WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.680 Welcome to Pimoja Ministry, and welcome to our 00:00:02.680 --> 00:00:05.500 new season focused on God's highest purpose for 00:00:05.500 --> 00:00:10.939 your life. There are seasons in life when all 00:00:10.939 --> 00:00:14.400 you want is for God to intervene. You have prayed. 00:00:14.800 --> 00:00:18.359 You have fasted. You have waited. You have asked 00:00:18.359 --> 00:00:21.339 God to move what you cannot move, change what 00:00:21.339 --> 00:00:24.160 you cannot change, open what you cannot open, 00:00:24.320 --> 00:00:27.839 and remove what you cannot remove. And sometimes, 00:00:28.039 --> 00:00:31.750 God does exactly that. He opens the door. He 00:00:31.750 --> 00:00:34.890 moves the opposition. He changes the circumstances. 00:00:35.429 --> 00:00:38.710 He reverses the battle. He makes a way where 00:00:38.710 --> 00:00:42.369 there appeared to be no way. We have spent time 00:00:42.369 --> 00:00:45.229 exploring this mystery of divine intervention. 00:00:45.969 --> 00:00:48.630 Those moments when human ability reaches its 00:00:48.630 --> 00:00:51.929 limit and God steps into circumstances in ways 00:00:51.929 --> 00:00:56.929 only he can. But today, I want us to go deeper. 00:00:57.640 --> 00:00:59.960 Because there is another dimension of divine 00:00:59.960 --> 00:01:03.020 intervention that we do not always recognize 00:01:03.020 --> 00:01:06.760 while we are experiencing it What if God's intervention 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:09.120 was not only about what was happening around 00:01:09.120 --> 00:01:13.140 you? What if all along God's intervention was 00:01:13.140 --> 00:01:15.840 also about what was happening inside you? What 00:01:15.840 --> 00:01:18.379 if you were asking God to change the situation 00:01:18.379 --> 00:01:21.200 while God was using the situation to change you? 00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:24.060 What if you were asking God to remove the fire? 00:01:24.269 --> 00:01:27.150 while God was using the fire to remove something 00:01:27.150 --> 00:01:30.129 from you. What if you were asking God to protect 00:01:30.129 --> 00:01:33.310 the vision while God understood that before he 00:01:33.310 --> 00:01:35.650 could entrust you with the fullness of that vision, 00:01:36.269 --> 00:01:39.790 he needed to refine the person carrying it? That 00:01:39.790 --> 00:01:43.290 is where this new journey begins. Refined for 00:01:43.290 --> 00:01:49.129 a purpose. First, Peter chapter one speaks about 00:01:49.129 --> 00:01:51.909 trials and compares the testing of our faith 00:01:51.909 --> 00:01:54.930 to gold being refined by fire. Think about that 00:01:54.930 --> 00:01:57.810 picture. Gold is valuable before it enters the 00:01:57.810 --> 00:02:00.689 fire. The fire does not create the value of the 00:02:00.689 --> 00:02:03.530 gold. The fire reveals it. The fire separates 00:02:03.530 --> 00:02:06.870 what belongs from what does not belong. The goldsmith 00:02:06.870 --> 00:02:09.409 does not place gold into the furnace because 00:02:09.409 --> 00:02:12.150 he hates it. He places it there because he knows 00:02:12.150 --> 00:02:15.050 what it can become when the impurities are removed. 00:02:15.129 --> 00:02:18.270 And perhaps this is where many of us misunderstand 00:02:18.270 --> 00:02:21.349 certain seasons with God. We interpret every 00:02:21.349 --> 00:02:24.219 fire primarily through the question, How do I 00:02:24.219 --> 00:02:27.620 get out of this? God may be asking, what needs 00:02:27.620 --> 00:02:30.159 to come out of you while you are in this? Those 00:02:30.159 --> 00:02:33.199 are two very different questions. We are looking 00:02:33.199 --> 00:02:36.439 for an exit. God may be producing transformation. 00:02:37.060 --> 00:02:39.939 We are looking for relief. God may be developing 00:02:39.939 --> 00:02:42.960 character. We are looking for the enemy to move. 00:02:43.319 --> 00:02:46.139 God may be revealing something within us that 00:02:46.139 --> 00:02:49.199 cannot accompany us into the place He is taking 00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:53.039 us. And that means the greatest miracle of your 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:56.060 valley. may not always be that the valley disappeared. 