Ephesians 3:20-21 - "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
Our prayers, imaginations, and dreams about our future all have limitations, but our heavenly Father has a great and wonderful plan for our life - one we could never imagine or dream up.
We always see weaknesses or the negative sides of our lives – I am not good enough, I cannot do it, I will not.
But our God always see our potential, our possibilities.
We need to see how God sees our life – only then can we, like Paul, say, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Only then can we, like David, "I will not die, I will live and see the glory of God."
Psalm118:6-7 - "The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I look in triumph on my enemies."
When you and I kneel before our heavenly Father, we are more than a conqueror. Without Christ we are zero, but with Christ we are a hero. We need to see our lives as God sees it.
Once a famous sculptor and his friend were walking along the road and suddenly the sculptor stopped in his tracks and looked into the gutter and began smiling. His friend asked, "why are you smiling?" He replied, "I see an angel" Really what he saw was a slab of marble lying there in the muddy gutter. The friend also only saw a muddied piece of marble, but the sculptor could see the angel in the marble.
God sees a champion in you, a spiritual giant in you. Don’t underestimate that what God can do through you.
You are an INDIVIDUAL. The word comes from the Latin word which means – you are one and indivisible, inseparable -- you are an individual with a unique capacity that only God can see, only He can see who you really who you are and you can become.
Don’t listen to what others say or comment about you.
Until a musician touches a piano – it is just a piece of wood, ivory and metal.
Ephesians 3:20 - "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,"
Which is easier, asking/praying or imagining?
We don't pray certain things because with our human reasoning, we know it won’t work out - but we are using our intellectual not our faith.
At five years old, if a prophet had laid his hands on me and said to me, "my son I see you in America, driving a car." I would have trouble believing it because I didn’t even have that dream in my heart. But my Lord had that dream in His heart for me.
Matthew 6:8 - "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."
Matthew 6:32 - "Your heavenly Father knows that you need them."
Unless we pray in the Spirit, our prayers are called weak prayers.
Romans 8:26-27 - "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God."
Ephesians 3:20 - "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,"
WHO is able to do this?
God the Father.
We measure - we have limits - many times we draw a line. But God works in immeasurable ways.
"according to his power that is at work within us"
God need the power that is work within us.
What power is working within us?
The power of Faith
The power of the Holy Spirit
The power of trusting in God
Where we should be?
In Jesus Christ – I am in Christ and Christ is in me.
In the church – God never does anything in our life apart from His church -- the church is the body of Christ – if any of your faculty is separated from the body, a doctor can't treat that part.
"to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
I don't give God glory because He did immeasurably more than all I asked or imagined. I give Him all the glory because my God is ABLE to do it.
In the story of Hagar, we read in Genesis 21:19, "Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So, she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink."
Hagar asked or imagined only a single glass of water for her son, but God gave her a well of water. Hagar didn’t dream it, but God saw the well of water in the desert and He used the power of Hagar’s trust to provide for her. Yes, when it seems like we have nothing to put our trust in, we will find that there is only one place to put our trust in.
In the story of Ruth, we read in Ruth 2:2 - "And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.”
Ruth prayed only for the leftovers from the grain field, but God made her the owner of that field. God used the power of Ruth’s faith and trust in Him to bless her more than she could of ever imagined.
In the story of Hannah, we read in 1 Samuel 1:11 - "And she made a vow, saying, “Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.”
Hannah only prayed for one child, but God blessed her with six children. 1 Samuel 2:21 - "And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord."
Ephesians 3:20-21 - "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
Don’t get it mixed up that God is only able to do more than we ask and imagine when it comes to material things - God is not limited.
We need to ask for a double portion of power, more than what we have today.
We need to ask for a more intimate relationship with the Lord, more than what we have today.
We need to ask for a more powerful prayer life, more than what we have today.
We need to ask for more opportunities to serve the Lord, more than we do right now.