Hebrewto Negroes: Ep. 2: From Covenant to Captivity: When Promise Meets Pain

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Welcome to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast. I'm your host,

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Connie Morris, and this is Faith on the Go,

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where you take the word with you on your drive to work, while you're getting

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ready in the morning, or even in those quiet moments before prayer.

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Real life, real word, and real growth, all while you are on the go.

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Before we get into today's word, let's take a moment to center ourselves with a familiar prayer.

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The prayer of Jabez.

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Oh, that you will bless me indeed and enlarge my territory.

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Let your hand be with me and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.

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Father God, we come before you this day asking that you will indeed bless us,

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not just with what we have, but in who we are becoming.

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Enlarge our territory, Lord. Lord, expand our capacity, our mindset,

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and our ability to receive what you have for us.

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Let your hand be upon us, guiding us, covering us, and leading us in every decision we make.

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And Father, keep us from harm, physically, emotionally, and spiritually,

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that we may walk in peace and not in pain.

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And Lord, just as you heard Jabez when he cried out to you, hear us now.

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Your word says that you granted his request, and we believe that you are the same God today.

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So we come boldly before you, knowing that you hear us, knowing that you see

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us, and knowing that you respond to the prayers of your people.

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Have your way in this moment as we sit, listen, and receive your word.

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In Jesus' name, amen.

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Hello, and welcome back to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast.

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I'm your host, Connie Morris, and we're continuing our series From Hebrews to Negroes.

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Today, for day two, the title is From Covenant to Captivity.

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The themes that we're going to cover today is scattering, bondage,

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and the God who still remembers covenant.

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Before I get into our main scripture reading, I want to just share with you something that

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God put on my heart before I even started the podcast. It's a scripture that

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we delved in very deeply on other podcasts, if you're a regular here.

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And that scripture is found in Hosea 4, 6.

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And it reads, it says, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

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Because you have rejected knowledge, I will reject you from being priests for me.

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Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I will forget your children.

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And we see here that we as a culture, we eliminate one of the best sources for

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history, and that's the Bible.

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The Bible is full of knowledge for us to understand why things happen the way they did.

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And so we seem to get it twisted that we can go through this life without the

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Bible, without the knowledge of God, without the Spirit of the Lord.

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Without even connecting with them.

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And then we suffer unneedlessly because we are destroyed.

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It says, my people are destroyed.

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Do you know what destroyed means? Destroy is destruction.

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When you ignore the truth, destruction comes next. But our ignorance of the

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truth affects our children.

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And so some of the things you're going to hear, you might not like,

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you might not understand.

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That's why I give you a scripture foundation. Go to your Bible,

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pray, ask the Lord, what is she talking about?

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And ask God for further, further knowledge because he's telling us right now,

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because as I was beginning,

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I just felt like a lot of things get rejected because it's new to your ears,

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but it's always been there.

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And I remember when I first was doing my research for my books and I come across

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some scriptures and I'm thinking like, we in a state of mind saying,

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hey, this is how it's going to be.

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It's how it's always going to be. But that's not true. It's not true.

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When we gain knowledge on things, we ask God for wisdom on how to.

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Execute that knowledge, He starts to make things clear.

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And so what I've been doing lately, and I want to welcome you to do it before

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I get started, is I ask the Lord to put on, I want to put on the helmet of salvation

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because I want this package of salvation, which is true,

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but that helmet on your eye, on your head affects your vision.

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It affects your hearing.

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It affects what you say out of your mouth.

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So when you put your helmet of salvation on, you're asking God that,

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Lord, I want the mind of Christ.

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Give me the mind of Christ, Lord. And then in Timothy, it says that you have

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a sound mind. And then it also says you have a powerful mind.

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So sometimes when you don't understand some things, don't just kick it to the curb.

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Ask God for information. Ask him for wisdom. Show me the way.

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And like I tell you, sometimes God likes surprises and he'll show you things you didn't ask for.

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He'll make things clear that you thought you knew, but you knew it,

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you knew it in a different way.

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Every time we get closer to God, God takes us up a level.

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We're never, ever there. We're never, ever going to gain more knowledge than

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God, more wisdom than God, more insight than God. But he will share his insight.

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He will share his wisdom and he will help you understand as you partner with him.

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So as we continue on our theme, I want to give you the main scripture because

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I want to read it in its entirety.

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And so that when I go back through it, it'll just help with time.

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So the scripture reading today is the foundation.

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It comes from Deuteronomy. We have several, and we got Deuteronomy 28.