00:02:56.819 --> 00:03:00.039 The greatest miracle may be the person who eventually 00:03:00.039 --> 00:03:06.479 walked out of it. There are things about ourselves 00:03:06.479 --> 00:03:10.259 that prosperity may never reveal. Comfort can 00:03:10.259 --> 00:03:14.080 hide them. Success can cover them. Position can 00:03:14.080 --> 00:03:17.060 conceal them. Applause can make us ignore them. 00:03:17.740 --> 00:03:20.199 But pressure has a strange way of exposing what 00:03:20.199 --> 00:03:23.180 is inside us. You don't always know the depth 00:03:23.180 --> 00:03:25.719 of your impatience until God makes you wait. 00:03:26.500 --> 00:03:29.080 You don't always recognize your anger until someone 00:03:29.080 --> 00:03:32.460 continually provokes you. You don't always understand 00:03:32.460 --> 00:03:35.080 your dependence upon people's approval until 00:03:35.080 --> 00:03:38.340 people misunderstand you. You don't always recognize 00:03:38.340 --> 00:03:41.439 pride while everybody is celebrating you. You 00:03:41.439 --> 00:03:44.680 don't always recognize uncontrolled desire until 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:47.240 something you desperately want is placed within 00:03:47.240 --> 00:03:50.879 reach and God says no. You don't always know 00:03:50.879 --> 00:03:53.379 whether you trust God until everything you were 00:03:53.379 --> 00:03:56.539 trusting begins disappearing. This is why Deuteronomy 00:03:56.539 --> 00:03:59.539 chapter 8 is so powerful. Moses tells Israel 00:03:59.539 --> 00:04:01.919 that God led them through the wilderness to humble 00:04:01.919 --> 00:04:04.340 them and test them to know what was in their 00:04:04.340 --> 00:04:07.840 heart. The wilderness revealed Israel, their 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:11.360 complaints, their fears, their appetites, their 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:14.719 unbelief, their impatience, their tendency to 00:04:14.719 --> 00:04:17.639 return mentally to Egypt whenever following God 00:04:17.639 --> 00:04:21.170 became uncomfortable. Egypt had physically released 00:04:21.170 --> 00:04:24.370 them, but parts of Egypt were still living inside 00:04:24.370 --> 00:04:27.350 them. And perhaps that was one of the purposes 00:04:27.350 --> 00:04:30.589 of the wilderness. God was not simply taking 00:04:30.589 --> 00:04:33.970 Israel out of Egypt. God was taking Egypt out 00:04:33.970 --> 00:04:36.490 of Israel. And maybe somebody listening to me 00:04:36.490 --> 00:04:39.269 right now is discovering the same thing. God 00:04:39.269 --> 00:04:41.509 delivered you from something physically, but 00:04:41.509 --> 00:04:44.110 now he is dealing with what that experience left 00:04:44.110 --> 00:04:48.029 inside you. The habits. The mentality. The insecurity. 00:04:48.430 --> 00:04:52.029 The anger. The fear. The appetite. The relationships. 00:04:52.209 --> 00:04:54.949 The patterns. The reactions. The compromises. 00:04:55.209 --> 00:04:57.709 Because geographical deliverance is not always 00:04:57.709 --> 00:05:00.649 internal deliverance. You can leave Egypt and 00:05:00.649 --> 00:05:03.350 still carry Egypt. You can leave the relationship 00:05:03.350 --> 00:05:06.129 and still carry its wounds. You can leave the 00:05:06.129 --> 00:05:08.670 environment and still carry its habits. You can 00:05:08.670 --> 00:05:11.009 leave the old season and still think like the 00:05:11.009 --> 00:05:13.769 person you were in the old season. and God loves 00:05:13.769 --> 00:05:16.149 you too much to allow yesterday's impurities 00:05:16.149 --> 00:05:20.189 to destroy tomorrow's assignment. This changes 00:05:20.189 --> 00:05:23.449 how we understand divine intervention. Sometimes 00:05:23.449 --> 00:05:26.050 God's intervention looks like deliverance, but 00:05:26.050 --> 00:05:29.149 sometimes it looks like disruption. Sometimes 00:05:29.149 --> 00:05:32.949 God intervenes by opening a door. Sometimes He 00:05:32.949 --> 00:05:36.149 intervenes by closing one. Sometimes He brings 00:05:36.149 --> 00:05:39.050 someone into your life. Sometimes his protection 00:05:39.050 --> 00:05:41.889 becomes visible when someone leaves. Sometimes 00:05:41.889 --> 00:05:45.050 he increases something. Sometimes he reduces 00:05:45.050 --> 00:05:48.110 it. Sometimes he gives you what you prayed for. 00:05:48.430 --> 00:05:51.310 And sometimes his mercy is revealed through what 00:05:51.310 --> 00:05:54.290 he refuses to give you. At the moment, you may 00:05:54.290 --> 00:05:56.629 call it disappointment. Later, you may call it 00:05:56.629 --> 00:05:59.629 protection. At the moment, you may call it rejection. 00:06:00.009 --> 00:06:02.970 Later, you may call it redirection. At the moment, 00:06:03.189 --> 00:06:05.930 you may call it loss. Years later, you may look 00:06:05.930 --> 00:06:09.029 back and realize, had God allowed me to continue 00:06:09.029 --> 00:06:10.970 in that direction, I don't know what I would 00:06:10.970 --> 00:06:13.889 have become. Because God sees consequences that 00:06:13.889 --> 00:06:16.689 we cannot see. He sees where a relationship is 00:06:16.689 --> 00:06:19.610 going. He sees where a habit is going. He sees 00:06:19.610 --> 00:06:22.319 where uncontrolled anger is going. He sees where 00:06:22.319 --> 00:06:25.540 pride is going. He sees where compromise is going. 