Grace!

Grace pursue you! 

Don't let the pursuit stop because you don't want to partner with it. There's nothing worst than taking for granted the very thing that you no longer have access to. 

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:18

What's up, y'all? I was just talking with the Lord. My favorite thing to do, and I just want to invite y'all in on our conversation because I'm really starting to believe that people really don't have a true understanding of grace, or not necessarily grace, but how to use it. You see, the Bible says that grace pursues us daily. But how many of you guys pursue things that don't want you? And then you're left hurt, or you're left confused, or you're left in dismay, chasing something that doesn't want you. You see, very similarly, grace falls into the same um position, right? How do I know we don't walk in it? Because we fast, right? And as we begin to fast, we fast for things, but there's no change. You guys, or not you, but like people will say that, oh, God has the grace to sustain me through a fast, right? You dead did not eat for a while, but now God doesn't have the grace to sustain you through a test. And that just doesn't make sense to me. I remember I was having a conversation with a peer, so to speak, and we were on the panel discussion, and that specific peer was talking about anger. He said he fasted because he was angry. And then after the fast, he was tested, and he said that he was met with road rage and he still cussed the person out. So I asked that peer, I said, What changed from before the fast and after the fast? He said, Nothing. I guess I have to try again. I said, then you're just starving yourself. Because grace doesn't operate like that. The Bible says, count it all joy when you enter into various tests and trials or tests and temptations. It's in the book of James. And why do you count it joyful? Because this is your opportunity to shine against the enemy. This is your opportunity to shine against even yourself. This is your opportunity to rise to the occasion and prove your armor. For that specific situation, when it comes to road rage and cussing people out, the Bible says something along the lines that since you like the cuss, that becomes your garment. I don't think people really recognize the power of the tongue. What you speak is what you wear. It's not necessarily only life and death. Sometimes you have to walk in what you speak, which is why you'll hear people say, prophesy your way out of this. And I was really thinking, right? Because the power of grace is really life-changing. In Psalms 91, it says, He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. A couple of years ago, I realized that the secret place was a place of prayer. In prayer, you not only recognize who God is, you recognize who you are and how you need to change. You recognize how to move throughout life, you receive answers about concerns and situations that you have. You figure out things that the average person can't figure out. Why? Because the person you're praying to is omnipresent, all-knowing, all-sufficient. There's nothing that passed under the sun that God has not seen before. And also, if you go further down along the lines of Psalms 91, you'll find that the person that dwells in a secret place has the ability to tread upon lions, cobras, trample over the scorpions and the serpents to get over stumbling blocks. A lot of you question God and say, Well, why would God give me a stumbling block? Why would God put this blockage in my path? Why would He allow me to fall into this hole? It's not the fact that He allowed you to, He expected you to move differently. Because when you're connected to a higher power such as God Himself, a stumbling block shouldn't take you out. God has graced us to get over. He has graced us to get through, and grace pursues us, but we don't accept it.

SPEAKER_01 5:39

We step out of alignment, forfeiting our opportunity to grace.

SPEAKER_00 5:58

Because even in relationships, right, I've experienced relationships where I'm trying to do all these things right, trying to keep my partner happy, trying to please my partner. Wifey duty, best friend duty, whatever you can think of. Loving them the way that they want to be loved, not even the way that I'm gonna give it. But doing it because it's pleasing for them, and finding myself in heartache, finding the actions not being reciprocated, finding the loss in my pursuit. Can you imagine how grieved the Holy Spirit is that the Holy Spirit wants you to have a good life, but you have to have it?

SPEAKER_01 7:01

Can you believe how grieved Grace feels that it pursues something that doesn't want it?

SPEAKER_00 7:15

I don't know if you've ever experienced this, but when daddy goes to get milk and daddy doesn't come home.

SPEAKER_01 7:25

Daddy was stuck at the store for three days.

SPEAKER_00 7:30

You were waiting for daddy to come home. Your mind was pursuing the thought that daddy went to get you something and he was going to provide for you. Yet daddy didn't show up. God doesn't put us here to bring us down, he benefits nothing out of that. God literally only gets the glory when you allow grace to do its perfect work. The Bible says his grace is sufficient for the needs of his people. There's a need for you to put off the shoes that you wore before and walk in a sense of newness. Moses wasn't able to deliver Israel with the shoes he wore. God said, remove your shoes. There's too much on them. And then come into my presence. And it's like here we are forfeiting this move of grace, not recognizing that the grace isn't for us, it's for somebody else. Your obedience, your alignment, your need to accept the pursuit of grace is connected to somebody else's freedom. It's connected to somebody else's joy. It's connected to somebody else's breakthrough. I just did my book release, and I said that obedience is the prerequisite to trust. In order to trust God, it doesn't just come, right? You obey and he reveals. You obey and he reveals. And you obey and you reveals, and as he reveals, your faith grows. And as your faith grows, you trust more. But all I can say is get rooted. And once you get rooted, stay rooted. Don't become complacent, thinking that because you know who God is, that's enough. That's not enough. Israel knew who God was, and God still caused the ground to open up and swallow them. Satan knows who God is. And Satan is still condemned to hell. Knowing God is not enough. Accepting God, allowing God to do what he has planned to do in your life is what is pleasing to God. Jesus wants Jesus could have walked away. I truly believe that Jesus could have walked away. And it was first tested after his fast. Satan tempted him three times, offered him kingdoms. And Jesus still stayed true to who he said he was. I believe when he was on the mountain and he was praying, and he said, I'm about to be given over into the hands of the enemy, he could have left.

SPEAKER_01 11:12

But he didn't.

SPEAKER_00 11:14

He chose to stay and drink from the cup which was given unto him because he was graced for it. And I don't know about y'all, but if he could be graced to take on the sins of the whole world and walk away with the victory, why aren't you braced enough to stop cussing? Why aren't you braced enough to put down old habits that just harm you? Why aren't you braced enough to just treat people better than you want to be treated? God doesn't require much, it requires relationship. And the thing about grace, grace also gives you a relationship with God. It doesn't just give you room to grow, it doesn't give you the ability to get over, it gives you connection. For the Lord is your shepherd, and you shall not want. Why? Because grace does its perfect work. That's my talk with the Lord. So God be all the glory. As always, get rooted and branch out.