UNMASK | Transparency With God | Philip Anthony Mitchell

hi and welcome to the victory charts podcast we're so glad you could join us if this ministry has impacted you in any way we'd love to hear all about it please send us email at share and victory Church ATO org we pray this message will speak to your heart if you are guess you're watching right now on YouTube your phone podcasts wherever you are you're caught you're listening while you're driving welcome you to victory we welcome you to our 11:30 gathering and we welcome you to week three of a very important series called unmask finding healing and transparency I am convinced through my study of the scriptures and my own personal testimony that there is a powerful powerful release of healing and strength and freedom found in biblical and waage transparency I believe God has called us to practice this ethic straight through the writings of James who wrote the very first letter to the Christian Church we said we can practice the ongoing ethic of confession prayer that leads to healing transparency in this message I'm going to be sharing with you a lot of scriptures for the purpose of helping you lean your heart into a truth I want you to grab hold to in this message [Music] and I believe that if you craphole if this truth is gonna be a blessing to you the week one we started this series with a message call unmask we talked about the power of transparency last week I preached a message to you called being transparent with self which transparency must begin I want to talk to you this morning about transparency with God probably the most difficult but this one is meant to be the most encouraging of the four messages so our Heavenly Father you who are good and present you minister to the hearts of we your sons and daughters the children give us a greater revelation of your person maybe we leave here a little bit closer to you than we are right now I pray that for those in this room I pray that for the person watching the person driving and listening Christ's name we pray [Music] Transparency with God about three years ago I was sitting on my kitchen table with my son Malachi it was late probably after 11 o'clock p.m. we was having a conversation because I had noticed that he had been coming home from school visibly disturbed and angry all the time and so I was digging into his heart trying to find out the source of that anger and his frustration why is it my son who I've known to be calm and docile keeps coming home from school angry and frustrated every single day and as a loving parent I was trying to dig into the depths of his heart we as parents who tried to do that with our children they are human beings with emotions and feelings it was during the course of that conversation I learned from my son Malachi that he had been battling a very tenuous issue with another brother at his school and this had been going on for about a year and I said to Malachi when I was sitting at the table as his son why didn't you tell me about this why didn't you come to me come to your mother and tell us what was going on and his response to me was was so indicative of some of the the responses that we give to God in this room his response to me was like well daddy I wasn't sure if you would really care about this I wasn't sure what your response would it would be if I told you I wasn't sure how you would feel about me if I told you what I was dealing with this year at school and so I just kind of kept it to myself and he wasn't he wasn't not being transparent out of being disrespectful a dishonourable but he wasn't being transparent with his father out of fear for how I may respond and for maybe feeling ashamed or battling with something and not knowing how to express it to his father I said okay son I totally understand I sent him to bed and I stayed there at the kitchen table and I just wept and I'm weeping because I'm thinking to myself I am a loving father I'm thinking myself my son who I'm loved have been battling this in school for a whole year and I never knew and I'm crying because I'm thinking to myself had he only come to me and told me what he was dealing with I would have entered into that suffering with him and where he misinterpreted my response that I would be harsh and judgmental he did not realize that I would have entered into that suffering with love and compassion and I would have helped him in the middle of that suffering so for a whole year he was a silent sufferer in an issue that could have been easily resolved had he just been transparent to tell me what he was dealing with and so as a loving father I felt denied the opportunity for the invite of transparency into his problems and so I sat there and just continued to weep over my own brokenness out of my deep love and adoration and affection for my son my question is to you I wonder right now how much tears is God shedding over sons and daughters in this room I wonder how many sons and daughters are silent sufferers and struggling with transparency with their father struggling to be intimate with their father struggling to talk to their father and I wonder how many of us right now have been the objects of his tears and his affection because he has not found an invite into our issues we have blocked them out by the lack of our transparency if we will be honest many of us are like this this way with our Heavenly Father our struggles with transparency with God and so a part of the human experience and human nature and the question is where did this come from where did this begin why is it so many of us sitting in this room struggle so often with being transparent and intimate with God why do we struggle to tell him what's really on our heart what's really going on in the depths of our soul where did that struggle originate from a man named Moses under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit recorded for us what we call the Torah the first five books of the Bible in the first book of the Bible under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit