Moving Forward From Where You Are

Abrahams- Lived approx. 65 - 70 years in Ur. His world consisted probably to a very limited area. Encounters God and his world was about to grow.

Left at Ur with his dad. Tarried in Haran 5 years(70-75 yrs old) till his father died then God spoke to him.“Blessed to Bless’, Father of Nations- Judaism, Moslem, Christianity

He travelled to the land of Caanaan, Lot left then God speaks....

“Whatever You Can See I Will Give You”

Genesis 13:14–15 (NKJV) 14 And the Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; 15 for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.

Wide Open Spaces

2 Corinthians 6:11–13 (The Message) 11–13 Dear, dear Corinthians, I can’t tell you how much I long for you to enter this wide-open, spacious life. We didn’t fence you in. The smallness you feel comes from within you. Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way. I’m speaking as plainly as I can and with great affection. Open up your lives. Live openly and expansively!

Moving Forward From Where You Are

Gods Plan is that we move Forward into wider open spaces

You Are Designed To Move Forward- eyes feet face forward- elbows and knees all bend forwards, bend backwards you will loose your balance and tip over, try to walk fast backwards- can't see where your going

Ignite Is To Grow its Capacity To Make Disciples-

---1“Look Up” - Looking To God- Problem to Solution

Jesus is the Way The Way the Truth & the life

Stop looking Down-

-Confrontation and Seperation of Lot from Abraham caused Abraham to be looking down.

You can tell what your looking at by what you say.

Matthew 12:34 (NKJV) 34 Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Always talking about the Negative v Speaking Hope

The Human Eye Has Incredible Capacity To See

Looking Normally-Based on the curve of the Earth: Standing on a flat surface with your eyes about 5 feet off the ground, the farthest edge that you can see is about 5 Km or 3 miles away.

Looking Up- The farthest object visible with the naked eye is the Andromeda galaxy, located an astonishing 2.6 million light-years from Earth.

Looking Down limits Your Ability To See

Looking Down- See About 5 Feet

Don’t Look Down- when climbing a mountain you dont look down you look up, When people are introduced to doing dangerous things at heights they are told to not look down- fear and where your eyes focus there is an inbuilt inclination to be drawn to what you look at.

---2“Look From The Place Where You Are”

-This isn't your destination

Personel Challenges

Church Through Covid Challenge - Incredibly challenging, Momentum killer,

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NKJV)13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

---3 Listen For Gods Voice/ Word

God spoke to Abaraham and he heard it.

God speaks to us but do we hear?

Illustration- You can read scripture and not see His promises for you.

You can read scripture and just see words

You can read scripture and not remember what youve just read

Matthew 13:13 (NKJV) 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

Meditation- meditation is taking the time to allow the word to permiate you inner man- activates your imagination to see the promise and what it means to you.

Psalm 1:2–3 (NKJV) 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree. Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.

Imagination- Seeing it Before It Exists- Picturing Your Solution

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.” Albert Einstein

Imagination is the ability to form mental pictures or ideas in the mind. Everybody has the ability to imagine, but imagination becomes powerful when you turn it into manifestation. Every material thing that was created by humans was first imagined. Creation begins in the mind before it becomes physical.

Genesis 26:4–5 (NKJV)4 And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; 5 because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

How To Meditate On Scripture

- Dont be in a hurry

- Pray Holy Spirit Speak to Me

- Look What For What You Can See

- Stop and think what this means

- How does this aply to me- What should I do in response

----4Steps of Faith

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NKJV) 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

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Step Forward

Promises Always Require Steps Of Faith- “Walking By Faith”

Genesis 13:17 (NIV) 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.”

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NKJV) 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Moving Ahead By Faith- Stepping in The Direction of the promise

Walk- Travel, moving forward,

Hebrews 11:8 (NKJV) 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Cash Up Front Mentality

Lord I need to have everything I will need in my hands before I obey. Illustration - I avoid ministries coming that want money up front before they come- Ive bought tickets etc to help.

Abraham Believed God- Itwasnt just theory or something he memorised but something he made the journey of faith to get to.

Abraham Had To Get Into The Right Position

-Leave Ur

Leave Haran- 5years until Dad died

-Get through Egypt-

Travel to Canaan- The Land of Promise

Illustration- Leaving NZ- Leaving melbourne- Leaving Australia

Canaan- the land west of the Jordan and dead sea, and on the eastern coast of the Mediteranium .

-can meanthe land of submission and humility

Caanaan Was A Hostile Place

Getting Into Position

Abramam Had To See It Then Walk In It-

The promised Land- The Land of Promise - the place where Gods promises happen.

Hebrews 11:9 (NKJV) 9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;

Where You Look From Makes A Difference

The Higher Up You Are The Further you See

Illustration- Mountain top views. The veiw is amazing. You can see so much more. Its breathtaking.

Chicken Hill- we live just past chicken hill- What hill? They should have said past the slight incline.

Seated With Gods View

Ephesians 2:6 (NIV) 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

When He Rose We Rose.

The Veiw From The Throne- Breathless, Spectacular

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God Sees What Hasnt yet Happened

Spiritual Eyes - Vision - Seeing What God Wants To Give Us

Joel 2:28 (NKJV) 28 “And it shall come to pass afterward

That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

Your old men shall dream dreams,

Your young men shall see visions.

Ignite World Expanding

Seeing It Before It Happens---Illustration - 10,000 people directly influenced as disciples- 50 Ignite Faith Communities?

Calls It Into Existance- Calls Things Into Existence

Romans 4:17 (RSV) 17 as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

Lift Your Eyes Now.

God has positioned us for this moment. Now is the time to look up and look further

Walk In It We You Own It

16 And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered. 17 Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you.”

Sent Into Wide Open Spaces

We are not sent into a narrow, limited, restricted commission. It is full of adventure, opportunities and wonder. We are sent into a world here amazing things can and should be happening. Experiiencing things beyong our capabilities.