[Applause]
[Music]
Wow
listen don’t take your seat yet send
back a summary cuz I want to pray over
you’ll want us to all stand together in
the presence of God why pray over you
this Saturday morning and I wanted to
just tell you before we pray that the
last time I was with you at least four
pink impact I’ve been I sneaked into
Gateway all the time I sneaked into her
telephone but the last time I was with
you think impact we were over at the
Fort Worth Convention Center and I had
gotten a doctor’s report several weeks
prior that they saw a mass on my lungs
and I was waiting for a phone call that
day because I had gotten the x-ray done
again or the CT scan done again in hopes
that it had diminished so the phone rang
in between sessions at pink impact and
they called and said my doctor with her
very calming but very concerned voice to
say that that mass had not shrunk at all
and I was still there and I remember
feeling this paralyzing feeling like are
you are you serious like you just expect
them to say oh it wasn’t that you know
no big deal so that mass is still there
and I want you to know that the fact
that I got that call while I was with
you made all the difference because
there is a protective covering there is
a sense of truth and hope that resonates
in this house and that resonates in this
gathering that made me so crate that’s
the Lord Debbie that I got to be in this
place when I got that I told Jim
Greenwood that that day and Jan
Greenwood laid her hands on me
and prayed the fire of God’s Spirit down
on me
praise the Lord in the weeks that
followed they discovered that it was
benign that it’s just scar tissue that
settled there but I want you to know
that that uncertainty that I had in that
moment what I came back into the session
and I heard with that uncertainty after
that phone call not knowing what in the
world my life would be like in those
next weeks and months coming back into
the session and hearing the truth of God
and being amongst the people of God and
feeling his love and his hope emanating
from the worship and the word listen the
reason why you were in this place today
if you’ve got some uncertainty and a
phone call you’ve just gotten a betrayal
that’s just happened a broken heart that
has just kind of become become a part of
your reality because of a kid a child of
yours that struggling or a spouse or a
friend or a phone call you just got them
a doctor I’m saying the reason why
you’re in this house in this uncertain
time in your life it’s because your God
wants you to know he loves you he is for
you and no matter what there was so far
he has got your back and amen and for
Lord right now and she’s the same I
bring to you every single dollar that is
under the sound of my voice
both in this room and on the other side
of the screen and I pray right now in
Jesus name that whatever the uncertainty
is you would cover it by the blood of
Jesus lord I pray that you would infuse
hope where there is no hope that you
would infuse Lord your love where there
is a feeling of being unloved or
forgotten Lauren where there is no hope
I pray that you would bring hope and
fill in hope in the hearts of your women
where there is discouragement I pray
that you would lift discouragement off
of somebody’s life and that you would
replace it with your courage in Jesus
name lord I pray that if there is any
assignment of the enemy that that
assignment would be canceled in the name
of Jesus and by his word that has been
shed on Calvary
we’re in the house today for pink impact
because we are believing that you have
sent us here for these days for your
purposes so that we can leave different
than when we first started Father we
believe you we trust you with our lives
and now we come to you on this Saturday
morning over your word fully
anticipating that you’ve got a specific
word for every single person that is in
the room and beyond we are your servants
and we are listening speak Lord speak to
your people in Jesus name all God’s
women agreed when they said amen
Thank You amen take your seats y’all
stop cryin y’all get y’all selves
together so in the 1980s there was this
this movie that really took the entire
world by storm everybody was talking
about this movie everybody enjoyed it
and loved it so much and it sort of just
kind of went on the ripple effect of it
went on for a while so much so that 20
25 years later they made a remake of
this film the name of the film was the
Karate Kid I’m sure you saw at least the
remake in 2010 I said to my boys
recently guys have y’all seen the Karate
Kid and they were like yeah you know
what Will Smith sir and I was like that
one was good too but the original
version you got to see the original
version and as I look out at least if
those of you that are gathered in this
room with me as I look at it occurs to
me that many of you weren’t even born in
the 1980s I’m so troubled right now but
it was about 1985 or so when the
original Karate Kid came out Daniel son
do you remember Daniel son is being
terrorized by some bullies that are at
his school and/or in his neighborhood
and he’s just trying his best to deal
with him them but he’s not able to on
his own so he finds a sensei of sorts
mr. Miyagi and he goes to mr. Miyagi and
he says mr. Miyagi listen I need you to
train me in the art of karate so that I
am able to stand firm against this enemy
because they are really running me over
and I need some tactics can you please
help me with this and so mr. Miyagi is a
little bit reluctant a little bit
hesitant but finally he says yes I will
take you on as a student so Daniel is
very excited he leaves that night after
getting the yes from mr. Miyagi he comes
back the next day ready to learn the art
of karate instead mr. Miyagi hands him
to wash rags and says to him wax the
cars
wax on and wax off and he takes them to
this lot there’s not one or two cars in
the lot it is filled to capacity and he
says wax all the cars and Daniel gets
started he you know figures he’d do the
old man a favor for a little while
before they get started in the real
