- Today we are going to
take a posture of peace
by stopping the spread of negativity.
Posture is a short audible fist bump
to remind you God is
with you in everything.
Together, we're going to be emboldened
to take a daily posture of perfect peace.
We are in Romans chapter eight today,
and I love Romans chapter eight.
I always wanna encourage you
to read Romans chapter
eight and its entirety.
Today we're gonna be reading
verses five through seven.
It says, "For those who
live according to the flesh,
have set their minds on
what the flesh desires.
But those who live according to the Spirit
have set their minds on
what the Spirit desires.
The mind governed by the flesh is death.
But the mind governed by the
Spirit is life and peace.
The mind governed by the
flesh is hostile to God.
It does not submit to God's
law nor can it do so."
If we wanna be a people who live at peace,
who bring life,
who are led by the Spirit
and carry light powerfully
into this dark world,
then we have to get really serious
about stopping negativity.
Starting with the negativity
in our own hearts and minds,
because negativity is poison.
It's death.
It depletes and it destroys.
It has never ever
brought life to a person,
a situation or conversation
or a relationship.
In fact, negativity weekends
every relationship it enters.
It steals our vitality.
It keeps us from fully experiencing life.
The life that Jesus died for us to have.
And because of hurt, pain, frustration,
confusion that we so often
are faced with in this world,
we often procrastinate
dealing with negativity.
Dealing with negative
thoughts, negative emotions,
negative perceptions, but
by not dealing with it,
we actually lower our expectations
for blessing and favor
and the power to change.
You know, instead we
just write people off.
Sometimes including ourselves.
We doubt the true nature of God
based on negative experiences
or conversations with other people
or faith communities.
We become double-minded
because we're so desperately want new,
but we continue to see
and think and feel and act
based on beliefs that
are rooted in accusation
and blame and doubt and criticism.
And in that mode, if we get breakthrough,
we can't hold onto it.
Because our thinking is so held back
by returning negativity that
we just refuse to overcome.
And I say refuse,
because even though not
every thought is our own,
you know, some thoughts are planted
by other people or the enemy.
We decide what thoughts
stay and what thoughts go.
We decide what words we speak
and what words we leave unsaid.
We decide if we're going
to be bitter hopeless,
full of rage or vindictive.
Your negativity is not
authored by the Spirit.
It's not the way that heaven thinks.
It is a worldly mindset.
It is a way of thinking a way of life
that is actually hostile towards God
according to Romans eight.
It fights everything he is
and everything he promises to be for you.
It works against his purposes.
And you know, it's not
just an internal struggle
in our heads and hearts,
but it's external as well.
Because our world is
saturated in negativity.
I mean, we're bombarded
every day with messages
that seek to create fear and worry
and panic and hopelessness.
And then we are encouraged
to share them with others.
Because negativity loves company.
Negativity loves joining
with more negativity
to justify and spread itself.
I mean, just like a social media.
This is a tool that was built
to actually bring connection.
And it's turned into this like courtroom
that is full of accusing
and condemning and shaming
and humiliating people.
Often without having to prove
whether the facts are even true or not.
You know, recently I was
reminded of Ephesians 4:29
that talks about,
it says, "Let no corrupt
talk come out of your mouths,
but only words that build others up
that your words may bring grace.
Give grace to those who hear them."
If you are a new creation in Christ,
if you're a Jesus follower,
if you are a person of the kingdom,
negativity and how you see and think
and speak and act and feel
about others and yourself,
it is never an option.
It is never an option.
Jesus gave everything so that
you never have to be a slave
to negativity again.
It is not your master.
It cannot tell you how to
think, how to act, how to feel,
how to see the world, unless you let it.
And you know, many of us decided by April
that 2020 was gonna be a horrible year.
I mean, I saw the post
all over social media
wanting to just fast forwarded the year,
get through a 2020 into sucks.
You know, 2020 didn't stand a chance
because we all had made up our minds
so early on that it
was just going to suck.
And the message has continued each month
to get louder and louder.
Now look,
we don't have to rejoice in
the suffering of this year.
We don't.
But we most certainly
don't have to cower to it.
We don't have to be overcome by it.
We don't have to partner with it
and we don't have to surrender
our entire year to it.
What if, what if this is
your year of breakthrough?
What if 2020 is the year
that you receive radical transformation
or radical blessing or the
answer to a long awaiting prayer?
Are you even open to receiving that?
Are you just so completely shut
down by all the negativity?
You know, it's not too late.
We serve a God who is not bound by time,
but He gives it to us as a gift.
We serve a God who is not pressured
or pushed around by evil.
And He gives us Himself
so that we don't have to be
pushed around by evil either.
We serve a God who is always at peace
and who is always with us.
So we can always be at peace.
Don't let negativity have
the final say in your day
in your year, or in your life.
And remember you have a
helper you're not alone
and stopping negativity
ask the Holy Spirit for his help today.
Ask Him to set you free.
Ask Him to show you what that looks like.
You know, living free from negativity,
it is not impossible.
Not even in 2020.
Because nothing is
impossible with your God.
The promise of perfect peace
is found in Isaiah 26:3.
In Hebrew, it is "Shalom Shalom."
Meaning complete wholeness.
Nothing missing, nothing broken.
This is who you are in Jesus,
because of Jesus,
you are a living testimony
of Jesus's ultimate win.
With every step you take today,
you're putting Jesus's victory on display
and satan's defeat on replay.