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This is the main theme for today, and then we got some supporting scripture.

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So we go to Deuteronomy 28, verse 64, and it reads, and I'm reading from, of course, my.

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African heritage edition, King James Version. And let's go.

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It says, and the Lord shall scatter thee among all people from one end of the

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earth, even unto the other, and thou shall serve other gods,

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which neither thou nor thy father have known,

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even wood and stone.

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So we think about God's people and we're scattered all over the world.

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And each person, everybody's not worshiping the true and living God.

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There are different areas of the religion, not picking out any one particular,

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but we can, in our mind, understand that some people are worshiping other gods.

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Some people are worshiping stones. Some people are worshiping wood.

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Some people are worshiping their good luck shot around their neck,

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even their cross around their neck, because they're holding on to it.

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They don't know Jesus, but they know the cross is powerful.

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But God says in Deuteronomy 28 that He said, I scattered the people from one

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end of the earth, even to the other.

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Let's go to 28. I'm going to read through to 68 because I want to read from 64 to 68.

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Let's go. And among these nations shall thou find no ease, neither shall the

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sole of thy foot have rest.

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But the Lord should give thee there a trembling heart and failing of eyes and a sorrow of mind.

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And thy life should hang in doubt before thee. And thou shalt fear day and night,

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and shalt have no assurance of thy life.

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In the morning thou shalt say, Would God, if it were even?

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And at even thou shalt say, Would God, if it were morning?

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For the fear of thy heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thy eyes thou shalt see.

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Verse 68, and the Lord should bring thee into Egypt again with ships by the

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way whereof I spake unto thee, thou should see it no more again.

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And there ye should be sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen,

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and no man shall buy you. We're talking about slavery here.

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And we think slavery, we want to blame everybody, but the reason that reason

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happened. God put, it was a curse.

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When you walk in disobedience, it puts a curse on you.

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And so we know the slave trade was wrong, but God knew it was going to happen in his word, right?

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From Hebrews to Negroes, from niggas, right?

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Look, from royalty to niggas. Why? Because you ignore the Lord.

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He says you die from a lack of knowledge.

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God doesn't want us to be ignorant. He wants us to worship Him.

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But when you go worship other gods, and yeah, He says, I scattered you.

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I scattered you. It was a purposeful scattering that happened in the Bible based

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on some disobedience from His people.

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Let's go to Exodus 2.23. Her word

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but it's true. Anyway, we need to talk truth. Exodus 2, verse 23 and 25, and it reads,

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And it came to pass in process of time that the king of Egypt died,

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and the children of Israel sighed by the reason of the bondage.

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And they cried, and their cry came unto God by reason of bondage.

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And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham and

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with Isaac and with Jacob.

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And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect for them.

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Why did he have respect? It's like he scattered you.

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He scattered the true tribe of Israel all over the world.

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But yet at a time in Exodus, God said, I looked upon them, and he had a vision.

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I want them to be free. And he said, I respect you.

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When God said he respects you, that's powerful, Right. When God says he respects you, I respect you.

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I respect them. And God looked upon the children of Israel and God had respect for them.

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Let's go to Psalms 137 through 4. And it reads, by the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down.

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Yeah, we wept. When we remember Zion, we hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.

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For there they had carried us away, captive, required of us a song,

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and they that wasted us required of us a mirth, saying, sing us one of those songs of Zion.

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How should we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?

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Jeremiah chapter 16 verse 14 and 15.

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Therefore, behold, the days come, says the Lord, that it shall no more be said. The Lord lived.

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He says, I want to give them back their land.

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Let's go to Luke 21 to 24. 21 verse 24,

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it says, and they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away

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captive unto all nations, and Jerusalem shall be trotted down of the Gentiles,

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until the time of the Gentiles be refilled.

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Let's go to Isaiah, Isaiah 49, verse 25.

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But thus says the Lord, even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,

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and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered.

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For I will contend with him that contendeth with me, and I will save thy children.

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Those are foundational scriptures.

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If you don't know what they were, I will repeat them just for you.

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Deuteronomy 28, verse 64 through 68, Exodus chapter 2, 23 to 25.

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Psalms 137, verses 1 through 4, Jeremiah 16, 14 through 15, Luke 21 and 24, and Isaiah 49, 25.

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So yesterday, you know, yesterday we began with identity. We talked about the power of the name.

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We looked at how God causes people by name, even when systems try to rename them.

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We talked about Daniel being named in Babylon, but not redefined by Babylon.

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You know, I went and studied a little more about David. I mean, not David, but Daniel.

