Priscilla Shirer: Strengthened by God

Priscilla come give her a big hand it's thank you for that well hi ((applause)) y'all Jerry and I are so excited to be here um all the way from Dallas Texas where we live and it is a privilege to be able to share with you today um you know Miss Miss Joyce talks about Andy stealing a little bit of her message but you you mean think about how it feels to be me after the end of a day and a half already of us receiving they have pretty much taught the whole Bible they they have taught the whole Bible so I've decided that you're going to turn to the back of your Bible we're just going to talk from the maps but you know what it is my prayer it's my prayer that what God would do in this moment that you and I are going to spend together is that he would just allow me to be a partner with Miss Joyce and putting a big old exclamation point on this long sentence God has already been writing throughout the time you and I have been together that he would seal this word in our heart that we would know beyond a shadow of a doubt before we leave this place exactly who we are in Christ and so it is a privilege to be able to uh stand on this platform and to be able to have an opportunity to to share with you um Miss Joyce and I have several mutual friends um and so I have also obviously heard so much about her and the wonderful woman that she is not only on the platform but behind the platform when the lights and the spotlights aren't on and don't you know that's where it really matters people of integrity and character several of our friends have called her in my hearing they've called her Mama Joyce and I thought to myself well I would just I would never call her Mama Joyce because we're not familiar enough with each other for me to call her mama anything but last night when she pulled out Spanx on the stage I knew we would be ((applause)) friends and I decided after the Spanx I can call her Mama Joyce and I want to thank you Mama Joyce for your ministry to all of us would y'all just say thank you Mama Joyce listen I'm excited about God's word today excited about what it is he wants to share with us there's been a simple yet think pretty profound principle that over the last really year of my life the Lord has just been cementing in my heart and in my mind and in my soul and I want to share that with you today let's pray together Lord Jesus thank you so much for your word thank you Lord that it is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword Lord I pray that in these few moments you would do what only you can that is take one little simple message divide it 20,000 different ways so so that every single person under the sound of my voice will know beyond a shadow of a doubt they have heard from God in Jesus name amen my uh brother and I have actually three siblings I have an older sister and I've got two younger brothers and my baby brother his name is Jonathan we call him John John and my baby brother does what baby brothers do when they come over to your house as an adult he comes over to my house and he immediately goes right to my refrigerator every single time either the pantry of the refrigerator and recently he came over my house and he went over to the refrigerator and he opened it up and I guess as he was forging around my refrigerator it reminded him of this story that he began to tell me as he was looking into my refrigerator now I've got three boys and my youngest boy his name is Jude so we've got a 10-year-old named Jackson and then we have a nine-year-old named Jerry Jr then we've got our little surprise four-year-old his name is Jude we don't actually know where he came from and uh we named him Jude because that is as close as I could get to Revelation because it is finished it is done it's complete and so my little Jude is actually the exact same age as my brother's oldest child Kelsey so I've got this niece her name is Kelsey she is a wild little sassy precocious thing all this curly hair on her head I don't know where she got any of that from and um he was telling me this story about Kelsey and about how when Kelsey was 2 years old she would go over to the refrigerator in their home when she was uh hungry and she would point at the big box that had the food in it and say eat so John John said I would go over to Kelsey and I would pick her up I would run her over to the table and sit her down in the booster seat so that I could bring her the food that she was asking for but Kelsey now far removed from what she thought was the place she needed to be to get the food she would throw a temper tantrum and cry a river of Tears and she would wiggle her way out of that seat and storm her way back across the kitchen in front of the big box where the food was and she would point at it and say eat he would then grab her and put her back in her booster seat at the kitchen table and she would throw a temper tantrum and cry a river of tears and wiggle her way out of the chair walk back across the kitchen floor stand in front of the big box that had the food in it and say eat he would then pick her up and take her back to the booster seat she would wiggle her out walk herself across and say eat he said Priscilla we went through this over and over and over and over again and he laughed as he told me the story but he said Priscilla at the time it wasn't funny he said I had to have so much patience with this girl as I tried to get her to understand that where I was putting her was actually the best place for her to be positioned to receive the what she was asking me for that even though in her mind it didn't seem like the best place for her to be to receive what she was requesting I knew because I'm her daddy and I love her that where I was putting her was the best environment for her to be in for her to receive the requests that she had in her heart and on her mind and as dun John told me this story I got to tell you I just laughed as I thought about my little curly-headed niece and her little sassy self I laughed hysterically and as I was laughing the Holy Spirit stopped me in my tracks and said uh-uh don't laugh too long or too hard because that would be you Priscilla how often is it Priscilla that I try to put you in the right place I try to tell you where to go what to do give you that Holy Spirit guidance that Miss Joyce was talking to us about I try to lead you and yet you rebel against it or ignore it or refuse to follow the directions that I have for you Priscilla more patient