WEBVTT - Positioned for Increase 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. 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See terms and conditions at UNEs 0:01:29.760 --> 0:01:30.080 dot co. 0:01:30.920 --> 0:01:35.559 There is greatness in you. You weren't created to live 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:39.920 off a mana. Don't have a man of mentality. Don't 0:01:39.959 --> 0:01:44.000 complain when something ceases in your life. If it stopped, 0:01:44.280 --> 0:01:47.600 it wasn't supposed to be permanent. It's just a step 0:01:47.840 --> 0:01:51.880 on the way to your destiny. Hi, this is Joel 0:01:51.920 --> 0:01:56.200 and Victoria. Thanks for downloading our podcast. We enjoy spending 0:01:56.200 --> 0:01:58.560 this time with you. I know you're going to leave 0:01:58.680 --> 0:01:59.880 encouraged and inspired. 0:02:00.240 --> 0:02:03.200 Make sure you subscribe to get new messages every week 0:02:03.320 --> 0:02:05.960 and follow us on social media to stay connected. 0:02:06.160 --> 0:02:09.560 We appreciate your support. It helps keep the ministry going. 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:17.200 Enjoy the message. Well, God bless you. It's a joy 0:02:17.320 --> 0:02:19.680 to come into your homes. And if you're ever in 0:02:19.760 --> 0:02:22.520 our area, please stop by and be a part of 0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:25.480 one of our services. I promise you we will make 0:02:25.520 --> 0:02:28.240 you feel right at home. But I like to start 0:02:28.280 --> 0:02:31.040 with something funny, and I heard about this little girl. 0:02:31.440 --> 0:02:34.480 She asked her mother how the human race got started. 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:38.880 Her mother explained how God created Adam and Eve and 0:02:39.080 --> 0:02:42.160 they had children on and on here we are today. 0:02:42.680 --> 0:02:45.880 A few days later, she asked her father the same question. 0:02:46.400 --> 0:02:50.000 He explained, how many years ago there were monkeys, and 0:02:50.360 --> 0:02:52.959 little by little they became more like people, and now 0:02:53.000 --> 0:02:57.440 here we are confused. She went back to her mother, said, Mom, 0:02:57.560 --> 0:03:01.520 you said God created people, said we came from monkeys. 0:03:01.680 --> 0:03:04.480 How can that be? She said, oh, honey, that's easy. 0:03:04.800 --> 0:03:07.079 I told you about my side of the family that 0:03:07.320 --> 0:03:10.600 told you about his Say it like you mean it. 0:03:10.960 --> 0:03:14.000 This is my Bible. I am what it says, I am. 0:03:14.480 --> 0:03:16.960 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:03:17.040 --> 0:03:19.680 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:03:19.760 --> 0:03:24.000 taught the word of God. I boldly confess my mind 0:03:24.080 --> 0:03:27.560 is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 0:03:27.680 --> 0:03:32.799 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:03:32.840 --> 0:03:37.120 to talk to you today about positioned for increase. We 0:03:37.240 --> 0:03:39.880 all have to deal with things that come to an end. 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:43.640 We lost our main client, a friend we could always 0:03:43.720 --> 0:03:46.920 count on is moving away, or a loved one went 0:03:47.000 --> 0:03:50.240 to be with the Lord. We've seen God's blessing in 0:03:50.320 --> 0:03:53.320 the past. We know we have his favor, but it 0:03:53.360 --> 0:03:57.280 seems like that favor has been taken away. But God 0:03:57.360 --> 0:04:01.560 will never remove something unless he has something better coming. 0:04:02.400 --> 0:04:05.839 If he didn't stop certain things, we would never get 0:04:05.840 --> 0:04:09.280 out of our comfort zone. We would stay with what's familiar. 