Pastor Shanon Murray // God's Plan

won't he do it praise god it's a victory day everyone i'm pastor shannon murray and i'm so honored to be in this space in this sacred space known as be live 120 i'm honored that my pastor the senior pastor of this house dr jazz has introduced me and gave me this opportunity this is my first time in this studio it is amazing okay it is amazing now that's why we call her the visionary of the house because it took some vision to put this together praise god i just want to say hello to all of my family and friends i mean in addition to my vgc family who's here i see lisa france who a former roommate of mine who lost her father to covet just a few weeks ago i see my kiera ritter from college i see both of my nieces i see my sister-in-law and i know i'm not mentioning everybody that's who i see just now but i'll get to you thank you for coming to support let's have a word of prayer father god we thank you for this moment in time we ask that your name be lifted high and glorified and that we will never be the same father as we work on declaring victory at home our prayer today is that you will be at home with us be a permanent guest in our lives endow us with your power fill us with your spirit shower us with your abundance bless us with the joy that comes along with knowing and serving you that the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight o lord my strength and my redeemer amen amen i won't be before you long this morning if you could turn with me to my primary text as we say in the church it's an old familiar scripture we often cited often here at vgc it's jeremiah chapter 29 verses 11-13 and i'm reading from the niv version and it says 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 on 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 praise god thank the lord for the reading of the word jeremiah 29 11 is probably among the most popular scriptures in all of the bible and it's clear why people are facing difficult situations can find comfort in the verse knowing that it is not a promise to immediately rescue us from delays or difficulties or disappointments or even hardship or suffering but rather a promise that god has a plan for our lives and put that in the chat god has a plan for our lives and regardless of what our current situation may look like god alone let me say it again god alone and only god can work through it to prosper us and give us hope the king james version actually says to give you an expected end right where you are repeat after me unexpected and i'm coming to you today from the topic god's plan amen god's plan and i see my cousin renee mary here from baltimore thank you for joining us if any of you spend any time on social media you may have seen a meme that goes by the name how it started versus how it ended if you know what i'm talking about put a heart over your head and the meme includes it's just a viral thing that catches on board on facebook and tick tock and instagram if you don't know what i'm talking about ketchup the meme includes a before picture and an after picture and some examples are they may include the first text that a couple may have exchanged in the before picture and then the next picture is them getting engaged or getting married or a picture of an adorable puppy and then the next picture of the puppy all grown up or even i know you guys have seen this a picture of meghan markle when she actually was in high school and visited england and took a picture outside of buckingham palace and then next to that was a picture of her actually getting married to the prince harry or a picture of someone studying hard next to a picture of them getting the dream job that they work so hard for the point of the meme is to remember the journey and how much work time effort sometime blood sweat and tears it took to get from point a to point b but my question for you today is what do we do when things don't go as planned what do we do when things don't go as planned i know some of you are sitting there right now thinking about that thing that got you worrying right now we're going to give you some answers today what happens when that relationship does not end up in marriage or you don't get that dream job or dream that dream house or that dream scenario that you worked hard for now you're not just sitting there laid up in the bed expecting someone to knock on your door and bless you you've been working hard you've been working for it you've been praying for it but it did not come your way if the past year has taught us anything it's that life is filled with uncertainty we've just finished a full year of a pandemic that has affected so many lives and so many families it has changed the way we live work and travel the weather has been nice so i've been driving more and one of the biggest shocks is a the amount of traffic that's out there and b all the little businesses that have disappeared they were there a year ago i just thought they were going to stay there i pulled up the run of erin and they're gone the landscape has shifted while we've been closed up in our house in our houses many of our many of us the landscape have shifted underneath us a lot has happened in the last year i don't know if you noticed it or not but people have stopped referring to it as the new normal because it's just our normal now what the pandemic has taught us is that it would be naive to believe that we can hit each step of our ideal timeline without setbacks without pivots and without challenges what's that again without setbacks without pivots and without challenges what comes to mind in uh again uh what comes to mind in scripture specifically is matthews 21 1-9 and before i get there you know we want to answer the question what do we do when things don't go as planned life has a way of derailing us at the most unexpected time and a good example of that is matthews 21 1-9 what i want to show you today is that if it happened to jesus it will happen to us how is that amen if it happened to jesus it will happen to us and as followers of christ the most we can do is model ourselves after how he responds now the scripture says i'm going to focus on verses 7 and 7 through 9. it says they brought the donkey and the coat and placed their cloaks on them for jesus to sit on a very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road the crowds then went ahead of him and those that those that follow shouted hosanna to the son of david blessed is he who comes in the name of the lord hosanna in the highest heaven can you imagine this is a scene from the life of