Living Life with the Holy Spirit - Part 3: The Empowering Presence | Pastor Pablo Morales

Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is

an international church in Bangkok, Thailand

with dozens of nationalities worshiping together.

We invite you to connect with us from wherever

you are through our website, ecb .asia, or our

mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed

by this week's sermon. If you were here the past

two weeks, you got to hear from Pastor Phil.

We also got to hear from Scott last week. We

began a new series of studies called The Presence,

Living Life with the Holy Spirit. Because after

we finished this study on the life of Jesus and

what he accomplished for us, we realized in the

last study that he had created a way now for

God to be in us. And we studied what the Bible

said about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

And from that point, we transition into this

study. If God has given us His Spirit to live

in us, then how do we live life with the Holy

Spirit? And we have studied how the Holy Spirit

transforms us, also how He gives us a new identity.

And today we're going to be studying the empowering

presence of the Holy Spirit. I want to invite

you to read out loud with me the foundation of

this study that we've been doing for the past

two weeks. Since we are living by the Spirit,

let us follow the Spirit's leading in every part

of our lives. And that's the core of why we're

doing this study. So that this will be a reality

in all of our lives. And when it comes to the

presence, the empowering presence of the Holy

Spirit, Is that God did not just save you from

a past. But He saved you for a future. And that

future means that He is going to lead you into

the plan and the vision that He has for you.

And for that, it matters that we learn to live

life with the Holy Spirit. Because there is a

big problem. Even though God has... A desired

vision for our lives. That he wants to lead us

into. There is someone else that has a plan.

For you as well. And Jesus warned us about this.

In John chapter 10. It says the thief comes only

John 10 · chapter mention

to steal. Steal. Kill and destroy. I have come

that you may have. What? Life. And in what way?

Have it to the. God knows you have potential

to become this. You have potential to achieve

this. He saved you with potential. But that potential

will be magnified and expressed to the degree

that we are led by the Holy Spirit. And to the

degree that we understand that there's an enemy

that wants to oppose that. that wants to deter

you, that wants to paralyze you, so that you

do not experience the life that Jesus came to

give you. And that's why Jesus says, look, there's

the enemy that wants to steal, kill, and destroy

that potential, but then there's me that wants

you to fulfill that potential and live your life

to the full. And for that purpose, Jesus said

to the apostles when he started teaching them

about the Holy Spirit that was about to come

after his death and resurrection. He tells them,

look, this Holy Spirit that I'm going to give

you, when the Spirit of truth comes, he will

guide you into something. What is he going to

guide you into? All truth. And as He guides you

into the truth, He will not speak on His own,

but will tell you what He has heard. And He will

tell you about the future. I am giving you the

Holy Spirit, if you are my follower, so that

now the Holy Spirit can guide you into the future,

so that you can experience life to the full potential

that I envision for you. Now that I was in the

U .S., I got to drive a lot. We rented a nice

car that was nice to drive, and just the whole

area of Oregon and Washington is so beautiful.

Just to drive around, nice highways, no motorcycles,

no buildings, just you see the open sky, the

mountains, the forest, the trees, the pine trees.

But I'm not familiar with the area. So as we

were driving, I had to put my iPhone there with

the GPS, you know, right there. And every time

that I'm going in an area like this, I think

about the Holy Spirit. Because GPS tells me,

you know, in the next turn, you will turn to

the right or take the next exit. And I'm not

there yet. I've never been there yet. But GPS

tells me about the future. So when I reach the

future, I know what to do. And Jesus says, I'm

going to give you something better than GPS.

Because it's going to be in you and doesn't run

out of battery. And his name is the Holy Spirit.

And he's going to be in you and he will guide

you into the future. It's like, yeah, but how

do I know that once I get there, I'm going to

have what I need? How do I know that the Holy

Spirit is going to be there to guide me into

the future? And Jesus tells him, look, I'm going

to lead you into places and circumstances that

are going to test you beyond your limit. But

don't worry. You have my spirit. You will have

everything that you need. And he tells them,

in the moments when you are facing the authorities

and you have to witness for me in front of these

people, don't freak out. When you are arrested,

don't worry about how to respond or what to say.