then John John has to be with little Kelsey I have got to be with you I became right there in the kitchen listening to the story so not only convicted and challenged but appreciative of the patience of God towards me and I began to think about how Greatful I am that I cannot wear God out how grateful I am that he's got enough patience to handle me and all my drama and you and all your drama anybody glad about it sometimes when we think about how powerful our God is we think about his demonstrations of power how in the Old Testament he was able to cause the walls of Jericho to come tumbling down or the red seated divide or how in the New Testament he made Lazarus raised from the dead and we think about God's power and how it is overtly demonstrated but I want you with me for a few moments this morning to think about the flip side of God's power that is equally important and impressive to us not only that his power is seen in what he can do but his power is also seen in what he chooses not to do his power is not only seen in what he he releases but what he is able to restrain himself when he does not give us what he deserve what we deserve that he loves us enough to be longsuffering that you are important enough enough to him beautiful enough to him that he's got enough patience to handle your life your history your past your weaknesses your strengths your personality our differences our uniquenesses listen God doesn't need a good nap before he can handle us I'm grateful today for the patience of God anybody so for just a few moments today I want to talk to you about one of of the most simple and yet profound characteristics of our great God that that really will make a difference in our lives and let me tell you why because I've met some people recently and I have had seasons in my life and in my relationship with the Lord where I have been kind of walking on eggshells in my relationship with him kind of stepping gingerly because I I just felt like if I make one more mistake if there's one more mishap if I head in the wrong direction One More Time it just might be the straw that breaks the camel's back that God just might be done with me that he might not be able to use me that I might not be able to partner with him and his purposes and so if the enemy can get us to thinking that that we might be able to outs the grace of God that in some way we'll be Beyond his reach if he can get us to walk gingerly in our relationship with God then we'll never experience the Abundant Life that he's called us to we'll never be willing to just throw our head and hearts and hands back and sayl anything you want for me I'm willing to go and I realize Lord that it might not always mean that I'm perfect I won't be perfect but thank you that your grace is sufficient for even my mistakes and my mishaps and my wrong choices so I think that a revelation of God's patience listen y'all it can literally set you free a revelation of the fact that God has got enough patience for for you and for me can cause you to finally and me to finally live the Abundant Life that we have been called to patience when we think about it when I think about it patience is a characteristic in the soul of a human being that really has to be matured over time it's one of the reasons we need the holy spirit because the Holy Spirit causes us to be able to develop these uh characteristics and let me tell you I need help in the patients Department anybody need help in the patients Department all right I Am Naturally an impatient person I like for things to be fixed kind of quickly whenever there's a problem I kind of come up with a real quick solution it might not be the best solution but I just love the fact there's a solution on the table let's just get on with this and get it done and do you know the way that the Lord helps us to grow in our level of patience is he most of the time will put us in scenarios where we've got to wait so he causes you to marry somebody Lord have mercy he causes you to get married to somebody who takes 24 48 72 hours to make a decision help me Jesus so I'm the type that as soon as there is a problem man I have figured out a way we can solve this thing and move on with our lives my husband on the other hand has to think about it pray about it fast on it seek wise counsel regarding it sleep on it help me Jesus and do you know most of the time most of the time when he comes up with a solution three or 4 days later it is actually the exact same thing that I thought of in the first 5 minutes that we had a problem one thing Jerry will do though is he will make good decisions because he's thought it all the way through so in this relationship in this scenario God hes in me patience the reason why you sit next to that coworker on your job that one that if she says one more thing to you you going to knock her out that ((applause)) one the reason why he puts you in that scenario is because he knows that Dynamic is going to hone in you patience so don't be pointing at your person next to [laughter] you so because patience is something you and I need help with we tend to put that same Dynamic on God and we think that because we get frustrated with our kids when they ask us the same thing three four five 10 20 times or with that coworker who we have a low tolerance for we think that because we get fed up that God must also get fed up with us just like we do with others we think that that patience is something he must need to grow in as well in his relationship with us because that's what we need but you need to understand that patience is not just a characteristic that God has at his disposal the very essence of all that patience was ever meant to be God is completely and entirely he is not growing in his level of patience he is the all patient one my friends he is God fully and completely and he's not applying for the job he's got it covered in fact when you think about all all of the things that make up the characteristics of God his omnipresence his s sovereignty his omniscience when you think about all of the the links in the chain that make up the um the character of God really his patience is the most Central and most important of all the links when you think about it because if it weren't for his patience we wouldn't exist long enough to get to the grace and the mercy and the omniscience and the OM omnipresence it is because he is patient with us he is slow to anger Exodus 34 that's the reason why we get to experience the greatness of our