Sunday Message: A Place Called There- Part 1

A place called there.

A place called there.

First of all, everybody has a place called there.

You're right.

Everybody has a place called there.

And I can back this up with scripture.

According to Jeremiah chapter 29, verse 11.

Jeremiah 29:11

Read out of the NLT, okay?

According to Jeremiah chapter 29, verse 11.

Jeremiah 29:11

We see.

Jeremiah 29 11.

Final thoughts.

King King James.

Follow the thoughts I think towards you, says the Lord.

Thoughts of peace and not of evil.

To give you an expectant end.

And the Amplifier.

To give you hope in your final outcome.

So we see in these three different translations, two more explicitly than the first one, God has a place called there for you.

It's almost like if this was a movie, the director, the writer, the creator has a expected end for that movie.

So despite the different things that the characters, the main characters, the protagonists, the antagonist, or even side quests that may happen, there is an expected end for this movie.

Or take a step further.

Ephesians says, For we are God's poema.

You may know it as handiwork.

So we are God's handiwork.

And so with us being a poem, the author has a way he wants the poem to end.

So God has a vision for your life and the expectation of a certain end.

That's why He preserved you.

That's why He kept you.

So despite how the story began, it's the ending that makes it.

I'm a sports guy.

Take a step further.

Particularly those like professional sports.

For some people, it's like, okay, fine.

The game don't start with certain sports until what the final two to four minutes of the game.

The ending of the game is what matters.

So God has an ending in mind for you.

A place called there just for you.

So a lot of times, depending on what's happening in the here, it's very difficult to imagine or think of a there.

It's like that's cute.

But what's going on here right now is real.

What's going on this day is so real that I can't even imagine, dream, I can't even give mental thoughts for a there.

Because if how can I think of a there when I'm dealing with so much right here, Richie?

It doesn't seem fair to act.

But God does that because, think about what he said, to give you hope in your future.

1 Corinthians chapter 12, chapter 13 talks about above all, chapter 12, and chapter 12, above all lies faith, hope, and love.

1 Corinthians 12 · chapter mention

Right?

Well man of God mentioned that hope can be equated to a uh the the rack that your clothes hanger hang on.

The clothes hanger is faith.

So hope attaches to uh makes your faith work.

You you need hope to make your faith work, to have faith, and then your faith works by love.

What does that mean?

If I don't have hope for a brighter day tomorrow, then I won't have faith corresponding actions, one of these faith, that I will see that bright day.

So God had to give us an expected end to give us hope for the future.

And how many people right now are struggling with hope?

I cannot believe, Reggie.

I haven't seen it as bad as I have in a few years, or a lot of the markers are looking like um, is looking like you fill in the blank with your favorite time in history.

And so that's what a lot of people are really missing.

Hope.

So God, like I have an expected end for you, I have a way I desire.

I'm gonna emphasize desire your story to end.

But whether it ends the way God wants it to, is not up to God, it's up to us, and that's where it gets interesting.

Talk about your place called there.

God has a place called there for each and every one of us.

That's why he preserved you, that's why he sustained you, that's why he bought you the old to say a mighty long way to get you where there.

And he didn't bring you this far to leave you.

But some of the things that we went through to get here, Reggie, if you only knew, glory be to God.

And so God is like, hey, I didn't write that story, I didn't allow you to be born here under these circumstances and to bring you out for my glory, for his glory, to bring you out right.

That's too simplistic, and I can respect that part of the spirit, but he allowed the story to begin one way, so the ending could be Yahweh, he didn't bring that to leave you, but the if it happens, it's not up to him, it's up to us.

What do you mean?

Psalms 91.

Psalm 91 to us to a concept called the secret place, right?

And in Psalms 91, he that dwelleth in the secret place of the most high shall abide on the under the shadow of the Almighty now a few things.

One, he that dwells, dwells, dwells.

Dwelling means who makes takes a residence, who has a home, who's comfortable there.

A lot of us do not dwell in a secret place.

Most times we we we may visit every so often, right?

But to dwell, think about the difference between your apartment rental, your vacation rental when you do so, versus your home.

Think about the difference, the different level of comfort and familiarity, right?

Between your VRBO, Airbnb, whichever one, your favorite hotel, chain, brand, whatever, and your home.

Which one are you more comfortable in?

Which one do you move around?

