WEBVTT - Under Construction 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:02.880 No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.040 Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:07.760 in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.360 you could unlock insights about your finances in less than 0:00:10.360 --> 0:00:12.840 five minutes, with a clear picture of where you stand 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:15.720 today and where your money can work harder. Now you 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.759 can visit facet dot com to take the free quiz 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:23.400 and get your financial wellness score today. That's Facet dot com. 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:25.360 This ad is sponsored by Facet. Fast Wealth in Corporated 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.280 is an sec registered investment advisor. This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.120 Are you ready to move your career forward? Make your 0:00:33.159 --> 0:00:36.640 comeback with Perdue Global and get college credit for your work, school, life, 0:00:36.720 --> 0:00:39.840 or military experiences. With these credits, you may have already 0:00:39.840 --> 0:00:42.680 completed up to seventy five percent of your undergraduate degree. 0:00:42.720 --> 0:00:44.800 You've worked hard to get where you are. It's time 0:00:44.840 --> 0:00:46.920 to get the recognition you deserve and earn a degree 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:49.600 you'll be proud of, one that employers will trust and 0:00:49.720 --> 0:00:51.840 respect when you take the next step in your life 0:00:51.880 --> 0:00:55.040 and career. Make it count with Perdue Global produce online 0:00:55.120 --> 0:00:59.720 University for working adults. Start your comeback at Purdueglobal dot edu. 0:01:00.240 --> 0:01:02.200 He'll forget about the video game you gave him on 0:01:02.200 --> 0:01:02.800 his birthday. 0:01:03.120 --> 0:01:05.000 Wow, thanks Grandpa, but. 0:01:05.000 --> 0:01:07.200 He'll never forget how you invest it in his future 0:01:07.280 --> 0:01:08.240 with the uns stapp. 0:01:08.760 --> 0:01:10.400 Wow, thanks Grandpa. 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:13.520 The unit stap makes it easy for grandparents and family 0:01:13.600 --> 0:01:16.280 friends to give funds to a child's investment account for 0:01:16.319 --> 0:01:17.080 a limited time. 0:01:17.200 --> 0:01:19.319 Download the uns stap and use the code I heeart 0:01:19.400 --> 0:01:21.680 fifty at sign up to receive a fifty dollars bonus 0:01:21.680 --> 0:01:24.240 when you find your account. That's code iHeart fifty when 0:01:24.240 --> 0:01:27.240 you sign up at unest dot co for a fifty 0:01:27.280 --> 0:01:30.080 dollars bonus. See terms and conditions at UNEs dot co. 0:01:31.000 --> 0:01:34.560 Welcome to the Joe Lostein podcast. Help leu's continue to 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:37.520 share the message of hope with those all over the world. 0:01:37.959 --> 0:01:41.240 Visit Joelostein dot com slash give hope to. 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:51.840 Give a gift today. 0:01:53.840 --> 0:01:54.760 Well, God bless you. 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:57.880 It's a joy to come into your homes and if 0:01:57.880 --> 0:02:00.520 you're ever in our area, please stop buy and be 0:02:00.600 --> 0:02:03.280 a part of one of the services. I promise you 0:02:03.520 --> 0:02:06.440 we'll make you feel right at home. I like to 0:02:06.440 --> 0:02:08.960 start with something funny and I heard about these three 0:02:09.000 --> 0:02:12.359 pastors that were in a boat fishing together one day, 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:15.079 and one of them said, we never get to let 0:02:15.120 --> 0:02:18.240 our hair down. Let's each tell the area that we 0:02:18.320 --> 0:02:19.840 struggle in the most. 0:02:19.720 --> 0:02:21.080 So we can pray for each other. 