Being Vulnerable

Pastor Joel @ Lakewood Church

It's easy to walk around pretending.

And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

II Corinthians 12:9 NKJV

God won't bless who you pretend to be. Being vulnerable is a strength.

Society stresses image which creates a lot of pretending. If you can't be honest with yourself then it will keep you from reaching your full potential.

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I  do,  forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

Philippians 3:13 NKJV

Paul had the humility to admit his weaknesses.

God cannot fill a vessel that's already full. 

And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!"

Mark 9:22‭-‬24 NKJV

Let the weak say "I am strong".

John Baptized Jesus and experienced this:

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

Matthew 3:16‭-‬17 NKJV

Though he experienced this,  he still had doubts:

And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see:  The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."

Matthew 11:2‭-‬6 NKJV

You can't overcome a weakness if you won't get it out in the open.

Eventhough John had questions, Jesus said this: "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Matthew 11:11 NKJV

A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?" For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?" Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,  but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw." Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."

John 4:7‭-‬16 NKJV

She could have kept her mask on, lied, and walked away. But she chose to be honest and Jesus revealed himself to her. 

The woman answered and said, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,'  for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly." The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When He comes, He will tell us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He. "

John 4:17‭-‬18‭, ‬25‭-‬26 NKJV

God already knows your shortcomings anyway.

Take off your superman outfit, sometimes you just have to be Clark Kent. People will learn more from how you handle your struggles.

When you're vulnerable, you're pliable.

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.

II Timothy 2:20‭-‬21 NKJV

There is a peace when you can be ok with being perfect.

Pastor John Osteen walked in on Joel and some other staff who were laughing and joking. Pastor John thought that they were making fun of him and admonished them. Later Joel told him that they were talking about something else and his dad apologized, admitting that he was insecure about other things. He then asked for the other guys' numbers so that he could call and apologize to them.

Jacob did whatever trickery he could to get ahead. But when he got honest this he received a new name: "And He said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed."

Genesis 32:28 NKJV

Victoria Osteen @ Lakewood Church

How we see ourselves 

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Genesis 1:27 NKJV

Our image is our source of stregth. The image was tainted in the garden but when we said yes to Jesus it was washed clean again.

Some people begin to identify with our circumstances intead of Jesus and His power that lives in us.

The only way I know what I look like is by looking in the mirror. The Word of God is our spiritual mirror.

Sometimes we can allow people to taint our image.

If someone is trying to say bad things about me I should not let it distort the way that I see myself.  I need to know that the person they are descring isn't me because I know what I look like.

You can't get what's rightfully yours if you aren't carrying your identification. Like if you go to the bank to get your money out, they won't give it to you becsuse you don't have proof of your identification.

I'm the bearer of God's image and God is eternal. Everything else is temporary and subject to change.

Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

II Corinthians 1:21‭-‬22 NKJV

Pastor Craig

Broken crayons still color.

Champions Club

In March 2008, Lakewood Church launched a new program: Champions Club. Our goal was to develop a program that would meet the developmental needs of our children in three important ways, SPIRITUALLY, INTELLECTUALLY, and PHYSICALLY. Our focus was on spiritual growth through God's Word, ministering to the intellect of each child through their senses and engaging the child physically during spiritual gross motor fun. We enlisted the help of several professionals in the fields of special needs and came up with a plan that would allow each child to be ministered to at their individual level.  Champions Club now not only serves children but adults with special needs! Our ratios in our classrooms remain 1-to-1 to allow the individual to be ministered to at a personal level.  Champions Club has gone on to grow from its beginnings at Lakewood to be incorporated into serving the needs of individuals in congregations and communities around the world.   

https://www.lakewoodchurch.com/Pages/Ministry.aspx?mid=40

It Is Finished

We all have things trying to hold us back but God didn't create me to go through life weighed down. We are created to be free. 

God's mercy is bigger than my mistakes.

Get rid of excuses. As long as you justify your condition, your giving it permission to stay.

