:47I want I want you to have a good year.
15:49He's a He's a We just did the song. He's
15:52an untimed God. God doesn't need 12
15:55months to fix you.
16:01If if my math is correct, we have 35
16:04more days left before the close of the
16:08year. God doesn't need all 35
16:12to turn things around in your favor.
16:18He can just speak the word
16:20and things will change in your life.
16:24So, I want you to be successful, but you
16:26must understand that just because you
16:29have the desire, that doesn't mean
16:32that if you achieve those desires, it
16:35will bring fulfillment in your life. Not
16:39all desires will bring fulfillment in
16:42your life. Just because you have the
16:43desire to gain all that money to
16:46purchase that particular item, don't
16:48believe for one moment that that item
16:51will fulfill your life. How many of you
16:54have went out and spent a lot of money
16:56doing other things thinking that will
16:58bring fulfillment. Well, now you're in
17:01debt
17:04and still not happy.
17:06How many of you, cuz this is the time of
17:08year where people get depressed and and
17:11and and and and and, you know, people
17:14start thinking of committing suicide and
17:16people get lonely because from
17:18Thanksgiving, you know, Thanksgiving you
17:21probably didn't have nobody to spend
17:24Thanksgiving with. You didn't have your
17:25family, your family is dysfunctional or
17:27they may be away from you. You don't
17:29want to deal with them or whatever the
17:31situation may be leading up to
17:33Christmas, right? You know, love is in
17:35the air and everybody wants to be
17:37cuddled with the lover and all that kind
17:40of a stuff. And so, here it is because
17:43you allow the devil to trick you to make
17:46you think that you are really desperate
17:48in need for somebody. So, then your
17:51desire, your whole life, the entire year
17:55was consumed with wanting a man, with
17:58consumed with wanting a woman. That's a
18:02desire, that's an aspiration. Okay,
18:04bless your heart. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you
18:06you know, but but you talk to some
18:08people in this room and some people are
18:10streaming, they hustle their way through
18:14life trying to get a man, trying to get
18:17a woman. And the man is sitting right
18:20next to them right now. The woman is
18:22still laying in the bed with you right
18:25now. You got what you wanted.
18:29What it did What did it do to you?
18:35Do you know how many women who are
18:38connected with a man today and they're
18:41miserable?
18:43Don't be quiet on me now, sisters.
18:49Miserable.
18:51Miserable.
18:53Cuz you thought the man was your
18:55fulfillment.
18:58How many men who's got women next to
19:01them and you thought with her nice hip
19:05and whatever she got?
19:18You got her.
19:21But are you fulfilled?
19:24Listen to me. Listen, and I know you may
19:26not like what I'm about to say.
19:28No human being can give you total
19:32fulfillment. None.
19:34Not
19:36one.
19:39You going to wake up some morning and
19:41turn around and look at the woman or the
19:44man that you swore blind that you love
19:47and you like
19:53Be quiet, Pastor Hill.
19:56I don't know what Pastor Deborah, I
19:58don't know. I don't know why he's
19:59laughing that way.
20:03Nobody can give you total fulfillment.
20:06Nobody.
20:08So, be careful when you
20:10kill yourself and
20:13do all kinds of crazy stuff through
20:15life man
20:17to get what you think will totally
20:19satisfy you,
20:21only to find out
20:23that you come up empty.
20:27You see, as you quickly go through
20:29the close of 2023,
20:32you should really ask yourself
20:35these very important questions.
20:39You know, who are you? Number one.
20:43What are you about?
20:46Um
20:49What are you pursuing?
20:51What are you going after?
20:54If you were to have 30 more years on the
20:56planet,
20:59what would you spend those 30 years
21:01doing?
21:04Here's another question I'd like to ask
21:06you, and you should really ask yourself
21:08that question.
21:09Am I being fulfilled
21:12by the things
21:14that I pursued in life?
21:18Think about that.
21:20All the stuff that you went after.
21:25Are you being fulfilled?
21:31Stuff we're spending money for.
21:35Where's it getting you?
21:38Where is it getting you?
21:40People we're trying to connect with.
21:44Are they making our lives better or
21:46bitter?
21:50The material things
21:53we go in debt for.
21:57Are they bringing us peace of mind? Even
21:59a kid is just praising the Lord.
22:07Am I being fulfilled by the things that
22:09I have pursued in life?
22:13My personal goals.
22:15My money.
22:16Fame.
22:18My boyfriend. My girlfriend.