0:02:21.760 --> 0:02:24.280 First one said, I hate to admit this, but I 0:02:24.320 --> 0:02:27.239 have a problem with gambling. I sneak out a lot 0:02:27.240 --> 0:02:30.440 of nights and go gamble. Second one said I have 0:02:30.480 --> 0:02:33.840 a problem with cheating. I hardly ever pay my taxes. 0:02:34.440 --> 0:02:36.400 The third one just sat there silently. 0:02:36.800 --> 0:02:38.919 They waited, waited, wait, he wouldn't budge. 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:41.320 They said, we're not leaving till you tell us yours. 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:45.280 He said, all right, my greatest sin is with gossiping, and. 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:48.640 I can't wait to get off this boat. Say it 0:02:48.800 --> 0:02:49.440 like you mean it. 0:02:49.800 --> 0:02:52.760 This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 0:02:53.200 --> 0:02:55.440 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:02:55.560 --> 0:02:58.080 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:02:58.160 --> 0:03:02.040 taught the word of God. I boldly confessed. My mind 0:03:02.120 --> 0:03:05.280 is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 0:03:05.400 --> 0:03:10.160 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:03:10.200 --> 0:03:14.160 to talk to you today about under construction. One time 0:03:14.240 --> 0:03:17.480 Victoria and I were building a house. The foundation was 0:03:17.520 --> 0:03:19.920 poured and most of the framing was up. 0:03:20.400 --> 0:03:23.519 The roof was in place, but no shingles. There was 0:03:23.560 --> 0:03:24.480 a big storm. 0:03:24.960 --> 0:03:27.120 It rained on and off for a couple of days. 0:03:27.639 --> 0:03:29.359 When it cleared up, we went. 0:03:29.240 --> 0:03:32.520 Over to check on the house. It was so messy. 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:35.440 The living room was lower than the other rooms. 0:03:35.640 --> 0:03:37.960 It had about a foot of water in it, like 0:03:38.000 --> 0:03:42.920 a dirty swimming pool. Plywood was floating. Workers had tracked 0:03:43.040 --> 0:03:47.560 mud all through the house. Outside, there was trash piled 0:03:47.640 --> 0:03:50.880 high that couldn't be picked up because of all the rain. 0:03:51.360 --> 0:03:53.240 It looked like a disaster. 0:03:53.200 --> 0:03:58.520 Disorganized, things out of place. What's interesting is we didn't say, 0:03:58.920 --> 0:03:59.880 let's stop building. 0:04:00.520 --> 0:04:02.640 This place is so messy. It's never going to be 0:04:02.760 --> 0:04:03.520 what we wanted. 0:04:04.160 --> 0:04:07.200 We knew it was all a part of the process. 0:04:07.920 --> 0:04:12.640 You can't have a beautiful house without rain, mud, sheet rock, dust, 0:04:12.840 --> 0:04:16.479 paint that doesn't smell good. In the same way, you 0:04:16.600 --> 0:04:19.960 have to see the things that are messy in your life, 0:04:20.440 --> 0:04:23.360 the things you struggle with, the things that seem out 0:04:23.400 --> 0:04:27.920 of place. As simply under construction doesn't mean it's not 0:04:27.960 --> 0:04:30.840 going to work out. That water in your living room, 0:04:31.320 --> 0:04:35.839 the disappointment, the betrayal, the delay. You may not like it, 0:04:36.240 --> 0:04:38.520 but it's all a part of the process. 0:04:38.839 --> 0:04:40.240 You're under construction. 0:04:40.960 --> 0:04:44.520 You can't become all you were created to be without 0:04:44.560 --> 0:04:49.760 some messy places. To the untrained eye, a construction site 0:04:50.080 --> 0:04:54.880 can look disorganized, random, but to the architect, it's no 0:04:54.960 --> 0:04:55.480 big deal. 0:04:56.040 --> 0:04:58.359 They're not worried. They drew the plans. 