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And we know Daniel in the Bible or in my studies showed that Daniel and his

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friends, that they were of African descent, right?

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And they were in Babylon. But not only were they in Babylon,

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they also, remember we know that they changed their names. but they also changed

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what they ate and they changed their gods and they made them speak their language.

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And so not only do, and what does that sound like? So you have incidents where

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people were removed from their own homeland and they changed their name.

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They changed the food they ate. They changed their language,

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right? And they changed their God.

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You have to read the book of Daniel. So even though Daniel was put through all

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that change, he still stayed connected to God.

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And in the beginning of Daniel, it says he did not eat the food he purposed in his heart.

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Whatever he could stop, he did. And God gave them favor.

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So today we move from identity to captivity, because in scripture,

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captivity is not just a historical event.

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Captivity is a spiritual, social, and covenant reality. It is what happens when

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people are removed from place, separated from family, stripped of power,

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and forced to live under the authority of

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of a foreign system. When we think about slavery, they were yanked from their

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town, their places, their homes, and came to a language, a land,

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where they had to change their God, where they had to change their language.

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And we hear that a lot when we talk about, they use this narrative on the news, illegal aliens.

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Sound like a species from somewhere else. And they say, if you don't live in

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America, you got to speak English. Wow.

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When the regular people here, most

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of the Americans here, when you do your history, this is not their land.

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This land belongs to the indigenous folks. But let me continue.

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Because in scripture, captivity is not a historical event.

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Come on. The Bible is filled with stories of captivity. So we must not think it's strange.

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Israel was oppressed in Egypt. Judah was carried into Babylon.

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Jerusalem was destroyed. The people were scattered. Families were separated. Songs were silenced.

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Names were changed. Families were separated. Songs were silenced.

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Land was lost. Memory was attacked.

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But here's the truth that holds this entire episode together.

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Captivity does not cancel the covenant. A people can be scattered,

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but they can still be remembered.

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People can be enslaved and still see, still be seen.

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And people can be taken by ships and still known by God. A people can cry in

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bondage and still be heard in heaven.

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Even though the Bible says that people were scattered, God did not forget them.

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He still remembers them today.

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When I just said those words, I imagined God being a big God.

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And it's similar to us as a mom and a dad.

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Our children are part of us, whether they bad, good, or ugly,

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right? No matter how much they act a fool or embarrass you, there's something

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in our hearts that won't let them go. And that's God.

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He won't let us go. We see here in Exodus, we read in Exodus 2.24,

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and that's why it's so powerful. It says that God heard their groaning and God

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remembered his covenant.

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They might not have been calling out to God, but you ever had a baby in another

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room and the baby can't talk, they're infants.

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They don't really learn mom or dad until they're like four or five months old,

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three to five months old, maybe three to six months old when they learn to call

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it out. But many times when they're.

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And in dire distress, all they know is cry.

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And we as a parent, whether you're a mom or a dad, we understand that cry.

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We understand that's a restless cry or if that's a cry for pain or that's a

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cry for help. We just know the cry.

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And that's how we can sit in the baby. We'll listen carefully to the baby as

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they make their crying sounds, as they go to sleep, as they're wrestling and

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they're fighting at sleep.

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We know that kind of cry and they cry themselves to sleep.

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Or we also know when they scream out loud that they're in pain and we rush them

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to the hospital to find out that

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their little bellies were hurting or they can't eat poop or something.

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We learn that, right? And that's how God is. God is that sensitive to our cry.

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He knows when we're just complaining and whining like regular kids or when we

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moaning and groaning for help and we don't have the words to describe it, right?

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And even knowing you are a child and we might have done something wrong as a

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child, and we might get that punishment.

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You know, it may be even a beatdown, you know, whatever it was,

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it saved our lives, right? Don't spare that rod.

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But God says, I still hear you.

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God did not forget that they were in bondage.

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God did not forget that they were oppressed. God did not forget because their condition changed.

00:18:11.073 --> 00:18:15.653
God remembers his covenant. And when God remembers the covenant,

00:18:16.053 --> 00:18:18.653
captivity does not have the last word.

00:18:18.933 --> 00:18:21.713
And so I'm going to go over some teaching points. But I want you to understand

00:18:21.713 --> 00:18:23.673
that God has the last word.

00:18:24.113 --> 00:18:28.353
Don't give up on God. I don't care where you are or what you're going through.

00:18:28.733 --> 00:18:33.733
And even though I'm preaching about Hebrews to Negroes, the theme is still the

00:18:33.733 --> 00:18:36.273
same, that God hears you when you cry.

