Going Beyond Ministries with Priscilla Shirer – A Place of Separation
Priscilla Shirer (born December 31, 1974) is an American author, motivational speaker, actress, and Christian evangelist. Her father is Dallas mega-church pastor Tony Evans and her brother is Christian entertainer Anthony Evans.
The daughter of Tony Evans, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Church in Dallas, Texas,[1] Priscilla grew up well acquainted with the Bible. As a freshman at the University of Houston, she interned with a Christian radio station. Soon listeners were calling the station, inviting Priscilla to speak at their Bible study groups and other events. Soon she was invited to lead a weekly Bible study at the Zig Ziglar Corporation and then to join its speaker team. Priscilla has worked as an independent contractor for CBS and hosted a local television show, but recently she has focused solely on Christian ministry opportunities. She calls Anne Graham Lotz, daughter of evangelist Rev. Billy Graham, her mentor in ministry.
Together the Shirers established Going Beyond Ministries, a speaking bureau featuring Priscilla. The parents of three young boys, the Shirers share ministry and family responsibilities. While Priscilla continues to minister full-time, Jerry manages his schedule and other business aspects of Going Beyond Ministries.
Priscilla speaks around the world at churches and other events, including the LifeWay Christian Resources-sponsored Going Beyond conference and Deeper Still: The Event, where she shares the stage with Beth Moore and Kay Arthur. She has also authored several books.
Shirer graduated from Duncanville High School and Dallas Theological Seminary, earning a master’s degree from the latter in Biblical Studies.
In 1993, Shirer was a freshman at the University of Houston. Shirer was married in 1999 to Jerry Shirer, former Hilton Hotels executive. The couple has three sons.
In 2013, Shirer was a speaker at the 2013 Women of Faith conference. In 2015, Shirer made her film debut in the Kendrick Brothers film War Room. In October 2016, Shirer was recognized as one of four prominent women of faith during the 10th anniversary of God’s Leading Ladies Life Enrichment Program at The Potter’s House.[1] Shirer also featured at the 47th GMA Dove Awards.
I am so glad to be here to have an
opportunity to share God’s word with you
I flew over with my friend Nicole who
works in ministry with us and my husband
Jerry and our three I was about to say
our three boys our three giant boys that
we have we’re here all weekend long and
we’re glad to be here as a family to
just serve you and to contribute in any
way we can I’m so grateful that the Lord
allows me to be a part of your evening
and to do what I love to do and medics
talk about the Word of God anybody love
the Word of God
I love the Word of God the Kajal it is
spirit and in his life my opinion as
great as I think it is it will not
change your life my ideas is great as
they may I may think that they are they
will not change your life but the Word
of God it’s what what really gets
embedded deeply into our souls and
changes us from the inside out
so I am sitting on the edge of my seat
tonight because I love a word from God
that’s what I came for I mean I’m glad
y’all here I came to see y’all too but I
didn’t really come to see y’all I came
to see me some Jesus anybody know what
I’m talking about I was thinking about
you as I am one of my boys was at church
recently one Sunday we were all there
together and my boys when they go to
church their godmother also goes to
church with us she has been a friend of
mine she’s 10 years older than me so she
was like a mentor of mine when I was
younger
really about 15 years older than me
meant when we were younger but now we’re
just like really close friends she’s my
boy’s godmother and so at church on
Sundays she has this habit stopping by
the donut store on the way in to church
and she will buy you know it doesn’t
glazed donuts or kolaches or a little
donut hole something and so whenever we
say on Sunday morning boys it’s time to
go to church they say all right let’s
see so I have to retrain them I’m trying
to train them to get them understand to
actually church isn’t a restaurant
that’s designed for something else but
the other day my boys and I were at
church 12 year old Jackson 10 year old
Jerry jr. and then our little surprise
one he’s six now but we still don’t know
how he got here and we named him Jude I
named him Jude on purpose because that’s
as close as I could get to revelation
because it is all done so I have Jackson
Jerry jr. and little dude and we’re at
church in Jude runs over to his
godmother she opens up that little white
box you know that those those donuts
come in and he grabs two of those little
Donuts and he takes those Donuts in his
hands and he’s looking at the juicy
wonderful Donuts that he cannot wait to
dive into now his brothers have already
run upstairs in the office in the church
building in the office they were running
ran upstairs and they kind of were we’re
not in the same vicinity as the box of
donuts and with Jude and his godmother
and so here’s godmother picking him Jude
I want you to take the box of doughnuts
ten Donuts I want you to take the box of
doughnuts so you and your brothers can
enjoy all of these Donuts so Judith
looking at these two Donuts in his hand
and he’s realizing that in order to grab
this box he’s got to let go of one of
these Donuts and little six-year-old
dude ain’t having it because it just
doesn’t compute to him that it will
benefit him in any way to release his
grasp on these two Donuts that he has in
his hands so we’re just sitting there
trying to explain to him why it really
is to his benefit to go ahead and grab
this whole box to let go of the two so
they could have the more that was
waiting for him but but but it took him
a while to be willing to let it go
so I thought what I do is come and talk
to you a little bit about releasing your
grasp on some things help us Jesus
because I’m thinking that some of the
reason why we may not ever get to the
more I may not ever experience the more
than go hard for me it’s not because
it’s not there it’s simply because I
won’t release my grasp and my hands are
so full of what I want that there is no
room left for what God has for me and so
the message for us tonight you have a
