This is “Open My Eyes from the Garden of Gethsemane”. When God opens your eyes, you’ll see the path to your purpose more clearly than ever before. In this message with Jentezen Franklin, get ready to launch into the new year, fasting and learning to uncover God’s divine provision, direction and protection that is right in front of you.
♪ ♪
>> Happy New Year to you
and your family.
Welcome to Kingdom Connection.
We consider it such an honor
that you would decide
to join us.
2020 was a year that none of us
will ever be the same from.
We never saw some of the things
coming that hit our lives,
but God’s been faithful
through it, and here we are
in a brand new year
and I believe God is going to
open our eyes to His plan,
His provision, His protection,
and to a divine visitation
of revival in the nation
and the world,
and in your own life and family.
Lean in today, this message
that I’m preaching from
the Holy Land
that I taped there,
I believe is a word that God
is really going to cause
to come alive.
It’s good news, and I believe
you’re going to be blessed.
Lean in and let God speak.
♪ ♪
>> I want to welcome all of
you to an amazing experience.
As you know, every year we
begin a 21-day fast,
and as you join us
for the program today,
we’re asking God to open our
eyes, that He would
show us things we have not seen,
that He would show us
the provision, the direction,
the protection,
the visitation
of His Holy Spirit
in our lives and in our families
like never before.
Let me tell you what I’m
talking about as we fast
and as we pray this year.
You know, there are four times
in the Scripture
that those words, open my eyes
are used or it says
the Lord opens someone’s eyes.
It wasn’t that they were blind,
and they couldn’t see
in these particular texts.
They had physical eyesight,
but we’re talking about
spiritual eyesight
that you see through the lenses
of faith.
You see through the lenses
of Calvary.
You see through the lenses
of God’s word every situation
that you’re facing
and as we fast and as we pray
in a new year,
God is going to open our eyes.
In Genesis 21, the Bible said
that Hagar was in
a desperate situation.
Maybe you are.
And she was in the wilderness,
and she had her child.
His name was Ishmael.
She had been put out
by Abraham and Sarah,
and she was hungry,
she was thirsty,
and she could not bear
what she was going through.
As a matter of fact,
the Bible said that she took
her baby, her young lad,
and she set him under a bush.
And I see bushes all with me.
I’m coming to you from
the Garden of Gethsemane,
and there’s bushes.
And she took a bush out
in the middle of the desert
and laid that child under
and just let that child
whimper and cry,
and the Bible said she walked
a bow’s shot away measuring
the space far enough out
away that she couldn’t hear
the cry of that child.
She put some distance
between it.
She said I just can’t stand
to see my child die.
And I thought about how
the Bible said that as the
child was crying that God
heard the cry of the child.
Not the cry of the mother.
The mother was weeping,
but God heard the cry
of the child in the desert,
and God sent His Spirit
to open her eyes.
The Bible said,
“And God opened her eyes,
and she saw a well of water.”
Now, I believe that there
are people who are listening
to me right now,
and God is listening
to the voice of your children.
They may be in harm’s way.
They may be with
the wrong people.
They may be doing things
that are breaking your heart.
They may be addicted to drugs,
but you’ve put Jesus in them.
You prayed over them.
You dedicated them.
You pleaded the blood.
You’ve witnessed.
You’ve told them about Jesus.
You prayed for them,
and you know what?
God can hear the cry no matter
how desperate the cry is
of our children,
and the Bible said that
when she had her eyes opened,
she saw the water.
Now, I just want to say
that God hears every parent,
and He hears you saying,
God, help my child.
That’s exactly what happened
to this woman named Hagar.
As she prayed and as she
cried out to God,
God opened her eyes,
and the voice of the lad,
God is hearing your children.
Even if they’re bound in drugs,
something in them is crying out.
Something in them is saying,
God, help me, and God knows,
and He has a covenant
with us about our children,
and God hears us,
and He knows where they are.
That’s what touched me
is God found that woman’s child
under a bush in the wilderness,
and God knows
where your children are.
God knows where your family is.
God knows where the people
that you care about are,
and He knows how to reach them.
So, first of all,
God opened her eyes
to provision.
He showed her a well,
and as you’re fasting
and praying, may God open
your eyes to His provision,
spiritual provision
and natural provision,
material provision,
financial provision.
God is going to open your eyes,
and you’re going to see things
you didn’t see before.
The well of water was
in the wilderness,
but she didn’t see it until God
opened her eyes,
and in this year on this fast,
God’s doing to open your eyes
to provision.
