Notes from Joycelyn Barnett
"My Journey; God's Plan"
Church of God Campmeeting/Heartland Region
June 3, 2014
Texts:
Psalm 31:15a
Genesis 32:22+
--Verse that captures my attention.
--31:15a "My times are in thy hand..."
--My life is in His hand
--NET: You determine my destiny
--Gen. 32:22
--Journey--culminates, chapter, season in life of Jacob
--"And Jacob rose up that night and took 2 wives and 2 women servants, 11 sons and passed over the ford...And he took them and sent them over the brook and sent over that he had. And Jacob was left alone."
--It has taken God 21 years to get Jacob by himself
--Surrounded by Leah, Rachel, multitude, other wives, Laban's ppl, cattle, everything else.
--God had a greater plan for him.
--God does not always release his plan when you are operating on your plan.
--Esau--must meet old adversary; sinned against him; afraid of what will happen
--"There wrestled a man with him till breaking of day; did not prevail. Touched thigh, out of joint. He said, "Let me go!" "I will not let thee go unless thou bless me. Thou name shall be Israel." Tell me thy name? Why ask after my name? And he blessed him there. For I have seen God face to face. And my life is preserved."
--My Journey, God's plan
--Every season of our life is an unfolding of plan uniquely ordered by God from very beginning. There's no plan we have engineered. God has in some way or other ordered it from the beginning.
--Diff to fathom unmatched power and wisdom of God.
--He has perfect knowledge of all of His creation.
--Takes that knowledge and maps out individual plan for our lives and calls it destiny.
--Generic; predetermined course of events beyond our control. Beyond our power. We cannot direct it on our own. God determined course, life course, times. Our future is in his hands.
--This journey is invisible. I'm living it but I can't see it. No roadmaps, signs.
--Must live, stay connected and stay on course.
--I can't touch destiny, can't put hand on it and say "This is what it is." Imperceptible, impenetrable, irresistible.
--I'm moving in direction and I don't know how I got there: Because he had a plan.
--My times are in His hands.
--I'm living in the unfolding of a predetermined journey. The journey unfolds before me.
Jeremiah 1:5: Before I formed thee, I knew you. While you kicked in the womb, I appointed you to be a prophet to the nation.
--Baby and God says you're a prophet
"And we know that all things work together..." Romans 8:28+ (He called, predestinated)
--Jer. 29: I know the thoughts I think to you...
--Talking to a nation complaining. Settle down. Stay there, build houses and have kids you're gonna be here for a little while. They are of peace and not evil. I am bringing you to expected end.
--You have a HOPE. YOu have a FUTURE.
--Destiny: Greatness and Nobility as course of life unfolds
--We are destined for favor, life, health, deliverance and for freedom. God has already destined that I will make it. No weapon formed against me shall prosper.
--We only have past pieces of destiny to relate to. We have a noble end we can't see.
--what links past to present and present to future? TRANSITION
--I'm in journey toward my destiny
--transition: changing from one state to another--to and from--cocoon to butterfly
(journey)
--We are always in some level of transition--from infancy on to adulthood.
--He gives us only glimpses along the way.
--We complain and fuss--God: I'm not moved by all of that. Because HE KNOWS the way we take. God: complete comprehension
--Job 1, has all. Job 2: wiped away Job 3: HELL Needs a conference with God. What's going on? I'm doing the best I know how! Paying tithes. I don't understand this level of the plan.
--Job: I couldn't' find him. After this trial, I will be as pure gold.
--When God puts his hand on you. On the journey, he can't leave you in same condition he met you. He has to prepare you for where you're going. He has to change things in you to make room for who you are called to be.
--Praise Him for the times of trouble--that we must get through. After a while, Jesus will fix me/it.
--"God is making you on this journey." Person I was is not who I used to be.
--He had to do some work on me, fix me up. I was not prepared to step into his perfect will.
--He works on our character in transition. He's working on our character. The decisions we make. [Esau, Judas--bad decisions. Never completed their journey]. He works on our desires while we move toward his plan [Samson]. Can't step into fullness of His plan when you have struggles in desire areas. We have a damaged church.
--God must break yokes. Things that plague you that no one else knows.
--Some of us say "Yes, Lord," others, "Not now."
--We must let God work. He will send somebody to speak to you. Holy Ghost in our midst that has ability to speak to you and say, STOP IT.
--While in transition. We must get help.
--God has to sanctify the way we do the things we do for him.
--We cannot walk into God's plan with struggles of flesh and man
--You cannot step into the plan until you come to the end of yourself.
--He's working on your conscience. Are you an accuser? How do you look at moral issues? If not careful, we will think and talk like this world.
--God must deal with us as the church. He must deal with us ethically. How we feel about certain things.