22:21Career.
22:23Owning my own business.
22:26Starting my family.
22:28You know, wanting children.
22:30And you get them.
22:33Talk to us parents and we'll tell you.
22:37Careful what you pray for.
22:41What about running for political office?
22:45What about buying a new car?
22:48What about taking that dream vacation?
22:51Or relocating from one city or one
22:54country to the next.
22:56See, just in case you were not aware of
22:58this, every pursuit you engaged in,
23:03you will either operate
23:06under the permissive will of God
23:11or the perfect will of God.
23:16Every pursuit in life,
23:20you're either going to operate under the
23:23permissive will of God or the perfect
23:26will of God. If you're operating under
23:28the permissive will of God, then your
23:31aspirations will be driven by, watch
23:33this, your own passions.
23:37It's your own passion.
23:40You're going to go after those things
23:43and not being led by the Holy Spirit.
23:47Cuz you want it, it feels good, and I
23:50got to have it.
23:52And this is where people get frustrated
23:54and disappointed in life.
23:56It's all because, my friends,
24:00they find themselves wanting things,
24:05but in the end, it's not really what God
24:07wants for them.
24:11And I wonder how many of you in this
24:13room, how many of you are streaming,
24:15have a lot of stuff that you wanted,
24:19but God is looking down and he's saying,
24:22"I didn't want that for you.
24:26I didn't want that for you.
24:28You wanted it,
24:30so I permitted you to have it.
24:35And now now it's giving you misery,
24:40discomfort.
24:42Now it's costing you. Is there anybody
24:44in this room, and those of you are
24:46streaming, please respond. Is there
24:48anybody in this room who have made
24:50mistakes in the past that you have paid
24:53for it and maybe still paying for it,
24:56all of us.
25:00We've made mistakes
25:02that we're paying for it dearly.
25:06God will never give us something
25:08that will destroy us. The Bible says the
25:11blessings of the Lord it maketh rich. It
25:14adds.
25:16God's not going to give you something
25:17that's going to cause sorrow in your
25:19heart.
25:20That's not the kind of God we serve.
25:23You see, if you are operating under the
25:25perfect will and this is where I hope
25:29we will strive to
25:31become
25:33become faith walkers, walking in the
25:36perfect will of God. If you walk in the
25:39perfect will of God, then all of your
25:41aspirations will be driven by the Holy
25:44Spirit
25:46and you will be in alignment with what
25:48God wants
25:49for your life. So, I promise you
25:52aligning your aspirations
25:55in God's will will definitely let you
25:57will definitely let you avoid, watch
26:01this, unnecessary mistakes and misery.
26:06Why don't you just say, "Lord, I know
26:08what I want."
26:10It's not too late. 35 more days. God, I
26:12know I know what I want, but what is
26:15your will?
26:17What do you want for me?
26:19Because I want to make sure whatever I'm
26:21going after it's in alignment with what
26:24you want for me.
26:27Cuz that's really where I'm going to
26:29find fulfillment.
26:32Because all these things, these
26:33so-called success that people are
26:37bragging about, it's not really success.
26:41Cuz you can have a wonderful home.
26:44But you have to ask yourself the
26:45question
26:48are you happy in the home?
26:52Think about that.
26:53You can I want to I want I want three
26:56children, four kids, and I I want a
26:59wife. I want a a husband, and I want
27:01three cars in the garage. I want one is
27:04a Mercedes and I the other one whatever
27:07a Bentley and and and and maybe the
27:09other one is what what's the what's
27:11what's what's the Maserati or
27:13Rolls-Royce or whatever. See, we all
27:15have aspirations.
27:18And you can have all of that.
27:20But at the end of the day
27:23when you go to lay
27:25your head down, are you happy?
27:29Oh, you could say, "I want this job."
27:31Maybe you went to school, and you spent
27:34all that money
27:37to go to school to acquire degree
27:40with student loan debt
27:43and you're out there and you're making
27:45good money compared to your parents.
27:50And you go to work.
27:53And let's be honest. Come on, man.
27:56Let's be honest.
27:59You have a form
28:02and a look of success.
28:05But with all of that job and that money
28:09are you really happy?
28:13Are you really happy?
28:15How do you define happiness?
28:18Man, are you really happy? Yeah, cuz you
28:21you got that job and you know, you do
28:24you you think you're doing well, but
28:27when you pull up in your driveway
28:31and you get home
28:33and it's just you.
28:36You.
28:37Just you.
