Speaker 1Praise God. So we're going to look at the place, the place, the place. Say with me, I have a place.
Speaker 2Genesis chapter 2, we start from there. Let's see how far we go today and we will continue from next, continue wherever we stop today, next week. It says, and the Lord God, verse 8, and the Lord God planted a garden. God himself planted a garden eastward in Eden. And there, now can we read that last sentence together? I want to go. What does it say? There he put the man whom he had formed. Read that sentence again. I want to go. And there, say with me, there. Say with me, there. Somebody put it this way. He said there's a place called there. There's a place called there. For every believer, there's a place called there. He says there he put the man whom he had formed. There he put the man, which means Adam's dominion. Adam's dominion. Adam's assignment was going to be expressed from a point, a place. It wasn't enough that God had said to Adam that listen, be fruitful, have dominion over the birds of the air, the fishes of the sea, over everything, multiply, replenish. It wasn't enough that God had said to him, you know, giving him those wonderful promises. God planted a garden and then God put him there. So everything with God starts with a location. I believe that there are two variables that are so important in the kingdom of God. Number one is place. Number two is time. And if you miss any of this, in any measure, it is really difficult to be who God wants you to be. Very difficult. Two variables, two. And the reason I call them variables is because what it is for one is not necessarily the same as the other. What it is for another. What it is for Mr. A, even husbands and wife on some issues is not exactly the same thing. And many a times it's in your walk with the Lord that you discern these things. The first variable being what? Place. The second variable being what? Time. But we're looking more at the subject, the idea of place here. The Bible says God planted a garden eastward in Eden and there at that spot, in that place. So Adam, all that I've called you to be, all that you're meant to do will only find expression because you are here. Guess what? When they fell, what was the first thing that happened? They were chased from there. Glory to God. So tell the person beside you, there, there, there, there. Ask them, where is there? Where is there? Where is there? Find it. Find it. In Genesis chapter 3 verse 9, you read how that the Bible tells us that when God came, to them after the fall, this was God's first recorded interaction with mankind after the fall. The Bible says the first question that God asked him, Adam, what was the first question? He says, where art thou? First question God asked Adam, first question a man ever heard from God. Very important. The first question God ever asked a man is, where are you? He didn't say, what have you done? He said, where are you? He didn't say, what has happened? Where are you? If you're there, we can fix everything. Don't worry. If you're there, everything can be sorted. Where are you? That's the first question God asked him. I think people actually trivialize the importance of place so much that we just wake up and decide our places ourselves. We just decide ourselves. We decide by ourselves where we want to live, where we want to work. We decide by ourselves with whom we want to rule because people are places. Oh, yeah. People are places. Write that down. Never forget it. I'll show you in just a bit. People are places. We decide by ourselves who we want to rule. We decide by ourselves what church we want to attend. You know, we just decide by ourselves what we want to do. And we do not realize that God's plan for your life is location specific. God's will for your life is location specific. Hear me and hear me well. If the Lord calls you into an office, if the Lord calls you into an office, there is a place where that office must be planted, rooted. There's a place where that office finds expression. It's not enough to say, well, God has called me to be a prophet. He's called me to be a pastor so I can pastor everywhere. You can't pastor everywhere. Now, can the work go everywhere? Yes. But the work will go everywhere when you are planted there. And the labor, the discipline to find there is not one of the biggest investments you can ever make in your life. You can never make in your life. One of the biggest investments you can ever make in your life. Glory to God. Well, your place is where your grace works. Because as powerful as your grace is, it does not work everywhere. You have to understand that. Your place is where your grace works. It's where God has designed to give expression to your grace. Can I say something to you? Would it be fine if I shared this with you? Just a word of counsel. No matter how brilliant you are, you're going to forget 90%, 99% of the things I'm sharing with you by the time you're stepping out of that place. So a pen and a paper, a phone with a memo, with a notepad or whatever it is, would serve you well. Glory to God. And that's the attitude you should actually have when you're coming to church. You should have a Bible. You should have a pen. You should have a jotter. If you don't have a pen and a jotter, you should have a finger and you should have something you can. So I'll say that again. Place is where your grace works. We already established that every believer has a grace that's a divine ability enablement. But as well, we want to establish that every believer has a place, your God-appointed location, your God-appointed rule. It's important your grace works best in your God-ordained place. I was, just this morning, I was with the students in School of Ministry. And interestingly, I was sharing with Pastor Diola, for some reason, I'd just been, you know, I just knew I needed to get some rest. So I was trying to just schedule myself in such a way that I could give my body some rest. Quite a number of things to be done. But when I woke up this morning, the provost in absentia, you can imagine the provost of the school is enjoying in Lagos. I'm teaching in Abuja. We have to talk about this matter. Glory to God. So he said, today's a seminar. And the seminar idea is that I can teach whatever it is I want to teach outside the outlines and all the rest. So I had taught something to, was it Manchester School or Lagos School, the seminar? It was Lagos. So I taught that. And well, the Lord instructed me to teach that at the time. So he had put it on the calendar of the schedule that that's what I was going to teach. And I was going to do that. But the more I looked at it, the more I said, mm-mm. So I began to pray about it. And the Lord said to me, he said, what have I anointed you for? Oh, I said, I know, I know, I know exactly what, I know the three subjects if I pick them. Sleeping. My God, they'll be so blessed. I know. So the Lord said, pick this one. So I picked that one. And I went in as tired as tired could be. But I began to imagine what the Lord was doing. And I don't want to go into details. Some of them are connected with us now. I began to imagine what the Lord was doing by the time we're done. And I thought to myself, I said, there is nothing like a fish in water. There's no stress. You don't even have, it doesn't even seem like you're walking when you are in your place. Doesn't even seem, I mean, it doesn't, nobody, if I had said to them that you have no idea, it is probably, if I had my way, I'm not going to teach you guys. If I had my way, I'll just be whatever it is. They would have said, no, pastor, it's impossible. How, how? But I was in my place. It was effortless. It was my subject. It was my grace. It was my place. Standing there in school of ministry is my place. It's a cardinal part of what I'm supposed to be doing. Comes cheap, comes easy. They are subjects that I want to teach. And it is a struggle from beginning to the end. Now, you all don't know because the mercy of God covers it. But my wife knows. And she's going, that was a blessing. I said, but you know, I was struggling through this. Oh, yes, because it's not my place. You know, even teachers have what they are anointed to teach. Oh, yeah. Even teachers have what they are anointed to teach. Even in the healing ministry. administration of that office and the anointings would differ from person to person. A healing minister in a prayer meeting may find it difficult if that's not how his grace functions. The healing anointing can function through worship. It can function through prayer. It can function through the word of faith. Are you getting what I'm saying here? So it's important that we know our place, our place. It's important that you know your place. There