reason why he’s coming so he waxes on
and waxes off at any time he gets sloppy
along the way a mr. Miyagi shows up and
says uh uh don’t do it that way Daniel
son wax on and wax off
so the day turns into evening time he’s
finally finished every car in the lot he
goes home coming back the next day fully
expecting and anticipating that today is
the day that I’m a learn some actual
karate instead mr. Miyagi puts a paint
can in one hand a paintbrush in the
other and he takes them to a wooden
fence line that’s surrounding a patio
and he says I want you to paint the
fence paint the fence and I don’t want
you to just do it any old kind of sloppy
way no I actually want you to paint it
exactly like I’ve asked you to paint it
and so he paints the short little
distance that exists between the
beginning of the fence line and some
brush some trees that are there any
thinks he’s done and he says I got it
done mr. Miyagi and mr. Miyagi says
Daniel spent the whole fence paint the
fence and any time he gets sloppy along
the way mr. Miyagi shows up and says uh
uh Danielson do it exactly the way that
I’ve asked you to do it he’s frustrated
now pretty irritated because this is not
the reason why he came he didn’t come to
be his house manager he came to learn
some actual karate he goes home that
evening expecting that the next day will
be the day that he actually learns what
he came to learn instead mr. Miyagi
hands me some sandpaper sets him down on
a wooden deck and says sand the floor
sand the floor and any time he gets
sloppy along the way mr. Miyagi comes by
shows him exactly again exactly how it
is supposed to be done and says do it my
way
now Daniel son is completely irritated
he cannot believe it basically for the
past three four
he has been a house manager a
housekeeper for mr. Miyagi and he
decides to give mr. Miyagi a piece of
his mind and so he says to him you got
to be kidding me this is not the reason
why we agreed for me to show up every
single day I can’t believe you’ve got me
doing all this random nonsensical stuff
here around your house and as he’s
talking and expressing his irritation to
mr. Miyagi mr. Miyagi begins out of
nowhere to throw random punches and
Danielson son instinctually begins to
block every single punch that comes his
way because in the training process he
didn’t realize that what to him seemed
like a complete waste of time was
actually preparing him for punches that
the master knew would be coming his way
I can only imagine that in the group
this size both in this room and on the
other side of the screen that there are
so very many of us that are in seasons
of our life where there are things that
are happening paces that the Lord is
putting us through things that he’s
asked us to do or ask us to be in this
season of our life whether in marriage
or in parenting or in ministry on our
job and we try to figure out what in the
world does this have to do with the big
overarching plan God that I think that
you have for my life could it be that
the master knows that there are things
coming your way that if you will handle
appropriately and responsibly and with
diligent what he’s put in your hands to
do today that it’s actually setting you
up to be victorious later on and so I
was thinking about this in regards to
areas of my life in areas of some some
guy’s life that we’re gonna meet in the
scriptures here in just a few minutes
where there are things that either are
tedious for us or even taxing for us
they’re waiting on us we’re wondering
why the Lord has us going through those
things that maybe those things are
actually the things that pressed us
enough to produce the best out of our
lives I see this happening in Luke
chapter 9
do you have your Bible and you actually
want to turn there with me if you
actually still use the Bible with paper
pages like I do
or your iPhone your iPad any manner of
i-ness just flip on over to Luke chapter
9 Luke chapter 9 is a very familiar
story
I’m gonna read several verses of
Scripture to you and then we’re just
going to talk a little bit through this
story because I think we’re gonna find
out how sometimes some of the most
tedious or taxing portions of our life
are God ordained and used to bring the
best things out of us Luke chapter 9
verse 1 and 2 and then I’m gonna read
the familiar part verses 10 through 17
it says and if he called somebody say he
called Jesus called the twelve together
and he gave somebody say he gave he gave
them power and authority over all demons
and to heal diseases verse two says and
he said somebody say he sent and he sent
them out verse 10 says and when they
returned to him they gave him an account
of all that they had done and taking
them with him he withdrew by himself to
a city called Bethsaida
but the multitudes they were aware of
this so they followed Jesus and
welcoming the multitude welcoming them
he began speaking to them about the
kingdom of God and curing all of those
who were in need of healing verse 12
says and then the day began to decline
and the twelve came to Jesus and said
Jesus would you please send this
multitude away they need to go and they
need to go to the surrounding villages
and countryside find some lodging get
something to eat because you know Jesus
right here we’re in a very very desolate
place but he said to them
uh-uh you give him something to eat and
they said come on Jesus you know we only
have five loaves and two fish unless
perhaps we go and buy more food for all
these people the the author wants you to
know there were about 5,000 men scholars
say that doesn’t include women and
children there were probably 15,000
people there that day he said to the
disciples have them reclined to eat in
groups of about fifty each verse 15 says
so they did that had them all recline he
took the five loaves and the two fish
and looking up to heaven
he blessed them and then he broke them
and then he kept giving them to the
disciples to set before the multitude
and they all ate and were satisfied and
the broken pieces which they had left
over were picked up and there were
