John K. Jenkins Sr - A Season of Transitions, Prepare

All right, it’s 11:30. Slow down! I gotta give you this word because I do have a word now. Y’all know I’m the kind of pastor who doesn 't often say, «The Lord told me .» I rarely say that, but tonight, I’m about to tell you, the Lord told me this is a word for you for 2023. Some of you are going to accept it, and some of you won’t, and I’m hoping that you’ll have an open heart to it. It is from Joshua chapter 1. Reverend Dickens already did so well; Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, «Pass through the camp and command the people, saying, 'Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you will cross over this Jordan to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess.'» And this is our theme for 2023. Well, I’m not calling it the year’s theme; it may last for the year and may not, but this is for right now. This is the season of transition. Say that with me: the season of transition. Say it one more time. That 's what this is; that’s what the word is. It’s a time and a season for transition. God is transitioning us. That word «transition» means to move you from one state, status, or place to another-from one condition to another, from one posture to another. It is a season of transition. God has made this whole plan for me so clear. God has spoken to me. Matter of fact, in February of this year, I spoke about this very same subject from this very same passage, and all of 2022 has been transitional. It has been a season and a time, and God has said that He is carrying it over into 2023. He told me to say that some people have gotten it, but some people didn’t get it. So my assignment is to give you another chance to get it. Yeah, our church transitioned from being in debt to being debt-free. What God wants to do is take the anointing that He has put on this house and put it on your house for you. It’s a season and a time of transition.

There are lots of examples throughout Scripture- lots of transitions in the Bible, lots of stories and situations where people move from one posture to the next, from one place to the next. The Jews transitioned from slavery to freedom. Joseph transitioned from being in the pit to the palace. Paul transitioned from being a persecutor of the church to a preacher, from being a murderer to being merciful, from being an unbeliever to a believer, from being a follower to a leader. Paul transitioned from being a reader to a writer, from a student to an author. Elijah transitioned. Elisha transitioned from being a student to a prophet. Jesus had multiple transitions; he went from a child to adulthood, from a student to a worker, from youth to a young adult. Jesus himself demonstrates to us with his posture, and he wants me to tell you that it is time for you to make the transition. It’s coming; it’s going to change the dimensions and direction of your life. You 're going to transition. I don’t mean there will be a change in your life. Jesus went from God to man. He went from creator to creature; he went from the cross to the right hand of the Father. He transitioned from earth to glory, and he’s coming back to earth. He models for us what it is he’s going to do, and my assignment-my job-is to impress upon you, to put it in your heart, put it in your mind, and to tell you that God wants to do transitional things for you. What does that mean? That means that God is going to move you from one place to another. We’ve had lots of people transition in our church; we’ve had people move from working here for years to retirement. Here 's what transition means for some of you: it means you’re going to move from the status you are in to another status. I’m looking forward to the day I move from working every day to retirement; I’m looking forward to transitioning somewhere in that time, but I also want to go from being stressed out dealing with y’all to just dealing with myself. Amen.

But here’s what it means: listen, listen. I’m going to tell you this is a big thing right here. For some of you, you have felt restricted; you have felt held down; you have felt contained. But God is about to do some transitional things that are going to provide for you some opportunities. I need y’all to get that in your heart. Put- somebody say opportunities. Somebody say that again: opportunities! God is going to open up some opportunities for you. Some doors are going to open that you thought would never open for you. You 're going to get some phone calls that are going to be made. There are some connections that are going to come, some situations that are going to resolve, something that’s going to happen, and the doors are going to swing open on both hinges for you. I’m not preaching long; I’ll be finished when I get done. My job is to tell you that God wants you to be prepared. He’s going to move some of you from depression to joy, from brokenness to wholeness, from unemployment to owning your own business, from dysfunction...