Familiar, you can almost close your eyes and make it happen.

That is literally a paradigm walking by faith, to be able to maneuver so much so that you can do it here to be comfortable with.

So, this invitation here, he that dwelleth in the secret place of the most high shall remain, shall abide by the shadow of the Almighty.

It's the invitation, and for that person that dwells there, then got the rest of the chapter, the promises.

The promises.

What does it look like?

Um, as we started the little bit before we started the transformational prayer journey, this thing, this this saying dropped into our spirit, prayer must change us before it changed our situation, circumstances.

Once again, prayer must change us before it changed our situation, circumstances.

And when we say change us, that means change the way we think, change the way we speak, change the things that we do before it can change our situation, circumstances.

Prayer must also change the way that we see God and His authority that He's shared with us to bring heaven to earth.

So in this place, we get to be comfortable enough to be vulnerable, which sounds like a dwelling place.

Because some of the most open and vulnerable, some people spend the most time crying behind closed doors in your bedroom by yourself, crying your heart out, tears, the agony, the pain.

You would never put that out in public, but your dwelling place, and in this secret place, in this place, we like to say a prayer.

Then it's like, okay, are you comfortable in the presence of God?

Are you comfortable in your moment of divine meeting that he has for each and everyone?

Because he has one for you.

I believe not only does God have an expected end for your life, he has some things he wants you to go throughout, expecting in for this year for you, this month for you, even this day.

That's why we can say, it was Jesus can say in Matthew, give us this day our daily bread.

And then Matthew 16 reel us back in the at the end of the same chapter, sufficient for tomorrow is the words of tomorrow.

From today.

So there are some things he wants us to accomplish this day.

So you can almost say we have a place called there on this day, and so that shifts.

So as we check in daily with headquarters, not a place of prayer, and we spend time with them, and I think this is the difference between having a set time of meeting with him versus your on-the-go prayers.

Both are important, both are critical, but it's different once we are preparing for an important meeting versus the impromptu meeting.

Hey, let's talk.

A lot of times the prayers that we pray as we go are more impromptu.

Hey, do you have moment?

But those important meetings that we're preparing for, that we are taking notes, so taking scripture, writing down what you're looking at.

Of course, you allow space for um spur-to-moment things that happen that come up, say room for that.

But at the same time, in that prepared time of meaning, you're bringing it to him.

And until you figure out what his word says about it as well, which changes us.

So now we're praying based on his word.

And in that place of prayer, we take his word and we pray the promises against the situation, as opposed to solely, only, I said only talk with God about the problem.

We can shift from telling God about our problem to telling our problem about the size of our God in that place of prayer.

And so now we have this moment.

We have this, hey, in this secret place, in this place, in the presence.

Secret place is the presence of God.

He that dwells in his presence.

We have the Holy Spirit, he doesn't leave us nor forsake us.

That's one of the fundamental differences between the old covenant and new covenant.

The old covenant, he came upon a person for service, typically only gone.

He stayed upon the king, the prophet, and the priest.

Yes.

And we're all a royal priesthood, a holy nation.

And he said, I would never leave us, he would never leave us nor forsake.

How do you do that?

The presence of the Holy Spirit.

So we have the Holy Spirit with us at all times.

And so as we are mindful, aware of the presence of God in us, around us, in us, and upon us, I'm sorry, now we stay there.

We stay focused, we say consistent, disciplined, and focus on what he's saying and what he's doing.

And we take time and we prioritize fellowshipping with him.

In that place in the spirit, he meets with us.

And honestly, this place we can almost say is beyond our debt styles where we stress affairs.

It takes a renewed mind.

It takes a renewed mind.

Takes a renewed mind.

Because the secret place is beyond.

It's what I call the transformational life.

It happened.

You saw it, you felt it, it impacted you.

But what it will not do, it will not have the final say in your story.

It's a part of your story, it's a part of your testimony of what God has done, but it will not stop you from getting there that God has for you.

And so, as we renew our mind, Romans 12, I beseech you therefore, brothers, God of the King James, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, wholly, set apart, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

And be no longer conform to this will, but be transformed by renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

What does it have to do with the place called there?

So, with the place called there, the more time you spend with God, you'll recognize that's there.

What do I mean?

Look at the last part, verse 2.