Moses recorded for us the book of origins the book of beginnings it tells us where all of this got started in Genesis Moses wrote under the inspiration of the holy spirit that a God who stepped down on nothing spoke a world into being he fashioned that world by the breath of his lungs and then created a perfect life-support system called Earth after he had created animals and trees and a beautiful palatial estate he called the Garden of Eden that he plays eastward in a particular place he created from the dust of the ground human houmous which means dirt or dust created a human a man and breathed into him the breath of life and that man became a living soul he looked at that man and said it was not good for that brother to be alone and so he pulled a rib from the side of that brother while he would sleep on sequential buddy than if removed it can grow back again on its own God was so wise he wanted to make sure that he would leave a fingerprint on the inside of his creation and so the rib could be removed and it will completely regenerate on his own the only bone in your body that can absolutely do that he puts a man to sleep pulls on a rib he creates for him Lena filip wakes up from his sleep he says this is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh and the scripture says for this reason a man will leave his mother and father would be united to his pineapples and the two shall become one flesh and then Genesis chapter 2 verse 25 ends with these words it says then the man and his wife was both naked and they felt no shame no need for clothes no need for barriers no need for laying lingerie or any of that stuff they were both naked and they felt no shame they had intimacy with God intimacy with each other they were in perfect harmony with their father until Genesis chapter 3 in Genesis chapter 3 Moses records the interent into that garden of Satan who had been in the world before man was created according to Jesus Satan was kicked out of heaven jesus said I saw him fall like lightning down to the earth and he was there in the garden when Adam and Eve got in came to them in the form of an upright serpent with hands and feet and communication and speech and in Genesis chapter 3 we see a a collapse a breach of the intimacy between God and men it is the origin of all human suffering Genesis chapter 3 verse 1 begins like this now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals that the Lord God had made and he said to the woman did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden because God had given Adam instructions you have everything in the garden you can eat everything in here belongs to you there were two trees in the center of the garden do not touch them one is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil the other one is the tree of life those who things don't touch now Satan comes to Eve and he says to her did God really say you can't touch those two trees the woman says he says the woman said to the serpent we may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden but God did say you must not eat from the tree that is in the middle of the garden and you must not touch it or you will show he died first mistake she's having a conversation with the adversary I wanted to remind all of us who like to say the devil is beneath me and we talked bad about this let me just remind you of what the scripture says he was a chief sure up in heaven one of three Archangels he is wise and crafty and not stupid when we see in Matthew chapter 4 the devil comes to do the same thing to Jesus notice Jesus does not have a conversation with the devil instead he quotes the scriptures to him three times he says it is written one it is written two it is written three so all he does Satan talks to Jesus Jesus quotes the word Satan talks to Jesus Jesus quotes the word saying talks to Jesus Jesus quotes the word Satan talks to Eve she gets confused verse four you will not surely die the serpent said to the woman for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be open and you will be like God knowing good and evil so now he deceives her with a half line I have truth because the best lie is not a whole life the best lies a little bit of truth mingle with a little bit of lie that is the best deception and so now he tricks and says nah you won't God is just trying to keep no you will be just like God if you touch this this is what he saw so he says wait if I touch the tree I can be like God the first sin of idolatry I want to be just like God no I wrong we're trying to be like God but trying to go your own route to be like him it's idolatry Eve but not also notice who the serpent is talking to when God created Adam he gave him instructions he spoke to him about spiritual instructions but the serpent does not come to Adam the serpent comes to Eve so he comes to the one that did not get the original structures from God ie he comes to the weaker vessel in the marriage so his attempt to dismantle the marriage is his attack on the weaker vessel ie the stronger vessel in the marriage hello we should be praying and trying to protect our weaker vessels verse 6 when the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye and also desirable for gaining wisdom she took some of it and ate she also gave some to her husband who was with her and he ate pause so in this text I don't have time to bother this text completely because there is a whole sermon in this text but suffice it to say because I'm a loving pastor I got to drop a few gems on you on this text that there's a whole series in this text I want you to see the progress of sin she saw she took she ate she gave that's the process of sin we see we take we consume we share we get tempted by what we see we take what we see we consume what we see we say come join me in this sin but I will also want you to notice the scripture says who was with her when the serpent was talking to her it says her husband was standing right there that means he had been listening to