Ready to get something from the Lord tonight?
I believe He has a word to speak in due season.
I want to talk to you about staying focused.
Staying focused, A redeemed mind, turn to your neighbor and
say stay focused. Turn to the one on the other
side, which may be the wall, but tell him to say stay focused.
In Matthew chapter 27, we'll launch out from Matthew chapter
27. And in this chapter you'll start
to see Jesus at his trial where he's being accused, sentenced,
mocked. Eventually he goes to Calvary
and it's crucified. But I want to open up one verse
tonight to go with this thought of staying focused in the
redeemed mind. You'll find it in Matthew
chapter 27 and verse #29 from the Amplified Bible.
It reads like this. And after twisting together a
crown of thorns, they put it on Jesus head.
They put a Reed in his right hand as a scepter.
Kneeling before him, they ridiculed Him, saying Hail
rejoiced King of the Jews. So in the Scripture we see that
they took a crown of thorns and placed it upon His head, and in
that obviously it pierced His head.
There was blood that was flowing down from His forehead, from His
skull, right from His head. But out of that we get that
Jesus not only went to the cross Spirit, but He went to the cross
spirit, Solem, body. All of him went to the cross to
redeem all of us, spirit, soul and body.
This is the gospel of the Kingdom.
This is good news that Jesus went to the cross, spirit, soul
and body. He took the crown of thorns upon
his head. Why?
To redeem us, spirit, soul and body.
Spiritually, we thank God that we could have security and be
sealed and know that we are children of God, Amen, and part
of His Kingdom. But thank God also in the
gospel, our mind does not have to have a vice grip around it
and be in a state of depression or discouragement or downcast or
overwhelmed because He's redeemed a spirit soul.
Your soul is your mind, your will, and your emotions.
He's redeemed that part of you and your body.
One day you're going to have a glorified body.
Amen. That means that at that day when
he returns, this mortal shall put on immortality, and death
shall be swallowed up. So he went spirit, soul and body
to the cross, resurrected spirit, soul and body to redeem
us. Spirit, soul and body, He paid
the price. He atone for our life.
He is the Lamb without blemish or without spot, the only one
that can completely liberate and deliver the work of Satan.
He came to destroy the work of the enemy that goes spiritually
in your soul and in your body. And out of that, we should have
a transformed life, spirit, soul and body.
We talked about the thorn, the throne of glory.
We don't want to fall short of the glory of God in our life,
you know. And over in Corinthians, it said
we should go from glory to glory.
So he came to transform our lives, spirit, soul and body.
And this is a journey we're on together with him.
And the apostle Paul talks about transformation over in Romans
chapter 12 verses one and two. I want to read this to you from
two different translations. And he says this from the
amplified Bible. He says, therefore, I urge you
and now remember this book was written to born again Saints at
Rome. So this book is for us today.
Are you born again, blood bought, sanctified, sealed,
filled with the Holy Ghost children of God?
So this is for us today, said. Therefore, I urge you, brothers
and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies,
dedicating all of yourselves set apart as a living sacrifice,
holy and well pleasing to God, which is your rational, logical,
intelligent act of worship. Do not be conformed to this
world any longer with its superficial values and customs,
but be transformed, but be transformed and progressively
changed as you mature spiritually by the renewing of
your mind, focusing on godly values and ethical spirit,
ethical attitudes, so that you may prove for yourselves what
the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and
perfect in His plan and purpose for you.
Now the JB Phillips reads these verses this way.
It says, with eyes wide open to the mercies of God.
I beg you, my brothers, as an intelligent act of worship, to
give him your bodies as a living sacrifice consecrated to Him and
acceptable by Him. Don't.
Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its mold, but
God. Let God re mold your minds from
within so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God
for you is good. Meet all His demands and move
toward the goal of true maturity.
What a picture for the church. What a picture for the sons and
daughters of God. That He redeemed us, But He
wants you to grow up spiritually.
Hey man, He wants you to be transformed spirit, soul and
body. Now guess who did all the work
spiritually, so to speak? Jesus Christ in If any man be
born again, he's a brand new creation.
Old things have passed away. All things have become new, so
that's the spiritual transformation through the
finished work of Jesus Christ. When you receive Him as Lord,
guess what happens? You get a brand new spirit on
the inside. The spirit man that was under
the dominion and and sway and territory of the enemy is
released because of the redemption in Jesus Christ.
We're saved by grace through faith, not of works, lest any
man should boast, right? So we're saved when we received
the payment that Jesus did to liberate us and deliver us.
That does nothing from my soul realm or my body though.
If you were bald before you gave your life to the Lord, guess
what part of your body is still bald after you give your life to
the Lord? Amen.
