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Speaker 1: Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to

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Speaker 1: our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you

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Speaker 1: enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and

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Speaker 1: share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray

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Speaker 1: for God's very best in your life. Well, God bless you.

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Speaker 1: It's always a joy to come into your homes. We

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Speaker 1: love you and we're believing that this is going to

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Speaker 1: be your best year so far. If you're ever in

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Speaker 1: our area, I hope you'll stop by and be a

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Speaker 1: part of one of our services. These are the finest

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Speaker 1: people in all of Houston right here at Lakewood, and

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Speaker 1: we'd love to have you come out sometime. But thanks

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Speaker 1: for tuning in today. I like to start with something funny,

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Speaker 1: and I heard about this new pasture. He was in

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Speaker 1: town going from house to house inviting people to come

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Speaker 1: to church. He knocked on this one door and he

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Speaker 1: could tell somebody was home, but nobody would answer. So

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Speaker 1: he took his business card out and he wrote the

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Speaker 1: scripture reference Revelation three twenty and left it there in

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Speaker 1: the door. The next Sunday after service and Usher handed

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Speaker 1: him the same card and under that reference was Genesis

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Speaker 1: three ten. Here's what they say the pastor's words, Revelation

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Speaker 1: three twenty. Behold, I stand at the door, knock. If

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Speaker 1: anyone answers, I will come in. The reply was Genesis

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Speaker 1: three ten. It says I heard your voice, but I

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Speaker 1: was afraid because I was naked. Hold up your Bible.

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Speaker 1: Say it like you mean it. This is my Bible.

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Speaker 1: I am what it says I am. I have what

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Speaker 1: it says I have. I can do what it says

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Speaker 1: I can do. Today I will be taught the word

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Speaker 1: of God. I boldly confess. My mind is alert, my

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Speaker 1: heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus' name,

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Speaker 1: God bless you. I want to talk to you today

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Speaker 1: about thriving and not just surviving. It's easy to get

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Speaker 1: into a survival mode when times get tough and things

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Speaker 1: aren't going our way. It's tempting to just hunker down

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Speaker 1: and settle where we are, not believe for increase, not

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Speaker 1: believed to go any further. If you watch the news

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Speaker 1: reports long enough about the economy and the price of

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Speaker 1: gas and how groceries are going up, it's tempting to think,

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Speaker 1: if I can just hold on, if I can just

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Speaker 1: make it through another year, and if we're not careful,

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Speaker 1: we'll develop this survival mentality to where we're not releasing

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Speaker 1: our faith. We're not believing to rise any higher. We're

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Speaker 1: just hoping to maintain. We'd be satisfied if we could

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Speaker 1: just break even, but we're not supposed to break even.

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Speaker 1: We're supposed to break through to a new level, to

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Speaker 1: more of God's favor, to increase, to promotion. I've known

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Speaker 1: people that have been through tough times, maybe a relationship

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Speaker 1: didn't work out, some kind of disappointment, and they never

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Speaker 1: get rid of that survival thinking. I saw somebody wearing

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Speaker 1: a T shirt that said I survived Hurricane Katrina, and

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Speaker 1: I know what they mean. But you can't stay in

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Speaker 1: that survival mode. You kind of feel like you're a

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Speaker 1: victim and the future is going to be so tough.

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Speaker 1: You just got to hold on. Now, you're not a survivor,

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Speaker 1: you are more than a conquer And I realize some

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Speaker 1: seasons are more difficult. Not every season is harvest. Sometimes

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Speaker 1: we go through trying times where it seems like things

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Speaker 1: are drying up and getting a little more challenging. But

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Speaker 1: there's a scripture in Jeremiah that says, if we'll keep

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Speaker 1: the Lord our trust and confidence, God will prosper us

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Speaker 1: even in the desert. He'll prosper us even in difficult times.

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Speaker 1: That means when others are going under, God says, you'll

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Speaker 1: go over. When other people are losing clients, business is slow,

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Speaker 1: God's bringing you new clients. When companies are laying people off.

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Speaker 1: God's opening up supernatural doors for you. When other people

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Speaker 1: are pulling back, worried, afraid. We're pushing forward in faith, believing,

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Speaker 1: expecting good. That's what it means to have a thriving mentality.

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Speaker 1: Deep down, we know, even when we're in the desert,

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Speaker 1: even when things are slow financially, even when we get

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Speaker 1: a negative report, God is still on the throne. Our

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Speaker 1: job is not our source. The economy is not our source.

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Speaker 1: We know God is our source. And in one sense,

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Speaker 1: it doesn't really matter what the stock market does or

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Speaker 1: does it do. Doesn't matter how high the price of

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Speaker 1: gas goes. God always has the final safe. If gas

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Speaker 1: goes to ten dollars a gallon, that just means God's

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Speaker 1: going to bless us in a greater way. David said,

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Speaker 1: I've never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging

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Speaker 1: for bread for Some of you have been talked into

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Speaker 1: having this survival thinking you've watched so many news reports

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Speaker 1: it's so bad, how I may ever go make it? Now?

