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That's code iHeart fifty when you 31 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,959 Speaker 3: sign up at unest dot co for a fifty dollars bonus. 32 00:01:28,040 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 3: See terms and conditions at UNEs dot co. 33 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:33,400 Speaker 4: Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. 34 00:01:33,480 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 5: Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting 35 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 5: the ministry. 36 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:39,679 Speaker 6: If you enjoy today's message, why don't you be a 37 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:41,240 Speaker 6: blessing and share it with a friend. 38 00:01:41,560 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 5: We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in 39 00:01:44,319 --> 00:01:45,399 Speaker 5: your life. 40 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:49,400 Speaker 4: God bless you. 41 00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:52,240 Speaker 5: It's great to be with you today, and I hope 42 00:01:52,240 --> 00:01:54,760 Speaker 5: you'll stay connected with us during the week through our 43 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:59,200 Speaker 5: daily podcast, our YouTube channel, social media, and you can 44 00:01:59,240 --> 00:02:00,680 Speaker 5: come visit us in person. 45 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:02,760 Speaker 4: I'd love to have you be a part of one 46 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:03,680 Speaker 4: of our services. 47 00:02:04,280 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 5: I like to start with something funny, and I heard 48 00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:09,520 Speaker 5: about this pastor he found a dead mule on the 49 00:02:09,600 --> 00:02:12,959 Speaker 5: church grounds. He called the health department and they said 50 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:16,520 Speaker 5: they couldn't pick it up without authorization from the mayor. Well, 51 00:02:16,560 --> 00:02:18,760 Speaker 5: the mayor was known to be rude and hard to 52 00:02:18,760 --> 00:02:23,000 Speaker 5: get along with. When the pastor called, the mayor didn't disappoint. 53 00:02:23,280 --> 00:02:27,080 Speaker 5: He started ranting and raving, and he finally said, isn't 54 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,079 Speaker 5: it your job to bury the dead? 55 00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 4: Why did you even call me? 56 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:34,080 Speaker 5: The pastor asked God to give him the right response. 57 00:02:34,440 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 5: He said, yes, Mayor, it is my job to bury 58 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:40,000 Speaker 5: the dead, but I always like to notify the next 59 00:02:40,040 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 5: of ken first, say it like you mean it. This 60 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:47,400 Speaker 5: is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 61 00:02:47,800 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 5: I have what it says I have. I can do 62 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,960 Speaker 5: what it says I can do. Today I will be 63 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:56,880 Speaker 5: taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind 64 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 5: is alert, my heart is receptive. I will be the same. 65 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:03,680 Speaker 4: In Jesus' name, God bless you. 66 00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:08,960 Speaker 5: I want to talk to you today about necessary endings. 67 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:12,040 Speaker 5: We all have times when things come to an end 68 00:03:12,160 --> 00:03:16,520 Speaker 5: that we weren't expecting. We were going along fine, enjoying life. 69 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 5: Then the company downsizes and. 70 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:19,839 Speaker 4: We're let go. 71 00:03:20,520 --> 00:03:24,359 Speaker 5: A relationship doesn't work out, the door closes on a dream. 72 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 4: We didn't have any control over it. 73 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,760 Speaker 5: It's easy to get discouraged God, where were you? But 74 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:34,680 Speaker 5: God is called the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning 75 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 5: and the end. He has designed certain things to come 76 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:41,680 Speaker 5: to an end, to move us into a new. 77 00:03:41,600 --> 00:03:44,760 Speaker 4: Level of our destiny. We may not understand. 78 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:49,880 Speaker 5: It doesn't make sense, but it's a necessary ending. Without 79 00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:53,520 Speaker 5: that door closing, you wouldn't see the greater things God 80 00:03:53,560 --> 00:03:57,040 Speaker 5: has in store. And we believe in holding onto our 81 00:03:57,120 --> 00:04:02,000 Speaker 5: dreams and standing on the promises. But sometimes it takes 82 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 5: more faith to accept what God is doing, to recognize 83 00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:09,600 Speaker 5: that the ending is a part of his plan. The 84 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:14,240 Speaker 5: same God that opens doors closes doors. The same place 85 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:17,320 Speaker 5: you saw abundance in one season may seem like a 86 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 5: famine in another. You had a great friendship with that coworker, 87 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:26,200 Speaker 5: but now things have changed, They've moved on. If you 88 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:30,839 Speaker 5: don't understand that God has necessary endings, you'll fight every 89 00:04:30,839 --> 00:04:33,640 Speaker 5: closed door and try to hold onto things that God 90 00:04:33,720 --> 00:04:38,000 Speaker 5: is done with. But the ending wasn't random. You're not 91 00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:41,640 Speaker 5: just unlucky a bad break. It was the hand of God, 92 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:46,880 Speaker 5: the author and the finisher. When that door closes, keep 93 00:04:46,880 --> 00:04:48,599 Speaker 5: your fingers and your. 94 00:04:48,520 --> 00:04:52,160 Speaker 4: Feelings out of the door. You'll be tempted to hold on, 95 00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:56,839 Speaker 4: why did this happen? It's not fair. Let it go. 96 00:04:56,839 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 4: God is in control of your life. 97 00:04:59,080 --> 00:05:03,279 Speaker 5: He's the one that opens doors and closes doors. He's 98 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:07,839 Speaker 5: the one that changes seasons. You were in spring, now 99 00:05:07,880 --> 00:05:11,599 Speaker 5: maybe you're going into winter. That means you're getting prepared 100 00:05:11,839 --> 00:05:13,800 Speaker 5: to blossom in new ways. 101 00:05:14,360 --> 00:05:15,000 Speaker 4: I've learned. 