EMBRACE YOUR DREAM

1. EMBRACE YOUR DREAM Philippians 3:13-14 Bishop Flynn Johnson

2. 13Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 (NASB)

3. Remain a Nobody or Become a Dreamer?

4. That is the Question!

5. “Nobodies who pursue their dreams leave familiar because The Big Dream is too important and too wonderful to miss.”

6. The big picture of why God put us on earth in the first place begins to fade from view.

7. Tragically, a whole lifetime can pass without a person ever accomplishing the great thing he or she was born to and wants to do.

8. What keeps people from embracing and pursuing their God-given dreams?

9. Here are Five Common but Deadly Misconceptions:

10. “I don’t have a dream.” • You DO have a dream. It’s part of what it means to be human, created in the image of God. • You may not be able to describe it, You may have forgotten it, you may no longer believe in it. But it is there!

11. 2. ‘’I have to invent my dream.” • You don’t have to invent your dream. Like the color of your eyes or your one-of-a-kind smile, your big dream was planted in you before you were born. The psalmist David wrote that all the days of his life had been “fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them (Psalm 139:16)

12. Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. Psalms 139:16 NASB

13. 3.“I have a dream, but it’s not that important.” a • Your dream is unique and important. You have been handcrafted by God to accomplish a part of His big dream for the world.

14. 3.“I have a dream, but it’s not that important.” a How? Your big dream is meant to fulfill a big need He cares deeply about. The reason you’re here is to take a part of His dream from Point A to Point B.

15. 4. “I have a dream, but it’s up to God to make it happen.” a • He will not force you to choose. Nor will he “make it happen” for you. You must chose! You must act! Your dream is what God has laid hold of you to do!

16. 5. “I had a dream, but it’s too late.” a • By the Grace of God, IT IS NEVER TO LATE TO ACT ON YOUR DREAM! JUST ASK MOSES:

17. It’s Never Too Late! Israel’s epic journey to the Promised Land is the story of a nation in pursuit of its big dream. Their goal? To reclaim the land “flowing with milk and honey” God had already given them.

18. It’s Never Too Late! But it is also the story of one man, a leader with a big dream—a dream to help Israel escape their bondage and find that future. His name was Moses.

19. It’s Never Too Late! When God reminded him of his dream, Moses, was eighty years old. God rekindled his dream through a burning bush.

20. It’s Never To Late! God said, “I have surely seen the oppression of My people . . . I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

21. It’s Never Too Late! Can you imagine Moses’ shock? He responded with one excuse after another.

22. It’s Never Too Late! Did you notice that I said, God reminded Moses of His dream to be a deliverer? That’s because from birth, Moses had been uniquely prepared and motivated for that very purpose. He knew it; he even thought other Israelites knew it (Acts 7:23–25)! But as a young man, he had pursued it in the wrong way (Acts 7:26–30).

23. It’s Never Too Late! Now forty years had passed. I’m sure Moses thought his big dream had crumbled to dust.

24. It’s Never Too Late! BUT GOD interrupted Moses’ life with an amazing message from the burning bush (Exodus 3:6; Acts 7:30)! It was as if God said, Your dream is not dead because the big need is still there!

25. It’s Never Too Late! THE BIG QUESTION: How was an aging sheep herder going to rescue an entire nation from the most powerful king on earth? Like all big dreams, Moses’ assignment seemed far too big.

26. Here are three insights into every God-given big dream that we can glean from Moses’ story: • A big dream always seems overwhelming at first.

27. Here are three insights into every God-given big dream that we can glean from Moses’ story: • A big dream always seems overwhelming at first. • Ultimately, a big dream is aimed at meeting a big need in the world.

28. Here are three insights into every God-given big dream that we can glean from Moses’ story: • A big dream always seems overwhelming at first. • Ultimately, a big dream is aimed at meeting a big need in the world. • While you still have breath, it’s never too late to act on your dream!

29. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 (NASB)

30. The Land that was Already Promised “On this day in the month of Abib, you are about to go forth. “It shall be when the LORD brings you to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Hivite and the Jebusite, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall observe this rite in this month. Exodus 13:4–5 (NASB)

31. I Will Send You The LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. Exodus 3:7 (NASB)

32. I Will Send You “So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. Exodus 3:8 (NASB)

33. I Will Send You “Now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them. Exodus 3:9 (NASB)

34. I Will Send You 10“Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” Exodus 3:10 (NASB)

35. He knew His Destiny but They did Not 23“But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. Acts 7:23 (NASB)

36. He Knew His Destiny But They did Not “And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian. Acts 7:24 (NASB)

37. He knew His Destiny but They did Not “And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand. Acts 7:25 (NASB)

38. He Knew His Destiny But They did Not “On the following day he appeared to them as they were fighting together, and he tried to reconcile them in peace, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you injure one another?’. Acts 7:26 (NASB)

39. He knew His Destiny but They did Not “But the one who was injuring his neighbor pushed him away, saying, ‘who made you ruler and judge over us? 28‘You do not mrsn to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you? Acts 7:27-28 (NASB)

40. He knew His Destiny but They did Not “At this remark, Moses fled and became an alien in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons. “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning thorn bush. Acts 7:29-30 (NASB)

41. SET GOALS FOR 2012:   • FAITH: • FAMILY: • FINANCES: • FRIENDS: • FITNESS: • FOCUS: • FUN: • FRUIT:

42. EMBRACE YOUR DREAM Philippians 3:13-14 Bishop Flynn Johnson