Thrive.Church Weekly Message

Our gifts are to be used in ___________, to ___________ people, and ___________ them to Jesus.

It is in the gap that God does his ________ work in our hearts.

God wants closeness with _____!

[Exodus 14:11-12 NIV] They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, bringing us out of Egypt? [12] Is this not the very thing we told you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

[Exodus 15:25b-26] It was there at Marah that the Lord set before them the following decree as a standard to test their faithfulness to him. [26] He said, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the Lord who heals you.”

Trusting God in the __________- is often harder than living in the bondage we ________.

God is ________ you in the gap.

[Exodus 16:2-4 NRSVUE] The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. [3] The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and ate our fill of bread, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” [4] Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.

[Exodus 20:19] they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”

Trust takes ____________.

Trust takes ____________.

[Deuteronomy 8:1-7] “Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors. [2] Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character (NIV says “to know what was in your heart”), and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands. [3] Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. [4] For all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t blister or swell. [5] Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your God disciplines* you for your own good. [6] “So obey the commands of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. [7] For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land of flowing streams and pools of water, with fountains and springs that gush out in the valleys and hills.

[Matthew 4:1-4 NLT] [1] Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. [2] For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry. [3] During that time the devil came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread." [4] But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say, 'People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

God wants us to trust his ___________.

[Hebrews 11:39-40] All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. [40] For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without US.

[1 Peter 4.10] God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.

Do we let the strains of life drive us ___________________ God or _______________________ from him?

[1 Samuel 1:3-16] Each year Elkanah would travel to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies at the Tabernacle. The priests of the Lord at that time were the two sons of Eli—Hophni and Phinehas. [4] On the days Elkanah presented his sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to Peninnah and each of her children. [5] And though he loved Hannah, he would give her only one choice portion because the Lord had given her no children. [6] So Peninnah would taunt Hannah and make fun of her because the Lord had kept her from having children. [7] Year after year it was the same—Peninnah would taunt Hannah as they went to the Tabernacle. Each time, Hannah would be reduced to tears and would not even eat. [8] “Why are you crying, Hannah?” Elkanah would ask. “Why aren’t you eating? Why be downhearted just because you have no children? You have me—isn’t that better than having ten sons?” [9] Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle. [10] Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord. [11] And she made this vow: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.” [12] As she was praying to the Lord, Eli watched her. [13] Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. [14] “Must you come here drunk?” he demanded. “Throw away your wine!” [15] “Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord. [16] Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.”

___________________ prayer will __________________ us before it changes our circumstances

Sometimes God ____________________ us to reach the end of ourselves, so we can _____________________ that he is enough.

[2 Samuel 2:18-21] But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the Lord. He wore a linen garment like that of a priest. [19] Each year his mother made a small coat for him and brought it to him when she came with her husband for the sacrifice. [20] Before they returned home, Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May the Lord give you other children to take the place of this one she gave to the Lord.” [21] And the Lord blessed Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.

[2 Timothy 2:11-13] This is a faithful saying:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

[12] if we endure, we will also reign with him;

if we deny him, he also will deny us;

[13] if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself.

The gap ___________________ us where our strength truly comes from.

[Psalm 1:1-3] Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. [2] But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. [3] They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

[1 Samuel 16:1, 7, 13 NIV] The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king." [7] But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." [13] So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.

David received God’s promise ______________ before he received the ______________.

[Acts 13:22 NIV] After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'

An obedient heart ______________ Gods ______________ over you.

[Psalm 27:10 NIV] Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.

[Psalm 69:8 NIV] I am a foreigner to my own family, a stranger to my own mother's children;

Leadership ______________ long before the ______________.

David’s primary ______________ was in his ______________ to God

[Psalm 27:13 NIV] I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

[Psalm 143:8 NIV] Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.

[1 Samuel 16:19, 21 NIV] Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me your son David, who is with the sheep." [21] David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers.

[1 Samuel 17:32-37 NIV] David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him." [33] Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth." [34] But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, [35] I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. [36] Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. [37] The LORD who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine." Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."

It doesn’t matter what you ______________, it matters what God ______________.

[2 Samuel 7:22 NIV] "How great you are, Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears.

[Psalm 34:4-9] I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. [5] Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces. [6] In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles. [7] For the angel of the Lord is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him. [8] Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! [9] Fear the Lord, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need.

[Genesis 37:5-8] One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. [6] “Listen to this dream,” he said. [7] “We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!” [8] His brothers responded, “So you think you will be our king, do you? Do you actually think you will reign over us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dreams and the way he talked about them.

[Romans 12:6a] “In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well.”

God prepares the person before He reveals the ________________.

[Ecclesiastes 3:11] Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.

[Genesis 39:2-4] The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. [3] Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. [4] This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned.

What feels like a ________________ may actually be preparation.

[Romans 11:29 NKJV] For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

Character is ________________ long before it is revealed.

[Isaiah 64:8] And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.

[2 Peter 1:5-7] In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God's promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, [6] and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, [7] and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.

[Genesis 41:15-16] Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream last night, and no one here can tell me what it means. But I have heard that when you hear about a dream you can interpret it.” [16] “It is beyond my power to do this,” Joseph replied. “But God can tell you what it means and set you at ease.”

God is ________________ you for what He's preparing for you.

[Genesis 41:41] Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.

[Genesis 45:4b-5] he says, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into slavery in Egypt. [5] But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives.”

[Genesis 50:20] You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.

[1 Chronicles 4:9-10] There was a man named Jabez who was more honorable than any of his brothers. His mother named him Jabez because his birth had been so painful. [10] He was the one who prayed to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!” And God granted him his request.

The _________ between God’s promise and God’s fulfillment is where _______________ is formed.

[Hebrews 11:1] Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. 

[Genesis 12:1] 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. [2] I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 

God doesn’t use the ___________. He uses 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 Gap is not God’s ___________. It’s God’s ____________.

[Genesis 15:2] O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son?

[Genesis 15:5] Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”

Faith isn’t the ______________ of doubt. It’s choosing to ______________ anyway.

[Genesis 15:6] And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

[Genesis 21:1-2] The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. [2] She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would.

God is often ___________ you while He prepares the ____________.

Faith grows when we trust God’s ______________ over our _____________________.

[Romans 4:18] Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!”

God wastes ____________ that is ________________ to Him.