102 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:18,760 Speaker 5: God never brings things to an end without having something 103 00:05:18,839 --> 00:05:24,800 Speaker 5: better coming, something more rewarding, more fulfilling, new relationships, new dreams, 104 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,120 Speaker 5: new mountains to climb. Instead of seeing it as a 105 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:32,599 Speaker 5: bad break, try a new perspective. This was a necessary ending. 106 00:05:33,040 --> 00:05:35,839 Speaker 5: God stopped it so I could see the greater things 107 00:05:35,839 --> 00:05:39,279 Speaker 5: He has in store. When God brought the Israelites out 108 00:05:39,279 --> 00:05:42,359 Speaker 5: of slavery, they were in the desert, headed toward the 109 00:05:42,360 --> 00:05:46,359 Speaker 5: Promised Land. There were two million people but nothing to eat. 110 00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:50,000 Speaker 5: So every morning God gave them manna. Theres something like 111 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:54,080 Speaker 5: bread that formed on the ground. For forty years, they 112 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:58,200 Speaker 5: had this supernatural provision. Wherever they went they could count 113 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:01,440 Speaker 5: on that manna would be there. But when they got 114 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:05,920 Speaker 5: close to the Promised Land, the scripture says the manna ceased, 115 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:10,320 Speaker 5: and they never saw mana again. Imagine going out one 116 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:14,120 Speaker 5: morning to get breakfast, like you've done for four decades, 117 00:06:14,640 --> 00:06:18,719 Speaker 5: all of a sudden, there's no manna. They were confused, God, 118 00:06:18,920 --> 00:06:22,560 Speaker 5: what's going on? Where are you? Did we do something wrong? 119 00:06:23,640 --> 00:06:26,279 Speaker 5: What do you do when what's worked in the past 120 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:30,719 Speaker 5: doesn't work anymore? Seems like the favor is gone. I'm 121 00:06:30,760 --> 00:06:33,880 Speaker 5: sure they were worried, But the reason God stopped the 122 00:06:33,920 --> 00:06:37,239 Speaker 5: mana is they were about to go into the promised land. 123 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:41,719 Speaker 5: Had he not stopped that temporary provision, they would have 124 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:44,520 Speaker 5: been satisfied to live off the mana the rest of 125 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:49,279 Speaker 5: their lives. They were comfortable, they were satisfied, But God 126 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:52,520 Speaker 5: was not satisfied. He didn't want them to live off 127 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:55,640 Speaker 5: a mana. He was taking them to a land flowing 128 00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:59,440 Speaker 5: with milk and honey, a land of abundance where the 129 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,919 Speaker 5: clusters of grapes were so large it took two people. 130 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:03,720 Speaker 4: To carry them. 131 00:07:04,040 --> 00:07:08,560 Speaker 5: The manner ceasing wasn't a bad break, It wasn't random, 132 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:13,000 Speaker 5: It was a necessary ending. God stopped the manna to 133 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:15,880 Speaker 5: push them in to the fullness of what he had 134 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:19,920 Speaker 5: in store. They could have been stubborn. I'm not going 135 00:07:19,960 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 5: to this new place. I'm gonna keep believing for this manna. 136 00:07:23,800 --> 00:07:26,560 Speaker 4: I've seen it before. I believe it'll come back again. 137 00:07:27,480 --> 00:07:31,280 Speaker 5: When something comes to an end, don't stay where God was, 138 00:07:31,720 --> 00:07:35,880 Speaker 5: Go where God is. Go into the new thing. It 139 00:07:35,920 --> 00:07:37,640 Speaker 5: doesn't mean the old was bad. 140 00:07:38,400 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 4: The manner you had that was a good season. You 141 00:07:41,000 --> 00:07:41,720 Speaker 4: were grateful. 142 00:07:42,320 --> 00:07:45,720 Speaker 5: You can celebrate the time you had, Celebrate the friendship, 143 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:49,400 Speaker 5: the opportunity, the life of that loved one that passed. 144 00:07:49,920 --> 00:07:52,560 Speaker 5: That was all a part of God's plan for your life. 145 00:07:53,160 --> 00:07:55,920 Speaker 5: But now you have to accept the new thing God 146 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:59,520 Speaker 5: is doing. Don't get stuck in the old. God likes 147 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:03,160 Speaker 5: fresh He's not going to let you get stagnant. He 148 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:08,760 Speaker 5: changes seasons, He closes doors to force us into new opportunities, 149 00:08:09,160 --> 00:08:11,320 Speaker 5: new growth, new relationships. 150 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 4: If you don't understand that. 151 00:08:13,320 --> 00:08:17,440 Speaker 5: He has necessary endings, then you'll get bitter when the 152 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:20,920 Speaker 5: man of ceases. Why did this door close? Why did 153 00:08:20,920 --> 00:08:24,800 Speaker 5: this person walk away? Why did this contract get canceled? 