Destiny Decisions (2 of 2) Mike Connell 27.05.2007 am
Ephesians 2:10 - well I know that, I don't need to look to it. We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus under good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. And we saw last week how God had planned before we were born a course for our life to take, an eternal destination - heaven - and the eternal destiny, things that we will be occupied with throughout eternity. And so before we came into this world God prepared that, but it's our choice to respond to that, and so it says He has prepared works for us to accomplish - so there's no person here that God has not called you firstly into relationship and intimacy, and out of that to accomplish things that advance His kingdom in the earth. And so we're all called to do that and that's the course that we run. We want to get to the end of our course like Paul, who said I have finished my course, I've fought the good fight, I've finished my course, henceforth is laid up for me a crown.
So right now you and I are on a course and I want to run my course as passionately and as strongly as I can and I want to finish it as strongly as I can, and so there is no place for half-heartedness in that. And we saw some decisions we make that actually as a consequence of these decisions our whole future is affected. Everyone makes them and we're not all called to be preachers of the gospel, but we're all called to be ambassadors for Christ. And so we have the power to make any choice we like, but we have no power over the consequences of the choice. Once you've chosen, then there's certain things follow and so when we choose to make decisions that are good and godly and flow with His will, there are tremendous blessings and benefits begin to outwork in our life. Often they're not seen until you've walked with the Lord some years.
Sometimes we make lots of little decisions and they're costly little decisions, and it doesn't seem like its any benefit. But over the course of your life, gradually you see God working and gradually you see tremendous things begin to unfold behind you and you see the fruit of those decisions. Okay then, so we talked about two of those decisions and the first one was I needed to make the decision to let go the past, to say no to bitterness and resentment and unforgiveness. I've got to choose; we make a choice whether we'll harbour things from the past, broken relationships, hurts and woundings, or whether we will position ourself to deal with it. We have courses in the church to deal with these things. By far the most common issue that holds people back is they remain hurt, unforgiving, resentful and locked back to their past and believing negative things that then begin to affect the future. If you want to fulfil your potential you've got to unlock from things that hurt you and set you back.
We do that by the process of acknowledging them, grieving over them, and then forgiving them. Sometimes we've got to repent and release people from things. The second destiny decision we saw was we need to take personal responsibility. We must say no to the blame game, blaming someone else. We must say no to victim thinking. See, all of these things are very, very important, that we make those decisions and if we remain a victim saying well look how badly I was treated and this happened to me and that happened to me, then we're waiting for someone to come through for us and at the same time blaming someone else for why we are where we are. The moment you get into the blame game and don't take responsibility, you have no power. You have power and authority over everything you assume responsibility for, so if God has given you certain things and you don't take responsibility for them, then you will find they will come out of control and be embarrassment for you.