twelve baskets full I know that many of
you have heard this passage of Scripture
before this there is familiar beautiful
portion of scripture where Jesus has an
encounter with a multitude that is
hungry and that needs to be fed but I
really believe that this miracle doesn’t
start when the people get hungry I think
it starts really at the beginning of
this chapter where we meet the twelve
the disciples who are in close
connection close fellowship with Jesus
Christ like you and I have been in our
lives but specifically over these the
last few days when we’re having a close
up face-to-face encounter with Jesus
these twelve are connected to Jesus in a
very personal intimate way in these
first two verses of Luke chapter 9 in
fact this exact same story is told in
another gospel the synoptic gospel which
is Mark chapter six you don’t have to
turn there but I’ll just tell you in
mark chapter 6 when this story is told
we get more flesh on the bones of this
story I want to tell you that anytime
you read the same story told in the
synoptic Gospels that mean where there’s
synergy in the stories that are told in
those Gospels and you see something that
seems to be contradictory well we know
that the Bible is completely inherent
that means if there’s something that has
said that is a little different in one
passage than in the other what that
tells us is that there’s some flesh
there’s some layers there’s some texture
that’s gonna help us to get a handle on
that story even better it’s kind of like
if somebody offers you a one layer
chocolate cake you’re gonna enjoy it but
if somebody gives you an option between
one layer and seven layers now I don’t
know about y’all but I’m gonna take the
seven layer chocolate cake every single
time that’s because the more layers
there are the more rich and full and
delectable the experience really becomes
right in mark chapter 6 we get a layer
of chocolate cake it tells us that this
is the time when the disciples came to
Jesus and then he sent them
in pairs do you remember that he sent
them out two by two to the neighboring
towns and the neighboring communities
and the neighboring cities to perform
miracles and to teach and to preach and
to authenticate that Jesus was who he
said he was and their ministry was so
effective that lark chapter 6 tells us
when they came back to Jesus they were
completely depleted and completely tired
and exhausted because they had given so
much and they had expended so much in
fact Jesus is the one who recognized
their exhaustion because they had been
completely spent in doing what it was
that Jesus had come to them Jesus had
asked them and assigned to them to do so
they came back to Jesus they looked him
in his face and gave an account for how
they had handled the assignment on which
they had been sent in fact the author in
mark chapter 6 wants you to know they
had been so busy they had not even had
time to eat has anybody in the room ever
been that busy
I ain’t never been that busy but these
men were so busy they had not even eaten
Jesus recognized their exhaustion they
came to Jesus and they gave an account
because they had handled the assignment
that they had been given so fully and
completely and with integrity if you
don’t mind I’ve got to just open up a
parenthesis here before we get to the
feeding of the 5,000 just open up a
parenthesis here to make sure you don’t
miss the disciples handled the
assignment that Jesus had given them
with so much integrity that they were
able to look Jesus in his eyes and give
him an account for how they had handled
that assignment do you all know that
there is a time that is coming sooner
than we think where we’re going to see
our Savior face to face and we’re gonna
have to give an account me and you for
how we’ve handled the assignment that he
sent us on whether it’s being a mother
or a wife or a single woman or a woman
in ministry or in a corporate setting
whatever assignment he’s given you to do
the day is coming y’all where we’re
gonna see our Savior look him in the
face and have to give him an account and
I don’t know about you guys but when I
give my Savior an account I’m looking
for well done I want to hear my Savior
self will say well done
not because I’ve spent my days
impressing people but because my rice
has garnered the applause of heaven I
remember my grandmother before she
passed away she said to me Priscilla
when I see him face to face I don’t want
to meet him with my head hung down I
want to be able to lift my head up and
look at him not an arrogance or in pride
but but in integrity that I did to the
best of my I finished my race I ran with
integrity with the baton that he gave me
as a wife as a mother in ministry on my
job I did what it was that he had called
me to do and the disciples they gave an
account and so I just with with our
little open parenthesis right here I
just thought it would
interesting to us for any of us who are
in the room who want to make sure that
we can give an account like these
disciples did I thought it would be
interesting to try to figure out if
there was some sort of recipe for
effective ministry that is in this
passage somewhere and just to be clear
every single one of us under the sound
of my voice are in ministry if you are a
believer in Jesus Christ you’re in
ministry it’s the enemy that wants us to
think you got to be standing on a
platform with a microphone in your hand
in order to be in ministry it is the
enemy that has compelled us globally is
the church to minimize or downgrade the
gifts that happen to be behind closed
doors and behind the scenes but the only
reason why you and I could be in this
building today is because there’s
somebody humble enough and yields it
enough to come in here after we leave to
clean up the floors and the seats and to
make sure that we have a place to sit
and receive what God has done doing in
our lives the only reason we have this
opportunity is because there are people
behind those cameras behind the stage
and taking care of our children in the
sunday school to make sure that we have