154 00:08:25,320 --> 00:08:29,480 Speaker 5: God knows what he's doing. Without that ending, you wouldn't 155 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:32,840 Speaker 5: see your promised land. But we get comfortable with the 156 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:36,160 Speaker 5: Man of too. We don't like change, we don't want 157 00:08:36,200 --> 00:08:39,280 Speaker 5: to have to stretch. But God loves us too much 158 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:41,120 Speaker 5: to let us stay in the desert. 159 00:08:41,840 --> 00:08:43,800 Speaker 4: He's not going to let you stay at one level. 160 00:08:44,120 --> 00:08:48,720 Speaker 5: He'll close doors, stop provision, cause people to walk away. 161 00:08:49,480 --> 00:08:52,319 Speaker 5: When the man of ceases, it's not because you've lost 162 00:08:52,360 --> 00:08:55,560 Speaker 5: his favor, it's because a new door is about to open. 163 00:08:56,040 --> 00:08:58,280 Speaker 4: You're going to see favor in greater ways. 164 00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:01,040 Speaker 5: You're going to discover talent you didn't know you had, 165 00:09:01,720 --> 00:09:06,400 Speaker 5: see friendships, opportunities, fulfillment more than you've imagined. 166 00:09:07,360 --> 00:09:09,800 Speaker 4: The right attitude is God, I trust you. 167 00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:13,280 Speaker 5: I don't like this, but I know it's a necessary 168 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:16,840 Speaker 5: ending that you're ordering my steps. That you wouldn't have 169 00:09:16,880 --> 00:09:20,560 Speaker 5: allowed this manner to cease unless you had something better coming. 170 00:09:21,679 --> 00:09:24,320 Speaker 5: When I was nineteen years old, I came back from 171 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:27,760 Speaker 5: college to start a television ministry here at Lakewood, and 172 00:09:28,280 --> 00:09:31,440 Speaker 5: my brother and sisters all got their four year degree, 173 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:33,200 Speaker 5: but I took the one year plan. 174 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:35,120 Speaker 4: I didn't need as much as them. 175 00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:39,079 Speaker 5: I always knew I wanted to work at the church 176 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:44,400 Speaker 5: and I loved production, editing lighting. I was young, had 177 00:09:44,440 --> 00:09:47,000 Speaker 5: a lot of enthusiasm, but I didn't have a lot 178 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 5: of training. So we hired this man that was in 179 00:09:49,559 --> 00:09:53,680 Speaker 5: his sixties, very seasoned producer. He'd work for The Today 180 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:57,160 Speaker 5: Show and went on to produce big network specials. 181 00:09:57,760 --> 00:10:01,520 Speaker 4: He was very talented and very experience. He and I 182 00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:03,640 Speaker 4: hit it off. He was so friendly. 183 00:10:04,200 --> 00:10:07,120 Speaker 5: I was with him night and day, learning so much, 184 00:10:07,200 --> 00:10:10,199 Speaker 5: and he taught me about what the right camera angles were, 185 00:10:10,600 --> 00:10:15,199 Speaker 5: about good pacing, about lighting. As I watched him direct 186 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:18,280 Speaker 5: the program with my father up there speaking, I was 187 00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:18,880 Speaker 5: in awe. 188 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:20,880 Speaker 4: I thought, he is so amazing. 189 00:10:21,080 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 5: How does he know how to do all this? I 190 00:10:22,920 --> 00:10:26,679 Speaker 5: felt so blessed to have him. But one morning, after 191 00:10:26,720 --> 00:10:29,560 Speaker 5: about a year, he came in and said, Joel, I'm 192 00:10:29,600 --> 00:10:33,120 Speaker 5: moving back to California. I've done everything I need to 193 00:10:33,120 --> 00:10:36,600 Speaker 5: do here. I almost passed out. I said, are you kidding? 194 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:40,640 Speaker 5: You can't move. Everything's going to fall apart. Who's going 195 00:10:40,679 --> 00:10:43,520 Speaker 5: to do the program? He looked at me and said. 196 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:45,920 Speaker 4: You are. You know how to do what I do. 197 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:48,520 Speaker 5: You can direct, you can edit, you can put the 198 00:10:48,559 --> 00:10:49,520 Speaker 5: program together. 199 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:52,840 Speaker 4: I thought there's no way. We offered him more money. 200 00:10:53,320 --> 00:10:56,400 Speaker 5: We said, you can live in California, just flying a 201 00:10:56,440 --> 00:10:57,679 Speaker 5: couple of weekends a month. 202 00:10:58,160 --> 00:11:00,920 Speaker 4: None of that weren't. He was sick. I'm done here. 203 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:04,640 Speaker 4: When God closes a door, you can't open it. 204 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:08,559 Speaker 5: If someone wants to leave, you have to accept that 205 00:11:08,600 --> 00:11:12,439 Speaker 5: their part in your story is over. Some people are 206 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:15,560 Speaker 5: like scaffolding. They come into your life for a season 207 00:11:16,040 --> 00:11:18,880 Speaker 5: to get you to a certain point, but if they stayed, 208 00:11:19,040 --> 00:11:22,120 Speaker 5: they would limit your growth. That scaffolding has to come 209 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:26,120 Speaker 5: off so you can rise higher. I was praying God 210 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:31,120 Speaker 5: changes mind. God calls him to want to stay. Sometimes 211 00:11:31,160 --> 00:11:34,560 Speaker 5: we're praying against what God has ordained, what he has 212 00:11:34,600 --> 00:11:37,480 Speaker 5: said in motion. We think, man, the enemy is shutting 213 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:40,360 Speaker 5: this door. No, the enemy is not in control of 214 00:11:40,440 --> 00:11:43,760 Speaker 5: your doors. God is your doorkeeper. He's the one that 215 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:48,400 Speaker 5: opens and closes doors. He brings people in and moves 216 00:11:48,440 --> 00:11:52,720 Speaker 5: people out. My friend left and went back to California. 217 00:11:52,880 --> 00:11:56,479 Speaker 5: I had to get out of my comfort zone. Stretch grows, 218 00:11:56,720 --> 00:11:58,800 Speaker 5: start doing things I never thought I could do it. 219 00:11:59,440 --> 00:12:02,199 Speaker 5: As I said, I discovered it wasn't as hard as 220 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 5: I thought. First month went by, I thought, I'm not 221 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,079 Speaker 5: too bad at this. Six months went by, I thought 222 00:12:08,120 --> 00:12:10,520 Speaker 5: I'm pretty good at this. A year later, I thought, 223 00:12:10,559 --> 00:12:15,040 Speaker 5: what did we ever need him for? Had God not 224 00:12:15,320 --> 00:12:19,160 Speaker 5: closed that door, I would have never stepped into my potential. 