Be transferred by new inner mind that you may prove, or a different translation, that you may know what is this good and out of the um amplified, that you may prove for yourself what is the good except the perfect will of God, even the thing which is good except the perfect in his sight for you.

How do we do this?

By being no longer formed in this world, fashioned after and adapted to his external superficial custom, be transformed, changed by the entire renewal of our mind by its new ideals and attitudes.

This is the thought of renovation.

A lot of us like these television shows, some of us have lived through it where you renovate an entire space.

You're gonna keep the external, you're gonna keep the frame, it has good bones, right?

We'll keep that, but everything on the inside must come renovate it, tear up the stud, tear up the floor, and everything.

That's what God will do in the mind.

He's renovating your mind to operate with the mind of Christ, right?

So as you're doing that, you will know your place God there.

So the situation where I was talking about earlier.

Every morning where I've woken up and I pray for myself and what's going on throughout the day.

And he responds back with a unction, a word.

Okay, what is that about?

I so me on self-reflect, I'm always checking first.

Reggie, is this you?

Okay, no.

I have peace about it.

Let's move on.

Throughout that day, there have been numerous times where it's it may have marked or something.

I need to share this.

What am I gonna do with this?

But as we go throughout, you will know when it's to be delivered there.

Why?

The time spent with them, and so take stuff further.

But those of us in relationships, like I say, hey, my wife and I celebrated 15 years, the end of the month of July.

There's there is no nothing in the word of look that tells you who you should marry.

There are certain parameters, certain things you look for, but don't give name.

That's not a logo, that's a rhema, reveal word.

But only because of our time in the secret space, dwelling with God, knowing how he responds back to us, will we know it's your there.

That's your one there.

That's the one that God has to be.

Why we spend enough time with him that we may prove or we may know.

And so as you're going out, it flows from your relationship with him to where we're able to keep our eyes fixed and focused till we know how God is moving, and as he's moving and doing things in the secret place, as we fellowship with him, then we know as we giving us visions and dreams, I've seen ears and I've heard what God has put to the heart of man, put things in our heart.

Now we know the steps to get there, the partnerships, the relationships to get there.

Now, the challenge is what if God is already revealing or speaking to us about what's our about your there?

But your previous experiences have trained you to see things differently.

So your prior experiences and your efforts to get it right, man.

Turn down to trust.

Don't try again, don't risk it, don't expect too much.

Protect yourself, stay what's familiar.

You're capable, you don't have I'm sorry, reading my notes.

Those beliefs could easily make disobedience, make obedience to what God says feel dangerous.

One of my definitions of trauma, particularly as it relates to this, is experiences that make living by faith feel more dangerous.

When sometimes the distance between here and there is not always geographical, but it may be transformational.

Allow God to renew your mind, to see living by faith as the safe that it is because it's based on his will, his credibility, not them, but him.

Experience, taste and see the Lord is good, having this one act, this one step of faith, and allowing God to hold you and keep you, hold you and keep to see his word, to see him back his word, do what his word said that he will do.

And as you have those wins, we renew our, we update our operating system to what he's doing, what he's done in the present tense.

Yes, we encourage ourselves by the testimony of other people, but for most of us, it's our own experiences or the experience of those who we respect and trust the most that can make or break this for us.

Because now we're looking with different types of expectations.

So, as we are en route to your place called there, there's a place called here.

Like to say, you have two eyes.

One is for keeping your eyes on what someone was coming, the other one is to for today.

Because what you do today, sowing seeds for your tomorrow, you sow certainty with an expectation it will manifest this particular type of fruit, right?

Similar concept.

So as you are here, steward here well.

Um, this is where I'm gonna kind of jump ahead on my notes, because this is where I think is a good place to tell our story, a little bit story.

Those of you all that know me, um, my wife and I moved to Georgia.

This would be well, I moved first, um, December 31st, 2010.

And we got married July 2011, and we moved out here as the top of August, August 2011.

So together, about 15 years we've been in Georgia.

What happened is we first moved out here.

Um, I was coming to seminary to Matthew School of Theology because I'm a Christian studies major coming from a bachelor's, and what happened was um I need a job.

I just got married, I needed a job, and so I wasn't able to get through theology school at the particular time like I wanted to.

So I ended up working, and as I'm working, I ended up um spending some time in prayer and maneuvering toward um counseling through the University of West Georgia.

Get my master's goal to the best, go west, baby.

