Access Church

Get Your Vision Back

Dream Again

Specific Will

General Will

Matthew 28:19-20 // “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Mark 16:15 // He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”

Luke 24:47 // “With my authority, take this message of repentance to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: There is forgiveness of sins for all who turn to me.”

John 20:21 // “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

Acts 1:8 // “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

We cannot REACH what we cannot SEE.

John 4:27-35 // Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?” Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” They came out of the town and made their way toward him. Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.”

Spiritual Nearsightedness

If God answered all my prayers, would it CHANGE THE WORLD or just CHANGE ME?

 

2,996

250,000

7.97 Billion

2.5 Billion

5.5 Billion

42

358,000

289,980

1. Open our eyes to WHERE they are.

Psalm 37:23 // The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD.

Proverbs 16:9 // In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

To change our world...

We need to CONNECT before we CORRECT.

2. Open our eyes to WHO they are.

Matthew 9:36 // When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

To change our world...

We don’t have to be LIKE them, but we do have to LIKE them.

3. Open our eyes to WHAT they need.

Truth without grace is MEAN.

Grace without truth is MEANINGLESS.

Together, they are MEDICINE.

John 1:14 // The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

To change our world...

We need to show people the same kind of love God showed us: UNCONDITIONAL LOVE.

 

A locked gate.

View: God can’t be reached.

A garbage can.

View: God doesn’t want me.

An endless ladder.

View: God requires a lot from me.

A free gift.

The right view of God.

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What do you do when the dream dies?

2 Kings 4:8-37  //  8 One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat. 9 She said to her husband, “I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. 10 Let’s make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us.” 11 One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. 12 He said to his servant Gehazi, “Call the Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. 13 Elisha said to him, “Tell her, ‘You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army?’” She replied, “I have a home among my own people.” 14 “What can be done for her?” Elisha asked. Gehazi said, “She has no son, and her husband is old.” 15 Then Elisha said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. 16 “About this time next year,” Elisha said, “you will hold a son in your arms.” “No, my lord!” she objected. “Please, man of God, don’t mislead your servant!” 17 But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her. 18 The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers. 19 He said to his father, “My head! My head!” His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 20 After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. 20 After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. 21 She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out. 22 She called her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return.” 23 “Why go to him today?” he asked. “It’s not the New Moon or the Sabbath.” “That’s all right,” she said. 24 She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Lead on; don’t slow down for me unless I tell you.” 25 So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, “Look! There’s the Shunammite! 26 Run to meet her and ask her, ‘Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?’” “Everything is all right,” she said. 27 When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me why.” 28 “Did I ask you for a son, my lord?” she said. “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t raise my hopes’?” 29 Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand and run. Don’t greet anyone you meet, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy’s face.” 30 But the child’s mother said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her. 31 Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, “The boy has not awakened.” 32 When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch. 33 He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the Lord. 34 Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out on him, the boy’s body grew warm. 35 Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. 36 Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite.” And he did. When she came, he said, “Take your son.” 37 She came in, fell at his feet and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out.

God has this way of OVERRULING our OBJECTIONS.

Hebrews 11:1  //  Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

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Sabbatical Observations:

We get one shot at this life.

So many people don’t go to church on Sundays.

Pants are the worst.

The church never missed a beat.

 

We’ll see you in January!

“It came out of nowhere!”

 

Blindsided

Blind Sighted

Vision - A picture of God’s preferred future for our life

Proverbs 29:18 KJV // Where there is no vision, the people perish

Chazon

Proverbs 29:18 NIV // Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint

You were created for significance, not just survival

Proverbs 29:18 MSG // If people can’t see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; But when they attend to what he reveals, they are most blessed.

2 Kings 6:15-17 // When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. 16 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

There is a PROCESS to our healing.

Mark 8:22-26 // 22 They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?” 24 He looked up and said, “I see people; they look like trees walking around.” 25 Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.  26 Jesus sent him home, saying, “Don’t even go into the village.”

God does miracles on HIS OWN TERMS, not OURS.

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Matthew 18:1-4  //  At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 18:1-4 (TPT)  // At that time the disciples came to him to ask Jesus, “Who is considered to be the greatest in heaven’s kingdom realm?” Jesus called a little one to his side and said to them, “Learn this well: Unless you dramatically change your way of thinking and become teachable, and learn about heaven’s kingdom realm with the wide-eyed wonder of a child, you will never be able to enter in. Whoever continually humbles himself to become like this gentle child is the greatest one in heaven’s kingdom realm.

Be Teachable

Proverbs 18:2  //  A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.

Be Dependent

John 15:5  //  I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Be Humble

Matthew 11:28-30  //  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Live in awe

Psalm 19:1  //  The heavens declare the glory of God;    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Psalm 19:1 (TPT)  //  God’s splendor is a tale that is told, written in the stars. Space itself speaks his story through the marvels of the heavens. His truth is on tour in the starry vault of the sky, showing his skill in creation’s craftsmanship.

Attention is the beginning of devotion.

Trade your cynicism for certainty in a good God.

The secret to hope and joy is to keep seeking God where we doubt He is.

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Matthew 5:14-16 (NIRV)  //  14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill can’t be hidden. 15 Also, people do not light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand. Then it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine so others can see it. Then they will see the good things you do. And they will bring glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Philippians 2:12-16 (NIRV)  //  12 My dear friends, you have always obeyed God. You obeyed while I was with you. And you have obeyed even more while I am not with you. So continue to work out your own salvation. Do it with fear and trembling. 13 God is working in you. He wants your plans and your acts to be in keeping with his good purpose. 14 Do everything without finding fault or arguing. 15 Then you will be pure and without blame. You will be children of God without fault in a sinful and evil world. Among the people of the world you shine like stars in the heavens. 16 You shine as you hold out to them the word of life. So I can brag about you on the day Christ returns. I can be happy that I didn't run or work for nothing.