225 00:12:19,920 --> 00:12:23,280 Speaker 4: Had that manner not ceased, I'd still be in the desert, 226 00:12:23,320 --> 00:12:23,960 Speaker 4: so to speak. 227 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:27,200 Speaker 5: I wouldn't have seen the abundance, the fevor that God 228 00:12:27,240 --> 00:12:28,200 Speaker 5: had in store for me. 229 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:31,959 Speaker 4: At the time, I didn't like it. I was fighting it, 230 00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:35,360 Speaker 4: But I realize now it was a necessary ending. 231 00:12:36,080 --> 00:12:39,240 Speaker 5: Was the hand of God shutting a door to force 232 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:43,720 Speaker 5: me into my purpose. Quit being discouraged over who walked away. 233 00:12:44,120 --> 00:12:47,360 Speaker 4: If they left you, you didn't need them. If they 234 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:49,520 Speaker 4: walked away, let them go. 235 00:12:49,520 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 5: God has new relationships, new opportunities. 236 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:55,439 Speaker 4: If you had to have them. 237 00:12:55,240 --> 00:12:58,360 Speaker 5: To fulfill your destiny, they wouldn't be able to leave. 238 00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:02,760 Speaker 5: In the script, Ruth and her sister in law Orpah, 239 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:07,360 Speaker 5: both lost their husbands their mother in law, Naomi. Since 240 00:13:07,360 --> 00:13:09,959 Speaker 5: her sons had died, she was moving back to her 241 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 5: hometown of Bethlehem. She told Ruth and Orpah to go 242 00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:17,319 Speaker 5: back to their hometowns, hopefully they'd find another husband. 243 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:19,920 Speaker 4: Orpah said, that's a great idea. 244 00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:23,600 Speaker 5: She kissed Naomi and moved on, but Ruth said, Naomi, 245 00:13:24,080 --> 00:13:26,560 Speaker 5: I'm not going to leave you. Your God will be 246 00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:30,920 Speaker 5: my God, Your home will be my home. Naomi said, no, Ruth, 247 00:13:31,040 --> 00:13:31,920 Speaker 5: I'm an old woman. 248 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:35,199 Speaker 4: Don't come with me. There's no future here. Go live 249 00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:38,760 Speaker 4: your life, but Ruth wouldn't leave her. She went back 250 00:13:38,800 --> 00:13:39,520 Speaker 4: with Naomi. 251 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:43,040 Speaker 5: She met her husband there ended up becoming the great 252 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 5: great grandmother of King David. My point is, the people 253 00:13:48,160 --> 00:13:51,160 Speaker 5: that are supposed to stay with you won't be able 254 00:13:51,200 --> 00:13:53,880 Speaker 5: to get rid of. You can't talk them out of it. 255 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:57,320 Speaker 5: They'll stick with you through thick and thin. On the 256 00:13:57,400 --> 00:14:00,160 Speaker 5: other hand, the people that are supposed to go, oh, 257 00:14:00,640 --> 00:14:03,360 Speaker 5: you can't convince them to stay when. 258 00:14:03,160 --> 00:14:06,840 Speaker 4: God closes the door. You can't pay them enough, compliment 259 00:14:06,920 --> 00:14:08,680 Speaker 4: them enough, treat them good enough. 260 00:14:09,520 --> 00:14:13,439 Speaker 5: You have to accept that it's a necessary ending, that 261 00:14:13,480 --> 00:14:15,000 Speaker 5: God is changing. 262 00:14:14,559 --> 00:14:17,200 Speaker 4: The season and they may be a good person. 263 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:21,000 Speaker 5: You enjoyed the time together, but to become who you 264 00:14:21,040 --> 00:14:24,040 Speaker 5: were created to be, they have to exit the stage. 265 00:14:24,720 --> 00:14:28,720 Speaker 5: You have to move forward into new relationships, new opportunities, 266 00:14:28,760 --> 00:14:31,840 Speaker 5: and new growth. I think one of the hardest things 267 00:14:31,880 --> 00:14:35,560 Speaker 5: for us is to let things go. We fight closed doors, 268 00:14:36,160 --> 00:14:39,200 Speaker 5: get discouraged over who walked away, and bitter over the 269 00:14:39,280 --> 00:14:42,840 Speaker 5: dream that didn't work out. You have to realize God 270 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,760 Speaker 5: stopped it not to make your life miserable, but to get. 271 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:48,120 Speaker 4: You into your promised land. 272 00:14:48,920 --> 00:14:53,360 Speaker 5: The manner ceased because He's taken you into something bigger, better, 273 00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:58,480 Speaker 5: more fulfilling. May not make sense right now, the disappointment, 274 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:02,440 Speaker 5: the loss, the reject but later on you'll see what 275 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:05,840 Speaker 5: God was up to. If he hadn't closed that door, 276 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:08,680 Speaker 5: you wouldn't have stepped into the new level. If he 277 00:15:08,720 --> 00:15:11,440 Speaker 5: hadn't caused that person to move on, you wouldn't have 278 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:15,480 Speaker 5: met that divine connection. If that opportunity didn't drive up, 279 00:15:15,800 --> 00:15:19,840 Speaker 5: you wouldn't have discovered the potential in you trust him 280 00:15:19,880 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 5: when you don't understand. He opens doors and he closes doors. 281 00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:26,920 Speaker 5: It's not random, it's a necessary ending. 282 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:28,680 Speaker 4: Happened to my father. 283 00:15:28,960 --> 00:15:32,320 Speaker 5: He was pastoring a church back in the late nineteen fifties, 284 00:15:32,360 --> 00:15:33,360 Speaker 5: and he'd. 285 00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:34,240 Speaker 4: Been there for years. 286 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:38,240 Speaker 5: Church was growing, they'd just built a new sanctuary. 