God one scholar put it this way and I love it so much he said it is the patience of God that held our sinful hands and led us to the doorstep of his mercy so that we could enter in it's God's patience that allows us to experience his kindness and his greatness he is a bottomless pit of P patience it is overflowing and Limitless and boundless you cannot outs sin the grace of God there is nowhere you've been there is nothing you've done that causes you to now not be beautiful to our great God he loves you with an everlasting love somebody say Everlasting everl Everlasting his patience it's sufficient for you you you cannot wear God out there is one place in Scripture that I want to direct your attention to today uh not not in the maps there's actually one scripture I found that we have not covered yet throughout the course of our weekend and it's in the book of First Timothy so if you have your Bible and you want to turn there with me to First Timothy Paul the Apostle is writing to this young Minister as he's getting started in life and Ministry and he wants to tell him some things to help him along the way and of all of the guidance that Paul wants to give Timothy he wants to tell him about this patience thing he knows that Timothy is going to have a long road in front of him yes there are going to be mistakes and mishaps along the way and so he wants him to know right up front listen God's Got Your Back Tim you need to know that God's patience is on your side he is for you he is not against you and so he shares with him among the many things that he wants to say to Timothy in first 1 Timothy he shares with him a message about the patience of God 1 Timothy 1: 16 Paul says and yet for this reason I found Mercy in order that in me as the foremost Jesus Christ might demonstrate here it is his perfect patience what kind of patience is it his perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in him for eternal life I love this verse so much because Paul wants to be clear here he says I want you to understand the kind of patience we're talking about here when we're talking about God's patience it's not a good patience it's not even a great patience it is a perfect patience meaning even when you go to the furthest extremities of God's ability to be patient with you there is not one little bit of imperfection even along those outward edges he has a perfect level of patience toward you and Paul says just in case you're want wondering and just in case you need Clarity on how much patience God must have For Those whom he loves so dearly just in case you're curious Paul says take a look right over here because I am a demonstration he says of the patience of God he says if you've ever wondered how perfect God's patience is and whether he can endure with you and your life and the details of all that has gone on and your existence he says you don't have to look much further than me Paul says if he can put up with me I'm telling you he's got your back Paul says I'm a demonstration he calls himself the foremost of all Sinners he says you ain't done nothing I haven't already done you haven't been anywhere I have not been your eyes have not seen anything your ears haven't heard anything you have not touched anything you have not participated in anything there is no pit deeper that you have been in than the ones I have been in Paul says take a look over here I'm a demonstration of how perfect God's patience must be he says you never have to wonder again if you just look at me how perfect God's patience must be and he starts that verse with this phrase in the in The nasb New American Standard Bible that I'm reading from he starts it with this phrase yet for this reason for this reason I love that because anytime you see a phrase like that for this reason in the scripture it's almost like seeing the word therefore anytime you see therefore in scripture you need to see what it's there for because it is there for a reason so he says for this reason which means there are already some reasons he has listed that he wants us to be aware of there are some things that caused him to come to this conclusion in verse 16 about how perfect God's patience must be so I thought for just a few moments today you and I could look back just a few verses we're going to kind of backtrack so that we can see what the reasons are I want to know what make Paul such a demonstration of the patience of God because if you and I look closely at what these reasons are not only do I think you and I will see that Paul's not the only demonstration of how patient God is but I think it's also going to free us up because when we recognize and see his patience already demonstrated in our lives it will cause us to want to live completely and fully and abundantly so I want to point out these reasons to you is that all right with you this morning the very first reason is found in verse 15 so we're backtracking up one verse he says it is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world here's the reason to save Sinners among whom I am the foremost of all Paul writes the very first reason that he wants you and I to know why God's patience is so profound and so boundless and so abundant and so Limitless he says if you've ever wondered whether or not God's got enough patience for you would you remember that Christ came into the world to save Sinners he says the very first reason that tells us that God has got enough patience to handle anything that could ever happen in our lives is just this one simple fact he saved you he saved you y'all it is a straight up miracle that we're saved I mean we should never let uh the fact that God's spirit lives in us and that we have the gift of spending eternity with uh God we should never allow that to roll off our shoulders casually as if it's no big deal the fact that you and I know Jesus Christ as Lord is a miracle Beyond any Miracle you will ever experience in your life the only reason why any of us ever come into relationship with God is not because we were looking so hard for him it's because the Hound of heaven was looking for us it's because despite our Rebellion despite the fact that we had turned our backs on God despite the fact that we had chosen Our Own Way despite the fact that we would refuse him time and time and time again he caused our hearts to be softened so that when someone came to us and said the name Jesus Christ we wanted to respond and say yes to him being our savior that wasn't by chance my friend that's a