the privilege to be in this place may we
never downplay those gifts those talents
those ministries so whatever he’s called
you to do you ought to do it with all of
your might because one day y’all we’re
gonna give an account I wanted to figure
out what’s the recipe for some effective
ministry like these disciples had where
they were completely spent and yielded
and and desirous of looking at Jesus to
give him an account of how they had
handled their assignment y’all there is
a recipe right here in verse 1 in verse
2 the recipe has three ingredients
anybody interested in the recipe of
effective ministry the very first
ingredient in the recipe it says that he
called them Jesus called them they did
not call themselves to an assignment
they heard the call of God God all of
the deity and the holiness and the
authority of God wrapped
of humanity he made it so that humans
could hear his voice and know what his
assignment was for them do you know that
because of God’s Spirit you can hear and
heed the calling of God for your life
and when the disciples heard the call of
God they did not ignore it they did not
circumvent it they did not hope that
someone else would fill in this
assignment while they a pursuit bigger
and better ambitions and gold they
heeded the call of God the first
ingredient of effective ministry is
hearing and heeding the call of God for
your life
there is no ambition there is no
personal aspiration that is more
meaningful in your life than the call of
God that’s what you were made for do it
to the glory of God don’t let there be
any fear any insecurity that keeps you
from saying yes sir to the Codel of God
on your life where your heart burns
where there’s fire shut up in your bones
where you can’t sit back because the
Holy Spirit is poking and prodding and
compelling and convicting you to go well
go by the Spirit of God where you are
called he will equip you for that
calling the disciples y’all they were
called Lord forgive us when we have
called ourselves to tasks that were
never meant for us Lord forgive us when
we have walked down the lane that was
actually somebody else’s lane to walk
down forgive us when we have tried to
fill in shoes that were somebody else’s
shoes to fill and make us women who hear
and heed and value the call of God on
our lives but there’s not just the first
ingredient there’s a second ingredient I
love that before he sent them there’s an
ingredient right there in the middle it
says he gave them power and authority in
other words they could not go on their
own skill or their own gifting or their
own talents they had to rely on the the
entrusted power and authority of God’s
Spirit given to them for the test
because can I tell you the enemy hopes
that we will go in our own power he
hopes that we will go in our own skill
our own gifting our own talent but if we
want to pray for people and those
prayers actually break yokes on people’s
lives if we want to sing a song and it
do more than just impress people and
garner a standing ovation if we want to
speak or write the blog post or write
the poem or the book and it actually
changed and transformed the heart of
people then we can’t go in the natural
we gotta go in the supernatural if he’s
called you would you know that he is
also going to give you the power and
authority to accomplish the task to
which you have been sent Lord forgive us
when we have gone in our own strength
and our own power
cuz y’all it’s not by might and it is
not by power it is by the Spirit of God
and some trust in chariots other folks
they trust in horses but not us we trust
in the name of the Lord our God whatever
he’s called you to do I mean while
you’ve been sitting here at this
conference you’ve felt the unction the
sparks of the Holy Spirit going off like
wildfire in your soul you know what it
is he’s asking you to do whether it’s to
forgive someone or to ask for
forgiveness or give that gift or to
offer that song or to start that
ministry whatever it is that he’s called
you to do know that he won’t equip you
with his power and his authority to
accomplish the task so they were called
they were equipped but there’s a third
of ingredient in the recipe it says that
he sent them listen to me he’s the one
that did the sending just as important
as your calling is that is as important
as the timing in which that calling is
actually out worked in your life resist
the urge restrain yourself from sending
yourself to an assignment that it is not
yet time for if he has not yet sent you
then restrain yourself from coming out
of the protective covering of his
developmental process too soon because
if you give birth too soon to a calling
it’s not yet time for you won’t abort
the process you won’t abort the
character that he was trying to
establish in you the fortification that
he was trying to build in you the stuff
you would need in order to stand study
in the calling to which you have been
assigned you will abort that process if
you go too soon
and listen if the spotlight that you may
be craving hits you and you have no
character the spotlight you are craving
it will burn you to a crisp I so
restrain yourself from going too soon
into a calling that it is not yet time
for these disciples they were called
they were equipped and then they were
sent by Jesus Christ and because this
recipe was working in their life they
were able to come back to him and say
Lord we did what it was that you had
asked us to do we finished the race we
did to the best of our capacities not
perfectly but at least intentionally and
purposefully what you’ve asked us to do
and I want to be able to look my Savior
in the face don’t you and say as a
single woman or as a mother as a woman
in ministry or a woman that is married
to this particular man in this
particular assignment that I did what it
wasn’t you asked me to do not perfectly
but purposefully and by the Spirit of
God and so when the disciples come back
to Jesus with this report they’re tired
they are exhausted here’s the deal Jesus
sees them at their exhaustion and he