0:04:09.880 --> 0:04:14.080 So sometimes God will put an end to what doesn't 0:04:14.120 --> 0:04:17.719 make sense to us. We don't understand why the friend 0:04:17.760 --> 0:04:21.760 walked away, why the business pushed us out, why sales 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:24.960 aren't what they used to be. God is not doing 0:04:25.000 --> 0:04:28.440 that to make your life more difficult. He's getting you 0:04:28.560 --> 0:04:32.520 in position for increase. He had to stop what was 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.560 working to force you to stretch so you could come 0:04:36.560 --> 0:04:41.560 in to greater provision, greater opportunity. This is what happened 0:04:41.600 --> 0:04:44.760 with the Israelites. They had been in slavery for many 0:04:44.880 --> 0:04:49.599 years when God supernaturally brought them out. These two million 0:04:49.640 --> 0:04:54.200 people headed into the desert toward the Promised Land. The 0:04:54.320 --> 0:04:58.279 problem was there wasn't anything to eat out there, no 0:04:58.400 --> 0:05:02.800 way to survive. So every morning God gave them something 0:05:03.000 --> 0:05:06.880 called mana. It was like bread that formed on the ground. 0:05:07.560 --> 0:05:11.040 For forty years, as they traveled the desert, one thing 0:05:11.080 --> 0:05:14.560 they could always count on was the Manna. They had 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:18.120 enemies to fight, they had to overcome the heat, there 0:05:18.120 --> 0:05:22.719 were snakes and scorpions, but every day, like clockwork, there 0:05:22.839 --> 0:05:26.000 was the mana. They knew that was the hand of 0:05:26.080 --> 0:05:30.520 God taking care of them. What they didn't realize was 0:05:30.560 --> 0:05:36.240 the mana was only temporary provision. They were satisfied they 0:05:36.279 --> 0:05:40.440 had something to eat, but God wasn't satisfied. He was 0:05:40.520 --> 0:05:44.240 taking them into a land flowing with milk and honey, 0:05:44.640 --> 0:05:49.159 a land filled with resources with plenty of food. When 0:05:49.200 --> 0:05:53.919 the Israelites got close to the Promised Land, something interesting happened. 0:05:54.480 --> 0:05:58.919 The scripture says the manna ceased, and they never saw 0:05:58.960 --> 0:06:04.039 the mana again. Imagine what the people thought after forty 0:06:04.160 --> 0:06:08.920 years of having mana. Over fourteen thousand mornings, they got 0:06:09.000 --> 0:06:12.800 up and had breakfast at their tent. Now it was 0:06:13.040 --> 0:06:16.920 nowhere to be found. I can hear them panicking, God, 0:06:16.960 --> 0:06:21.480 what's happening? Why won't you provide for us anymore? They 0:06:21.520 --> 0:06:25.000 would have lived off of manna the rest of their lives. 0:06:25.320 --> 0:06:29.800 So God on purpose stopped the mana. He said, from 0:06:29.839 --> 0:06:32.760 now on, I want you to cook your own food. 0:06:33.279 --> 0:06:37.159 There's provision all around you. You don't need this manna 0:06:37.240 --> 0:06:41.640 to sustain you. I'm bringing you into abundance. It's not 0:06:41.720 --> 0:06:45.680 a coincidence that the manna stopped when they were about 0:06:45.720 --> 0:06:50.320 to go into the promised land. When something ceases in 0:06:50.360 --> 0:06:55.400 your life, that's an indication that increase is coming. God 0:06:55.480 --> 0:06:59.520 will never stop something unless he has greater provision on 0:06:59.600 --> 0:07:04.599 the way. Maybe a friend walked away, a contract fell through, 0:07:05.000 --> 0:07:07.400 you had a set back in your family. It's not 0:07:07.480 --> 0:07:10.040 as easy as it used to be. The man is 0:07:10.080 --> 0:07:13.280 not coming. You're having to cook your own food. It's 0:07:13.320 --> 0:07:16.800 because you're about to step in to a new level. 