miracle do you know that the enemy of this world works over time to Blind the eyes of the unbelieving so that they cannot see clearly he hardens their hearts you might have somebody like that in your life that you're a family member or a friend and you constantly consistently share the good news of Jesus Christ with them but it seems like over time the more hardened they become to it any anybody anybody know what I'm talking about that's because the enemy is about doing the business of trying to keep as many people as he can from responding to the gospel which means when you and I evangelize it can't just be about what we're saying out of our mouths it also has to be about being down on our knees and praying for the holy spirit of God to soften their hearts so that they will respond it is a move of God that brings people into the kingdom which means the only reason why anybody in this room the 1,000 people the other night who gave their hearts to Jesus Christ you need to know it's because he brought you into this place The Hound of Heaven it's not because your girlfriend bought you a registration fee my friend it is because the Holy Spirit had this night on the calendar of your life this weekend on the calendar of your life it's because he was looking for you and so when you and when I respond to the good news of Jesus Christ when we see the cross of Calvary and it's not just two pieces of wood put together anymore but we see our sin that was born by a loving savior who didn't have to pay the wages but he chose to pay the wages of our sin and we respond and say Yes Lord that's because he is working a miracle in our lives my friend M Joyce said it so well uh the other night she said um that you know even our physical birth birth is not there's nothing chance about it I mean the fact that you and I live in this day and age and generation there's nothing chance about it y'all we live we live in the most blessed day and age and generation not only for the Church of Jesus Christ but specifically for women there has never ever been a time in history where you could call the women's meeting and 20,000 women just show up because they just want to know the things of God not by and large like this there has never been a time when you could just go into a Christian bookstore and find bible study resources by women for women not like this there has never been a time where you could just walk down your street at least in Dallas Texas and on every corner there is another church that is proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ in in our city we got two Christian radio stations not just one one with gospel music if you like that another one with contemporary Christian music if that's what you like you can find any Bible in any translation in any language that you would like don't ever take for granted that you and I happen to be born in this blessed day and age and generation getting to serve the body of Christ that's not by chance y'all that's not by chance he planned it you and I aren't in this room by chance he planned this y'all I mean think about it with the 7 billion plus people that are on the planet your great great grandfather just happened to find the woman that would be your great great grandmother the two of them came together and created your great-grandfather then your great-grandfather with the 7 billion plus people that are on the planet he just happened to find your great grandmother and the two of them came together and created your grandfather and then your grandfather with the 7 billion plus people that are on the planet he just happened to find the person that should be your grandmother and then the two of them came together and created your father and then your father with the 7 billion plus people that are on the planet he just happened to find the woman that should be your mother and the two of them came together and this is a little graphic but this is Women's Conference the millions of sperm there was the exact one that met up with the egg at the exact right time to create you there ain't nothing chance about that your physical birth is a miracle my friend Hallelujah and if your physical IAL birth and my physical birth is a miracle then how much more of a miracle is it not that we were born but that we were born ((music playing)) again that's a miracle think about the patience of God that was required from the beginning of time to make sure that centuries later you and I would come into relationship with him think about the in endurance that he exhibited when he was just waiting for you when we were on his mind when he hung on calvary's tree the love that was extended toward us even then do you know you've been on his mind like since before Genesis 1:1 Before Time began you and I were on the mind of God and there has been a cosmic battle in the heavenlies that have been taking place and has been working itself out throughout history there has been a battle between God and the enemy for your soul my friend I want you to think about it like a a giant chess board and you've got God sitting on one side and you've got the enemy on the other side and they are both vying for your soul so Genesis 1:1 opens and God makes the first move he creates Adam and Eve in a perfect scenario with perfect fellowship with him but then the the enemy not to be outdone he decides to make a move he slithers his way into the Garden he caused sin to enter into the scenario and into the hearts of man before you know it Cain kills Abel and now murder is on the scene and it seems like everything will always be separated now from a holy God but our God never to be outdone on the other side of that Cosmic chessboard he makes another move he causes Adam and Eve to come back together and they give birth to a little baby named enosh or Seth rather and Seth gives birth to enosh and Genesis 4 says that when enosh was born everybody began to praise God again but the enemy not to be outdone on the other side of that Cosmic chest board he makes a move he causes Rebellion to see back into the hearts of mankind it proliferates across the Earth so much so that the world has to be destroyed but our God never to be outdone he makes another move he finds this guy named Noah and he says Noah go build an ark Noah says build a ((applause)) what he says I want you to build an ark and so Noah obediently buil an ark and Mankind is preserved as a result of his obedience but the enemy makes another move and Rebellion seeps back into the hearts