does not rebuke them because they’re
tired he does not say go away from me
take a nap get yourself together and
then come back later when I can actually
use you I have a word for anybody in the
room and you’re just plain old flat-out
tired because God’s assignment for you
has been a little bit taxing this year
you’ve been given everything you’ve got
to that marriage or that ministry or
that job you have been to the best of
your ability parenting those toddlers or
lord help us these teenagers
or the adult children of yours have
taken you a little bit of a ride you
have been giving it everything you’ve
got and this conference has met you a
little bit tired the disciples know
exactly how you feel
and the great thing about our God is
that he does not say to us you’re too
tired and exhausted for me to actually
use you he doesn’t say go away from me
and get yourself together before you can
come back and be useful to my purposes
he says to us the exact same thing he
said to the disciples he said to them
come away with me
in other words intimacy is the cure for
your exhaustion intimacy with him is
secure if you’re tired today don’t go
away from him get close to him this is
the time where you will find that
nearness to the Savior rejuvenates in
you everything that has been depleted by
the assignment that you have been
pouring yourself out for I took my boys
Oh actually it’s been almost two years
now we went to Cape Town South Africa I
had to speak there
I knew a year in advance so we saved up
all this money and planned and did
everything we could because I thought
who knows if I ever get to go back there
in my life imma take these boys and so
we planned as much as we could to get
those boys there up until last year I
was homeschooling the three boys we’ve
been doing that for four or five years
now so they could travel with us and be
engaged in ministry with us and so I
sort of planned school around the fact
that I knew we were going to Cape Town
so we studied the geography of Cape Town
we were studying Nelson Mandela and
apartheid and I had them look up
different animal species from Cape Town
we just sort of were gonna milk this
thing for all it was worth then when we
got there I you know I think they
thought they were gonna be on vacation
and just stay in the hotel room and swim
and yeah I was like we’re going to see
every single thing there is to see in
Cape Town so every morning I was that
mother get up let’s go and they were all
like Oh mom we just want to stay here I
was like oh we’re not in Austin we
didn’t Cape Town let’s go
and one day you will rise up and call me
blessed you better or I will spank you
so on one of the days we went on a
little Safari we drove two hours outside
of Cape Town early in the morning we got
into one of those little open jeeps with
a learned very bubbly guide he was
sitting at the front and and he took us
around and a lot lots of tourists that
were there we went around and saw lots
of different animals that we had studied
things that we don’t see lots of times
here in the States but we also saw herd
of zebra and there’s nothing
particularly fascinating about that cuz
we get we get to see that here but it
was fascinating what the guide told us
he said oh this is this is very
interesting he pointed to the herd of
zebra there was a little baby foal there
a baby zebra and he pointed to it said
this is the first time I’m seeing the
baby back with the herd he said for
about two three weeks now we have not
laid eyes on the mom or the fault and he
said the reason why is because when a
mother gives birth to a baby she will
take that baby away from the rest of the
herd for quite some time we never know
when they’re coming back and he said
here’s the reason why he said you can’t
really tell by the naked human eye but
really the configuration of stripes on
every single zebra is as unique and
distinct as fingerprints of human beings
so you can’t really see it but
particularly the configuration right in
the center of their forehead is their
fingerprint it’s unique to every single
zebra so when a new baby is born the
mother will take that baby aside and
away for a little while so that there
will be so much intimacy and closeness
and fellowship and singularity in their
focus that that baby will become
completely familiarized with the
configuration of stripes on his mom’s
ahead so that when they come back to the
herd there will never be any trouble in
distinguishing for that baby which one
of these diva is actually the one who
loves me most and it’s the intimacy and
the closeness and the awareness of that
baby with the mom
makes that possible this is why when you
are most fledgling most vulnerable most
weak most tired it’s not the time to go
away from him it’s the time to get close
and study his stripes because let me
tell you it’s by his stripes that you
are healed
intimacy is the cure for your exhaustion
that’s why these few days that you have
set aside that you have sown this seed
into the spiritual fabric of your life
this is why this seed is gonna reap a
harvest that’s gonna transform this next
season of your life this is why he has
set us aside at pink impact where he’s
basically taking us on a date for a few
hours this weekend where he’s whispered
sweet things in our ears where he’s
remind us that we’re loved where we’ve
studied his stripes where we worshiped
him and spirited in truth where we’ve
opened up the Word of God and let him
speak over our lives of this kind of
seed always reaps an incredible harvest
so the disciples are taken away with
Jesus jesus knows that they need to be
refreshed they need to be rejuvenated
that’s the whole reason why he’s taking
them away in the first place he says
let’s go away on a little retreat on a
vacation y’all need to be refueled so he
takes them across the northern tip of
the Sea of Galilee to a little patch of
stony ground that is right outside of a
town called Bethsaida and when they get
there there are 15,000 hungry people
waiting on them Jesus in his sovereignty
knew before they got there when he was