00:06:25.759 --> 00:06:28.959 He sees where an appetite is going. He sees where 00:06:28.959 --> 00:06:31.839 one seemingly insignificant seed can eventually 00:06:31.839 --> 00:06:34.920 lead. And because God sees the harvest while 00:06:34.920 --> 00:06:37.920 we are still looking at the seed, sometimes his 00:06:37.920 --> 00:06:41.379 intervention feels painful. There is another 00:06:41.379 --> 00:06:44.500 dimension we need to understand. Sometimes God 00:06:44.500 --> 00:06:46.939 is protecting more than you, because your life 00:06:46.939 --> 00:06:49.920 is connected to other lives. Your decisions affect 00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:52.800 other people. If you are married, your decisions 00:06:52.800 --> 00:06:56.120 affect your spouse. If you have children, your 00:06:56.120 --> 00:06:59.040 decisions affect your children. If you lead people, 00:06:59.439 --> 00:07:01.899 your decisions affect those who trust your leadership. 00:07:02.439 --> 00:07:04.920 If God has given you a ministry, your decisions 00:07:04.920 --> 00:07:07.800 can affect people you have never even met. If 00:07:07.800 --> 00:07:10.240 God has given you a vision, your character can 00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:12.459 influence whether that vision becomes a blessing 00:07:12.459 --> 00:07:14.839 or eventually becomes a source of destruction. 00:07:15.339 --> 00:07:17.439 So perhaps some of God's correction has been 00:07:17.439 --> 00:07:20.079 bigger than you. Perhaps some of his restraint 00:07:20.079 --> 00:07:22.579 has been bigger than you. Perhaps some doors 00:07:22.579 --> 00:07:25.139 had to close because God saw a family on the 00:07:25.139 --> 00:07:27.720 other side of your decision. Perhaps some relationships 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:30.240 had to be exposed because God saw a marriage. 00:07:30.540 --> 00:07:32.879 Perhaps some habits had to be confronted because 00:07:32.879 --> 00:07:35.639 God saw a ministry. Perhaps some pride had to 00:07:35.639 --> 00:07:39.079 be broken because God saw the authority He intended 00:07:39.079 --> 00:07:42.019 to place in your hands. Perhaps some impulsiveness 00:07:42.019 --> 00:07:45.000 had to be disciplined because God saw decisions 00:07:45.000 --> 00:07:48.279 you would someday have the power to make. you 00:07:48.279 --> 00:07:52.100 thought God was dealing with today. God was protecting 00:07:52.100 --> 00:07:57.439 tomorrow. When God gives someone a vision, there 00:07:57.439 --> 00:08:00.100 is God's part, and there is the responsibility 00:08:00.100 --> 00:08:03.860 of the person receiving it. God calls. God gives 00:08:03.860 --> 00:08:08.939 grace. God empowers. God opens doors. God provides. 00:08:09.339 --> 00:08:12.439 God anoints. But the person carrying that assignment 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:15.079 must learn how to steward what God has placed 00:08:15.079 --> 00:08:17.829 in their hands. And this is where many people 00:08:17.829 --> 00:08:21.329 misunderstand anointing. Anointing does not eliminate 00:08:21.329 --> 00:08:24.449 responsibility. A person can be gifted and still 00:08:24.449 --> 00:08:27.430 need discipline. A person can be called and still 00:08:27.430 --> 00:08:29.790 need correction. A person can have tremendous 00:08:29.790 --> 00:08:32.710 spiritual experiences and still need character 00:08:32.710 --> 00:08:35.470 development. A person can preach powerfully and 00:08:35.470 --> 00:08:38.450 still need to govern their tongue. A person can 00:08:38.450 --> 00:08:41.049 pray fervently and still need to govern their 00:08:41.049 --> 00:08:44.549 appetite. A person can know scripture and still 00:08:44.549 --> 00:08:47.730 need boundaries. A person can carry revelation 00:08:47.730 --> 00:08:50.690 and still need accountability. Because the question 00:08:50.690 --> 00:08:54.809 is not merely, can God use me? God has used imperfect 00:08:54.809 --> 00:08:57.490 people throughout scripture. The deeper question 00:08:57.490 --> 00:09:01.250 is, can my character sustain what God wants to 00:09:01.250 --> 00:09:03.649 entrust to me? And that brings us to something 00:09:03.649 --> 00:09:06.289 we are going to explore deeply throughout this 00:09:06.289 --> 00:09:12.509 season. Discipline protects vision. But I want 00:09:12.509 --> 00:09:15.950 to make something very clear. When I speak about 00:09:15.950 --> 00:09:19.090 self -discipline, I am not talking about becoming 00:09:19.090 --> 00:09:23.049 independent from God. I am saying the exact opposite. 