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Speaker 1: I want to talk you into thriving and not just surviving. Now,

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Speaker 1: realize we need to be wise and use wisdom them

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Speaker 1: with what God has given us. But I don't believe

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Speaker 1: we're supposed to pull back till where we're not pursuing

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Speaker 1: our dreams anymore. We're not expecting increase, we're not believing

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Speaker 1: for favor. We're just trying to hold on. We're just

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Speaker 1: trying to maintain. No, that's a survival mentality. It may

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Speaker 1: be difficult, and at times you wonder how it's all

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Speaker 1: going to work out, But just remember this, as God

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Speaker 1: took the five loaves and the two fish and multiplied

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Speaker 1: it to feed thousands of people. God can multiply what

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Speaker 1: you have. He can multiply your time and help you

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Speaker 1: to get more done. He can multiply your wisdom and

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Speaker 1: help you to make better decisions. God can multiply our

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Speaker 1: finances and cause them to go further. This may sound

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Speaker 1: kind of far out, but God can cause your car

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Speaker 1: to get better gas mileage. He can cause you to

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Speaker 1: stay out of those traffic gems. God can help you

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Speaker 1: find the best deals at the stores, to find things

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Speaker 1: that are on sale that are usually never on sale.

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Speaker 1: God is in complete control. When times get tough, don't

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Speaker 1: hunk her down think oh, it's so bad if I

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Speaker 1: can just hold on make it through another year. No,

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Speaker 1: dig your heels in and say I'm not going to

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Speaker 1: just survive. I'm gonna thrive. I'm going to prosper in

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Speaker 1: spite of this difficulty. I was talking to a young

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Speaker 1: lady the other day and she told how she had

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Speaker 1: struggled in her marriage for a long time. She had

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Speaker 1: done her best to keep it together, but it just

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Speaker 1: didn't work out. She said, Joel, well, at least I survived.

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Speaker 1: She was happy that she had made it through, but

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Speaker 1: I could tell that had taken the wind out of

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Speaker 1: her cels. She's a beautiful girl, but she had lost

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Speaker 1: her fire, lost that sparkle in her eyes. I told

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Speaker 1: her what I'm telling you. You made it through, but

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Speaker 1: you can't keep that survival mentality. God has new seasons

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Speaker 1: in front of you. He has new doors he wants

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Speaker 1: to open. He wants the next part of your life

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Speaker 1: to be better than the first part. But you can't

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Speaker 1: make the mistake of just settling where you are and thinking, oh,

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Speaker 1: I've been through so much, I'm just glad to be

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Speaker 1: where I am. Now, that's a survival mentality that'll keep

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Speaker 1: you from God's best. You've got to shake that survival

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Speaker 1: mentality off and say, God, you promised what was meant

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Speaker 1: from my harm you would use to my advantage. Now.

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Speaker 1: I may have been through the fire, through the famine,

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Speaker 1: through the flood, but I know it's my time for favor.

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Speaker 1: It's my time to see more of your goodness in

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Speaker 1: my life. We have to have a made up mind

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Speaker 1: that no matter what comes our way, no matter how difficult,

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Speaker 1: no matter how unfair, we are not going to just

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Speaker 1: survive it. We're going to thrive in spite of it. Hell, Joel,

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Speaker 1: I've been through so much. You're exactly right. You've been

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Speaker 1: through it. You didn't stay there. This is a new day.

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Speaker 1: You're not a survivor. You are an overcomer. Well, Joel,

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Speaker 1: what about the economy, Well, let me ask you what

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Speaker 1: about our God. He's still on throne. The good news

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Speaker 1: is there is not a recession in heaven. God has

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Speaker 1: not had to cut back because of high gas prices.

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Speaker 1: He's not having a shortage of food and supplies. I'm

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Speaker 1: happy to report that all is well. Here's the key.

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Speaker 1: As long as our source is okay, we're gonna be okay.

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Speaker 1: If we'll just stay connected to the vine, keeping God first,

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Speaker 1: believing and expecting for his favor. Then as his branch is,

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Speaker 1: we're not going to just survive. We're going to thrive.

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Speaker 1: But you have to keep your faith out there. There

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Speaker 1: are so many negative voices trying to steal our dreams

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Speaker 1: and talk us into settling where we are. If you

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Speaker 1: let those words take root, you'll start acting on them.

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Speaker 1: When you act on them, that's your faith at work.