is a specific environment. And I want to take note of these three things because it defines what places are. Environment, roles, and relationships. Say that with me. You know why this is important? Because if you reduce place to just geography, then you're missing out on the big picture. All right? So it's an environment. That includes geography. But it's not just an environment. There's a specific environment, a specific role. That's an office. All right? And then it's relationships where your grace is actually needed and will be maximized in such places. Look at Proverbs chapter 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. And by the time we're done with this over the next two, three weeks, talking about the place aspect, you'd have tools to design your place and to take full advantage of your place. Glory to God. Satan's biggest strategy is to displace you. Oh, yeah. That's Satan's big, you know, and you know, the Bible says be not, the Bible tells us to be, be not ignorant. It says be not ignorant of the wiles of the enemy. If you do not know what he's doing, you won't know he has done it. Are you getting what I'm saying? If you do not know what he's doing, you won't know when he has done it. And one of the biggest strategies of the enemy against believers is displacement. I'll show you two scriptures. That once you are out of place, grace is limited. Once you're out of your place, it's difficult, very difficult for grace to find expression there. How many of you remember when God said to Noah, now arise and go to Nineveh? You remember the story? And then Noah says, pardon me, Jonah, Jonah says, well, I'm not going. And then he boarded a ship on the way to Tarshish. Now, was Jonah a prophet of God? Yes. Could he pray to God and by his prayers, see miracles and the supernatural power of God? Yes, absolutely. How come he wasn't able to calm the storm? How come he couldn't have prayed as a prophet to have stilled the storm and get the ship going to where it should go? Because your grace is only manifested in your place. He was in the wrong direction. And that grace could not find expression there. Glory to God. Are we still here? Look at Proverbs chapter 26, 27, pardon me, Proverbs 27 and verse 8. Very important. Can we read that together? What does it say? As a bird that wandered, everybody, let's read together. As a bird that wandered from her nest, so is a man that wandered from his place. Read it one more time. As a bird that wandered from his place, so is a man that wandered from his place. Have you seen a bird that can't find its nest? Have you seen what it's like? It says as a bird that wandered from his nest, so is a man that wandered from his place. So there's a place for you. And what happens is that you start wandering all through life. You see, because what I found out is this, that when men are displaced, it is usually difficult for them to find another place where they fit. Oh, it's difficult. I have seen people who out of their comfort zone, out of their offense, out of anger, they get displaced or they displace themselves. And then they think that because they are justified by their actions, I can fit in anywhere. No, sir, you can't. Stand up for a minute. You can't. I want you to see this. Thank you. He's standing up already. I meant him. I want you to see this man here. Here is the hand. Let's remove the hand and put it on the leg. Is this the hand? No. Is this still part of the body? Yes. But is it useful there? No. And that's what happens with a lot of believers. They remove themselves from where God has set them, 1 Corinthians 12, 18, remove themselves from where God has set them and rejoin themselves to the body. Their consolation is I'm still a part of the body. Imagine the eye removes itself and puts itself here. That's a place that you are suited for. Flip it around. There's a place that is suited for you. Are you following this here? So he says, as a man, as a bird that wandered from a nest, so is a man that wandered from his place. And sometimes the reason people don't go back to their place is pride. Hmm. Ephesians chapter 4 verse 16. We're laying foundations here. Just the same way we laid a lot of foundation for the grace aspect. But I want to lay foundations here for the place aspect. Now, somebody is saying we have been laying foundations since. No, we're done. We've built grace, haven't we? Haven't we? We could have gone another eight weeks on it, but the Lord said that's fine. Now we're in place. Let's build a foundation. I saw a meme. Is it meme or meme or meme or meme? Whatever you guess. It's meme or whatever it is. And they said, Pastor Ayo, when he says let's build a foundation, looks like a skyscraper. Well, because we are going very high. You are going very high. So your foundation, your foundation needs to be really big. Let's look at it. Everybody read one to go. What does it say? From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supply. Again, please stand up, sir. And I want you to see this. Now, if you did any form of science or whatever it is, you don't have to bend it up, but you just did a bit of biology. You know the bones of the body. Am I right? So what are the bones that you have here? My God. Radius and honor, right? Somebody says circumference. What are the bones you have here? Talk to me. That's numeros. That's the numeros. Just be quiet. You know when you're quiet, nobody knows what you know, what you don't know. Just be quiet. What joint do you have here? Ball and socket joint, right? You have a ball and socket joint, right? socket joint there. Hinge joints. Amazing. You all are brilliant. The only problem is just two or three of you that are sitting there. Every other person is echoing it. That's grammar school style. You wait for somebody to say it and all of us, we just shout it together. Here's where I'm going to. This is the ball and socket joint, right? Where else in the body do you have a ball and socket joint? The hip. Am I right? That's where else? Now, since it's a ball and socket, can we remove the humerus and replace it with the femur, right? Since it's a ball and socket, can't we just do that? Take it out and put it there. Would it work? No. Which means every bone has a joint. There's a point of connection. Once it's out of that place, no matter how it looks like it, because what happens with a lot of people is that, we start looking for what looks like it and then trying to fit it there. Remember the three things I said, a place is. What are the three things? Number one, it's an environment. Number two is what? A role. Number three, it's a relationship. Are you thinking of environments that you probably have disconnected yourself from? Are you thinking of roles that you probably felt, oh, I don't like this. I like this one. Are you thinking of relationships? And that's what happens with a lot of people. The human body is God. God's best example of how the church works. It's God's analogy for the church, the working of the church, that no matter how similar the bones or the joints are, they have their place. Glory to God. Are you still with me? Please sit down. They have their place. It says, by that which every joint, what? Supply it. And then it says that it makes increase of what? The body. By that which every joint supply it. Look at Acts chapter 17 verse 26. We're still talking about what? Places. Acts 17 and verse 26. Acts chapter 17 verse 26. Let me share a very quick story with you. Personal story here. But maybe we should read this first. What does it say? Let's read together. I want to go. And hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on the face of the earth and hath what? Determined the times before appointed and the bounds of the habitations. Do you see times and places? Do you see that there? He says, "You have determined the times before appointed And the bounds of their habitation. They don't decide where they will stay. God decides it. You just wake up and say, I think I'm done with Nigeria. I want to move abroad. I think I'm done. And you know, I have seen people literally disconnected from the call of God on their lives. Because of Jakba. Completely disconnected. And one of the most difficult things, sincerely speaking, is rerouting yourself back there. You see, because many a times, places don't wait for you. So life moves on. And by the time you recover yourself, things have moved in such a way that it's very difficult. Sometimes even when you're humble enough. Are you listening to what I'm saying here? So may I have a place. I find my place. And I stay in my place. Years ago, I noticed that the healing, the teaching anointing, pardon me, wasn't as as strong as I thought it should be. Listen carefully to this. I'd