challenging one but because it is the
Word of God it is also at the same time
going to be encouraging and it is going
to stir us to want to follow him more
fully to release what is necessary to be
where we need to be and to become who
God has called us to become let’s pray
Lord Jesus I thank you that you give us
the privilege of hearing your voice
through the scripture Lord I cannot
believe that you know me and you still
call me your friend I cannot believe it
you would still choose to speak to me
and to speak to us and allow us to hear
your voice but tonight I ask I asked for
that Lord I ask that there would not be
one of us that would leave this room
tonight without knowing beyond a shadow
of a doubt that we have been in the very
presence of God and so speak Lord
because we are your daughters and we
want to hear your voice
Jesus name everybody agreed and said
Amen my sister crystal and I have this
habit we go on a little we participate
in a run that takes place in the
dallas-fort Worth area every
Thanksgiving it’s called the turkey trot
and there are about twenty to thirty
thousand people in the dallas-fort Worth
area that sign up for the turkey trot
this year and so we sign up ourselves
and our mom and the three of us will go
out there’s an eight mile run some
people will take the eight mile run we
take the three mile run except we don’t
run we walk and we just kind of waltz
along and talk and you know say hi to
people that are walking by and we just
kind of enjoying the moment that’s why
we’re there on that Thanksgiving morning
before all of the busyness of the day
starts and we’ve been doing that for
several years now I’m not exactly sure
why this past year we missed the
registration process for the
Thanksgiving run but it are the turkey
trot but it kind of just came and went
and before we knew it was Thanksgiving
Day and we had not signed up and so my
sister got real busy after Thanksgiving
looking up some alternative options for
us because it’s kind of a treat for us
to get to do that together so he ended
up searching around in Dallas Fort Worth
and she came across a run that we did
not know existed it’s called the Jingle
Bell Run takes place around
Christmastime and it’s in the evening
it’s at night we love it because it’s
dark outside and and they serve hot
chocolate and they’ve got a outdoor ice
skating rink if you want to bring your
kids for them to be a part of it they
give everybody jingle bells that you can
just kind of tie to your shoelaces on
one of your tennis shoes and folks come
out there and they’ve got a string of
lights around their neck or they’ve got
you know antlers on top of their head
reindeer antlers and everybody’s just
festive with the Christmas season end
and we normally do this a 5k run/walk
and enjoy ourselves and this particular
run it starts in a part of Dallas that
is near downtown it’s called the Design
District in the Design District there is
a huge hotel called Anatole the Hilton
Anatole Hotel the run starts there and
it weaves in and out of the streets of
the Design District now you need to know
I have lived in the dallas-fort Worth
area my entire life and anybody who
lives in or around that area you take
highway 35 at some point or another
because 35 is the freeway that goes from
the south of Dallas north all the way
through downtown Dallas and then welcome
to the north of Dallas toward Oklahoma
and so anybody who lives in that area
travel 35 I have many many days many
many years and I have always seen near
downtown this huge billboard that says
the Design District you cannot miss it
it is in big huge bold letters I have
known about the Design District I’ve
been
told about it I’ve been told that this
is the place that if you’re going to be
redesigning your home or if you’re going
to be meeting some specific artwork for
a business of yours that this is the
place you go because the artists are
there and the designers they are there
in the photographer they are there I
have heard so much about it and I have
seen it as I have driven by sped by time
and time and time again but it was not
until the Jingle Bell Run when I was
actually running through and winding
through the streets of the Design
District that I actually was taken back
by the beauty of those stores in there I
mean I met my sister and I surprised we
weren’t arrested because we kept
stopping and plastering ourselves
against the windows of all of these
different stores we were marveling at
the the artwork and the photography and
the beautiful designs we saw in
furniture we just kept stopping and
marveling at everything we saw and I was
amazed at all of these incredible
details that I had never known about
something that I had driven by so many
times because it’s amazing how you will
only know the details of something when
you go through it not when you just
quickly pass by it and you’re many of us
have spent our Christian lives popping
into church on Sunday and popping into
the teachers meeting of once a year or
quarterly and popping into Bible study
every now and then and we’ve driven by
and we’ve seen the Billboard g.o.d we
have heard about this God and we’ve seen
from afar what God might be capable of
doing but he is calling you and I cannot
be people that see him from afar but
that know the details of this character
that has experienced him in our lives
that has heard his voice with our own
ears that that know what it’s like not
to just applaud the testimonies of other
people but to look in the mirror and see
a woman who have the testimony of her
and I’m going to tell you that the only
way you and I are going to know the
details is if we go through something it
means he’s gonna stop you from that
fast-paced Christian experience at some
point and he will allow you he will
allow me to go through so that we can
see him clearly as if never before when
we look at some of the heroes of the
Scriptures some of the people excuse me
that we most admire we look at Moses and
we want the experience of loads of
standing at the brink of the Red Sea and
stroking out that rod over that body of
water and seeing the miracle of a
lifetime as that water part and we want
that we want like Joshua to march
triumphantly into the Promised Land and
to see the walls of Jericho come
tumbling down
we want like Jonah to have the kind of
power that you can walk into a city and
speak a simple five word message and