My God shall supply all your
needs according to His riches
in glory, and He’s going
to show you where
the provision is
in your wilderness.
The eyes of the Lord,
the Lord wants me to tell you,
are going to be upon your
children in this new year.
He’s going to open the
eyes of your children.
And then I think about
Numbers 22, and it talks about
a man by the man
by the name of Balaam,
and He’s going
in the wrong direction,
and he’s riding a donkey,
and he’s going in the direction
that was not the will of God
to go curse God’s people,
and the Bible said that God
opened the mouth of the donkey,
and the donkey starts talking
to the prophet
and says you’re going
the wrong way,
and he beats that donkey,
and he’s just beating
that poor animal mercilessly,
and the Scripture
said that eventually God opened
the eyes of Balaam,
and he saw an angel standing
with a sword in the path.
In other words,
God said I’m going to open
your eyes, Balaam,
and I’m going to show you you’re
going in the wrong direction,
and I’m going to show you
what the right direction
is for your life.
And I’m telling you
as I stand in
the Garden of Gethsemane today.
I believe God is going
to open your eyes,
number one, to divine provision.
He’s going to bless you,
and He’s going to open
your eyes to God ideas,
to creativity, to the right
provision that He has
for the vision He’s giving you.
He’s opening your eyes to that,
but secondly, He’s going
to open your eyes to the right
direction for you
and for your family.
If God could open the eyes
of Balaam in Numbers 22,
the Bible said and God
opened his eyes, and he saw
that he was going
in the wrong direction,
and I believe many of you have
loved ones who are going
in the wrong direction,
and you’ve tried your best
to talk to them.
You’ve tried, you’ve cried,
you’ve prayed,
but as you’re fasting,
I’m telling you, God can open
their eyes to how foolish
they’re being,
how wrong they are living,
how wrong the direction
of their life is going.
Only God can do that.
God can open their eyes
in one day.
God can open their eyes
and show them who the right
people are and who
the wrong people are,
and as we fast
and as we pray
we decree the right direction.
Your eyes shall be open
to the right direction.
What is God’s will
for your life?
The right direction.
God knows how to open your eyes
to it, and you’ll just know
this is right
and that is wrong.
This is the way I need to go.
The right direction
for your marriage.
The right direction
for your children.
The right direction
for your family.
Just say it right there.
God, open my eyes as I fast
and as I pray.
Then, I found another place
in the Bible where God
opened another man’s eyes.
His name was Elijah,
and the Bible said the Syrian
army had surrounded his house,
and he had a servant,
and the Scripture said
that the servant went out
on the porch and when he saw
the Syrian army at sunrise,
they had completely surrounded
the prophet,
and he ran in and he said,
Prophet, what are going to do?
We’re surrounded by the enemy.
Do you feel that way today?
We’re surrounded by the enemy,
and the Prophet prayed,
God, open my servant’s eyes,
and when he prayed those words,
the Bible said he went out,
and he looked at the same
circumstances that he was
surrounded by,
but then he saw something else.
That’s what fasting does.
It opens your spiritual eyes.
See, as long as you focus
on the physical problem,
the Bible said that
the natural things are temporal,
but the spiritual things
are eternal, and suddenly,
God opened his eyes,
and yes,
they were surrounded by enemy,
but then he saw
with spiritual eyes chariots
and horses of fire
that were descending
from the mountains.
They had come all the way
from heaven.
God had dispatched angels,
and the angels are being
dispatched to deliver
and protect God’s man, Elijah.
And I want to say
that God’s going to open
your eyes to protection.
He’s not only going to open
your eyes to provision
and to direction
but to protection.
The protection of the Lord
on your family,
the protection of the Lord
on your finances, on your life,
on your dreams, on your call.
We need God’s protection.
If ever there was an hour
that we need to learn to pray,
Lord, keep me from evil.
The evil one wants to kill,
steal, and destroy,
but we are going to have
our eyes open to the fact
that we’re overcomers
by the Blood of the Lamb
and the word of our testimony.
You know, when we understand
what Elijah saw,
the Bible said,
He said fear not.
Fear not.
And that’s what God wants
to get in somebody’s heart
who needs the protection
of God in the situation
and season that you’re in.
And the Bible said,
fear not for they that be with
you are more than they be
with them.
Don’t fear their attacks.
Don’t fear the schemes
of the enemy.
Don’t fear the attacks.
The Bible said in Psalms,
He said I will not suffer
your feet to be moved.