00:09:23.730 --> 00:09:26.669 Galatians chapter 5 identifies self -control 00:09:26.669 --> 00:09:29.350 as fruit of the spirit. Christian discipline 00:09:29.350 --> 00:09:32.590 is not simply human willpower. It is a surrendered 00:09:32.590 --> 00:09:35.629 person cooperating with the Holy Spirit. There 00:09:35.629 --> 00:09:37.970 are battles you cannot win simply by telling 00:09:37.970 --> 00:09:40.350 yourself to be stronger. There are appetites 00:09:40.350 --> 00:09:42.950 that require spiritual transformation. There 00:09:42.950 --> 00:09:45.889 are wounds that require healing. There are patterns 00:09:45.889 --> 00:09:48.549 that require the renewing of your mind. There 00:09:48.549 --> 00:09:51.370 are temptations from which sometimes the wisest 00:09:51.370 --> 00:09:54.110 spiritual decision is not to prove how strong 00:09:54.110 --> 00:09:57.649 you are, but to run. We need the Holy Spirit. 00:09:58.370 --> 00:10:00.649 But dependence upon the Holy Spirit does not 00:10:00.649 --> 00:10:03.809 eliminate our responsibility to discipline ourselves. 00:10:04.629 --> 00:10:07.710 Paul understood this. In 1 Corinthians chapter 00:10:07.710 --> 00:10:11.529 9, Paul describes athletes exercising self -control 00:10:11.529 --> 00:10:14.830 because they are pursuing a prize. Then he says 00:10:14.830 --> 00:10:18.470 something remarkable, I discipline my body and 00:10:18.470 --> 00:10:22.549 keep it under control. This is Paul, an apostle, 00:10:23.409 --> 00:10:26.649 a man carrying extraordinary revelation, a man 00:10:26.649 --> 00:10:29.990 who encountered Christ, a man used mightily by 00:10:29.990 --> 00:10:34.610 God. And yet Paul understood, what God has entrusted 00:10:34.610 --> 00:10:37.350 to me is too valuable for me to live without 00:10:37.350 --> 00:10:41.240 discipline. That is maturity. Self -discipline 00:10:41.240 --> 00:10:43.720 is learning to tell yourself no, because there 00:10:43.720 --> 00:10:45.720 is something greater to which you have already 00:10:45.720 --> 00:10:49.240 said yes. I can respond, but I don't have to. 00:10:49.419 --> 00:10:52.899 I can say it, but I don't have to. I can go there, 00:10:53.179 --> 00:10:56.419 but I don't have to. I can entertain this, but 00:10:56.419 --> 00:10:59.539 I don't have to. I can satisfy this appetite, 00:10:59.860 --> 00:11:03.279 but I don't have to. Why? Because there is something 00:11:03.279 --> 00:11:06.779 greater before me. There is a calling. There 00:11:06.779 --> 00:11:10.629 is a family. There is a purpose. There is a relationship 00:11:10.629 --> 00:11:14.190 with God. There is a vision. There is something 00:11:14.190 --> 00:11:17.269 I refuse to sacrifice for temporary satisfaction. 00:11:17.909 --> 00:11:22.029 That is discipline. And sometimes, God allows 00:11:22.029 --> 00:11:24.250 pressure because pressure reveals weaknesses 00:11:24.250 --> 00:11:28.269 before greater responsibility arrives. Imagine 00:11:28.269 --> 00:11:30.909 carrying something extremely valuable in a vessel 00:11:30.909 --> 00:11:34.389 with a hidden crack. As long as the vessel remains 00:11:34.389 --> 00:11:38.220 empty, the crack may never matter. But once something 00:11:38.220 --> 00:11:40.899 valuable is poured into it the weakness becomes 00:11:40.899 --> 00:11:45.539 dangerous Sometimes God exposes the crack before 00:11:45.539 --> 00:11:49.379 he pours more into the vessel and We become angry 00:11:49.379 --> 00:11:52.919 about the exposure But exposure may actually 00:11:52.919 --> 00:11:57.259 be mercy God may reveal your anger before greater 00:11:57.259 --> 00:12:00.899 authority magnifies it God may confront your 00:12:00.899 --> 00:12:05.080 appetite before greater access feeds it God may 00:12:05.080 --> 00:12:07.809 expose your need for approval before greater 00:12:07.809 --> 00:12:12.009 visibility enslaves you to applause. God may 00:12:12.009 --> 00:12:15.149 confront financial irresponsibility before greater 00:12:15.149 --> 00:12:19.950 resources arrive. God may expose unhealthy relationships 00:12:19.950 --> 00:12:22.529 before they gain access to what He is building 00:12:22.529 --> 00:12:26.509 through you. God may teach you to govern your 00:12:26.509 --> 00:12:29.649 tongue before He gives your words greater influence, 00:12:29.970 --> 00:12:32.789 because whatever remains ungoverned at one level 00:12:32.789 --> 00:12:36.549 can become destructive at another. The greater 00:12:36.549 --> 00:12:39.809 the assignment, the more dangerous unmanaged 00:12:39.809 --> 00:12:44.509 character becomes. Psalm 119 .71 contains one 00:12:44.509 --> 00:12:46.710 of those statements that only makes sense after 00:12:46.710 --> 00:12:49.909 you have walked with God for some time. It is 00:12:49.909 --> 00:12:52.690 good for me that I was afflicted, that I might 00:12:52.690 --> 00:12:56.309 learn your statutes. Notice the perspective. 