God will give you the right words at the right

time. When will God give you what you need? At

the right time. And the right time is not yet.

But once you get there. At the right time, the

Holy Spirit will give you what you need. For

it is not you who will be speaking. It will be

the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Oh, this is great. Now that I have the Holy Spirit

in me, He's going to guide me into the future

like the GPS does. And when I am there, what

I need... He is going to give it to me. Because

now is the Holy Spirit working. Through me. And

therefore. It was very important. That the apostles

knew. That in order to follow Jesus. After his

death and resurrection. They will need to learn.

To live life with the Holy Spirit. And that's

why Jesus, before he goes to the Father in his

ascension, he tells the apostles that they will

have to wait. And he says, now I will send the

Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised, but

stay here in the city, in Jerusalem, until the

Holy Spirit comes and fills you with something.

With what? Power. Power from heaven. Because

there's potential, but potential to be magnified

needs power. I do not know if you've ever run

out of battery in your laptop. It's a pain. You

open it, ready to do the work, and it's like,

ran out of battery. Well, that computer has all

the potential to do all the work, but without

power, it's useless. So the one thing that you

will do is that you will get your power cord,

plug it into the wall, plug it in the computer,

and now you have power. And now that you have

power, the potential can be materialized. And

the power that you need is called the Holy Spirit.

Spirit. There's a potential that God has given

you. He saved you for a future. But this future

has not. Materialized. It will materialize as

you follow God and the Holy Spirit will guide

you into that future. And at every turn, he's

going to give you what you need. So do not worry

beforehand. He will give you what you need. And

as you follow the Lord, you are planning to that

power because the Holy Spirit is the power for

you to achieve everything that God has called

you to be. And that is how it works. This is

what Jesus taught us. So in order to live the

life to the full that Jesus saved us for, it

is the primary role of the Holy Spirit to lead

us into that future. But the enemy is going to

try to oppose you. He's going to try to kill

that potential. And he's going to use his tactics

and his tools. that are same old, same old, they

never change. In the beginning of the church,

the first generations of followers of Jesus,

these were the first humans ever in the history

of humanity to experience what it was like to

live life with the Holy Spirit. And to start

experiencing the guiding of the Holy Spirit.

And to see the potential being materialized.

And one of those people that I want to focus

on today is Philip. Philip was just a normal

follower of Jesus, just like you and me. He was

just a Christian. He was not one of the apostles.

He was not a leader of the church. That has accomplished

a lot. He was just a normal guy. But he loved

Jesus. And he started following the Lord. With

the first generation of Christians right there

in Jerusalem. We do not know the background.

How did he come to know the Lord? Who shared

the gospel with him? We do not know. But we know

that this Philip. was led by God through a series

of experiences in his life so that what he became

was nothing compared to what he started. And

I imagine if I told Philip when I met him at

the beginning of his walk with God, Philip, God

is going to make you into this, he would have

laughed. He'd say, yeah, right, me? I'm just

a normal guy. But you have potential. And God

saved you to fulfill that potential. And he gave

you the Holy Spirit to achieve that potential.

What does that look like? Well, let's look at

Philip. Because Philip, we see him first at the

beginning of his life. God is going to use his

life to impact a community. And you studied this

last week with Scott. He told us in detail. how

the community was struggling in Jerusalem because

now there was the cultural conflict among the

widows and the Greeks and the Hebrews and all

these things that were happening at the early

church. They are right there in Jerusalem. And

Philip is there, a new believer, and he's following

Jesus in that generation. And we are told that

they have a problem. This struggle that starts

happening with these two groups in the church.

