What you focus on during your process determines what you see, and what you see determines what you perceive, and what you perceive determines what you believe, and what you believe ultimately determines what becomes in your life. Taking the example of Peter when he walked on water towards Jesus, for as long he kept his eyes on Jesus, he could walk on water, but when he turned his eyes from Jesus and begun to focus on the waves around him, fear gripped him and his faith started to waiver and that’s when he started to drown and Jesus had to come and lift him up from the water. Often times, we underestimate the power of our minds and what we focus on. God has made us in such a way that our minds determine what our lives become, ‘as a man thinketh so is he’. Too many times, we let the world around us determine what our lives are going to become by bombarding us with images and stories that spell doom and gloom and we just take it in without any filters. I’ve learnt to filter what I take in and over time because I’ve purposely chosen to focus on the Word of God which I’ve literally seen coming to life within me as my faith was stirred up every time I read it. The Bible went from being just another hypothetical book to a book that has real life events and real life people that lived thousands years before me. So reading it from the beginning to the very end the presents the grand picture of how God unfolded history and got us to where we are now. It made me understand why history has been what it has been, where we are now and where we are headed to. For example, why is it that the nation of Israel is on every other international news item in one way or another, why Israel and not any other nation? It’s because God made a covenant with Abraham that they shall be a great nation. Why was there, for example, an uproar when the Jerusalem was recognised as its capital, I don’t think people would care that much if say the capital city of Zambia moved from Lusaka to Livingstone, or even if the capital of the States moved from Washington to California, yes it would be a news item but wouldn’t cause that much of an uproar. But why was Jerusalem being recognised as the capital city of Israel such a big issue, it’s because of the Bible history of that nation and how spiritually significant it is. Now if that is true about Israel today and it is tandem with what the Bible has said all along, then that means all other things in the Bible are not just fictitious stories but are actually true and worth taking note of. In this context, especially when you read the Old Testament in context, i.e. Bible history books such as Samuel, Kings, Ezra, Nehemiah and the like compared with the prophetic books that spoke of that history before it unfolded such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Haggai and the rest then become relatable and true to you as actual history books. And you begin to see the pattern of how God has unfolded the history of the world, where we are right now and where we are going, spoken of in Ephesians and Revelations. We are really in the last days and yes there is all the doom and gloom prophesied, but then before that happens Ephesians speaks of the church arising in all its glory and power and that is what is happening now. The spirit of God is being poured out like never before and the children of God are arising to become all that they were created to be in all the seven spheres of influence; the church, the family, business and economics, government, education, media, and arts and entertainment. Having said all this, and bringing the point home, what then is your part in all this, why did God have you live in this generation? What role do you have to play in the making of history? What is your purpose and destiny? Beginning to understand the answers to these questions will then bring you to a place where you are refocused to keep your eyes on God and what He is doing with your life, what He wants to manifest in the earth through you, and in keeping your eyes focused on Him, you, like Peter are able to do extraordinary things, for as long as you keep your eyes focused on him. And all these extraordinary things you then begin to do, are all things written down about you before you were born because God says He knew you before he formed you in your mother’s womb. So then, keep at bay every distraction that causes you to lose focus of what is really important and necessary to bring to pass all that you are in God.
Find below, Tony Evans sermon on “Detours to Destiny – the promotion of detours”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg9T0EAnh6o&t=21s
Focus, perception, belief and become. I pray for grace to have a godly outlook during the process. I pray that I become all that the Lord has destined me to be! Amen!
Amen!
Thanks for this blessed word! I agree that we must keep at bay all distractionday and focus on what is important to bring to pass all that we are in God. I look forward to a detailed exposition on the seven spheres of influence, I’m yet to fully understand that topic.
Okay, will look into that. I agree its really important to understand the bigger picture regarding the seven spheres of influence to fully understand what Ephesians talks about when it mentions the full glory of the last day church. Will definitely be exploring that aspect. Thanks for the feedback