of mankind proliferates across the Earth but our God makes another move and he goes to this little Pagan town called ER and he founds finds a man named Abram and he raises him up and he says I'm going to change your name and I'm going to change your destiny and I'm going to create a brand new nation out of you call the nation of Israel and these people are going to Bear the stamp of my name and my protection and my vision and my favor will always be upon them the enemy not to be outdone he made another move and he caused now the nation of Israel God's chosen people to go into Egypt and for 400 years Pharaoh had them completely bound and it looked like the enemy had won but our God never to be outdone he makes another move and he finds this little baby boy named Moses and he causes Moses to be raised as The Prince of Egypt and then at the right time he sends Moses to pharaoh and he says you go tell pharaoh to let my people go and after 10 miraculous plagues they are released from captivity for 40 years they are in the wilderness but then they come into the promised land but the enemy wants to make another move and he causes now the children of Israel to turn their back on Yahweh the one true God and they begin to worship idols by the time you get to the end of the Book of Judges the last line of the Book of Judges says this everyone was doing what was right in their own eyes kind of sounds like America in the year 2013 doesn't it sounds like exactly what Dave was teaching us yesterday morning but our God never to be outdone he makes another move and he goes to this little town called Moab and he raises up a woman named Ruth and Ruth has tragedy in her life she has chaos in her life and it looks like no good will come of it until she meets her kinsman redeemer and she and her kinsman redeemer have a baby called OED and OED gives birth to Jesse and Jesse gives birth to a baby boy named David and with that one move the enemy doesn't even know that the Checkmate is already on the way doesn't even know amen and as the Old Testament comes to a close y'all there are 400 years of silence and God is on one side of the chessboard the enemy is on the other and there it is completely silent and all of history waits to see who's going to make the next move and then the New Testament opens and God makes a move that the enemy to this day still has not had a response for Jesus Christ comes and he dies on the cross for you and me and the Victory is sealed with once and for all amen praise the Lord and he did that for you and he did it for ((applause)) me and if he had enough patience to have you on his mind and in his heart since the beginning of Eternity I want you to always remember that he's got enough patience to handle you while you're here in time and history if he had enough patience to handle the last couple Millennia he can take care of the last six weeks of your life my friend there is nothing you can do to escape the long suffering nature of our God he is not mad at you it's not m but y'all that's just the first ((applause)) reason cuz Paul does have some more reasons he says if you've ever wondered about the patience of God you can't just look at the fact that he saved me Paul said but there's another reason that he says in verse uh 13 Even though I was formerly somebody say formerly formerly even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor yet I was shown Mercy now when Paul first told us in that verse 16 he first told us that he was the formost of all Sinners that he was a demonstration of how patient God must actually be he when he first told us that he didn't give us details on his sin resume like he didn't map out all the things he's ever done he just said trust me I'm the foremost and you know what I'm kind of glad he didn't give us details because if Paul would have spelled out for us everything on his sin res resume we might have been so distracted by his resume that we forget we got our own resumés we actually don't have time to look at anybody else's sin resume comparing as Andy Stanley said to us we don't have time to be comparing ourselves with other people we are ourselves our own demonstration of how patient God is because listen if I were to take this little microphone and we we just passed around this whole room with all of us man we'd be here into the next year going over all our resumés of how God has rescued and delivered us hallelujah but in this verse verse 13 he does give us three things he he labeled for us three things that are that are on his sin resume he says I was a blasphemer I was a violent aggressor I was a persecutor of the church he says that's who I was there were three things but before I label these three things Paul says before I tell you some details about my sin resume I'm going to put a big old head in right here at the top of the page just so that we're clear before I give you any of these details I want you to know that these things they are who I used to be they are not who I am anymore I was formerly somebody say formerly in other words Paul says the reason why I'm a demonstration of the patience of God is Not only because he saved me but because he changed me because he didn't leave me in the state I was in because he's molding me and changing me and remaking me so that I am a different person today than I was yesterday I love so much when Miss Joyce had the um the the mannequins up here on the stage because she pointed out so clearly that God comes and indwells us we are made brand new on the inside you remember the spirit over here we are brand new on the inside but then listen to this we don't have to do the hard work of changing ourselves because the Holy Spirit one of his jobs he's got many jobs on the inside of us he guides us he Comforts us he encourages us but 2 Thessalonians chapter uh 213 says he also sanctifies us sanctification is the process by which we are made into the image of Christ Jesus it means when this part of us begins to spill over into the mind will and emotions part of us and causes us to not want stuff we thought we always want causes us to want stuff we thought we would never want he causes our likes and our dislikes to completely change so that we are when we look in the mirror not the same person that we used to be Hallelujah I'm so glad for the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit y'all I'm so glad that when I look in the mirror today I don't see the same person that I saw 5 years ago I'm so glad that the thoughts I had