And the apostles said, you know, we should spend

our time teaching the word of God, not running

a food program. That's not for us to do. So,

brothers, select seven men who are well respected

and are full of the spirit and wisdom. And we

will give them this responsibility. It's like,

guys, we are busy. We need help here. Can somebody

run this food program? So they started looking

for people and they started thinking of potential

people. And somebody thought, hey, why don't

we ask Philip? He's a nice guy. He loves God.

And every time I talk to him, he's so helpful.

He's a humble guy. Why don't we ask him? Maybe

he will be interested. Somebody approaches him

and says, Philip, you know, we have this problem

and the apostles were wondering whether you'd

be willing to help. Will you pray about this?

And Philip says, okay, sure. And then he goes

and then comes back and says, yeah, I think I

want to help. So he's mentioned for the very

first time right there. As one of the seven guys

that were called to help the apostles run this

food program in the community. Everyone liked

the idea and they chose the following. Stephen,

a man full of faith in the Holy Spirit, and Philip

and the rest of the guys. And this is the beginning

of Philip, as we know, being led by the Holy

Spirit. He walked into an opportunity to serve

in his community that he had never run a restaurant

or anything before. But he could help. So he

did. And God used that help to allow the apostles

now to focus on the word, focus on the preaching,

focus on sharing the gospel. And the church grew

rapidly after that because there was a man called

Philip that loved the Lord. And he prayed about

how can I get engaged. And the Holy Spirit led

him to help. With the management of the food

program. At his church in Jerusalem. Serving

tables. Running crowds. Oh. What a great potential.

You could say. That's great future. But actually.

That was the first step. In his journey with

the Lord. And often. It happens like that. Is

that. If you are wondering. God, what are the

plans that you have for my future? Don't look

too far. Start looking at the future today. How

do you want me to serve you today, here, and

now? And it so happened that today you come here

and you're going to engage downstairs with all

of these people that are saying, Hey, the Lord

is doing work with us. Would you consider joining

us and helping us? And you will be amazed at

how the Holy Spirit leads in things that at the

beginning seem like completely insignificant.

But you know what the Lord is testing in your

heart as He's leading you to the next step of

your future? Are you willing? Are you doing this

because I'm asking you? Are you doing this because

it's going to bring fame to you? You are after

the big things. Or are you after following me?

And would you take those moments of saying yes

to the Lord in the little things? The Lord notices.

And if he can trust you with the little things,

then the bigger things will come. And so it happened

with Philip. We are told that not only God used

him to impact that community in a very simple

way. But impactful. From impacting that community,

God is going to use him in the next season of

his life to impact a region. And so it happens

that we are told that as the Christians were

right there, the first Christians in Jerusalem,

there's persecution that starts happening. Who

was the key person behind this persecution? Saul

of Tarsus, who became eventually known as the

Apostle Paul. This was before he followed Jesus.

Christians started being killed, taken to prison.

So most of the Christians in that region in Jerusalem,

they started fleeing to the empire. And some

of them, including the apostles, remain in Jerusalem.

And Philip is one of those guys that left Jerusalem.

Run from there. He ends up finding himself. In

Samaria. Right there in the area in the north.

And you know. No. Person that was a good Jewish

man. Ever wanted to go to Samaria. That was the

last place for you to go. Because Jews and Samaritans

didn't like each other. But we are told. That

Philip ends up there. Now, I want you to think

for a second. This is major disruption. This

was you hearing, hey, your visa expires today.

You have to leave the country tomorrow. This

is disruption in his life. He's like, hey, I'm

running this food program in Jerusalem. Everything

is good. The ministry is strong. And he's like,

run for your life. Leave Jerusalem. And he finds

himself right there in Samaria. And what happens?

The believers who were scattered preached the

good news about Jesus wherever they went. Philip,

for example, went to the city of Samaria and

told the people there about the Messiah. And

crowds listened intently to Philip because they

were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous

signs he did. What? Philip, you are sharing the

gospel with the Samaritans and there's miracles

that God is using you to perform? What? What

kind of things did you do? Well, many evil spirits

were cast out, screaming as they left their victims.