taking the twelve on their retreat to be
refreshed he knew before they arrived
that there would be a circumstance there
that would not just be tedious but would
be so taxing would place a demand on
them would be something that they would
not understand that they wouldn’t be
able to figure out what this has to do
with the purpose which which he brought
them for in their estimation he knew
that those 15 thousand would be there
which means that the feeding of the
5,000 is not just about the multitude
it’s about the 12 what it tells us is
that Jesus had the twelve on his mind
when they came face-to-face with the
multitude not just the hunger that the
multitude represented what it tells us
is that the five loaves and the two fish
are the gift to the multitude but that
in some way this multitude is the gift
to the disciples there’s something about
the weight of the multitude that is
going to bring something out of the
disciples that the master knows is
important and critical for them being
exactly who he is called and
commissioned them to be so I think I’ve
told you this before man I tell you
again so my boys my oldest two are in
their teenage years now I keep a journal
for each one of my boys I went to Ross
just for less right there in the back
corner they’ve got this little rack of
journals so I bought them about ten
years ago now 399 apiece somebody say
hallelujah and I write in these journals
for the boys not not every day not even
every week or every month honestly just
a couple of times a year when I see
something happening in their life that’s
interesting or they say something funny
I don’t want to forget or something
happens in school and I want to keep a
record of it but at least once a year on
their birthday I make sure to write
something because my plan is you know
one day to hand it over to him and say
you know this these are my thoughts for
you these are the things I want you to
know or better yet I’m just gonna give
it to their wives and see it say this is
have fun with that so because my oldest
son is headed toward his 16th birthday I
was looking back at his book I started
this when he was 5 so I was looking back
at 5 years old 5 years old was when he
lost his first tooth I wrote that down I
wrote it down because that’s been my son
Jackson who’s never needed a lot of
sleep
always has gone to bed late woken up
early seems to work for him not me but
him but that night he went to bed early
he could not wait to go to bed I have
never seen that boy eager to go to bed
but that night he could he dove into bed
at 7:30 he could not wait to lay his
head down on the pillow because we had
told him if he put his tooth under a
pillow at the Tooth Fairy was coming he
had been trying to make that to come out
as much as he possibly could
he finally went finally loosened enough
and fell out he’s Dovan to bed that
night put it under the pillow
he tried to go to sleep every two
seconds or so he was waking up to see if
anything had happened underneath the
pillow
finally he fell asleep and I remember
that it was about 3 a.m. in the morning
or so that I felt stirring beside me as
the 6 foot to 250 pound Tooth Fairy that
I sleep next to every night got up went
upstairs and replaced the tooth for a
treasure in the morning I knew when
Jackson got up and at the time his
three-year-old brother JC I knew when
they were up because they were so
excited to see there was someone the
pill I heard the stomping on the ground
I heard little cheers I heard excitement
I heard them bound down the stairs into
our bedroom my boy ran in with two fists
clenched closed and said mom the Tooth
Fairy came she brought me a treasure he
opened up one hand and there was a
package of gummy bears there which was a
big deal because that was his favorite
snack at the time he opened up his other
hand and there was $5.00
exactly
[Applause]
ain’t nobody got time for that anybody
in here grew up in the days of dimes and
quarter like a quarter was a big deal so
I was trying to be excited but really it
was annoyed I’m trying to smile but it’s
through clenched teeth because I could
not believe this boy got $5.00 in his
hair and my husband could read the body
language he could tell that I was a
little uneasy about this whole
five-dollar Tooth Fairy business of his
so after Jackson left the room my
husband said to me don’t worry Priscilla
he said do you remember that last month
which at the time would have been a
November which is Jackson’s birthday he
said do you remember that last month was
Jackson’s fifth birthday and as we still
do to this day all the aunts and uncles
grandparents cousins everybody comes
over to celebrate the birthdays he said
do you remember that most everybody
brought a card with $5 in it and we took
all of those $5 bills and we put them in
a birthday drawer in the kitchen he said
this morning at 3:00 a.m. I went right
inside that birthday drawer got out one
of those
[Applause]
that is good financial stewardship right
there is what that is so I had watched
my boy get all excited about treasure
that was really already his all alone
can’t even begin to tell you the
treasure that’s on the inside of you the
treasure that has been given to us
hidden vessels disposal ready to be
accessed but often we spend our days
with the treasure of God’s gifting and
his fruit and the Spirit of God the
power of God that is entrusted to each
and every one of us we have tucked it
away in a drawer or underutilized under
access and I don’t know about you but I
would hate to get to heaven only to be
told look at what you could have had
access to that you tucked away and never
ever experienced and most of the time
when we say Lord would you help me to
open up the drawer would you help me to
experience everything that you’ve tucked
away on the inside of me Lord would you
help me to do whatever it takes to
access everything that you have given me
access to the way he answers that prayer
is with a multitude he puts you in a
situation where you were so taxed and so
pressed that you have got to pull out