0:07:17.600 --> 0:07:21.679 The manner drying up is a sign you were close 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:25.880 to your promised land. What you were satisfied with was 0:07:25.920 --> 0:07:31.040 only temporary provision. You were blessed. Life was good, but 0:07:31.120 --> 0:07:34.520 God has so much more in store for you. He 0:07:34.680 --> 0:07:38.400 had to cease the friendship. He had to move that 0:07:38.480 --> 0:07:42.040 person away, not because they're not good, but they were 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:46.080 limiting you. They can't go where you're going. God had 0:07:46.120 --> 0:07:49.320 to close the door so he can bring people into 0:07:49.360 --> 0:07:53.520 your life that will push you into your purpose. Or 0:07:53.560 --> 0:07:57.360 maybe that position you were counting on didn't work out. 0:07:58.040 --> 0:08:01.200 You were hoping it would last, but it was not permanent. 0:08:01.640 --> 0:08:07.680 It's because it was only temporary provision. God stopped the manna, 0:08:08.040 --> 0:08:11.559 not because he's forgotten about you. He's about to take 0:08:11.600 --> 0:08:16.040 you into your promised land. He ceased it for one reason, 0:08:16.640 --> 0:08:19.760 to increase you, to take you where you couldn't go 0:08:19.960 --> 0:08:24.160 on your own. But when things cease, it's easy to think, God, 0:08:24.200 --> 0:08:28.240 where are you? Where is the manna? What's happening? It's 0:08:28.280 --> 0:08:30.920 been this way for years. I'm counting on it. It's 0:08:30.960 --> 0:08:34.760 tempting to live worried, think we're doing something wrong. We 0:08:34.880 --> 0:08:38.600 must have stepped out of God's favor. God wouldn't have 0:08:38.800 --> 0:08:42.760 ceased it if he didn't have something better coming. When 0:08:42.760 --> 0:08:46.360 that mana quits appearing, instead of being discouraged, have a 0:08:46.400 --> 0:08:49.559 new perspective. You're on the verge of a new level. 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:53.200 That's an indication that walls are about to come down, 0:08:53.760 --> 0:08:56.560 giants are about to be defeated. You're about to take 0:08:56.640 --> 0:09:02.080 new ground, see new levels, new opportunities. My friend Tony 0:09:02.160 --> 0:09:07.240 Dungee played professional football for many years. After a successful career, 0:09:07.760 --> 0:09:11.760 in nineteen ninety six, he landed his first job as 0:09:11.800 --> 0:09:15.640 a head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team. 0:09:16.120 --> 0:09:18.880 Was a dream come true. He knew it was the 0:09:18.920 --> 0:09:22.960 hand of God opening that door. For six years, everything 0:09:23.000 --> 0:09:27.120 went great. They were winning more games, making more progress. 0:09:27.559 --> 0:09:30.839 The manna was there every morning, the favor, the provision. 0:09:31.600 --> 0:09:36.680 But one day he was unexpectedly let go. They fired him. 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:40.280 He thought, God, I know you gave me this position. 0:09:41.200 --> 0:09:45.160 When the manna stops, that means God is up to something. 0:09:45.880 --> 0:09:49.679 The question is, will you get negative God, I can't 0:09:49.720 --> 0:09:53.040 believe this happened, this is not fair. Or will you 0:09:53.120 --> 0:09:56.280 say God, I know you wouldn't have closed this door 0:09:56.600 --> 0:09:59.480 unless you were about to open a better door. So Lord, 0:09:59.480 --> 0:10:02.600 I think it that you're in control, that your plans 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:05.559 for me are for good, that what you started in 0:10:05.559 --> 0:10:10.080 my life you will finish. The man of cci is 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:14.800 a test many people get bitter give up on their dreams. 