I don't have anymore I'm so glad that the Ambitions I had are not the Ambitions I have anymore I'm so grateful that God can take anybody and make them a brand new person I wonder if there's anybody discouraged today CU you you're wondering if you can ever change listen to me the holy spirit's work in you his Delight in you is to be patient with you as you change you're a demonstration of the patience of God Paul says not only because he saved you that's your justification but because he's changing you that's your sanctification sanctification where he chips away at everything that doesn't look like Jesus a sculptor was once asked uh as he stood in front of this huge stallion that he had carved out of rock and an admirer was standing near and they looking at this stallion that had been carved out of this huge block of rock that was sitting over here and the the admirer just asked the guy the artist how in the world do you do this how in the world do you take a big piece of rock like that and make it look like a stallion and the artist stood there for a moment with his chisel in hand and he just thought about answering that question and finally he responded and said well actually it's pretty simple I just chip away at everything that doesn't look like a stallion this is what the Holy Spirit does with you and with me chips away at everything that doesn't look like Jesus and that he causes us to be conformed to the image of Christ takes patience for that but he's committed to walking with you every step of the way he doesn't abandon us during the transformation Pro process he hangs with us walks with the reason why he hangs with us listen to me is because he's the one doing the work listen if you try and I try to change ourselves we will be tired I mean straight up exhausted y'all I'm telling you there is nothing you or I could do to change ourselves but listen we're beautiful enough to him we are his Masterpiece we are his workmanship it is his goal as the artist to hang with us long enough till we look just like Jesus it is his work in us his best work his finest work is you it's you his patience his longsuffering nature endures with us forever you cannot wear God out have you ever wondered how popcorn pops somebody say yes yes I'm so glad you want to ((music playing)) know so when you um have a kernel of of popcorn that hard little shelled kernel of corn inside every kernel there is a microscopic drop of water and so when you put a bag of microwave popcorn into the microwave what the heat in the microwave is doing is not actually heating up the shell it's heating up that microscopic dot of water that is inside the shell so that that microscopic dot of water begins to create Steam and the steam begins to press against the shell and as it continues to heat up it presses more and more powerfully until finally it just it pops so the outside looks completely different from the inside not because the outside was heated up but because what was in the inside was heated up so this is what happens the holy spirit is on the inside of you and if you try to heat yourself up from the outside in you're working against the dynamic of what the Holy Spirit was designed to do but as you cooperate with the Holy Spirit on the inside of you You by Renewing Your Mind with the word of God fellowshipping with Believers in Christ being OB obedient to the conviction of the Holy Spirit remaining filled by his Spirit every single day as you do that you heat up the power of the Holy Spirit on the inside of you and he begins to press and press against the shell of your body so much so till eventually you just you pop and you look completely different than you used to look so then you come home from the conference and your family goes who's that who's that who is that but not only do you look completely different but I don't know about y'all movie popcorn is my favorite snack of all time put some butter and some salt on that I'm just happy I'm just happy thank you Jesus put a coke with it ohoo ((applause)) girl so when you come home not only do you look different but then we are fed to a lost and dying world that needs to see our God as good so he changes us and he's patient enough for that he's going to hang with you through your transformation process as you are delivered and set free and grab hold of all that you've been taught this weekend and spend the next days and weeks and months going over the notes that God has given us as we listened to this teaching and praying it praying over it stewing over it and talking about it with our friends who were here as we grow listen your friends might not hang with you but God will hang with you your mama she might not have hung with you but God will hang with you somebody's spouse they couldn't hang with you till you change there is a God who will never leave you nor forsake you he's with you through the change my friend he's got enough patience for that Paul says if you're wondering about whether or not you can count on the patience of God would you always remember that if he was patient enough to save you justification and patient enough to change you sanctification he's got your back every single day for the rest of your life but that's not the only reason Paul says it's not just that you're saved and it's not just that you're changed but there is another reason and the next reason is found in verse 12 so we're still backtracking up through through these uh verses he says I thank Jesus Christ Our Lord who has strengthened me because he considered me faithful here's the reason putting me into service putting me into service Paul says now this one I can't believe it was a miracle enough that he saved me and it's a miracle enough that he'd hang with me long enough to actually change me but I cannot believe Paul says that he would actually use me for his glory I cannot believe not only that that I've been Justified and that I've been sanctified I can't believe there's been justification I can't believe there's been sanctification but now God is patient enough to put me in a specific location to be used for his glory Paul says he's put me into service and Paul cannot stinking believe it I mean after his history his past where he's come from what he's done he cannot believe neither should you or I I'm going to tell you that I cannot believe God would use me to accomplish anything for his purposes I cannot believe it and when I say that let me tell you that I don't necessarily just mean on this platform