what you would have otherwise minimized
what you would have otherwise thought
was insignificant what you would have
otherwise ignored that gifting that
talent that idea that thought that
patience that creativity the thing that
you’ve tucked away under utilized and uh
Naxos Lord I want to see that experience
in my life he says well i’ma help you
open up the drawer and a multitude is
what’s going to give you access to it so
he takes these disciples that need to be
refreshed he takes them to a place where
it doesn’t look like refreshing it
doesn’t look like a vacation it doesn’t
look like what they will need in order
to be refueled for the next assignment
but Jesus says this multitude is
actually going to cause you to see
differently the gift that I have already
you access to five loaves and the two
fish there are the gift to the multitude
but it is that multitude that is
actually the gift to the disciples
it’s the multitude that might be the
gift to you it’s the thing that is so
tedious or time-consuming it’s the thing
that is so taxing or so waiting on you
that you’re trying to figure out how in
the world could this be a gift to me
could it be that the multitude is
actually the answer to the prayer you’ve
been praying coz I’ve got this friend
her name is Christine Kane she’s a wild
woman she’s nuts and I heard her say
something one time that I will never
ever forget she said we as believers we
pray we pray and we say Lord I want to
see you I want to see a miracle but in
the next breath we say lord please keep
me out of any situation in which a
miracle would actually be required
everybody wants to see the Red Sea
divided but nobody wants to be the one
who comes face to face with the Red Sea
everybody wants to see the walls of
Jericho come tumbling down but nobody
wants to be the one who has to walk
around those walls in obedience to God
trusting that he can cause the fortress
of Jericho to come tumbling down in your
life if we want to see God then we have
to trust that when he sends the weighty
multitude that we can’t see how in the
world this is connected to anything that
we feel like we need in our life to fill
us up and to prepare us for what’s next
we’ve got to trust that the master knows
exactly what he’s doing
so look what the disciples said about
this multitude in verse 12 they said
send the multitude away come on now this
sounds like me does it sound like
anybody else when there is a multitude
in my life when there’s something
placing a demand on me or pressing on me
that makes me uncomfortable or make me
feel like I’m out of my element or it’s
not easy it’s not convenient it’s not
what I prefer
I don’t just ask I mean I pray like
further
like I’m on my knee like Lord if you
would please take this multitude away I
would be so grateful Lord if you would
please let this cup pass from me father
so that I can do the work that you have
called me to do more take take this
multitude away but would you notice that
what they are wishing away in verse 12
is the very thing in verse 11 that it
says Jesus welcomed they are wishing
away the multitude that he has just
welcomed resists the urge to wish away
but Jesus is welcoming into your
experience the multitude that he is not
just tolerating but he is welcoming into
your life because it is your gift
resists the urge to try to pray it away
in fact if you have been trying to pray
that multitude away but for God’s
sovereign reasons that we may not never
know on this side of eternity he has not
released you from that multitude then
you can automatically assume that there
is a gift hidden in that multitude for
me you can automatically see with your
chin in your hands in full anticipation
that if he’s allowed and sustained this
multitude in your experience it’s
because there’s something in it that he
does not want you to miss so they say
send the multitude away but Jesus
doesn’t oblige them he doesn’t allow the
multitude be sent away because he knows
that in sending it away he will be
sending away the actual gift that they
need to be able to open up the drawer
and see the treasure that they that they
already have at their disposal and so
when Jesus doesn’t go for that they have
an oath another alternative and option B
look at what they say to Jesus they say
well Jesus verse 13 we have no more than
five loaves and two fish so maybe let us
go and buy food for all these people in
other words if you won’t let us send the
multitude away let us send ourselves
away so that we can go to the
neighboring towns and communities and
accumulate something more because as we
currently are is not so
patient to handle believe that is at
hand
we are not enough we do not have enough
we are not skilled enough we don’t have
enough resources we aren’t talented
enough we don’t have the right ideas the
right creativity what she has what he
has is better or more suited for this
task Lord as I am is not enough it has
always been the directive of the enemy
to make God’s people think that as they
are today is not enough not suited to
the situation that is happening in their
life at that current time it’s the enemy
that makes us think we’ve got to go
somewhere and become something else and
gather something more and accumulate
something different before we’ll be
suited to sustain the task that is
currently at hand in our life but listen
if he has called you to it if he has
allowed it that means that you likely
already have in your hands everything
that you need for that circumstance that
you are facing if you just open up the
drawer pull it out entrust it to his
care you’ll get to see a multiplying
miracle of the Most High God so Jesus
will not let the disciples he will not
let us work our ways out of the
opportunity to see and experience him in
our lives he will not let us send the
multitude away he won’t allow us to send
ourselves away he want us right smack
dab underneath the pressure of that
multitude because with that multitude
weighing on us it gives us the
opportunity to open up the drawer and
see what he likes to do with loaves and