cause people to turn their hearts to the
one true God we want to have these
unbelievably amazing experiences where
like Gideon we can go in with just three
hundred as the underdog but still walk
out victoriously we walk for trials
without having gone through what is
necessary to bring you to that place we
want like Elijah to stand on Mount
Carmel and to be able to call down fire
from heaven but y’all in order to get to
Mount Carmel you must have gone through
something that gives you the credibility
with God to be able to have a prayer
that’s go work like that and it’s Elijah
that I want to look at because Elijah
most of the time when we think of this
particular Old Testament prophet we do
think of him in that particular setting
on Mount Carmel with 450 prophets of
Vail staring at him bearing him to be
able to call down fire from heaven you
know this story don’t you his own
countrymen thousands of them probably
looking to see
not Elijah was going to have a prayer
that that would work that would call God
to rain down fire from heaven proving
that he was indeed the one true God and
we think of that story more than
anything else but y’all Elijah story did
not start there
this brother went through something
before he ever got to Mount Carmel if
you have your Bibles with you if you
actually still use a Bible with paper
pages like I do if not you can use your
iPhone your iPad any manner of i-ness
just flip on over to first Kings chapter
17 as you turn to first Kings chapter 17
excuse me let me just tell you what’s
happening in this book of the Bible in
fact in 1st and 2nd kings really is
these two books are full of tragedies
they record one failure after another of
kings of the children of Israel who
refuse to honor Yahweh it’s about a
people who were increasingly
antagonistic toward the things of God it
reveals a church basically God’s people
the children of Israel that were divided
they had turned their backs against one
another instead of standing united
against the enemy it is basically an
ancient mirror reflecting the church in
America in the Year 2015 that’s what it
is and into this chaos God Commission’s
an individual to stand on his behalf and
to carry his mantle thank you and to
call people out of that chaotic scenario
back to himself and in the first few
months that Elijah appears on the scene
I would expect that God would call him
straight to Mount Carmel I mean that’s
what people need they need the whole
fire from heaven experience they need a
huge miracle elijah should have been
called right to this position in the
midst of all the actions wrong people
back to god but that is not the first
assignment that elijah had elijah goes
to king ahab and he pronounces the
judgment against god’s people according
to the will of god he says listen
there’s going to be a drought because
you all have not followed god because
you turned your back on God because no
matter how much he’s called you back
himself you have continued to turn away
from him there is going to be a drought
the sky is going to be shut up for three
long years this was a devastating a
devastating of declaration on the people
of Israel it was an agrarian society
which means if it did not rain they
didn’t have food to eat and not only did
they not have food but your food was
oftentimes there their currency they
would barter their food barter their
harvests in order to obtain the things
they needed to survive so without rain
not only were they not going to eat but
they wouldn’t be able to have a sense of
livelihood they needed because they
would not have the currency for exchange
this was a devastating assignment but
Elijah goes in and obedience to God he
pronounces this declaration of doom
really over the children of Israel
because of their disobedience and he is
successful in doing that because it
comes to past three years they’re going
to pass before there is one drop of rain
from the sky and in this day and age
when a prophet word came to fruition
that person was revered and honored that
prophet was of course sought to speak
the Word of God and be the presence of
God and represent the power of God
amongst the people so we’re meeting
Elijah in first Kings chapter 17 having
had a successful moment in ministry
because of prophet prophecy is going to
come to fruition and so he is leave
where he is in an environment where he
is revered by people he is respected in
his position he is comfortable he is
cozy he is settled amongst his people in
the chill in the India Israel let’s see
what happens in his life starting in
birth to first Kings chapter 17 and the
word of the Lord came to Elijah saying
go away from here
somebody say go away from here
and turn eastward and hide yourself by
the brook Cherith its east of the Jordan
and it shall be that you shall drink of
the brook and I have commanded the
Ravens to provide for you there so
Elijah went verse five he did according
to the word of the Lord for he went he
lived by the brook Cherith which is east
of Jordan verse six says the Ravens
brought him bread and meat in the
morning and bread and meat in the
evening and he would drink from the
brook and it came about after a while
that the brook dried up because there
was no rain in the land here is Elijah’s
first assignment the very first thing
that God is going to call him to do the
very first thing that God is going to
ask of Elijah in order to make sure that
Elijah has the character the endurance
the stability built up so that when he
is positioned on Mount Carmel later on
he will be able to stand in the midst of
all of that and be able to have a prayer
that was effective and fervent and was
able to tap into the miracle-working
working power of his God he said to
Elijah God says to him go away from here
he says let go of your sense of security
safety comfort the applause you may be
receiving from the people because you’ve
done such a good job he said I want you
to break ties with where you want to be
and color I’m asking you to go he said
what what I’m asking you to do is I’m
asking you to separate yourself from
your comfort zone to pull away that’s
the first assignment we say but God wait
a minute this is where all the action is
don’t I need to stay here but God this
is what I feel that my gifts and my
talents will be best used don’t you want
to use me here
but God uncomfortable here with these
people in this circle in this