And many who had been paralyzed or lame were

healed. So there was great joy in that city.

God uses Philip to suddenly bring disruption

to the kingdom of darkness in that city. His

plans were disrupted and now God is using his

life to disrupt the plans of the enemy. And how

did you get from serving tables in a community

to now... preaching the gospel to crowds, healing

paralyzed people, casting out demons. Where is

that power coming from? Holy Spirit. One of the

experiences that I have had when leading the

church and we have to invite people to become

elders, it's always a beautiful experience because

Often the experience is that the person says,

who me? An elder? No, I'm not elder material.

I'm just a normal Christian. And often when God

is going to call you out of your comfort zone

to take next levels of influence and impact in

the kingdom, you will feel that you don't have

what it takes. But don't worry. Because who is

going to give you what you need by the time you

need it? Jesus said, the Holy Spirit. And now

in this moment of disruption in Philip's life,

where he has to leave his home and everything

that he is comfortable with and escape, God is

going to use him in that moment to impact that

entire region with the power of Jesus flowing

through him. And I wonder, could it be that the

next level of impact and potential that God has

envisioned for you will only be activated once

your plans become disrupted? And if you are in

a time of disruption, Rather than praying to

God and saying, God, why are you doing? I thought

I was going to stay here for a long time. Now

I have to leave. I don't understand you. I left

so much behind to follow you here. Now you want

me to go where? Change your prayer. The Holy

Spirit has not left you. He will lead you into

the future. And often God will use disruption

in your life to lead you to the next season.

And I can tell you from personal experience,

when we were serving in Dallas in our church

there, COVID hit. We moved to stay with my mother

-in -law during that time to be able to help

her because she was elderly. And we ran all the

ministries of the church online during COVID

in the U .S. We had no idea. That at the end

of COVID. God was going to be calling us to Thailand.

But here we are there. Planning to continue ministering

with the church. We were not thinking about anything

beyond COVID. We just knew we needed to be there.

But because we were there. In this town an hour

away from our home. We were not staying at home

during the week. And so it happened. That there

was a winter storm that came in Dallas. One of

those days. And we were fine here. But our home

wasn't. And we did not know. And we started hearing

that they were plumbing, breaking because of

the freezing and damage happening in places.

And so my wife wisely said, shouldn't we ask

somebody from the church to go and check our

house? And we did. And one of the guys that went

to check. As soon as he walked in, there was

water flowing from the front of the house into

the front of the house. Water flowing, water

flowing. And so we discovered that the dishwasher

had a little hose that because of the low temperatures

became damaged and popped. So the water kept

flowing from that place the whole time and damaged

the entire house. Remember the house I told you

we spent a long time fixing? You know, the whole

beautiful wood floor, the beautiful carpet, all

of that? Damaged. We had to take all of that.

We had to hire a crowd to remove all of our furniture.

Where did you put all your furniture in a matter

of 24 hours? Well, we were running all of our

ministries online. So we had a whole fellowship

hall, like JC, a little bit bigger. Available.

So we took the crowd, the people that came to

move the furniture, and they put everything there.

So we were homeless, disrupted for a few months.

Thankfully, we were living here at that time.

But it's like, why would God do this? So that

forced us to have to go through all of our stuff.

And start putting things in boxes. And getting

rid of things. And feeling uprooted. And when

God uprooted us. And when God had all of our

stuff put in boxes. He says, I'm sending you

to ECB Thailand. We're already packed. We already

did the garage sale. We already felt uprooted.

What a difference it would have been. We were

in the middle of our ministry. With everything

going on. And God says. Stop. Go. Disruption.

When you are following the Lord. It's never really

a disruption. It feels like it. But the Holy

Spirit will lead you into the future. And it

will tell you what's next. At the time you need

it. And God can use that disruption to maximize

your potential to the next level. And you have

no idea that God could use you that way. And

then from there, Philip is moved from impacting

a community and a region now to impacting a nation.