28:38Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
28:40Just you. Are you really happy?
28:44Are you miserable? Ooh, thank you, Holy
28:46Spirit. Thank you. Thank you.
28:48Thank you, Lord.
28:54How many times you have walked out of
28:56your house
28:58looking
28:59successful
29:03but you are 1 minute away from
29:04committing suicide.
29:11You know I'm talking to you.
29:14Cuz you thought about it this week.
29:19You thought about committing suicide
29:23this week.
29:25No one knows
29:27because looking at you
29:31success is written
29:33externally
29:36but on the
29:37inside
29:41unfulfilled
29:44because what's on the inside
29:47is truly not in alignment
29:51with what's defined.
29:54And so you can play it off all you want.
29:58You can play it off all you want.
30:02And you can live the next 35 days of
30:052023
30:07and enter into 2024
30:10trying to pretend to a society that
30:14don't give a flip about you.
30:18Or you can say once and for all to God,
30:22"God, what I want is you. I want what
30:27you want for me
30:30and I will live the rest of my life
30:34in alignment
30:36with your perfect will."
30:41You see, your life can be more
30:42meaningful if you simple seek after what
30:45God wants for you. And no, this is not
30:49going to be easy.
30:52It will be a daily fight to seek after
30:54God's will for your life daily.
30:58Daily.
31:01Don't let anybody fool you.
31:04I know we've got our clothes on and I
31:07know we try to pretend. It's a daily
31:09fight to be in the will of God cuz Satan
31:13knows the moment you're in the will of
31:15God, success is written all over your
31:19life.
31:22So here's what he'll do. He'll derail
31:23you
31:26and make you start going after
31:28your desire.
31:30And you out here in the jungle,
31:33in the desert,
31:35the dryness of society.
31:38And you're trying
31:39to breathe.
31:42You're trying to quench your thirst with
31:45these superficial
31:47stuff.
31:50But the only way you can find true
31:53fulfillment,
31:55telling you,
31:57is get back to God. Some of you are
31:58backsliders. In other words, you once
32:01was in the faith.
32:04You were faithful to God. You were not
32:06perfect.
32:08Nobody is perfect. But you were
32:10faithful.
32:12You were faithful in reading your Bible.
32:14You were faithful in praying. You were
32:16faithful to going to church.
32:20There's once a time in your life COVID
32:22couldn't stop you.
32:25There once a time in your life no
32:27negative stuff in the church couldn't
32:29stop you. You went to church. You went
32:32to serving God. You read your Bible and
32:35you prayed. You would not get up one day
32:38of your life and not get into the word
32:41and not pray. You rather be late for
32:44work than not to have devotion. There
32:46was a time you were close to God, but
32:49the devil snatched you away from that.
32:53Cuz he knows if you're not in the will
32:55of God, go after all of your desires.
33:01And you'll spend 20, 30 years
33:04only to find that you may have acquired
33:06a lot of material things.
33:09But you empty.
33:12You empty.
33:14You're empty. He has tricked you to now
33:17believe following God is following a
33:20preacher, a pastor, or religion.
33:24Do you know your Bible? If you know your
33:26Bible, then you will ignore that
33:28garbage. Following God is not a man. You
33:31ought to know God for yourself.
33:33Following God is not a denomination. It
33:36is not a religion. It is a relationship.
33:39It is a daily walk with Jesus Christ to
33:42know him for yourself.
33:47Are you hearing me today?
33:50It's to know God for yourself.
33:56So
33:58to pursue God is not an easy task.
34:03If you're thirsty after God,
34:07then you will find
34:09that the Holy Spirit
34:13will always lead you
34:16through the desert, through the dryness
34:19of society, and the tricks of the enemy.
34:23And he'll bring you
34:25to the word, the living water.
34:29He'll bring you like this morning.
34:32You're streaming, you're here.
34:34He brought you here for a reason.
34:38I can believe in my spirit right now
34:41Satan is so ticked off.
34:45You know why he's so ticked off? He's
34:48ticked off because he never wanted you
34:52to be in this room this morning. He
34:54never wanted you to log on this morning.
34:57Why? Because you're going to have a God
35:00encounter. God is in your face talking
35:04to you and telling you, "I am desperate
35:08to have a relationship with you. I'm
35:10desperate to have you come back into
35:13alignment with my word." And the devil
35:16knows the moment you hear the word,
35:18faith comes. Faith comes. Faith comes by
35:21hearing. So, the more you hear the word
35:24of God is the more faith will develop.