0:04:58.560 --> 0:05:02.839 They know exactly where it's go Your architect is the 0:05:02.920 --> 0:05:07.440 most high God. He's designed a specific plan for your life. 0:05:07.880 --> 0:05:12.680 The good news is the messy places can't stop your destiny. 0:05:12.839 --> 0:05:17.080 The delays, the things you don't understand, even the mistakes 0:05:17.120 --> 0:05:21.440 you've made, He's already taken them into account. You may 0:05:21.480 --> 0:05:24.240 not see how your dream could ever work out. You 0:05:24.279 --> 0:05:28.039 feel like you're stuck. God is saying you're right on schedule. 0:05:28.480 --> 0:05:31.800 You're not a finished product. I'm still working on you. 0:05:32.200 --> 0:05:36.120 What I started I'm going to bring to completion. The 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:40.280 accuser will whisper not you. You have too many flaws, too 0:05:40.360 --> 0:05:43.840 many weaknesses. You've made, too many mistakes. Just remind him 0:05:44.160 --> 0:05:48.000 I'm under construction. I may have some messy places, but 0:05:48.080 --> 0:05:52.320 God's not finished with me. Paul said in Ephesians, you 0:05:52.360 --> 0:05:53.560 are a masterpiece. 0:05:54.360 --> 0:05:56.159 You may not be there quite yet. 0:05:56.760 --> 0:05:59.920 But instead of beating yourself up living with that next 0:06:00.000 --> 0:06:04.159 negative recording, how you don't measure up. Our attitude should 0:06:04.200 --> 0:06:06.640 be I'm a masterpiece in the making. 0:06:07.520 --> 0:06:08.360 Will you still. 0:06:08.120 --> 0:06:11.440 Struggle with that addiction? Yes, but I know a secret. 0:06:11.680 --> 0:06:15.760 I'm under construction. God's still working on me. You still 0:06:15.839 --> 0:06:19.400 have the temper, you still say things that you shouldn't. Yes, 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:22.920 but I'm better than I was last year. I'm growing, 0:06:23.400 --> 0:06:26.480 I'm coming up higher, and I know this what God 0:06:26.560 --> 0:06:30.159 started He's going to finish. You have to look beyond 0:06:30.200 --> 0:06:34.800 the mess and see the masterpiece. God told Abraham that 0:06:34.880 --> 0:06:37.880 he was going to have a son and become the father. 0:06:37.760 --> 0:06:40.000 Of many nations. But he and his. 0:06:39.920 --> 0:06:44.080 Wife Sarah were too old, way past the child bearing years. 0:06:44.520 --> 0:06:48.320 They prayed, stood in faith for years, still no baby. 0:06:48.480 --> 0:06:51.760 Sarah said Abraham, I have an idea. Why don't you 0:06:51.920 --> 0:06:55.040 sleep with the maid and maybe God will give us 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:58.599 this son that he promised. Abraham didn't even have to 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:02.040 pray about this one, No problem, honey, whatever you say. 0:07:02.680 --> 0:07:05.960 He slept with the maid. They had a son that 0:07:06.040 --> 0:07:09.960 they named Ishmael. They were so excited they finally had 0:07:10.000 --> 0:07:13.760 their baby. God said Abraham Sarah, that is not the 0:07:13.840 --> 0:07:18.080 promised child that's your own. Doing this caused all kinds 0:07:18.080 --> 0:07:19.720 of strife and division. 0:07:20.400 --> 0:07:23.200 Sarah got mad at Abraham. What were you. 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:26.680 Thinking sleeping with the maid? He said, what do you mean? 0:07:26.720 --> 0:07:28.880 You're the one that told me to do it? She said, 0:07:28.920 --> 0:07:30.480 I know, but you shouldn't have listened to me. 0:07:31.400 --> 0:07:32.600 Lord help all of us men. 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:36.360 Abraham and Sarah were at odds, arguing with each other. 0:07:37.120 --> 0:07:40.560 If that wasn't bad enough, Sarah was so upset with 0:07:40.640 --> 0:07:43.800 the maid she gave Abraham an ultimatum. 0:07:43.840 --> 0:07:46.760 Either the maid is leaving or I'm leaving. 