287 00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:39,960 Speaker 4: His future looked so bright. 288 00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:43,720 Speaker 5: My sister Lisa was born with a birth injury, and 289 00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:46,800 Speaker 5: the doctors told my parents that she may never walk 290 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:50,000 Speaker 5: or be able to feed herself. My father went to 291 00:15:50,040 --> 00:15:52,800 Speaker 5: a hotel downtown for a few days to pray and 292 00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:54,240 Speaker 5: read the scripture. 293 00:15:54,920 --> 00:15:56,800 Speaker 4: He told how he took off. 294 00:15:56,720 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 5: His denominational glasses and read the Bible like he was 295 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:04,280 Speaker 5: reading it for the first time. He saw how Jesus 296 00:16:04,280 --> 00:16:07,240 Speaker 5: went around healing people. How he's a god that can 297 00:16:07,320 --> 00:16:10,960 Speaker 5: do the impossible. He was taught in seminary that the 298 00:16:11,040 --> 00:16:13,880 Speaker 5: day of miracles was over. He came back to his 299 00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:17,320 Speaker 5: church so fired up and started preaching this new message 300 00:16:17,360 --> 00:16:18,680 Speaker 5: of faith and victory. 301 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:20,120 Speaker 4: He thought they'd be so. 302 00:16:20,200 --> 00:16:24,120 Speaker 5: Excited, but it was just the opposite. It didn't fit 303 00:16:24,200 --> 00:16:27,720 Speaker 5: into their tradition. It caused so much contention and so 304 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:31,400 Speaker 5: much discord. They ended up asking my parents to leave. 305 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:35,480 Speaker 5: They never dreamed that would happen. These were their friends, 306 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:39,040 Speaker 5: people they had spent years with. Now they felt the 307 00:16:39,080 --> 00:16:43,000 Speaker 5: sting of rejection. It was unfair, didn't make sense. 308 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:44,320 Speaker 4: Here's the key. 309 00:16:44,800 --> 00:16:47,600 Speaker 5: It wasn't the enemy pushing them out. It was the 310 00:16:47,680 --> 00:16:51,680 Speaker 5: hand of God shutting that door, and they couldn't see it. 311 00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:52,560 Speaker 4: It was painful. 312 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:56,760 Speaker 5: But instead of sitting around in self pity thinking about 313 00:16:56,760 --> 00:16:59,760 Speaker 5: what didn't work out, they went out and found an 314 00:16:59,760 --> 00:17:04,200 Speaker 5: old Rundown feed store Mother's Day nineteen fifty. 315 00:17:03,960 --> 00:17:05,639 Speaker 4: Nine, they started Lakewood. 316 00:17:06,320 --> 00:17:10,399 Speaker 5: They weren't in the big, beautiful sanctuary, stained glass windows 317 00:17:10,600 --> 00:17:11,000 Speaker 5: like they. 318 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:13,600 Speaker 4: Had just built. They were in this little feed store. 319 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:18,119 Speaker 5: Instead of having one thousand members, they had ninety. Looked 320 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:21,040 Speaker 5: like it was a big setback. The truth is it 321 00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:24,040 Speaker 5: was a big setup for what God was about to do. 322 00:17:25,359 --> 00:17:26,720 Speaker 4: My parents stayed faithful. 323 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:30,239 Speaker 5: The church grew from ninety to two hundred, then they 324 00:17:30,280 --> 00:17:33,600 Speaker 5: had to build an auditorium for one thousand, then four thousand, 325 00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:37,800 Speaker 5: then eight thousand. Sixty four years later, we're still going strong. 326 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:42,080 Speaker 5: But looking back now, we can see that was a 327 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:46,919 Speaker 5: necessary ending. Had the Manna not stopped, had the people 328 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:48,360 Speaker 5: not asked them to leave. 329 00:17:48,359 --> 00:17:49,560 Speaker 4: We wouldn't have Lakewood. 330 00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:52,720 Speaker 5: They wouldn't have seen the abundance, the new levels, the 331 00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:53,440 Speaker 5: new growth. 332 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:56,840 Speaker 4: The fact is they were happy with the mana. 333 00:17:56,920 --> 00:18:01,080 Speaker 5: But God has so much more in store seen, heard, 334 00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:05,160 Speaker 5: or imagine what He has in your future. And sometimes 335 00:18:05,200 --> 00:18:07,600 Speaker 5: to take it to the next level, he has to 336 00:18:07,640 --> 00:18:08,439 Speaker 5: close the door. 337 00:18:09,160 --> 00:18:12,320 Speaker 4: He'll do things you don't understand, that don't make sense. 338 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:16,880 Speaker 5: Looks like a bad break, a disappointment, but really it's 339 00:18:16,920 --> 00:18:21,240 Speaker 5: a necessary ending. It's God closing a door because he's 340 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:23,960 Speaker 5: about to open a much bigger door. He's going to 341 00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:28,360 Speaker 5: take you where you'd never imagined. And yes, the rejection 342 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:32,679 Speaker 5: was unfair. The people that walked away was discouraging. The 343 00:18:32,800 --> 00:18:36,440 Speaker 5: loss was painful, but you're right where the Israelites were 344 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:39,560 Speaker 5: the man has ceased, you could be down. 345 00:18:39,880 --> 00:18:42,800 Speaker 4: God, I don't understand it. Have this new perspective. 346 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:46,080 Speaker 5: The man of ceasing is a sign you're about to 347 00:18:46,119 --> 00:18:52,000 Speaker 5: come into abundance, overflow, divine connections, good breaks that catapult 348 00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:52,520 Speaker 5: you ahead. 349 00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:54,920 Speaker 4: It's easy to trust. 350 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:59,960 Speaker 5: God when everything's going our way, doors opening, children, succeeding relationship. 351 00:19:00,080 --> 00:19:00,679 Speaker 4: It's healthy. 