1) Keep Your Own Life Calibrated to Jesus

Philippians 2:12 (NIRV)  //  My dear friends, you have always obeyed God. You obeyed while I was with you. And you have obeyed even more while I am not with you. So continue to work out your own salvation. Do it with fear and trembling.

Hebrews 12:2 (NIRV)  //   Let us keep looking to Jesus. He is the author of faith. He also makes it perfect.

2) Keep a Healthy Outlook on Life

Philippians 2:13 (NIRV)  //  God is working in you. He wants your plans and your acts to be in keeping with his good purpose.

Philippians 4:4-9 (NIRV)  //  4 Always be joyful because you belong to the Lord. I will say it again. Be joyful. 5 Let everyone know how gentle you are. The Lord is coming soon. 6 Don't worry about anything. Instead, tell God about everything. Ask and pray. Give thanks to him. 7 Then God's peace will watch over your hearts and your minds because you belong to Christ Jesus. God's peace can never be completely understood. 8 Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things.

3) Be the Change You Are Seeking

Philippians 2:14-15 (NIRV)  //  Do everything without finding fault or arguing. 15 Then you will be pure and without blame. You will be children of God without fault in a sinful and evil world. Among the people of the world you shine like stars in the heavens.

Philippians 2:1-2 (NIRV)  //  1 Are you cheerful because you belong to Christ? Does his love comfort you? Is the Holy Spirit your companion? Has Christ been gentle and loving toward you? 2 Then make my joy complete by agreeing with each other. Have the same love. Be one in spirit and purpose.

4) Look For Opportunities to Serve Others

Philippians 2:16 (NIRV)  //  You shine as you hold out to them the word of life. So I can brag about you on the day Christ returns. I can be happy that I didn't run or work for nothing.

Philippians 2:3-4 (NIRV)  //  3 Don't do anything only to get ahead. Don't do it because you are proud. Instead, be free of pride. Think of others as better than yourselves. 4 None of you should look out just for your own good. You should also look out for the good of others.

Matthew 5:14-16 (ESV)  //  14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

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My comfort zone is a seemingly small detail that can make a big difference in my life.

Exodus 3:1-10  //  Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”

3 Things that Happen When We Move Out Of Our Comfort Zone:

1. You have a perspective shift.

When stepping out of your comfort zone, a perspective shift happens

2. You get closer to God.

Exodus 3:11-12a  //  But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you…”

Getting pushed out of our comfort zone will push us closer to God

You realize it wasn’t just about you.

Exodus 14:21  //  Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

Leaving your comfort zone isn’t just for you

God will bother ONE PERSON to save MANY PEOPLE

How could God use my comfortability in my lack of comfort?

Remember God is with you.

Matthew 28:20b  //  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

If you stepped out of your comfort zone today, who might you end up helping?

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Moving forward is a seemingly small detail that can make a big difference in my life.

We Won’t Heal

We Won’t Be Ready For What’s To Come

We Won’t Appreciate What’s to Come

Philippians 3:13   //  “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead…”

Forgetting

Philippians 3:3-7 //  For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—  though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;  as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.

Forgetting what is behind means leaving both the good and the bad in the past.

LEAVE IT!

Straining

Philippians 3:14   //  “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Straining towards what’s ahead means giving all we have to God’s plans.

Enneagram 2, Wing 3

Reflect on what is hard to forget, make peace with it, so you can LEAVE IT.

"If I hadn't looked back, I would’ve won!"

Take a Step

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PRIDE is a seemingly small detail that can make a big difference in my life.

Pride Is:

An ATTITUDE of INDEPENDENCE from God

UNGRATEFULNESS to God

Considering OURSELVES better than OTHERS

Pride Isn’t:

A good self-image

A job well done

Check Your Ego

Isaiah 14:12-15   //   How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit.

Proverbs 16:5   //  The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

Getting rid of pride means keeping my ego in check

Know Your Limits

James 1:17  //  Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Psalm 103:13-14   //  As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.

We as humans have limits

Imitate Jesus

Matthew 9:10-12  //  While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.

Jesus’ life is the best example of getting rid of pride

If you’re too busy looking down on people and things, you can’t look up to God

Ask God to forgive you

James 4:6 (MSG)  //  It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.”

Be Watchful

Live Different

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Joy

Details

Mark 5:25-34 (NIV)  // 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’” 32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

My thoughts are a seemingly small detail that can make a big difference in my life.

Your crowd will influence your thoughts

Mark 5:24b-25 // A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years.

The crowd you keep, will influence the thoughts you think.

Our thoughts may not be accurate, but they have power!

Mark 5:28 //  "If I just touch his clothes..."

Your thoughts make way for God's best in your life

Mark 5:28-29 //  because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

A single thought can change our life.

Evaluate your crowd and make changes

Think about what you think about

Train your mind

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To get the PRODUCT we want, we have to submit to the PROCESS we need.

Romans 5:1-5  //  1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Restless - it isn’t more sleep that I need… its more rest

Purposeless - it isn’t more work but valued work you need

Hopeless - it isn’t happier now but a hope that things can get better

The Ingredients:

1. Select Suffering

Romans 1:3  //  Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings

Romans 8:28  //  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

2. Mix with Perseverance 

Romans 1:3  //  because we know that suffering produces perseverance

3. Complete your Character

Romans 5:4  //  perseverance, character

Romans 5:3-5  //  3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Romans 8:28  //  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

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