0:07:46.600 --> 0:07:50.840 But we're not staying here together. Abraham felt badly about it. 0:07:51.280 --> 0:07:54.280 The maid hadn't done anything wrong, yet he had to 0:07:54.320 --> 0:07:58.920 send her and his son out into the desert. Now, 0:07:58.960 --> 0:08:02.440 Abraham is the father of our faith. You would be 0:08:02.560 --> 0:08:06.160 hard pressed to find a more dysfunctional family than them. 0:08:07.000 --> 0:08:10.160 He was in a messy place, had a baby out 0:08:10.200 --> 0:08:14.560 of wedlock, strife, troubled division in his house. Most people 0:08:14.560 --> 0:08:17.920 would have written them off. Thought it's too late for you, guys. 0:08:18.240 --> 0:08:21.960 You need to be on reality TV, real Housewives of 0:08:22.000 --> 0:08:25.000 the Bible. You've got so much drama in your house. 0:08:26.240 --> 0:08:30.679 God looked at them and said, under construction. The messy 0:08:30.760 --> 0:08:34.679 places are all a part of the process. It may 0:08:34.720 --> 0:08:38.560 be uncomfortable, you don't understand it. You may have brought 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:42.240 the trouble on yourself, but it's not a surprise to God. 0:08:42.840 --> 0:08:46.400 When he designed your plan, he took that into account. 0:08:47.360 --> 0:08:52.400 Despite their wrong choices, despite their dysfunction. At ninety years 0:08:52.400 --> 0:08:56.400 of age, God caused Sarah to conceive and give birth 0:08:56.400 --> 0:09:01.520 to Isaac, the Promised child. If Abraham and Sarah saw 0:09:01.640 --> 0:09:05.480 their promise come to pass after all that mess, what 0:09:05.600 --> 0:09:08.360 makes you think God is not going to bring to. 0:09:08.320 --> 0:09:12.120 Pass what he's promised you? Well, Joe, in my situation 0:09:12.320 --> 0:09:15.080 is too messy. It couldn't be any messier than theirs. 0:09:15.800 --> 0:09:18.160 While I have water in my living room, mud on 0:09:18.240 --> 0:09:20.120 my floors, you're under construction. 0:09:20.679 --> 0:09:22.040 That's a part of the process. 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:25.439 It doesn't mean that God is not going to finish 0:09:25.520 --> 0:09:29.200 what he started. Here's how amazing God is. It says 0:09:29.200 --> 0:09:33.199 in Romans that Abraham did not waver in his faith 0:09:34.200 --> 0:09:37.280 having a baby out of wedlock. To me, that's wavering, 0:09:37.960 --> 0:09:41.520 being impatient, trying to make things happen in your own strength, 0:09:41.720 --> 0:09:43.800 having to kick somebody out of your house. 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:45.520 That seems life wavering. 0:09:46.120 --> 0:09:50.040 But God does not see the construction process as wavering. 0:09:50.800 --> 0:09:55.800 The mistakes Abraham made, the strife, the dysfunction, God didn't 0:09:55.800 --> 0:09:59.800 hold that against him. In fact, God called Abraham a 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:04.079 hero of faith. Why don't you quit beating yourself up 0:10:04.440 --> 0:10:08.440 because you're under construction. When God brings you to completion, 0:10:09.080 --> 0:10:12.160 when he delivers you from the addiction, when he turns 0:10:12.200 --> 0:10:15.880 your family around, He's not going to remember your weaknesses. 0:10:16.440 --> 0:10:19.640 He's not going to bring up past mistakes and failures. 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:22.640 God knows when we're under construction. 0:10:23.520 --> 0:10:27.320 We all have messy places, we all make mistakes, we 0:10:27.400 --> 0:10:30.640 all have things to overcome. But that is not going 0:10:30.720 --> 0:10:33.520 to keep you from becoming a masterpiece. 0:10:33.960 --> 0:10:35.880 It's only temporary. 0:10:35.960 --> 0:10:38.840 But one of the worst mistakes we could make is 0:10:38.880 --> 0:10:43.040 to go through life against ourselves, focused on our failures, 0:10:43.240 --> 0:10:45.720 on the times we blew it, the times we failed. 