I’m not going to let the enemy
uproot you and throw you out
of everything I’ve given you,
but you’re under
divine protection.
Do you want God’s protection
on your life and family
in a new year?
There’s something about fasting
and praying that I believe
not only will open your eyes
to provision,
open your eyes to direction,
but it will open your eyes
to the protection
of the Lord.
I’m so thankful today
for the protection of the Lord.
I went to the Georgia Aquarium
one time with my kids
and was walking through
that one little tunnel.
I’ll never forget it.
They got a little tunnel
or a big tunnel,
and it’s got sharks
and it’s got deadly predators.
It’s got a Great White shark
and different sharks,
and you’re walking through it,
and you’re looking up,
and you can see
all these sharks that could
just really do damage to you,
but it’s like you’re in a tube,
and there’s something between
you and them.
That’s the kind of protection
I’m talking about.
I have to have it.
I know the enemy would kill me.
I know he would love to just
stop and wipe me out
and my family,
but I believe
in divine protection.
And then lastly,
I believe in God’s
divine visitation.
That’s why the Bible said
that they were marching,
and they were walking
with Jesus in Luke 24.
They had assembled themselves
in an Upper Room,
and the doors were shut,
and Jesus shows up,
but they didn’t know who He was.
They didn’t recognize Him,
and then when He broke
the bread, the Bible said,
their eyes were opened,
and they saw Jesus
and then He disappeared.
In other words,
God can open your eyes while you
fast and pray to a fresh
new visitation of Jesus Christ.
Isn’t that why we fast?
When it’s all said and done,
we’re not fasting
for anything but Him.
He is our provision.
He is our direction.
He is our protection,
and what we really are saying
is, God, open my eyes
to a fresh new visitation.
I want you to visit my home.
I want you to visit my life.
I want Jesus in my business.
I want Jesus in my home.
I want Him.
Fresh.
A fresh visitation.
I want the power of God.
So, Hagar had her eyes opened
to the provision of God,
and we know that Balaam
had his eyes opened
to the direction of God.
Elijah and his servant
had their eyes opened
to the protection of God.
The disciples had their eyes
opened to a visitation of God,
and it’s time for you
to have that kind of encounter
with God,
and as you fast and as you pray,
we just decree this a fast
where God opens the eyes
of our understanding to the hope
that is before us,
that we see the future
not in fear,
that we see the future not
in condemnation,
that we see the future
not in worry and stress
and anxiety,
but we see the future in hope,
faith, and love.
And you can see things
when God opens your eyes
that other people can’t see.
I read an article one time
about seeing eye dogs
and how they train them,
and they said the number one
difficulty with a seeing
eye dog, you know the dogs
that blind people use,
they said the number one
challenge is to get the dog
to view life not from down
where he is,
but he’s got to look
further out,
and he’s got to see through
his master’s eyes.
When we fast and pray,
we can start seeing things
through the Master’s eyes.
Hallelujah.
Our Master is Jesus.
And so I want to pray with
you in closing.
Father, in the mighty name
of Jesus, I ask you today
to open the eyes of people
as we fast, as we pray,
as we enter into 21 days
of consecration, fasting,
and praying.
Seeking your will,
you will release provision,
direction, protection,
and a divine, fresh visitation
of the power of the Holy Spirit
in our churches
and in our lives,
in Jesus’s name.
I believe that and if you
don’t know Jesus as your
Lord and Savior,
this is your moment.
This is why He came into
this place and began a cycle
of suffering like we
can’t even imagine that would
ultimately lead to His death
on the cross.
His blood spilled out for you.
So, right where you are at
the beginning of a new year,
just say, Jesus,
come into my life.
Lord, I’m so empty.
Open my eyes.
Maybe you’ve got doubts.
It’s okay.
Maybe you don’t really know
who God is, but you keep hearing
about Jesus.
Ask God to open your eyes.
Ask Him to open your eyes
to who Jesus is.
He is the Son of God.
He is your Redeemer,
your Savior, the one who can
heal your body.
Open my eyes, oh Lord,
to see a future of hope,
of joy, of life,
of faith in Jesus’s name.
Pray this prayer.
Say, Jesus, come into my heart.
Cleanse me, forgive me,
and open my eyes
in Jesus’s name.
He heard you.
Go to the phone.
Dial the number on the screen
or send us a message,
an email,
and we’ll help you
in your new walk.
If you want to join us
on this fast, we have all
the material you can imagine.
I’m going to be your
fasting coach.