So nothing changes in your body automatically when you receive
the payment and come into a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Amen. If you were intelligently
challenged before you gave your life to the Lord, guess what?
You can still be intelligently challenged after you're born
again. But does God want to see you
transformed? He took that crown, which they
try to ridicule with him, but he takes the shame away.
They try to shame him, but he honors us and he says we're
seated with him in heavenly places.
So is your mind thinking like a daughter or a son of the king?
Are you still thinking in a poverty mentality or a position
of lower esteem than God wants you to be?
Thinking? He wants you to be transformed
and He wants you to do something with your body.
Hallelujah. Transformation means this to
change into another form. Hallelujah.
To make it means this to make a thorough or dramatic change in
former appearance or character. It means to transform into
something more beautiful and elevated through the Word of
God. He wants to take your life and
lift you up out of the pit and set you as a Prince or Princess
in His Kingdom and do great things and purpose through your
life. But it's going to take you
cooperating and participating with Him to renew your mind.
So you need to stay focused. Say stay focused.
Mind renewal, to experience this transformation is your
responsibility. Let me say it again, mind
renewal, to experience this wonderful transformation is your
responsibility. Your spouse not going to do it
for you. Your uncle's not going to do it
for your best friend's not going to do it for you.
Your enemies surely are not going to encourage you in it.
It's totally up to you to receive the Word of God to
change the way you think. Do not let your mind wander in
2025. Do not let your mind wander in
2025. If we're going to experience
what the Spirit Lord told Pastor O Marcy to have a reigning
church, you better have a reigning mind that's being
transformed if we're going to get to where God wants us to be
in 2025. If you want your life to be
elevated and transformed, you want your marriage to be
elevated and transformed. You want your position with the
body of Christ to be elevated and transform, You better set
your face like Flint and renew your mind.
Do not let your mind wander in 2025.
Wandering is a common phrase throughout the Scriptures.
Numbers. The Book of Numbers tells us of
the children of Israel's journeys, and it was full of
complaining. It was movement without
progress. I call it a spiritual merry go
round, doing the same thing over and over again, but getting
nowhere in the planned purpose that God has for you.
Why? Because you're not receiving the
Word of God, allowing it to transform your mind to have
redeemed thinking. Numbers also tells us that they
saw themselves as grasshoppers. God said, I'm going to bring you
into a good land. It's a land flowing with milk
and honey. And he sent spies out to the
land to survey and bring back a report.
And guess what? The report they brought back,
they said we because they never, they failed to renew their mind,
are the promises of God. All the promises of God are yes
and Amen in Christ Jesus, but are you thinking on them or are
you thinking like a grasshopper? Like they were thinking less of
themselves, insignificant thinking.
They couldn't overcome, they couldn't conquer.
You don't know my background, you don't know what I've been
through. You don't know the hurt that
I've experienced, but God. But's a conjunction that cancels
everything else that was said. So you need to get your butt out
of the way in 2025 and let God be who He said He would be to
you and let your mind be transformed and renewed.
Don't wander. In 2025, God brought them out of
Egypt, but guess what? The mindset of Egypt was still
in them. Just because God brings you out
through a great salvation, it's our responsibility to experience
His best. Couple definitions for wonder
means this to means to move about without a fixed course,
aim or goal. Wonder means this to move about
without a fixed course, aim or goal.
It also means this to lose normal mental contact or stray
and thought hot say a me a moment, oh me or Amen.
Stay focused, it means to lose normal mental contact or stray
in thought. I've been told that you have a
one minute attention span for every year old you are.
Hallelujah. It's been 29 minutes since we
started service, So if you're 29 minutes old, is your mind
wandering? Amen.
It could drift. You could be thinking about what
you're going to eat after service.
You could be thinking about what you ate before service.
You could start thinking about what you're going to wear to
work tomorrow. Stay focused.
We don't need ADD Christians, Amen.
When you start wondering without purpose, you can die.
You can die prematurely because it's movement without progress
and God wants to see a transformed life in 2025.
It's going to take you connecting with Him in your mind
to let it be renewed to His word.
Not only will wandering cause premature death, it could cause
death to your potential and your purpose when you let your mind
wander or stray. Wandering is really existence,
not life just existing. But we know in John 1010 it says
the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy.
But God came to give you what life and to give it to you more
abundantly. The new Living translation says
He came to give you a rich and satisfying life.
So guess what the devil would like to do?
Just because you're born again? He was still to love to keep
your mind in bondage and not have you be transformed by
keeping you stuck in a rut. Just to insert this
unforgiveness is one way that the devil can pollute your mind
and keep you in a low level of influence in the Kingdom of God.
