The Birthing of a Dream/Vision/ Promise -- Enduring the Process Rev. Dr. Lee P. Washington Pastor Sis. Vivian Smith - Instructor Reid Temple Ministerial Staff August 23, 2017
A Walk Through the Process We don t want to hear anything about the process, because we want everything to be instantaneous but the process always comes before the promise. As it is in the natural, so it is in the spiritual. And to make you understand spiritually tonight we will take a walk through the natural birthing process. A natural pregnancy consists of three stages, called trimesters. And you can t get to the end without there being a beginning.
Step One Conception/Impartation It starts with a seed. What you conceived is so valuable, costly and precious. What was done to you was done by the Holy Ghost. (Mt.1:18-22). You did not conceive through artificial insemination but through the spirit of God. You ve been favored!!!!
Step One Conception/Impartation When a women is pregnant with child, her body must stretch to carry and accommodate the growing and developing fetus that she s carrying. And because we re conveying this spiritually, understand its for the men also. Spiritually its gender neutral. Men, mentally and physically you must stretch to be in alignment with the spirit of God. What do you do when you ve been called, appointed, and anointed by God; but you don t fit the description man is looking for? (I Sam. 16:1, 12-13) Keep a servants heart, and wait on God.
Step Two Hold it Close Can you keep a secret??? Guard your dream/vision/promise. The seed that has been planted inside of you is growing and developing. God is beginning to stretch you, prepare you for dilation, so you can birth out the vision for ministry. Like Elizabeth, he ll bring others that will cause your baby to leap. They will be in divine alignment with your destiny.
Step Three Don t Abort the Dream/ Vision prematurely Stretching is never comfortable nor an easy process to endure. (Prv. 24:10) If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small. The tightness and intensity of the stretching makes you think that you can t go any further, but God said he won t leave you or forsake you. He ll stay with you through the process.
He s stretching you beyond your natural limits and ability to launch you to your kingdom destination/promise. (Isa. 40:29-31) He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Doubt/Unbelief. Know the voice of God. Trust God, not the haters Don t abort the promise because your due date is drawing near. If Jesus had to go to the Garden of Gethsemane to get strength to endure, what about you. Pray and pray some more.
Step Four Avoid the Miscarriage Moving outside of God s timing will cause you to slip and fall, thus a tragic miscarriage. (Eccl. 3:11) He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Patience to endure under pressure. Waiting patiently for God s appointed time. (Heb. 6:12) And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.
Step Five --- Prepare for the Transition Seek God for direction. The details and instructions are vital to the successful birth and development of your dream/ vision. Follow the plan of God. The pressure of the assignment/ dream/vision/promise may feel too heavy to handle the weight, power, authority, and responsibility of the plan. But allow God to prepare you for delivery. I would that you could see through the spirit the great thing God has prepared for you. Have you been through the birthing classes? (Quality time in the Word and prayer.)
Step Six Ignore the False Labor Pains Be careful who you allow to speak into your life. What you ingest can cause you to start having labor pains prematurely. May cause you to start dilating to soon. God s says For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Hab. 3:9) I hear God s saying Let us not be weary in well doing, in due season you shall reap if you faint not. (Gal. 6:9) He knows you re tired of carrying the dream. The weight of it all is starting to bare down, but hold on just a little while longer.
Step Seven Avoid breech delivery or still births The most difficult of any delivery is a breech birth. Being in the wrong position, and at a very vulnerable stage. When you re at a pivotal stage and the enemy tries another shot at killing your dream/vision/promise. Still births are produced with no life, and can t be resuscitated. Stay around people that will keep your dream, vision or promise alive. (Lk 1:41-44)
Step Eight At the point of delivery the mid-wives step in and begin to intercede Thank God for intercessors!!!! They give life Those tears you shed are not wasted. They are a signal! Nothing is birthed until your water breaks. It will either break on its own or they will break it for you, but it will come forth. That s when the discomfort intensifies. Stay the hand of death (cord around the neck). The enemy will try at all cost to kill your God-ordained dream/vision/destiny.
Step Eight At the point of delivery the midwives step in and begin to intercede (Psalms 140:4) Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings. (II Kings 19:3) This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the moment of birth and there is no strength to deliver them. Time to push, but your have no strength May have to stop pushing for a moment and breathe through a few contractions.
Step Nine Due Season At the end of the third trimester. Ready for a full term delivery. (1 Peter 5:10) But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. Through all the pain, false labor, stretch marks, weight gain, sweats, deep breathes, cuts, and waiting with great anticipation of your dream, your vision, your promise it s about to come to pass. The anxiety sets in. Nervousness tries to take over, heart begins to race, because the time is at hand. (Mt. 26:36-46) You ve got to know that it is He that works in you both to will and do His good pleasure.
Step Nine Due Season (John 16:21) A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human has been born into the world.
** The Great Announcement ** The day and time has fully come to fruition. You ve gone through the process. That which was imparted to you, and predestined before time has come forth. What seed has God planted in you that has grown to full maturity and is ready for the Master s use. It s time to come out of hiding. Come out of obscurity and be used mightily by God. The Body of Christ has been waiting on what God has invested in you. Now is the appointed/set-time. There is a Process to Purpose!!
(Eccl. 3:1) To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. (Philippians 1:6) Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: (Philippians 3:13) Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, GA Mass Choir put it like this: I been through the fire, and I been through the flood Broken in piece and left all alone But through it all God kept me And through it all brought me And I still have praise inside of me. ** My praise, my obedience, my faith, my trust is pushing me, moving me into my due season!!!!