environment on this job in this
particular part of town these are my
habits Lord this is where I go this is
what I do I’m settled in this place and
sometimes the Holy Spirit will whisper
to you in order to prepare you for Mount
Carmel he will say to you
come away from here and one of the most
difficult things for the women of God is
to hear that whisper and say okay
sometimes sometimes it’s as simple as
sitting in a movie theater and hearing
the whisper
and making a decision in that moment
will you be one of the only few in the
row of girlfriends that came to see that
movie that will make the determination
that this movie is not for you I got to
get out of here
sometimes the Holy Spirit is going to
whisper to you while you’re alone in
your home watching that program get away
from here and the choice is whether or
not you and I will separate ourselves
unto the purposes of God when he pulls
up the way when he separates us to a
place of solitude when he calls us more
personally and intimately and
individually away from something or
someone unto himself won’t you know that
it’s because he’s trying to prepare you
for Mount Carmel my friend the endurance
and the character and the faith that
you’re going to need for there it starts
here when you hear the whisper from God
come away separate yourself from that
comfort zone that habit that lifestyle
choice that ambition that dream that
you’ve always had and now reality is
something different and he’s asking you
to stop fighting for what you always had
planned and release it and come with me
where I’m asking you to go he wants to
separate you and in Elijah’s case he
called them to a specific place he
called them to a book called Charis the
original language of that word actually
means cutting or separation it is a noun
it is the place of separation some
amazing things are going to happen in
this man’s life if he is willing and
only if he is willing to go to the place
of separation to cut himself off from
the places the people the circumstances
that on a free he was most comfortable
in that felt best to him he had to be
willing to yield to the separation
Jairus a place a noun
my boys are home-schooled a friend of
mine and I and my sister as well my
sister and I are neighbors she has five
children but her
youngest three are the exact same ages
as my three you would have thought we
planned it and they’re all boys so we
have six boys that just run back and
forth from one house to the next
so we homeschool of would cuz we all
travel a lot so we homeschool the boys
and you know they do lunch and recess at
my house it’s all I can handle so my
little one he just started first grade
stuff now but kindergarten what I would
do is I would write on three by five
cards these words I would write words
I’d write nouns person place thing just
random things like man rat ham mud and I
would write nouns down on a bunch of
three by five cards then on other three
by five cards I would write down verbs I
would write run or jump or walk words he
could understand or cut I would write
those words down eat and I would mix all
of three by five cards up trying to
teach him that in order for there to be
a complete sentence you have to have it
I didn’t call it a noun and a verb at
that point I just said you have to have
a whoo and you have to have a what in
order for it to be a complete sentence
you’ve got to have both a who and what
both of those things matter in order for
the sentence to be the complete so we
put all of those cards in a dip lock bag
shake him up he dumped some outfits on
the kitchen for his job is to create me
a sentence it’s got to have a who and
it’s got to have a what I’ll come back
after a few minutes and sometimes my
sweet little one he will be so proud
because he’s got all of these cards
strung together it looks like the
longest most impressive incredible
sentence that could possibly be
constructed in the course of humanity
and he gets to reading every single word
for me and I come alongside him and I’m
reading every single word and it sounds
so great except it’s all who’s and know
what the dog Hat man mud cat baby what
are any of these who is doing they have
to do something in order for the thought
to be complete there has to be a who and
a what
of us what’s the blessings that come in
the place of separation without having
gone through the process required to get
to that particular place we want the who
without having gone through the what we
don’t want to do the difficult work of
responding in obedience when God calls
us to separate ourselves but we want all
the blessings that come in the place of
separation without having separated from
anything in our lives do you know that
in the original language this word
Charis has a root word it is derived
from a root word hang with me because
this is gonna matter to us in a minute
this root word is collapse somebody say
correct correct so this this body of
water this little stream called Charis
that word that means separation it is
derived from carafe that’s where the
word comes from carafe is our verb
carafe means listen to this it means to
cut off to eliminate to kill to cut off
a part of the body I want you to think
about how aggressive and almost violent
those terms sound and then I want you to
think about how in your life sometimes
the things that God is asking you to
separate yourself from it’s not that big
a deal because you know that particular
friendship you’ve only had for the past
year and yeah y’all y’all get along
great but you know he’s not asking you
to separate yourself from a lifelong
friend so it’s going to be hard but you
can handle that one the problem is when
it’s that girlfriend that you really
have had for a long long time and you
sense that God is saying that he’s
taking you somewhere and that person’s
really not going to come along for the
ride and he’s asking will you be willing
to cut off to eliminate and to you to do
that it is literally going to feel like
cutting off part of your
sometimes the separations are easy but
sometimes my friend it feels like two
strips of velcro pulling one from the
other
sometimes sometimes God says he’s not
the one and you know sometimes you can
take him a leave them but sometimes your
three or four six months or a year of
three years into this thing and you hear
the whisper of the Holy Spirit saying go
away
[Applause]