come into meetings. This was many years ago. And I would feel like it was dry. People weren't, I mean, generally people would say they were blessed. But it wasn't like what I expected. So I'd pray. I'd pray. I fasted. Did everything that I knew to do. Studied even more than I would study normally. Because I thought that maybe I was lacking on that. But it lingered on for a while. For about two, three years. It was a long period. People were blessed. But I knew this was not it. I remember where I was. And I was in prayer. And then the Lord brought the face of one of the fathers of the faith in this country to me. And the Lord said to me, he said, I connected you with him. And God began to speak to me. He said, I connected you with him. I said, yes, sir. He said, this grace in your life, who activated it? I said, it was him. I said, it was listening and following. And then he began to mention a couple of things. Then he said to me, he said, this spell of dryness that you have been praying to me about for the last two, three years. He said, it's because in your heart, you despise this relationship. And I'll tell you what happened. A couple of people came into my space who began to say certain things about the minister. And I felt they were right. I actually felt they were right. Not that I felt they were right. They were right. They were right. Oh, yes. Just to put it in context. They were right. They were right. I just felt, oh, things should be done like this. Things should be done like this. Now, I am too honorable by the grace of God to ever be found in dishonor. You don't hear me speak ill or wrong about God's servant or God's ministers. Not talk less of elders and fathers in the faith. So, you never hear that. However, my heart had shifted. My heart's posture. Nothing had changed. From my communication. But my heart's posture had shifted. And the Lord said to me, he said, he is my servant. He said, he is my servant and that's none of your business. I will fix him. You fix yourself. And I remember I went. This was, my office was in Surulia at the time. I went on my knees in my office and I said, Lord, forgive me. I had not said anything publicly wrong. But remember, people are places. Remember, people are places. I had not said anything wrong. But my heart had shifted. The posture of my heart. In fact, I would see a video or anything from him and I would just, it's okay. And I would just gloss past because I am trained not to say ill or speak ill. But it's okay. And then the Lord said to me, boy, that was a lesson for me. That I went through three years of dryness. And it's just because of the posture of my heart towards a man who does not know I exist. I felt God was unfair because I had been praying and fasting. Can't you just solve the matter? And later on tell me this is the problem. Glory to God. You see, people are places. I feel like I should tell you a couple of stories. Do you understand what I'm saying here? People are what? Places. A gentleman walked up to me one time. We were speaking with him. And I was sharing this with him in school of ministry. And then certain things had happened. The minister of the gospel. And he was in just the center of the storm. And so I spoke with him and I said, gentleman, this is what I believe that you should do. This is what I believe you should do. This is what you should do. Not I believe. I know you should do. This I know. And I can tell you it will work. So I told him what to do. A couple of days or weeks after, he reached. He reached out to me and then he says, well, he had a conversation with a father in the faith. And the father in the faith felt like he should do something else. And I thought to myself, I'm not sure that's right. I've worked a bit with the Lord, but I'm not sure. Chances again are that he doesn't have all the full details and whatever it is. But I'm not sure that's right. So I thought deeply about it. And I said to myself, I said, first things first, what is asking him to do? Is it against God? Is it against God's will? Is it a sin? No, it's not a sin. Let's settle that. It's not a sin. So I said to him, I said, my opinion in this matter does not count. He said, I want to know what you're thinking. No, my opinion does not count. I said, what did he tell you to do? Do it. He said, but, but, I said, do it. I said, God will honor the fact that you honored his servant. Do it. Because people are what? Places. Let me tell you, many of the sicknesses we have in the world today. It's not Satan. It's displacement. Many of the sicknesses, I'll show you from scriptures. Many of the sicknesses we have in the world today, many of the problems that we have in the world today, is not Satan. It's displacement. People displaced from the right environment, displaced from the right role, offices that they're meant to stand in, displaced from the right relationships. Ken Higgins said one time, he fell down and then he dislocated his shoulder. I mean, his elbow. I believe. And maybe chipped a few bones and all the rest. And he was in so much pain. So he went to the hospital. He said, as they were driving in the car, he heard the audible voice of God's spirit saying to him, well, this is not going to be as bad as you think it is. It's just a dislocation and all the rest. A little fractured dislocation. And my glory will be manifest through this. So by the time he got there and they did the x-ray and everything, it was exactly what the Lord had said to him. But he was in the hospital. And he said, wonderful. Those days, he was seated on his bed, just seated in the hospital room. And then a man with white, somebody with white walks into the hospital. Walks into the hospital and then says, he thought he was the nurse. Finally, the Lord Jesus had walked into his room, his hospital room, and then sat down on the bed or the chair, whatever it is, and began to speak to him. And the first thing he said to him is this. He said, well, did it turn out to be exactly what I told you about the fractured dislocation? He said, yes. He said, I believe. He said, I believed you, so I was never worried about it. And he said, the Lord commended him for always believing his word. He said, however, he said, this has happened to you because you stepped out of my will. You were not in my perfect will. You were my permissive will. And he said, I allowed it to happen so as to get your attention. I had spoken to you three times about it, but you never made any adjustment about it. And guess what it was? He had attended a minister's convention. This was 1959. And he said to them, I am a teacher and a prophet. Putting the emphasis on teaching for two reasons. Number one, the teachers were the ones in vogue, accepted by the people. The prophets had a bad rap. Number two was the fact that everyone around him was always hailing his teaching ministry. And because the prophets had a bad rap, he shrunk back from it. And the Lord said to him, he said, you have put the emphasis in the wrong place. He said, you are first a prophet before a teacher. Please note, teacher and prophet, prophet and teacher. I didn't know the same. But having put the emphasis in the wrong place, he said, you have opened up the door for Satan to have access into your life. So sometimes when people are talking about prayer points, they don't realize, they have no idea that the issue is never Satan many a times. Because when you are in your place, it's difficult to reach you. Oh, it's difficult. It is very difficult for the devil to reach you when you are in your place. It's very difficult. Glory to God. Are you still here? We have to understand the importance of what places, the importance of places. Well, if you are to list it, I already told you its environment, its roles, and its relationships. But if you are to list it and just clarify that, obviously the first place. Everybody. Believer sits in, stands in, we're in Christ. That's the first place. We all are in Christ. Glory to God. That's basic. That's generic. But that's important as well. Say, I'm in Christ. Jesus said, I go to prepare a place for you. Many people have said Jesus went to build mansion for them as though he's a bricklayer. He's going to build mansion. He's going to build twin duplex. And somebody says, well, you know, my house is getting bigger and all the rest. And it's fine. I truly understand all of that. the bias that we generally have, okay, but that's not what Jesus actually meant. If you study it fully by itself, he says, I go to prepare a place for you. What place is he talking about? A place in God. A place in God. Are you following what I'm saying? So when a man gets saved, the Bible tells us that he's in Christ. That's the first thing. You see, but after you are in