I just feel like something good is about to happen!
Illus. I heard a story about a scrawny kid from West Texas who attended a small high school. They didn't have a wrestling program, but he read a book on wrestling and asked one of the assistant football coaches if he would enter him in some of the wrestling matches in that region.
The coach agreed to help the kid. This little guy was neither strong nor skillful, but he had one enduring quality--he refused to give up. He won every single wrestling match because he tenaciously held on to his opponents and wore them down.
By the end of the season, he was undefeated and made it to the state finals for his weight classification. The kid's opponent was a two-time state champ and a bona fide college prospect. As the scrawny kid faced the state champion, the guy made a couple of quick moves, and soon had the West Texas kid on his back and about to get pinned.
The coach knew his athlete was about to lose, and he couldn't bear to watch it, so he turned his head away. Suddenly, the coach heard the roar of the crowd and when he turned around, his kid was on top of the state champ, pinning him. He had won the match!
The little guy bounced across the mat and hugged the coach and said, "Coach, I won! I won!"
The coach said, "Sure, son. But I missed it. I turned away just before you were about to lose. What happened?"
The kid said, "Coach, that guy was good. He had me twisted like a pretzel on that mat. But you know me, coach. I NEVER quit. I refused to give up! So I opened my eyes, and there in front of my face was a big toe. I don't even know if it's against the rules or not, but I bit into that big toe with all my strength...and coach, it's amazing what you can do when you bite your OWN toe!"
If you're ever been tempted to give up on God and his promises, just remember that little guy. Take a grip on the promises of God and never release them--God honors persistence.
Illus.
I just feel like something good is about to happen
I just feel like something good is on it's way
He has promised that He'd open all of Heaven
And, brother, it could happen any day
When God's people humble themselves to call on Jesus
And they look to Heaven expecting as they pray
I just feel like something good is about to happen
And, brother, it could be this very day
2 chronicles 7:12-15 NASB
12 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. 13 If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people [d]who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 15 Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the [e]prayer offered in this place.
How many have come this morning expecting something from God…
How many have come this morning and are willing to not let go and seek him until
you receive what you came for?
When we come to church on Sunday we should come expecting to receive something from God...
But Sunday is not the only day of the week..God is willing to meet your needs!
Amen?
God wants us to wake up everyday of our lives..expecting to receive is best for the day, each and everyday!
Jeremiah 29:11-13 NASB
11 For I know the plans that I [h]have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
That scripture..gives all who believe in the Lord great hope and comfort..
It also creates the sense of urgency of having expectations that God is able to work His plans in and keep his word in your life!
What it really creates is faith!
Hebrews 11:1-3 MSG
1-2 The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.
3 By faith, we see the world called into existence by God’s word, what we see created by what we don’t see.
The question is, where is the faith…of the church?
Where has our faith gone?
Life is full of distractions, there will always be distractions in our lives..
Things that on a daily basis will test and try our faith
TBS The devil roams the earth..seeking whom he may devour
He doesn't change, he does the same thing every day..he is consistent,
he has a routine he follows
Realize when they happen..that those are the Jesus loves me moments
That's when you wrap your arms around him, you hang on
and you just don't let go
Are you consistent with your walk and your faith..
do you have a God centered routine you follow On a daily basis?
Psalms 118:21-25 MSG
21-25 Thank you for responding to me;
you’ve truly become my salvation!
The stone the masons discarded as flawed
is now the capstone!
This is God’s work.
We rub our eyes—we can hardly believe it!
This is the very day God acted—
let’s celebrate and be festive!
Salvation now, God. Salvation now!
Oh yes, God—a free and full life!
When is the last time you started your day out celebrating
your relationship with God, through His Son Jesus?
When's the last time you took charge of your day
and put the God of all possibilities..in the forefront
Of your life where He belongs?
The man after gods own heart,
the Bible hero we have come to know and love
And all like to read and never get tired of hearing about....
That's what he did..
And he did it consistently!
Ya..but he did this blunder and he did that blunder..
he committed murder and adultery
He was far from perfect..
But he knew enough to seek out the perfect one..
And he did it on a daily basis
He knew he was qualified to not only seek..
But also receive Gods unmerited Love and Favor in his life
No matter what.
Psalms 63:1-4 MSG
63 God—you’re my God!
I can’t get enough of you!
I’ve worked up such hunger and thirst for God,
traveling across dry and weary deserts.
2-4 So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open,
drinking in your strength and glory.
In your generous love I am really living at last!
My lips brim praises like fountains.
I bless you every time I take a breath;
My arms wave like banners of praise to you.
Every one of us...should be willing to express these words
that David wrote here in scripture..in our own lives.
The accuser and the world tries to condemn us
And tell us that we can't..and that we're not worthy enough
to be able to do what David did..
But we read in Romans chapter 8
That what they tell us.. Is contrary to what the word tells us
Romans 8:1-4 NKJ
1. There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,[a] who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
The MSG says it like this:
With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud.
(It's talking about the accuser and the world right there..
All those who tell us that we're not worthy to receive
The Love, the Grace, the mercy and forgiveness
that God longs to give us..through His Son Jesus)
It goes on to say:
A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.
Jesus has freed us forever..He is our qualification
And our relationship with Him is the key
To everything Good that God the Father
has ever wanted to do in our lives!
Is your relationship with Jesus this morning..
Giving you the sense of expectancy that you truly are
Entitled to?
Because you are entitled and you should have an expectancy to receive what you're entitled to
For far to many..the devil continues to steal from on a daily..
And even a moment by moment basis.
Illus. Story about the asylum and the clergy that sang
Jesus Loves Me and so many lives were turned around
Far far too many don't realize how much Jesus loves them
John 10:7-10 YLT
7 Jesus said therefore again to them, `Verily, verily, I say to you -- I am the door of the sheep;
8 all, as many as came before me, are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them;
9 I am the door, through me if any one may come in, he shall be saved, and he shall come in, and go out, and find pasture.
10 `The thief doth not come, except that he may steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they may have life, and may have [it] abundantly.
What are your expectations from God this morning..
what are your expectations that your relationship with Jesus
entitles you to today and everyday?
Is there a sense in your life that something good is about to happen each and every day? There should be...
And if there's not, it's time that you took charge of your day..
each and every day
It's time to kick the devil to the curb…
Because as long is he standing at the door..
he's only in the way of the good things that God
has in store for you, coming into your life
It's time to reignite you're faith
Realize how much Jesus Loves You!
and know that today may be the very day
that you've been waiting for to happen
Illus.
I have learned in all that happens, just to praise Him
For I know He's working all things for my good
Every tear I shed is worth all the investment
For I know He'll see me through, He said He would
Yes I've noticed all the bad news in the paper
And it seems like things get bleaker everyday
But for this child of God it makes no difference
Because it's bound to get better either way
I've never been more thrilled about tomorrow
Sunshine's always bursting through skies of gray
I just feel like something good is about to happen
And, brother, it could be
Sister it could, neighbor this could be
That very day!
Let's pray
