Rhema Ehiemere - I'm Here to Confirm the Rumors

On your way to your seat, tell your neighbor, «I’m here to confirm the rumors.» Now, let’s do a peel check. If you are sitting with a neighbor you don’t usually like, you would typically be told to move, but this time around, maybe you need to tell the neighbor to move. If you’re sitting beside someone who doesn’t know what to do in this type of atmosphere, I am here to confirm the rumors.

I read a story about a man named Eric Yuan. He was born in China and tried nine times to come to the U.S., but his visa was rejected. Eventually, his visa was granted, and he came to the U.S. in 1997. Eric didn’t know much English at that time; he worked his way up, struggled, and never gave up. Eventually, Eric joined a company called WebEx, and by 2007, he moved up in that company. By 2007, Eric rose through the ranks and became the Vice President of Engineering. In 2011, Eric went to WebEx and told them he had an idea to elevate their products, but they shot him down. Eric did what every businessman would do: he left WebEx and started his own company.

By 2017, Eric’s company was valued at one billion dollars, and by 2019, it went public. Are you hearing me? Are you following me? In 2020, the pandemic shut down everything, and businesses were imploding, but Eric’s business was exploding. Eric’s business grew so much during the pandemic that he had over 300 million clients every day. Eric’s business exploded to the point that the app, which is probably on your phone, was downloaded over 400 million times in 2020. You probably helped Eric’s business, which was worth one billion dollars, exceed over one hundred billion dollars during the pandemic. Eric’s business succeeded so much that he was named Time’s Businessman of the Year.

And if you haven’t figured it out yet, some of you may be wondering, «Pastor Emma, can you tell us what Eric’s business is?» Well, obviously, you might be in the wrong profession. Eric’s business is on your phone; it’s called Zoom. Who would have known about Zoom without the pandemic? How is it that a season of adversity for one person can be a season of opportunity for another? How is it that what is a shutdown for one is not a lockdown for the other? Sometimes, God doesn’t lock down things to hide them from us, but to hide them for us—because without the pandemic, Zoom would have been zoomed past us, and we would never have really known about it.

The reason I’m sharing all this is that when I look through the scriptures, I’ve discovered that God is in the lockdown business. God often locks things down, and I used to be concerned about that until I understood that people lock down what is valuable to them. People lock down what they treasure. You don’t see diamonds just lying around; they are kept in a safe. Perhaps this explains why you might be feeling the way you are, because you are treasured, and God says you are too important to be everywhere. Oh, I’m preaching already! God says you are too valuable to be everywhere, and so He locks you down. This explains why you feel like you’re in a place where everything isn’t working; it’s because God has locked you down.

If I were talking to a small group, I would probably tell them to take out their phones and take a picture, because this is a word for someone: you are not cursed; you are called. This is your one-minute distraction where you can take a picture and hashtag «attack lighthouse South» and tag me or whatever, but I want you to know that maybe you just came here to hear a word: you are not cursed; you are called. God picked you. You are not stuck; you are strategically positioned.

Are you guys ready for the word this morning? How many people are ready for the word? I’m going to take my time. I thought about this because many people feel like they are stuck. There’s nothing wrong with you; something is right with you. You are just too important to be everywhere, and God says, «I know it feels like you’re on lockdown, but I know how to turn it around for your good.» Help me preach to your neighbor and tell them, «God is about to turn it around.» God is about to turn it around for my good! I feel something in this house.

God doesn’t just lock things down; He locks down things. In the text, God locks down things, and as I said earlier, He doesn’t hide things from you; He hides things for you. Pastor Rimmer, prove it. I will prove it; thank you for asking. Well, Abraham was going to sacrifice his only son, according to God—the only son whom he loves. I didn’t put that there; God put that there. Even though Ishmael was around, Abraham got to the mountain and was about to kill his own son when God said, «Hold up! I locked down something for you.» He turned around and saw the ram caught in the thicket.

If you were honest and truthful with yourself, the only reason you made it is because God locked down some blessings for you. What you thought was destruction was actually your provision. Come on, what you thought was destruction was your protection. And God said…