0:10:15.400 --> 0:10:18.760 You have to understand the reason the man of stops, 0:10:19.240 --> 0:10:23.480 the reason doors close, the reason people walk away is 0:10:23.520 --> 0:10:27.800 you are close to your promised land. That's God taking away. 0:10:28.080 --> 0:10:33.480 The temporary provision may look permanent to us. We were satisfied, 0:10:33.960 --> 0:10:37.120 but God's dream for your life is much bigger than 0:10:37.160 --> 0:10:41.839 your own. Coach Dungee was disappointed, but he didn't sit 0:10:41.920 --> 0:10:45.800 around in self pity thinking about how bad life was. 0:10:46.280 --> 0:10:48.800 He knew the same God that opened the door in 0:10:48.920 --> 0:10:53.280 Tampa Bay had now closed the door. It wasn't long 0:10:53.440 --> 0:10:56.200 after he was let go that he received a phone 0:10:56.240 --> 0:11:00.880 call from the Indianapolis Colts football team. They said, we're 0:11:00.880 --> 0:11:05.040 looking for a coach. Are you interested. Coach Dungee took 0:11:05.120 --> 0:11:08.000 the job. He went on to win the Super Bowl 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:13.080 with the Colts. What looked like a great disappointment getting 0:11:13.160 --> 0:11:17.640 pushed out the manner stopping was really a great blessing. 0:11:18.520 --> 0:11:23.000 Has something ceased in your life? You went through a disappointment, 0:11:23.320 --> 0:11:27.479 a door closed, a person walked away. It's more difficult 0:11:27.520 --> 0:11:30.120 than it used to be. The manna is not there. 0:11:30.240 --> 0:11:34.200 Every morning God is saying, get ready, I'm about to 0:11:34.240 --> 0:11:38.120 do something that you've never seen. He didn't cease the 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:43.320 provision because he's through with you. He stopped it because 0:11:43.360 --> 0:11:47.320 it's only temporary. He's about to launch you into a 0:11:47.320 --> 0:11:51.120 new level. Now, don't let it sour you. Why did 0:11:51.120 --> 0:11:54.200 this company do me wrong? Why did these people leave 0:11:54.280 --> 0:11:58.160 me out? It wasn't their choice. It was God closing 0:11:58.200 --> 0:12:02.160 the door. God was moving them. It was God stopping 0:12:02.200 --> 0:12:05.880 the mana. God told the Israelites, you don't need this 0:12:06.080 --> 0:12:10.680 manna anymore. There's provision all around you. They were so 0:12:10.880 --> 0:12:14.480 close to the promised land. There was all kinds of 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:18.960 food available. But if God had kept giving them manna, 0:12:19.520 --> 0:12:22.560 they would have missed the abundance that belonged to them. 0:12:23.320 --> 0:12:26.600 When the manna ceases in your life, like with them, 0:12:27.080 --> 0:12:30.840 you're so close to your promised land. The provision is 0:12:30.880 --> 0:12:34.480 already there. Now you have to cook your own food. 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:38.200 God's not going to do this for you. You can't 0:12:38.240 --> 0:12:42.520 stay where it's familiar, what you're used to, what's easy. 0:12:42.840 --> 0:12:45.920 You have to stretch, get out of your comfort zone, 0:12:46.120 --> 0:12:50.800 take some steps of faith. There is greatness in you. 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:54.920 You weren't created to live off a manna. Don't have 0:12:55.000 --> 0:12:59.280 a man of mentality. Don't complain when something ceases in 0:12:59.360 --> 0:13:03.280 your life. If it stopped, it wasn't supposed to be permanent. 0:13:03.679 --> 0:13:06.520 It's just a step on the way to your destiny. 