Sheryl Brady - Step Into the Flow

Look at your neighbor and say, «Neighbor, you can’t flourish if you don’t get in the flow.» Turn to somebody else and say, «Neighbor, there’s a pattern here. There’s something for us to step into, but we can’t flourish unless we get in the flow. Say, 'God, help me in 2023 to step into the flow.'»

Lord, I thank You for Your Word, Your presence, Your glory, and Your power, and for the gentleness that I feel in this room. Help me to say what You want me to say. We will give You praise for it all in Jesus' name. Amen and amen.

Sit down in His name. Just a week and a few days ago, Bishop shared with us—and with some of us in a meeting—this is the year of the green light. We got excited about that, and then I shared it here at the church: it’s the year of the green light! That’s an exciting thing! If you’ve ever had to stop at every red light on your journey, you know what it’s like to hit all of the green lights.

However, one of the things he said that I want to expound on a bit today is that even though it’s the year of the green light, it is not for everybody. That’s what I want to establish today. It’s for anyone and everyone who has prepared and who has prepped themselves—those who have taken the necessary steps and set the stage, those who have provided the basis for God to lay down His plan for your life. That is who He is talking about.

There is a qualification that must be met here. The Bible tells us that God is no respecter of persons, and that’s kind of a relief to me because just about everybody else is! But God is no respecter of persons, which simply means that God does not prefer one person above another. However, that does not mean that God gives to each of us equally either, because He doesn’t do that. God gives to us on the basis of many different things.

One of the things that He gives to us is on the basis of our need. Our God shall supply all of our needs according to His riches in glory. When the manna fell from heaven, it didn’t fall equally at every tent door. The family that had four members didn’t receive the same amount as the family of twelve. It didn’t fall equally; it fell, but it didn’t fall equally. They got different portions based on what their needs were, for the Lord knows what we have need of before we even ask.

This is why it is so unwise to compare ourselves with each other. It’s unwise to do that. Just because God doesn’t give you the same amount that He gives someone else doesn’t mean that He doesn’t love you, and it doesn’t mean that He loves them more. It doesn’t mean that He’s blessed someone else more because God does both: He loves us, and He blesses us. I said He loves us, and He blesses us, but He does it according to whatever it is we have need of.

There is no need for God to bring me a motorcycle; I don’t want it, I’m not going to drive it, and I’m not going to ride it either, so I don’t need it! But if I do need something else, He will provide it. Another way that God blesses us is not just on the basis of our need, but He blesses us according to His purpose. This means if there is a particular thing that you need to fulfill His purpose in your life, God will release that to you.

Other people will look at you and wonder how in the world you obtained what you have, and they don’t seem to understand that you got it on purpose. He released handfuls in Boaz’s field for Ruth, and those were handfuls on purpose. So we must conclude that if God doesn’t give it to us, it’s because we don’t need it.

I said we must conclude that if God doesn’t provide it to us, we don’t need to waste our prayer lives begging for something that He is not preparing to give us. If He doesn’t give it to you, then you don’t need it! But if you need it, you can rest assured that it may not come when you want it, but it will be right on time.

When that revelation truly strikes deep inside of you, you will stop worrying about other people’s talents, gifts, abilities, and money because you know that everything you need to fulfill the purpose of God in your life He has already given to you. And if He doesn’t give it to you, then you don’t need it. If I needed to be six inches taller, He would have made me taller, but He knew I wanted to wear high heels, so He made me as I am.

If I needed to be lighter-skinned, that would have been scary! But if I had needed to be lighter, He would have made me lighter. If I needed to be darker—for all of you who go to tanning beds—if I needed to be darker… I’m just playing with you! Whatever God has called me to do, He would have given that to me. Instead, He gave me a husband that has all that, so I’ve learned how to be comfortable with His design for me.