00:18:36.633 --> 00:18:40.313
God understands your bondage. God understands that you're a scatter.

00:18:40.473 --> 00:18:42.213
God understands that you were attacked.

00:18:42.373 --> 00:18:45.693
God understands you're having a hard time right now on this earth.

00:18:46.433 --> 00:18:51.513
God understands that. But don't you forget him because he has not forgotten you.

00:18:51.773 --> 00:18:56.473
And so let's go to teaching point number one. Covenant came before captivity.

00:18:56.733 --> 00:19:00.613
Before Israel was enslaved in Egypt, there was a covenant.

00:19:00.833 --> 00:19:05.753
And a covenant we know is found in, we'll get to that one. God made a covenant with Abraham.

00:19:06.093 --> 00:19:09.593
You know, when God makes a covenant, it has to stay standing.

00:19:09.773 --> 00:19:12.773
It's not like a, it's not even a contract. It's blood and blood.

00:19:12.973 --> 00:19:14.233
That's why he sent Jesus.

00:19:14.573 --> 00:19:18.473
Jesus' blood, you can't, there's nothing you can do. that blood is priceless.

00:19:18.833 --> 00:19:24.733
It costed him his life, but it also saved our lives. So before Israel was a

00:19:24.733 --> 00:19:26.113
slave in Egypt, there was a covenant.

00:19:26.313 --> 00:19:29.533
Before a taskmaster, there was a promise, pay attention.

00:19:29.793 --> 00:19:31.873
Before Pharaoh, there was Abraham.

00:19:32.233 --> 00:19:37.453
Before bondage, there were blessings. And before oppression, there was identity.

00:19:37.733 --> 00:19:42.033
God made a covenant with Abraham long before Abraham descended into.

00:19:42.829 --> 00:19:47.169
Abraham's descendants entered Egypt. We see here in Genesis 15,

00:19:47.469 --> 00:19:51.469
13 to 14, this is God talking to Abraham.

00:19:51.689 --> 00:19:56.989
And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed should be a stranger

00:19:56.989 --> 00:20:04.609
in a land that is not theirs, and should serve them, and they should afflict them for 400 years.

00:20:04.649 --> 00:20:09.509
And also that nation whom they serve, I will judge.

00:20:09.709 --> 00:20:15.149
And afterwards, they should come out with great substance. This is important.

00:20:15.649 --> 00:20:19.449
God told Abraham that his descendants should go into a strange land.

00:20:19.629 --> 00:20:21.389
He told them they would serve.

00:20:21.689 --> 00:20:28.309
He told them they would be afflicted. He also said the nation that oppressed them will be judged.

00:20:28.489 --> 00:20:32.129
And afterwards, his people would come out.

00:20:32.269 --> 00:20:37.949
That means captivity does not surprise God, that the bondage was real,

00:20:38.109 --> 00:20:44.789
the suffering is real, the oppression is real, but the covenant was still alive. This is powerful.

00:20:45.322 --> 00:20:50.122
Because the history of Black people and all people who have experienced captivity,

00:20:50.402 --> 00:20:53.802
oppression, displacement, or stolen identity, that's powerful.

00:20:54.082 --> 00:20:57.962
Because he's not talking just about Black folk. He's talking about his people.

00:20:58.182 --> 00:21:03.922
You know, every person had a different experience. And so the study is an African experience.

00:21:04.122 --> 00:21:10.702
But overall, it's a people experience, right? It says, even though you're experiencing

00:21:10.702 --> 00:21:15.582
bondage, suffering, oppression, God's covenant is still a lie.

00:21:15.862 --> 00:21:19.082
And this is, if you, I won't go ahead of myself. Let's continue.

00:21:19.442 --> 00:21:23.122
Sisters may have planned bondage, but God still holds the covenant.

00:21:23.402 --> 00:21:26.682
Men may have written slave codes, but God still writes deliverance.

00:21:27.542 --> 00:21:33.682
Empires may have counted bodies as property, but God still counted souls as

00:21:33.682 --> 00:21:37.762
his creation. Captivity came after covenant.

00:21:38.262 --> 00:21:44.102
So captivity cannot be stronger than the covenant. It's a timely message because

00:21:44.102 --> 00:21:45.922
things are shifting in the world.

00:21:46.282 --> 00:21:50.342
Truth is coming out about everything that we thought we knew.

00:21:50.462 --> 00:21:55.962
We thought we knew because remember, we were indoctrinated in schools.