the conversation the whole time that means he stood there and let his wife be beguiled by the devil the first sin of man was not the fall the first sin of man was passivity did not protect his wife and his home from the adversary that God has called us men to be protectors of our homes and one of the greatest sins of man is passivity no action no movement so he allowed his home to be destroyed why he sat on the couch and watch sports all day he let his home be destroyed by a devil verse 7 then the eyes of both of them were open so now they fell into sin now they adopted a new nature I'm teaching and they realized they were naked something they did not know before ok so they sold fig leaves together and make coverings for themselves now the next verse is really important watch the next verse carefully verse 8 then the man his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day and they hid from the Lord God among the trees in the garden so now God is coming in to do what he normally does I'm just trying to have fellowship with my son and my daughter we have been doing this all this time before but now something is different now instead of coming to me now they're running from me now instead of hiding or being with me now they're hiding from me now our intimacy is broken by your knowledge of your shame and they're hiding from God the next verse is a bombshell verse 9 but the Lord God called to the man and he says where are you pause you can't just read by that there is a theological bombshell in this verse the Lord God called to Adam and said Adam where are you pause if we understand the scripture we know that God is all-knowing which means there is no ambiguity with sovereignty so the divine sovereign who knows all things is shot into a man where are you if there's no ambiguity with sovereignty then God is not asking him for his location because he already knows where Adam is when he asked him where are you so this question is less of either where are you physically but is more of Adam why are you hiding from me it's not like his hiding spot was so doped behind a tree that God couldn't find him God knows all things so watch the question really is Adam why are you hiding from the being that knows all things why are you trying to cover what I already know why instead of running to me you run a from me why we're no longer transparent and intimate with each other so this is less about location and more about his heart because there is no ambiguity with sovereignty because God knows all things sidenote is just like the scripture says God cannot change he's the same yesterday today and forever more you know why God can't change because if you can change that means you could get better and God can't change because he can't get better and God can't get better because he's perfect that's why he can't change he can't grow he can't learn because he knows everything we can change that means we could get better he can't change because he's already perfect we can learn because we don't know all things he can't learn because he knows all things so there's no ambiguity with social and he's not trying to figure out what Adam is he's just one forgot what happened to our transparency watch his response verse 10 and Adam answered and said I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked so I hid here is the breach of transparency the first beach of transparency what God was watch fear of how the Lord would respond watch to my humanity [Music] watch so he was loving enough to give me all of this and then if I fail he would he wasn't loving enough to wrap his arms around me in my failure so I heard you God and instead of running to you I ran away from you the first breach of transparency with God the question Adam where are you was an invite into transparency and was the opportunity for Adam to tell him watch I messed up Adam doesn't say that he just said I was afraid and so I ran he doesn't tell him I messed up the question where are you was an invite into transparency verse 11 and I said God said to him who told you that you were naked have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from watch God already knows he ate from that tree so he's not asking him for information this is a second invite into transparency why because there is no ambiguity with sovereignty he already knows he ate he already knows he fell so he's not asking him because he needs the knowledge he's asking him because they give him that invite to come out from the heavy burden of your mistake man you're preaching Phillip he's asking him to give him an opportunity to come out from underneath the heavy burden of his mistake I don't tell me what did you do be transparent with me my son how does Adam respond the next verse uh it was the woman you put here she gave me some of the fruit to ate so instead of taking ownership for my wrong and just being transparent let me let me shift the blame let me punt and shift the blame to God is the woman you gave me well what happened a bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh she was good enough to lay down with [Music] they don't want me to go here she she was good enough to lay down with she was born in my boat and flushing my flesh but as soon as God is talking to you about your problem it's her fault now the whole marriage is your fault everything is wrong but where is ownership his perception was ownership would get him in trouble his perception was ownership would get him in trouble is why he was frayed he did not think that ownership might find him grace for those of us who are parents to have children you asked them about something you know they did you know they did this you came home you see something out of place you know they did it and then just ask them just to test them did you do this and you know what you you're looking for two roads if there be transparent they might find grace if they lie I'm gonna have to deal with them [Applause] Ram up here is that you you have already chosen two options if they be honest I