There's many other things the devil can try to come and and
temp or tempt or test you with to try to keep you chained up
even though you may be born again, but to keep you in a low
level of existence. But God wants you to bust
through this year breakthrough come out.
Experience is best experience is deliverance and really live a
life of significance where I'm having influence and impact in
the lives of others because it's just not about me and my
household. I want to live so well in His
grace and anointing that it spills out and impacts and
influences the life of everybody around me.
People should miss you when you're not present.
You know there's an issue if you're married and you come home
and your spouse doesn't want you there, that's an issue.
But when you leave the house in the morning, if you're married,
this should be a longing to be reunited when the day is done.
Why? Because I'm living so well by
the grace, the truth and the anointing of God that I'm making
a difference. When you go to work, they
shouldn't think, man, I really don't want them around.
They said when he comes or she comes to work, man, they get
things done. They're solution oriented.
They have great plans, great ideas.
It's like they're light and salt.
They're a living epistle to bring the gospel every day into
that sector of society, to display and bring the power of
the gospel into that area of employment.
That takes a transformed mind. Don't, don't go to work trying
to barely get by. Take a check up from the neck up
and get your attitude right. Stay focused.
In James chapter 5. I'm going to read this from the
Passion translation. This is going to be verses 19
through 20. Now James has written to the
church and it says this. It says finally, as members of
God's beloved family, we must go after the one who wanders from
the truth and bring them back. We must go after the one who
wanders from the truth and bring them back.
For the one who restores the sinning believer back to God
from the air of his way, gives back to his soul life from the
dead, and covers over countless sins by the demonstration of
love. You know, our prayer in 2025
should be for any wandering believers in Saint Augustine or
that need to be connected with Anchor Faith Church.
They would come back and quit wandering.
Hallelujah. Can God use you to do that?
Could you listen in your prayer life as He specifically may
bring up a name or a place or an event that you could pray over
and maybe even reach out to somebody and bring them back
from wondering what to get them anchored back into the truth and
see a transformed life? When you change the way you
think, you'll stop wondering. When you transform the way you
think, you're going to stop wondering.
It'll become an anchor in your soul to keep from sliding in
life. In James chapter 1 verses 21
through 22, the amplified Bible says this.
Thank God for second chances. Before I read this verse, if
you've ever has anybody ever missed a turn when you're
driving or an exit and you've wandered off the path, well,
just don't keep driving the wrong way.
Stop. Repent, turn around, get the GPS
back on God's provisional system and let Him reroute you to get
you back on the track of truth. Amen.
And experience a transformed life.
Don't be like a typical man before we had iPhones.
And even though you're lost, this can be you tell your wife I
got this and then you run out of gas in the middle of nowhere.
James 1 verses 21 through 22 says this from the Amplified
Bible. So get rid of all uncleanness
and all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble
spirit receive, receive, receive the Word of God, which is
implanted, actually rooted in your heart, which is able to
save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of
the Word, actively and continually obeying God's
precepts, and not merely listeners who hear the Word but
fail to internalize its meaning, deluding yourselves by unsound
reasoning and contrary to the truth.
This is the picture I want to paint for you in 2025.
To receive a renewed mind, redeem mind, transform mind,
cultivate a concentration unknown to most mankind.
You can cultivate a concentration unknown to most
mankind. When I think about Jesus Christ
our Lord, I believe He was highly focused and undistracted.
He knew what to say no to, and He knew what to say yes to.
And there's some things in life that you need to say no to.
They're a distraction. And by help with the Holy Ghost,
He'll help create those right boundaries to keep you on the
highway and the pathway of God's plan for your life.
So cultivate a concentration that is unknown to most mankind.
And Jesus showed us that kind of concentration.
And listen, we're called disciples or discipline ones of
the Messiah. Therefore we can discipline our
mind. You know, the the Bible has a
lot to say about taking thoughts captive.
The way we learned it in Bible school is you can't keep birds
from flying over your head, but you can sure keep them from
building a nest on your head. And what am I saying?
You can't stop every thought that comes, but you can sure not
let the thought build a nest on your head.
Are you getting what I'm saying? That's your responsibility.
It's the in Second Corinthians is said to cast down every
thought and imagination that's exalts itself against the
knowledge of God. Bring it into captivity.
And I like this it said you'll be able to punish all
disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.
A disciplined mind is obedient before God.
And I'll tell you what a disciplined mind is, a mind full
of peace and not confusion. You're not swayed and moved
about with any kind of wind of doctrine.
No, you're focused and fixed on the King of Kings and the Lord
of Lords and nothing moves you. Jesus never had a flip out panic
moment ever. Now I guarantee you his flesh,
everybody pinch yourself. His flesh wanted to panic at
times, but he lived out of his spirit and he kept control of
his soul and he put his body under.