00:21:56.482 --> 00:21:59.762
We were social conditioned by the news.

00:21:59.962 --> 00:22:06.922
The books are whitewashed. So many of black folk or any folk do not know their

00:22:06.922 --> 00:22:08.982
history. And so let's continue.

00:22:09.422 --> 00:22:13.422
Point two, captivity is designed to break memory.

00:22:13.702 --> 00:22:18.962
Captivity does not only bind the body, it also tries to bind the mind.

00:22:19.302 --> 00:22:23.502
When people are taken from their captivity, stripped of their name,

00:22:23.922 --> 00:22:27.782
separated from their family, and forced into another system,

00:22:27.782 --> 00:22:31.742
the goal is not only labor, the goal is control.

00:22:32.262 --> 00:22:37.562
Captivity tries to get people to forget who they are, where did they come from,

00:22:37.742 --> 00:22:42.622
what did God really say, what was the promise, what was stolen,

00:22:42.842 --> 00:22:45.022
and what needs to be restored.

00:22:45.382 --> 00:22:47.822
That's why Psalms 137 is so powerful.

00:22:48.356 --> 00:22:52.396
The people of Judah were in Babylon. They were away from Zion,

00:22:52.536 --> 00:22:54.736
their homeland. They were grieving.

00:22:55.216 --> 00:22:59.796
Their captives demanded a song from them. So in the middle of their heartbreak,

00:22:59.996 --> 00:23:01.976
they wanted them to sing. Why?

00:23:02.176 --> 00:23:06.056
Because when they probably took them from their homeland, they were singing.

00:23:06.296 --> 00:23:12.036
And so now they're like, I want that song to come up. How do I sing a song in captivity?

00:23:12.916 --> 00:23:20.256
And Psalms 137 tells us that for they that carried us away captive, required of us a song?

00:23:20.456 --> 00:23:24.836
How should we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?

00:23:25.116 --> 00:23:29.376
The question is painful. How do you sing when you've been carried away?

00:23:29.536 --> 00:23:32.076
How do you worship when your homeland is gone?

00:23:32.276 --> 00:23:36.136
How do you remember God when your captives mock your faith?

00:23:36.336 --> 00:23:41.816
How do you remember identity alive when the system wants you silent?

00:23:42.016 --> 00:23:47.236
It's interesting because I live a very quiet, a peaceful life,

00:23:47.396 --> 00:23:50.656
but I love the Lord, and I'll put on my music on my way to work,

00:23:50.736 --> 00:23:54.256
and I'm singing and worship songs, and cars will pull up and look at you,

00:23:54.336 --> 00:23:56.736
best you have to stop sign and see, what is she so happy?

00:23:56.936 --> 00:24:00.976
You know, what's going on in her life? Even at work, you always walk with a

00:24:00.976 --> 00:24:04.656
bounce in your stuff, because I know this captivity should pass.

00:24:04.856 --> 00:24:06.836
This captivity should end.

00:24:07.096 --> 00:24:10.576
Why? Because the covenant of God is still talking.

00:24:11.496 --> 00:24:17.516
It's still ready to work. It still can happen at any time where reparations

00:24:17.516 --> 00:24:21.296
happen, restoration happen, your children come back to Jesus,

00:24:21.636 --> 00:24:24.376
your life takes a major shift. Why?

00:24:24.576 --> 00:24:30.696
Because you have not refused to sing the Lord's song, even though they mock you.

00:24:30.836 --> 00:24:33.396
Where is your Jesus now? Wait for it.

00:24:33.596 --> 00:24:38.596
Wait for it. But the whole point is they want you to forget. But the very fact that

00:24:38.778 --> 00:24:44.078
that they asked the question shows that you didn't forget, that your memory

00:24:44.078 --> 00:24:47.118
is still alive, that you remember Zion.

00:24:47.398 --> 00:24:52.418
You remember the Lord's song. Come on. You remember where you came from and

00:24:52.418 --> 00:24:55.338
you remember Babylon is not your home.

00:24:55.698 --> 00:25:03.398
Captivity may take your body to a strange land, but the soul must refuse to forget God.

00:25:03.598 --> 00:25:08.378
Point three, Deuteronomy 28 and the language of scattering. One of the most

00:25:08.378 --> 00:25:13.018
discussed scripture in the Bible on this topic is Deuteronomy 28.

00:25:13.258 --> 00:25:16.778
You have to read the whole Deuteronomy 28. It's a long one.

00:25:17.098 --> 00:25:22.278
Verse 15 is about blessing, but chapter verse 16 on to, I think it's 144.