35:29Look at what Psalm 42:2
35:32says.
35:33It says, and I love the New Living
35:35Translation. It says, "As the deer longs
35:38for the streams of water,
35:42so I long for you,
35:46O God."
35:48You see, the entire Psalm expresses
35:51an intense desire to know God, watch
35:55this intimately.
35:57Intimately. A comparison is made here in
36:01the verse with an animal, in this case a
36:04deer,
36:06and its thirst for flowing water,
36:11and the believer's thirst for God.
36:15Here's an animal, in this case a deer,
36:18as the deer
36:20one translation says pant for the water.
36:25He's thirsty.
36:27He's been traveling for hours and days
36:32in a
36:34desolate, dry place.
36:37And finally,
36:39he finds water.
36:42And as the deer pants or longs for long
36:47for the water. Oh, I'm here today to
36:49tell some of you that I know your thirst
36:53can only be quenched
36:56when you find the living
36:58water.
37:00And that is the word of God.
37:04As you long for the water, the living
37:09word of God, here's what the Bible says
37:12as other translation puts it, pant. That
37:15word pant implies that the deer is
37:18seeking to to take a drink of water. And
37:22watch this, he does it in a way that
37:25causes him, watch this, to breathe
37:29quickly and loudly through his mouth.
37:35The experience of the deer,
37:38when he finally finds water after
37:41traveling for days and months without
37:46water,
37:47when he finally finds it,
37:49the Bible says he's breathing heavily.
38:02I finally got it.
38:05And the Bible says not only heavily, but
38:08loudly.
38:15The comparison is made of how a deer
38:20drinks water when he's thirsty to be the
38:23the believer.
38:25I want to go after God
38:28like the deer.
38:30So, after I've screwed up my life,
38:34after I've done dumb stuff, after I've
38:37come through some stuff that should have
38:40killed me,
38:42and I found my way back to God. And when
38:46I find the word of God, the living word
38:48of God,
38:51I can breathe again.
38:53Oh, thank God I didn't die in that
38:56situation.
38:58Oh, thank God that you favored me.
39:01Oh, thank God that my life can turn for
39:05the better today. Can somebody give God
39:08praise that you have found the living
39:11water?
39:17That you found the well that can quench
39:21your thirst.
39:22That you found the word of God. Not
39:25gimmicks, not games.
39:28You found the word of God. So, it's safe
39:31to say that when the deer is seeking
39:35the basic necessities of life, the
39:38necessities of life, in order to
39:41survive, he does it at the risk
39:45of losing his life.
39:48Because after you've traveled for so
39:50long, and have lived your life for so
39:53long,
39:55and you finally get a chance
39:58to experience something refreshing,
40:03it takes everything
40:06to gobble it up.
40:08It takes everything to suck it up. It
40:11takes everything to embrace it. So,
40:15likewise, those of you who believe in
40:17God
40:18if you're going after what God wants for
40:21you
40:22it will require a panting after those
40:25things that makes
40:28you feel like you're going to die.
40:32Like serving God, you're losing it.
40:36Like serving God, why why do you have to
40:39go through
40:43this this constant
40:46frustration and this constant battle and
40:49this constant pull? Why do you have to
40:52do it? But if you want God, it's a part
40:56of the process.
40:58This is why so many people
41:01rather live their lives possibly not
41:04going after the flowing streams of
41:06blessings
41:08but instead of going what feels right.
41:13The scripture said there's a way that
41:15seems right.
41:18Oh, it's always going to feel right.
41:20But the end, the Bible says, lead to
41:24death.
41:25So going after
41:27what
41:29you want
41:31in most cases is very easy
41:35and it won't challenge you.
41:39Of course, going after what you want is
41:41very easy.
41:43Won't challenge you.
41:45You know why? Cuz cuz you don't have to
41:47go through the experience of the deer.
41:54Why has this year been so tough?
42:00Why did I
42:02have to wait so long
42:06for God to show up in my life?
42:09You see, going after what you want,
42:11easy.
42:15Good morning.
42:18Bless you.
42:19It's Sunday.
42:21I'm going great. I don't want no
42:23struggles.
42:24I don't want no problems.
42:26I just want to live my best life.
42:29I just want to live a good life.
42:31Oh, I want that. Oh, I want it. I pray?
42:35Pray what?
42:36Don't be silly, man. What am I going to
42:39pray about that? If I want it and I
42:40think I can afford it, I'm going to get
42:42it.