That's why Paul said, no. First Corinthians said I keep my
body under. So Jesus, even when there's a
moment of panic and it looks like the winds and the waves are
going to overtake the boat, he didn't flip out.
He simply stood up, took his authority and said peace be
still. And that's what some of you need
to do with your mind in 2025 to experience the transformation
and say peace be still. God does not give me a spirit of
fear, but a power and of love. The amplified says a calm and
well balanced mind. I have a calm and well balanced
mind. Hallelujah, the world could be
freaking out, going crazy and I could just be resting in my
mind. Amen.
You can experience that too. Hallelujah.
No matter what goes on, you can say to yourself, I got a calm
and well balanced mind, Amen. Any circumstance financially,
see things seem tight. Seems things seem like they're
not going to make it. You can say no, he's Jehovah
Jireh. You could start declaring Psalms
1072 says, let the redeemed of the Lord say so.
He's redeemed me. I'm not under the curse, I'm
under the blessing. Your mouth is going to locate
where your mind's at. If you get around somebody long
enough, just listen to them talk and you could tell where they're
at spiritually. Amen.
I heard it now. Well, you don't understand
what's going on and all these things and the reality of it.
Well, we got a greater witness, a greater truth.
Abraham never denied what was going on.
Faith calls those things that be not as though they were.
Abraham never denied that Sarah wasn't having a baby, but in the
middle of that, even though that was reality, she was not giving
birth. He held on to the promise of
God. Let me put this in terms of
healing. Faith calls those things that be
not as though they were. It doesn't call those things
that that are as if they're not. So if you got a snotty nose,
you're not saying I don't have a snotty nose.
No, go look in the mirror. There's snot coming out of your
nose. Faith calls those things that be
not as though they were. What you need is healing.
So your confession with the transformed mind and a born
again spirit full of authority says I am the healed of the
Lord. If you call, say that I don't
have a son, he knows you're in denial.
Well, I don't have any marriage issues.
Oh, yeah, you do. But I'm calling those things
that be not Lord. And the prayers on this fix my
spouse. I'm going to let you deal with
her Lord and Holy Ghost. Now guess who God's telling you
to fix? Say work on me, say I'm working
on me, say I'm being transformed by His Word through His Spirit,
because when you change, everything else will change.
Amen. Hallelujah.
So you don't say I don't have issues in marriage.
Know what you say is, Lord, I need the wisdom of God in this
covenant. Teach me how to be the man that
you've created me to be the husband.
If you're having parenting issues, we're not denying it and
throwing our head in the sand and hoping it goes away.
That's not going to work. No, we're going to tackle it
head on and we recognize there may be some issues, but guess
what? We're going to go to the King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords and say, Father, we need your
wisdom, your grace, and we're going to clamp down like a pit
bull this year, every day, Father, we're coming to your
throne because there is no better example of the greatest
parent in the planet than you, Father, Some coming to the the
father of all fathers, the ultimate father to get your
parenting advice. And when you say to say
something, I'm going to say something.
When you say to pray something, I'm going to pray something.
But I'm listening because the greater ones on the inside.
You want success in your life in 2025.
Just listen to the voice of the Holy Ghost.
He will give you the plan that will set you up to see such a
transformed, radical, improved you.
It will blow your mind and those around you.
Hallelujah. As a case study, tonight I want
to look at the life of Jacob because in Genesis there's 50
chapters. Genesis chapter one through
Chapter 11 covers about 2000 years of history.
But then in Genesis 12 through Genesis 50, everything slows
down and over about 250 years we get the lives of four men really
that are summarized and highlighted.
We start in Genesis 12 with Abraham, who was the father of
many nations. But then Abraham gives birth to
Isaac and Isaac becomes the son of submission.
You know, I was. Isaac obviously marries Rebecca
at 40 years old. At 60, they give birth to Jacob
and Esau, and Jacob becomes the son of transformation.
And we're talking about staying focused tonight, a renewed mind,
a transformed mind. And then of course, the last
person that we get to is Joseph. He becomes he becomes the Son of
suffering and glory, but Jacob stays the course and experiences
God Almighty as the Redeemer of his life.
It was more than just a physical journey for Jacob.
It was a spiritual journey of growth and transformation that
he experienced through all the trials, tests, and even
self-inflicted decisions. He stayed with God and God
liberated and delivered his life.
Listen to what Isaiah says about Jacob.
Isaiah 49 verse #26 from the Amplified Bible, Isaiah 49 verse
#26 says all mankind will know with a knowledge grounded in
personal experience, that I the Lord, am your Savior and your
Redeemer, the Mighty one of Jacob.