How is God going to use Philip to impact a whole

nation? What is interesting is that God moves

him from this super successful ministry with

the crowds and the city, having joy, to now going

into anonymity. And we are told that from Samaria,

God tells Philip, I want you to leave this place,

and now you're going to go in a road in the middle

of nowhere. It was a road that connected Jerusalem

with Gaza. The same Gaza that is in the news

today. And there was a road that connected Jerusalem

through Gaza. And God says, Philip, I want you

to go there, to that road. What for? Why leave

the crowds? Why leave this successful ministry?

And all the things that we see happening. To

go in the middle of nowhere. We'll see. As for

Philip. An angel of the Lord said to him. Go

south. Down the desert road. That runs from Jerusalem

to Gaza. So he started out. And he met the treasurer

of Ethiopia. A eunuch. Of great authority under

the Akandas. The queen of Ethiopia. This guy

is traveling. He serves the very queen of Ethiopia.

He has authority, power, influence, and he happens

to be traveling on that road. The eunuch had

gone to Jerusalem to worship, and he was now

returning back to Ethiopia. Sitting in his carriage,

he was reading aloud. From the book of the prophet

Isaiah. And the Holy Spirit says to Philip. Go

over. Walk along. Beside that carriage. What

a simple instruction. You see that carriage over

there? Get closer to it. You know honestly if

that was me. I would have struggled with that

very simple command. He's like, me? What? I don't

know the guy. Lord, that's going to be weird.

Is it not me thinking it? Or is it the Lord telling

me? I don't know. No, I just leave it alone.

Lord, if this is you, maybe tell me again. You

know, it's like, that would be me resisting that

kind of command. But he tells Philip, Philip,

go. So Philip, Runs over there. And heard the

man reading from the prophet Isaiah. And Philip

says. Hey. What are you reading? The man replied.

How can I understand what I'm reading. Unless

someone instructs me. And he urged Philip. To

come up into the carriage. And sit with him.

The passage of scripture. That he was reading.

It just so happened. It just so happened that

the passage he was reading. Was this one. He

was led like a sheep to the slaughter. And as

a lamb is silent before the shearers. He did

not open his mouth. He was humiliated and received

no justice. Who can speak of his descendants.

For his life was taken from the earth. Isaiah.

What chapter? 53. The prophecy of the Messiah.

So the eunuch asked Philip, tell me, was the

prophet talking about himself or someone else?

So glad you asked. So beginning with this same

scripture, Philip told him the good news about

Jesus. And as they rode along, they came to some

water, and the eunuch said, look, there's some

water. Why can't I be baptized? So he ordered

the carriage to stop. And they went down into

the water, and Philip baptized him, the first

eunuch, the first Ethiopian follower of Jesus.

When they came up, Out of the water. The spirit

of the Lord. Snatched Philip away. And the eunuch

never saw him again. But went on his way. Rejoicing.

And God. Uses Philip. To bring into the kingdom.

Of Jesus. A guy that had power. Connections.

Influence at the government level. Who is the

first person. To take the gospel to Ethiopia.

We just met him. We do not know his name. We

just know he was a eunuch. And you know what

is beautiful? Is that as he is reading the scroll

of Isaiah, there was a whole section for him.

In Isaiah chapter 56, just three chapters later,

Isaiah 56 · chapter mention

there's these words for him. Don't let the eunuch

say, I am dried up tree. With no children and

no future. That's what the enemy would like the

eunuch to believe. No, eunuch, not anymore. For

this is what the Lord says. I will bless those

eunuchs who keep my Sabbath days holy and who

choose to do what pleases me and commit their

lives to me. I will give them, with the walls

of my house, a memorial and a name far greater

than sons and daughters could give. Can you imagine?

As the eunuch is baptized. And then he leaves

rejoicing. And now he understands why he is reading.

