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| | The Christian Millionaire Mindset Mentors Network is not currently active and cannot accept new posts | | The Joy of Expectancy | Views: 1092 | | Oct 09, 2006 3:29 pm | | The Joy of Expectancy | # | 
Jack Weinzierl | | This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it. Today’s call is going to cover a lot and the main focus for this TGIM call is The Joy of Expectancy. There have been many key success factors in building our Advantage Conferences business, but I would estimate none as important as having the expectancy that by prayer, planning and perseverance that God will provide ALL that He says He will in His living Word.
We can have that same kind of expectancy from God’s Word. If God said it in His Word, the Bible, we can be sure He will keep His promise….and expectancy is something you can choose intentionally. If you have resistance when I am sharing today, work through it and hopefully this will challenge you to get into God’s Word and see for yourself what promises He has for you.
I have a personal confession to share with you this morning and if we cover nothing more than this, it will be ALL you need. It is not something I am confessing to you to get off my chest, but something I am confessing based on who God says I am and what promises He says I have.
I set the course of my life today with my words:
--I declare today that I will not be defeated, discouraged, depressed or disappointed today.
--I am the head, I have insight, I have wisdom, I have ideas, I have authority.
--I exercise my authority today with my words and I decree a thing and it is so.
--Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4)…the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, lives in me… (Romans 8:11)
--As I speak words today, they come to pass (Job 22:28); they go before me, they bring the things to pass that I desire; and they stop all attacks, assaults, oppression, and fear from coming to my life.
--God is on my side today and, therefore, I cannot be defeated.
--His favor surrounds me today as a shield. (Psalm 5:12).
--I expect favor today from heaven and from the earth.
--I expect and receive favor in my home, favor in my Advantage Conferences business, favor in my ministry, favor with my finances, favor in every deal I am involved in.
--I have wisdom from God today. I will think the right thoughts, say the right words and make the right decisions in every situation I face today.
--My mouth speaks wisdom and my heart is filled with understanding. (Psalm 49:3)
--I ask for, and receive, an abundant supply of wisdom and understanding today from God (James 1:5)…wisdom from above, wisdom that is pure, peaceable, gentle, unwavering, willing to yield, without hypocrisy. (James 3:17)
--Wisdom and understanding are better than silver and gold and nothing I desire can compare with them; therefore, I make it my ambition and desire to have understanding and wisdom; therefore I know I will have all of the other desires of my heart. (Proverbs 8:10-11)
--My words go before me in securing my divine health and healing…
--I will not be sick today; I will not be sad today; I will not be broke today; I will not be confused today.
--I have health today; I have joy today; I have all the money I need in the name of Jesus.
--My steps are ordered by the Lord… (Psalm 37:23)
--I have a covenant with God and by the blood of Jesus I release my divine protection and divine provision.
--My angels are carrying out the Word of God on my behalf.
I receive supernatural strength and encouragement from God and my angels. (Psalm 103:20)
--I expect to have divine appointments today, to run into the right people, and to be delivered from the wrong people.
--Any adversity, attack, accidents and tragedies that were headed my way are diverted right now in Jesus’ name.
--I speak to the raging waters in my life: Peace, be still.
--I say to my emotions, peace, be still.
--I say to my mind, peace, be still.
--I say to my body, peace, be still.
--I say to my home, peace, be still.
--I say to my family, peace, be still.
Now I speak to:
--every mountain of fear
--every mountain of discouragement
--every mountain of stress
--every mountain of depression
--every mountain of lack and insufficiency
And I say, “Be removed and cast into the sea in Jesus’ name!” (Mark 11:23) I expect the best day of my life spiritually, emotionally, relationally and financially today in Jesus’ name!
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:11-13)
Now if you are having resistance to those confessions then I encourage you to experience the JOY of expectancy.
Joy is not easy to describe to those who only know happiness in life. Happiness is the good feeling you have when you get what you want. Happiness is short-lived and leaves when the circumstances in life change. If you find yourself on an emotional roller coaster, it is often due to folks letting circumstances rule their emotions.
Joy, however, is long lasting, even eternal. Joy results from what we think, what we do and how we relate to others, even to God. Joy is a matter of our spirit, the part of us that relates to God. Joy is calm delight, peace, contentment and fulfillment in life.
There is no secret to possessing joy. The Bible reveals joy as a fruit of God’s Spirit. In other words, joy is the result of God’s Spirit working in our lives to guide our thinking, our actions and our relationships. As we live according to God’s guidance, the fruit of joy grows in our lives. So joy does not come by accident, but by obedience to God.
Joy never goes on sale, not even during Christmas. The price of joy is always biblical expectancy. Everyone lives with expectancy. What we expect determines how we behave and how we feel. Biblical expectancy leads to a sense of adequacy, fulfillment and joy.
This morning, we will be looking at how biblical expectancy produces joy in our lives. Our passage comes from Luke, chapter 1, verses 26-38 and 46-55.
Luke records an orderly account of Jesus’ life, from before birth to the ascension of Jesus into heaven. The passage we read this morning records the news that Mary, a teen-age virgin, was expecting to give birth to a child. If you were Mary, would you be thankful and joyful or would you be anxious and troubled?
Mary, as you may know, was pledged to Joseph as his wife. And suddenly, an angel of God, Gabriel, tells her that she’s pregnant. Not only that, she is pregnant with the Son of God, who will save this world? Come on, Mary, who’s going to believe you?