42:44Oh, if you know hey, Chad, hey, look.
42:48I ain't missing this one. Not this time.
42:52I'm not missing this one this time. I've
42:56been waiting too long and he looks good,
42:59she looks good, everything looks fine.
43:03Ah, yeah, the vibes, oh, yeah, I love
43:06that. The vibes are good.
43:12The vibes are good.
43:13So, I'm cool.
43:16I'm going to chill with this one.
43:20But, pray about it. For what? The vibes
43:22are good.
43:24You want to know why a lot of you won't
43:26pray, especially when it comes to
43:27finding a mate? A lot of you won't pray
43:30to God and ask God for his advice about
43:34the person you're dating cuz you know he
43:35going to tell you no.
43:41You already know.
43:45It's a no.
43:46So, you rather not know.
43:52Isn't that a mess?
43:55But, you see, whenever you're going
43:56after what God wants for you,
43:59it will be scary,
44:02frustrating,
44:05and I got to be honest with you,
44:07it's exhausting.
44:10Oh, I wish I could stand here as a
44:12pastor and tell you, serving God, man,
44:15it's going to be a great day, man.
44:17Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. Every day
44:18you just get up. Hey, bless the Lord.
44:21Praise the Lord. And you just traveling
44:23along life's road, man. You go to work.
44:25Hey, good morning, everybody. How you
44:28doing? Oh, my money is right. Oh, no,
44:30no no no.
44:33No no no.
44:35Serving God is a process.
44:41But you have to look at the end result.
44:43Is the spirit of God will always nudge
44:46you telling you when you're out of
44:48alignment with God like he's nudging you
44:50now.
44:52He's nudging you. Hey, you know, this
44:55word is for you today.
44:57This word is for you today. He's trying
44:59to tell you, hey, you're in November. 35
45:02more days to go. I can still fix this.
45:07He's saying to you, I can still fix
45:09this. It's not too late. You're not
45:12running out of time.
45:13You're running out of time. I'm not
45:15running out of time.
45:17I can still fix this.
45:19Get in alignment. Get in alignment.
45:21There's some stuff Hey, there's some
45:23stuff I want to do for you this year. I
45:26cannot roll it over into next year cuz
45:29it was for this season. To everything
45:32there is a season.
45:36Cuz some of you think, well, well, if
45:37God don't give it to you this year, next
45:38year you'll get it. No, no, no, no. To
45:40everything there's a season, a set time.
45:44So, he's saying to you right now, this
45:46is your moment. This is your season.
45:50He'll always nudge you.
45:53Always nudge you.
45:55He's always pulling you like a car.
45:59I had my car one time. I was driving on
46:01the highway.
46:03And I was driving,
46:05I just noticed
46:08shook a little bit. Okay, ignored it.
46:11But the moment I took my hands off the
46:13steering,
46:16the steering wheel,
46:18all of a sudden, the car
46:20was pulling
46:22more to the right.
46:25To the right it's pulling. I mean,
46:27if I'm in a straight line,
46:30supposed to be
46:31just driving in a straight line.
46:34And it started happening over a period
46:36of time, so I took it to the shop.
46:39And the guy said to me, "First of all,
46:42your tires need to change."
46:45So, your tires are worn out. And I'm
46:47like, you know, cuz
46:49to be honest with you,
46:51they've been telling me about that.
46:57I'm sorry, I'm cheap.
47:01Every time I go for service,
47:03"Your tires are this low." And cuz to
47:07me, the only time I'm going to change a
47:09tire,
47:11I have to see them little wires up in
47:14there fussing.
47:15No, I'm sorry. I'm I'm telling you God's
47:18honest truth. I'm going to tell you. I'm
47:20going to get all my mileage out my Do
47:23you understand? Tires are not cheap.
47:29So, when he finally said he said, "You
47:30got to change tires." I said, "Okay, all
47:32right. I knew. Okay, finally." But he
47:35said, "Okay, but changing the tires is
47:37one thing, but I have to do an
47:39alignment."
47:40What do Why do you have to do an
47:41alignment? Just change the tires. He
47:43says, "No, because watch this. Because
47:45you've been driving for so long with
47:47worn out tires,
47:50it has helped pull the car out of
47:54alignment. So, you can change the tire,
47:58but the car will still be pulled in the
48:01wrong direction. I wonder how many of
48:03you are trying to change other stuff.