sometimes God says you know this is not
the television program for you and
honestly you can take that program or
you can leave it because this is the
first season and you know you only two
episodes in so we don’t matter sometimes
you know it’s the fourth season and
you’ve been following this particular
character for a long time and you like
what she wears every single time she’s
on the screen you want to see the next
outfit you want to you want to know what
to wear the white hat how they’re going
to wear the white hat
[Applause]
you have had a dream of what your life
was going to look like you’ve had a
picture it has looked a certain way in
your mind and when you signed up to be a
follower of Jesus Christ you thought it
was going to take you in this particular
direction it was going to be behind a
white picket fence in this kind of
neighborhood participating in these
kinds of activities your family was
going to look like this
and yet the Lord has allowed a series of
circumstances in your life that are very
clearly very obviously causing you to to
release your idea your expectation of
what life was going to be like and
follow him
[Applause]
there is a very harsh reality to the
separation process it begins at crass
and it ends at the place of separation
but it is in that place that you will
experience so much of God like you never
have before but only those willing to go
through will get to see God is more than
a billboard on a highway of life will
get to see his character will get to
know that the God of the Bible is
actually the same God and that the
miracles that he had the power to pull
off the meek in the scriptures y’all
those aren’t exceptions to the rule
those were illustrations for us to let
us know what an extraordinary God can do
with its ordinary women like us so our
original word our verb correct one of
the first times we see that in the
scriptures is in Genesis 15 y’all ready
for a little Bible study y’all with me
y’all okay tonight hey listen Genesis 15
God has said to Abraham go away from
here he has called him out of her
remember his name was Abram he called
him out of her he says I’m gonna change
your name to Abraham i’ma change the GPS
coordinates on your destiny i’ma send
you to a land I’m not even gonna tell
you what the land is you just trust me
look up in the sky see all those stars
I’m going to create a vast group of
descendants out of you that number the
same as those stars Abraham said you got
to be kidding me
he said God how will I know that all of
this is going to come to pass
God does something incredible he speaks
to Abraham in a language that he knows
Abraham is going to understand and debt
so that he’ll know God is for real back
in Old Testament times every agreement
is sealed with a covenant they had to
make a covenant one party with another
or one nation with another nation this
is the way that they sealed a covenant
the shedding of blood without the
shedding of blood a covenant was not
sealed signed and delivered and this is
gruesome but y’all hang with me they
would cut they would sacrifice an animal
then they would dismember the animal
correct severing they would set the
pieces of the dismembered animal
strategically on the ground and both
parties one after the other would walk
among the severed pieces of the
dismembered animal as a part of the
ceremony of the sealing the agreement
the reason why they would do that is
because as they walk they were making a
statement they were saying may my life
be as the life of this animal may the
lives of those I love be as the life of
this animal if I don’t hold up my part
of the bargain God knew that Abraham
would understand the Covenant understand
its seriousness so he says in Genesis 15
you go get an animal he says you
sacrificed that animals Abraham does
exactly that he lays the pieces out and
normally both parties would walk among
the pieces but it says in Genesis 15
y’all this is so good listen
Abraham falls into a deep sleep while he
is asleep in one of the greatest
theophanies of all time a theophany is a
God appearance in the Old Testament and
one of the greatest theophanies of the
all of the Old Testament God comes down
and we see him the god of the universe
who doesn’t need to make a deal with
anybody he comes down and he moves
within the pieces listen while Abraham
is asleep this already points to
Ephesians when Paul would say while we
were dead in our trespasses and it
since Christ died for us four five grace
we have been saved through faith not as
of our work we were asleep y’all while
the god of the universe bore the full
responsibility of the Covenant that he
made with us okay
Abraham did the cutting God did the
moving Abraham made the margin and when
he did he made God gaps in his life so
that God could come down and move among
the pieces let me tell you are y’all
listening listen let me tell you what
will happen in our lives if we’ll do the
cutting if you’ll create the margin I’m
saying if God is saying to you tonight
go away from that man that boyfriend of
yours go away from that pack of
girlfriends they’re just not the click
for you go away from that job that other
job yep the one that makes less money
but that’s the one that I’m calling you
to you go away from where you are listen
your husband is saying sweetie I feel
like God is calling us in the ministry I
know I said I was gonna be a doctor but
God is calling me to pass to this church
come with me let’s go we’re God is
calling us listen to what I’m saying to
you the Lord has set us up tonight the
reason why we’re in this room are you
listening what’s your name no melody
listen the reason why we’re in this room
tonight and the Lord would allow all of
us to be in this setting is because he
wants you to know upfront if you will
really if you will cut if you will
eliminate if you will sever yourself
from whatever God is ask you to sever
yourself from he’s telling you right now
you will have created the margin in your
life required for God Himself to come
down and move within the pieces in your
life
he’s telling you and me that we’re going
to get to see God listen I don’t know
about y’all I want I want to see God I
want a love hearing about God I love
reading about god I love experiencing
God through the testimonies of other
people but there has to come a time in
all of our lives where we’re a little
bit stirred up on the inside where it’s
