Stop Forcing What God Isn't Breathing On

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The Intro/Outro music is Are You Ready? by Floodgate. From the Album, Are You Ready? copyright 2002 OffBeat Ministries, Inc.
Floodgate is available on Apple Music and iTunes.
Music used with permission.

Thank You.  I Love You!

SEE YA!

Rick

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
You've heard me say it before.
Let me say it again, slower thistime.
Some of you are not tiredbecause life is hard.
You're tired because you'recarrying something God never
assigned to you.
Matthew 11, 28 says, Come untome, my yoke is easy and my
burden is light.

(00:21):
So if what you're carrying feelsconstantly heavy, constantly
draining, constantly confusing,we have to ask a real question.
Did God actually give you that?
Or did you pick it up?
That's what we're going to talkabout.
Let's go, boys.

unknown (00:42):
Are you ready to go?

SPEAKER_00 (00:48):
Welcome to Renewed Mindsets.
I'm Rick, and I'm so glad you'rehere.
And we're going to continue.
The question we need to ask, didGod actually give you that, or
did you pick it up?
That's what we need to talkabout.
Because when God gives anassignment, he also gives grace

(01:08):
for it.
2 Corinthians 12 9 says, Mygrace is sufficient for you.
My power is made perfect inweakness.
So if there's no grace, nosustaining power, no peace, you
might be operating outside ofhis will while you're still
asking for his blessing.

(01:30):
So Psalm 127.
Now that word vain means empty,worthless, producing nothing
that lasts.
And that's what happens when Godisn't in it.

(01:50):
Haggai 1.6, you have plantedmuch but harvest little.
You earn wages only to put themin a purse with holes in it.
You're busy, but you're notfruitful.
You're active, but you're noteffective.
You're moving, but you're notprogressing forward.
John 15 5 says, Apart from me,you can do nothing.

(02:12):
Nothing.
Not a little, not lesseffectively, but nothing of
eternal value.
And here's the problem.
We live in a culture thatrewards the hustle, the effort,
the visibility, but heavenrewards obedience.
You can build somethingimpressive without God, but you

(02:34):
can't build something eternalwithout Him.
Let's bring scriptures into yourreal situations.
Let's bring it into yourrelationships.
Amos 3.3 says, can two walktogether unless they are agreed?
You're trying to force agreementwhere there is none.
You're trying to build unitywhere there's no shared

(02:56):
direction.
2 Corinthians 6.14 says, do notbe unequally yoked.
Now that's just about, that'sjust about, that's not just
about marriage.
It's about alignment.
You're trying to yoke yourselfto someone who's pulling in a
completely spiritual directionthat's different than yours.

(03:17):
And then you wonder why it feelslike tension all the time.
That tension is not a test.
Sometimes it's a warning.

Another real life situation: ministry. (03:27):
undefined
1 Samuel 15, 22.
Obedience is better thansacrifice.
Man, I know this one.
You can be doing good things andstill be outside of God's will.
David refused to wear Saul'sarmor in 1 Samuel 17.

(03:48):
Why?
Because it wasn't what God gavehim.
Some of you are trying tooperate in somebody else's
calling, someone else's method,someone else's lane.
And there's no anointing onimitation.
And what about youropportunities?
Revelation 3.7 says, what heopens, no one can shut.

(04:12):
And what he shuts, no one canopen.
If you have to manipulate it orchase it or force your way into
it, you need to question if Godopened that door.
Proverbs 3, 5 and 6 says, Trustin the Lord with all your heart,
and he will make your pathstraight.

(04:34):
Not forced, not complicated, notconstantly blocked.
Luke 10, 38 and 42, we'retalking about Mary and Martha.
Martha is busy.
She's serving, she's working,she's doing all the right
things, but she's anxious.
She's frustrated.

(04:55):
She's overwhelmed.
Mary is sitting at Jesus' feet.
Jesus says, Martha, Martha, whyare you so worried and upset
about so many things?
But few things are needed here.
Really, only one.
Striving looks like Martha.