Ain't that interesting? He said he's the Redeemer, the
mighty one of Jacob. Isaiah the prophet in this verse
highlights the transformative power of El Shaddai as the
Redeemer in the life of Jacob. So let's pick up the story of
Jacob. And we start this off in Genesis
chapter 25. We're at 46 minutes in right
now, so I don't know who the oldest person in the room is,
but I can't go any longer than that tonight.
Stay focused. I'm sure we got a 70 year old in
the room, right? We got Mr. Buckley back there.
We got 87 minutes tonight. He's going to be good.
He's going to get all 87 minutes.
Now those of you that are 46, stay focused.
Genesis 25, obviously we see that Rebecca gives birth and we
see that Jacob and Esau are the twins that are born matter of
fact through the spirit of of God.
It's the the Lord revealed to Rebecca that there's twins, two
nations in your womb. And it was prophetically said
that the younger shall rule over the elder, which is contrary in
that culture because the first born is the one that through the
birthright really had the right of the inheritance in the double
portion. But we see in Genesis 25, just
to kind of summarize the story, which if you're doing your Bible
reading, if you want to have a redeemed mind, you better do
your Bible reading. I'll say it again, if you want
to be transformed, you better be doing your Bible reading and you
better get some takeaways. I'm just trying to help you.
You don't want to check a box and say, I did it and then you
have nothing to think about the rest of the day.
You want that word to come off the page, be written on the
tablets of your heart so that the words of your mouth and the
meditation of your mind will be acceptable in His sight, My
strength and my Redeemer. So in your Bible reading, you're
getting pretty close to Genesis 25.
But we see that Esau, he was skilled.
This is like a man's man. He was a hunter, skilled with
the bow and the arrow, and he smelled like the field.
But then you have Jacob and it said he he was a mild man,
stayed at the tents and he watched cooking shows.
He was looking at recipe books. He saws out hunting, comes home
because he's famished, smells the Stew that Jacob was cooking.
He said, man, give me some Stew. And Jacob says, sell me your
birthright. And Esau, instead of seeing the
value and the esteem in the moment, shows to say, what good
is my birthright if I die? Have you ever said, I'm so
hungry I'm going to die? Are you really going to die?
No, I'm sure missing one meal was not going to kill Esau, but
in that moment he made a permanent decision in a
temporary moment of emotion. Never make a permanent decision
in a temporary moment of emotion.
Something happens. Don't act and then think.
When something happens, think and then act.
Don't be impulsive. And Esau was impulsive and it
said he scorned or despised his birthright over a meal.
Listen, our spiritual food is way more important than our
natural food. So don't ever compromise the
diet of God in your life for moments of the flesh.
But then we go over 2 chapters of Genesis 27 and the mild man
who was a mama's boy heard from his mom because the mom heard
Isaac tell Esau, I'm going to die and I want to pass the
blessing off to you. So I want you to go hunt, bring
back and cook me some of the game that you find and I'm going
to declare the blessing over you.
Well, we know the story that Esau leaves and then the plan is
concocted between Rebecca and Jacob and really they act in
treachery and deceit to steal the blessing.
Now the blessing was a a big deal in that culture.
It made you the spiritual lead of the house and really you
became the lineage of that seed to carry on.
It carried the Abrahamic covenant with it.
It set the stage for the fulfillment of God's promise for
the coming Messiah. So not only did Jacob get the
birthright, but he also stole the blessing and hits his name,
Jacob. His name Jacob means supplanter
or trickster or deceiver. And the Bible says what you sow,
you're going to reap. And we know the story that Esau
came back. He was went to give the game to
and the meal to his father so he could receive the blessing.
And his his father said, I've already blessed, I've already
released it. And once the blessings released,
it's binding. It's an oath, it's a promise.
It can't be undone or retracted. It was serious.
It was covenant and he saw full of rage, said he stole my
birthright. How bad is your family?
This is what I call dysfunction family, right?
The time of my father's passing is going to come and I'm going
to kill my brother. Rebecca heard about it and she
acts cunningly and says let's not get a wife for Jacob from
any woman around here. Let's send her him to my brother
Laban's house to get a wife so to intercede for Jacob's life.
Isaac calls in Jacob and in Genesis 28 he charges him to go
to Padden Haran to Laban's house to get a wife.
So Can you imagine this mama's boy who lived in tents, never
been out in the field and he's travelling.
It's a 500 mile journey. There's no Uber, there's no
McDonald's. Can you imagine the
transformation that has to take place?