Christ, the next thing God does for you is that he places you in a community of faith called the church. He places you in a church. This is so important. He places you in a church, and I've seen a lot of people say to folks, you know, I'm fine by myself. I can do church by myself. I'm okay by myself, but God actually has a part to play in where you attend church. Oh, yes. He does. Everybody, please look at me. I hope you know that words shape destiny. Can I say that again? Words shape destiny, and that the words that you consistently expose yourself to are not taking permission from you to shape your destiny. They are shaping your destiny. They don't take permission from you. They simply shape your destiny. Well, let me explain to you this way. How many people do theologians tell us came out of, of Egypt on the way to Canaan? The Bible tells us about 3 million of them. Am I right? Theologians will tell you it was a crowd of about 3 million. How many spies were sent into the land to go study the land, check out the land? Twelve. How many of them came back with a good report? Two. How many came back with a bad report? Ten. Now, do you realize that the destiny of that entire 3 million people was dependent on what 10 people had to say? That God didn't give each person in Israel the privilege to go and check the land and decide for themselves if they can take the land? No. That what would have been right and logical was that God should have given everybody the opportunity. And then on the basis of if you say you can't take it, then you don't take it. The one who says I can take it, then take it. But we see the order and the structure of God, that God will put leadership in front, ahead of these people, and the message of this man determines the destiny of the people. So you can't wake up and say, well, the church is close to my house. No, no. The church close to your house may be leading you far from destiny. Not every anointed person is sent to you. No, no. The Bible tells us that Jesus, it says there were many widows in Zarephath. It says, but Jesus, Elijah, Jesus was speaking. He says, Elijah was sent to one widow, not every widow. Why one widow? If it's about being widows, then there were several widows there. But how come it was one person to whom Elijah was sent? It's the love being sent, that God sends people to you. There are places designed for you. Is somebody following what I'm saying here? Thank you, Holy Spirit. This is important. And that's why when I see believers who consume everything in the name of God, I see them as the ones who are sent. I see them as the ones who are of its spiritual, its revelation. They lack understanding of these things. They do. They do. They do. Because you see, a lot of things can bless you, but not everything takes you home. A lot of things can bless you. A lot of things can edify you. A lot of things can increase your spiritual vocabulary, but not everything takes you home. There are places that are sent to you and that you are sent to. Glory to God. Are we still here? Amen. Remember God. He said, take the blood of the lamb, put it on the doorpost. Whoever is within the house shall be saved. Whoever is in the right place shall be saved. Imagine that an Israelite went out and said, well, I'm an Israelite, I'm a Jew. Then the angel of death should pass over. The angel of death would have killed him, even though he was an Israelite. Why? Because the Jew has a place. When he's out of his place, the angel of death has a power over him. It wasn't enough to say that I was a Jew. I'm a Jew, I'm an Israelite, so this should not happen to me. He had to be in the right place, under the right covering. If he was not there, then he was going to partake of exactly what the Egyptians were partaking of. I have a place. And Satan's biggest agenda is to what? Displace people. So number one is what in Christ, am I right? What is number two? Your local church. That's number two. Your local assembly. Number three is your call and your office. Your call and your office. Number four is your location. That's your geography. Your location. Your headquarters cannot be everywhere. No. That company's headquarters cannot be everywhere. There is, listen, every stream has a source. There has to be the, it has to be in the right place. Glory to God. And then number five is what? Your associations. So you see all of that concept of environments, rules, and relationships there. The Bible tells us in 2 Chronicles 26, the King Uzziah, if you remember Uzziah, who wanted to be a priest by all means, and then went in to offer the sacrifices. While he was off trying to offer the sacrifices, the Bible says he became leprous in his forehead. A king became leprous in his forehead because he was intruding into an office that he did not have. Willem Braham, that great prophet of God. I mean, I'm not sure I've seen any prophetic ministry as strong as Willem Braham's prophetic ministry. Very accurate, amazing prophet of God. But he wasn't satisfied with it. He wanted to teach, I think it was F.F. Bosworth or who was it now? Or Gordon Lindsay who was always with him. Gordon Lindsay would teach the morning meetings, and then he just is prophetic and stuffs and all the rest. You know, and that's the thing with the body of Christ. It's the thing with the body of Christ. They're going to push you into what you are not called to do. So a man is called to just, I mean, stand in that office, pray for people, get them healed, miracles and all the rest, and then they say he should start teaching. What if the office is not there? What if the grace is not there? What if the anointing is not there? What if it's not there? And then the man starts teaching, and like Willem Braham, he says that woman is the seed of the serpent. Now, the same church will say that he's gone into error and heresy. Be content with your place. Did you hear what I said? Stay in your place. You're most glorious and most beautiful in your place. Be content in your place. Hallelujah. Glory to God. I wish you together today. Now, write this down in your notes. Prepared people and prepared places. Say with me, God has prepared people for me, and they are prepared places for me. Say it again. God has prepared people for me, and they are prepared places for me. 1 Kings 17. Let's explore that scripture, a place called there. Let's look at prepared places, places that God has prepared. 1 Kings 17 from verse 1. Lovely scripture, and I want to just show you a couple of things there. All right, can we read together? What does it say? Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, as the Lord God of Israel liveth before whom I stand, there shall not be what dew nor rain this years, but according to my word. Can we read verse 2 together? Verse 2, one to go. What does it say? And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, good. Verse 3, get thee hence. And thirdly, his word. And please stop there for a minute. Hide. I want you to observe what the first thing God says to him. Hide yourself there. Prophets, go and hide. Have you read about the angel appearing to Jesus' foster father? What do we call him now? And then he says, take the child and go and hide. Run. They went to hide Jesus. It's not every battle you fight. A gentleman called me recently, and then he said to me, he said, you know, well, they bought this property, and then they began to fight them, and all this, and all this. And he really wanted to fight. I could hear it in his voice, and all the rest. And the more he spoke to me, he said, the Lord told him, or better still, he said, he began to say that don't make any decision until you speak with Pastor Ayo. So he called me. And the more he spoke to me, the more he spoke to me. And the more he spoke to me, the more I knew he wasn't supposed to fight. So I said to him, I said, what if I tell you to give it up? He said, with all the money that has been spent, wouldn't it look like I'm a coward? Wouldn't it look like I'm afraid? I said, your problem is that you don't want to look like a coward. You don't want to look afraid. But are you willing to obey God? He said, oh, yes. And sometimes obeying God looks like being like a coward. We put up a structure that cost us about 60, 70 million at that time in Abuja. And we used it for one meeting. We had a three-day or four-day conference, and we did the meeting there. We had one Sunday service. that I was not even there, so I never preached a Sunday service in this auditorium. Now, to put it in context, this was built in six weeks. I just came to church and I said, it's time to build. I just knew it was time to build.
Speaker 3It was rebuilt. I said, it's time to build.