might get grace if they lie I'm gonna have to deal with them watch next verse then the Lord said to the woman what is this you have done he already knows what she did he gives an opportunity to be transparent the serpent deceived me and I ate not Lord i disobeyed you and I ate see this is partial transparency the serpent deceived me and I ate not Lord i disobeyed you and I ate so Adam was not transparent or honest Eve was not transform and then we're going to find out their punishment for the serpent you lose all your body parts you'll be on your belly the rest of your life for the woman in pain you will bring forth children y'all know that's true and for the man for the rest of your life you will work hard to earn your labor no more blessing of palatial estate now you will work a nine-to-five to bring home that bacon that was the punishment and what we see here is watch to break down the first breakdown of transparency between God and men the first breakdown between intimacy of God and men and the effect of that sin nature in us now is now we all have a natural bent to shy away from deep transparency with God it's just in our nature to not want to always be honest with God especially when we feel that conviction oh we feel that weight of sin for many of us as a response to that we just default to shallow prayers or surfers Perez if we pray at all we might pray and talk to him but because we know we're in a bad state we won't really be fully transparent because we're nervous because of his holy nature and for other of us we just default to carry in our griefs watch we know we did wrong when we going through some trial and we'll just carry that because we have a misconception about how God might respond in addition to our sin nature I believe that often life fosters different challenges to transparency between human beings with God I want to just run off a couple at you that I see in the lives of human beings first misconceptions of gods revealed nature as seen in Jesus that is there's a lot of us we see God as angry vengeful wrathful spiteful and because we have a misconception about his nature it's hard for us to be transparent with him the scripture says Jesus said if anyone has seen me they have seen the father and so if we want to know the character of the father you serve today or you have to look as dual is the character of Jesus what do we see in Jesus he's loving he's kind he's gracious he's ancient he's forgiving he slow to anger he's Grich in mercy he finds people caught in adultery and said where are your accusers neither do I accuse you go and sin no more he sees a woman and sent breaking oil over his feet and he says what she has done will be told forever for the endless ages of eternity we see that he loves children he's a friend of sinners his only problem was with religious people another barrier to intimacy with God as father wounds that distort our persona of who God is some of us when we hear the word father we think abandonment when we hear the word father we think absent when we hid away father we think rejection when we heard the word father we think work too much sacrifice me on the altar of Korea when we had a word father we think gone we think when we hear the word father we think never talk never had a conversation when we had a word father we think sexual abuse when we hear the word father we think violent we hear the word father we think chose a drug over me so when we hear the word father it stirs up in some of us a kind of negative connotation that because of that it's hard sometimes for us to connect with God as a father that's why the write of Hebrews in chapter 12 makes this comparison between earthly fathers in a Heavenly Father that the better our Heavenly Father is the more it helps us to understand what our earthly father is supposed to be like so some of us we don't even know the feeling of sitting on a daddy's lap and just telling him what's in our heart we don't know what it feels like to be intimate with a male figure in our home or in our life another barrier to intimacy with God Oh transparency is our trust issues with God his person and his intention some of us if we will be honest we don't trust God we are afraid that if we told him what we really felt he might strike us he might make us a nun he might send us to some country to want to go to we're afraid if we told him how we really felt he would respond to us in a way that we don't trust his intentions we don't believe that he has our best interests at heart another intimacy another barrier to transparency is our struggles with intimacy and prayer some of us knows what it feels like we'll rattle off a quick two-minute and prayer we spent all of our life in that three feet side of the but we never get into that deep side of the pool where the waters are covering us from the glory of God and prayer that we're swimming deep into the intimacy's of who he is another struggle to it to our transparency but God as our struggles with being runners some of us knows what this feels like we are runners from God man any time we start feeling like God is getting too close to our heart man we run we run we run from fellowship that make us confront who we are we run from churches that make us confront with you we run from Mentors anytime we feel like God is getting too close to some area we put a wall around man we just start running from God altogether another barrier I've seen this one is huge our struggles with poor self-image there's so many people in his room so many people watching man listen we have such poor self-image I know what it is to struggle with this we feel so unworthy we feel like we've made so much mistakes we feel like we have out sinned God's grace we listen we deal with some failures some shame from the past and because of poor self-image we feel like God it won't even listen to what I have to tell him I know you don't want to hear what I have to say there is no way God would listen once to a person like me another struggling struggle with being burden