Thrive.Church Weekly Message

Even when you ___________________ God to move, you still have to ___________________ for Him.

[Psalm 130:6 NIV] I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.

God often grows the miracle in ___________________ places before He reveals it in ___________________ places.

Waiting ___________________ us while the thing God is doing in you is still ___________________ to others.

[Psalm 27:13-14 NIV] I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. [14] Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

After the ___________________ comes the waiting.

Faith is believing God is ___________________ even when you can’t ___________________ it.

[Matthew 1:19-21] Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. [20] As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. [21] And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

How you _____________ while you wait says more about your ___________________ than how you act after God comes through.

[Luke 1:46-49] Mary responded, "Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. [47] How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! [48] For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed. [49] For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me.

_______________ sustains your __________ while you wait.

[Isaiah 40:29-31 ESV] He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. [30] Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; [31] but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

_________ holds people back more than anything else.

God is ___________________ long before you see Him ___________________.

[Isaiah 40:3-5 NIV] A voice of one calling: "In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. [4] Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. [5] And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

[Matthew 3:1-2] In those days John the Baptist came to the Judean wilderness and began preaching. His message was, [2] "Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near."

God uses the ______________________ to prepare you.

[Luke 3:15] Everyone was expecting the Messiah to come soon, and they were eager to know whether John might be the Messiah.

Repentance is turning away from _________________ and towards what God is ___________________ to do.

[John 1:5-7, 9] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. [6] God sent a man, John the Baptist, [7] to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. [9] The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

Preparation is living with ___________________ even before you see it.

The preparation always comes before the ______________.

[Hebrews 11:8] It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.

The Lord never asked for a ___________________ heart, He asked for a ___________________ one.

[Psalm 130:5 NIV] I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.

The ________________ of yesterday often become the ________________ of today.

[Isaiah 9:1] Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.

Darkness doesn't always mean __________________.

God does some of His best work in the ________________.

[Isaiah 9:2 NIV] The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.

Faith isn’t denying the __________________, it’s declaring the __________________.

[Isaiah 9:6 NIV] For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

God’s Light rarely arrives the way we __________________, but always in the way we __________________.

[Daniel 8:13-14] Then I heard two holy ones talking to each other. One of them asked, "How long will the events of this vision last? How long will the rebellion that causes desecration stop the daily sacrifices? How long will the Temple and heaven's army be trampled on?" [14] The other replied, "It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the Temple will be made right again."

[John 8:12] Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life."

The Light that came into the world still _________________, still breaks through, and still __________________.

[John 1:4-5 NIV] In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. [5] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Darkness doesn't _________________ a ________________ against the light!

[2 Corinthians 4:6-7] For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. [7] We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

[Judges 6:11-12] Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. [12] The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!”

[Psalm 19:1-4] A psalm of David. The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. [2] Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. [3] They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. [4] Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world. God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.

Creation is __________________ God.

[Psalm 150:6] Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD! Praise the LORD!

God didn’t just create life to __________________, He created it to __________________.

[Romans 1:20-21] For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. [21] Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.

Creation is inviting us to praise the __________________.

[1 Thessalonians 5:18] Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

Gratitude __________________ the mind.

[Proverbs 17:22] A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength.

When we stop giving _________, everything begins to ________.

[James 1:16-18] So don't be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. [17] Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. [18] He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

You are God's __________________ possession.

[Psalm 100:1-5] A psalm of thanksgiving. Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth! [2] Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. [3] Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. [4] Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. [5] For the LORD is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

You’re not a __________________ object in a cosmic accident.

[Psalm 148:1-5] Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens! Praise him from the skies! [2] Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all the armies of heaven! [3] Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you twinkling stars! [4] Praise him, skies above! Praise him, vapors high above the clouds! [5] Let every created thing give praise to the LORD, for he issued his command, and they came into being.

[1 Kings 19:1-3a] When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel everything Elijah had done, including the way he had killed all the prophets of Baal. [2] So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: “May the gods strike me and even kill me if by this time tomorrow I have not killed you just as you killed them.” [3] Elijah was afraid and fled for his life.

[Colossians 1:16a NIV] For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible....

[Proverbs 25:2 ESV] It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.

[1 Corinthians 3:18-20 NIV] Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. 

[19] For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; 

[20] and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”

[Romans 1:20 NIV] For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

As science progresses, more and more of the evidence points to a wise and intelligent being who created all things.

[Proverbs 18:15 NIV] The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.” –

[Job 12:7-10 NIV] “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; 

[8] or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. 

[9] Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? [10] In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.

God designed all things with purpose and for purpose.

There are no accidents in God’s creation.

God is not a God of blind indifference who just set things in motion. He is a God with a plan for every creature under heaven.

[Psalm 104:24 NET] How many living things you have made, O Lord! You have exhibited great skill in making all of them; the earth is full of the living things you have made.

The very hairs of your head were ordained by God, the color of your skin, the way you look, the interests or gifts that God gave you.

[Luke 12:6-7 NIV] Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. [7] Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

[Matthew 6:26 ESV] Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

[Luke 12:24 ESV] Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!

[John 1:1-5 ESV] “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] He was in the beginning with God. [3] All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. [4] In him was life, and the life was the light of men. [5] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

[Mark 5.25 KJV] And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years.