Speaker 2In six weeks, we found the land. In six weeks, we set up the tent. In six weeks, we filled the whole place with whatever it is, and all the rest. And we had a conference in the place in six weeks. I had heard God, so I knew what was going to happen. But guess what? Guess what? I was there. Not that they told me. I was there.
Speaker 3When the cameras, because I was inside the auditorium. I was looking at them. And right while I was
Speaker 2inside, they sealed it. They sealed me inside. They sealed me inside the place. So I picked my phone. And I just, I was praying. I was so angry. I just picked my phone. I called one of the fathers. I said, look at what just happened. He said, just give me a second. I'm going to call the villa now. Blah, blah, blah, blah. I said he was going to call the villa now. You know when God is saying, hmm, I've heard. Well, cut long story short, he didn't call villa, didn't call me. And that's the end of the story. Didn't hear anything again from him. So I went to Lord in prayer. We began to press all the buttons possible to press. We had gotten people, myself, I had gotten people in the villa. We're going to press on this. And one day, one of our guys who works in the ministry department that manages that, he said the name of this church is the number one name in our entire ministry, whatever it is. Petra, Petra, Petra, Petra, Petra. I said, yes! Because what had happened was that the chiefs, and I don't want to mention the parastatals of governments and all the rest, directly opposite us, they were living there. One beside us, the cousin of the FCT minister at the time, was living just behind. And so it was actually, it was Islamic, whatever it is, against the church. And they insisted. So I was more angry because I said, I'm going to fight this thing to Taneo. So one day I was. And I was there and I was praying. And again, I was angry because the money was plenty at the time. Okay. I was praying. And then I began to hear the Lord say to me, he says, Isaac dug another well. I said, no, no, no, no, no. Isaac is not digging no well again. This well. And the more I prayed, do you remember I told you? The more I prayed, Isaac dug another well. Isaac dug another well. And the Lord said to me. He said, there is a place called Rehoboth. He says, there is a place called Rehoboth. If you insist on this, you will have it. But it will not be Rehoboth. Are you following what I'm saying here? So my question is, why did you let, why did you say I should go and build? Why did you let me spend all the money that you asked me to spend? Why did I invest all the money that was invested? I wish I could tell you. I know why. And that's what it means to walk with the Lord. You will never always have your why answered. And you must be okay with it. You'll never always have your why answered. I'm standing here. I still don't know why. When we get to heaven, there are a lot of issues I want to discuss with him. There are plenty. I mean, I know many of you want to get to heaven and hug him and kiss him. No, no, no, no, no. We have a lot of things. Let's talk, Jesus. And you know, I've been singing worship for you all my life. So. Let's talk, Jesus. But the Lord said to me, he said, there's a place called Rehoboth. Guess what? This was a day before 31st December. And we needed a venue for 31st night. All the brethren were waiting for us to announce where we were. They didn't even know we were locked up. Okay. So they were waiting for us to announce where we will use. Well, I think they knew by this time. Because I think, I'm not even sure what it is. So they're waiting for us. Pastor Noel now in Accra. He calls me, he says, he says, I found a venue. It's just three minutes drive from the old place. Just about five minutes walk and all the rest. I said, okay. So when I went to see it, I wanted to beat him. Oh, oh, I wanted to beat Pastor Noel. He's listening now. He's listening. It is the most run down place I have ever been in my life. I thought he disrespected me. I thought he was a dishonorable. I was, I said, you brought me to this Zanga. I don't know if anybody here has, there's a video that was circulating recently of one of our meetings in that place. I couldn't believe that that's where we were. I think Pastor Noel should have, if the media guys can get it and they'll show you what it looked like. That's where we went to. I entered the place and I felt like I had failed in ministry. That's actually how I felt. Humanly. Like, so this is the end of everything. This is where we have come to. That everywhere was in such a mess. We were having service that day. You, you, one of your first times was in that place. And the way they sweated like chicken and turkey. They were not sweating, they sweat. Look at his wife. Look at his wife shaking her head. Because she was sure she was never going to come back to this church. That's how. That's how terrible. Coming from your own place already set up. But every time I went into the place. This is Rehoboth. I say Rehoboth, that is hot. Rehoboth, that is this. Within two years, the church had, how many percent increase? It was, when you say, it was a mega expansion. Look at what it looked like. I wish you had it better. That's cheating. The same cheating in Nkeja Church. See them jumping everywhere. I wish they would show you everywhere. BME was playing. Same BME. I'm telling you. And I looked at the place. I mean, they should get you the better one. The other one. I looked at the place. And every time I get into the place, I'm preaching. The Lord says, this is Rehoboth. I could not imagine how this would be Rehoboth. You see, but there's a place that is designed for your assignments. There's a place. It was in that same place that we planted four other churches. It was from that place we planted the London church, the UK church. It was from that same place. Same place that I call the jungle. Same place. Same place. I'll stand there. I'd be sweating like chicken. And as I was angry with everything that was going on, I'll hear Rehoboth. Rehoboth. It's Rehoboth. Well, the good thing is that God does not test you twice. I've passed my test. It's your turn for your test. Glory to God. Now, not. Maybe next week I'm going to play a couple of videos. There are videos I want to play for you. So don't put yourself under pressure. Social media is a. This social media thing is deceiving a lot of you. There's a journey for you. God has designed a path for you. And your job is to simply follow the cloud. Follow the cloud. Follow the cloud. Glory to God. Now, not all places are equal in God's plan for your life. Not all places are equal in God's plan for your life. There is a right place where your grace is to be maximized. Go back to that 1 Kings 17 verse 2. 1 Kings 17. Verse 2. This will interest you. When the Lord began to speak and he said, it's time to get back to Lagos. Well, I didn't want to come to Lagos. Who wants to live in Lagos? Who wants to come to Lagos? Never wanted to. I had. I mean, I said no, Lord. I never said no, Lord. Never would say no, Lord. But if I had my way, just like Jesus, not my will but thine, Lord. And so. And I've shared this with you before. You see, because you have to understand the dealings of God in your life. And this is not formula one plus one. It's a walk with God. We finished the conversation. The convention. Powerful meeting and all the rest. Prophecies had gone ahead. And I remember I would tell my wife, the cloud has lifted. I can't sense it anymore. What's going on? So we went to redemption camp to pray. And just even at the bit, I would be. And I think I've shared this with you before. I'd be in my office in Abuja at the time. And I would see kidnappers kidnapping my entire family. I would see accidents happening. And I knew I wasn't afraid. I'm not a fearful person. So I knew something was wrong. I said, let's go to. Redemption camp to pray. She'd remember the first night. I had gone on a prayer walk. And the Lord said, what are you doing here? And then the Lord began to speak to me about the things that he needed done on and on, on and on and on. Guess what? Even in Lagos, the fact that he sent me to Lagos, there is a place in Lagos where I was meant to be. My immediate response was that, well, we have something in Keja. I don't even like Leki or whatever it is. I'm not interested in coming here. Didn't I tell you we're coming here? Yes. told him since you are coming here because you you are going to be sorting yourself out i'm not interested in this what what what do i want to do with lucky it's bad enough i didn't want to come to lagos now he's saying whatever it is and i remember please sit down i remember i was driving i had this was second or third week i was in lagos i was driving and i came into the the