(Notes were taken during the message. All scriptures are in NKJV version unless stated otherwise)
Key scriptures:
Revelation 21:5
“He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Isaiah 43:19
“Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. We must give heed to the new thing God is doing.”
How will you experience new beginnings?
1. You must know it is NOW
“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” Mark 11:22-24
“Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.” So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.” Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.’ ” 1 Kings 18:41-44
Everything God has done starts first on the inside!
2. You must SEE it, you must perceive it
You should see what God is doing first with your spiritual eyes. Your spiritual eyes are the eyes of faith. The moment you can see it, there is a readiness to receive it. You must keep your eyes on the goal.
“See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down, To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plant.” Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.” Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am [d]ready to perform My word.” Jeremiah 1:10-12
Don’t let distractions get in the way, you must keep your focus on God. Ask God to open your eyes today to see what he has begun.
If you can see it then God is ready to do it!
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1
3. You must forget the old
“Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18-19
Verse 19 shows us that the prerequisite of seeing the new thing is to forget the old.
We can learn from Abraham’s life; he did not consider his body when God told him that he was going to be a father.
In order to forget the past, we must maintain the stance of not dwelling on past calamities and troubles. Keep maintaining your stance and refuse to retain past experiences, thoughts and mindsets that remind you of the old. Eventually, you will forget the past. Hebrews 11:15-16 says, “And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had the opportunity to return. 16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.”
“And to Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On, bore to him. Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: “For God has made me forget all my toil and all my father’s house.” Gen 41:50-51
Sometimes in order to forget your past troubles, you need to leave what is familiar to you. What God is doing is a new thing and it may bear no resemblance to what you knew or experienced before.
4. You must overcome your fears and doubts
Keep saying what God says until you overcome your fears!
“Sing, O barren, You who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud,” Isaiah 54:1-4
You who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate Than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord. “Enlarge the place of your tent, And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; Do not spare; Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes. For you shall expand to the right and to the left, And your descendants will inherit the nations, And make the desolate cities inhabited. “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame; For you will forget the shame of your youth, And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore. God is stretching you because God wants to do a new thing!”
You must be ready to step out of your comfort zone; it’s time to break away from fear!
5. Release your faith for the supernatural
When dealing with God put all your eggs in one basket! Believe God for something only He can do; nothing is too hard for the Lord.
Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,”
“For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ And this is a simple matter in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.” 2 Kings 3:17-18
In this new season, let us heed to the new things that God is doing!
Notes taken from the message by Rev. Funke Ewuosho, ‘New Beginnings’