0:13:07.480 --> 0:13:11.520 The Israelites had to accept not having any manna meant 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:14.360 that it was a new day and God was doing 0:13:14.400 --> 0:13:17.880 a new thing. If they would have been sour because 0:13:17.920 --> 0:13:21.040 the Man of ceased, they would have never seen walls 0:13:21.040 --> 0:13:24.680 of Jericho come down. They would have never conquered city 0:13:24.760 --> 0:13:28.760 after city and lived in the land of abundance. Have 0:13:28.920 --> 0:13:32.320 you let what ceased in your life cause you to 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:35.560 be sour or do you see it as a sign 0:13:35.920 --> 0:13:39.720 that you're about to go into your promised land. When 0:13:39.760 --> 0:13:42.280 the Man of ceases, you have to dig down deep. 0:13:42.960 --> 0:13:45.800 This business may have slowed down, but Lord, I want 0:13:45.800 --> 0:13:48.400 to thank you that new doors are about to open. 0:13:48.920 --> 0:13:52.000 This person walked away. Lord, thank you, you have somebody 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:56.200 better coming. This marriage is difficult, but Lord, thank you. Peace. 0:13:56.679 --> 0:14:01.840 Joy restoration is on the way. The closer the Israelites 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:05.080 got to the Promised Land, the less God did for 0:14:05.200 --> 0:14:09.520 them when they were in slavery. God sent plagues on 0:14:09.600 --> 0:14:13.000 the Pharaoh. Israelites didn't have to do anything. They just 0:14:13.040 --> 0:14:17.319 sat back and watched. God changed the Pharaoh's mind. God 0:14:17.400 --> 0:14:21.840 parted the Red Sea. God drowned their enemies in the desert. 0:14:22.280 --> 0:14:25.200 God gave them water out of a rock. God gave 0:14:25.240 --> 0:14:28.640 them quell to eat. On and on. They saw the 0:14:28.680 --> 0:14:32.440 hand of God manna every morning. But when they were 0:14:32.480 --> 0:14:36.400 about to go into the Promised Land, God said, now 0:14:36.720 --> 0:14:39.760 I want you to cook your own food. I'll bring 0:14:39.800 --> 0:14:42.560 the walls down, but you have to march around them 0:14:42.600 --> 0:14:46.000 seven times. I'll defeat your enemies, but you have to 0:14:46.040 --> 0:14:50.280 go in and possess the land. As they got closer, 0:14:50.880 --> 0:14:54.960 they had to grow up. God expected them to stand 0:14:55.120 --> 0:14:59.240 on their own two feet to encourage themselves to fight 0:14:59.320 --> 0:15:03.040 off the fear. He was saying, the day is over 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:06.800 when I'm going to bring you the manna. The provision 0:15:06.960 --> 0:15:10.800 is all around. I've brought you this far. I fought 0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:14.600 all your battles. I gave you breakfast every morning. But 0:15:14.640 --> 0:15:18.440 for this new level to enter into this place of abundance, 0:15:18.680 --> 0:15:23.160 you have to step up. With the Promised Land comes 0:15:23.160 --> 0:15:28.160 a new level of responsibility. Maybe in the past you've 0:15:28.200 --> 0:15:31.920 relied on other people to keep you encouraged, cheered up. 0:15:32.680 --> 0:15:35.840 God is going to begin to wean those people away 0:15:36.720 --> 0:15:40.200 at some point that manner is going to cease, not 0:15:40.360 --> 0:15:43.640 because God doesn't love you, but he wants you to 0:15:43.680 --> 0:15:47.560 stand on your own. You can't become who you were 0:15:47.600 --> 0:15:52.240 created to be always depending on somebody else. You don't 0:15:52.280 --> 0:15:56.560 need that crutch. Start encouraging yourself all through the day. 0:15:57.000 --> 0:16:00.240 I am strong in the Lord. Something good is going 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:03.200 to happen to me. God being for me is more 0:16:03.240 --> 0:16:07.400 than the world being against me. To enter your promised land, 0:16:07.840 --> 0:16:10.880 you have to cook your own food. Some of the 0:16:10.880 --> 0:16:14.360 things God has done for you in the past, having 0:16:14.400 --> 0:16:18.080 people there to encourage you, causing everything to fall