All In- A Testing Time

I went walking today and listened to a podcast by Dino Rizzo of Healing Place Church in La. I was blown away by how poinant the message was for the current situation I find myself in, so here are some notes to share.

It was called All In:

John 6:5-6

5When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" 6He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

Jesus asked Phillip WHERE, not HOW, they should buy bread...

Pastor D. called this a "Phillip Spot" a spot in your life when God is asking YOU a question (couldn't God do it on His own- of course!!, but He is asking us, including us!)

This is a moment of testing for Phillip: 6He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

What did Jesus want to see in Phillip? What was He REALLY asking?

"I wonder... where Phillip's heart is; if Phillips will trust Me; can Phillip depend on Me; does Phillip believe I'm his all in all?"

Jesus was checking for doubt and unbelief in Phillip!

Life is about testing and being in a proving ground. We need to see tests in our life as opportunities, not obstacles. God is looking to see who we will look to, where we will place our reliance, how we are gonna solve it- are we going to trust Him?

This is the way God finds out if we are "all in," through a testing/proving time.

A TEST ALWAYS PRECEDES TRUE PROMOTION!

A test is always a matter of the heart- not what is in your hand.

Pastor D. closed with a great illustrations about David. Before David was ready to face Goliath, he trained in the fields with his father's herd and it was there he was tested and found to be "giant-proof." Because in the field, it says he had to fight off a lion and then a bear from the flock. It was because of those experiences, where he had been successful, did he find boldness to tell the king that he was more than ready to face Goliath on his own. And as he RAN toward Goliath he did so with full confidence that he was God's son and with God on his side, he could do all things.

This period of my African adventure is my testing/proving ground. (A woman at prayer night spoke over me, comparing this time like being a pregnant woman waiting with expectation for an amazing gift... but a waiting time!) Not only is Jesus' asking of Phillip where the provisions will come from, knowing full well the answer, similar to me awaiting for God' provision for this move; But I also know I'm going to face a number of giants as I continue on this journey... now is my time to fight the lions and bears, so that I too will be "giant proof" when God needs me to be...

Pray with me as God is strengthening me into the woman He needs me to be for this next stage of my life... for my promised land...