352 00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:04,679 Speaker 5: The question is will you trust him when doors close, 353 00:19:05,320 --> 00:19:08,320 Speaker 5: when people walk away, when the dream doesn't work out. 354 00:19:08,880 --> 00:19:12,320 Speaker 5: It's not happenstance, not just a bad break, it's a 355 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:16,520 Speaker 5: necessary ending. It's God positioning you for the new things 356 00:19:16,560 --> 00:19:20,000 Speaker 5: he's about to do. God wouldn't have closed the door 357 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:21,800 Speaker 5: unless he was going to open up. 358 00:19:21,680 --> 00:19:22,440 Speaker 4: A better door. 359 00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:25,720 Speaker 5: He wouldn't have let or for walk away unless he 360 00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:27,280 Speaker 5: was bringing somebody even better. 361 00:19:28,119 --> 00:19:30,400 Speaker 4: He's taken you from glory to glory. 362 00:19:31,040 --> 00:19:33,400 Speaker 5: Now one level of glory may come to an end, 363 00:19:33,720 --> 00:19:35,680 Speaker 5: so you can step into the greater glory. 364 00:19:36,440 --> 00:19:37,399 Speaker 4: Don't get stuck. 365 00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:39,760 Speaker 5: Looking back trying to figure out why didn't it work out? 366 00:19:40,359 --> 00:19:42,840 Speaker 5: Why did they treat me this way? Why did my 367 00:19:42,920 --> 00:19:47,679 Speaker 5: business slow down? Just keep moving forward, honoring God, knowing 368 00:19:47,720 --> 00:19:50,879 Speaker 5: that it was a necessary ending, that God wouldn't have 369 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:51,439 Speaker 5: stopped it. 370 00:19:51,720 --> 00:19:56,000 Speaker 4: If he didn't have something better coming? Are you fighting endings? 371 00:19:56,560 --> 00:20:00,480 Speaker 4: Better over what God stops? Discourage? Over what didn't last? 372 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:02,400 Speaker 4: What if you knew that. 373 00:20:02,440 --> 00:20:05,280 Speaker 5: It had to happen, did even though it felt like 374 00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:07,959 Speaker 5: a bad break, it was God leading you into the 375 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:12,120 Speaker 5: fullness of your destiny. Jesus was hanging on the cross, 376 00:20:12,600 --> 00:20:16,240 Speaker 5: wearing a crown of thorns. Before he passed, he said, 377 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:20,160 Speaker 5: it is finished. Seemed like he was done. They had 378 00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:24,399 Speaker 5: finally killed him. He even admitted it was over. But 379 00:20:24,440 --> 00:20:27,879 Speaker 5: the truth is it was a necessary ending. It was 380 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:31,280 Speaker 5: all a part of God's plan. If he wasn't supposed 381 00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:34,280 Speaker 5: to be crucified, he would have never gone to the cross. 382 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:37,840 Speaker 5: He told the soldiers, I could call down ten thousand 383 00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:41,199 Speaker 5: angels right now to come rescue me. He was saying, 384 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:44,399 Speaker 5: you think you're in control, that you're getting the best 385 00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:47,840 Speaker 5: of me, but my father is in control. You didn't 386 00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:51,960 Speaker 5: take my life. I'm laying it down. Without that ending, 387 00:20:52,320 --> 00:20:56,800 Speaker 5: we wouldn't have salvation. His life in his physical body ceased, 388 00:20:57,200 --> 00:21:00,320 Speaker 5: but only so he could rise again, come back with 389 00:21:00,359 --> 00:21:03,679 Speaker 5: a glorified body, with all power, with the keys of 390 00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:08,240 Speaker 5: death and hell. When it's a necessary ending, God is 391 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:11,640 Speaker 5: up to something big God's will, whisper where is God? 392 00:21:11,720 --> 00:21:12,040 Speaker 4: Now? 393 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:15,720 Speaker 5: How come you're going through the hurt, the breakup, the loss, 394 00:21:15,920 --> 00:21:16,560 Speaker 5: or don't worry? 395 00:21:16,680 --> 00:21:17,800 Speaker 4: Your time is coming. 396 00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:20,919 Speaker 5: God wouldn't have allowed it if you weren't about to 397 00:21:20,920 --> 00:21:25,840 Speaker 5: step into your promised land. Magdalene and some other women 398 00:21:26,320 --> 00:21:29,040 Speaker 5: went to the tomb that Sunday morning. They were going 399 00:21:29,080 --> 00:21:32,400 Speaker 5: to put perfume on Jesus's body, and the Angel met 400 00:21:32,480 --> 00:21:35,679 Speaker 5: them there, said, why do you seek the living among 401 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:40,119 Speaker 5: the dead. Jesus is not here, he has risen. The 402 00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:43,560 Speaker 5: angel was saying, why are you going to where God was? 403 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:45,560 Speaker 4: You need to go to where God is? 404 00:21:46,560 --> 00:21:49,680 Speaker 5: Why are you stuck on who hurt you, who walked away, 405 00:21:49,920 --> 00:21:50,920 Speaker 5: who pushed you out? 406 00:21:51,640 --> 00:21:54,800 Speaker 4: That had to end, That door had to close. 407 00:21:55,240 --> 00:21:57,960 Speaker 5: That man I had decease so you could go to 408 00:21:58,040 --> 00:22:03,000 Speaker 5: the next level of victory, londance and favor. When Jesus 409 00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:06,520 Speaker 5: said it is finished, that was symbolic. It was showing 410 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:09,639 Speaker 5: us that when God puts an end to things in 411 00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:12,800 Speaker 5: the natural, sometimes it will look like it's done. 412 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 4: Jesus breathed his last breath. 413 00:22:15,240 --> 00:22:19,560 Speaker 5: Lungs weren't moving anymore, no pulse. The soldiers even declared 414 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:24,480 Speaker 5: he died. He couldn't save himself. All the circumstances said 415 00:22:24,560 --> 00:22:27,920 Speaker 5: it was over. But God wouldn't have allowed the end 416 00:22:28,280 --> 00:22:30,560 Speaker 5: if he didn't have a greater beginning coming. 417 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:32,879 Speaker 4: Don't go by what it looks like. 418 00:22:33,359 --> 00:22:37,000 Speaker 5: God is doing things that you can't see in the natural. 