00:12:57.289 --> 00:13:00.009 He does not necessarily call the affliction pleasant. 00:13:00.870 --> 00:13:03.970 He recognizes what the affliction produced. There 00:13:03.970 --> 00:13:06.409 are things you survive. that you would never 00:13:06.409 --> 00:13:09.529 volunteer to experience again, but you can still 00:13:09.529 --> 00:13:13.909 look back and say, God used it. I wouldn't choose 00:13:13.909 --> 00:13:17.590 the betrayal, but God used it to teach me discernment. 00:13:17.690 --> 00:13:20.029 I wouldn't choose the disappointment, but God 00:13:20.029 --> 00:13:23.090 used it to detach my identity from people's approval. 00:13:23.450 --> 00:13:26.250 I wouldn't choose the waiting, but God used it 00:13:26.250 --> 00:13:29.470 to develop patience. I wouldn't choose the humiliation, 00:13:29.889 --> 00:13:32.529 but God used it to confront pride. I wouldn't 00:13:32.529 --> 00:13:35.679 choose the loss. but God used it to show me what 00:13:35.679 --> 00:13:37.940 really mattered. I wouldn't choose the valley, 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:40.759 but I meant a version of God in the valley that 00:13:40.759 --> 00:13:44.139 I had only heard about on the mountain. And perhaps 00:13:44.139 --> 00:13:47.059 that is what the psalmist means. It was good 00:13:47.059 --> 00:13:51.220 for me, not because pain is good, not because 00:13:51.220 --> 00:13:55.159 betrayal is good, not because injustice is good, 00:13:56.000 --> 00:13:59.419 not because suffering itself is holy. but because 00:13:59.419 --> 00:14:02.360 God was able to take something painful and produce 00:14:02.360 --> 00:14:08.419 something valuable through it. So now we return 00:14:08.419 --> 00:14:11.759 to our question. What if the intervention was 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:15.799 about you? What if God was not simply fighting 00:14:15.799 --> 00:14:19.399 what was trying to destroy you? What if He was 00:14:19.399 --> 00:14:22.039 also confronting something within you that could 00:14:22.039 --> 00:14:24.960 eventually destroy what He intended to build 00:14:24.960 --> 00:14:29.100 through you? What if the closed door saved you? 00:14:29.659 --> 00:14:33.860 What if the delay matured you? What if the rejection 00:14:33.860 --> 00:14:37.600 redirected you? What if the exposure protected 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:41.879 you? What if the separation purified your environment? 00:14:43.080 --> 00:14:45.840 What if the pressure revealed something you desperately 00:14:45.840 --> 00:14:49.919 needed to see? What if the valley developed the 00:14:49.919 --> 00:14:52.580 discipline you will need on the mountain? What 00:14:52.580 --> 00:14:55.379 if the fire was not evidence that God had abandoned 00:14:55.379 --> 00:14:58.940 his purpose? What if the fire was evidence that 00:14:58.940 --> 00:15:02.360 God was preparing you for it? This changes the 00:15:02.360 --> 00:15:06.759 prayer Instead of only praying God take me out 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:11.759 of this We begin praying God Show me what you 00:15:11.759 --> 00:15:15.220 are producing in me through this Instead of only 00:15:15.220 --> 00:15:19.659 asking when will this end? We begin asking who 00:15:19.659 --> 00:15:23.370 am I becoming? Instead of only asking God to 00:15:23.370 --> 00:15:26.049 change our circumstances, we become willing to 00:15:26.049 --> 00:15:28.990 say, God, if there is something in me that cannot 00:15:28.990 --> 00:15:32.470 go where you are taking me, reveal it. If there 00:15:32.470 --> 00:15:34.970 is something weakening my discipline, expose 00:15:34.970 --> 00:15:38.169 it. If there is something contaminating my character, 00:15:38.429 --> 00:15:41.529 remove it. If there is a relationship influencing 00:15:41.529 --> 00:15:44.570 me away from your purpose, give me discernment. 