place and the lord said set up the tabernacle of congregation here and the land shall be subdued before you i remember it was the second or third week is the set up the tabernacle of congregation here let me be very sincere week can i be very truthful with you i said lord i set it up already that was my i mean i was in a car somebody was driving me and he looked at me because he was wondering who i was talking to because the lord was speaking to me and i said i've set it up already you can imagine you're driving somebody and he said i've set it up already glory to god there is a god there is a place tell the person beside you there is a place first king 17 go back there go back there i want you to see this go back there it says the word of lord came unto him saying look at verse 3 can we read that together want to go get the ends and thorn his word and hide yourself by the brook chariot it was specific not just any brook but the brook chariot that is before jordan next verse verse 4 and it shall be that thou shalt drink of the brook and i have commanded the ravens to feed d where are the ravens going to feed you there not that the ravens will feed you they are going to feed you where there let me ask you a question whether he was there or not where the ravens commanded yes so is it possible for him to go with lack and need is it possible for him to wonder what's going on in my life is it possible your prayers have been answered but you're not in the right place is it possible is it possible is it possible he says for i have commanded the ravens to what feed thee there it's not enough that the ravens will feed you but there's a location they are coming to they won't come to where you like they will come to where i've set you glory to god now follow the thought here look at the next thing he says verse 5 quickly verse 5 so he went and did according unto the word of the lord now here is god's big prophet who had spoken to ahab where was he living now he wasn't just living he was hiding away by a brook not a river a brook are you following what i'm saying here and guess how this great man of god was eating he will wait and sit down by the brook and ravens will come and put food down he'll say thank you for the ration today eat the ration and then you tell them listen i'm not fasting today afternoon food yes because they had to work with his schedule after a while he found out that he was adding a bit weight he said no no no let's put some more carbs so they get him carbs it's amazing and then he would drink the water of the brook chariot but look at what happens next verse 6 verse 6 quickly he says so he went verse 6 and the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning and bread and flesh in the evening and he drank of what the brook the next verse verse 7 quickly and it came to pass after a while that the brook what dried up the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land who cost it for it to be no rain he was the one that cursed it he was on that prophesied it now the brook dried up i like that he drank the brook dry because he was the only one drinking the brook it's amazing that nobody had water and a man had an entire brook to himself an entire brook listen tell the person beside you there's a place called there there's a place listen to me when you find there your struggles end i mean it will look as though you're using magic that's i mean it will look everybody says there's no water you say i have a brook to myself because you're there look at what he says he says because there hadn't been no rain in the land next verse verse 8 quickly and the word of the lord came unto him saying next verse arise get thee to where zarephath there is the brook chariot and there is what zarephath which belongeth to zidon and dwell there do you see how god's plan for your life is location specific you can read through the bible without seeing god's emphasis on locations sir abraham the father of faith was the first instruction get thee out get out of a place to a place i will show you which means what we call the journey of faith is simply finding there that's it that's what we call the journey of faith is finding there by time finding there by time finding there glory to god are you still here look at what he says behold i have commanded a widow woman dare to what sustain thee i have commanded a with a woman there and i felt like i want you to see the the fact that the environments that god sent him to didn't look like it are you following what i'm saying the environments that god sent him to look like i mean first a brook ravens birds feeding you makes no sense but as long as you're there it doesn't have to make sense that there is there are you following what i'm saying here then he says i have commanded a widow woman widow woman where do how will she sustain me a widow woman to feed you and look at the conditions look at the circumstances pardon me look at verse 10 look at what happens next it says 17 verse 10 so he arose went to zarephath and when he came to the gate of the city behold the widow woman was there gathering of sticks and he called to her and said fetch me i pray the little water in a vessel that i may drink next verse quickly look at what happens here and she was going to fetch it he called to her and said hmm bring me i pray the muscle of bread in thine hand next verse quickly this is important i want to show you something very very important here you will never have to put pressure on prepared people never if you have to call it second time then they are not for you never lose your dignity in the pursuit of vision never never i want you to see the conditions here she was a widow woman she had absolutely you know many of you you you have sent messages seven times they haven't replied don't you have dignity you say i'm just checking on you now you were just very strong on my heart you you and your phone know your line there yeah they were not strong on your heart you were the one that was strong on your heart look at what happens here he says as the lord the woman said as the lord thy god leave it i have not a cake but a handful of meal in a barrel a little oil in a cruise and behold i'm gathering two sticks maybe what you all do not know is that she did not know he was a prophet you see because when you read it with the bias that she was talking to a prophet then you think she responded because he was a prophet no she didn't know nobody knew elijah as a prophet in time at the time save ahab are you following what i'm saying do you know that's part of the reasons why they couldn't find him i hope you know in all this period they were looking for him oh i hope you know that all this while he was drinking water and eating with your children that the military of the nation was actually on the lookout for him so much so that when he met obadiah and told obadiah that listen rain will come that's the chief of staff but i said listen i cannot go tell ahab you i will tell him you are in petra place now and by the time he comes you would have been translocated to som abuja no i'm not doing that and then my life is on the line elijah had to vow the spirit will not move me don't worry even when the office up there wait now don't kill obadiah glory to god so she wasn't responding because she was a prophet she was simply responding because she was commanded oh boy look at what he says he says a little oil in a cruise because behold i'm gathering two sticks i may go in and dress it for me and my son that we may eat and live enough reason not to answer but when they are commanded they don't know why they're answering let me even tell you makes no sense that she's given an explanation to this foolish man i'm telling you remove that he's a prophet all of us are hungry are telling me to you you just came you are standing by the city gate go and give me water who are you who you mean then okay i'm going i'm going to get water then you now come and you say come back come come come i want to say how ridiculous it is because many times many of you are thinking that oh man of god woman give me water no this was in her mind to anybody this was a madman i mean how do you just come out from nowhere all of us are suffering all of us are suffering you now see we should give one billion one billion don't put your mouth in what does not concern you don't put your mouth in what does not concern you you you will carry because you have Twitter they you see many people have Twitter they were destined you are just tweeting your destiny your life your generations on top matters what comes like you have not finished sorting out your own life you have rent you have no pit well what were we talking about look at what it says hmm I have not a cake