48:06Change everything. Maybe if I change the
48:08man, change the woman, change this,
48:11change that, maybe my life will get on
48:13the right path. No, baby, let me talk to
48:15you. You need an alignment, a spiritual
48:19alignment.
48:22That's what you need.
48:26So, not only did I change my tires,
48:29but I did the alignment, and all of a
48:31sudden,
48:33the car went back to normal.
48:35So, let me close with this. I want to
48:37give you eight ways, eight ways
48:41to get your aspirations in alignment
48:44with God's will for your life. Anybody
48:46getting anything out of this message?
48:51Those of you are streaming, if you're
48:52getting something, then man, just say
48:55something. Say something. I'm getting
48:56something out of this. Are you ready for
48:58this?
48:59Eight ways to get your
49:02aspirations, every desire that you have,
49:05in alignment with God's will for your
49:07life. Number one, are you ready for
49:09this? Get back to God.
49:13Get back to God.
49:15I can tell you to read your Bible. I can
49:17tell you
49:19to go to church,
49:22but that's a part of the process of
49:24being a believer,
49:27but the first thing you need to do is to
49:28return to God.
49:31Return to him.
49:33Maybe you're out of his will. Maybe you
49:34go to church. Maybe you're streaming,
49:36but you know if you're connected with
49:38God or not. That's the first thing you
49:40need to do is to get back to God. Find a
49:43way, find a way back to God. Pant your
49:47way.
49:49Drink that living word,
49:53and get back to God. Number two, pray
49:56and meditate daily.
49:59Just don't pray and meditate when you're
50:00in trouble.
50:04Don't just pray to God when your back is
50:06against the wall.
50:09You go to the doctor and you find out
50:10that he gave you a diagnosis that you
50:13don't like and it's life-threatening.
50:15And you don't don't just pray at that
50:16time. Don't pray to God after you spent
50:19all your money on Black Friday and made
50:21dumb stupid decisions and now you're
50:24broke for the rest of this year and next
50:27year.
50:32Did I mess with somebody a while ago or
50:34what?
50:36Don't don't just find God when you're in
50:39trouble.
50:41Pray and meditate. Let that be a daily
50:43action.
50:44Regularly spend time in the in prayer
50:47and meditating on scripture. Number
50:49three, filter your actions
50:51through the word of God.
50:54This will ensure
50:56that you are not tricked by the devil
50:59thinking
51:01there's nothing harmful if you do what
51:04you feel.
51:06Whenever you filter the
51:08you whatever you're about to do, okay?
51:11The word will tell you, okay, that's a
51:13good move.
51:14Number four, seek spiritual guidance.
51:17Oh, this is one that if I had time I
51:20would elaborate on this, but I don't.
51:23Seek spiritual guidance. Consult with
51:25spiritual leaders or mentors
51:28who can provide guidance based on their
51:30knowledge of the word of God and their
51:33personal experiences. Knowledge and
51:35their personal experiences.
51:38It is a shame that the body of Christ
51:40has taken more of his advice now from
51:42people on social media.
51:48Social media's become our mentor.
51:53Wrong people, wrong influences.
51:56We no longer take it from spiritual
51:58leaders
51:59who are ordained
52:01uh to preach the word of God. And Satan
52:03will say, "Well, all them preachers are
52:05crooks and they're devils and all that
52:06kind of other stuff and so forth." Some
52:08of the friends in your inner circles are
52:10crooks and devils.
52:14They're crooks and devils everywhere.
52:17But because the the devil doesn't want
52:19you to get the information from the
52:21right sources,
52:24plays with your head. Number five,
52:26practice gratitude.
52:30You see, when your when your financial
52:31aspirations
52:34Check one, two.
52:36When your financial aspirations are in
52:39alignment
52:41with God's will for your life,
52:45the very first thing you will find
52:47yourself doing is practicing gratitude.
52:52So, people always say, "I want God to
52:55bless me financially. I want God to
52:57increase me."
52:59And this is how we want it. Watch this.
53:02We want God to just send people in our
53:04lives to bless us.
53:07Um we want to go out there and get our
53:11jobs to increase our salary and
53:13whatever.
53:15It It is always with our hands out.
53:19When that's not scriptural.
53:23Now, the unbeliever won't embrace this.
53:25The unbeliever It's It's It's It's weird
53:28how the unbeliever will talk about
53:32church and it's a gimmick, it's a money
53:35thing. And yes, I believe some people
53:37are in it doing that. I'm not going to
53:39dispute that.