00:25:22.278 --> 00:25:27.518
It's a lot of verses about the scattering, about the curses,

00:25:27.658 --> 00:25:29.618
about the sickness, about the disease.

00:25:29.618 --> 00:25:34.678
But it's about when you walk in disobedience, when you forget God.

00:25:35.038 --> 00:25:40.338
Those things happen. And so this speaks about the covenant blessings and the

00:25:40.338 --> 00:25:41.818
covenant consequences.

00:25:42.098 --> 00:25:47.058
So it's serious. It's not very light. You know, I always keep it real to you.

00:25:47.398 --> 00:25:52.198
It shows that a covenant comes with responsibility. And that's found in Deuteronomy

00:25:52.198 --> 00:25:57.698
28, 64, that when God said something, it's not optional. It has to be done.

00:25:57.998 --> 00:26:01.278
Otherwise, it opens the door to the enemy. So, Deuteronomy 28,

00:26:01.438 --> 00:26:07.358
verse 64, And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people from one end of the earth until the other.

00:26:07.558 --> 00:26:12.438
Verse 28, And the Lord shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships.

00:26:12.458 --> 00:26:18.538
God is very specific. So, if you want to know your history, you need to read your Bible.

00:26:18.838 --> 00:26:22.978
Many people have looked at these verses and seen painful parallel with the history

00:26:22.978 --> 00:26:24.918
of the transatlantic slave trades.

00:26:25.374 --> 00:26:29.374
Trade where African people were carried by ships into bondage,

00:26:29.594 --> 00:26:31.534
forced labor, and foreign land.

00:26:31.694 --> 00:26:38.594
This is one reason the conversation from Hebrew to Negroes had become so powerful for many people.

00:26:38.774 --> 00:26:40.694
They start to see the pattern.

00:26:41.394 --> 00:26:45.474
Remember, if you don't know your history, you don't know your story.

00:26:45.594 --> 00:26:50.514
If you know your story, you can be confident that this covenant of God shall

00:26:50.514 --> 00:26:55.274
come to pass in your life, you know, and you just hold on to it and never give up on God.

00:26:55.474 --> 00:26:58.794
So when you look through Deuteronomy, you'll see a pattern.

00:26:58.994 --> 00:27:03.654
You'll see the word scattering, ships, bondage, foreign lands.

00:27:03.774 --> 00:27:08.554
We'll understand our loss of identity. When you lose that, what starts to happen

00:27:08.554 --> 00:27:15.154
is downhill spiral, oppression, forced labor, and then the cry out to God.

00:27:15.294 --> 00:27:19.534
We have to handle this carefully because we should not make careless claims

00:27:19.534 --> 00:27:21.874
or turn interpretation into hatred.

00:27:22.054 --> 00:27:26.934
But we also should not ignore why the scriptures speak so deeply to a people

00:27:26.934 --> 00:27:32.634
whose history includes slavery, stolen names, and forced migration.

00:27:32.854 --> 00:27:37.114
The Bible gives language to captivity. It gives language to scattering.

00:27:37.374 --> 00:27:42.554
It gives language to oppression. It also gives language to deliverance.

00:27:42.554 --> 00:27:44.674
The Bible can't describe captivity.

00:27:44.994 --> 00:27:48.054
It can also speak to the wounds it leaves behind.

00:27:48.254 --> 00:27:51.474
And I share with you that there's a Bible called the Slave Bible.

00:27:51.614 --> 00:27:54.014
If you don't have one, just get one and put it in your library.

00:27:54.586 --> 00:27:58.786
Because it takes away all the things that make God, God.

00:27:59.066 --> 00:28:03.506
They try all kinds of ways to make the people forget their God.

00:28:03.686 --> 00:28:09.046
And we studied the book of Exodus and Genesis, how Moses delivered the people.

00:28:09.226 --> 00:28:15.726
Even when they got into the wilderness, the journey was 11 day journey and they

00:28:15.726 --> 00:28:19.286
get into disobedience and not believe in God.

00:28:19.466 --> 00:28:24.706
And some of them never made it out of the wilderness. It became a 40-year journey.

00:28:25.086 --> 00:28:28.026
Don't you be like that. Study your Bible.

00:28:28.446 --> 00:28:33.006
Study your history. And understand that God, everything that's happening now

00:28:33.006 --> 00:28:36.626
is in the Bible. Everything that happened in the past is in the Bible.

00:28:36.886 --> 00:28:40.426
Everything that's going to happen in the future is in the Bible.