this is a privilege um and an honor but when I say I can't believe God would use me for his purposes I mostly mean in the smaller spheres of influence that God has placed me I'm talking about like being a wife wife to my husband my goal is that when Jerry sees Jesus face to face Jesus looks at him and says well done Jerry and God has entrusted me to support and encourage this guy enough so that when he sees God he gets the Applause of Heaven I can't believe God would entrust me with that then I look at these three little humans God has given me have you ever left the hospital and gone I'm sorry are there instructions excuse me what anybody know what I'm talking about so I look at these little boys who will grow up and be Warriors for Christ or I will spank ((applause)) them but y'all I look at these little boys and I can't believe God would entrust that he would allow me to partner with him in the shaping of these little souls and y'all here's what I found what I found is that the what the enemy is doing is trying to get you and I all of us to Discount the significance of the locations where he has placed us he's trying to get all of us to think that the location we're in the small spares of influence to which God has called us aren't important so what the church unfortunately cap capital c Church what the church has done is applaud and admire the gifts that require a microphone and a platform while at the same time demeaning those that are behind closed doors that nobody ever sees and yes the yet the best most impactful Ministry y'all it's not only what is happening from this platform it's the person that that loves the Lord enough to be oneon-one in discipleship across a table at Starbucks faithfully and weakly with that person who needs to grow in their relationship with God it's the mama that recognizes that being around that dinner table with her family and sharing just a simple verse of scripture with her children isn't insignificant that she's raising up the next generation of those who will be Christ followers it's the single woman who sees this season of her life as an opportunity to just be gung-ho for God going every which way she can taking every opportunity she can to serve the Lord It's the pastor's wife who sees these same 40 or 50 people that they're serving week in and week out who is becoming discouraged because she thought it would just look different than this when she decided to marry this guy she thought life would look completely different it's the person that sees the significance of those 40 or 50 it's the Bible study leer that's holding that Bible study in her home and she's got those five people that have been coming Faithfully for 5 years but she thought by now there might be more that would be a part of this ministry it's the person who does not discount the sphere of influence that they are in what the enemy wants you to do is think that the place you are is insignificant to the plan of God so then like Andy standy told us he causes us to look elsewhere and go but if I only had that if I was only in her love location if I was only able to do what she is able to do and all the while that we are looking outside of our own sphere of influence we are simultaneously downgrading the value of where God has placed us and listen y'all on the stage of Life there is a role you have been given to play and if you and I are trying to play somebody else's role who in the world's going to play you who's going to play you there is a girl in my church uh her name is roshid roshid is 35 years old and Rashida really sensed that God was calling her away from her job this is two years ago good job benefits and you know a regular salary and she was on the upward scale in her company and so she just was excited about it but she just over a period of time really sensed conviction that she needed to leave that job so out of obedience after some time she did and she just expected that that what that would mean is that God had something kind of you know bigger better for her and that she was just waiting on that to materialize and so she just took some jobs as a babysitter along the way that's really how I know her um I don't know her as much from church um as I do from babysitting my sister has five children my cousin has four children we all live within a 10 milei radius of each other so Rashida would help babysit Crystal's kids and then my cousin Winter's kids and I knew her mostly from that because I'd go over with my kids so that all the cousins could play and me and Rashida would talk all the time and that's how I knew her and uh she expressed the fact that she was really battling with this whole babysitting thing because she loved it she actually loves kids and loves doing it but after a year went by and then a year and a half went by she was really discouraged because she just felt like you know I thought the next thing would have materialized by now so she said Priscilla you know I'm discouraged and she said honestly over time I have really felt like I've been cheated by God somehow I mean I obeyed and did what he said but here I am just hopping around to different families I love it but I'm still doing it it's been a year and a half I feel a little bit cheated and if the truth be told there are many of us in this room that feel cheated too cuz we've obeyed to the best of our knowledge we have done what God has asked us to do and yet it it hasn't turned out the way we thought that it would and and if we're honest like Rashida was we feel just a little bit cheated by God and she said so Priscilla I prayed a lot about this I said Lord I need you to show me what's up here i' I've done what you've asked me to do and yet I feel kind of cheated by you I need you to give me Clarity and she said Priscilla I kid you not asked after I was praying about that I went over to a family's house to babysit as I normally do she said I had a casserole in my hands that I had baked up for that family that night and she said when I walked up to the front door before I rang the doorbell I realized something was really different this time it's almost like the Lord was giving me spiritual vision so that I could see everything that was happening that night not from my perspective but from his perspective she said I rang the doorbell the kids all ran up to the door and answer the door and when I walked in the smiles and the look on those kids faces weren't just that I'm happy to see you Miss Rashida kind of smiles it was like an