I want to talk to you about someone you probably have a hard time liking: yourself.
A lot of people find it easier to have mercy on other people than to forgive themselves. A lot of the time, they struggle with dealing with who they are. But one thing a person must realize before they are able to go where God wants to take them is that they are not an accident.
You are just as precious as everyone else. You are just as important as everyone else. You are just as loved by God as everyone else in the world.
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The past is gone, the future is not here yet, and that’s why right now is called the present. Because it’s a gift. God lives in your now. 2 Corinthians 6:2. 1 Peter 2:10. Genesis 1:27.
Psalms 139:13-14. Jeremiah 29:11. Psalms 100:3. Ephesians 2:10.
A person must realize that they have to live in the NOW. God cannot help a person in their now when all they want to do is live in the past and worry about their future. They are too busy worrying about what they did or didn’t do or worrying about what will happen, and they aren’t existing in their now. A Christian cannot undo their past, but it’s under the blood. A Christian may not know what the future holds, but it’s in God’s hands. The Christian must let go of the past and the worries of the future and enjoy God now.
Be you.
Right now, God wants your life to be a witness to someone. You may not be some famous, old-time preacher or singer, but you are the best you that God could make. A Christian should not want to walk or talk like someone else. They should want to be who God has called them to be. We will never succeed if we are trying to be like someone else. But if a person will be themselves, they can go all the way with God and make a difference in people’s lives.
This is your NOW. What are you going to do with it?
John 6:9. You may look at yourself and wonder what you have to give. People may look at you and think that you don’t have enough to help somebody, but if God put it in your life, it’s enough to make a difference. If God has given a person fish and loaves, they should not try to give others a hamburger or a steak. A person should witness to others with what they have and not try to act like someone else. God has given you enough to make a difference in the lives of those He will put you in contact with. John 6:12. Not only has God given you enough to help those you are reaching for but there will also be leftovers that will touch other people. What you have is enough because you also have God.
Give God your best NOW.
1 Samuel 17:37-39. People will try to put things in your head, telling you that you have to do things a certain way and telling you that what you have (such as testimony, background, or sermon) is not enough. They may tell you that you need to dress it up. Saul wasn’t David, and David wasn’t Saul. God did not call David to be like Saul and put on his armor. He called David to be the best David he could be.
1 Samuel 17:50. When you are in need of more, God will make it available. But He will not add more until you’ve used what you have already. David didn’t need a sword until he knocked Goliath down with the sling. A person cannot use what they wish they had or even what they want. They have to use what God has trusted them with.
God has given you a shout of worship.
Joshua came upon the walls of Jericho and what he had was enough: a march and a shout. The pressures of life and the world long to steal your shout. Go ahead and shout the name of Jesus to let the enemy know you haven’t lost your shout! Hallelujah! Joshua 6:20. I believe there is a place in worship where cancers will fall off and addictions will break.
When the people shouted, the walls fell flat. If you will shout, you won’t have to crawl out of your storm. If you shout, God will flatten out some things and get your obstacles out of your face. Shout and you will walk out of your trials.
You are not a failure, and your best life is not behind you. You’re not a loser and you are not going under. You are the apple of God’s eye. His banner over you is love. God wants you to live in the NOW. He wants you to get up and be happy now. He wants you to walk in victory now. He wants to restore you and help you now.
This is your NOW. What are you going to do with it?
— Pastor Anthony Wynn