So he's walking the average about 20 to 25 miles a day and
how far they could walk in a distance and think about it's
just not straight all the way. It's rugged terrain and you can
encounter wild animals and even wild people on your journey,
right? So it takes him maybe 2025 days
just to get from where he's at in Beersheba all the way to his
Laban's house. But on the journey, he has an
encounter with God in Genesis 28.
And Manny holds on to that encounter.
And we need to hold on to the word of God.
We need to have redeemed thinking.
And it says that Jacob experienced God Almighty as the
Redeemer. And it says in Genesis 28 that
he said, God, if you stay with me and keep me and bring me
back, you'll be my God. And he says, whatever you give
to me, I'll give you a tenth. Wonder where he got that from?
He knew about tithing, which makes me think Isaac knew about
tithing because Abraham tithed to Melchizedek.
You want to be transformed in your finances under the
blessing. Be a tither.
This is before the law. We're not even to the book
Exodus yet, not even close centuries away.
And then he takes, but he sees this ladder going up and down.
He sees angels ascending and descending and the very top he
sees, he sees the heavens and he wakes up.
He said, man, I've just had an encounter with God.
And he held on to that thing. He called it the House of
Bethel, the House of God. He makes his track, gets to
Laban's house, gets to the field, obviously sees the all
the shepherds and the flocks and then he sees Rachel coming out,
helps her water the the sheep. He gets all excited, right.
Laban runs out to meets him. This is great man, right?
And he says man was with him for 30 days, went to Laban's house
and Laban says name your wages. I love that.
I wish somebody at my like an employer said, hey, name your
wages $1.5 million. But yeah, I need that too.
Praise the Lord, he says, name your wages.
And then it wasn't even money. He realized the covenant was
with him. He realized he had the
birthright, the blessing and the lineage of Christ is going to
come through him. He's the spiritual lead of the
family now, really the priest of the house.
And he says, listen, I'll serve you for seven years for Rachel.
And Laban said it's on. So he serves it says it seemed
like a few days. We know the story after seven
years that he goes to marry the fulfillment of the the agreed
upon terms of what he was going to be paid.
And instead, what does Laban do? He gets tricky, right?
Deceit. What you sow you're going to the
same way that he deceived his brother.
He was deceived by Laban. But even the matter and even in
the in the in the in the middle of bad choices, God can still
transform your life if you have a heart for him and you get
things right. That's what really God's looking
for in the earth is a man or woman to show himself strong in
who just continually has a tender heart and a pliable mind
before him. God could work with you for a
lifetime if you keep a tender heart and a pliable mind before
him. But if you start to get hard,
you start to think you know it all, you start to become
unteachable. You're only going to go so far
with the king. But Jacob continued to grow.
He stayed, what I like to say, humble and hungry.
And so women when they gave them in those days, they were heavily
veiled. So it wasn't like, you know,
that LED lights when she comes in, No, she's heavily veiled.
He can't see who she is. The next morning he wakes up.
He said, dude, I'm paraphrasing. We agreed that you would give me
Rachel, but you gave me Leah all.
And Laban says, you know, in our custom we have to give the first
born daughter first. So I'll tell you what I've
learned that you being with me brings great prosperity.
So I'll give you Rachel if you work another seven years.
So guess what he said. OK, so he gives him Rachel for
another seven years. He serves Laban.
This is 14 years. We read this in two or three
chapters, but you got to get the time frame of a life being
transformed. What I'm saying, Saints, this is
a journey, not a Sprint. There's going to be times when
you walk, times when you crawl, and times when you Sprint.
But the the key is don't ever stop.
Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.
They shall mount up with wings like eagles.
They shall walk and not grow weary.
They shall run and they shall not faint.
So no matter your pace, just keep going.
Some seasons you'll see great acceleration, Some seasons feel
like a wilderness. But in the middle of it all, God
is faithful. Don't ever stop, keep
experiencing the redemption of God in your life through a
transformed and redeemed mind. Then in Genesis 30 after this is
all settled, we see a lot of kids are born.
Hallelujah the fulfillment of Jacob being transformed.
Basically, Leah gives birth to to 8 kids, Rachel gives birth to
three, Benjamin's not born until Jacob if it's all the way back
to his father's house. But in Genesis 31, this is key
verse #3 it said God told Jacob to go back home.
And that's such a key in our life to listen to what the Holy
Spirit is saying. You know, it was like that in
the ark. Noah didn't come out of the ark
till God said Abraham went to Eartha cat left Eartha Chaldeans
because God said. Jacob left Laban's house because
God said. And then on the way back, think
about the turmoil when he leaves.
This is 20 years prior because he serves 14 years for both
daughters, six years for the cattle, which I love when we
when we read about the cattle wouldn't get all that because he
may he strikes a deal with Laban and the most unusual
unsuspecting cattle become what make him prosperous and in your
hand, what seems unusual or wouldn't turn for a prophet.