419 00:22:37,080 --> 00:22:39,240 Speaker 5: It may look like the enemy got the best of you. 420 00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:43,720 Speaker 4: The door closed, person walked away, the business didn't make it. 421 00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:47,119 Speaker 5: The only reason the manner stopped is because there's a 422 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:52,880 Speaker 5: promised land in your future. There's something bigger, better, more rewarding. 423 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:53,760 Speaker 4: Than you can imagine. 424 00:22:54,600 --> 00:22:57,000 Speaker 5: I talked to a lady that owns her own business, 425 00:22:57,119 --> 00:22:59,920 Speaker 5: and she at least space in this shopping mall from 426 00:23:00,080 --> 00:23:03,879 Speaker 5: many years, always paid her bills, was a good tenant. 427 00:23:04,480 --> 00:23:07,800 Speaker 5: One day she received an email from her landlord saying 428 00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:10,399 Speaker 5: they were going to double her rent. Came out of 429 00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:13,959 Speaker 5: nowhere and give her any warning. She couldn't make a 430 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:18,000 Speaker 5: profit paying that much. They were basically forcing her out 431 00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:22,920 Speaker 5: of business. She was discouraged. Didn't understand it. One night, 432 00:23:22,960 --> 00:23:26,160 Speaker 5: she was flipping through the channels and came across our programming. 433 00:23:26,680 --> 00:23:29,720 Speaker 5: I was talking along these lines about how sometimes God 434 00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:32,560 Speaker 5: will allow a door to close to open something better. 435 00:23:33,200 --> 00:23:36,080 Speaker 5: It won't always makes sense, but to trust that He 436 00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:37,720 Speaker 5: has our best interests at heart. 437 00:23:38,480 --> 00:23:41,320 Speaker 4: She hadn't been able to sleep, she was so worried. 438 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:44,560 Speaker 5: She came back to that place of peace, believing that 439 00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:47,840 Speaker 5: God was ordering her steps. A couple of weeks later, 440 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:51,240 Speaker 5: a man called that she had never met, and said 441 00:23:51,240 --> 00:23:54,480 Speaker 5: that he had twice the space in a better shopping 442 00:23:54,560 --> 00:23:56,159 Speaker 5: center for half the cost. 443 00:23:56,880 --> 00:24:00,000 Speaker 4: She couldn't believe it. She didn't find him. He came 444 00:24:00,119 --> 00:24:00,440 Speaker 4: to her. 445 00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:03,760 Speaker 5: She moved in there, and she told me in the lobby, Joel, 446 00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:05,760 Speaker 5: I've never been so blessed. 447 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:07,600 Speaker 4: Never dreamed I'd have this much business. 448 00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:11,359 Speaker 5: It looked like a setback, but really it was God 449 00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:15,040 Speaker 5: setting her up to do something more than she could imagine. 450 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:18,440 Speaker 4: And I know we have to hold onto our dreams. 451 00:24:18,760 --> 00:24:21,560 Speaker 5: We have to stand in faith, but we also have 452 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:27,040 Speaker 5: to realize that God has necessary endings. Sometimes he'll stop things. 453 00:24:27,400 --> 00:24:30,480 Speaker 5: He'll cause the manner to cease. He'll push you out, 454 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:34,560 Speaker 5: like with my father. It's because he has something better coming. 455 00:24:35,320 --> 00:24:39,359 Speaker 5: Trust him with your closed doors. He controls the seasons, 456 00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:44,200 Speaker 5: and sometimes you're in spring for a long time, blossoming fruitful. 457 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:48,520 Speaker 5: Then the season changes, you come into winter. God will 458 00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:52,640 Speaker 5: stop things that were working. If you're stubborn you try 459 00:24:52,680 --> 00:24:55,359 Speaker 5: to force it and get upset because it's not what 460 00:24:55,440 --> 00:24:56,040 Speaker 5: it used to. 461 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:00,000 Speaker 4: Be, then you'll live frustrating. Be open to what God. 462 00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,159 Speaker 4: God is doing. He's the author and the finisher. 463 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:07,080 Speaker 5: There are times he will say, this season is finished. 464 00:25:07,600 --> 00:25:10,080 Speaker 5: It was a good season, it was productive. 465 00:25:10,359 --> 00:25:11,239 Speaker 4: You enjoyed it. 466 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:13,919 Speaker 5: But to see the new things he has in store, 467 00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:16,080 Speaker 5: that season will come to an end. 468 00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:19,440 Speaker 4: That's when you have to trust God. You know what's 469 00:25:19,480 --> 00:25:20,000 Speaker 4: best for me. 470 00:25:20,680 --> 00:25:22,760 Speaker 5: I may not like this, but I'm going to stay 471 00:25:22,760 --> 00:25:26,280 Speaker 5: in faith, knowing that this is a necessary ending and 472 00:25:26,320 --> 00:25:28,520 Speaker 5: it's leading me to a greater beginning. 473 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:31,240 Speaker 4: One Kings, chapter seventeen. 474 00:25:31,560 --> 00:25:34,840 Speaker 5: God told Elijah to go to the brook Cherith, and 475 00:25:34,960 --> 00:25:38,119 Speaker 5: the ravens would feed him there. He arrived at the brook, 476 00:25:38,160 --> 00:25:42,280 Speaker 5: and just like God promised he had provisioned week after week, 477 00:25:42,760 --> 00:25:45,240 Speaker 5: he didn't have to go get the food every day. 478 00:25:45,440 --> 00:25:49,480 Speaker 5: Like clockwork, the ravens came to him. I'm sure he thought, 479 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:52,600 Speaker 5: doesn't get any better than this. I am so blessed. 