You sound scared.
I don’t know what to do.
God’s going to open your eyes.
You just jump in here and do it
and watch what God will do.
You can find out every detail
of different kinds of fasts.
Ask God what kind of fast
you want to do.
But I’m going to tell
you something.
This is the hour to seek
God’s face.
We’re facing so many things
in this Nation,
and we need a move of God.
We need our eyes wide open
in times like these to discern
the will of God for our lives
and for our families.
So, I encourage you to do that.
It’s going to be
a glorious fast,
and you’re going
to be part of it.
Can’t wait to see what
God’s going to do,
and we’re going to see it.
These eyes are going to see
wonderful things
in Jesus’s name.
♪ ♪
>> We believe in healing,
we believe in deliverance
from the power of Satan.
If drugs or alcoholism
has a grip on your life,
we believe that when you turn
to Jesus, He pronounces healing
physically, spiritually,
emotionally, mentally,
relationally in your life
but you have to pursue Him,
and the wisdom of God’s Word.
That’s why we prepared this
special website that is
free of charge that you can
go on and start a 21 day journey
to a change in your life
that you never dreamed
that could happen.
This’ll help you in your
new walk with the Lord.
Our ministry just started
our annual 21 day fast,
and I know that sounds heavy
if you’ve never been around
church or any of that,
but I promise you,
it’s a partial fast.
We explain it all,
and it’s one of the most
encouraging joyful times
as we seek the Lord together
in prayer and fasting,
and calling on God,
and giving Him the new year.
And so today as thousands
of people around the globe
are joining us to seek God
on this fast at the beginning
of a new year
momentum is building
and if you haven’t joined us
it’s not too late.
Just go online and say
“I’m with you.
I’m gonna join and jump in.”
And we’ll teach you how to do it
I’ll be your fasting coach.
And we’ve got all kinds of
devotionals and daily things
that will help you become
intimate and deep in your
relationship with God.
I know that it’s a little
overwhelming sometimes
to think about doing without
sweets, or if you doing
the Daniel fast,
doing without meat
and doing without sugar,
and doing without bread,
but think of how healthy
that is for you physically,
and even how much more healthy
spiritually it is when you say,
“God, I’m pushing back
from the table and I’m gonna
spend extra time in your word.”
We have so many resources
available on our website,
so check it out today.
And I’m grateful to all
of you who have continued
to support this ministry.
Our number one goal is to preach
the Gospel all over
the world.
We do that through this
television ministry,
and I couldn’t do it
without you incredible people.
We produce inspirational
resources, devotionals
like we’re offering you
this month,
and all kinds of things,
and we support amazing mission
projects like the one in Israel,
and the amazing feeding center
that we have and partner with
in Haiti, and all over the world
so many things I don’t have time
to mention.
But just know that when you
send your best gifts,
especially at the beginning
of a brand new year
I believe that God will
bless you in remarkable things.
We’ve got some encouraging
resources to help you
build your faith
in a brand new year.
Here’s my announcer
to tell you more.
>> ANNOUNCER: Are you ready
to transform your life?
Now you can experience
Jentezen Franklin’s
dynamic teaching on fasting
in his New York Times
best-selling book, “Fasting.”
You’ll receive the keys
to encountering
the countless rewards
and blessings of fasting
that open the door to a deeper,
more intimate relationship
with God.
Everything you need
to access the power
of biblical fasting is found
in the 2020 Fasting Kit.
Including the types
of fasts in the Bible,
the secret to a successful fast,
choosing the right fast for you;
the connection between
fasting and prayer,
How to begin and end your fast,
the essential components
of a successful fast,
what to expect physically,
mentally and spiritually.
With your generous gift
of $1,000 or more this month,
you’ll not only help us
preach the gospel
through the broadcast to over
200 nations globally,
but help us go above
and beyond to help
our partners in Israel.
You can request the 2020
Limited Edition Fasting Kit,
plus this lovely replica
of the type of oil lamp
commonly used in Jesus’ day.
We’ll also include
this specially created blanket
inscribed with
the Numbers 6 blessing,
and our special edition
Legacy Bible
with over 300,000 words
of commentary;
including highlights
from Jentezen Franklin’s
fasting teachings.
Or, with your best gift of $50
or more you can receive
Jentezen Franklin’s Fasting Kit,
and get ready for God’s power
to break through in your life.
Fasting is a tremendous weapon,
and a source of power
in the life
of every believer.
Experience it today.