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Speaker 1: You can bring it to pass. In other words, if

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Speaker 1: you expect to have less, and expect to barely get by,

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Speaker 1: and expect to have a tough year, your faith can

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Speaker 1: draw that in. I want you to start expecting God

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Speaker 1: to increase you in a greater way. Start expecting this

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Speaker 1: to be your best year so far. Really, it's not

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Speaker 1: that impressive for us to be blessed and promoted. When

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Speaker 1: the economy's strong, business is great, and everybody around us

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Speaker 1: is being blessed. People can say that's just the benefit

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Speaker 1: of good times. That's just the benefit of a strong economy.

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Speaker 1: They can make excuses for it. But when times are

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Speaker 1: tough and every other news report talks about how bad

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Speaker 1: it is and how we're not supposed to make it,

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Speaker 1: and yet God shows up and does something unusual and extraordinary,

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Speaker 1: that's a greater testimony to the faithfulness of our God.

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Speaker 1: When God prospers you in the desert and people see

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Speaker 1: you increasing even though they're stuck, that's when they'll know

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Speaker 1: it makes a difference to serve the most high God.

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Speaker 1: We knew this man. He was a very successful business person.

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Speaker 1: He owned hundreds and hundreds of acres of orange crops,

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Speaker 1: and during this one particular winter, it was predicted to

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Speaker 1: be a hard freeze that was very unusual. It never

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Speaker 1: froze in that part of the country, and he knew

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Speaker 1: if that happened it would destroy all of his crops,

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Speaker 1: cost him thousands and thousands of dollars. And this man

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Speaker 1: was kind of far out. He believed that God could

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Speaker 1: do anything. So he went out and marched around his

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Speaker 1: orange trees and he said, God, I'm asking you to

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Speaker 1: protect my crops and keep them from freezing. Well, When

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Speaker 1: his friends heard about it, they thought he was so

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Speaker 1: strange that that was so odd. The next morning, the

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Speaker 1: big freeze came in lasted a little over twenty four hours.

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Speaker 1: Those other farmers were so discouraged trying to figure out

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Speaker 1: how they were going to survive, knowing that the crops

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Speaker 1: were going to be destroyed. This other man, he just

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Speaker 1: kept thanking God that he was protecting his crops. Several

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Speaker 1: days later, it was the most unusual sight. His property,

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Speaker 1: hundreds and hundreds of acres, had the most beautiful, healthy

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Speaker 1: orange trees, but the properties around him, on all four sides,

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Speaker 1: their trees were just as dead as could be. It

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Speaker 1: looked like somebody to put a big blanket over his property.

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Speaker 1: Those other farmers were amazed. Instead of making fun of him,

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Speaker 1: they said, next time, do us a favor. Pray over

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Speaker 1: our crops as well. Friends. God is well able to

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Speaker 1: take care of us. He can prosper us even in

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Speaker 1: the desert, if we'll just be bold enough to believe

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Speaker 1: it says, no weapon formed against you will prosper. That

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Speaker 1: means things may come, disappointments, set backs, bad reports, but

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Speaker 1: we don't have to get all down and go into

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Speaker 1: that survival mode. Now, let's stay in faith and believe

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Speaker 1: that God will supernaturally protect us, that we'll see his

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Speaker 1: unprecedented favor. Maybe you're trying to sell your house. No

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Speaker 1: other houses in the neighborhood are really selling. Why don't

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Speaker 1: you be bold like this man and believe for favor.

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Speaker 1: Won't you be bold and march around your property and say, God,

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Speaker 1: I know I'm not supposed to survive. I'm supposed to thrive,

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Speaker 1: So I'm asking that your favor would cause my house

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Speaker 1: to stand out. Maybe business is slow, other people in

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Speaker 1: your same field are really struggling. Well, you've got to

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Speaker 1: start thanking God that he's bringing you new clients, that

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Speaker 1: he's given you new ideas, that he's opening up supernatural doors.

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Speaker 1: I was reading a report the other day and it

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Speaker 1: told how giving to nonprofit organizations and different charities is

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Speaker 1: down nearly twenty five percent this year. And when I

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Speaker 1: read that, instead of getting discouraged and thinking, aw Man

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Speaker 1: is probably coming our way, we're probably going to be down. No,

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Speaker 1: I said, Father, I want to thank you that we're

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Speaker 1: going to have our best year so far. I want

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Speaker 1: to thank you that every person that gives will see

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Speaker 1: your supernatural favor supernatural increase, You might as well get

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Speaker 1: ready for promotion, for divine connections, for supernatural breaks, to

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Speaker 1: have your best here so far, to thrive, not just survive.

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Speaker 1: I was thinking about my sister Lison her husband Kevin.

