Matthew 6: 24 How The Lord Leads People.

Today’s message is called; Leading people.

Good Morning

Let’s cast our cares on the Lord today and be encouraged by His word.

Amen?

Stand with me and lift up your bible and repeat after me.

This is my Bible.

I am what it says I am.

I can do what it says I can do.

I am going to learn how to be what it says I can be.

Today I will learn more of the word of God.

The indestructible, never ending, living word Of God.

I will never be the same.

I will never be the same.

In Jesus Name

I have a question.

How does the Lord lead the people He loves?

Lead people?

“Wait a minute Pastor.”

“I, I, I don’t do that. “

“That is not for me.”

“No way. Not happening.”

“I don’t want the Lord to lead me, just to show me things,”

“I just don’t have it in me. There is just too much going on and I don’t have time and I am not good enough.”

I have a question for you.

Do you need some more “drive” in your life?

The Lord leads us by putting a “drive” in our lives.

Most dictionaries define the verb “drive” as “to guide, to control, or to direct.”

The drive that is already in people can do that.

Here is a couple of examples: some are driven by a problem, a pressure, or a deadline, and others are driven by a painful memory, a haunting fear, or an unconscious belief.

There are hundreds of circumstances, experiences, values, and emotions that drive people’s lives.

Our lives are different. Each of us.

Here are five common “drives” in life:

The first one is that some people are driven by guilt — They spend their entire lives running from regrets or hiding their shame from the past. Guilt-driven people are manipulated by memories.

They allow their past to control their future, believing their past mistakes to be bigger than what God wants in their life. They often unconsciously punish themselves by sabotaging their own future success.

When Cain sinned, his guilt disconnected him from God’s presence, and God said, “You will be a restless wanderer on the earth” (Genesis 4:12 NIV). That describes many people today, wandering through life without a purpose.

The second one is that some people are driven by resentment. They hold on to their hurts in life and never get over them. Instead of releasing their pain through forgiveness, they rehearse it over and over in their minds.

Some resentment-driven people “clam up” and internalize their anger while others “blow up” and explode. Both responses are unhealthy and unhelpful for them. Resentment always hurts you more than it does the person you resent.

While the person who hurt you has probably forgotten the things they did to hurt and gone on with life, you continue to feel your pain, still remembering the past.

The third one is that some people are driven by fear. These fears may be the result of a traumatic experience, unrealistic expectations, growing up in a high-control home, or just every day habits that have become part of life. Regardless of the cause, fear-driven people often miss great opportunities because they’re afraid to venture out. Instead they play it safe, avoiding risks and trying to maintain the status quo. They may become dependent on things to help them through the day, like alcohol or drugs.

The fourth one is that some people are driven by materialism. Their desire to acquire becomes the whole goal of their lives. The best new car. New clothes, hair style, tattoo, the most popular website, how many “friends” are on their Facebook account. This drive to always want more is based on the misconceptions that having more will make me feel happier, more important, and more secure – but all three ideas are untrue.

Possessions only provide temporary happiness. Because things do not change, we eventually become bored with them and then want a newer, bigger, better version.

The last one is the tough one.

Some people are driven by the need for approval.

They allow the expectations of parents or spouses or children or teachers or friends to control their lives. Many adults are still trying to earn the approval of unpleasable parents. Others are driven by peer pressure, always worried by what others might think. Some use social media to get the attention they need but they find it is not quite what they need. They have thousands of “friends” but they are missing the real one.

Unfortunately, those who follow the crowd usually get lost in it. I don’t know all the keys to success, but one key that leads to failure is to try to please everyone.

Being controlled by the opinions of others is a guaranteed way to miss God’s purposes for your life. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24 NLT).