invitation from God to invest in the lives of these little people and she said it wasn't only that when I handed the casserole to the mom she had had a crazy frazzled day and the look of relief on that mom's face showed me that I was being such a blessing to this This Woman's life and then she said the kids started spouting out these bible verses to me they were the Bible verses I had taught them the last time I Babys at them and they were all eager asking me what's the next Bible study lesson you have for us today Miss Rashida they could not wait to sit down and get the Bible study from her so she realized that she wasn't just telling them stories that she was literally investing in the lives of what would later be spiritual Giants then she said the husband and wife they went out for a date they hadn't had a date in a long time they went out for a date and it occurred to me that night it had never occurred to me before but it occurred to me that night that I was literally helping to build a strong marriage she said Priscilla that night I realized that I hadn't been cheated but that I'd been chosen chosen by God for this I want to tell somebody today you haven't been cheated my friend he has not cheated you he has chosen you for the location you were in he has specifically designed the Dynamics of that location in your home in that High School in that University on that job he has specifically created that Dynamic and then set you down inside of it to be his represent representation in the midst of that Circle my friend don't let the enemy cause you to Discount the location where God will use you Paul says God is patient because he saved me because he changed me because he's using me and finally verse 12 I thank Christ Jesus our lord because he has strengthened me you know what the good news is about this whole weekend y'all is that when Miss Joyce goes home and Mr Dave go home and I fly back to Dallas and andley standy flies back to his home when we all leave each other that God doesn't just go with one of us and is not enough for all of us that he is omnipresent that he is as much with you as he is with me that the holy spirit of God Is With Us listen to strengthen you that in the location God has planted you he's not just going to set you in that location and then back off and say well I hope you do all right over there the Holy Spirit actually walks with you do you think he loved you enough to die for you but then doesn't love you enough to walk with you do you think he loved you enough to Ransom his own son on your behalf but then doesn't have enough love for you to continue to strengthen you every day of your life you do not leave this place in just a few hours you don't leave this place alone my friend you are strengthened by our great God it is his patience that caused you to be saved and causes you to be changed causes you to be used but for the glory of God and it causes you to continually be strengthened every single day of your life God's spirit in you strengthens you to steady you for anything that might come your way Miss Joy has said it again I said it before and I'm going to say it again to you he does not call you to do anything for which he does not simultaneously give you the anointing and the strength to handle the task he does not call you to do anything that he does not at the exact same time Infuse you with the grace to handle it he does not ever call you or I to participate in any task in any location to do anything to put our hands to any plow that he does not at the exact same time give us the anointing and the power and the strength and the grace and the wisdom and the discernment to handle the task that is at hand the joy of the Lord is your strength my friend I'll tell you this in closing uh when one of my my boys my oldest son when he lost his first teeth I'll never forget it he was turning five and he had been waiting on those suckers to fall out I mean he had just been wiggling that thing trying to get it Loose because he could not wait because we had told him that when this tooth falls out there will be a tooth fairy that will come in the middle of the night she will exchange that tooth for a treasure so he could could not wait and on the day that it fell out he was so unbelievably excited I have never seen that boy go to bed fast ever in his life still to this day but he ran to his bed and he went to sleep or he tried to go to sleep every 60 seconds he would look under the pillow to see if anything had happened finally he fell asleep and about 3:00 in the morning no no he fell asleep earlier but about 3:00 in the morning the 250 lb 6'3 tooth fairy that I sleep next to every night he got up went upstairs and exchanged the tooth for a treasure I knew exactly when Jackson got up in the morning I knew it because I just heard chaos upstairs he was so excited because there was something under his pillow he bounded down the stairs and he ran into our room and he had his two fists clenched closed he said Mom the Tooth Fairy came and he opened up his first hand and it was a package of gummy bears he was so excited then he opened up the other hand and it was $5 exactly what happened to dimes and ((applause)) nickels so my husband could see the stunned expression on my face cuz you know when mama ain't ((applause)) happy so after Jackson ran off my husband said babe don't worry he said do you remember last month was Jackson's fifth birthday I said yeah he said remember we always have our family over on the kids birthdays and and last month when they all came they all brought cards with them and in those cards were $5 bills for his fifth birthday he said do you remember we took all those $5 bills we put them in the birthday drawer well this morning at 3:00 a.m.

I went right over to that birthday drawer got one of those $5 bills out and put it inside this pill that's good Financial stewardship right there is what that is but here's the thing I watched my boy get so excited about treasure that he really already ((applause)) had y'all know what this weekend's been about about reminding you about treasure you already have the responsibility you and I have now is to go home from this place open up the drawer of God's strengthening Spirit on the inside of us and live like the beautiful treasured women that we are you don't have anything new my friend it's just you're going to release what God has already given you the moment you came to know him as Savior amen amen amen amen thank you for good job amen