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Speaker 1: Years ago. They wanted to sell their house, and they

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Speaker 1: asked God that it would sell quickly. Most houses in

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Speaker 1: that neighborhood were taken anywhere from three months to a

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Speaker 1: year to sell. They couldn't really close on their new

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Speaker 1: house unless they sold this other house, and so they

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Speaker 1: prayed and ask God that it would sell fast and

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Speaker 1: that they would get close to what they were asking

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Speaker 1: for it. The first day the house went on the market.

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Speaker 1: That morning, a lady came over and said, I'll buy it,

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Speaker 1: and if you'll take it off the market, I'll pay

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Speaker 1: you more than you have it listed for. That's unprecedented favor.

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Speaker 1: God is not limited to the economy. He's not limited

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Speaker 1: to what's going on around us. He's only limited by

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Speaker 1: our own thinking. That's why it's so important that we

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Speaker 1: don't get into this survival mode thinking my business can

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Speaker 1: expand the economies too slow, I'll never sell my house.

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Speaker 1: No houses are selling, I'll never get a promotion this year, Joel,

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Speaker 1: of all years, nobody is spending. Everybody's cutting back. No,

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Speaker 1: that's when God especially likes to show up and show out.

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Speaker 1: God likes to do the extraordinary. That way, it brings

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Speaker 1: him more honor when we go around saying, look what

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Speaker 1: the Lord has done. I sold my house when no

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Speaker 1: other houses were selling. My crops were protected when everybody

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Speaker 1: else's were freezing. I had my best year when people

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Speaker 1: were trying to tell me it's going to be my

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Speaker 1: slowest year. There's nothing that brings God any more honor

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Speaker 1: than we go around bragging on his goodness. And I

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Speaker 1: want you to get ready for God to show up

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Speaker 1: and show out in your life in a greater way.

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Speaker 1: God wants to do the what extraordinary. He wants to

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Speaker 1: make you an example of his goodness. I remember how

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Speaker 1: for years my father tried to build a new sanctuary

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Speaker 1: at our other location, but he just couldn't get peace

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Speaker 1: about it. Every time he got excited and he thought

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Speaker 1: about starting, he would pull back, knowing that it wasn't

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Speaker 1: the right time. And in nineteen eighty six, the city

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Speaker 1: of Houston was in one of the greatest recessions it's

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Speaker 1: ever seen. All kinds of businesses were going bankrupt. People

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Speaker 1: were really struggling. My father had just gotten out of

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Speaker 1: the hospital after having open heart surgery just a few

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Speaker 1: weeks before Christmas. It looked like the worst time in

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Speaker 1: the world to start a new project, the worst time

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Speaker 1: to try to raise funds. My father wasn't even totally recovered,

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Speaker 1: he was still weak from that surgery. But down in

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Speaker 1: here he believed it was the right time. He felt

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Speaker 1: good about it. He told how he even argued with God, said, God,

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Speaker 1: this doesn't make sense. Are struggling. It's close to Christmas.

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Speaker 1: They're spending money on their own families. How are we

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Speaker 1: ever going to raise these finances. God spoke back to him,

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Speaker 1: not out loud, but right down in here, and said, son,

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Speaker 1: I want you to start now, so people will know

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Speaker 1: it's me and not anybody else. They started the project

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Speaker 1: that year, and a little less than two years later

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Speaker 1: we dedicated Debt Free, a brand new eight thousand seat sanctuary.

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Speaker 1: God prospered us even in the desert. Nobody could doubt

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Speaker 1: that had to be the hand of Almighty God. If

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Speaker 1: he did it for us back then, he can do

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Speaker 1: it for us today. But my father could have easily

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Speaker 1: got into that survival mode, listened to the news reports.

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Speaker 1: We better pull back this in the right time. If

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Speaker 1: he'd have done that, he would have missed out on

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Speaker 1: God's goodness. If you believe to barely get by, you're

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Speaker 1: gonna barely get by. If you believe to have a

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Speaker 1: tough year, you're gonna have a tough year. Your faith

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Speaker 1: is going to draw that in. I want you to

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Speaker 1: start believing that you are blessed, not that you're going

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Speaker 1: to be blessed, but that you are already blessed. Start

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Speaker 1: believing that God's favor is surrounding you in a greater way.

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Speaker 1: You say, Joel, I don't really feel blessed. I don't

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Speaker 1: feel like I have favor. I never get any good breaks.

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Speaker 1: This is what faith is all about. You've got to

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Speaker 1: believe it before you see it. You need to start

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Speaker 1: acting like you're blessed. Start talking like you're blessed, Start

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Speaker 1: thinking like you're blessed, Start dressing like you're blessed, Start

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Speaker 1: walking like you're blessed. Start being good to people like

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Speaker 1: your blessed. That's your faith at work. You're gonna draw

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Speaker 1: in the goodness and favor of God and that's a

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Speaker 1: whole lot better than going around thinking, Oh, man, I

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Speaker 1: hope I make it. Beryl of oil went up five

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Speaker 1: dollars last night while I was sleep and how could

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Speaker 1: that be? Have you seen the price of groceries? No

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Speaker 1: quit talking about the problem. If you have a poor mouth,

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Speaker 1: you're gonna have poor life. Gas may be high, but

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Speaker 1: the good news is we're still connected to the viney.