like a divine antagonist is stirring up
in our soul where we can still celebrate
others but at the same time we’re
thinking wait a minute I want to see
that God in my own life I want to hear
his voice with my ears I want to
experience the God for Bible Repub also
patient so this is not just ink on a
page anymore I want God to be alive to
me listen if you pray that prayer like I
do god I want to see you this is the way
he answers it he says to you okay well
separate yourself from what I’m asking
you to and in that margin I will descend
and I will reveal myself to you in a way
you have never ever experienced before
listen I want to tell you just quickly
that y’all it was active
charis at this brook at this brook the
passage we read said that Elisha was
sustained by this brook Joel there’s a
drought in the land everybody else is
trying to find water people are losing
their lives
folks are thirsty and they they can’t
find water they are scavenging for water
and food and while everybody else is
trying to figure out how to quest air
first and is doing everything they can
to try to find illegitimate ways to
quench their thirst because the heavens
are shut up Elijah because he yielded to
the separation is settled down by a
brook of water while God Himself
sustains him you know what’s going to
happen in the place of separation you’re
going to be able to stop fighting and
thriving and trying
desperately to sustain yourself and
you’re going to know what it’s like to
do what Psalm 46:10 says be still be
striving chill out relax and see what
it’s like to have God be the book that
quenches your thirst amen
and and so important was the principle
of sustaining that work so the thing
that God wanted Elijah to get it was so
important that God set him down at a
Wadi a Wadi is a brook of water that is
in between two precipices of a mountain
it’s almost like a mountain that has a
sliver cut out right through the middle
and there’s a small stream of water that
runs right through this little crevice
in the rocks so it is totally rocky
ground there is no soft soil there is no
up fertilizing opportunity for there to
be any harvest if someone were to plant
seeds there would be no way for it to
grow there do you know what God was
saying by setting him down at this Wadi
he was saying to him listen just in case
you brought some seeds with you from
Israel I’m going to make sure you were
in a position where even if you try to
sustain yourself you’re not going to be
able to do it and I’ll do that on
purpose because if you can keep planting
your seeds and reaping your own harvest
you will never know what it’s like to
eat from my hand and drink from my cup
so listen some of you are in settings
right now and you keep planting seeds
you keep planting seeds you keep trying
to reap your own harvest you’re trying
to figure out why none of the resumes
you’re sending out or getting a response
while none of the minutes for your
business you’re trying to build is
getting a response it’s because he’s got
you in a Wadi rocky ground no matter
what seed you plant it is not going to
flourish
why because if we can get our own
harvest we never know what it’s like to
be sustained by our God
and so if you’re feeling a bit lonely
right now if you’re feeling a bit
separated and set apart you’re wondering
why God has you here in this quiet still
place listen he has separated you to
show you what it’s like when God is a
friend to the lonely when he is a father
to the fatherless when he shows you how
you can be hungry but be filled by God
when he shows you how you can have a
peace that passes all understanding even
yo understanding you can’t figure out
how you’re distinct filled in the midst
of the storm that’s happening in your
life that’s the kind of testimony you
and I have to have if one day he calls
us to Mount Carmel we better have some
character built and up at Charis y’all
but that’s not it listen
chapter 18 of first Kings we don’t have
time to go into all this stuff y’all
alright listen
I’m almost done I get excited about this
teeny tale listen first Kings chapter 18
we find out that a hab has been King
Ahab has been searching to and fro
nation to nation he wants Elijah’s head
on a platter
Elijah does not know this he’s sitting
down at the brook chilling out having a
drink of water enjoying himself all the
while there is a price on his head
so at the place of separation not only
is he sustained by God but he shielded
by God and listen he sealed it by God
from something that he doesn’t even know
he needs shielding from
the reason why you and I need to
surrender to charities because there are
some things you don’t even know you need
to be shielded from there are some
relationships you can’t see right now
that pet year from now there are going
to be the worst decisions that you could
ever make and so god separates you to
save you from disaster you do not even
know are coming amen there is a
financial debacle you don’t even know
about that he’s saving you from there is
AIT’s a relational strain you can’t see
now that he is saving you from there is
something from your vantage point and my
vantage point at this stage in this
season at this age we cannot detect but
God in His sovereignty and His grace and
His mercy he will allow us to be in a
position where we are shielded and don’t
even know it
y’all can I just tell y’all there are
some things I look back on listen I am
so grateful for unanswered prayers that
I don’t know what to do
y’all know what I’m talking about if God
had given me half the stuff I was
begging him for when I was 20 whereas a
20 year old 20 year olds where are you
19 20 let’s listen to your mama just do
what your mama says guys I’m so grateful
now when I look back at some of the
things that I begged my God for he said
no to because in doing that in causing
me commanding me making me separate
myself and stuff I really wanted he was
an essence shielding me protecting me in
ways I could never imagine so if you
choose not to yield to the separation if
you choose to stay connected to the
people the places the habits of choices
the dreams the ambitions you’ve always
had you need to know you are putting
yourself right smack dab in the face of
danger the reason why he separates us is
because he’s guarding us at the same
time y’all remember being in an airplane
I’ll remember where we were going but I
remember it was one of the scariest