When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, "Would you like to get well?"

John 5:6 NLT

Even though he was at the pool where people were getting healed, nothing in his behavior said that he wanted to get well. He gravitated to people like him and got comfortable in dysfunction.

"I can't, sir," the sick man said, "for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me."

John 5:7 NLT

Nothing that's happened in the past has to keep you away from God's purpose.

Jesus told him, "Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!"

John 5:8 NLT

The crippled man made excuses but God in His mercy healed him.

Sometimes well meaning people will try to talk you out of your destiny. A lot of times the people who have known you the longest will try to keep you in the same old box.

David: 1 Samuel 16

When the prophet came to annoint the next king his dad didn't even bring him in the house.

But the Lord said to Samuel, "Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

1 Samuel 16:7 NLT

When Jesus had finished telling these stories and illustrations, he left that part of the country. He returned to Nazareth, his hometown. When he taught there in the synagogue, everyone was amazed and said, "Where does he get this wisdom and the power to do miracles?" Then they scoffed, "He's just the carpenter's son, and we know Mary, his mother, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. All his sisters live right here among us. Where did he learn all these things?" And they were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, "A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family."  And so he did only a few miracles there because of their unbelief.

Matthew 13:53‭-‬58 NLT

Just because negative things have been passed down, you don't have to take them.

Where you come from is not who you are. You can start a new trend. God doesn't just want you to break a generational curse, he wants you to start a generational blessing.

The Lord had said to Abram, "Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father's family, and go to the land that I will show you.

Genesis 12:1 NLT

You may not need to physically leave your family but you might need to leave negative mindsets.

"Enlarge your house; build an addition. Spread out your home, and spare no expense!

Isaiah 54:2 NLT

Make room for God to do big things. God is a progressive God and wants every generation to get better. 

2 Samuel 12:16-23

His advisers were amazed. "We don't understand you," they told him. "While the child was still living, you wept and refused to eat. But now that the child is dead, you have stopped your mourning and are eating again." David replied, "I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, 'Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to me and let the child live.' But why should I fast when he is dead? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him one day, but he cannot return to me."

2 Samuel 12:21‭-‬23 NLT

David did all that he could but accepted that though he can't change the past, he can hope in the future.

Dr. Paul @ Lakewood Church

God cares about people.

I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.'

Matthew 25:36 NLT

"And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'

Matthew 25:40 NLT

2000 scriptures about caring about the poor.

Lakewood Church

The Secret to Every Marriage

Farrah & Roy: Who's the Boss

(Strength Based Marriage By Jimmy Evans & Allan Kelsey)

Overusing and imposing a strength can make that strength a weakness.

The secret to a happy marriage is to contribute out of roles that engage your strengths, to lend equality in decision-making, and to equally submit to each other in deference

Pastor Lisa

Standing on God's Promises

Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses.

Joshua 1:3 NKJV

You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him." [they did it] And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: "Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!

Joshua 6:3‭-‬5‭, ‬16 NKJV

For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, "Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you." And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

Hebrews 6:13‭-‬20 NKJV

Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the River Euphrates, even to the Western Sea, shall be your territory.

Deuteronomy 11:24 NKJV

Clayton and Ashlee

Love is a Choice

Charlie and Dottie Duke sought Christ and slowly found a way to love each other. (https://billygraham.org/story/charlie-dukes-meaningful-walk/)

Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy.

1 Corinthians 14:1 NLT

John Gray

Common Ground

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,  that whoever believes in Him should not perish but  have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:14‭-‬16 NKJV

Every person I will ever come in contact with is someone who Jesus died for. 

Because of what Jesus did there is no limit to how much I can access God.

We need to take what we receive in the Church house and apply it to the people God loves,  everybody!!!

The buzz word is "Equality"

Freedom is not just natural it's spiritual.

Jesus lifted up every broken person he encountered and that's my commission.

There is a difference between religion and relationship.

No matter who you are Jesus loves you.

and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Romans 8:17 NKJV