0:10:46.640 --> 0:10:50.800 You have enough people and circumstances already against you. 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:52.800 Don't be against yourself. 0:10:53.480 --> 0:10:56.839 You have to be at peace with being under construction. 0:10:57.840 --> 0:11:00.880 You're going to have some messy places, some things you 0:11:00.920 --> 0:11:06.160 don't understand, some weaknesses that you haven't overcome. The accuser 0:11:06.240 --> 0:11:10.240 will work overtime reminding you of everything you've done wrong, 0:11:10.600 --> 0:11:13.640 how you're not going to reach your destiny. Instead of 0:11:13.679 --> 0:11:17.960 believing those lies, going around guilty, no passion, Why don't 0:11:18.000 --> 0:11:21.520 you turn it around? Father, Thank you that you're still 0:11:21.559 --> 0:11:25.040 working on me. I know this mess is a sign 0:11:25.080 --> 0:11:30.479 that I'm under construction. Just like with Abraham, despite my shortcomings, 0:11:30.600 --> 0:11:32.480 despite my failures. 0:11:32.120 --> 0:11:34.600 You're still going to get me to where I'm supposed 0:11:34.640 --> 0:11:34.840 to be. 0:11:35.520 --> 0:11:38.400 When you live like that, God will say about you 0:11:38.800 --> 0:11:42.080 what he said about Abraham. You did not waver in 0:11:42.160 --> 0:11:46.720 your faith. We see this with Peter, one of Jesus' disciples. 0:11:46.840 --> 0:11:50.640 He was hot tempered, He used bad language. One time, 0:11:50.679 --> 0:11:54.680 he got angry and cut off a soldier's ear. One moment, 0:11:54.760 --> 0:11:59.000 he was defending Jesus, a man of great courage. Another moment, 0:11:59.080 --> 0:12:03.000 he was denying Jesus, swearing to the authorities that he 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:06.040 didn't know him. People could have looked at him, Peter, 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:07.000 You're a mess. 0:12:07.320 --> 0:12:11.360 You have issues. God looked at him and said, under construction. 0:12:12.480 --> 0:12:16.240 The difference between how people saw him and how God 0:12:16.360 --> 0:12:18.840 saw him is God had the plans. 0:12:19.440 --> 0:12:21.720 God could see what he was going to become. 0:12:22.440 --> 0:12:26.240 People just saw his falls, his hot temper, his instability. 0:12:27.120 --> 0:12:30.440 This is why It's so important that we don't judge people, 0:12:30.920 --> 0:12:32.320 don't write anybody off. 0:12:32.480 --> 0:12:33.920 We can't see their plans. 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:37.520 We don't know what God is designed for them. We 0:12:37.600 --> 0:12:41.120 see people that make mistakes have weaknesses. We think, boy, 0:12:41.200 --> 0:12:44.439 they're never going to get it together. We don't realize 0:12:44.600 --> 0:12:48.960 they're under construction. God's still working on them. I have 0:12:49.200 --> 0:12:52.160 enough weaknesses of my own to deal with. I don't 0:12:52.200 --> 0:12:53.880 have time to judge. 0:12:53.559 --> 0:12:55.400 Somebody else for their weaknesses. 0:12:56.320 --> 0:13:00.280 But I love the fact that Jesus chose Peter even 0:13:00.320 --> 0:13:02.840 though he knew he was hot temper, he knew he 0:13:02.920 --> 0:13:05.480 was impatient, he knew he used bad language. 0:13:05.720 --> 0:13:09.040 He didn't choose him because he was perfect. He chose 0:13:09.120 --> 0:13:12.720 him because he had the blueprint. He knew he wasn't 0:13:12.760 --> 0:13:13.880 a finished product. 0:13:14.480 --> 0:13:19.280 Peter ended up becoming one of the most influential, respected leaders. 0:13:20.040 --> 0:13:20.840 What am I saying? 0:13:21.400 --> 0:13:25.880 Where you are now is not necessarily important. It's where 0:13:25.920 --> 0:13:30.720 you're going. That mess did not disqualify you. The mess 0:13:30.760 --> 0:13:35.440 means you're under construction. When you see other people that 0:13:35.520 --> 0:13:38.280 look like they have it all together, don't feel bad 0:13:38.320 --> 0:13:43.040 about yourself. Everyone is under construction in some area. 0:13:43.360 --> 0:13:46.440 We all have some messy places. Here's the point. 