times I ever had on the airplane because
out of nowhere it was smooth sailing
people were up going to the bathroom
folks were getting drinks some people
were you know hanging out talking
whatever normal smooth I think I was
getting some work done all of a sudden
that plane just dropped I don’t know how
far it dropped I don’t know but I
remember bags went flying everywhere
people fell to the ground it was just
this moment when you think
few seconds later the pilot came on he
said I want to tell you guys I’m so
sorry I had to make a very very quick
decision
the control tower came on to let me know
that we were on the same flight path as
another plane and if we did not
immediately drop to a different altitude
obviously there was going to be a
horrendous caster so I want to tell you
guys I am sorry for the momentary
discomfort listen I want you to know
after I found out the reason for the
moment discomfort you better believe
that if all of us filed off that plane
we looked at that pilot and said thank
you thank you because that momentary
discomfort saved a lot all and thank God
that the pilot was not leaning to his
own understanding of lifting to the
control tower that had a different more
broad perspective and was able to see
the whole picture
that is why the book of Proverbs chapter
3 verse 5 to 6 says listen don’t think
you so smart that you can lean to your
own understanding you’ve got to
acknowledge him in all your ways he’s
the one who will make the path straight
he has a broader perspective a different
vantage point he’d be been from the
beginning more that you can ever see
with your own eyes and so when there’s
going to be momentary discomfort you say
thank you because he’s shielding you and
then finally I have talked so long
listen just one more thing because this
is too good to miss he sustains him with
the brook that is a natural resource
listen God did not poof
create the brook and then sent Elijah to
it the brook had always been there
Elijah just now knew about it because he
yielded to the separation can I just
tell you there is some big huge amazing
fabulous fantastic unbelievable
blessings that are already in your life
you just cannot see them you have not
experienced the benefit of them because
you won’t
and when you do you start going oh look
at my husband he’s actually amazing not
my husband I’m saying my husband is
amazing every day there are some there
are some things sometimes God doesn’t
need to do a miracle you just need to
appreciate the miracle he’s like already
doing for time separating opened your
eyes to see the Brooks that are already
around hey but then he says I’m sending
Raven
bread and meat in the morning bread and
meat in the evening and every day y’all
it seems like scholars say he was
probably at this body of water for a
year and a half every day for a year and
a half
bread and meat in the morning bread and
meat in the evening Ravens are the most
Restless of all bird species
do you remember Noah sent one bird out
from the ark a dove the Dove returned he
sent the Raven out The Raven is the one
that never returned
that’s because Ravens their species
their innate sense is to never return to
the same place twice they are the most
greedy of all animals so greedy that of
all bird species so agree that they will
steal of meals from other birds in their
vicinity that’s where we get the term
ravenous when we are that hungry it
doesn’t matter what kind of buffet it is
you just glad it’s a buffet
anybody notice on now listen for me I
don’t have to be hungry to eat eating is
a hobby can I get somebody to say Amen
okay so God picks listen y’all God picks
the most unlikely the most unreasonable
the utmost irrational bird species if he
would have sent a dove maybe we could
have explained it if you want to pick
the pigeon maybe we could have explained
it but God said let me figure out what
is the most unlikely bird that I made in
my creation the one I know nobody when
they’re talking about this story in the
Year 2015 they still will not be able to
explain away no scientist no matter how
brilliant they are no no person that
studies birds and their their habits
never will anybody ever be able to
explain how a raven for more than a year
came back to the same place at the same
two times every day let me tell you the
reason why he wants to separate you
because in the place of separation not
only does he sustain you and not only
does he shield you but y’all it’s in
that place that he will just plain-old
flat-out surprise you where he sets you
up to be blown away at the unbelievable
wave he is taking care of you and
covering you and providing for you he
wants to bring solutions into your life
but honestly you didn’t even pray for
because the best request you could come
up with didn’t even touch the fringe of
possibility of what God had in mind for
this particular circumstance listen he
wants to bring this kill a miracle into
your life the Ephesians 3:20 variety now
on to him who is able to do exceedingly
abundantly above and beyond all you can
ask and if you can’t ask it because your
brain can’t even come up with the right
word to verbalize it that’s okay he says
just think
and I can do pass back I thought he does
the worst thing in the world it’s trying
to throw somebody a surprise party and
they won’t get in the car and come with
you I just think that God is in the
heavens going oh I have some stuff up my
sleeve for you you cannot imagine in
regards to your finances and in regards
to your marriage and in your regards to
your kids and in regard to your
grandkids and your great grandkids that
you don’t yet know I have some surprises
built up for you some stuff that I fully
intend to do for you just cos you’re my
girl and I love you and I want to give
you more because I’ve got plans for you
but you’ve got to get in the car and
come to the party yes and he said to
send that place of separation I’ll
surprise you if you let me I’ll blow you
away at how good an amazing I am and can
be in your life I have some friends a
couple their daughter is my goddaughter
and they recently had a lot of
transition in their life they worked at
a church both of them a very successful
Church in Dallas still enjoyed pastoring
there over adult ministries I think and
that the husband felt God whisper about
a year and a half ago go away from here
it was going to mean a huge change for