It’s hard enough for some to accept a teenage single mother, but who would accept a far-fetched story like that? What would your fiancé do? What are the chances that Joseph would marry you now? She’s carrying someone else’s baby.
If that’s not difficult enough, Mary had no input about the child in her womb. She had no opportunity to name him or to dream about influencing her son to be doctor or an engineer. Instead, she had to name him, Jesus, which mean "save." After all, his purpose in life is to provide salvation to sinful people through his own death.
Now, Mary didn’t know all this in advance, but she knew that instead of a wedding celebration she is getting morning sickness and instead of a honeymoon she has the stigma of an unwed mother? Yet, Mary not only accepted the challenge, she was joyful. We see her joy expressed in her song recorded in verses 46-55.
But why was Mary filled with joy? Mary was filled with joy for the same reason that we can be filled with joy, no matter what our situation is in life. Mary held three expectations that brought her joy. These same expectations can also bring us joy. Let’s look together at what she expected.
First, Mary expected to have God’s favor. If we want joy in our lives, we must expect to have God’s favor also. Verses 26-33.
In verse 28, Gabriel greeted Mary with the assurance of God’s favor. And when Mary was still troubled, Gabriel again in verse 30 reassured her that she had favor with God. To have God’s favor is to have the benefits of God’s approval and assistance in life.
Sometimes, we don’t feel good about ourselves not because we don’t think highly of ourselves, but because those who are important to us don’t think highly of us. We never feel joy in our accomplishments or joy in our career or joy in our family, because our parents, our in-laws or whoever is important to us have expressed disapproval or disappointment in these areas of our lives.
If disapproval from people can rob us of joy, how much more the disapproval from God? Many people are feeling condemned because of something they’ve done in their past, and they have not experienced the forgiveness and subsequent approval by God.
There are people who have cheated in their business and in their marriage that are waiting for God to punish them. They have no joy in life because they expect condemnation and punishment rather than forgiveness and favor from God.
Yet from the beginning of the Bible God teaches us to expect His favor. After Adam and Eve disobeyed God, we expect God to punish them. Instead, God covers their shame. Then God sends Adam and Eve away, so that they recognize rebellion against God is not okay. God was not a permissive parent. God taught consequences.
Throughout the rest of the Bible, God initiates and renews relationships with untrustworthy and ungrateful human beings. If we read the Bible correctly, we would expect favor and not punishment from God. God assures us repeatedly.
Again, Jeremiah 29:11 reads, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord [GOD], "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
James 1:17 reminds us, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."
Many Christians have quoted Jeremiah 29:11 and James 1:17 but they still live with negative and false expectancy about God. Romans 8:31-32 explains how the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is our assurance of God’s favor: "If God is for us, who can be against us? [God] who did not spare his own Son [Jesus Christ], but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?"
For those of you in the corporate world, how do you respond when you are warned about the uncertainty of your job? Instead of being anxious, are you assured that God would provide for you and your family? Do YOU expect to have favor with God? The Bible calls us to this biblical expectancy.
Expect to have favor with God, and you can expect joy to fill your life.
Second, Mary expected God to do the impossible. If we want joy in our lives, we must expect that God can do the impossible also. Verses 34-37
Many people live as victims of human circumstances or limitations. We are satisfied with will power instead of God’s power. We limit ourselves to what science has discovered instead of believing that God can do the impossible.
Let me encourage you to expect that God can do the impossible. NO sinful habit so entrenched, no financial problem so big, no relational strain so difficult, that God cannot help us overcome.
More and more, I wake up expecting there is nothing that God and I cannot handle. The Apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:13, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." And each one of you can have this same biblical expectation of God.
Hudson Taylor, a great missionary to China, said that God’s work is done in three steps: Impossible; difficult; done. Pray to the God who can do the impossible. Plan to overcome the difficult. Persevere to get the job done.
By prayer, planning and perseverance. I simply expect that God can do the impossible.
Nothing is impossible with God. God can change our stubborn and unforgiving attitudes. God can change our impure and selfish motives. God can change our fearful and lazy habits. God can change our impatient and angry reactions.
Expect that God can do the impossible, and you can expect joy to be in your life.
Third, Mary expected God’s words to come true. If we want joy in our lives, we must expect God’s words to come true also. Verse 38.
Christians who expect to have favor with God and expect that God can do the impossible are not presumptuous, but confident in God. We are confident that God can and will do what He says He can and will do. Confidence without arrogance.
We can have the same kind of expectancy from God’s word. If God said it in His Word, the Bible, we can be sure He will keep His promise. God cannot and will not lie.
Expect God’s words to come true, and you can expect to have joy forevermore.
Expectancy is something you can choose intentionally. If what you expect for each day and for your future is biblical, you will have joy every day of life, from now on into eternity.
We have less than 40 seats left for the MMC in LESS than 3 weeks. Let’s fill them up over the next two weeks. You want to have people there from your team as they will leave the MMC fired up and sold out for the ongoing mentoring that we offer. It is also powerful to look around and see friends, colleagues and family members at the MMC and know that their lives will be changed.
Share a praise report. What is the Lord doing through your business? What are you EXPECTING the Lord to do through your business?
Pray to the God who can do the impossible. Plan to overcome the difficult. Persevere to get the job done.
By prayer, planning and perseverance. I simply expect that God can do the impossible.
Have a blessed week!
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