EXODUS

DATE:  04 August 2002
SPEAKER:  Minister Michael Olawore
TITLE:  It's Time To Go Forward!
TEXT:

This is a prophetic message to the church; and to every individual in this place today irrespective of your position, status, academic level etc God wants you to go forward.
The devil has two jobs in the lives of every believer:
•To keep you in the past - where you have been. I have seen people that all they talk about is where they have been - the good old days !. How they use to…. They allow the devil to use their past to steal their future from them.
•If he cannot achieve this then he would try very hard to keep you in the present - where you are. Though you are not dwelling in the past, you are also neither in the future. You live for today. A man that lives for today is a man that has ran out of time. It's like a farmer who eats all his harvest to bread and eat them all. They are always selfish . Thinking of themselves alone. Never imagine that their lives is not about themselves alone
The devil is afraid of your future - he cannot handle it... Because your future represents your possibility. Your undiscovered potential. The wealth of God's glory that's within you. It doesn't matter what you have achieved (in the past) or achieving ( in the present) - the summation of your past and present is smaller than your future. Your future is great and is bright. A man who is future oriented will outlast times.
Ex 14:15-16. At this moment in the journey of the children of Israel to the promised land, they were confronted with obstacles/ limitations/ hindrances.
Like many of us would normally do, they were crying to God to do for them what he had already empowered them to do for themselves. There is no situation that confronts you that God has not prepared you for.
If you will look inward, take assessment of what you have, you will realise that the solution to your problem is within you
Jeremiah 1:5. Your future is not abstract it is real. It has been concluded in the mind of God.
When we were growing up, we were taught to believe that whatever happens to us is destiny. No, Your destiny is concluded by God ; and if what is happening to you does not line up to that which had already been concluded by God, then change it
HOW TO CHANGE ITGen 4:1-7. If you don't like what you get then change what you are doing or change the way you do what you do and you will see a different result. You cannot continue to do the same thing the same way and expect different result. If you change the way you do things you will see different result
I challenge you today to change the way you do things
•The way you pray
•The way you fellowship with God
•The way you give offering
•The way you study the word etc
Wherever you are today, God wants you to go forward. Every living thing has a tendency to move.
But not everything that moves goes forward - you go forward when you make progress. You go forward when you move in the direction of your destiny. If you are moving even at the speed of light and you are not heading towards your destiny, then you are not going forward
It is not each time you change location that you go forward - it is not each time you change job, buy houses etc but when the movement that you made releases you forward in the direction of your destiny.
•Movement alone is not sufficient
•Direction alone is not sufficient
To go forward you need motion and direction. Deut 2:1-4. A lot of people move ( skirting) without direction. This leads to discouragement, frustration and failure to fulfil destiny. I found out that to know your future/ destiny is not so much of a problem because God will always reveal his will to us by the Holy spirit.
The problem is: Realising your future. In other words, moving or pressing towards your future. I notice that this is where most people encounter problem because of certain forces that must be conquered.
Let's look at those forces: - these are factors that hinder/limit/prevent people from crossing into their future.
•Unforgiveness
•Fear
•Perception based on past experience - memory of the past
UNFORGIVENESSCharacteristics of unforgiveness
•Unforgiveness is like a wall between a man and his destiny.
•Unforgiveness is one of the deadliest weapons of the devil.
•Unforgiveness hinders the flow of God's power and prevents blessings because it brings division.
•Unforgiveness has tendencies to hold people in bondage.
•It is a deadly disease (unfortunately the church is catching it too).
•It arrests progress.
•Unforgiveness connects you to your pastand it's pain; and prevents you from going forward.
•When you operate in unforgiveness, it's like living your future in the past.
•You are bound to magnify the pain unless you give up your attachment to past incidence.

Matt 18:21-19:1. The passage suggested that Peter was about something - he asked question and at the same time answered it.
Unforgiveness carries with it the power to keep you in the past. If you did something that hurts me, especially taking advantage of my vulnerability because I was opened up unto you, I could be offended as a result of what you did. The offence may degenerate into bitterness. The unforgiveness finally sets in.
The person you hold in unforgiveness does not suffer the pain of it but you. If you refuse to forgive others , the bible says that God will not forgive you - that is very dangerous.
This implies that the covering of the blood is withdrawn; and so , you are left to pay the price for your sins - meaning you are to face the consequences :
•Sickness
•Poverty
•Death
When you operate in unforgiveness you open yourself to demonic attack. Because unforgiveness is a sin - because he thet breaks the edge , the serpent will bite.
Other relevant scriptures: Matt 6:12, Matt 6:14-15, Mark 11:25-26
When you forgive, it's a way of giving yourself a glorious future, it is a gift you give to yourself.
How to forgive
Phil 3:13-15. Unless you detach yourself from that which was behind, you cannot reach forward to those things ahead - your future.
Make a decision - life is about decision making ( yes it is hard and very painful , yes , but you cannot afford not to let go).
Sow a seed of love in your heart. Confront yourself with the effect of unforgiveness.
Receive the strength from the Holy Spirit. In your own strength, you cannot truly forgive because the pain of forgiveness is more than you can bear in the natural. You need the grace of God.
Your desire for the future must be stronger than the pain of the past. How badly do you want your future. Are you prepared to let go of the past so that you can move forward into the future?
FEAREx 14:10-17. When the stroms of life come, we are all tempted to fear. Fear is one of the greatest tools that the devil uses to destroy believers and unbelievers.
Fear is a painful emotion or passion excited by the expectation of evil, or the apprehension of impending danger; apprehension; anxiety; solicitude; alarm; dread.
Characteristics of fear
•Fear makes problems seem greater than they really are.
•Fear makes the problems bigger than it is. - (German proverb).
•Fear makes man believe the worst. - (unknown).
Some Results Of Fear
•Fear immobilizes.
•Fear leads us to sin.
•Fear causes various physical problems.
•Fear opens the door for the work of the devil.
•Fear brings confusion.
•Fear causes us to hide.
•Fear causes us to abandon our love for others.
•Fear keeps us from serving God.
•Fear causes us to flee when we should stand.
The purpose of roar of lion it's to paralyse it's opponent, terrorised them; and leave them so helpless so much that the animals that have ability and physical flexibility to be able to escape forgets to run - because they are terrorisd by the roaring of the lion. 1 Peter 5:8-10.
The enemy is seeking whom he may devour - this implies that he cannot devour every body
The difference between those that can and cannot be devoured is predicated on how you react to the roaring.
If life roars at you and you respond in terror and fear then you will forget who you are, what God gave you and then you become a candidate for lions dinner.
But If you remember who you are in the face of the roaring of the lion - You must remember that the Lord is your shephered and you shall not be afraid.
When the enemy comes against you declare - I shall not be afraid.
When problems come - I shall not be afraid
When sickness strikes - I shall not be afraid
When afternoon turns into darkness - I shall not be afraid
As long as you are not afraid, the devil cannot gain entrance and you become bold to press into your future
The presence of God gives you victory over fear. Ps 23:4.
2 Tim 1:7, Isa 43:2. You need to know the revelation of God's presence; and as you walk in the understanding of God's presence, your fear becomes obliterated. In all your getting , get understanding of God's presence.
PERCEPTION BASED ON PAST EXPERIENCE
What do you see? Never allow the experience of your past failure to hinder your journey into the future. The fact that you failed before does not mean you are a failure.
Rise up above your past and press towards your future!
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