into place, 0:16:18.520 --> 0:16:22.320 that's not going to continue. If God kept doing everything 0:16:22.480 --> 0:16:27.400 for us, we wouldn't see the abundance all around. You 0:16:27.480 --> 0:16:31.640 may wonder why certain things seem more difficult. Raising your 0:16:31.760 --> 0:16:35.560 children is not as easy at work, It's more complicated 0:16:36.040 --> 0:16:39.040 in your finances. You're working harder for the same income, 0:16:39.600 --> 0:16:43.680 staying courage, you're cooking your own food. You're about to 0:16:43.840 --> 0:16:47.720 enter into your promised land. That's when things will shift 0:16:47.800 --> 0:16:52.080 in your favor. That's when you'll see increase promotion favor 0:16:52.480 --> 0:16:55.880 like you've never seen. But we have to pass this 0:16:56.040 --> 0:17:00.960 test of not falling apart. When the manner ceases when 0:17:01.000 --> 0:17:04.119 things are not coming as easily as they used to. 0:17:04.680 --> 0:17:08.800 Take it as a compliment. You're growing. God is saying, 0:17:09.119 --> 0:17:11.960 I don't have to keep feeding you manna. I don't 0:17:12.000 --> 0:17:15.959 have to sustain you off this temporary provision. You're getting 0:17:16.000 --> 0:17:19.520 stronger to where you can handle the fullness of what 0:17:19.640 --> 0:17:23.879 I have in store. Before the Israelites could enter the 0:17:23.960 --> 0:17:28.040 Promised Land, they had to say goodbye to the familiar, 0:17:28.840 --> 0:17:32.960 Goodbye to manna that they had had forty years. Imagine 0:17:33.080 --> 0:17:36.960 when it stopped coming. They could have been discouraged, lost 0:17:37.000 --> 0:17:41.200 their passion. Instead, they said, fine, we'll go get our 0:17:41.240 --> 0:17:46.119 own food. They went out and found all kinds of corn, grain, wheat. 0:17:46.280 --> 0:17:51.760 It was all available. Some people never succeed because they're 0:17:51.800 --> 0:17:56.439 not willing to say goodbye to the familiar, Goodbye to 0:17:56.560 --> 0:18:00.720 a friendship that's holding them back, Goodbye to job where 0:18:00.760 --> 0:18:05.600 they're not fulfilled, or goodbye to old mindsets to limited thinking. 0:18:06.359 --> 0:18:10.480 When the manna ceases, that friendship is not feeding you anymore. 0:18:10.840 --> 0:18:14.080 It's just pulling you down, making you more negative. If 0:18:14.119 --> 0:18:17.960 you're not willing to say goodbye, you'll miss your promised land. 0:18:18.960 --> 0:18:21.320 When you know you're supposed to take a step of 0:18:21.320 --> 0:18:26.320 faith and teach that class. Start your business, write that book, 0:18:26.560 --> 0:18:30.280 move into that new neighborhood. Don't stay where it's comfortable. 0:18:31.160 --> 0:18:34.360 You can't play it safe your whole life and become 0:18:34.680 --> 0:18:38.040 who you were created to be. God is the one 0:18:38.080 --> 0:18:41.359 who put the desires in you. God is the one 0:18:41.400 --> 0:18:44.320 that caused the manna to cease. It was good for 0:18:44.400 --> 0:18:48.280 a season, but you weren't made to live off a manna. 0:18:49.160 --> 0:18:52.320 You have to say goodbye to the familiar if you're 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:56.080 going to keep moving forward. It doesn't mean that people 0:18:56.080 --> 0:18:59.359 are bad, but everyone is not supposed to be in 0:18:59.400 --> 0:19:03.560 your life. And when God closes a door, the longer 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:06.080 we hold on, the more miserable we're going to be. 0:19:07.040 --> 0:19:11.040 When the manner stops for that certain position, you know 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:14.280 you're supposed to step up. You've got bigger things in you, 0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:18.320 but you're afraid. The problem is the grace for that 0:19:18.520 --> 