0:13:47.040 --> 0:13:51.640 Let God make you and muld you stay pliable. We 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:54.760 should be better this year than we were last year. 0:13:55.240 --> 0:13:59.559 Don't let the mess become permanent, the addiction, the hot temper, 0:13:59.760 --> 0:14:01.000 the negative attitude. 0:14:01.240 --> 0:14:02.840 That is not who you are. 0:14:03.640 --> 0:14:08.360 Keep growing, keep resisting the temptation, keep saying no to 0:14:08.480 --> 0:14:12.959 carnal desires. Every time you do the right thing, the 0:14:13.000 --> 0:14:16.640 next time it gets a little bit easier. And there's 0:14:16.720 --> 0:14:20.640 nothing wrong with being under construction, But there is something 0:14:20.720 --> 0:14:22.000 wrong with not. 0:14:21.920 --> 0:14:26.239 Making any progress. Do your part, be willing to change. 0:14:26.480 --> 0:14:28.880 God will do his part. He'll help you to come 0:14:28.960 --> 0:14:29.440 up higher. 0:14:30.400 --> 0:14:34.080 Sometimes when you see a construction site, you can't tell 0:14:34.240 --> 0:14:37.200 if they're tearing something down or building something up. 0:14:37.960 --> 0:14:39.360 I was downtown one time. 0:14:39.520 --> 0:14:43.120 There was this big pile of dirt several stories high. 0:14:43.760 --> 0:14:46.280 Over on the other side there was this pile of debris, 0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:47.640 metal bricks. 0:14:48.200 --> 0:14:50.320 They had torn down this small structure. 0:14:50.800 --> 0:14:54.880 They were digging the foundation for a huge skyscraper. There 0:14:54.920 --> 0:14:58.040 was a hole probably one hundred feet in the ground. 0:14:58.520 --> 0:15:02.280 They were pouring these deep years. The taller the building, 0:15:02.760 --> 0:15:07.240 the deeper the foundation has to go. What's interesting is 0:15:07.320 --> 0:15:08.760 you can't see the foundation. 0:15:09.400 --> 0:15:10.200 It's underground. 0:15:10.280 --> 0:15:13.560 It's hidden, but you could argue that it's the most 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:17.920 important part. They could build a huge tower, but if 0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:21.360 they didn't take time to put the proper foundation, it 0:15:21.400 --> 0:15:25.400 wouldn't last. And there are times that we know we're 0:15:25.440 --> 0:15:26.840 supposed to be going up. 0:15:27.520 --> 0:15:28.920 We have big dreams. 0:15:29.200 --> 0:15:33.080 God's put promises in our hearts, but it feels the opposite, 0:15:33.200 --> 0:15:36.840 like we're going down. We're not growing, not seeing good breaks. 0:15:37.480 --> 0:15:40.840 What we may not realize is God is working on 0:15:40.880 --> 0:15:45.520 our foundation, on our character, on how we treat people, 0:15:46.160 --> 0:15:46.760 on how. 0:15:46.560 --> 0:15:48.239 We respond to adversity. 0:15:48.840 --> 0:15:52.720 We don't like these times, but they are extremely important. 0:15:53.600 --> 0:15:57.040 Like the building, the higher you're going to go, the 0:15:57.120 --> 0:15:58.920 deeper your foundation has to be. 0:16:00.040 --> 0:16:04.200 Don't get discouraged when things are not happening on your timetable. 0:16:04.680 --> 0:16:09.160 God knows what he's doing. Keep passing the test those 0:16:09.200 --> 0:16:12.680 things that are not changing. But you're keeping a good attitude. 0:16:13.120 --> 0:16:17.120 That's making you stronger. When you're good to people that 0:16:17.200 --> 0:16:20.800 are not good to you, your foundation is going down deeper. 0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:25.880 That's a sign you're getting prepared to go higher. But 0:16:25.960 --> 0:16:29.720 God will not release what he has for you until 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:30.680 he knows. 