Sunday Morning
Pastor Jim Lowe III
Sunday Morning,  9:30am Stream
2/07/21

{All scriptures are NIV unless stated}

We’re still talking about purpose.

To go after purpose, you have to make sure you have the tools and things necessary to go after it!

Last week we talked about cleaning our closet.

Especially when it comes to those around us.

We Have To Make Sure We Have The Right People In Our Corner

Used last week:

Genesis 12:1-3

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. 2             “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” 

God told Abram, I have a purpose for you.

I have a covenant I want to make with you.

I want to make you into a great nation.

I want to bless you.

But you have to leave where you are and those who are with you.

You Can’t Move To One Place Without Leaving Another

If you are in the bedroom and move to the kitchen…

You are no longer in the bedroom.

You can’t move to a new place and stay where you are at the same time.

When you switched rooms, you left most everything in the bedroom.

You don’t need a pillow in the kitchen!

When you move from one place to another, you take the things you need!

God told Abram he needed to leave his country, people and his father’s house.

God was preparing Abram for his purpose…

Certain things Abram needed to leave to get ready.

God is wanting to move us to a place also!

Isaiah 28:13

13 So then, the word of the Lord to them will become: Do and do, do and do, rule on rule, rule on rule; a little here, a little there— so that they will go and fall backward, be injured and snared and captured.

“a little here…a little there…”

a LITTLE here.

As time goes on…it’s time to go somewhere else.

We can’t stay in the same place…

God Is Trying To Take Us To A New Place!

Some of us are staying in the same place too long.

We are not designed to stay in the same place.

We have to go to new places.

We have to “change rooms.”

In the example of changing rooms…

Also with Abram…

there are things we need...

There are things we need to leave behind as well.

Some Of Us Need To Look At Those Around Us

1 Corinthians 15:33

33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

We talked about last week that “BAD” means not fit.

You might have great people who are bad for your goals.

If you’re trying to get in better shape, those doing the opposite can be bad for your goals.

If you’re trying to save money, those constantly asking you to go on vacations are bad for your goals.

Your team doesn’t need to be encouraging debt!

If you’re trying to stop sleeping around, hanging around the person or people constantly trying                 to do it is bad for your goals.

You Need People With Similar Goals To Yours

If your goal is to walk in purpose this year…you don’t need people who are BAD for that goal!

Genesis 12:1-4

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your fathers household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all people on earth will be blessed through you.”  So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him.

As before…God has all these things he wants to do with Abram…

So, Abram…leave.

Leave your country.

Your PEOPLE.

Your FATHER’s HOUSE.

Verse 4

So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him.

But God said to leave your people.

When God Does Things For Us, We Want To Bring People With Us

We want to “put people on.”

We can’t forget about those who’ve been with us since day 1.

Just Because Someone Is With You Now Doesn’t Mean They’re Meant To Go With You

So let’s see what happens when we take the wrong people with us.

Genesis 13:5-7

• Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6 But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. 7 And quarreling arose between Abram’s herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time.

Lot was with Abram.

Lot had stuff.

He had flocks and herds and tents.

Verse 6

• But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together.

The land couldn’t support them while they were together.

Which land?

The land they were passing through.

Why?

Because this journey wasn’t meant to support both of them.

And it was causing extra problems between Abram’s people and Lot’s.

Why?

Because Abram’s people and things needed food.

So did Lot’s.

But this was meant for Abram!

Lot’s people were sucking up resources meant for Abram!

Don’t Let Others Use Up Something God Meant For You!

Many of us miss this because we aren’t paying attention to how this works.

Here’s something about God:

God Not Only Provides Purpose And Vision, But Provision Also!

“Provision” is the act of providing.

We give provision to our children.

When they go to school, they’re given a supply list.

We go to the store to “provide” what they need.

If they have need for pencils…we make sure they have pencils.

God does the same way with us.

When God Takes Gives Purpose, He Will Provide Everything You Need!

Your concern is the direction you should go…

NOT how you should get there.

God provides all of that.

We don’t have to worry about anything…

God has it taken care of.

1 Peter 5:7

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 

God cares enough about us to have EVERYTHING taken care of!

God Already Has It All Worked Out

The problem is we can’t let others use up resources meant for us.

Abram didn’t realize this would happen.

We don’t either.

But God told Abram up front to leave him.

God has told us to leave some people alone also.

But we continue to want to keep them around.

We Can’t Make Seasonal People Become Lifetime People

Some seasons end...and that’s okay!

When it comes to us losing out on things because of the wrong people in our lives..

Is it worth it?

Things We Can Lose With The Wrong People: 

Our Resources (i.e. money, people)

• the land couldn’t support both Abram and lot.
• at this time this was meant for Abram, so Lot’s group was eating Abram’s food -           also Abram’s relationship with Lot and his people was going bad.

Genesis 13:8

8 So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers.

The wrong people will cost us money…possibly relationships with people we might need.

Things We Can Lose With The Wrong People:

1) Our Peace

• during all of this…all of the quarreling and arguments…when it came time too             decide who get’s to eat when…that causes stress!
• in our lives…the wrong people will take our peace constantly!
• we’re wasting energy on things that we shouldn’t have to.
• we have to work to protect our peace

Romans 14:19

19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 

Guard your peace!

Things We Can Lose With The Wrong People:

2) Our Time And Energy

• Do you know how much more effective you are with a clear mind?
• Imagine how much more effective Abram could have been if he wasn’t arguing                        with Lot…or his people with Lot’s.
• We may not notice it immediately…but we can later look back and see we lost             too much time dealing with some people.

It’s important to make sure we are LOSING things dealing with the wrong people too long.

John 9:4

4 As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.

There is a certain amount of time we have we can work.

Why spend it arguing or dealing with the wrong people?

Truth is:

We can move forward faster getting away from some people.

Sometimes Our Biggest Blessings Are Wrapped Up in a Goodbye

The wrong people will become like a weight that holds us back.

We have to look at those around us!

It’s important to make sure you have the right people!

1 Corinthians 5:6

6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?

If you go to the grocery store and buy some apples…

And you come home to find one of the apples has mold on it.

What do you do?

Do you throw the whole thing away?

Do you check every other apple?

Do you want to see how bad the mold is?

Do you throw that one apple away and keep the rest?

Do you cut off the moldy part and keep going?

We Have To Get Moldy People Out Of Our Lives!

Proverbs 12:26

A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. 

We have to be careful who we have around us!

Are The People Around You Helping Or Hurting You?

recap:

Things We Can Lose With The Wrong People: 

1) Our Resources (i.e. money, people) 2) Our Peace 3) Our Time And Energy

1 Corinthians 15:33 (NCV)

33 Do not be fooled: “Bad friends will ruin good habits.”

If we’ve made the commitment to go after purpose and seek God.

We have to make sure the wrong people don’t keep us from getting there.

There may be people close to us who are praying for us to fail.

But there may also be people who aren’t interested enough to walk with us.

We don’t need either of those type of people with us.

It’s THAT important.