00:15:45.070 --> 00:15:47.509 If there is an appetite attempting to govern 00:15:47.509 --> 00:15:51.129 me, teach me self -control. If there is pride, 00:15:51.649 --> 00:15:55.690 confront it. If there is fear, heal it. If there 00:15:55.690 --> 00:16:00.149 is compromise, uncover it. Refine me. That is 00:16:00.149 --> 00:16:03.350 a dangerous prayer, because God may answer it. 00:16:03.690 --> 00:16:06.649 But perhaps it is also one of the most important 00:16:06.649 --> 00:16:10.470 prayers a person carrying purpose can ever pray. 00:16:12.809 --> 00:16:15.809 There comes a moment when you stop asking only, 00:16:15.990 --> 00:16:18.970 when will this fire end? And you begin asking, 00:16:19.110 --> 00:16:22.110 who is God forming me to become through it? Because 00:16:22.110 --> 00:16:24.769 when gold comes through the refining process, 00:16:25.070 --> 00:16:27.909 the testimony is not simply that the gold survived 00:16:27.909 --> 00:16:30.610 the furnace. Something that did not belong was 00:16:30.610 --> 00:16:34.269 removed. Something hidden was exposed. Something 00:16:34.269 --> 00:16:37.289 valuable became purer. And maybe that is where 00:16:37.289 --> 00:16:40.409 some of us are right now. We have been so focused 00:16:40.409 --> 00:16:43.230 on surviving the season, that we have not stopped 00:16:43.230 --> 00:16:46.169 long enough to recognize the person God is producing 00:16:46.169 --> 00:16:49.870 through the season. You survived, but you also 00:16:49.870 --> 00:16:54.330 learned. You cried, but you also grew. You lost 00:16:54.330 --> 00:16:57.450 some things, but perhaps you also discovered 00:16:57.450 --> 00:17:01.190 what you never needed. Some people walked away, 00:17:01.330 --> 00:17:03.769 but perhaps their departure revealed relationships 00:17:03.769 --> 00:17:06.710 you had been depending upon more than you realized. 00:17:06.930 --> 00:17:10.150 Some doors closed, but perhaps those doors were 00:17:10.150 --> 00:17:12.799 leading somewhere Your purpose could not afford 00:17:12.799 --> 00:17:15.880 to go. Some things were exposed. And although 00:17:15.880 --> 00:17:18.980 the exposure hurt, perhaps God allowed you to 00:17:18.980 --> 00:17:21.720 see now what could have destroyed much more later. 00:17:21.960 --> 00:17:25.779 Because sometimes exposure is intervention. Sometimes 00:17:25.779 --> 00:17:29.619 correction is intervention. Sometimes separation 00:17:29.619 --> 00:17:33.240 is intervention. Sometimes delay is intervention. 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:37.119 Sometimes the fire itself becomes an instrument 00:17:37.119 --> 00:17:40.039 of intervention. And that brings us back to the 00:17:40.039 --> 00:17:44.240 question with which we began. What if the intervention 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:47.819 was about you? What if you were asking God to 00:17:47.819 --> 00:17:50.380 change what was happening around you while God 00:17:50.380 --> 00:17:53.400 was changing what was happening inside you? What 00:17:53.400 --> 00:17:55.799 if you were asking God to remove your enemies 00:17:55.799 --> 00:17:58.640 while God was removing something from your character? 00:17:59.059 --> 00:18:01.339 What if you were asking God to open the door 00:18:01.339 --> 00:18:03.759 while God was developing the discipline you would 00:18:03.759 --> 00:18:06.180 need once that door opened? What if you were 00:18:06.180 --> 00:18:09.279 asking God to enlarge your territory while God 00:18:09.279 --> 00:18:11.740 was strengthening your character so your territory 00:18:11.740 --> 00:18:14.599 would not eventually destroy you? What if you 00:18:14.599 --> 00:18:17.160 were asking God to protect your vision while 00:18:17.160 --> 00:18:19.599 God was refining the person who would have to 00:18:19.599 --> 00:18:22.440 carry that vision? Maybe the intervention was 00:18:22.440 --> 00:18:25.019 never only about the battle. Maybe it was also 00:18:25.019 --> 00:18:27.500 about the person standing in the battle. Because 00:18:27.500 --> 00:18:30.200 God knows something we often forget, a great 00:18:30.200 --> 00:18:32.819 vision carried by an undisciplined person can 00:18:32.819 --> 00:18:36.009 become dangerous. A great gift without character 00:18:36.009 --> 00:18:39.170 can become destructive. Greater influence without 00:18:39.170 --> 00:18:42.930 self -control can magnify weaknesses that once 00:18:42.930 --> 00:18:45.769 appeared insignificant. Greater authority without 00:18:45.769 --> 00:18:49.710 humility can damage people. Greater access without 00:18:49.710 --> 00:18:52.589 boundaries can create opportunities for compromise. 00:18:53.269 --> 00:18:55.829 Greater visibility without spiritual maturity 00:18:55.829 --> 00:18:59.349 can turn applause into an addiction and perhaps 00:18:59.559 --> 00:19:02.420 This is why God sometimes deals with the vessel 00:19:02.420 --> 00:19:05.980 before expanding the assignment. You are asking 00:19:05.980 --> 00:19:09.500 for more. God may be preparing you to carry more. 00:19:10.259 --> 00:19:13.779 You are asking for expansion. God may be building 00:19:13.779 --> 00:19:17.980 capacity. You are asking for the promise. God 00:19:17.980 --> 00:19:20.859 may be preparing the person who must live inside 00:19:20.859 --> 00:19:24.700 that promise. And suddenly the fire begins to 00:19:24.700 --> 00:19:28.930 look different. If God has allowed you to walk 00:19:28.930 --> 00:19:32.349 through a refining season, don't come out carrying 00:19:32.349 --> 00:19:35.630 everything you took into it. Don't carry the 00:19:35.630 --> 00:19:39.170 same anger. Don't carry the same uncontrolled 00:19:39.170 --> 00:19:43.329 appetite. Don't carry the same dangerous relationships. 