0:16:30.520 --> 0:16:32.840 You can handle it. It wouldn't be a. 0:16:32.800 --> 0:16:35.720 Blessing if he gave it to you and you weren't ready. 0:16:36.680 --> 0:16:39.680 If God has an eighty story building plan for you, 0:16:40.200 --> 0:16:43.840 but he only designed a forty story foundation, it may 0:16:43.880 --> 0:16:47.320 be easier, but that would be doing you a disservice. 0:16:48.080 --> 0:16:52.360 Don't fight the foundation work. Don't get sour because things 0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.640 aren't moving as fast as you would like. Something is 0:16:55.720 --> 0:16:59.720 happening that you can't see. Your foundation is going down 0:16:59.760 --> 0:17:03.120 deep deeper. You're being prepared to go to new levels. 0:17:04.040 --> 0:17:07.040 When our house was being built, most of the walls 0:17:07.080 --> 0:17:10.240 were up, but the carpenters they put in a couple 0:17:10.280 --> 0:17:11.320 of extra walls. 0:17:11.800 --> 0:17:14.720 I was over there with the plans. I thought, these 0:17:14.760 --> 0:17:17.520 walls are out of place. These walls are a mistake. 0:17:17.520 --> 0:17:20.280 They're right in the middle of the room. I asked 0:17:20.280 --> 0:17:24.360 the builder about it. He said, they're predicting high winds 0:17:24.400 --> 0:17:27.159 the next couple of weeks, so I had them build 0:17:27.160 --> 0:17:31.119 these temporary walls to help brace the main ones until 0:17:31.119 --> 0:17:31.560 we could. 0:17:31.440 --> 0:17:32.080 Get the roof on. 0:17:33.240 --> 0:17:37.840 As the builder, because he had more knowledge, more experience, 0:17:38.200 --> 0:17:40.679 he was doing things that didn't make sense to me. 0:17:41.520 --> 0:17:43.800 All I could see is this wall is out of place. 0:17:44.160 --> 0:17:46.640 It is not supposed to be here. But he did 0:17:46.640 --> 0:17:49.560 it on purpose. He knew it was out of place. 0:17:50.040 --> 0:17:55.080 He also knew it was only temporary in the same way, God, 0:17:55.200 --> 0:17:59.000 as our builder, will allow things that we don't understand, 0:18:00.200 --> 0:18:03.800 like a mistake. But God has a reason. He allowed 0:18:03.840 --> 0:18:06.720 it for a purpose that we can't see. 0:18:06.800 --> 0:18:08.040 Then he's going to remove it. 0:18:08.640 --> 0:18:11.240 Well, Joel, I'm working at this job where I'm not 0:18:11.480 --> 0:18:12.560 using my gifts. 0:18:12.840 --> 0:18:15.199 I have so much more in me. This seems like 0:18:15.200 --> 0:18:15.800 a mistake. 0:18:16.840 --> 0:18:21.080 God knows that's not your final destination, but he wouldn't 0:18:21.119 --> 0:18:23.720 have allowed it if he didn't have a purpose for it. 0:18:24.400 --> 0:18:26.200 Do you think the God, who. 0:18:26.000 --> 0:18:30.439 Is so precise, so detailed that he causes the earth 0:18:30.800 --> 0:18:35.000 to rotate down to the exact millisecond, is going to 0:18:35.119 --> 0:18:39.840 somehow falter on your plan. Let something happen that wasn't 0:18:39.880 --> 0:18:43.480 designed a bad break to keep you from your destiny. 0:18:44.040 --> 0:18:46.960 If God made a mistake with you, you would be the 0:18:46.960 --> 0:18:49.200 first one. What am I saying? 0:18:49.800 --> 0:18:53.879 Trust him while you're under construction, Trust him in the 0:18:53.960 --> 0:18:57.480 messy places, Trust him when you're sure it's a mistake. 0:18:58.200 --> 0:19:02.080 Sometimes God has to take us backwards before he can 0:19:02.119 --> 0:19:02.840 take us forward. 0:19:03.520 --> 0:19:06.680 He has to dig down deep before we can go apire. 