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Speaker 1: Insurance may have gone up, but God is still on

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Speaker 1: the throne. Your dreams may require more resources than you

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Speaker 1: have right now, but God owns it all. Let's stay

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Speaker 1: in faith and make a decision. We're gonna thrive, not

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Speaker 1: just survive. I talked to this lady that lived in

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Speaker 1: another state. She's in the real estate business. She told

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Speaker 1: how the housing market there is really depressed and her

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Speaker 1: coworkers are really struggling. Everybody's worried. But she said, Joe,

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Speaker 1: it's the most unusual thing. My cells this year are

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Speaker 1: three times what they were last year, and it seems

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Speaker 1: like every time I turn around, I sell another house.

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Speaker 1: I grabbed her hand and said, give me some of

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Speaker 1: that favor. That's what God said. He would prosper us

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Speaker 1: even in the desert. He would cause us to go

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Speaker 1: over even when others are stuck in a rut. Too

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Speaker 1: many people have this survival mentality. Well, I survived another month,

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Speaker 1: Thank god, I survived another year. Now, that's good. But

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Speaker 1: surviving is not God's best. You need to switch over

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Speaker 1: from a surviving mentality to a thriving mentality. It's a mindset.

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Speaker 1: I met this couple that had gone through Hurricane Katrina

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Speaker 1: not long ago. They had lost everything their home. They'd

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Speaker 1: moved here to town and found some temporary housing, and

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Speaker 1: I could tell they were still in this survival mode.

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Speaker 1: They weren't believing to get a nice new place to live,

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Speaker 1: they weren't believing to rise any higher. They were just

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Speaker 1: grateful that they had made it through another month. And

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Speaker 1: I knew I had to jump start their faith. And

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Speaker 1: her reminded them God has promised that he will pay

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Speaker 1: you back double for every unfair thing that's happened. God

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Speaker 1: said he will bring you out better off than you

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Speaker 1: were before. But you've got to shake off that survival mentality.

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Speaker 1: Get in agreement with God. You may have been through disappointments,

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Speaker 1: you may be in a tough time right now, but

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Speaker 1: you need to dig your heels in and say it's

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Speaker 1: payback time. I know my God is a God of restoration,

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Speaker 1: and I believe it's my time for favor. I may

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Speaker 1: be in the desert right now, but I know God

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Speaker 1: can prosper me even in the desert. All the odds

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Speaker 1: may be against me, but I know if God be

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Speaker 1: for me, who dare be against me. You've got to understand,

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Speaker 1: as a child of the Most High God, as long

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Speaker 1: as you are walking in His ways, then you have

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Speaker 1: the blessing of God on your life. That means wherever

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Speaker 1: you go, the blessing goes. You can be out in

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Speaker 1: the desert and God's going to cause you to be blessed.

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Speaker 1: You can be working at an office with negative people,

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Speaker 1: with people that complain, but when you get there, the

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Speaker 1: blessing gets there. Really, that company should be glad to

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Speaker 1: have you, because you bring the blessing, You bring God's favor.

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Speaker 1: This is what happened to Abraham. He and his nephew

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Speaker 1: Lot had moved with all of their family and all

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Speaker 1: their flocks and herds to a new land, but they

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Speaker 1: soon realized the land was not able to support them both,

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Speaker 1: and so Abraham, being the bigger person, told Lot, you

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Speaker 1: choose wherever you want to live, and I'll go in

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Speaker 1: a different direction. Well, Lot chose the best part of

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Speaker 1: the land, the land that had the lush, green pastures,

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Speaker 1: beautiful ponds, rolling hills. It looked like a postcard. All

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Speaker 1: Abraham had left over was the desert. It was rocks

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Speaker 1: and sand, dry and desolate. I'm sure at first Abraham

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Speaker 1: was tempted to think, Man, if I can just survive

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Speaker 1: out here, God, how am I ever gonna make it?

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Speaker 1: There's not enough water, not enough supplies. How is this

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Speaker 1: ever gonna work out? No, Abraham understood this principle. He

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Speaker 1: knew as long as he was being his best, as

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Speaker 1: long as he was honoring God, then wherever he went,

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Speaker 1: the blessing of God went. He knew, even if he

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Speaker 1: was in the desert, even if there were not enough

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Speaker 1: supplies in the natural, God could still cause him not

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Speaker 1: to just get by, not to just survive, but to

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Speaker 1: prosper and to have more than enough. It wasn't long

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Speaker 1: before that desert turned into an oasis. In fact, his

383
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Speaker 1: crops and his herds multiplied so much the scripture says

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Speaker 1: Abraham was the wealthiest man in all the East. What's

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Speaker 1: interesting is Lot wasn't walking in God's ways, he didn't

386
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Speaker 1: have God's favor, and his land began to dry up.