but a handful of meal in a barrel and a little oil in a cruise and behold I'm gathering two sticks that I may go in and dress it for me and my son that we may eat it and what die and Elijah said unto her fear not go and do as thou has said however I'm very hungry right now but make me defer off a little cake fest let me tell you something if they wrote the Bible or the Bible plays out in our day if the Bible plays they will counsel you notice Jesus I love say I love you Jesus if you if it if Jesus were alive today what Pharisees and Sadducees did did will become nothing compared to 90 sees give you an example one day they were having service Jesus was standing where they were giving offering was he doing day but tell me what was he doing look inside offering up basket my answer bless my sure how do I know he said that I know I know because a woman came and gave a widow's might he stopped the entire team listen all of you rich people nonsense boys I've been looking at all of you looking at all of you God has been blessing you you're bringing chicken chicken chicken this woman has given everything how did he know why are you looking inside offering baskets I want to start practicing it. As all of you are giving offerings, show me your phone. Show me your pass. Jesus is Lord. We will try and fast fast. Glory to God. Are you still here tonight? But when the people are prepared, even when the conditions don't seem right, you won't have to beg. You won't have to push. You won't have to press. They are under what commandment? People are places. People are places. People are places. Glory to God. Well, we know the rest of the story. We know that she made for the prophet, the prophet Et. She made for the prophet, the prophet Et. She made for herself, she ate, and she didn't die. Can we say amen? Glory to God. But it's important to note as well, Elijah's flexibility to follow the leading of God's spirit. That when Abuja was done, Lagos is next. Then that's fine. That's what it is. That's what it is. The brook is dried up. You don't build a monument around it. Go to Zarephath. Zarephath. Because that's where the instruction is. That's where the instruction is now. Glory to God. Hallelujah. Well, it's important as well to quickly talk about the associations, persons, relationships, and all the rest. And there's a beautiful story in scriptures that, I just today I want to tell you stories. What I'm trying to paint is to paint the picture to you that this is actually an emphasis in the Bible, more than we know of. It's an emphasis in the Bible. Much, much more than we know of. I've shared this story with us several times from a different standpoint. But it's worth mentioning again. Paul had just finished preaching the crusade. And then he felt in his heart to go in a certain region to preach the gospel. You've heard me share it before. The first time the Lord said, don't go. But the second or third time, the Bible says, the Holy Spirit forbade him from going. Do you know what it means to forbid? Has your father ever forbidden you before? I forbid you. Am I trying to sin? I want to preach. You are forbidding me. He wanted to preach, but the Holy Ghost forbade him from going there. Well, we don't know what would have happened there if he had gone. And would have said, how can a big man of God, how can something just happen to him like that? Because there is a place where grace covers you. Oh, it's important. Oh, it's important. It's important. I understand the pride and the confidence of new creation. I can do anything. I can go anywhere. So in the dream of the night, he had a vision. A man of Macedonia screaming to him, come help us, come help us, come help us. And then he said, we are surely gathering that the Lord would have us go into the regions of Achaia. So he went to Achaia. Well, they got there and there was a woman they met for the first time. You remember they were, this prayer meeting. It's been a while since women have been praying. So while women were praying at the water site, Paul joined them. And he was a guest minister. Enjoyed what was going on there. Well, a girl filled with a demon spirit, who by soothsaying brought profit to her masters, had come to Paul and began to say things and all the rest. Paul, very uncomfortable with it, cast out the devil from the girl. The issue was not her deliverance. The issue was that the money was gone now. So they were very angry and persecution started. Cut long story short, they threw them into prison, into jail, with stockings on their hands and on their legs, the Bible says, haven't beaten them well, well. But this is the Holy Ghost that led them here. Am I right? The Holy Ghost forbid them from going to these other place. And the place that he led them to, what was awaiting them there? Flogging, beating, jail. They were in blood, bruised everywhere, but they were in the place. They were where? In the place. With blood? In the place. With chains? In the place. In stockings of chain, of iron and metal? In the place. At midnight, they prayed and they sang. The Bible tells us that an angel was sent. Earthquake happened. They were delivered. And finally, he found out that the man he saw of Macedonia in his dream was actually the jailer man. The jailer said, you can come into my house. He says, I mean, they said to him, don't kill yourself. We're here. We're hidden here. He says, you can come into my house. And then they planted the church in his house. But I'm sure they were saw everywhere. If they are like you and I, I'm sure they must have had questions. If the Lord said this is the place, how come? How come all of this happened? How come we had to go through all of this? It'll be years after that Paul, in retrospect, will be able to say to the Philippian church that no other church communicated and supported me in giving and receiving. No other church. No other church. He says, everything that has happened with this ministry came out of you people. That was the only church he didn't correct in anything in the epistle he wrote to them. In fact, theologians will tell you that the book of Philippians is the perfect epistle. He wasn't correcting anything. There were no church problems that he was. You know, Corinthian was not an. One minute, one minute he's trying to write a rev, then he just remembers, oh, God. Oh, these people. One minute he's receiving revelation from God and he has to deal with real issues. Amazing. It was such an amazing thing. Galatian church, Gnosticism had destroyed them. I mean, all of them he was reacting to something. But the Philippian church, how did he start it out? He says, I thank my God always at every remembrance of you. Once he remembered them, he would start dancing. He would start dancing. He was so full of God. He was so full of joy remembering them. How would he have known? How could he have plotted the graph that this was the church that was going to support his second missionary journey? How could he have known? Say to your neighbor, there is a place called there. Hallelujah. Well, the Bible tells us of another story and it's a play between a man and a woman. Who had two sons. The man being Elimelech, if you remember him. And the woman being who? Nahomi. And they went into the town. They left Bethlehem and went, you know, because there was famine in Israel at the time. And well, they had two children, Malon and Chilon, if you remember. Who took wives of the land. Ruth and Ophrah. Well, for whatever reason we don't know, tragedy hits the family. The man died. The two sons died. And the woman was left with her daughter-in-laws. But she heard, she heard, she heard that God had visited Israel again and given them bread. Called her two daughter-in-laws and said to them, said, well, listen. I think you guys make up your mind. I'm going back. What do you want? Oprah said, I'm fine, I'm fine here. Thank you. We've had a rule. God bless you. I'll see you. Peace out. It was fun while it lasted. Peace out, man. But Ruth said, wherever you go, I'm going to. She said, I don't have seed in my loins to give to you. She said, your people are my people. Your God is my God. Wherever you go to, I'm going with you. Well, cut long story short, that singular decision planted her in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Just to be connected with one right person. And to be at the right place. And by that singular decision, we forget completely anything about Oprah. And now the story is about Ruth. And that God will break as it were his principles to engraft a Gentile into the lineage of Christ. Because she was not a Jew. But she was with the right person. And she was in the right place. Please sit down. Well, there were two boats that were at sea. One of them had a man