jesus where he makes his triumphant entrance into jerusalem without cru with crowds of people yelling his name yelling hosanna and waving palms but if you keep reading you'll see that jesus very quickly experienced a what he experienced a setback a pivot and a challenge what happens was we all know that it is god's plan to bring salvation to all of humankind but let's take a look at it anyway we know that the significance of this week how is it on sunday the crowd is going wild and yelling hosanna yet there are some of the same people that would demand jesus to be executed just a few days later jesus triumphant entering into jerusalem didn't end like any one of us could imagine it to be in fact someone he was the crowd developed a plot to kill him someone he trusted betrayed him he was arrested someone he loved denied him jesus was falsely accused unjustly convicted in a sham trial we see a lot of that going on and then we know the rest of the story jesus experienced the worst of humanity he has experienced it all he knows all about it never doubt in your mind whether he does or not jesus situation went from triumph to trial in just a few days the question is what can we learn from his experience which brings me to my first point we must let go of the life we have planned so we can accept the one that is waiting for us how does that sound we have to let go of the life we planned to accept the life that is waiting for us the life that falls under god's plan it's comforting to feel like the future is mapped out and predictable but when things don't go as planned we can become shaken and discouraged this morning i want to let you know that life will eventually turn upside down and inside out for every one of you put a heart over your head if you experience that already amen there's no shame in it we've all been there we all been there a couple of times amen it will life will turn upside down and inside out sometimes your children may make poor choices huh sometimes a marriage may crumble sometime a pandemic will kill you huh come on now sometimes a financial disaster will leave you frustrated huh that will happen to all of us and turn us upside down and inside out but let me ask you this is it your life that's not going as planned or is it your plan that's not going as planned huh is it your life that's not going as planned or is it your plan because why god is in control praise god he is in control proverbs 69 16 verse 9 and you don't have to go to it reminds us that in their hearts humans plan their course but the lord establishes their steps our dreams and goals must remain flexible because we never know what changes life is wanting to throw our way how do we deal with uncertainty some of us are eager for the big flashy moments in life huh that's that's why social media was created right she i just put a picture up ready to preach what that was a big flashy moment in life right we are eager for the triumphant entrance into jerusalem but not what comes next but let me tell you we serve a god who can handle you in the triumphant stage and he can handle you in the trial stage huh he can handle you when you hide and win your love why because god's plan is in control our dreams and goals must remain flexible some of us we are eager for the triumphant entrance into jerusalem but not what comes next but for every successful milestone there are what pivots there are setbacks and there are challenges but even then god will work through these experiences what for our good and for his purpose if you ever need to encourage yourself in the rough days just on and i know it's hard i'm not trying to be super spiritual enough when you just going through it it's hard it's hard but the only thing that's going to save your life sometimes is to understand that you're doing it for god's purpose and for your good which brings me to my second point sometimes you're going to have to step out in faith to find out if it's god sometimes we don't even know like is this me talking or is this god talking you know the friends who's on here right now know that i had a a big plan for my life this just happened y'all had a big plan for my life i was like all right i had a chart and everything this is what we going to do then i got a call and i threw the plan out i was like oh this must be god this must be where i'm supposed to go it was an amazing job opportunity they did everything they could to get me in that company they pretty much said it's pretty much yours at the end of the day i did not get the job i'm still hurt behind it had to i talked to dr jazz i'm like pastor can you help me through you know but she did it that's what that's what the senior pastor is for she did it but that was the plan that i came up with and then i had to be a little embarrassed about the plan that i threw away who said that wasn't god's plan who said that that wasn't a test let me see if you're really dedicated to this plan that i created you for let me send somebody to seeds you know to test you a little bit and let's see how you react i must say that i learned my lesson amen proverbs 3 5 6 says we must trust in the lord with all our heart and lean not to our own understanding in all your ways submit to him and he will make your path straight what does that mean don't allow the enemy don't allow the situation don't allow allow an opportunity don't allow a circumstance don't allow a setback a pivot they challenge to undermine what i'm giving you four things write it down because you're gonna think about this all week long don't let it undermine who your identity your value your calling or your confidence huh can i say it one more time your identity your value your calling or your confidence just take a minute and think about that list and think about which you are weakest on how do people know how to get you how do they get how do they know how to get you to get beyond who you are huh how do they know how to just irritate you do they come after who you are as a person your identity did it come after your value your self-worth did it come after your calling are these the same people who trying to convince you you're not qualified for what god has called you for huh or are they coming after your confidence you just begging just just barely hanging in there you're like well i believe it's from me but you have low confidence but the enemy knows and the enemy comes disguised in jesus time it came as a crowd come on the enemy knows how to undermine you he'll come after your identity your value your calling or your confidence think about it you don't have to put it in the chat