00:28:40.486 --> 00:28:45.366
It's in our prayers, in our relationship with God. He doesn't want you ignorant.

00:28:45.586 --> 00:28:49.686
He doesn't want you destroyed for lack of knowledge. and he doesn't want your

00:28:49.686 --> 00:28:53.146
kids destroyed because you refuse lack of knowledge.

00:28:53.406 --> 00:28:54.486
Whether you understand it or

00:28:54.486 --> 00:28:58.266
not, you need to get it if you love your children as much as I do, right?

00:28:58.506 --> 00:29:01.766
They might not understand why you always in the Bible, always praying,

00:29:01.946 --> 00:29:03.326
but their life is blessed.

00:29:03.958 --> 00:29:07.018
Bible says you never see their seed begging bread.

00:29:07.338 --> 00:29:11.678
My kids ain't begging bread. They are prosperous. You know, everything ain't

00:29:11.678 --> 00:29:14.398
copacetic, but I'm not arguing or fussing with them.

00:29:14.558 --> 00:29:19.438
They just don't understand why I still hold on to a God when I might not have

00:29:19.438 --> 00:29:22.938
everything that I think I should have or everything they think I should have.

00:29:23.098 --> 00:29:25.998
But one thing I'm waiting for was God never forgets.

00:29:26.238 --> 00:29:28.958
God is a covenant keeping God.

00:29:29.298 --> 00:29:32.078
Point four, God hears the cries of the captive.

00:29:32.598 --> 00:29:35.778
The children of Israel was in bondage. They sighed. They cried.

00:29:36.278 --> 00:29:39.298
Their cry came up to God. Came up to God.

00:29:39.658 --> 00:29:44.338
God heard their groaning. God remembered his covenant. He looked upon them.

00:29:44.758 --> 00:29:49.778
God had respect for them. I want you to notice this, that when they cried, God heard them.

00:29:50.018 --> 00:29:54.838
When they cried, God remembered them. When they cried, God looked down upon

00:29:54.838 --> 00:29:57.798
them. And when they cried, God responded.

00:29:58.058 --> 00:30:02.018
That is how God works. That is a divine pattern of God.

00:30:02.590 --> 00:30:05.530
Sometimes people think suffering means God has forgotten them.

00:30:05.710 --> 00:30:07.810
But Exodus shows us that the opposite.

00:30:08.150 --> 00:30:12.350
Sometimes the cry of suffering become the sounds that reaches heaven.

00:30:12.650 --> 00:30:15.930
God did not ignore their bondage. He's not ignoring your bondage.

00:30:16.070 --> 00:30:19.030
God did not overlook their tears. God is not overlooking your tears.

00:30:19.250 --> 00:30:23.270
God did not miss their oppression. He has not missed your oppression.

00:30:23.490 --> 00:30:26.910
God did not tell them to pretend everything was fine.

00:30:27.230 --> 00:30:32.430
God heard. And many times we'll go in our closet. We'll put on a happy face to go to work.

00:30:32.590 --> 00:30:36.770
Our happy face in front of the children, but we go in our prayer closet and

00:30:36.770 --> 00:30:38.290
we cry out to God for help.

00:30:38.490 --> 00:30:40.770
And I want you to know that God has heard you.

00:30:41.110 --> 00:30:44.290
And guess what? Deliverance is on the way.

00:30:44.430 --> 00:30:52.250
This is important to remember because captivity often tries to convince people that God is absent.

00:30:52.470 --> 00:30:58.430
But the scripture shows us that God is especially attentive to the cry of the

00:30:58.430 --> 00:31:03.710
oppressed. Psalms 34 tells us that the righteous cry, and the Lord heareth,

00:31:03.910 --> 00:31:07.050
and delivereth them out of all of their trouble.

00:31:07.230 --> 00:31:11.290
The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.

00:31:11.530 --> 00:31:16.950
Listen to that. Psalms 34, verses 17 to 18. You need to print it out and put it on your wall.

00:31:17.230 --> 00:31:22.150
This is just a summary of it, but the righteous cry. Are you the righteous? And the Lord heareth.

00:31:22.470 --> 00:31:26.110
You know that he hears you. And he not only hears you, he delivers.

00:31:26.350 --> 00:31:29.450
What's the purpose of him hearing you if he's going to let you sit in it? Right.

00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:34.619
Of not only a few troubles. The Bible says all their trouble.

00:31:34.819 --> 00:31:40.679
So get your faith out there that God will deliver you from all your troubles.