0:19:22.280 old position is not going to be there. God has 0:19:22.400 --> 0:19:25.840 moved on. The favor is waiting for you at your 0:19:25.920 --> 0:19:29.680 next assignment. You have to stretch, get out of your 0:19:29.720 --> 0:19:33.720 comfort zone. If you'll say goodbye to the familiar, you'll 0:19:33.720 --> 0:19:37.679 see the new things that God has in store. This 0:19:37.840 --> 0:19:40.680 is what I did. I worked behind the scenes here 0:19:40.720 --> 0:19:44.080 at Lakewood for seventeen years. I thought that's what I 0:19:44.160 --> 0:19:47.560 do the rest of my life. I was happy and fulfilled. 0:19:48.119 --> 0:19:51.040 But in nineteen ninety nine my father went to be 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:54.960 with the Lord, and everything changed for me. I knew 0:19:55.080 --> 0:19:57.679 I was supposed to step up and pastor the church, 0:19:58.280 --> 0:20:01.880 but I liked being behind the se I was comfortable, 0:20:02.200 --> 0:20:04.199 didn't want to have to get out in front of people. 0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:08.000 When my father was alive, it was easy, like with 0:20:08.080 --> 0:20:11.639 the children of Israel. The Mana came to me every morning. 0:20:12.280 --> 0:20:15.320 But when Daddy passed, it was like the Manna ceased. 0:20:15.880 --> 0:20:18.879 He was gone. Nothing I could do to bring him back. 0:20:19.800 --> 0:20:23.560 Sometimes God will close a door no matter how much 0:20:23.680 --> 0:20:27.159 we don't like it. It's not going to reopen. The 0:20:27.200 --> 0:20:31.320 good news is God never ceases the manna unless he 0:20:31.400 --> 0:20:35.800 has greater provision coming. He never closes the door if 0:20:35.800 --> 0:20:39.080 he's not going to open up another door. But too 0:20:39.119 --> 0:20:43.440 often we're trying to hold onto old manna, old friendships, 0:20:43.920 --> 0:20:49.000 old attitudes, old positions. When God ceases that manna, it 0:20:49.080 --> 0:20:52.040 means he's about to do a new thing. You have 0:20:52.119 --> 0:20:55.959 to let go of the old. What's interesting is the 0:20:56.040 --> 0:21:00.400 manna God gave the Israelites was only good for one day. 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:03.600 They could gather up enough for three or four days, 0:21:04.000 --> 0:21:07.840 but in twenty four hours it would spoil. It wouldn't last. 0:21:08.840 --> 0:21:12.160 When we try to hold on to old manna. What 0:21:12.240 --> 0:21:15.520 God used to do. A friendship that was good for 0:21:15.560 --> 0:21:19.480 a season, but not now, a job where we're not fulfilled. 0:21:20.119 --> 0:21:23.879 All that manna is spoiled. You're not growing. It's not 0:21:24.080 --> 0:21:28.600 feeding you anymore. Maybe in your career, what used to 0:21:28.720 --> 0:21:32.720 challenge you doesn't challenge you anymore. You hear God telling 0:21:32.760 --> 0:21:36.119 you to stretch, to take steps of faith. You wonder 0:21:36.160 --> 0:21:39.640 why you're not fulfilled, why you're not growing. It's because 0:21:39.720 --> 0:21:44.280 that manna is old. God has freshness, He's a god 0:21:44.440 --> 0:21:48.440 of new beginnings. Yes, the manna was fine for a season. 0:21:48.960 --> 0:21:52.720 It brought you to the Promised Land. It sustained you 0:21:52.880 --> 0:21:56.200 while you were learning. But at some point the manna 0:21:56.359 --> 0:21:59.520 is going to cease. That's when you have to prepare 0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:02.400 your own food. You have to step up to who 0:22:02.440 --> 0:22:06.479 you were created to be. When my father passed, I 0:22:06.600 --> 0:22:09.640 was afraid, but I did what I'm asking you to do. 0:22:10.320 --> 0:22:13.160 I got out of my comfort zone. I said goodbye 0:22:13.240 --> 0:22:16.280 to the familiar I stepped up to pastor the church. 