On chapter 53 he keeps reading. And as he keeps

reading. The Holy Spirit is now encountering

him in that space. And says eunuch I know that

you have no children. And I know that you feel

at moments that there's no future for you. But

eunuch, I'm here to tell you that now you are

following me. I am your future. I am your reward.

Now you are mine. Can you imagine the impact

in the life of that eunuch to read the words

of the prophet Isaiah after he has just encountered

Jesus? And all of that, simply because Philip

was willing to live life with the Holy Spirit.

And when the Holy Spirit says, I want you to

leave the crowds behind, and the show behind,

and I want you to go in anonymity, just to meet

one guy in the middle of nowhere, Philip did

not protest. And when God tells Philip, Philip,

you see that carriage there? Get closer. But

what for? I'm not going to tell you. Just get

closer. He did not protest. He went. It's one

step of obedience. It will always lead you to

the right place. And you will always be there

at the right time. And God uses this moment.

That seems so incongruent to really bring a wide

impact into a region that Philip would never

visit. Yet God used him to impact that very nation.

And from there, God is going to use Philip to

impact now a generation. And this is beautiful.

Because from all the places to impact, this one

is the hardest of all. And we are told right

there that as he leaves this place of that road

in Gaza, towards Gaza, that the Holy Spirit now

takes him away from there and leads him to this

town. That is also known as Ashdod. And in that

place that you see right there in the map. On

the coast. Now God is going to lead him there.

And he's going to lead him all the way to the

north. Until he settles down in Caesarea. Right

there in the north. So he's going to move from

here. Walk all the way. Share the gospel with

people. He gets to Caesarea. And then he gets

established. That becomes his new home. That's

where he settles with the family. And that is

where we find him next. But this is beautiful

because as God is using Philip to impact Samaria,

Jerusalem, and then Ethiopia, at the same time

there was a guy called Paul who was persecuting

Christians. Hating them, hating Jesus. And something

is about to happen. Meanwhile, Philip found himself

farther north at the town of Azotus. He preached

the good news there and in every town along the

way until he came to Caesarea. And at the same

time that this is happening, Saul was uttering

threats with every breath and was eager to kill

the Lord's followers. You have Philip following

the Lord, impacting people, and you have Saul

at the same time killing the followers of the

Lord until Jesus meets Saul. He becomes a follower

of Jesus. He becomes the Apostle Paul. And he

now becomes the one that God is going to call

to start doing all of this outreach in the empire.

And at the end of his last, trip of the Apostle

Paul in all that region, as he comes back to

Jerusalem, he's going to stop by the town Caesarea

because they come from the coast. And as they

get to the coast, they get to that town in order

to go to Jerusalem. And you know, who does he

meet in that place? The next day, we went on

to Caesarea. And stayed at the home of who? And

now it's not just Philip. But he has a nickname.

Philip the Evangelist. Because very well earned

name. Philip the Evangelist. One of the seven

men. Yeah, I know what you're talking about.

We just read it. Who have been chosen to distribute

food. Yeah, that guy. But it's not just Philip

anymore. He has a family. He has married. He

has children. In fact, four daughters. And he

has four unmarried daughters who have the gift

of prophecy. They are following the Lord as a

family. And God has now used his life to impact

the life of his children who love the Lord, are

serving him, and are experiencing the presence

of the Holy Spirit in their lives, giving them

a gift of prophecy. I can't imagine Philip and

Paul sitting at the table having breakfast, good

Thai coffee, one morning. And remembering. And

Philip says, Paul, you know what? People call

me the evangelist today, but you know how I became

an evangelist? It was because of you. You started

killing us. And I was so upset that I had to

leave Jerusalem. Every Jewish. Man wants to be

in Jerusalem. And because of your fault, I had

to leave. I had no idea where I was going to

end up. I end up being in Samaria. And in Samaria,

the Holy Spirit used me in a way that I never

imagined possible. He used me to heal people.