00:19:43.630 --> 00:19:46.589 Don't carry the same need for approval. Don't 00:19:46.589 --> 00:19:49.730 carry the same impulsiveness. Don't carry the 00:19:49.730 --> 00:19:52.789 same compromises. Don't carry the same habits. 00:19:53.230 --> 00:19:56.839 Don't carry the same inability to say no. Don't 00:19:56.839 --> 00:19:59.440 carry the same reactions that repeatedly create 00:19:59.440 --> 00:20:02.579 unnecessary battles. Don't simply ask God to 00:20:02.579 --> 00:20:04.960 bring you out. Ask Him to bring something out 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:07.160 of you. There are things that cannot accompany 00:20:07.160 --> 00:20:10.259 your purpose. There are habits that cannot accompany 00:20:10.259 --> 00:20:12.660 your assignment. There are relationships that 00:20:12.660 --> 00:20:15.259 cannot have unlimited access to your future. 00:20:15.660 --> 00:20:17.640 There are appetites that cannot be permitted 00:20:17.640 --> 00:20:20.359 to govern your decisions. There are reactions 00:20:20.359 --> 00:20:23.130 that must come under control. There are words 00:20:23.130 --> 00:20:25.609 you must learn not to speak. There are places 00:20:25.609 --> 00:20:28.630 you must learn not to go. There are invitations 00:20:28.630 --> 00:20:31.269 you must learn to decline. There are battles 00:20:31.269 --> 00:20:33.869 you must learn not to fight. There are things 00:20:33.869 --> 00:20:36.829 you may have the freedom to do, but must develop 00:20:36.829 --> 00:20:39.890 the wisdom not to do. Because maturity is not 00:20:39.890 --> 00:20:43.509 simply knowing what you can do. Maturity is understanding 00:20:43.509 --> 00:20:46.730 what your purpose cannot afford. That is discipline. 00:20:48.930 --> 00:20:52.140 Discipline protects what God is building. Self 00:20:52.140 --> 00:20:54.839 -discipline is not punishment. Self -discipline 00:20:54.839 --> 00:20:57.599 is protection. It is the ability to look at something 00:20:57.599 --> 00:21:00.500 you desire and say, you are not worth what I 00:21:00.500 --> 00:21:03.180 would have to sacrifice to have you. It is the 00:21:03.180 --> 00:21:05.819 ability to control a temporary appetite because 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:08.380 you recognize a permanent assignment. It is the 00:21:08.380 --> 00:21:11.000 ability to govern a moment. because you understand 00:21:11.000 --> 00:21:13.880 that a moment can affect years. It is the ability 00:21:13.880 --> 00:21:16.259 to walk away from something attractive because 00:21:16.259 --> 00:21:18.980 you can see something greater ahead. And for 00:21:18.980 --> 00:21:22.059 the believer, we do not do this alone. We need 00:21:22.059 --> 00:21:24.759 the Holy Spirit. We need His conviction. We need 00:21:24.759 --> 00:21:27.440 His strength. We need His wisdom. We need His 00:21:27.440 --> 00:21:30.599 power working inside us. Because biblical self 00:21:30.599 --> 00:21:34.059 -control is not simply human determination. Self 00:21:34.059 --> 00:21:37.099 -control is fruit produced by a life surrendered 00:21:37.099 --> 00:21:39.970 to the Spirit of God. But surrender requires 00:21:39.970 --> 00:21:43.069 cooperation. God can warn you. You still have 00:21:43.069 --> 00:21:45.829 to listen. God can convict you. You still have 00:21:45.829 --> 00:21:48.490 to respond. God can reveal the relationship. 00:21:48.750 --> 00:21:51.150 You still have to establish the boundary. God 00:21:51.150 --> 00:21:53.509 can expose the habit. You still have to stop 00:21:53.509 --> 00:21:56.210 feeding it. God can reveal the seed. You still 00:21:56.210 --> 00:21:58.710 have to stop watering it. God can show you the 00:21:58.710 --> 00:22:01.230 danger. You still have to walk away. And maybe 00:22:01.230 --> 00:22:03.490 this is part of what the fire has been teaching 00:22:03.490 --> 00:22:07.480 you. There are seasons we ask God to explain 00:22:07.480 --> 00:22:09.799 while we are living through them, but sometimes 00:22:09.799 --> 00:22:12.839 understanding comes later. One day, you may look 00:22:12.839 --> 00:22:16.279 backward and realize, that season saved me. Not 00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:18.480 because everything that happened to you was good. 00:22:18.819 --> 00:22:21.180 Not because everybody who hurt you was sent by 00:22:21.180 --> 00:22:24.400 God. Not because injustice suddenly became righteous. 