fish and so he says actually in mark
chapter 6 our layer of chocolate cake he
says to them well what do you have he
asked the question what do you have he
doesn’t say what do you not have that
she has that you might need to go get so
that you can actually have what is
necessary for this multitude he says
what do you have then here’s the deal he
doesn’t give them a chance to answer cuz
they would likely say the wrong thing
it’s like when you ask your kid when
your kid has the nerve to come to you
and say they are bored
I mean it’s January they just finished
Christmas you just scoured Amazon trying
to figure out what to get them for
Christmas had a few things under the
tree that you thought were perfect for
them and now they have the nerve to come
to you and say they are bored and it
takes the restraining power of the Holy
Ghost for you not to knock them out you
might look at that kid and say well what
do you and knowing that they might give
you an answer that they will regret we
don’t even give him a chance to answer
Jesus didn’t even give him a chance he
just said go and look I want to ask you
have you even taken the time all the
time that you’ve taken to complain or to
compare have you taken any of that
energy to just go and look have you
asked God to reveal to you to show you
what it is that you already have tucked
away in your drawer go and look Moses
because if you’ll just look you will
find out that that rod that you’ve been
thinking is just a plain old rod that
rod would have held out over the Red Sea
will be enough to cause it to divide
from one end to the other go and look
David I know you see Goliath but if you
go look down by the riverbed you’ll see
that there are five smooth stones
waiting on you to show up to see them to
utilize them to take that giant down
sisters have you gone to look to see
what it is that is already at your
disposal he says that resource is all
you need pull it out entrusted into my
hands and when they do the scriptures
say Jesus took the five loaves and two
fish oh I wish I had time y’all cuz if I
had some time I would tell you about the
beautiful thing that it is that our God
takes our little bits if we’ll just go
get it he takes it he doesn’t turn his
nose up there are 15,000 people here
what do you think I’m gonna do with a
couple pieces of bread and an sardines
he doesn’t say that he says I
we’ll receive what you bring to me he
takes the meager gifts of man thank you
Lord that you take our little bit and
looking up to heaven he blessed yo this
is what you need cuz everything changes
when God’s blessing is on your five
loaves and two fish this is basically
what they call favor favor is what makes
the scales unbalanced favor is what
mikes make stuff unfair favor is what
takes you places where everybody else is
going house you get their favor is what
puts you in positions you never thought
you could hold favor is what allows you
to to be in in proximity to people you
never thought you would be around favor
on your five and two is exactly what did
I say your after put it in his hands he
will look up to heaven he will bless it
he will break it and then he kept giving
it back to the disciples and it kept
going and going and going and going and
there was enough for every person all
15,000 who were there but not just that
because it says they were left over
somebody say leftovers this wasn’t like
some little snack y’all this was like
Sunday afternoon dinner I’m talking
about when we were growing up not that
you know we all go out to eat now I’m
talking about you know where your mom
started dinner on Saturday night
anybody know what I’m talking about I
remember roast the smell of roast all
night long and yeast rolls rising on the
counter and macaroni and cheese up
bubbling and preparing before we ever
left the house that morning to go to
church Sunday dinner was already ready
I was already salivating and then you
came home and you ate this huge meal
whereas the words you were barely you
were basically comatose for the rest of
the day this is the kind of banquet
feast I’m talking about that Jesus
provided for them so much that they were
filled up to overflowing and there
leftovers and not just any ol amount of
leftovers cuz there were twelve baskets
one for each of the 12 depleted
exhausted disciples enough for them to
take home with them so that they left
with more than they came refreshed
rejuvenated not exhausted anymore
because everything changes when you’ve
had an encounter with the multiplying
Jesus can I just pray for any of you who
may be in this room today and you need a
multiplication miracle because you are
in the midst of either a tedious
time-consuming or taxing circumstance in
your life and honestly you don’t see the
connection you don’t see what this is
gonna have to do with that but you want
to trust the master that he’s gonna take
what you got he’s gonna multiply it and
he’s gonna make it so that whatever
multitude you’ve got in your life you’ll
be brave enough to yield your five
loaves and two fish and then trust him
to make it so that your five and two are
enough for that circumstance if you’re
in a particular situation right now and
you need prayer in that regard would you
just raise your hand I’m gonna cover you
as we close this time in God’s Word
lord I thank you for every sister in
this room and beyond who has her hand
raised right now she is willing Lord to
yield to you the little bit she’s got I
thank you Father that all you ask is for
us to give to you what we have to yield
it back to you and so I’m asking you
sisters as your hands are raised would
you even now picture your little bit
your five loaves and your two fish the
little skill the little talent the
little gift the little money the little
ideas a little energy that you do have
and just say Lord it’s yours Lord we
yield it to you and full anticipation
that you’re gonna bless it you’re gonna
break it and then you’re going to
multiply it for out your glory and it is
in Jesus name that we pray believing
this everybody agreed when they said
amen