(05:16):
Surrender looks like Mary.
Isaiah 30, 15 says, Inrepentance and rest is your
salvation.
In quietness and trust is yourstrength.
But then it says, But you wouldhave none of it.
That's us.
We choose striving and thenwonder why we're exhausted.

(05:40):
Galatians 5 16, walk by thespirit, and you will not gratify
the desires of the flesh.
Striving is flesh driven.
Surrender is spirit led.
So why do we keep forcing it?
Let's expose it with scripture.
Fear of loss.

(06:02):
John 12, 25.
Anyone who loves their life willlose it.
Well, anyone who hates theirlife in this world will keep it
for eternal life.
We hold on.
And while we're doing that, welose what God actually has for
us.
Well, fear of starting over.

(06:23):
Isaiah 43, 18 and 19, forget theformer things.
See, I am doing a new thing.
But we're stuck trying to revivethe old things that God already
moved past.
And idolatry, Exodus 23, youshould have no other gods before
me.
An idol isn't just a statue,it's anything you prioritize

(06:48):
above the obedience of God.
When you say, I know what God isshowing me, but I'm not letting
this go, that thing has becomeyour God.
If he didn't order it, why areyou trying to walk in it?

(07:09):
James 1.17, every good andperfect gift is from above.
If it's bringing confusion andanxiety and constant
instability, that's not fromhim.
Because 1 Corinthians 14, 33says God is not the author of
confusion, but of peace.

(07:30):
Well, let's go deeper.
Jonah tried to run from God'sassignment.
He ended up in a storm.
Some of you are in storms rightnow.
Not because the enemy attackedyou, but because you stepped
outside of what God told you todo.
And God, in his mercy, is usingthe storm to redirect you.

(07:54):
Now listen, I've had momentswhere I knew.
I knew God wasn't in it.
There was no peace, noconfirmation, no clarity.
But I stayed.
Because I didn't want to loseit.
I didn't want to be wrong.

(08:14):
I didn't want to start over.
And the longer I stayed, theheavier it got.
Until I realized something.
Matthew 6 33, seek first thekingdom, and all these things
will be added.
I had it backwards.
I was seeking the thing andasking God to join me in it.

(08:39):
Instead of seeking God andtrusting Him to lead me.
And when I finally let go, Goddidn't just remove something, He
restored clarity and peace anddirection.
Now Psalm 139, 23, and 24 says,Search me, God, and know my

(09:01):
heart.
Test me and know my anxiousthoughts.
Start there.
Let God expose what you've beenforcing.
Then let the peace of Christrule your hearts.
That's Colossians 3 15.
If peace isn't ruling, somethingelse is.

(09:23):
And whatever is ruling is whatyou're following.
Then comes the hard part.
Matthew 16, uh, verse 24.
Whoever wants to be my disciplemust deny themselves and take up
their cross.
Letting go is part ofdiscipleship.

(09:44):
Releasing what God didn't giveyou is obedience.
Ecclesiastes 3 14 says, I knowthat everything God does will
endure forever.
If God is in it, it will last.
If he's not, no amount of effortis going to sustain it.

(10:07):
So today, stop forcing, stopstriving, stop trying to breathe
life into something God nevertouched.
Instead, position yourself wherehis spirit is moving.
Because when God breathes onsomething, you don't have to

(10:28):
force it to live.
Just like in Ezekiel 37, whenGod breathed on the dry bones,
they lived.
And that's what God brings tolife.
No man can kill.com to stayconnected and to listen to past

(11:16):
episodes.
And check out our merch atrenewedmindsets.store.
Jesus is coming soon.
Stay watchful.
Stay holy.
Stay renewed.
Until next week, I'm Rick.
Be an encourager, not adiscourager.

(11:41):
I love you.
See ya.
The intro and outro music forthe Renewed Mindsets podcast is
Are You Ready by Floodgate.
From the album Are You Ready?
Copyright 2002, OffbeatMinistries Incorporated.

(12:04):
Floodgate can be found on AppleMusic and iTunes.
Music used with permission.