0:19:07.119 --> 0:19:10.920 He has to prune you before you can bloom. If 0:19:10.920 --> 0:19:13.520 you'll stay in faith, you're going to see. 0:19:13.280 --> 0:19:16.639 How it's all going to work for your good. God 0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:20.720 called Moses to deliver the Israelites. That was the plan 0:19:20.880 --> 0:19:23.479 laid out for his life. But there were a dozen 0:19:23.640 --> 0:19:27.320 things that looked like a mistake. When Moses was born, 0:19:27.800 --> 0:19:30.840 the king put out a decree that all the Hebrew 0:19:31.400 --> 0:19:34.879 male babies two years of agent under would be killed. 0:19:35.560 --> 0:19:38.160 It looked like God chose the wrong time for him 0:19:38.160 --> 0:19:41.440 to be born. Why didn't God wait till the decree 0:19:41.600 --> 0:19:45.640 was over. God likes to do things that defied the odds, 0:19:46.000 --> 0:19:51.360 things that seem impossible. That way he gets all the credit. Moses' 0:19:51.480 --> 0:19:54.400 mother hit him in a basket and sent him down 0:19:54.400 --> 0:19:58.879 the Nile River. There were snakes, alligators he could have 0:19:58.920 --> 0:20:03.760 tipped over. But what God has ordained for your life, 0:20:04.400 --> 0:20:08.040 what He has planned before the foundation of time, what's 0:20:08.080 --> 0:20:12.480 on your blueprint, can't be stopped by decrees, by snakes, 0:20:12.560 --> 0:20:14.760 by people, by any kind of opposition. 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:16.920 Just so happened. 0:20:17.119 --> 0:20:20.320 Thero's daughter was at the river taken a bath. She 0:20:20.440 --> 0:20:23.440 heard the cries coming from the basket. When she saw 0:20:23.520 --> 0:20:26.240 baby Moses, it was love at first sight. 0:20:26.800 --> 0:20:29.560 She took him in and raised him in the palace. 0:20:30.359 --> 0:20:33.320 As he grew up, Moses knew he was supposed to 0:20:33.359 --> 0:20:34.639 deliver the Israelites. 0:20:35.119 --> 0:20:37.200 One day he saw an. 0:20:37.160 --> 0:20:42.240 Egyptian supervisor mistreating a Hebrew slave. He didn't think anyone 0:20:42.359 --> 0:20:46.160 was watching, so he killed the man. Someone saw him. 0:20:46.560 --> 0:20:50.040 He had to flee for his life. Moses spent forty 0:20:50.200 --> 0:20:54.399 years in hiding on the backside of the desert. Looked 0:20:54.440 --> 0:20:57.760 like he missed his destiny. I'm sure he felt like 0:20:57.800 --> 0:21:01.680 a failure. But when he was eighty years old, God 0:21:01.720 --> 0:21:05.160 appeared to him through the burning bush, said all right, Moses, 0:21:05.440 --> 0:21:07.919 now it's time to deliver the Israelites. 0:21:08.640 --> 0:21:10.280 You can't find anyone in. 0:21:10.280 --> 0:21:14.400 The scripture that did something significant that didn't. 0:21:14.080 --> 0:21:15.560 Have messy places. 0:21:16.080 --> 0:21:19.920 Times they didn't understand, times it wasn't fair. Times they 0:21:19.960 --> 0:21:24.680 felt disqualified. But like with Moses, when it all came together, 0:21:25.280 --> 0:21:26.199 it made sense. 0:21:26.560 --> 0:21:30.760 They went from construction to completion. Here's the key. 0:21:31.480 --> 0:21:36.760 You cannot properly judge the construction process without the plans. 0:21:37.600 --> 0:21:40.720 You may think I'm done, Joel, I'm finished. I made 0:21:40.760 --> 0:21:44.080 too many mistakes. I missed my destiny. If you had 0:21:44.080 --> 0:21:47.439 the plans, and that's what they said, I would agree 0:21:47.480 --> 0:21:50.600 with you. But the problem is we don't have the 0:21:50.680 --> 0:21:55.240 plans God said in Jeremiah. The plans I have for 0:21:55.400 --> 0:21:58.920 you are for good and not harm, to give. 0:21:58.760 --> 0:21:59.440 You a future. 0:21:59.480 --> 0:22:03.920 And what God has planned for you does not end 0:22:04.080 --> 0:22:09.640 in defeat, in failure, in mediocrity, in addictions, in dysfunction. 0:22:10.160 --> 0:22:14.720 Your story ends in victory, Paul said in Corinthians, Thanks 0:22:14.760 --> 0:22:18.680 be to God, who always causes us to triumph. I've 0:22:18.680 --> 0:22:22.439 heard it said God always ends in all is well. 0:22:23.240 --> 0:22:25.720 If all is not well, then it's not the end. 0:22:26.640 --> 0:22:29.719