carriers that we men we'd be dealing with heavy stings and we don't think that we could release that to God and so what we try to carry all of our pressures on ourselves another one that struggles with unforgiveness as a barrier to transparency some of us I noticed one is tough man we are holding people in our heart and as a result of that we can't even feel transparency or intimacy with God how can you Jesus said man if you don't forgive other people they send you will not feel peace he says the person will be tormented who does not forgive so let me say to somebody let me just this is a whole nother message let me have some - room forgiveness is never for the person that offended you they can never give you back your tears they can never give you back the time that you lost they can never give you back the knife that they put in your back they can never give you that back but when you forgive somebody you give yourself the gift of peace you give yourself the gift of freedom you give yourself the gift of sleep and for the I feel like man I have a right to holo to this person I asked you a question that a counsellor asked me many many years ago is the blood of Jesus enough to pay for what they have done for you it's the cross of Calvary enough to pay for what they have done for you is what Jesus did on the cross strong enough to absorb the sin that they committed against you you can never get back those tears you will never get back those years you will never get back your virginity you will never get back you're innocent but it's the cross of Christ enough to pay for what they did to say the blood of Jesus is not enough to pay for that offense is this it's the same my writer too to hold a person it's almost an offense against the cross Lord your blood was not strong enough to pay for that offense let me help everybody doctor it's not the blood plus anything for the Apostle Paul says men it's not faith plus anything is faith and in Christ and that alone solafeet a right and so I wanted to help somebody's room which says man I have a right to hold this person because what I'm done man remember what your Lord hanging on a cross who said Father forgive them for they know not what they do it's not because they deserve it it's because you deserve freedom you deserve to sleep somebody you're gonna sleep good tonight right you're gonna sleep good tonight and let me just remind somebody forgiveness does that mean you go back into the relationship sometimes we gotta learn distance forgiveness I forgive you but watch because forgiveness is a great gift access must be earned help us Philip help us for sometimes we forgive people and put them back in a place they do not belong so they gotta burn you over and over and over until you realize they don't have the character to handle intimacy they not listen to this Don you don't have the character for access so love is a great gift forgiveness is a grace give access must be earned through character trust and loyalty you don't have a right to access but you do have a right to forgiveness you don't have a right to access but you do have a right to love so I might forgive you but it might change the nature of our relationship forever another struggle to transparency man is our struggles with overt and unseen pride that when we are prideful it's hard to be transparent with God and the risks listen to me of us not being transparent with God the risks of doing that and sometimes we'll deal with dysfunction longer than we have to we'll deal with unhealthy mindsets and unhealthy emotions longer than we have to we'd be stuck in cycles of brokenness longer than we have to man we risk God leaning into that pain not knowing that all he wants to do is come in and love you comfort you help you but because of our fear of being completely transparent with God man we stay stuck in things longer than we have to all the while he's just waiting for invite into that problem I want to tell you something that may shock some of you here it is God delights in the bearing of your soul in transparency and humility in dependency upon him and some of us may look this revelation transformed my life when I got this many many years ago God he delights in the bearing of your soul and transparency humility and dependency upon him he delights in that he finds joy and when the Christian is dependent upon the Creator and so when we bare our soul before him in humility and dependency when we crying out to God he finds delight in our bearing of our soul before him and our dependency upon him maybe when we're crying out to God about our emotions about our worries about our anxieties our fears our needs our questions God I'm coming to you because you are my safe place you're my strong tower when we're baring our soul before him he finds delight in that he finds delight in that and I know many of us men we struggle with being transparent in prayer we think we know what God wants to hear so we'd be afraid to be honest with him we think if I say this he worries you want me to tell you what God wants from you in terms of transparency when this is this is what he wants from you he he wants this right here he wants he was father father Lord in the name of Jesus gotta I pray you will see my marriage god I'm so frustrated in my marriage god I'm frustrated with my spouse God they don't understand me don't know listen to me God they abused me they don't validate my words God God she she doesn't respect me she doesn't honor me like the man I'm supposed to be I just want to leave I want to get out god I'm so angry I'm so or father look look at my husband God he doesn't validate me he doesn't love me he only wants to have sex with me he doesn't listen to me he always shuts me down he just he just honest me I just want to divorce I made a mistake I should've never got married Oh father I know you keep telling me stop hopping in and out of these beds but I can't stop God Lord I'm gonna lay down I feel love when he's in me I feel like he's loving me God I know it's wrong