53:41But people argue with money with church.
53:43It's It's amazing how they will argue
53:46the point and why you're giving your
53:47money's to the church and so forth. And
53:50especially when you see where your money
53:52is going. I'm not talking about a church
53:53where it's really obvious like what are
53:56they doing with the money and so forth.
54:00But it's amazing how they can dog out
54:02ministries.
54:04It's a rip-off. It's a this.
54:07And so forth, but turn a blind eye
54:11to the secular systems of the world.
54:15How
54:17the system is rigged to trick you. Watch
54:20this.
54:22To spend money
54:24for most things you do not really need.
54:29To get you to feel that you're
54:31successful.
54:33Only to leave you in poverty.
54:40So now, the word of God established how
54:43you can gain wealth.
54:45Give and it shall. Instead of your hands
54:49out begging, Bible says God gives seed
54:52to the sower. That's scripture. He put
54:55He allows you. Don't you ever think for
54:58one moment
55:00it's your degree that enables you to get
55:03up every day
55:05to go to that job to make a living.
55:08Don't you ever And I understand it. You
55:10You had to hustle your way to get the
55:12degree, and I get it. You You earned
55:14every penny that's given to you. But
55:17ladies and gentlemen, let me just remind
55:19you, it is the grace of God
55:23that's keeping you every morning to get
55:26to that job. So what God says, "When I
55:29bless you with the resource because you
55:32are a kingdom citizen, and this gospel
55:35must be preached. It must be preserved
55:37in society. God then says, I've given
55:41you this I It is God who enables you to
55:44create wealth. He then gives you the
55:46wealth to run your business
55:49and to make a living. And then he says,
55:52"Now return a portion to the house to
55:54sustain the house." You should be smart
55:57enough to know that these things in
56:00whatever church you go are not free. I
56:02think you're smart enough to know that.
56:04I think you're smart enough to know that
56:07even the preaching needs a salary. I
56:09understand that. I know you may like
56:11don't like preachers. I know you may
56:13think that preachers uh need to go out
56:15there with a big sign on the street and
56:17begging for money. But if you read your
56:20Bible, the word of the Lord says that
56:23that the priest must be sustained by the
56:26house.
56:29The very same way the President of the
56:32United States is funded, it is our tax
56:36dollars.
56:39The very same way our governor and our
56:42political leaders are funded, it is our
56:45tax dollars. The world gets it that they
56:48tax the citizens so that the business of
56:52the community can carry on. In the
56:55kingdom of God, God empowers his people
57:00to fund his work.
57:09And then he says, "If you just practice
57:11gratitude bam.
57:14Give and it shall be given. The more you
57:17give, I'll pour it
57:20back into you. I'll rebuke the devourer.
57:22Every time the enemy comes after your
57:24money, I'll rebuke him. I will make a
57:27way out of no way for you." That's the
57:29word of God. Now now wait, before you
57:31shout me down and before you cop into a
57:34bad attitude.
57:37Don't knock something until you try it.
57:42You try it and watch what God will do in
57:45your life. Number six, live by godly
57:48values.
57:50Seek to know what God expects of you and
57:55faithfully strive to embody them
57:59in your daily lives. Number seven,
58:03serve others.
58:05Servant hood.
58:08I have to commend you guys.
58:11A week ago,
58:13we made an appeal for Dare to Care
58:15and the amount of you who came out to
58:19serve, you ought to give yourselves a
58:21hand.
58:23Serve.
58:25Look for ways to serve and help others
58:28selflessly.
58:31Acts of kindness
58:34and service rendered to others will
58:36definitely unleash God's blessing upon
58:39your life.
58:41And number eight,
58:42very important,
58:44don't ignore divine signs.
58:48Don't.
58:50Do you know how many of you streaming in
58:52this building have constantly so far
58:54since this year ignored divine signs?
58:59Cuz you see, God will use his spiritual
59:01leaders
59:02and others in the five-fold ministry
59:06to speak into your life,
59:08sharing ideas and giving you
59:10instructions
59:12to get back into his perfect will.
59:16So, what are you going to do
59:19as you're closing this year, 35 more
59:21days to go?
59:23Are you going to get in alignment
59:26with God's will for your life.
59:29Because if you surrender or commit your
59:32ways to the Lord, start now. Now.
59:37God, I give you
59:39not my will, Lord, but
59:41that your will be done.
59:44Can we run through them one more time?
59:46Number one,
59:48these are the eight things you need to
59:50do to get in alignment with God. Get
59:53back to God.
