You can live excited, because your breakthrough is coming! Hope is a positive attitude that something good is about to happen at any moment.
now the first thing I want to talk about
today is doubt and how doubt affects us
in getting answered to prayer
James 1:5 through 8 James chapter 1
verse 5 through 8 if any of you is
deficient in wisdom which i think is
probably most of us let him ask of the
giving God who gives to everyone that
includes you liberally that means way
more than enough and ungrudgingly he
doesn’t resent helping us he likes to do
it without reproach and fault-finding I
could sit and just look at this
scripture for a long time so when I come
to God even though maybe some of the
messes in my life are of my own making
they came through my own lack of wisdom
I got myself in trouble I didn’t listen
to God to start with I didn’t follow
peace I can still even in the midst of
that I can go to God and ask him to help
me and he won’t even reproach me which
means shame or blame and he doesn’t find
fault with me he just helps me now that
doesn’t mean he doesn’t teach me and
train me and correct me but one of the
examples that I’ve used many times is if
you have a child that has not done all
their chores this week but they’re
outside playing and the neighborhood
bully gets after them and you hear them
screaming for help you’re not going to
go check their list of chores to see if
they got all their check marks otherwise
is too bad for them I mean you if the
door is not open you may go through it
to get outside to help your kid are you
hearing me
man and that doesn’t mean that you won’t
correct them later about their chores
that doesn’t mean that you might not
even you know tell them they can’t go
outside for a day or something but you
will not refuse to help your children
because they are not perfect and don’t
do everything exactly the way you want
them to so stop letting the devil steal
from you by thinking that you dare not
ask God to help you because you have not
done everything that you should do just
own it
amen only it must be in faith that he
asked with no wavering no hesitating no
doubting for the one who wavers
hesitates and doubts is like the
billowing surge out at sea that is blown
hither and thither and tossed by the
wind for truly let not such a person
imagine he will see anything he asked
for from the Lord for being as he is a
man of two minds hesitating dubious
arrested he is unstable and unreliable
and uncertain about everything he thinks
feels and decides now doubt leaves us
midway between believing and not
believing and this says we’re not to
become people of two minds so the Bible
talks about the mind of the Spirit and
the mind of the flesh and I think we
have to learn how to live by the mind of
the Spirit and that’s really like what
you sense down in here so there are
times when I can believe something with
my heart but the enemy is going to use
my mind to try to steal my faith now are
you with me so I am NOT going to stand
here and tell you that I have some nifty
message that I can give you a little
three-point sermon on how you can never
have doubt again because to be honest
with you doubt comes to all of us and
I’ve thought about this quite a bit
because I just really don’t like to give
people answers that I don’t think will
work and so I’ve thought about this
because there’s times when when I
have doubts sometimes when I’m up here
preaching and maybe you know I’m not
getting the right reaction I think I
should I’ll hear the enemy say this is
not the right message and while I’m
preaching to you I have to tell him to
shut up and I have to go back to my own
heart of yes this is right I prayed
about this I saw God about this and I’m
not going to stand up here and be
double-minded it is important that we
believe all the way through to the
manifestation and I can pretty much
promise you that doubt is going to come
against your mind but that’s when you
need to go back to the mind of the
Spirit and very often go back to
Scripture what does the word say you see
it doesn’t matter how I feel it doesn’t
matter what I think it doesn’t matter
what people say it doesn’t really matter
even what my circumstances are the only
thing that really matters is what does
the word say this is what it means to
walk by the word so what I want to
strongly recommend is when you’re
standing in faith for something or
you’ve asked God for something and it’s
just not happening I mean let’s just say
you’re believing God for one of your
children salvation and the more you pray
the worse they act well you know that’s
not really uncommon because what happens
when you pray and this may be something
you never thought of when we pray for
somebody else God begins to deal with
them
and I don’t know by Cupid I don’t know
he’s act real pretty when God’s dealing
with me and so it is very possible that
when you start praying for somebody they
can act worse than they did and then
what the devil wants you to think is
well that sure isn’t working but what
you need to say and I’m saying say
because we need to use our mouth for
right stuff in a time like that what you
need to say you can just take your
doubts and head back to Hell where you
came from because
because it is God’s will that all should
be saved I have prayed and I believe
that God is working in my behalf
right now and not only will that help
the answer come through but here’s a
really good benefit you stay happy and
excited in the meantime everybody’s
exciting excited when they’re expecting
a breakthrough at any moment that’s what
it means to live with hope a positive
expectation that something good is about
to happen any moment instead of waking
up and saying I dread the day I dry