but if you want to put in the chat what you need us to pray for you on let's do it what jesus endured in matthew matthew 21 was designed by his enemies to punish come on and humiliate him because he officially offered himself to the nation of israel as his long-awaited messiah basically they said who do you think you are he arrived to be their king and all that did was just irritate the devils that were already in his space so another point for you put more faith in what god says about you than what the enemy whispers to you or tries to do to you to stop what god has for you can i say that one more time put more faith in what god says about you he says wonderful things about you reverend bass he says wonderful things about you claudette chambers he says wonderful things about you intercessor tanisha he says wonderful things about you tamika lynn he says wonderful things about you but we make it hard for us to listen because instead we're listening to what the enemy says in our ear huh we don't know you've seen it in the cartoons you have an angel on this side you got a devil on this side you got to make it uncomfortable for the devil to even approach you praise god praise god praise god [Music] put more faith in what god says about you than what the enemy whispers in your ear or tries to do to you it's not all just verbal some people will will put roblox inside in front of you so you can't do what you're called to do we have to make what god has for you bigger than what the crowd did to you some of y'all are already hurt i know the crowd treated you bad we saw what they did to jesus the crowd did wrong by you but you have to make the god you serve the god and what he has for you bigger than what the devil is trying to do to you or say about you amen can you commit to me this week that that's going to be your posture whenever you come across negativity if you just identify it for what it is don't even engage they're here to try to take you down praise god they did it to jesus they're gonna try to do it to you praise god just stay focused on the word just focus on what god is screaming he is screaming it in his ear in your ear meanwhile the devil is whispering why are we listening to the whispers instead of the screams of our lord and savior praise god god's word is foundational in moments like these remember the truth of his word and what he says about you you were created for such a time as this he is faithful to equip you to strengthen you to walk beside you every step of the way if god has called you to it he'll be faithful to get you through it and that his promise to you amen he's not going to ask you to do something and not give you what you have to do to accomplish it that is a reflection on him he chose you praise god he chose you and he called you and he equipped you and he's ready for you to do the work that he called you to do praise god isaiah 41 10 says do not fear for i am with you do not be dismayed for i am your god i will strengthen you and i will help you i will uphold you with my righteous right hand a praise god remember my friends god is working in ways that you are yet to see he sees the whole situation why is that important because it's god who gifts you praise god it's god who calls you praise god put it in the chat it's god who sends you and he anoints you and he appoints you and he protects you and he sustains you and he promotes you and he strengthens you these are all the ways that he's equipping you to do what he called you to do amen it's god who called you praise god it comes from god it doesn't matter what the crowd is plotting all god wants you to do is to keep showing up oh look look at all that he's doing to hold you up he is calling you and he's anointing you and he's promoting you and he's protecting you he's only asking you to get out of bed and show up that's all you got to do get out of bed and just show up praise god to be ready and willing for him to use you that sounds like a good deal to me praise god put a heart over your head if that sounds like a good deal to you put a heart of your head and commit to our lord and savior just show up just show up and do the work he already prepared you to do what he wants you to do just show up praise god which brings me to my third point don't be afraid to go into the unplanned and i'm thinking about deakin pat right now her testimony was beautiful but she wasn't afraid to go into the unplanned unplanned why because she's been in this way for a long time she know where her strength comes from but even some of us who've been in this way a long time we too get weak but we have to joshua 1 9 says have i not commanded you be strong and courageous do not be afraid do not be discouraged for the lord your god will be with you wherever you go on that third low he's going to be with you in that talk on your job when the hr calling you in he'll be with you amen when you're dealing with that person amen when you're dealing with that person in your family he'll be with you all you have to do is show up and god will be with you wherever you go when your plans fall apart and you are unsure of what to do next seek god first that's the answer seek god first seek him in prayer and seek him in the word wrap your heart and your mind around verses that speak to your situation he's not going gonna send you out there and not telling you how to get yourself ready he was like stay in my word stay in my word jeremiah 29 we always talk about verse 11 but verses 12 and 13 says then you will call on me that's this is god talking then you will call on me and come and pray to me and i and i will listen to you this is the almighty telling you nikki i'm listening to you what you want daughter come on lynette i hear you what you want what you want daughter dig it mo what that request i heard you i got you brother i got you remember verse 13 says you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart remember your future is completely known by god do i have to tell you he knows what he's doing do i have to tell you that i know you all witnessed before y'all know what that looks like you end up somewhere but like how did i end up here it's because god is in control god is planning things he sees what he has for you he is working on your behalf in ways you are yet to see nothing and i mean nothing can keep you from the future he has planned for you so whatever uncharted territory you're navigating today let me remind you that god can solve any problem he can stretch any budget some of y'all thinking you've been called to do a business but you don't have the resources