Taking a step further back, I'm sorry.

In undergrad, when I changed my major to Christian Studies, I wanted to go to school to study politics.

I want to be the first back of the Mississippi.

So what happened was I ended up at a sports camp, Christian sports camp, kids crossed from every camps in Missouri, and had a time, total time.

You had to go throughout the whole day, do not have a manual labor.

We're raking an outdoor basketball court to try to get it ready for the campers to come.

During that particular time, I had a I believe a vision.

Actually, not think about it more.

I'm sitting there, God was talking, and he asked me the one thing I didn't want to do.

Didn't want to go into ministry.

Did not.

I wanted to be a Christian, I wanted to believe because I want to go to heaven, of course.

I wanted to be the guy, you know, that comes to church, does his thing, praise the Lord, up, down, give his money, out, right?

And so um at that particular time, I wanted to be able to financially support my family.

And it's interesting because God was pretty much inviting me.

I need you to take care of me and my family.

And because I share my concerns, I believe God told me, if you take care of me and mine, I take care of you and yours.

So around this before then, like a little before the high school, he told me I would go to school, meet a girl, her family loved me after graduation, after the move to Georgia with us.

So, did that.

Tony answers a lot of prayers, right?

We meet in college, she graduates, she comes with me.

So now we know we're looking at ministry somehow.

And I made a few false steps trying to make it happen.

Literally trying to make it happen.

I had a job, I left in the natural, the setup was beautiful.

A friend of mine was coming out here to do ministry, and I'm like, I'm gonna go work alongside of you.

Did not happen that way, and I'm having to go back into the workforce, and so yeah, just trying to get to my place called there.

My place called there.

So as we got out here, started moving around, we felt led to the Arab culture.

We did.

I went out there and got my master's so much so felt led out there.

I was driving from Doorville uh in the Metro Atlanta area out there at that particular time before we moved over to Smyrna.

So I was driving out west.

I had my first job was in Douglasville, my school was out of carriage.

I was driving back and forth, driving back and forth.

And so it was like, hey, God spoke to my self-enton.

We're driving around one day looking for our first house.

We almost bought a house in care at that particular time because we knew God had called to that particular area.

Didn't work out.

Ended up selling in Cobb County at the time, working in the Cobb County area, which I still do today.

And but we knew the entire time our hair was in character, our place called there was Carolton.

So, but they're here now, yeah, setting up here.

Family, all my kids were born here.

Financially, it makes more sense.

We're close to the urban core here, but we knew in our heart of hearts our place called there was always in character.

We even believe he told us we have an inheritance in Carrollton, and so it's roughly chronologically, we're at least 10 or 12 years in.

To where now we're Bob told you earlier to launch Bow Church in Carrollton, Georgia.

From a connection standpoint, it makes more sense, honestly, to launch this in Cobb County.

We have more people we can talk to, this, that, and the third, but we've always believed in our heart of hearts.

Our place called there was in Carroll.

Now, just because we believed at the time, we stewarded it here well.

We learned all we could, we served our local church.

Excuse me, because of our professional bad dealings, we learned a lot about people doing this in the third.

Why?

Because it all every experience helps build you.

Nothing with God is ever wasting to get you to your place called there.

I shared it with you to say, look, you have a place called there, and if you're here right now feel so far away from there, it doesn't mean God has forgotten about you.

Think about Joseph.

Joseph had a place called there, and he was gonna be leading an entire nation.

His brothers would be bowed down to him, he knew that.

But Joseph found himself as opposed to moving in a progressively straight line toward his there.

No, that was a jagged line.

Sold in slavery, moving up, because he was in Potiphar.

Hypotiphrase was a man that was in Pharaoh's orbit.

So he's almost to that place called there.

But it's not the happening getting derailed.

Jail.

Even in jail, he seems further away from there than he ever was.

A lot of us feel the exact same way.

Reggie, I don't understand.

You tell me I have a place called there.

That is such a faith claim, and honestly, I would have believed that before everything that happened to me.

When I was a child, Reggie, if you knew the dreams I had.

Honestly, if I'm being honest with you, there's feeling some of my depression, my disappointment, my frustration.

Because I know where my there was.

He showed me when I was a child.

I'm here to tell you, nothing is impossible.

Anything is possible.

Because on days when it seems like the furthest away, that's honestly, those are honestly the days where we had to encourage ourselves, we have an inheritance.

