The Presence Of God

When The Going Gets Tough

Matt 6:25-34

When the going gets tough...

1. Stop worrying. Its going to be alright. My tweet... I may not see God's hands sometimes but I trust His heart. God loves you dearly. Meditate on how much he loves you. He allowed His body to be broken because of you.
2. Maintain your confession. It can never be tough for you who are a child of God. When they say... Let your conversation align with what God is saying about the matter not what seems right to you
3. Be content with what you have. Trust God that He knows what you need and is willing to give it to you. Do not live beyond what God has provided. If its not coming now, learn how to stay joyful in Christ. Stop looking morose all over the place.
4. Reprioritise your life. Put God first. Give precedence to God's way of doing things. Listen for God's guidance and follow it through.
5. Keep on practicing the kingdom way of life. What is it?
1. Divine healing and protection. Psa 103:1-5

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
3 Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
4 Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

2. Wisdom beyond your enemies. Psa 119:98-100

98 You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies;
For they are ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers,
For Your testimonies are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the ancients,
Because I keep Your precepts

1. May you see new business opportunities in this season e.g. Tomato seller on email

3. Giving. Luke 6:38

38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

4. Declaring His praises. 1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

5. Mountain moving faith. Mark 11:22-23

22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.

6. Meditating on and praying the Word. Josh 1:8

8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

7. Living the Christ life. This has 3 levels
1. Living for Jesus. You are saved and a faithful messenger of Christ.
2. Jesus living through you. An ambassador. You and Christ coexist in same system.
3. Living as Jesus.. E.g. doppelganger in The Flash. You are no longer there, but Christ now lives through you. Gal 2:20

20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. 

Stepping into God's best

God's best is all of His blessings stored in heaven which are available for you here on earth. Everything available in warehouse Adeyemi in heaven will be delivered to me this year in Jesus Name. Amen. Eph 1:3

There are some things you must pray into your life to ensure you can receive your own share of God's best this year. You will not be left out.

Faith. Heb 11:6.

6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Father, I believe, increase my faith in You. Let my faith please you so that I can have all my prayers answered

Attitude of praise. 

Psa 67:5-7
5 Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
6 Then the earth shall yield her increase;
God, our own God, shall bless us.
7 God shall bless us,
And all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.

Father, give me an attitude of unending praise throughout this year in Jesus Name.

Wisdom.

Pro 16:16. How much better to get wisdom than gold!
And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

Father please give me wisdom, Godly wisdom that will direct me to walking in your best this year

Walking in love. It's like carrying the presence of God with you. 1 Cor 13:1-3

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,[a] but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Father teach my heart to love like yours. Give me a loving and compassionate heart


What are the things you must pray out of your life?

Stinginess. You make every excuse in the world not to give or when you do, you give the minimum. Pray it out of your life.

Pro 11:24 There is one who scatters, yet increases more;
And there is one who withholds more than is right,
But it leads to poverty.

Father, I uproot every spirit of stinginess and wickedness in my life. Cut it out in Jesus Name

Fear and worry. Fear cannot be around where God is operating

2 Tim 1:7. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Psa 34:4. I sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

Father, in the Name of Jesus, I command every spirit of fear to get out of my life.

Envy and jealousy. Envy/Jealousy is when you despise something good happening to someone around you.

James 3: 14-16  But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but isearthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.

Pro 14:30 A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones.

Father, I present myself to you purge my heart and my life from every sign of envy, jealousy and selfish ambition in Jesus Name.

Unforgiveness

Mark 11:25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.

Father, I forgive everyone who has hurt me.. Including.

Holy Spirit, you are the balm in Gilead, I submit my heart to you, heal it now of every pain and unforgiveness in Jesus Name

Enjoying God's best in 2016

Eph 1:3-6

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

God has a lot more to give you than you can ever imagine.

What you have tasted of God so far is nothing compared to what He is able to do more.

Not only is He able to do more, He is ready and willing. Heb 7:25 - able; Psa 86:5 - ready; 2 Pet 3:9 - willing

• Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. Heb 7:25
• For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You. Psa 86:5
• The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. 2Pe 3:9

In 2016 is the year He wants to show His best to some of His children.

Heb 11..  Tells us that not everyone who enjoyed God saw His best see vs 1-13.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. Faith at the Dawn of History By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. Faithful Abraham By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore. The Heavenly Hope These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth Heb 11:1-13

What is the key to receiving God's best in 2016? The answer is faith?

What is faith? Heb 11:1-2

Many Christians of today equate faith to mean like an ATM machine that you can go to get anything you want. Cars, money, houses in banana island, wives, husband etc etc

What does the bible describe as faith?

1.  It is your christian testimony. You cannot be said to have faith if your christian testimony is not good. You are involved in stealing, falsifying records, lying, eye service, backbiting, gossip etc
2. It means undivided attention and obedience to the word of God. Letting His word frame your world. Not the word of your friends or colleagues or even family but the word of God
3. It means sacrifice, and not just any type of sacrifice but an excellent one. What is sacrifice? It is the act of offering to God something precious to you… your time, money, ego, pride etc. Faith is offering an excellent sacrifice like Abel
4. Faith means pleasing God with your life in such a way that God always wants to be around you. God wants to go somewhere, He takes you along because He enjoys your presence. He wants to do something, He talks to you first because He knows you will understand and work with Him on His project. May my life please God.
1. This kind of faith is only delivered to lifelong seekers of God
5. Faith means to reverently fear God in such a way that it drives you to obeying Him all the time. Even when it makes you look silly.

  

Faith is the key to receiving all that God has prepared for you in 2016. His very best is available to you and He is ready, willing and able to give it to you.

The question is are you ready to receive it?

Let us pray.