Master Designer

Breaking patterns of behavior is difficult to do. If you don't like your pattern of behavior, go to your designer, God. 

The behavior of your life is not the problem. Your pattern of your behavior that you are following is the problem if it is not God.

Who are you following?    

Who are you copying? 


Are you following and copying the world? 
  

Matthew 7:15-17  (NIRV)

15 “Watch out for false prophets. 

They come to you pretending to be sheep. But on the inside they are hungry wolves. 

16 You can tell each tree by its fruit. 

Do people pick grapes from bushes? Do they pick figs from thorns? 

17 In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit. But a bad tree bears bad fruit. 

You can identify people by the way they act. Don't listen to their mouth, but listen to their life. 

Matthew 16:24 (NIRV)

24 Then Jesus spoke to his disciples. He said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must say no to themselves. They must pick up their cross and follow me.

You're not your own designer.  We each have our own individual cross. 

God has made us individually and differently with our own unique purpose. 

We have to have discipline to be a disciple to fulfill our purpose. 

Proverbs 12:1 (NIRV)

Anyone who loves correction loves knowledge.

    Anyone who hates to be corrected is stupid.

God's discipline doesn't destroy us.  It defines us because its done with a heart of love. 

Psalm 139:16 New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

16 (God) Your eyes saw my body even before it was formed. You planned how many days I would live.

You wrote down the number of them in your book before I had lived through even one of them.

Consult with your designer, God. Seek Jesus, and let Him tell you who you are and what to do.  We are called to pattern our lives after Jesus.

1. Pray first.    

1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NIRV)

17 Never stop praying.

Look at the life of Jesus.  He prayed before making important decisions.  

He prayed all night before choosing His disciples.  Do you pray all night before choosing your friends?   

We must build a strong personal relationship with Jesus.  We must study the Bible to find our Word for each day.

Prayer is not a gift, but a discipline.  Prayer is not easy. Let's rebuild our prayer life. 

Any time any one tries to get you to worship yourself.  You must distance yourself from them.  

If Satan is not worried about your prayer life, you should be.

Before you have a problem, you need a prayer life.  Most of us do that backwards.  Remember to pray first.

A lifestyle of prayer keeps you yielded to God's Word.  We should be interested in God's omniscience not his options.  Prayer brings surrender.  Surrender brings power. 

2. Prayer brings vision.  

I'm talking about the big picture of your life.  You need a box top to your puzzle.  We need to get the box top out.  The box top is the Word of God. 

Jesus cast a vision of where He was going in the passage below.  

John 14 (NIRV)

14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God. Believe in me also.

2 There are many rooms in my Father’s house. If this were not true, would I have told you that I am going there? 

Would I have told you that I would prepare a place for you there? 

3 If I go and do that, I will come back.And I will take you to be with me. Then you will also be where I am. 

4. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Vision will give pain a purpose.  Vision is not easy.   

Proverbs 29:18 (NIRV)

18 Where there is no message (vision) from God, people don’t control themselves.  But blessed is the one who obeys wisdom’s instruction.  

No vision means no boundaries.  We ruin ourselves by impulse buying. We ruin our lives with impulse anything.

We must not aim at the wrong target.

Happiness is not the ultimate goal.  The goal is to be holy. Happiness is the by product of holiness.  If you chase happiness, you'll never find it.  

Andy Stanley: The clearer the vision is.  The fewer the options are.  The easier the decision is.

You must have a clear vision for what you're looking for, so you will become what you are looking for, so you will attract what you're looking for.

How do I get a clear vision for my life?

1. Pray first.

2. Discover God's purpose for you.

If you see it, you can pray it, and God can do it. 

Are you far from God?  Do you want to be near Him?

Pray...

Dear Jesus, I want your vision,  your plan, and purpose. Take over my life and be my Lord and Savior.   

Notes taken from Jeremy Foster, Hope City Church 

https://hopecity.com/sermons/awaken-adventure-part-4/