00:22:25.160 --> 00:22:28.299 But because God, in His providence, refused to 00:22:28.299 --> 00:22:32.059 waste what happened. He used it. He taught you. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:36.710 He corrected you. He exposed things. He removed 00:22:36.710 --> 00:22:40.609 things. He strengthened things. He redirected 00:22:40.609 --> 00:22:44.190 things. He showed you yourself. And somewhere 00:22:44.190 --> 00:22:46.789 along the journey, the words of the psalmist 00:22:46.789 --> 00:22:50.650 became your testimony. It was good for me that 00:22:50.650 --> 00:22:54.029 I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. 00:22:54.849 --> 00:22:57.670 You may discover that the fire you once begged 00:22:57.670 --> 00:23:00.849 God to remove became the classroom where He taught 00:23:00.849 --> 00:23:03.329 you how to carry what you had been praying for. 00:23:03.390 --> 00:23:06.829 And perhaps then, you will understand. God was 00:23:06.829 --> 00:23:10.069 not destroying you. God was developing you. God 00:23:10.069 --> 00:23:13.049 was not abandoning the vision. God was protecting 00:23:13.049 --> 00:23:16.630 it. God was not finished with you. God was refining 00:23:16.630 --> 00:23:19.690 you. So if you are walking through the fire today, 00:23:20.009 --> 00:23:22.529 I want you to ask God a different question. Not 00:23:22.529 --> 00:23:26.190 only, God, when are you bringing me out? But, 00:23:26.589 --> 00:23:29.730 God, what are you bringing out of me? What needs 00:23:29.730 --> 00:23:33.400 to change? What needs to die? What needs to grow? 00:23:33.960 --> 00:23:36.680 What needs to be confronted? What needs to be 00:23:36.680 --> 00:23:39.980 healed? What needs to be disciplined? What needs 00:23:39.980 --> 00:23:43.460 to be surrendered? What relationship needs examination? 00:23:43.940 --> 00:23:47.059 What seed needs to stop receiving water? What 00:23:47.059 --> 00:23:50.000 reaction needs to come under the authority of 00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:53.000 the Holy Spirit? What part of my character needs 00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:55.359 strengthening before you entrust me with what 00:23:55.359 --> 00:23:59.440 is next? God, don't allow me to survive the fire 00:23:59.440 --> 00:24:02.329 and miss the refinement. Don't allow me to leave 00:24:02.329 --> 00:24:05.690 the valley unchanged. Don't allow me to become 00:24:05.690 --> 00:24:08.710 so obsessed with defeating the enemy that I fail 00:24:08.710 --> 00:24:11.369 to recognize what you are developing within me. 00:24:11.769 --> 00:24:14.009 If you are preparing me for something greater, 00:24:14.349 --> 00:24:18.349 then prepare all of me. My heart, my mind, my 00:24:18.349 --> 00:24:22.549 appetites, my relationships, my reactions, my 00:24:22.549 --> 00:24:26.750 words, my decisions, my character, my discipline, 00:24:27.269 --> 00:24:31.069 my private life, my public life. Refine me from 00:24:31.069 --> 00:24:34.009 the inside out, because I don't simply want to 00:24:34.009 --> 00:24:36.829 arrive at the purpose. I want to become the person 00:24:36.829 --> 00:24:39.650 capable of carrying it. And maybe that is the 00:24:39.650 --> 00:24:43.190 revelation God wanted us to see all along. You 00:24:43.190 --> 00:24:46.049 thought the greatest testimony would be, God 00:24:46.049 --> 00:24:49.269 brought me out of the fire. But perhaps an even 00:24:49.269 --> 00:24:52.650 greater testimony will be, look at what God brought 00:24:52.650 --> 00:24:55.930 out of me through the fire. The fire did not 00:24:55.930 --> 00:24:58.750 cancel the purpose. The valley did not destroy 00:24:58.750 --> 00:25:02.150 the vision. The delay did not mean God had forgotten 00:25:02.150 --> 00:25:05.950 you. God was working. God was shaping. God was 00:25:05.950 --> 00:25:09.130 correcting. God was protecting. God was preparing. 00:25:09.450 --> 00:25:11.829 You were being refined. And you were not being 00:25:11.829 --> 00:25:14.730 refined without reason. You were being refined 00:25:14.730 --> 00:25:18.230 for a purpose. This is Pamoja Ministry. And in 00:25:18.230 --> 00:25:20.710 our next conversation we are going deeper into 00:25:20.710 --> 00:25:23.490 the fire itself. Because the fire does something 00:25:23.490 --> 00:25:26.589 that comfort often cannot do. It reveals what 00:25:26.589 --> 00:25:31.480 is really there. Conversation two, the fire reveals 00:25:31.480 --> 00:25:35.359 what success can hide. Until next time, may God 00:25:35.359 --> 00:25:38.240 give us the courage not merely to ask him to 00:25:38.240 --> 00:25:41.440 change our circumstances, but to surrender ourselves 00:25:41.440 --> 00:25:43.880 to what he desires to change within us.