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Speaker 1: Abraham eventually had to go rescue Lot. And that tells

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Speaker 1: me that when people do us wrong, when somebody cheat

389
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Speaker 1: you out of a promotion, somebody plays politics to get

390
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Speaker 1: the position you should have had, don't worry about it.

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Speaker 1: Where you are is where the blessing is. You can

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Speaker 1: be stranded on a deserted, remote island and let me

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Speaker 1: tell you you're going to be blessed because when you got there,

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Speaker 1: the blessing got there. And this is what happened to Joseph.

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Speaker 1: Everywhere they put him, he just kept rising to the top.

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Speaker 1: His brothers threw him into the pit, he rose up

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Speaker 1: out of the pit. He was sold into slavery to

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Speaker 1: a man named Potiphar. Potiphar put him in charge of

399
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Speaker 1: his whole household. He was falsely accused and put in prison.

400
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Speaker 1: The officials put him in charge of the whole prison.

401
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Speaker 1: He stood before Pharah and was able to interpret his dreams.

402
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Speaker 1: Pharah put him in charge of the whole country. You

403
00:23:28,640 --> 00:23:32,560
Speaker 1: cannot keep a good person down. It's because when you

404
00:23:32,600 --> 00:23:35,760
Speaker 1: honor God with your life, when you're a person of

405
00:23:35,800 --> 00:23:40,359
Speaker 1: excellence and integrity. You have the blessing of God, and

406
00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:43,280
Speaker 1: wherever you go, just like cream, you go rise to

407
00:23:43,359 --> 00:23:46,680
Speaker 1: the top. You need to put your shoulders back, hold

408
00:23:46,720 --> 00:23:50,160
Speaker 1: your head up high, not in arrogance, but in confidence,

409
00:23:50,520 --> 00:23:54,160
Speaker 1: knowing that wherever you go you're taking something very special.

410
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Speaker 1: When you go to work next week, you go to

411
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Speaker 1: the grocery store, go to the ballpark. Just remind yourself

412
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Speaker 1: when I got here the blessing God here. God wants

413
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Speaker 1: us to be so blessed that when other people see us,

414
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Speaker 1: they want what we have. Back in those days, they

415
00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:16,679
Speaker 1: prayed to the God of Abraham. Their attitude was, Abraham

416
00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:21,879
Speaker 1: has so much favor. He's so kind, so generous, so peaceful,

417
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Speaker 1: so blessed. If we can just get to his God,

418
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Speaker 1: we know that everything will be all right. That's what

419
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Speaker 1: I want people to say about us. If we can

420
00:24:31,119 --> 00:24:34,360
Speaker 1: just get to the God of those people at Lakewood,

421
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Speaker 1: if we can just get to the God of Jim,

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Speaker 1: the God of Susan, the God of Jeremy, Everything's gonna

423
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Speaker 1: work out. Like Abraham. You may not be at a

424
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Speaker 1: perfect place today. You may not have a perfect marriage,

425
00:24:47,840 --> 00:24:52,080
Speaker 1: a perfect job, being a perfect neighborhood. But remember, your

426
00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:57,120
Speaker 1: location doesn't determine the blessing. Other people don't determine your favor.

427
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Speaker 1: God does. And the fact is when you got there,

428
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Speaker 1: the blessing got there. You may not always feel like it.

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Speaker 1: That's why it's so important that you continually remind yourself

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Speaker 1: that I am blessed. Goodness and mercy are following me

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00:25:11,160 --> 00:25:14,560
Speaker 1: right now. God's favor is surrounding me like a shield.

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Speaker 1: He prospers me even in the desert. Some of you

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00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:21,240
Speaker 1: have been in the survival mode too long, but I

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Speaker 1: believe today can be a turning point if you'll get

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Speaker 1: in agreement with God. I'll just declare it. Your days

436
00:25:27,800 --> 00:25:31,800
Speaker 1: of survival are over and your days of thriving have begun.

437
00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:34,399
Speaker 1: I want you to go out of here in faith,

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Speaker 1: knowing that God has great things in your future. You

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00:25:38,359 --> 00:25:40,919
Speaker 1: may have been through disappointments, you may be in a

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00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:43,760
Speaker 1: tough time right now, but deep down, you've got to

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00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:47,800
Speaker 1: know you were never created to survive. You were created

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00:25:47,840 --> 00:25:52,080
Speaker 1: to thrive. Get up every morning and remind yourself wherever

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Speaker 1: I go, the blessing of God goes. I'm blessed on

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00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:59,160
Speaker 1: the freeways, and I'm blessed on the side streets. I'm

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00:25:59,200 --> 00:26:02,000
Speaker 1: blessed at home, and I'm blessed in my office. I'm

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00:26:02,040 --> 00:26:04,560
Speaker 1: blessed in the city, and I'm blessed in the country.