called Jonah. Another had a man called Jesus. Different results. Because of who was in the boat. The Bible says that as they went on their journey, talking about Jonah, a storm came. All the captains and the mariners did everything that they knew to do. Now, if you study it very well, the people on that boat are most likely Igbos. They were commercial traders. The Bible says they had wares, goods. They were, in fact, if you know that trade. It was a trade route. So, it was a cargo ship. It's not passenger ship. It was a cargo ship. That's why the Bible says they kept throwing out all of their wares. You can imagine you had gone to buy iron rod from Odeoniri. You have put it on it. You, you have gone to buy, what is it? Children's clothes from China. Put it on it. You, you have gone to buy okrika. Bags of okrika on it. Spent all your capital. And the reason your business failed. The reason the income of an entire family was wiped out was that a wrong man was on the boat. That's the only reason. You didn't do anything wrong. You did everything right. You just didn't discern that there's an association around you that should not be permitted. No. Is somebody following what I'm saying? Yet, there was another time. Storms came against the boats. But they had somebody inside. They said, carest thou not that we perish? He stood up from his sleep, cleaned his eyes. He looked at the winds and the waves. Winds be still. Waves be still. And these people were delivered. The difference was not their fate. The difference was who they carried. The disciples didn't have more fate than those in the boat of Jonah. Both of them were faithless. Because Jesus said, O thou faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? Sometimes, relationship is your saving grace. Sometimes. And sometimes, that's what sinks you. That's what sinks you. People are places. You see, because sometimes when believers are not well thought, we think everything is theology and doctrine. So somebody comes and says, look, I don't have faith. And he says, let me give you the seven steps of pistis of faith. You know all the seven steps of faith, but you have carried a wrong person. Have you forgotten that as long as the Lord was in connection with Abraham, he was covered? That the day and time where he decided that I'm a man of my own, and he left, created new associations. What happened to him? It was the same Abraham, the same Abraham, the same Abraham that God used to bring deliverance to him. Abraham lost everything, everything, everything. Just like those people lost everything in their boats. They kept throwing everything out. Jonah told them, he said, listen, don't waste your time. Don't waste your time. Never be sentimental about Jonas. They kept saying, how, how can we carry a man and throw him inside water? So they left him. They kept throwing their rods, throwing everything away, every man crying to his God. He sat down there. He said, and that's the problem with Jonas, they are looking at you. They say, if I will sink you, they know, they know, they know, listen, Jonas are not in doubt. They know. They know. Jonah was looking at all of them. They were throwing, he said, continue. You better carry me. They said, no, no. How can we carry him? In matters of destiny, don't be sentimental. In matters of destiny, never be sentimental. Never be. Never be. Say with me, environments. Enviroments. Offices and roles. Offices and roles. Relationships. Relationships. Tell the person beside you, these things are important. Places. Places. A friend said something, well, a lady preacher preached it, my friend, re-echoed it, he said, places matter. Places matter. Hallelujah. God ordained relationships are places that God uses to maximize your grace. Now, it's important that you never trivialize them. You see, this is what the Lord said to me, he said, I am the one who puts grace. I am the one. I am the one who creates a recognition or a connection. You are the one who maximizes it. Which means God's Spirit can create a recognition or a con- let me ask you a question. Why are you here in church? No, tell me. Why are you here? Why are you here? Is it, what's the reason why you have come to church? Is this the only church that exists in this environment? Is this the finest church in the environment? No. Why are you here? There's a pool of your spirit. And what many people don't realize is this, is that when God's Spirit sets them, it is their job to set. That God's Spirit will set you in a place, but it's your job to what? Send your roots deep down and take advantage of what he has given you. He cannot do that for you. He can't do that for you. It's your job. It's your choice. Somebody says, ah, no, no, please sit down. Me, I just like, I just like, I just like, I just like, it's okay. It's okay. God will use men to train. God will use men to help you discover. He will use places to help you maximize. But all God can do is to connect you with those places. It is your choice, Lord, to stay. It's your choice. It's your choice. Glory to God. It is your choice. It is your choice. It is your choice. Glory to God. It is your choice. It's your choice. It's your choice. Glory to God. Well, I pray for you. That the Spirit of the Lord will grant you discernment. All right. There's a first thing I want to pray here. That the Lord God Almighty, by the ministry of His Holy Spirit, will grant you discernment. All right. That the Lord God Almighty, by the ministry of His Holy Spirit, will cause a severance with every place that He has not placed your grace. No matter how sentimental you are, God Himself will cause a severance. In the mighty name of the Lord Jesus, please everybody look at me. I hope you know, please listen carefully to what I want to say. It's a dangerous thing, but listen carefully to me. I hope you know that as God begins to bless you and God begins to increase you, you must never despise those that you left behind. You must never. But it's not compulsory you carry everybody along. Listen, this is the balance. Did you hear what I said now? That because people are naive and we want to be spiritual people and walk in love, we think that we have to carry everybody along. No. No. The downfall of many people is that they are carrying people who don't have the capacity for the place where God has brought them. They are carrying them into their world and into their space. And then they wonder why does this person, why come this person betrayed them? He's been my friend. He's been my friend. So I will give him a seat on the business. Some of you have seen something like that recently in the movie. Yeah. Oh, that's the mistake. No, you don't bring them into your inner circle. No, you don't save that. God. Listen, this is, this is how life works. The balance is. never in your heart despise anybody for whatever grace and growth that you have seen but it is not compulsory that everybody continues to journey with you 20 friends cannot play for 20 years are you following what i'm saying they can't play for 20 years i pray for you that in the name of the lord jesus christ god will grant you clarity discernments in the mighty name of the lord jesus every jona that has sunk your boat i decree and i declare that they will be expunged from your life now everybody look at me here when you refuse to leave the brook chariots and god has said go to zarephath whatever happens to you at chariots is your decision is your choice the reason for the cloud was not just direction it was guidance as well it was called a pillar of fire it was a cloud of of glory over the people and so the enemy nations could not penetrate israel if you step out from where the cloud is it is not just that you have misdirection is the fact that you are now upon to every same enemy that you are protected from are you listening to what i'm saying i'm praying for you today discernment by the spirit of god in the mighty name of the lord jesus the holy spirit will lead you by the hand and bring you into prepared places bring you to prepared people in the mighty name of the lord jesus pray the holy ghost for a minute pray in the holy ghost for a minute pray in the holy spirit for a minute pray in the holy ghost for a minute i want you to pray in the holy spirit for a minute thank you lord pray in the holy spirit for a minute pray in the holy spirit for a minute there are some of you here that need to repent about some things and you know that you need to repent there are decisions you were meant to have made and you have been sentimental about it some it's out of fear and some it's out of i'm comfortable with this i mean why do i move myself into a place of discomfort Thanks for watching!
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