God can make it profit because the Bible says whatever you put
your hand to it will prosper. But God gives him a plan, gives
him a dream on how to increase with the cattle, the speckled,
the street and the spotted. But in in Genesis 32 is a
culmination of 20 years, I guarantee of intense mind battle
that Jacob had because all the time he knows that his brother
Esau is going to want to kill him, right?
So God says go back. So guess what he's thinking I'm
going to run into Esau. And on the way back he hears
that Esau's come with 400 men. So guess what, Jacob, just like
we all have emotions, he divides his household and really he puts
the favorite wife and the favorite kid.
Thank God we're not in that day. And he puts the least favorite
life in front. Talk about intercession.
I don't know if that's good intercession.
That's not good intercession because he don't know what he
saw is going to do. But he's thinking, man, if they
go after the one, the other will be able to escape.
Not only is he wrestle with that, but he wrestles with God.
And this is the culmination of a transformed life and a redeemed
life because said he wrestled with God all night.
And he said, I'm not going to let you go.
I'm not going to let you go. I'm not going to let you go in
2025. I'm not letting God go in 2026.
I'm not letting God go in 2030. I'm not letting God go.
If God tarries in 2050, I'm not letting God go.
If he tarries to 2070, I'm not letting go.
That's a tenacity. I will not let go until you
bless me. And God touched him the soccer
recipe and you know what the blessing was?
He said you're no longer going to be called Jacob.
Your name is Israel. You prevailed.
What a testimony for every St. in this room.
Have you prevailed with God? Hallelujah.
I don't know about you, but I want to have some prevailing
with God. I think back to my high school
years BC if people could see me now and hang out with me now,
you know, I didn't get invited to my 10 year, 20 year, 30 year
reunion. I don't know if that's because I
did people wrong or I'm not on social media but I was not
invited. But I'm not offended.
But if they could see me now, they would say no.
Mike Crocek. Nah.
A Bible thumper, Nah. A Jesus freak, Nah.
Oh, yeah, I've been redeemed. I've been transformed.
I got a testimony around the people that can vouch for my
character. I ain't the same man.
Let me tell you about my Jesus. Come on, some of you have a
testimony. If they can only see you now, no
longer shall you be in it. Nice.
When God could strip off the old and put on the new, he called
him a Prince and he's calling you a Prince and a Princess.
This is important in Genesis 33. Genesis 35 is he's making his
his trek trek back. Thank God.
God is so good. He got to see his dad before he
died. Isaac passed away at 180, but he
got to see his dad. I took comfort in that today.
I thought, man, how awesome when he left.
He didn't know when he was coming back, how he was coming
back. Matter of fact, he said, God,
you've been so good to me. I left with the staff only when
I left Berciba, but I'm coming back with two companies and
cattle and prosperity. I look back on my journey with
God and I said, wow, it's been a ride since 1997.
Lord, I remember a time when Angie and I, we had adopted 2
boys out of the group home. We ate at McDonald's at that
time many many moons ago and we were so tight financially.
We said you got to get 4 things. I don't even know if they have
the dollar meal anymore with $14.00 an hour minimum wage
coming up. They still got it.
Who knew that we need to talk after service.
He wants transformed bodies. You know, if you drop a
McDonald's fry in your car under your seat, six months from now,
it still looks golden. Think about it.
See law, but we could only get 4 things off a dollar menu.
They usually get 2 cheeseburgers.
They always like the apple pies, you know, some fries and then
the water's free. So we get that.
But oh God's been good. Amen.
We got to remember, recall, review how good he's been to us.
A transformed, redeemed mind's a thankful mind.
Sometimes we're always thinking about what we don't have.
Think about what you do have. Thank God all the plumbing's
working. Hallelujah.
Thank God my mind's in. It's in it's right place.
Listen, in my old days, I went on a trip, some people didn't
come back, if you know what I'm saying, with certain drugs.
Thank God I'm in my right, mine. But Genesis 33 and 35 are a key
because he builds an altar to God in both of those chapters.
And that's a place of worship and three principles we can
extract from the life of Jacob. In a transformed life.
He always was concerned about the wells, the tent, and the
altars. The tent is where you dwell, and
God's concerned about your household doing well.
God wants to transform your tent, so to speak, your life.
He wants your home life to be blessed.
He wants to be full of peace and not confusion.
He wants it to be full of joy and not depression.
He wants to be full of righteousness, not wickedness.
But he's also concerned about the altars in your life.
Tents are temporary, but altars are permanent.
And that's the place where he worship God.