447
00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:07,159
Speaker 1: I'm blessed in the projects, and I'm blessed in the

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00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:11,119
Speaker 1: nice neighborhoods. I'm even blessed in the desert, blessed in

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00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:14,520
Speaker 1: the hospital, blessed when people do me wrong. I just

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00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:17,480
Speaker 1: can't get away from the blessing of God. If you

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00:26:17,600 --> 00:26:21,280
Speaker 1: have that kind of attitude, nothing will hold you back.

452
00:26:22,119 --> 00:26:25,879
Speaker 1: God will amaze you with his goodness. I talked to

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00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:28,840
Speaker 1: somebody last week. I knew he was having tough times,

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00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:30,919
Speaker 1: and I asked how it was going. I love the

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00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:34,280
Speaker 1: way he answered. He said, Joel, I'm too blessed to

456
00:26:34,359 --> 00:26:37,480
Speaker 1: be stressed. I like that. That's the way we need

457
00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:40,480
Speaker 1: to be. I'm too blessed to be worried. I'm too

458
00:26:40,520 --> 00:26:43,360
Speaker 1: blessed to be negative. I'm too blessed to be upset.

459
00:26:43,600 --> 00:26:47,280
Speaker 1: I've seen God do too many great things, says They're

460
00:26:47,280 --> 00:26:50,719
Speaker 1: in Psalm chapter one, verse three. If we'll keep God first,

461
00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:54,280
Speaker 1: we'll be like a tree planted by the waters, and

462
00:26:54,480 --> 00:26:59,760
Speaker 1: our relief will not wither. The message translation says, you

463
00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:04,520
Speaker 1: will be a person that is always in blossom. I

464
00:27:04,600 --> 00:27:07,360
Speaker 1: believe that's who I'm looking at today, people that are

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00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:12,040
Speaker 1: continually in blossom. That means you're always happy, You've always

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00:27:12,119 --> 00:27:15,080
Speaker 1: got a good report, You've got a smile even when

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00:27:15,119 --> 00:27:17,959
Speaker 1: you should be complaining. You've got a song of praise,

468
00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:21,119
Speaker 1: even when times are tough. You are prospering even in

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00:27:21,160 --> 00:27:24,199
Speaker 1: the desert. Why is that? Because deep down you know

470
00:27:24,640 --> 00:27:28,080
Speaker 1: everywhere you go you have the blessing of God. Why

471
00:27:28,080 --> 00:27:30,560
Speaker 1: don't you make that decision with me today? You're gonna

472
00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:34,200
Speaker 1: shake off a survival mentality. You're not gonna pull back,

473
00:27:34,600 --> 00:27:37,760
Speaker 1: hunker down, just try to hold on. Let's dig our

474
00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,560
Speaker 1: heels in and say I am not going to just survive.

475
00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:44,080
Speaker 1: This is my year to thrive. If you'll do that,

476
00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:47,359
Speaker 1: God's gonna prosper you in the desert. He'll amaze you,

477
00:27:47,480 --> 00:27:50,439
Speaker 1: He'll make you an example of his goodness. And I

478
00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:52,639
Speaker 1: believe every one of us are gonna be able to

479
00:27:52,640 --> 00:27:55,479
Speaker 1: look back and say, Wow, God has done great things

480
00:27:55,520 --> 00:27:59,040
Speaker 1: in my life. Amen. Do you receive that today? Amen?

481
00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:04,600
Speaker 1: You do. Many people believe that God can heal, but

482
00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:07,880
Speaker 1: when nothing is improving, our prayers are not being answered.

483
00:28:08,160 --> 00:28:11,520
Speaker 1: It's easy to think, will God heal me? The truth

484
00:28:11,640 --> 00:28:15,320
Speaker 1: is God still loves to heal. I've witnessed God's healing

485
00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:19,960
Speaker 1: power firsthand in my own family. When situations seemed impossible

486
00:28:20,000 --> 00:28:23,360
Speaker 1: and medically speaking, there were no options, God stepped in

487
00:28:23,480 --> 00:28:25,760
Speaker 1: and made away. Now I love to send you our

488
00:28:25,800 --> 00:28:29,159
Speaker 1: new devotional, God Still Loves to Heal. It's filled with

489
00:28:29,200 --> 00:28:33,040
Speaker 1: scripture and encouragement designed to strengthen your faith and help

490
00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:36,160
Speaker 1: you believe for healing even when you can't see it.