59:54I'm talking to you, those of you
59:56streaming. Get back to God. Pray and
59:58meditate daily. Number three, filter
60:01your actions through the word of God.
60:03Number four, seek spiritual guidance.
60:06Number five, practice gratitude. Number
60:09six, live by godly values. Number seven,
60:13serve others. And number eight,
60:16don't ignore
60:19divine signs. Would you bow your heads
60:21all over this building?
60:23And for those of you are streaming,
60:26I want to pray for you this morning.
60:30At the end of the prayer, I'll give you
60:32instructions how to give. We elected to
60:34receive our seed after. And if you'll be
60:36so kind, unless you're working on the
60:38outside in the lobby, just remain in
60:40your seat
60:42and wait until I pronounce the
60:44benediction.
60:46Father, I thank you this morning that
60:48you spoke to us.
60:51Cuz your desire is to allow us to get
60:54back in alignment
60:57with your will for our lives.
61:01There's no doubt in my mind you spoke to
61:03all of us today.
61:05You want the best for us.
61:08You want to see us win.
61:12We have a whole lot of plans. Oh, some
61:14of us have written it on our vision
61:16board. Some of us have it into our mind.
61:21Therefore, I ask you, Lord,
61:24take our plans,
61:26take our desires, and
61:29let it be
61:31in alignment with your word.
61:33If it's not,
61:35change us.
61:38Take that appetite away.
61:42Make us
61:43into who you want us to be.
61:46I pray for
61:48people all over the world who are
61:50watching and in this auditorium.
61:53That the way we will close 2023
61:56will be a way
61:58that we will say all to Jesus.
62:01I surrender all to him.
62:05I freely give. I will ever love and
62:09trust.
62:11We'll forever love you and trust you,
62:12God,
62:14because we have surrendered it all to
62:16you.
62:18I pray for the salvation of your people.
62:21I pray for those who are sick this
62:23morning.
62:25That God, they will embrace your healing
62:27power because that's in alignment with
62:29your word for their lives.
62:32I pray for those who are confused and
62:36really disappointed with
62:38the direction of their lives that they
62:40will see that there's a way out
62:43if they run back to the Father.
62:46They come back to you.
62:48I pray over the seed this morning, the
62:50offering that we'll receive.
62:53That God, you would touch our hearts
62:54that we would give
62:57with a spirit of gratitude.
63:01That we'll make sure
63:03that we return what belongs to you.
63:07And Father, not be so concerned about,
63:10"Okay, who's getting it? What they're
63:12doing with it?"
63:14You've given us wisdom
63:17that of course, if we see something that
63:19doesn't look right, we're intelligent to
63:22know to be smart.
63:24But when you ask us to bring and give
63:29then the responsibility is yours because
63:32the question was asked, will a man rob
63:34God?
63:35Any preacher, any spiritual leader,
63:37anybody in the kingdom who steals from
63:41you
63:42will have to answer to you.
63:44Not man
63:46but have to answer to you.
63:49But that should not stop us from sowing.
63:52So God, I pray
63:54for the seed this morning.
63:56I pray that our as our aspiration is to
63:59get out of debt and to be blessed
64:02that we will
64:04implement the scriptures
64:08and give
64:10out of what you have blessed us with
64:13so that we can walk in the promises of
64:16God. We thank you for it.
64:18Still with every head bowed and eyes
64:21closed
64:24if you don't know the Lord is your
64:25personal savior this morning, I invite
64:27you to surrender your life to him.
64:30It's very simple.
64:32All I need you to do is to say this
64:33sinner's prayer. The Bible says with
64:35your mouth you confess then you believe
64:37in your heart.
64:39Read your Bible every day. Follow these
64:41eight steps that I shared with you this
64:43morning. Go to church.
64:46If you're not in the area you can
64:47continue to stream, please do that.
64:51But over everything that you receive
64:53today
64:55what will it profit you to gain those
64:57things that you're aspiring to achieve
64:59and lose your soul?
65:02Let me invite you to Jesus Christ. Would
65:04you say this sinner's prayer with me and
65:05say, "Lord Jesus
65:07I'm a sinner.
65:09Today I repent of my sins.
65:12I embrace the free gift of salvation.
65:16And I am born again.
65:18In Jesus' name.
65:20Amen.
65:22Can we welcome these people to the
65:23family of God?
65:26And did you get anything out of the word
65:28of God this morning?
65:31Amen.