He used me to reach the Samaritans. He used me

to cast out demons. And all of that because of

you. And there, two guys. That discover life

with the Holy Spirit. Meeting. Before Paul enters

the last season of his ministry. That will lead

him to prison. What an encouraging meeting that

must have been. But this was Philip. This was

the future that God had for him. And at every

step, he demanded that he learn to live life

with the Holy Spirit. And it's the same thing

for you. It's the same thing for me. You have

a potential that God saved you for. There's a

future that is there awaiting. Only if you follow

the Holy Spirit's leading and resist the attack

of the enemy. That's why. The Word of God says

this, and this is what Paul wrote to Timothy.

Would you read it out loud with me? For God has

not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but

of power, love, and self -discipline. Let's read

it one more time. For God has not given us a

spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love,

and self -discipline. Remember. This is whom

the Holy Spirit is. And if you're a follower

of Jesus, he has given you the Holy Spirit to

guide you into the future. But the things that

the enemy will use to compromise our future is

exactly this. Fear and timidity. You will start

experiencing fear. The first fear that the enemy

will use to deter you is the fear of whether

you can trust God's plans for your future. When

you start wondering, God, how do I know that

I can follow you on the future you have for me?

It's a good future to be at. How do I know that's

good? Maybe it's a miserable life. I don't want

that, so I'll just follow my plans. And you resist.

Submitting to the guidance of the Spirit because

you believe that God is not someone you can trust

and His plans are something you should be afraid

of. Not so. That's an enemy lie. The second fear

that you're going to wrestle with is the fear

about yourself. Do I have what it takes? How

do I know that I will have what I need by the

time I get there? You have the promise of the

Holy Spirit. And timidity. Timidity is this sense

of who, me? No, not me. You got the wrong person.

I'm not the one. Philip, you are going to be

known as the evangelist. God is going to use

you to impact a community, a region, a nation,

a next generation. Who? Me? I'm just happy to

serve tables. I have no idea what you're talking

about. Timidity can paralyze you because you

think that you do not have what it takes. But

in reality, you are not what it takes. It's the

Holy Spirit in you that is what it takes. You

understand that? You don't have you. In you,

everything that you need for that future is the

Holy Spirit in you. That will give you the power,

the love, and the self -discipline. This is the

Holy Spirit in you. So whenever this fear of

yourself being inadequate is paralyzing you,

remember and go to the Lord in prayer and say,

Lord, I know that this is not about me. If you

are calling me to this future, I'll go in your

name because you are the source of my power.

You are the source of everything that I will

need. And I want to step in in faith. That is

how this works. Fear and timidity will be used

by the enemy to compromise that future. But Jesus

is telling you today, no. Not if you're following

me. Because the Holy Spirit I gave you will lead

you into the future. Will give you what to say

when you need it. Will provide the things you

need by the time you need them. So just chill

and follow me. Will you trust me with your future?

Will you? And perhaps that's what you need to

tell the Lord today as we conclude this study.

Lord, thank you for this day. I needed to hear

this. I will trust you with the future because

I know I have what it takes to do your will.

And I know that you have what it takes to overcome.

So together we're a good team. I'm for it. Lord

Jesus, you gave us your spirit to lead us into

all future. Thank you. For inviting us to follow

you. Thank you for inviting us to live life with

the Holy Spirit. And I ask you Lord today. That

as you lead your people. Through simple opportunities

that are opening up. Or through disruption. Or

by placing them in positions that go beyond their

comfort zone. Lord, no matter what it is that

you are doing. Today I ask you, break the power

of the enemy that is trying to oppose and deceive.

And fill your people with your spirit. And let

the voice of your spirit speak loudly. So that

they may discern what you are doing. And let

that future be blessed. The plans that you have

for them, be blessed. And we ask you, Lord, that

nothing will compromise those plans and that

the impact and the potential will simply grow

by the power and the grace of the Holy Spirit.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. If you are looking

for community or are in need of prayer, we welcome

you to engage by sending us an email to office

at ecb .asia. If God is calling you to support

our ministries, you will find giving options

on our website. And remember to join us next

week. God bless you.