today we need to wake up and think I
can’t hardly wait to see what God does
today amen mark 11:23 and 24 says truly
I tell you whoever says to this mountain
be lifted up and thrown into the sea and
does not doubt at all in his heart
doesn’t even really say that doubt won’t
come to your mind but does not doubt it
all in his heart but believes that what
he says will take place it will be done
for him for this reason I’m telling you
whatever you ask for in prayer believe
trust to be confident that it is granted
to you and you will get it now we talked
about this last night I need to believe
I’ve got it before I see it did you hear
me we need to believe we’ve got it
before we see it and boy is that hard
for people who are not accustomed to
living like this how can you believe
what you don’t see well because we have
two lives we’ve got a spiritual life and
we’ve got a natural fleshly life and the
spiritual part of us cannot be seen it
operates in an unseen realm where there
are unseen yet wonderful amazing things
happening and when God suddenly does
something in your life
that doesn’t mean that that was when he
started working on it God is already
working in your behalf you know it’s
like little kids play there pretend
games have their little invisible
friends but you know what we’ve got an
invisible friend too
I love it don’t you and I talked to my
invisible friend okay now this is such a
cool scripture 2nd Corinthians 4:13 yet
we have the same spirit of faith as he
had who wrote I have believed and
therefore have I spoken we too believe
and therefore we speak so what I’m
saying is when doubt comes open up your
mouth and confess what you’re believing
not the lie the devil is telling you
just because a crook knocks on your door
that doesn’t mean you have to let him in
and then and then here’s another facet
to doubt if we know very much about God
at all to be honest we rarely ever doubt
that God can do something but we doubt
that he will do it for us it’s easier
sometimes to tell somebody else what
God’s going to do for them and believe
it for them than it is to believe it for
ourselves and that’s because we look at
all of our mistakes and I’m not saying
that we live sloppy lives and don’t care
about how we live and that you know God
just brushes over everything I’m not
saying that at all
God is merciful but I’m talking about
somebody whose heart is right toward God
and and you know I make mistakes matter
of fact I doubt that there’s a day that
goes by that I don’t make mistakes but
I’ll tell you the truth and I’m sorry if
this upsets you but I am not focused on
what’s wrong with me
you know why because I wasted too many
years of my life focused on what was
wrong with me and just taking an
inventory of every little thing that was
wrong with me and I gave that up because
whatever I am I am in Christ and
whatever I’m not I’m still in Christ and
if I do anything good it’s because he
enabled me and if I do anything bad then
he’s the only one that can forgive me
and I want God’s conviction I want to
know when I’m doing wrong things i I
mean I thank God when he shows me now
Joyce you had a bad attitude in that
situation home thank you God I do I
think because I lived in darkness and
ignorance for too many years going
around mistreating people and not even
knowing I was doing it but see the only
way you can thank God for showing you
what’s wrong with you is if you’re not
condemned by it I said the only way you
can thank God for showing you what’s
wrong with you is if you’re not
condemned by it and the Bible says he
that knew no sin became sin that we
might be made the righteousness of God
in Christ where sin abounds grace does
much more abound in him we are justified
made right with him sanctified redeemed
set free
our imperfection has nothing to do with
God’s ability and willingness to answer
our prayers now you know if somebody is
got hidden sin in their life and they’re
living wrong and they’re not paying
attention to anything that God’s saying
then it’s certainly within God’s realm
of choice to withhold an answer until
you can get your attention and get you
to come to a place of repentance it’s no
different than the way we handle our
children I’ll give you my word first but
if you don’t do what I told you to
eventually I will have to touch your
circumstances
amen I mean that’s about as plain as I
know how to make it so wonderful
Scripture in Hebrews 4 15 and 16 got to
read this can’t can’t not read this for
we do not have a high priest who is
unable to understand and sympathize and
have a shared feeling with our
weaknesses and infirmities and
liabilities to the assaults of
temptation but we have one who has been
tempted in every respect just like we
have yet without sinning Jesus knows
what it’s like to be in a human body and
I have doubt come and temptation common
impatience come he he understands all
that he made it through all of it
without sinning and he did it for us and
now we get the reward that he deserves
so then let us fearless Lee and
confidently and boldly draw near to the
throne of grace the throne of God’s
unmerited favor to us sinners that we
may receive mercy for our failures and
find grace to help in good time for
every need appropriate help and
well-timed help coming just when we need
it so don’t ever draw back from asking
God to help you you know to me when I
and this is the way I start a lot of
mornings father I come to you today in
Jesus name
admitting to you that I don’t deserve
anything good I don’t deserve your help
I don’t deserve anything but I come in
his name presenting to you all that he
is not what I am my faith is in Jesus
and because of that I can come boldly to
your throne
and get my needs met