491
00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:39,680
Speaker 1: God is still working. As you stand firm and declare

492
00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:42,920
Speaker 1: his promises, healing is on the way. The same God

493
00:28:42,960 --> 00:28:45,840
Speaker 1: who healed in the Bible is still healing today.

494
00:28:46,680 --> 00:28:49,920
Speaker 2: Your generous support is so important to help us share

495
00:28:50,000 --> 00:28:52,600
Speaker 2: the message of hope, and as our way of saying

496
00:28:52,640 --> 00:28:55,720
Speaker 2: thank you for your gift of any amount, Pastor Joel

497
00:28:55,760 --> 00:28:58,120
Speaker 2: would like to send you a copy of God Still

498
00:28:58,200 --> 00:29:02,600
Speaker 2: Loves to Heal seventy days to receive, reflect and rest

499
00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:06,719
Speaker 2: in the finished work of God. This new seasonal devotional

500
00:29:06,880 --> 00:29:09,600
Speaker 2: will guide you through a weekly rhythm where you'll be

501
00:29:09,760 --> 00:29:13,640
Speaker 2: encouraged by life changing insight that will strengthen and encourage

502
00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:17,840
Speaker 2: you in your faith. Jesus cares about you physically, mentally,

503
00:29:18,040 --> 00:29:22,680
Speaker 2: and emotionally. He forgives us, delivers us, and he heals

504
00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:27,040
Speaker 2: us and makes us whole. With this inspiring devotional resource,

505
00:29:27,240 --> 00:29:30,680
Speaker 2: you'll go on a healing journey. You'll enter into God's

506
00:29:30,760 --> 00:29:35,680
Speaker 2: rest and restoration knowing his promises are true. Yesterday, today,

507
00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:39,960
Speaker 2: and forever. Receive your copy of this powerful new book

508
00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:44,240
Speaker 2: and experience God's goodness and healing power. Be sure to

509
00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:47,880
Speaker 2: request your copy of God Still Loves to Heal available

510
00:29:47,920 --> 00:29:51,680
Speaker 2: this month by simply visiting us at Joelostein dot com

511
00:29:52,040 --> 00:29:55,200
Speaker 2: or call eight eight eight five six seven Joel.

512
00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:59,959
Speaker 1: My mother was miraculously heal from terminal cancer. Let's just

513
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:02,760
Speaker 1: if Lisa was healed from a birth injury similar to

514
00:30:02,800 --> 00:30:05,920
Speaker 1: cerebral palsy. What God did for us, he can do

515
00:30:06,040 --> 00:30:08,040
Speaker 1: for you. Nick, Tory and I are going to be

516
00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:11,400
Speaker 1: praying for you this month, especially for healing for you

517
00:30:11,480 --> 00:30:15,800
Speaker 1: and your family, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally,

518
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:19,840
Speaker 1: that you will be completely whole. We appreciate your prayer

519
00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:24,160
Speaker 1: and support. Your generosity is impacting people around the world,

520
00:30:24,240 --> 00:30:27,080
Speaker 1: and special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners

521
00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:30,240
Speaker 1: for all you do to make the ministry possible until

522
00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:33,320
Speaker 1: we meet again. May the Lord bless you and keep you.

523
00:30:34,000 --> 00:30:36,920
Speaker 2: Be sure to request your copy of God Still Loves

524
00:30:36,960 --> 00:30:40,479
Speaker 2: to Heal available this month by simply visiting us at

525
00:30:40,560 --> 00:30:44,479
Speaker 2: Joeloasting dot com or call eight eight eight five six

526
00:30:44,640 --> 00:30:48,440
Speaker 2: seven Joel, and you can fill your year with strength,

527
00:30:48,640 --> 00:30:52,520
Speaker 2: peace and encouragement with the Healing and Wholeness Collection. It

528
00:30:52,560 --> 00:30:55,960
Speaker 2: features God's Word for every season, a guided four part

529
00:30:56,040 --> 00:30:59,080
Speaker 2: journal series to help anchor your heart to his promises,

530
00:30:59,280 --> 00:31:02,000
Speaker 2: plus God Still Loves to Heal, and the blessing of

531
00:31:02,040 --> 00:31:06,600
Speaker 2: taking communion together. They'll strengthen your faith, renew your hope,

532
00:31:06,800 --> 00:31:10,480
Speaker 2: and remind you that Jesus still heals and restores. Today.

533
00:31:11,120 --> 00:31:14,800
Speaker 2: You can request these inspiring resources by calling eight A

534
00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:19,040
Speaker 2: eight five six seven Joel or logging on to Joelostein

535
00:31:19,160 --> 00:31:23,440
Speaker 2: dot com today call or click anytime twenty four hours

536
00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:29,960
Speaker 2: a day. Request your copies today