but it feels so right God I don't know what to do god I know when I get up from the bed I'm crying I know you can't stand when I do this guy but lord it just feels so right I don't know what loves feel like I need this from you or father God I don't know how I'm gonna pay this bill God I'm not sure if I can ask you for money can I trust you to help me pay this god oh god these children I don't know how to parent them god I need wisdom Lord I can't stand them down they did they messing up my life I didn't want them God I don't know what to do this is what he wants from you honesty and prayer Lord I'm hurting Lord I'm battling insecurities Lord I'm afraid I'm battling insecurities gotta don't love myself only feel pretty when I got on my makeup they told me I was not pretty they called me holding when I was young God I don't love myself I know you told me I'm fearfully and wonderfully made but I don't believe it I have now God I have unbelief but help me my unbelief I don't believe you I know you were doing for them but I don't think you would do it for me God I don't feel deserving I feel unworthy this is what he wants from you what is the point of wearing a mask before the one that knows you completely [Music] and some of us are so afraid to play that way not knowing that dad is the pathway to release that is a pathway to heal is a pathway to freedom and we think if we pray that way we're wrong so I want to help unburden you I want to show you that it's not crazy to pray that way I want to show you for prayers recorded in this book and one of them is really graphic you're welcome daughter and one of them is really graphic to unburden you to say it's okay to tell him exactly how you feel how about how about when you want something from him and you tell my old ghan bless me with what I just want blessing with what we're so afraid to actually say this is what my heart desires let me show you four powerful prayers one of them is really graphic the first one comes from First Samuel the prayer of a woman named Hannah there was a certain man from Rama thha as Zeb you fight in the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah he was the son of all these people verse 2 he had two wives one was called Hannah the other pnina pnina had children Hannah had none verse 3 yeah after year the man went up to his town to worship and sacrifice the Lord God Almighty I shy low with Ofner and phineas who the two sons of Eli they were priests of the Lord verse 4 whenever the day came for elk another sacrifice watch he would give portions of meat to his wife pnina and all her sons and daughters but to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her but the Lord had closed her womb because some of the things we dealing with is not the devil's everything is not the devil we give him too much credit everything is not the devil it was God who closed her womb why because sometimes he'll break us to get glory out of our story somebody say God get glory out of my story there's purpose and pain can I continue verse 6 and because the Lord had closed a room her rival kept provoking her to irritate her this one on year after year after year after year when Hannah whenever she went up to the house of the Lord how live will provoke her until she wept and would not eat Oakland on her husband said to her I like this part Hannah why are you weeping why don't you eat why are you down hearted don't I mean more to you than 10 sons watch the next few verses once when she had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh Hannah stood up now she lied the priest was sitting there on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord's temple I like verse 10 in bitterness and bitterness of what of so what they had to do Hannah weapon and prayed before the Lord God and she made this vow to the Lord Oh Lord Almighty if you will only look upon your servants misery and remember me God see my see my issue and remember me Oh God and then watch what she says next she says and not forget your servant and give her a son not Lord bless me with a child no no no what do you really want well I want a boy give me a son that's as transparent as you can get man I don't just want a child I want a boy it was these prayers my wife and I prayed that gave us Josiah because we had a boy and we had two girls and my wife wanted an even team and so we didn't just say God give us another child we put our hands on this and we said God give us a son and God said Josiah that's how we got the two onto two boys and two girls and my wife said we done now when the doctors told my mother she had a damaged cervix and you would never have children she laid her hands on this prayer I said God give me a son and if you give me a son I will give him back to you to do your work Lord she didn't just say open my womb I want a boy then I'll give him back to you verse 12 I like this part and she kept praying before the Lord Eli observed her mouth Hannah was praying with her heart her lips are moving but no voice was heard Eli thought she was drunk he said to her how long will you keep getting drunk get rid of your wine and I like the next verse not so my lord Hannah replied I am a woman who is deeply troubled I have not been drinking wine or beer I was pouring out my soul before the Lord I'm pouring out my soul before the Lord now that ain't strong enough for y'all how about I get more graphic than that how about a man who was angry because his friend betrayed him I said Oh Lord bless them no ha ha how did David Prayer when he was angry because he was betrayed and he was hurting this is too graphic for some of y'all I know you didn't think this was in the Bible Psalm 109 Oh God whom I praise do not remain silent for the wicked and deceitful men have opened up their mouths against me they have spoken against me with lion tongues on social media how's this for a prayer with words of hatred they surrounded me they attacked me with their words without cause they lied in their posts in return for my friendship they