Thank God on Wednesdays and Sundays we can come to the House
of Lord and be transformed and give God all of our praise.
But we're not limited to Wednesday and Sunday.
You could praise Him on the way home today.
You can find an altar in your car.
You can praise Him tomorrow morning.
You can find find an altar in your shower tomorrow morning.
Amen. You can find an altar at your
lunch break. But he's also concerned about
the wells and wells are for the future generations.
And Jacob experienced wells that the Philistines enemy had
basically plugged up that he had to unplug.
They had filled him with dirt and he had to dig out the dirt.
And so transforming life's just not thinking about my tent and
just my worship, but it's thinking about the future and
the future generations. So I want to close with four
scriptures for you tonight and we'll be done.
It's 840 now. I've only been ministering for
probably 60 minutes, maybe 5052 minutes, 57.
I'm doing good. My wife has checked out no.
That'd make you 40. It's fit.
We gonna go 57. You're not in 57.
You got 7. You're out seven minutes ago.
OK, I better hurry up. Ernie's still good.
He's in the 60s. We're good.
Hallelujah. Stay focused. 4 scriptures.
I'm closing with Psalms chapter 1 verses one through 3.
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of
the scornful. Let me read that.
Let that absorbed out into you. Bad company corrupts good
character and it'll stifle transformation.
He gives three men or mankind not to hang around.
What you listen to is vital if you're going to have a redeemed
mind. I don't stand in the counsel,
the ungodly, I'm not standing in the path of sinners, and I'm
surely not being seated by the scornful.
But my delight is in the law of the Lord, and in that law I'm
going to meditate. I'm going to focus.
I'm not going to let go. I'm going to think about it day
and night. And guess what's going to happen
as a result. I'm going to be like a tree
planted by the rivers of water. I'm going to bring forth fruit
in every season of life. Every season.
You realize that life has lived in seasons and arrived at in
stages. And my and my leaf shall not
wither. And whatever I do, it will
prosper. Stay focused.
Second Scripture, Joshua 1/8, This book of the law shall not
depart from your mouth. What are you saying?
What are you speaking? What are you declaring?
I know there's some real issues. I understand there's some real
challenges. I understand there's some real
emotions. But God, let me put it this way,
those are some of the greatest times to make faith confessions
when you're walking through some of the most difficult
situations. But it shall not depart from
your mouth. So say it, speak it, declare it,
think about it, stay focused. It says you shall meditate in
that law day and night. What scripture are you thinking
about? What Scripture are rehearsing?
What scripture are you chewing on?
You want a more cultivated mind and a greater focus?
Learn how to think on the Word of God throughout the day.
Think on it. God will not tell you to do
something that you weren't capable of doing.
If He said to meditate on my word day and night, then the
reality and the truth is you can think about it all day long.
The psalmist says even at night my heart meditates upon your
precepts. So even if I got to get up to go
to the bathroom at night, the first thing on my mind is the
word of God. Meditate on it, ponder it,
imagine it, and then it says that you may observe.
To do it, you actually need to do what you're meditating on, if
you're meditating on love. Then you better do love, right?
We can go to 1st Corinthians 13. The Great Love chapter says love
is patient. So maybe, maybe you need a
longer Wick this year. You remember the Roadrunner, a
long Wick. Maybe you're instead of saying
I, I don't have patience, Lord, through agape, I got patience.
I'm just going to get tenacious about this.
Give me some more. You're just exercising my love
muscle right now. Just test me a little bit more.
There's one translation of of love.
It says love passes the breaking point without breaking.
So not only you got to meditate, but you got to do it.
And then it says then you will make your way prosperous.
Then you will have good success. God wants things to go well for
you, but you have to have redeemed thinking and really
redeemed action to see a transformed life.
Two more verses, first, first Timothy chapter 4, verses 14
through 15 and worship team, you can come.
It says do not neglect the gift, do not neglect the gift.
Do not neglect. Why would the Holy Spirit
through the apostle Paul encourage us not to neglect
because you can neglect the gift of God.
You can make a choice to say I'm I'm not doing that.
I'm not cultivating that, but the Word says don't neglect the
gift that's in you, which was given you by prophecy with the
lane on it of the hands of the elder ship.
Meditate on these things. Give yourself entirely to them.
Be all in in 2025, Stay focused in 2025.
Listen to what it says, that your progress may be evident to
all. God wants to put your life on
display. He wants to use you to ignite
the city, impact the nation, and influence the world.
But it's going to take a focused effort on your part in your soul
realm. Last scripture, Hebrews chapter
6 verse #19 says this. This hope we have as an anchor,
as an anchor of the soul both sure and steadfast, and which
enters the presence behind the veil.