There is an old story of two farmers in the middle of a
drought. They begin to pray for
rain. One farmer sits and waits for God
to move, the other farmer prepares his fields for rain!
I believe the second farmer understands something about our
part in seeing a miracle. We all want
and need God to move in our circumstances.
We all have times in our lives where we need a move of God to change our
circumstances. So, what do we do? Do we sit and wait on God or do we prepare
for those things to take place?
Jeremiah 29:10-11 (NKJV)
29:10 For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Here’s how the Message translation puts it:
Jeremiah 29:10-11 (MSG)
29:10 This is God's Word on the subject: "As soon as Babylon's seventy years are up and not a day before, I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. 11 I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.
The Power of Faith
The first thing we need to understand is what faith looks
like! All of us that are Christians say,
“I have faith in Jesus!” Faith in Jesus
is the definition of Christian! We’re
not Christians if we don’t have faith in Jesus.
The question is do you really live out your faith?
Faith is expectation.
The farmer who goes out and prepares for the rain is the farmer who has
faith. He expects God to move in
response to his prayers so he acts as if the prayer has already been answered. Faith isn’t about believing; faith is about
acting!
Faith is making plans for the future. You have faith that today won’t be the last
day of your life. How do I know
that? Because we all make plans for the
future.
"When I graduate, I’m going to… "
"When the baby is born, we’ll name
him/her… "
"On my vacation, I’m going to…"
I’m pretty sure that most people aren’t saying, “I don’t
have plans, because I may die tonight!”
No one is saying, “We’ll just see if tomorrow comes and do
whatever!” Before any of my leadership
ever decided that I would be coming to Taiwan, I had already begun to visualize
what would be necessary to get here, and what I wanted to do once I got
here! I was pushing myself into my
purpose.
As you begin to push yourself into your purpose, the power
of God will come upon you and enable you to do what God has called you to do.
I want to look at Noah for a moment:
Hebrews 11:7 (NKJV)
11:7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
We all know the story of Noah and the flood. The world had devolved into wickedness. People were doing all sorts of evil
things. God got fed up with people and
decided to judge the world with a flood.
How many of you reading this have heard from God? Did you hear a big, loud voice calling you,
or did it seem as if a thought came to you?
When you heard that still, small voice did you say, “Oh, God is calling
to me.”
So, God spoke to Moses in that same way that he speaks to
us. He has called Moses through that
still, small voice to build an ark. Let
me tell you something, when this happened it had never rained before. No one had had any experience with floods,
but Moses began, by faith to build an ark and saved his family. Moses took action on God’s plan and God
helped him to build an ark. He’d never
built a boat before, but it worked out, because God enabled him to do that!
I’ve witnessed the power of God to heal people, as soon as
they took steps toward their purposes and began to do what God had called them
to do. Don’t leave this step of faith
out. Make plans. Set Goals for your future. Let God enable you. Let God equip you for victory!
Think about what you would do if those circumstances were
miraculously changed. What would you do
if your finances got better? What would
you do if you were healed from some debilitating disease? What plans would you make if you thought you
had a chance? Think about it, take a
paper and write it down. Hang it on the
refrigerator and begin to make plans as if God had already done it.
Faith is living like you know that God will move. God moves in the unseen. Even though you don’t see any evidence of God
moving doesn’t mean He isn’t. Are you
planning for your future as if God is already answering your prayers? Are you living as if you know God will move?
Make God’s Will Your Will
When I was a young man, I had a very different plan for my
life. I was depressed at age 25, because
I wasn’t already a millionaire. I didn’t
have the success that I thought I deserved.
My career wasn’t working out as quickly as I had envisioned it would. I
hated myself at age 30, because I wasn’t married. All of that misery and depression was destroying
my life. Look at this scripture:
Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV)
16:9 A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.
You can’t do one without the other. I tried making plans for my life but I left
out the will of God. I didn’t even go to
God and ask, “What’s your plan?” Of
course, I wasn’t saved at the that time.
I didn’t know to do that, but I know now, that God’s will is essential
to seeing my plans come to fruition.
When I finally laid down my dream, my plans and took up God’s
will and plan for my life, I was transformed!
That’s when my life changed. That
was the key to the loss of misery and suffering.
I wasn’t trying to force my plan on God.
I began cooperating with His plan and then I found out that God’s plan –
God’s dream – was more satisfying that anything I could have imagined.
1 Corinthians 2:9 (NKJV)
2:9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him."
Are you open to God’s plan for your life? Are you willing to surrender your dream – to dream
God’s dream for you? Do you know the easiest way for your plans to happen? Listen to God, hear His plan and make his plan
your plan! Let God direct your steps to
breakthrough and victory!
In the Old Testament, there is the story of Jacob as he is
about to meet Esau, the one he ripped off and who had threatened to kill
him. He’s afraid. He knows Esau’s plan and Esau is coming with
400 men. Jacob’s plan was to take his
family home to his father’s house, but it looks to him like that’s all over
now!
Then a man comes to him and wrestles with him throughout the
night – That man is the Angel of the Lord, which is an Old Testament name for
Jesus. All night long they wrestle until
finally God throws Jacob’s hip out of joint.
Finally, Jacob surrenders and God is able to move. Jacob’s name is changed to Israel, and he
begins to live God’s plan for his life.
The promise of the Promised Land is completed through Jacob. Look at Ephesians 2:10:
Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)
2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
That scripture tells us that God had a plan for your life,
before you were even born! God has
prepared something for you. Something good
that’s beyond your imagination. Maybe,
it’s time to cooperate with God’s plan and move to victory!
God Honors Faith
Here’s the promise:
Philippians 1:6 (NKJV)
1:6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;
This verse tells us that what God has started in us He will
finish, but you need to know this one thing:
God doesn’t just have a plan for your life – You are the plan! Noah was God’s plan for continuing the human
race. Moses was God’s plan for
delivering Israel from bondage in Egypt.
Esther was God’s plan for rescuing the Jews from Haman. Jesus was the pan for our deliverance from
sin, and you are God’s plan for his purpose through you. By cooperating with God you will see victory!
Finally, God promises that if we seek first the Kingdom of
God, then the things we need will be added to us.
Matthew 6:33 (NKJV)
6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
God wants to change your circumstances! God wants to do a work in your life! Most of
all God wants you!
So, how do we live out our faith? We get ready for God to move in our lives. We pray and call upon God to move in our
lives but we forget to prepare for a move of God. That’s really what faith is, living our lives
like we know that God is already moving!
Prepare your field – THE RAIN IS COMING!