accused me but I am a man of Prayer yeah and then how does he pray Oh Lord bless them now that's not how David prayed this is transparency why because he's angry and he's hurt so he's just getting it off his chest you're gonna be shocked and don't get no roared in this verse 5 they repay me evil for good and the hatred for my venture verse 6 appoint an evil man to oppose him letting accuser stand at his right hand when he is tired or when he's tried let him be found guilty and man's prayers condemn him may his days be few that has killed him early may another man take his place of leadership may his children be fatherless and his wife be a widow that is today's family suffer because of his evil may his children be wandering beggars made it be driven out to ruin from homes may his creditor everybody he owes money come and take everything they have from him God verse 12 may no one extend kindness to him may nobody take pity on him man's descendants be cut off may their names be blotted out may the iniquity of his father's be remembered before the Lord may the sin of his mother never be blotted out verse 15 maybe her sins always remain before the Lord I just God never forget what he did verse 16 for he never thought of doing kindness but hounded to death the poor and the needy and the brokenhearted verse 17 he loved to pronounce a curse may it come back on him he left the talk trash may it come back on him he found no pleasure in blessing let it come back in him verse 18 he was cursing with his garments it returned to his body like water and his bones like Oh verse 19 may it be like a cloak wrapped around and may he never scape what he said verse 20 may this be the Lord's payment to my accusers to the ones who speak evil of me how's that for transparency in prayer you know what David is doing I'm angry I'm hurt I feel betrayed I feel bruised I'm gonna get it off my chest you know that is that's freedom yeah but watch out David goes next Lord after you crushed them verse 21 but Oh Lord Sovereign Lord deal with me for your name's sake out of goodness and love deliver me hurt them but deliver me try implore and I am needy my heart is wounded within me I fade away like the evening shadow I am shaking like the locust my knees are giving away because I've been fasting before you Lord verse 25 I'm the object of scorn of my accusers when they see me they shake their heads at me verse 26 Oh help me O Lord God save me in a quarter sea of love verse 27 let them know that it was your hand that did this o Lord now what now God may not answer any of that but watch he got that off his chest that ain't raw enough for you how about the prayer of a person battling depression and suicide how about that how about that how did a person who was suicidal pray a son of Korah who was suicidal and depressed verse 88 Psalm 88 Oh Lord the God who saves me day and night I cry before you I'm just trying to show you what transparency looks like may my prayer come before you and your ear to my cry watch this for my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near to the grave this is I feel suicidal I've been here twice in my life I'm counted among those who go down to the pit I am like a man without strength I am set apart with the dead like the slain who lie in the grave whom you remember no more who are cut off from care you have put me in the lowest part so now watch I'm blaming you God for how I feel how was that for transparency some of y'all been mad at God and you wanting to get that off your chest like God I feel this is your fault he can handle that it's better for you to say that then be bottled up on the inside verse 7 shanties your wrath lies heavily upon me you have overwhelmed me with all of your ways you have taken from me the closest friends I blame you for the death of the person who died and you have bitter a repulsive to them I am confined I cannot escape verse 9 my eyes are dim with grief I call to your Lord every day do not show wonders or to the dead do those dry do those and dead rise up and praise you as your love delivered in the grave or declared in the grave your faithful district are you or your wonders known in the place of darkness or your righteous deeds to the land of the oblivion first 13 but I cry out to you for help oh my lord in the morning my prayer comes up before you I am depressed I'm suicidal but I'm crying out to you for help how about one more how about a man who commits adultery kills the husband of the woman and then takes her for his wife how about that how about that David how about how about trying to hide that for nine months before you're confronted by a prophet who says David you're the man who did this now how what you gonna do now David you're gonna keep running from God or you be transparent how did they ever respond to his sin I love this Psalm 51 have mercy on me O God according to your great compass this is how a person who's guilty praise my transparency I'm not even gonna front God I did it have mercy on me according to Yun feeling love according to your compassion blot out all my transgression i love verse to wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin let me not hide i love the next verse for I know my transgressions I know my sin is always before me against you when you only have our sin I've done what was evil in your sight so that you are proved right when you rebuke the hell out of me verse 5 shanties surely I was sinful at birth sinful from the time my mother conceived me surely you desire truth in the inner parts you teach me wisdom in the inmost parts I love verse 7 cleanse me with hyssop and I shall be clean wash me and I will be whiter than snow God after you have done all of that let me hear joy and gladness let the bone you crush inside me let every choice hide your face from my sins God I didn't want you to remember what I did blot out my iniquity do you pray like that when you sin some of you sin and don't go to him verse 10 I pray this over my life every day every day create in me a pure