them he prayed about it for a while
thought wise counsel about it my friend
his wife was kind of unsteady about the
whole thing before her people that this
was their church this was where they not
only works but where they fellowship
their kids had connections there but in
the youth group and this is where
they’ve been this was a community but
but he felt strongly that God was
so he obeyed she did along with him very
very very tough years the Lord led them
to a new job at a non-profit
organization where they were helping
people keep their housing when they had
issues financial issues and headed
toward foreclosure enjoyed that job they
the Lord called them to actually start a
new church plant with another couple and
so they’re at in the forming stages of
this this little church that’s
developing in the north side of Dallas
but he said to me the last time I was
over there visiting he said Priscilla
this has been the toughest year and a
half of our life he said because I can’t
afford to keep this house any more this
was the house they built when they got
married that their kids have been raised
into cysts where they love being then
they can’t afford it anymore he said I
know I’ve done what God has asked me to
do but this hurts
he said Purcell I got to tell you
something
the reason why you’re here in this house
today why when you came to visit us you
still came to this house he said the
reason why is because I called the
realtor realtor and I asked her to get
prepared to sell this house and then on
the day she was coming to put out the
sign that morning I was literally in the
kitchen with a small little toothbrush
sort of thing cleaning out some of the
corners because I knew she’d become
invited to check things out she’s gonna
be bringing people over and while I was
down there on the kitchen floor on my
knees he said I hadn’t really verbalized
this much but I said just between me and
God God seriously this is my family
we’ve done what you’ve asked us to do
but this is so disappointing anybody
know how that feels so he prayed and he
said Lord there’s any way you can help
us keep this house do it it was the day
that the realtor was coming to put up
the line that afternoon they had a
soccer game in the neighborhood their
kids play on the same little league team
that some other people in the
neighborhood plan they were out there
with all their kids there were neighbors
all around because these neighbors I’m
all they’re all their kids played in the
same Little League team he had seen lots
of these people before but more not more
than just waving at him and saying hello
one couple one gentleman from one couple
that lived a few houses down came over
during the soccer game the same day he
had been in the kitchen the same day
that the realtor was coming up and he
said hey I’ve noticed the realtor coming
by every now and then where are you guys
moving these two hadn’t talked much ever
really other than to say hello at the
games and and my friend explains him
that yeah they were going to have to
move out they’re going to find another
place to live this gentleman who’s not a
not a Christian nice people but not
Christian he said you know what my wife
and I were talking the other day just
just talking you know we we were
thinking about buying another another
house in our neighborhood they had their
reasons I can’t remember what they were
but he said we’re just think about
buying another house in the neighborhood
and you know what if you guys are going
to sell your house you know don’t put
the sign out because we’ll buy it we’ll
buy your house and we don’t need it
right now but but while it’s while it’s
available we want to go ahead and
purchase it but we’ll let you guys live
there for the next two years or so
surprise God shows up and does the kind
of stuff that when someone tries to tell
you it’s a coincidence you say oh no way
no no no no no if I filled you in on the
whole backstory leading up to here you
would know beyond a shadow of a doubt
that there is a God and that you’re good
and that he works in our Savior until my
friend has been living rent-free in the
house
that God bought for them
can I pray for you I want to pray for
anyone that right now is standing right
on the edge of decision because you’ve
heard the whisper of God say come on and
you’re trying to decide whether or not
you’re going to open I want to ask God
to give you a holy courage a boldness
that can only come supernaturally by
God’s Spirit to allow you when you leave
this place tonight to not spend one more
day adhered to the thing he has asked
you to separate yourself and so if
that’s you doesn’t matter if it’s a
person it does matter if it’s a job it
does matter when you had of life
whatever doesn’t matter what it is God
is asking you to come away from
something I want you to just stand to
your feet if you need specific prayer
for boldness to yield to the separation
Lord here we are
your daughter is standing and we’re
asking you Lord I am asking on their
behalf Lord that you would make your
presence known and real and felt to them
caused them to be so aware of your
presence that it gives them a courage
they have not known before help them to
know that they are never ever alone even
if they make this decision that might
cause them to to feel like they are lord
help us to know beyond any shadow of a
doubt that you are real so god I’m being
bold and brave and I’m asking you that
seriously in these next few days you
would do something in every single life
of every single woman who’s standing
that is so obvious for you that they
will never ever doubt again that you are
with them that you are for them and that
you will fight on their behalf and god
I’m going to pray so you would well up
in their hearts a super natural courage
one that they will not even understand
Lord would you well up a holy boldness
on the inside of them and allow them to
not be comfortable even one more day
staying connected to the thing you’re
asking them to disconnect from will you
make them uneasy about it Lord caused it
not to feel good anymore Lord I pray
that the taste for it will leave their
mouth and Jesus name I’m asking for
supernatural release by your Holy Spirit
Galatians 5:1 it is for freedom that you
have set us free so today Lord we will
stand firm and never be subject again to
a yoke of slavery in Jesus name Amen
you
Amen