but god says he'll stretch any budget some of you say right now i'm unemployed but deacon pat said i haven't missed a meal he will stretch any budget he will heal any pain that thing that's keeping you for taking that next step forward that emotional pain i'm not just talking pain in your body he will heal any pain even he can reconcile any relationship sometimes he has called you to fix some things with people that you the relationship has been broken you don't have the power to do it on your own but god has the power to reconcile any relationship praise god he has the power to forgive any sin you want to disqualify yourself because you did some things maybe back in the day maybe last night but god has was qualified to forgive your sin to make sure you're in the position to do what he has called you to do he is here to break any habit you got an addiction huh you have a procrastination you have anything that's trying to hold your back he is here to break any habit and most importantly he is here to renew lost hope because some of you out here think the lord has passed your by your thing i just had another birthday it hasn't happened for me yet but he is here today to renew your lost hope if he said it he's going to do it if he created you for it it's still going to come to pass all you have to do is to show up he has equipped you all you got to do is get out of the bed and show up he will renew your lost hope praise god praise god praise god put in the chat which one of these not don't put it in the chat think about which one of these you need to work on what do you need god to do for you right now do you need him to solve a problem do you need him to stretch your budget do you need him to heal some pain do you need him to reconcile some relationships do you need him to forgive some sin do you need him to break a habit do you even need him to renew lost hope just focus on what he needs you to do because the scripture says what he listens to you praise god praise god amen our daily prayer can be as simple as dear god show me what to do show me it doesn't have to be artistic it doesn't have to be a poem it doesn't have to be complicated you don't have to call him by all of his names just say dear god show me what to do i have limited strength and resources teach me how to rely on your power instead of my own just repeat after me right where you are dear god please show me what to do i have limited strength and resources teach me how to rely on your power instead of my own so we talked today about how we get into alignment with god's plan for your lives how to get in alignment with god's plan for your lives we just discuss how a we must let go of the life we have planned so we can accept the life that is waiting for us it's waiting for you it's wait to show up it's waiting for you point two is to step out in faith to find out if it is god and then the next point don't be afraid to go into the unplanned and something briefly i want to say about step out in faith to find out if this is god god is big enough that this was wrong he'll redirect you what what what he's big enough he loves you enough that he'll redirect you not over here i'm going to edge you this way this is where i need you you haven't been somewhere just somebody just happened to show up and bless you and understand the person you needed to talk to the thing the one thing you needed just came into your path that was the heavenly father redirecting you because you were a little uh you were a little askew he corrected you and brought you right in his path which though my fourth point is whatever god requires of us he gave it to us in the first place praise god whatever god requires of us he's not asking you to solve some crazy math problem and no one knows the answer he gave you to do what he created you to do it's a keyhole and you're the key whatever god requires of us he gave it to us in the first place what does that mean i'm going to relate it back to what's happening in matthews the same resurrection power that got jesus up from the grave is the same resurrection power we have access to to begin again that same power that lifted him out of that tomb that brought him back to us that started the whole salvation plan it's available to us to start again we didn't miss it we didn't miss it god won't leave you hanging and he won't leave you for dead he won't leave you hanging and he won't leave you for dead whenever you feel like life is not going according to plan all you have to do is what keep going keep believing keep pressing keep trusting put it in the chat keep praying keep hoping this is nothing compared to what god is doing for us keep expecting keep serving keep growing keep persevering in the meantime he's working in the heavens or heavenlies working in things in our favors he's doing the supernatural part of everything all we have to do is walk around and keep trusting and praying and believing all we have to do is keep citing strip scripture all we have to do is see ourselves in scripture meanwhile he is orchestrating the entire universe universe in our behalf because just like jesus went from triumph to being tested to triumph again because we know how this story ended so will you you are stronger than you think you may not see it you may not feel it but god is with you he is for you he sees you he knows your name katrina clark he knows your name gladstone he knows your name maya taylor he knows your name yvonne robinson he cares about you and you matter to him i decree and declare your story is not over how do i know because god is still writing it don't let the enemy the crowd the setback the pivot the challenge undermine who you are the value you see in yourselves don't let it undermine what god has told you to do don't let it undermine your confidence you're standing on the god himself you're standing on his word how dare you let somebody undermine your confidence how dare you you have god speaking for you he said in his word for i know the plans i have for you plans to prosper you and not to harm you plans to give you hope and a future and that's on god i believe in this world put a heart over your head if you heard something today that's going to bless you put a heart over your head and you have something going to help you get to the next step praise god praise god thank you vgc and family thank you dr jazz for this opportunity [Music]

Channel: VGC TV

Views: 102

Rating: 5 out of 5

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Id: LHLQHhO34S4

Length: 35min 4sec (2104 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 16 2021