0:22:16.840 --> 0:22:20.159 God has taken me further than I ever imagined. But 0:22:20.280 --> 0:22:23.320 had my father not gone to be with the Lord, 0:22:23.800 --> 0:22:27.160 had that manner not ceased, I would have never made 0:22:27.200 --> 0:22:30.760 it into my promised land. You don't have to lose 0:22:30.840 --> 0:22:34.560 a loved one, but there will be times that God 0:22:34.680 --> 0:22:38.679 ceases good things in your life. You don't feel like 0:22:38.800 --> 0:22:42.480 you have the favor that you used to stay in courage. 0:22:42.720 --> 0:22:45.639 That means you're about to step up to a new level. 0:22:46.160 --> 0:22:50.320 God is taking you from glory to glory. What you 0:22:50.400 --> 0:22:54.399 were satisfied with was one level of glory. It was 0:22:54.520 --> 0:22:57.879 just temporary provision. God's about to take it to a 0:22:57.920 --> 0:23:01.400 new level of glory where you see favor an increase 0:23:01.720 --> 0:23:05.919 like you've never seen. God told the prophet Elijah to 0:23:06.040 --> 0:23:09.080 go down to the brook Cherith and the ravens would 0:23:09.160 --> 0:23:12.920 feed him there. Elijah arrived at the brook, he had 0:23:13.000 --> 0:23:17.040 provision week after week. He didn't have to go get 0:23:17.080 --> 0:23:21.160 the food every day. Like clockwork, the ravens came to him. 0:23:21.680 --> 0:23:25.760 He had home delivery before Domino's. I'm sure he thought, 0:23:26.400 --> 0:23:29.119 it doesn't get any better than this. God, you treat 0:23:29.200 --> 0:23:33.399 me so good. For months, the ravens kept coming. He 0:23:33.560 --> 0:23:36.520 was blessed. He knew God's favor was on him. He 0:23:36.600 --> 0:23:41.199 was comfortable. But one day the brook dried up and 0:23:41.240 --> 0:23:45.360 the ravens quit coming. God said, Elijah, now I want 0:23:45.400 --> 0:23:48.080 you to go to the city of Zirapath. I have 0:23:48.160 --> 0:23:51.400 a widow that's going to take care of you. Elijah 0:23:51.400 --> 0:23:54.880 could have thought that couldn't be God. He's blessed me here. 0:23:55.400 --> 0:23:58.520 I've seen his favor almost say where I am. He 0:23:58.520 --> 0:24:02.199 could have held onto the all. The problem is the 0:24:02.240 --> 0:24:06.600 brook dried up, the ravens quit coming. Why it was 0:24:06.720 --> 0:24:11.840 temporary provision. Elijah went to the city of Zeropath. That's 0:24:11.880 --> 0:24:15.840 where his ministry began. He saw some of the greatest 0:24:15.880 --> 0:24:20.840 miracles ever recorded in the scripture. It's not a coincidence 0:24:21.119 --> 0:24:25.240 that it happened after the brook dried up, after the 0:24:25.280 --> 0:24:28.280 man as seised, when it looked like he didn't have 0:24:28.400 --> 0:24:32.560 God's favor and blessing like he used to. Actually that 0:24:32.720 --> 0:24:35.439 was a sign he was about to step in to 0:24:35.560 --> 0:24:40.280 a new level of his destiny. Are you discouraged because 0:24:40.320 --> 0:24:43.680 the brook dried up? Are you frustrated because the man 0:24:43.760 --> 0:24:46.560 as seised? Things are not happening like they used to 0:24:47.359 --> 0:24:51.879 What you don't realize is God is positioning you for increase. 0:24:52.400 --> 0:24:55.959 It looks like a setback, but really it's a setup. 0:24:56.359 --> 0:25:00.040 He's about to do something that you've never seen. The 0:25:00.040 --> 0:25:03.240 brook drying up is not the end. It's a sign 0:25:03.680 --> 0:25:09.720 that greater provision is coming, greater opportunity, greater influence. Don't 0:25:09.720 --> 0:25:13.199 complain about the brook. Get ready for the new things 0:25:13.320 --> 0:25:16.720 God is about to do. Thank him. When you don't 0:25:16.720 --> 0:25:20.879 see any sign of water, keep believing even when the 0:25:20.920 --> 0:25:25.159 doors closed, keep stretching, doing the right thing. The brook 0:25:25.280 --> 0:25:28.119