480 00:25:53,240 --> 00:25:56,560 Speaker 5: He was comfortable. He knew God's favor was on him. 481 00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:00,399 Speaker 5: But after a few months the ravens quit coming. The 482 00:26:00,440 --> 00:26:03,760 Speaker 5: brook dried up. God told him to lead that place 483 00:26:04,080 --> 00:26:06,960 Speaker 5: and go to the city of Zeropath. A widow would 484 00:26:06,960 --> 00:26:09,600 Speaker 5: take care of them there. He could have thought, this 485 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:13,400 Speaker 5: couldn't be God. This is where I've seen provision, This 486 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:16,760 Speaker 5: is where I've seen favor. He could have been stubborn 487 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:20,119 Speaker 5: and tried to stay in what used to be. The 488 00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:24,359 Speaker 5: problem was there was no provision there anymore. He didn't 489 00:26:24,359 --> 00:26:27,360 Speaker 5: do something wrong, he didn't run out of favor. It 490 00:26:27,440 --> 00:26:30,280 Speaker 5: was God stopping it to move him into a new 491 00:26:30,359 --> 00:26:34,440 Speaker 5: level of his destiny. When he got to Xeropath, that's 492 00:26:34,480 --> 00:26:37,760 Speaker 5: when his ministry began. He saw some of the greatest 493 00:26:37,840 --> 00:26:42,080 Speaker 5: miracles recorded in the scripture. But it's significant that it 494 00:26:42,200 --> 00:26:46,639 Speaker 5: happened after the brook dried up, after the ravens quit coming. 495 00:26:47,480 --> 00:26:51,400 Speaker 5: That door closing wasn't a bad break. He wasn't unlucky. 496 00:26:51,760 --> 00:26:53,359 Speaker 4: It was a necessary ending. 497 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:57,400 Speaker 5: Don't fight the things that God brings to an end. 498 00:26:58,160 --> 00:27:00,800 Speaker 5: It may be the way you think ought your dream 499 00:27:00,840 --> 00:27:04,640 Speaker 5: would work out. I thought I'd always be by this brook, Joe. 500 00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:08,480 Speaker 5: I thought I'd always have this friend in my own life. 501 00:27:08,800 --> 00:27:11,640 Speaker 5: I thought I'd always be behind the scenes. I thought 502 00:27:11,680 --> 00:27:16,440 Speaker 5: I'd always be in television production. But when my father passed, 503 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:19,439 Speaker 5: God put an end to that. He had to close 504 00:27:19,520 --> 00:27:21,080 Speaker 5: that door so I would. 505 00:27:20,960 --> 00:27:23,240 Speaker 4: Step into the new thing that he had in store. 506 00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:27,280 Speaker 4: Stay open. God's ways are not our ways. 507 00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:31,959 Speaker 5: Sometimes the brook will dry up, sometimes the manner will cease. 508 00:27:32,359 --> 00:27:36,720 Speaker 5: Sometimes orpl will walk away. Those aren't random, those are 509 00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:41,119 Speaker 5: necessary endings. It's the hand of God closing one door 510 00:27:41,440 --> 00:27:44,960 Speaker 5: to open another door. And yes, hold on to your dreams, 511 00:27:45,240 --> 00:27:48,720 Speaker 5: hold on to those promises, but stay open to how 512 00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:51,600 Speaker 5: God is going to do it. Some of the things 513 00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:55,400 Speaker 5: we're worried about, losing sleep, trying to make work out, 514 00:27:55,800 --> 00:27:59,200 Speaker 5: we don't realize God is the one changing the seasons, 515 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:04,680 Speaker 5: moving people out, pushing us into our purpose when seasons 516 00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:08,560 Speaker 5: are changing. Don't get stuck where God was. Go where 517 00:28:08,600 --> 00:28:11,800 Speaker 5: God is. He's doing a new thing. The man of 518 00:28:11,880 --> 00:28:13,360 Speaker 5: ceasing means you're. 519 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:15,240 Speaker 4: About to go into your promised land. 520 00:28:15,960 --> 00:28:20,080 Speaker 5: If you'll do this, I believe and declare, like the Israelites, 521 00:28:20,440 --> 00:28:26,200 Speaker 5: you're going to see supernatural provisions, abundance, opportunity. Like Elijah, 522 00:28:26,480 --> 00:28:29,359 Speaker 5: that closed door is leading to the best part of 523 00:28:29,400 --> 00:28:34,919 Speaker 5: your life, greater favor, greater relationships, better hell, the fullness 524 00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:37,640 Speaker 5: of your destiny in Jesus's name. 525 00:28:38,200 --> 00:28:40,440 Speaker 4: And if you receive it. Can you say amen? 526 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:45,080 Speaker 5: I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus 527 00:28:45,120 --> 00:28:46,240 Speaker 5: the Lord of your life. 528 00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:47,480 Speaker 4: Would you pray with me? 529 00:28:48,240 --> 00:28:52,600 Speaker 5: Just say, Lord, Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come 530 00:28:52,600 --> 00:28:53,800 Speaker 5: into my heart. 531 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:55,920 Speaker 4: I make you my Lord and savior. 532 00:28:56,640 --> 00:28:59,160 Speaker 5: If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got 533 00:28:59,200 --> 00:29:02,160 Speaker 5: born again. We'd love to send you some free information 534 00:29:02,320 --> 00:29:04,440 Speaker 5: on your new walk with the Lord. You can text 535 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:07,080 Speaker 5: the number on the screen or go to the website. 536 00:29:07,360 --> 00:29:09,800 Speaker 5: But I hope you'll get into a good Bible based 537 00:29:09,880 --> 00:29:13,400 Speaker 5: church and keep God first place. Thanks so much for 538 00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:16,840 Speaker 5: listening to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so you 539 00:29:16,840 --> 00:29:20,000 Speaker 5: can receive the latest podcast to keep you encouraged and 540 00:29:20,120 --> 00:29:21,520 Speaker 5: inspired all through the week. 541 00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:23,880 Speaker 3: Help us to continue to share the message of hope 542 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:25,400 Speaker 3: with those all around the world. 543 00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:28,480 Speaker 6: Visit Joelosting dot com or click the link in the 544 00:29:28,520 --> 00:29:30,680 Speaker 6: description to partner with us today. 545 00:29:30,920 --> 00:29:33,400 Speaker 5: We hope you'll share this message with a friend and 546 00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:35,440 Speaker 5: be sure to follow us on social media. 547 00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:39,000 Speaker 4: We're praying for you. 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