There is greater here.

Recall for more.

And honestly, to use that to give you hope, an expected future that your life doesn't have an end here.

Don't not have to end here to get you faith, corresponding actions, to love, sometimes your own self enough to get back up, to walk with them with you.

Joseph's story, it wasn't a straight line.

There was some ups and downs, some very high highs, some extreme lows, but God still has a there for Joseph, there for me, and a there for you.

The question is, along the way, do you disconnect from the author of the story?

The one who already has an idea of how he wants this thing to end.

And so, do we get lost in halfway through the story and put the book down?

Or do we check in with the author?

Now I don't know where you are.

I don't know where you are in your story.

We welcome you to join us as we continue our story.

September 13th, out in Carrollton.

But I'm here to tell you, you have a place called there.

You have a place called there, and it is good and expected in to give you a hope and a future.

Take a step further for those of us that believe in well done.

That's how you get your well done.

Getting there, fulfilling, accomplishing your there.

Because we know there are levels to this thing.

There is a well you hear, good job.

But there's a you got there.

As we launch Bowd Church, we want to walk alongside people who are looking for their there.

Want to walk alongside of you.

It's like, hey, my there seems so far away.

We're here to tell your story, it's not over.

The best is still yet to come.

As long as you're breathing, the best is still yet to come.

And most important, he keeps ringing through my spirit.

Nothing is impossible.

So it is not impossible for you to get there.

Now you gotta renew your mind.

First of all, because your here doesn't disqualify you from there, you're wherever yesterday was doesn't disqualify you from getting there.

So in the eyesight of God, if this does disqualify you, don't disqualify yourself.

Please don't disqualify yourself.

And so, as opposed to speaking what God says about ourselves, we echo the accusation of the enemy over ourselves.

So we condemn ourselves when God convicts you.

No, you have a place called there.

The same power that resurrected Jesus from hell lies in you is available to you right now.

And if God can send the Holy Spirit to hell to get God, to get Jesus out, the hell that you see, that you experience, that mess that's got you so focused on here that you cannot even dream or imagine of there, he can do the same for you.

I'm here to tell you, he can do the same for you.

I'm here to tell you, he can do the same for you.

I'm not I'm not gonna lie to you, it hasn't been a linear thing.

But what it has been a faithful God who knew the thoughts and plans he has for us, who loved us, according to 13 verses 4 through 7.

He's patient with us, he's kind with us.

He's patient with you, he's kind with you.

And if you will let him, he will get you there.

That's what the job of the Holy Spirit.

He's an insurance, like a oh like an insurance policy to help protect you, to guide you.

Holy Spirit is like a protect, protecting an investment.

An investment God made in you through the Son, through the blood of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is here to protect that.

He's here to guide you, to teach you, to train you, to walk alongside of you, to pray for you, honestly, to fight you, because he'll tug at your heart after whatever he gotta do to get you there.

The question is, will you fight with him?

Fight against them.

You have a there.

We pray.

We're praying for you along the way.

Let's pray.

Father God, we love you.

We just thank you for the person that's on the other side of this video, that they will see themselves the way that you do.

As a person with an expected end that you love so much that you sustained, you protected, Father God, you've corrected, you've wrestled with by the power of the Holy Spirit, Father God.

Why?

Because you have a place called there for them.

So, Father God, we just think it is not impossible.

No matter how things look, feel, dear God, no matter the pressure limitation of what we've experienced and what they keep telling us, it is not impossible for us to get there.

So, Father God, I say on their behalf, we say yes.

We take eyes to see, dear God, ears to hear what you are doing and what you're saying.

And I pray they will mark and burn in us so much, Father God, they will mark us so that we don't have a choice but to get there.

I just thank you, Father God, that anything is possible, anything is possible.

If you spoke it, dear God, it's possible, and that no word that you've spoken shall return without fruition, shall return unto you for what, Father God.

So we thank you for the impossible, the situation, dear God, that don't seem I will never get there.

We thank you for divine acceleration.

We thank you, dear God, for visions and dreams, dear God, that will shake us up, stir up our faith, conversations, Father God, to pursue, boldly pursue the impossible, dear God.

Lord, we love you.

We thank you, Father God.

We give you glory, honor, and praise.

In Jesus' name, we pray.

Amen.

Amen.