>> During the Fast of 2016
so much of what Pastor Jentezen
was preaching at that time
was about a spirit
of excellence,
and doing more.
And I really just got this idea
that I was going to start
working out for the first time
in a long time.
And I joined this boot camp.
One time when we were running,
I got this headache
that just slammed me
into the ground.
When I got the headache
I thought,
“Well I just overdid it.”
That happened one more time
and I said,
“Well, sorry Pastor Jentezen,
working out is not for me.”
But the third time it happened
I was on my way to church
and I had stopped at a Publix
to go to the bathroom,
and I could barely make it
back to my car.
This headache just overcame me
and I had to basically
crawl back,
and I ended up in an ambulance.
That’s the scariest place to be.
The nurses eventually
said after a whole bunch
of tests and a whole
bunch of medication
that I had a brain stone.
But it turns out after
I got referred to
a neurosurgeon that
that brain stone was there
to protect me from a tumor
that had been growing.
When I told my dad about
the brain tumor,
he wanted me to come out
and see him.
He wanted me to bring the scan
so he could see it for himself.
And we sat on his front porch
and we cried,
because he said that
that’s what his mother
had died from.
And seeing my dad scared for me,
it changed the way I felt
about the whole thing.
I ended up in bed for about
five weeks,
and during that time,
I mean, some of the craziest
things happened.
I had vertigo, I couldn’t read.
The words would jump off
of a page.
I was just there in my room.
Even though the doctor
hadn’t released me,
I decided to come back to church
and get back on the team.
But in that first song,
the lights and the sound,
it just overwhelmed me.
I couldn’t even be
in the sanctuary.
I ended up walking around
the foyer and the lobby
of the Gwinnett campus
and I ran into one of my small
group members who was
greeting that day.
She said that she wanted
to invite me over and have
everyone anoint me with oil
and pray over me.
And I mean,
I really appreciated that,
of course.
But something just came
out of me, and again,
I really think it
was from the fast.
I was so built up in the Spirit
that I knew I was going
to walk this thing
out by faith.
And I told her, “Thanks,
but the next time I go to
the neurosurgeon they’re
gonna tell me I’m healed.”
That next morning when
I opened my eyes, I realized
my head did not weigh 20 pounds.
I realized that the light
shining through my window
was not giving me a headache.
I realized that I was healed,
but my doctors didn’t.
Even though I felt fine
I couldn’t be released
to go back to work.
It was the beginning
of a second nightmare.
From then on out every doctors
visit that I had cost me
$1,000 co pay.
All of my finances
were just gone.
I ended up losing my apartment.
Before I knew it I was
sleeping in my car.
I parked in the parking deck
at Piedmont hospital
so I’d be right there
when I had to go
for my check ups.
But for two weeks,
that’s where I slept.
When I went for my check up
about 18 months later,
they sent me to get another MRI.
I thought, “Great,
here’s another $1,000
that I’m wasting.”
And I was just sitting
there flipping through
a magazine as I was waiting.
I really felt like
the Holy Spirit spoke to me.
He said, “Take a selfie.”
I said,
“I don’t do selfies, God.”
He said, “Take a selfie.
I want you to remember the day
that you’re told you don’t
have a brain tumor anymore.”
I said, “Okay.”
And I got my phone and I took
about 15 selfies
as I was sitting there waiting,
a bunch of different poses,
and then he walked in.
The funniest look on his face,
he said, “Well, you don’t
have a brain tumor anymore.”
I just started laughing.
That happened last year.
There’s no doubt in my mind
that if I had not been fasting
my story would
be completely different.
I know that’s what made me
strong enough to walk
through this diagnosis.
You know, coming back now,
there’s nothing holding me back.
I feel like serving
in the production team,
and everything else I do
at Free Chapel is just my way
of saying thanks.
Thanks for another opportunity
to serve the Lord
in this great church.
♪ ♪
>> Cherise and I
wanna invite you to join us
on our Holy Land Tour.
It’s an amazing trip,
unlike anything
you’ve ever experienced,
and we’ll be on the trip,
we get on the busses,
our family will be on there,
and I promise you,
it will change your life.
You’ve been thinking about it,
you’ve been praying about it,
this is the year to go.
God’s gonna open your eyes
to things you’ve never
seen and experienced before
in the holy land.
Get signed up today.
♪ ♪
>> We hope you’ve enjoyed
this teaching
by Jentezen Franklin,
and thank you for
your continued support
of this ministry.
Your prayers
and financial support
make these programs possible.
♪ ♪