--Spirit of Homosexuality has decided to perpetrate throughout churches: same sex couple broke up after 20 years, one woman killed the other, the kid and tried to kill the other. They go to metro church; pastor a lady; preached about sacrifice of Isaac. Lady said God spoke to her to do the same. We have conscience issues. Ethic issues. Holy Ghost is trying to grab hold of us: I have a plan. I know what I have in store for you, but you are not in place. Have to be in transition, route. Dealing with calling, summons to ministry. How steadfast, submissive committed, how much do I want to serve him?
--Personal testimony: I backslid. Went so far out there, it is by grace of God I came back. My Journey--God's plan.
--It was an inheritance I didn't want. I wanted something else. Drugs, alcoholic. My first son not saved, birthed out of spirit of rebellion. I didn't want God's plan. I had my own idea. I believe God is a God who will have his own way. One day. I believe he called my name and sent angels and said, IT"S TIME. He has a way of delivering. Set free. From power of darkness. God stepped in and set you free.
--It was his plan for me to stand in the pulpit., unadulterated gospel of Jesus Christ. no devil in hell will stop the will of God.
--Where are you taking me, God?
--I believe there's something more for me to be doing! (I was mad! I had Jesus but I was mad, and not submitted.)
--One afternoon, I was fussing. Nobody on floor but me. I heard audible voice of God saying, "When are you gonna give me the reigns of your life?"
--Control. I'm the one in charge of this.
--Experience in the hallway I'll never forget. If you want me to push this cart till Jesus comes back, I'll say yes. Wherever he was taking me would require submission, serving, obedience. This period of the journey, He works on you. Some of us fight him. Some don't and submit. Where does this transition take us? Face to face collision with God before I can put on majesty of my destiny.
--Can't move into destiny until you know this God face to face. You can know about him, praise, dance and never really know Him. Jacob knew about covenant, knew stories, father, history...but never really knew God.
--Look at his journey. Wants birthright and blessing. Marries 2 wives, conflict and struggle, kids don't know what's going on. Laying foundation for 12 tribes. God is doing all of this but Jacob still doesn't know. Suddenly God appeals to him: move.
--God gets him to a place...He will take you to a place where he says I want you to meet me and know me so you will stop fighting. So you'll say YES, Lord.
--No more just you wandering in vast area wondering what's going on.
--It's taken all his life to get there, taking detours, distractions, deception. I'm not moved until you meet me. At end of human ingenuity. He can't devise another plan. He's been a trickster all his life and he can't figure out how to trick God. He wrestled.
--Imagine God wrestling with you? Should he have to struggle with us like that? Should he have to break us like that before we say thy will be done? Why does he allow the struggle? He's got to get revolt out of you. Get "I don't want to..." Our will. Our refusals. Doubts.
--You know what wrestling cost me? Stillborn 9 month baby. Because of my refusal.
--My life was set. (I thought)
--I'm gonna be Betty Crocker II. God, didn't you hear what they said?
--Stillborn child. No one came to visit me except Catholic nun. "I don't know why but I believe God has a plan for your life."
--2 weeks before: revival, preacher called me up,
--He's an infinite God; works out our finite life to bring us into perfect plan.
--Until the revolt, resentment is gone.
--I was a teacher, loved teaching. Going to be principal. We have a school for you. Coordinator. Not God's plan.
--I was on every committee. He says, "Go full time in ministry." WHAT?!?
--Surely, you jest, Lord.
--I started compromising with The Lord. Let me work one more year.
--Surely, you didn't mean for me to go full time...
--I told God, "Nuh-uh. We've got to work on this."
--Next year, stripped of every position, put in back of school, teaching in worst room with worst kids, three times a day.
--By the time June came around, I was "Yes, Lord."
--He had to get the revolt out of me.
--You cannot step into the will of God with resentment and revolt.
--God had a great plan for Jacob, founded a nation called by his name.
--After he deals with you, brings us to a place of reconciliation. And we say, "Yes, God."
--He doesn't want to wrestle with us anymore.
--"Now bless me." Now I need something greater than what I can do on my own. I will not let go until you bless me.
--The person you are after is NOT the person you were when you started this journey.
--It's a real agony to really surrender in prayer. Not my will, but yours be done.
--Jacob walks away with a limp. But he has a new name and direction. And a new understanding, beginning understanding of destiny. To found a nation for God.
--Question: Anybody struggling with your journey and the plan of God for your life and you say, "I think I hear you ....I think I need to say yes"...Don't be scared or ashamed. I wish I could go back and redo my life sometimes, go back and obey, do it again better. All I can do is from this moment on. Submit to his will. When there is a church that says yes to him, it makes a statement to the world. It says we are under his lordship.
--Altar is place of reconciliation.
--Song: "I give myself away...."
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