heart O God and renew a steadfast spirit that is you know give me that vitality again give me that strength again I've been feeling ashamed about this for so long but make me alive again do not cast me from your presence restore to me the joy of your salvation and I love Burstein then after you do all that you know I will take the lesson I learned from messing up and I'm gonna teach other people how to be better baring your soul before the Lord how many of us pray like that and for what is worth when you start to pray with that level of transparency and honesty when you start to talk to God with that level of transparency you know what you're gonna find freedom release you're gonna have a chance to vent say pastor how do I do that I'll give you three powerful steps of wisdom and I'll pray for you how do you begin to just be transparent with God your heavenly Father number one you should pray with unfiltered humility do that pray with unfiltered just just be honest pray would unfiltered honesty I love how Jesus said he said I don't mean incense to come before God with all your fancy speech he watch this why cuz he already knows just come and tell him I'm hurt my insecurities crippling me I feel angry watch this ha bah I'm tired spray with unfiltered honesty number two you should write with non-judgmental clarity these things have changed my life that is watches when you don't know how to pray grab a piece of pen and a piece of paper and just write I've kept a journal for almost 16 years and if you read my journal you would be shocked you will see pages of highs pages of lows pages of anger pages of compassion pages of vengeance pages of all kind and I just pour ammo and whatever and whatever I'm feeling that's whatever I'm not gonna try to fix that I'm angry today I'm mad today I feel vulnerable today I want something and you didn't come through for me today god I'm crying as I'm writing Lord and you go back on now you look at this is where I was last year I can't believe he brought me that far and the last one I've done this well you should cry with unrestrained humility that is when I can't pray and I can't write just weep just cry you feel ashamed just cry you feel like you failed him just cry you feel like you ever need and you don't think he's gonna come to just cry your tears are liquid present he can respond to those [Music] your tears have a voice just cry why we should learn to don't sanitize your prayers don't sanitize your journal and don't sanitize your tears don't try to clean them up don't try to sanitize them and make them cute before the Lord just bare your soul before him be transparent be honest be open start talking to him about everything during every anxiety every worry every shame every need every question just turn it into an honest prayer you know what you're gonna find as you live that way you're gonna find constant release they're gonna find strength you're gonna find freedom let me tell you another thing some of y'all gonna find that you don't even realize you're gonna find grace you're gonna find comfort you're gonna find that the god you thought that would smite you in your prayer is the God that will actually let you cry and get off your chest and then he will turn those tears of sorrow into tears of joy as you feel his loving presence wrapping you in his arms sometimes you could just sit down in this presence Indian style or whatever the case may be and and act like you're looking across from him and just like you stare into his eyes or even a shame put your head down and just tell him what's on your heart we do a good job sanitizing masking covering up watch wait look look let me let me finish with this thought imagine that the God who knows you completely and loves you unconditionally is the one that's given you the invite into transparency in mist that much he loves you unconditionally washes and at the same time knows you completely so you have no broken areas he don't know why masks you have no failure he does not know why masks you have no insecurity no anxiety no desire that he does not know why man why cover up before the person that knows everything my son my daughter where are you don't run from me [Music] keep running to me why because the Lord is gracious slow to anger abounding in mercy I love for description says he's a strong tower the righteous run into him and finds safety I love how the scripture says that he hides us under the shadow of his wings I love how the scripture says he leads us into paths of righteousness for his name's sake I love how the scripture says he leads us besides calm waters you can have calm waters while you're being fake you have calm waters through transparency he restores my transparent soul watch he loves you and for me Philip Anthony Mitchell the fondest moments of my life is when I'm in my prayer room no music of children no nothing and it's just me and the father and I divulge all of my heart before him and I could feel him sitting there with me for me it happens at 4 a.m. every Sunday 5:00 a.m. every other day during the week and it's quiet and I'm just sitting there with my father and I'm just divulging all of my heart before him for me it is the most fondest moments of my life I wouldn't trade those moments for anything in this life and through that type of transparency of a god you will find healing strength encouragement and freedom be transparent with your father that is my prayer for you in the name of the one who died to create that access the Lord Jesus Christ he loves you amen we truly hope this message resonated with you and encouraged you in Christ if this ministry has been a blessing to you please support the spread of the gospel by visiting us online and choosing the giving option that works best for you and again thanks for tuning in and we look forward to singing [Music]

Channel: Victory Church

Views: 5,107

Rating: 5 out of 5

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Id: -FD7FdDNJbI

Length: 56min 3sec (3363 seconds)

Published: Mon Feb 17 2020