00:31:40.899 --> 00:31:44.839
And the most important part I like about this is the Lord is nigh unto them

00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:47.019
that are of a broken heart.

00:31:47.179 --> 00:31:50.359
So when you cry, it brings him closer.

00:31:50.819 --> 00:31:54.399
God hears the cry of the broken. God hears the cry of the captive.

00:31:54.699 --> 00:32:00.739
God hears the cry of the forgotten. God hears a cry of the people whose names were stolen.

00:32:00.999 --> 00:32:05.419
Point five, captivity creates trauma, but God brings restoration.

00:32:05.819 --> 00:32:09.799
Captivity leaves wounds. We don't get out of here unscathed, right?

00:32:09.979 --> 00:32:13.939
It wounds our identity. It wounds our family, our worship, our memory,

00:32:14.079 --> 00:32:16.819
our trust, and it wounds our future generation.

00:32:17.159 --> 00:32:21.539
When a people have been enslaved, scattered, colonized, and renamed,

00:32:21.919 --> 00:32:24.479
the damage does not disappear overnight.

00:32:24.479 --> 00:32:28.019
Trauma can travel through families, communities, institutions,

00:32:28.019 --> 00:32:33.119
and beliefs, but the Bible does not leave the captive in captivity.

00:32:33.419 --> 00:32:39.599
Isaiah 49.25 says, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,

00:32:39.639 --> 00:32:42.419
and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered.

00:32:42.599 --> 00:32:46.619
That means even when the captor is strong, God is stronger.

00:32:46.839 --> 00:32:49.999
Even when the system is mighty, God is mightier.

00:32:50.159 --> 00:32:55.119
Even when the oppression is terrible, God is a deliverer. This scripture is

00:32:55.119 --> 00:32:58.159
powerful because it does not deny the captor's strength.

00:32:58.359 --> 00:33:00.939
It calls them mighty. It calls them terrible.

00:33:01.199 --> 00:33:05.879
But then he says, God will deliver them from them.

00:33:06.344 --> 00:33:11.344
All. I hope that gives you hope, not some fake shadow hope, not a fake hope,

00:33:11.704 --> 00:33:13.804
not a pretend like it didn't happen.

00:33:14.084 --> 00:33:17.304
I want you to have covenant hope, the kind of hope that says,

00:33:17.644 --> 00:33:21.224
yes, captivity happened. Yes, my name was stolen.

00:33:21.604 --> 00:33:24.944
Yes, records were erased. Yes, people were stolen.

00:33:25.224 --> 00:33:30.224
Yes, family was broken. Yes, this trauma is real. But I want you to remember

00:33:30.224 --> 00:33:32.964
that God is in the restoration business.

00:33:33.444 --> 00:33:40.104
And God has seen it all. Point six, the captives must not let captivity become their identity.

00:33:40.344 --> 00:33:42.884
You know, you hear the people and some people can't handle it.

00:33:42.984 --> 00:33:44.604
They go, oh, this is never going to change.

00:33:44.724 --> 00:33:49.944
The words, their words is starting to become their life because you said it.

00:33:50.024 --> 00:33:53.624
And you start to believe it more than anybody because you said it.

00:33:53.824 --> 00:33:57.964
But I want you to understand that captivity is something that happens to people,

00:33:57.964 --> 00:34:03.224
but it must not become the person's or the people's final identity.

00:34:03.624 --> 00:34:08.124
Israel, like it did in the Israelites in the Bible, they became their identity.

00:34:08.424 --> 00:34:13.064
It made them say, I feel they see me as a grasshopper. It's like,

00:34:13.144 --> 00:34:16.124
I was like, come on, you're not a grasshopper. So stop.

00:34:16.324 --> 00:34:19.604
Israel was a slave in Egypt, but they were not created to be slaves.

00:34:19.904 --> 00:34:23.704
Judah was exiled to Babylon, but they were not created to Babylonians.

00:34:23.704 --> 00:34:29.604
Daniel was taken captive, but he was not owned by Babylon in his soul.

00:34:29.784 --> 00:34:33.904
He determined in his heart that I will not, you can have me here,

00:34:34.004 --> 00:34:36.344
but I'm not going to be doing all this stuff.

00:34:36.544 --> 00:34:41.064
And if you really follow Daniel, the book of Daniel, it's just a story of a

00:34:41.064 --> 00:34:46.104
man that was determined, not from day one, because you can always be determined on day one.

00:34:46.284 --> 00:34:51.224
But how about about 50, 60, 70 years later, he was like 80 years old.

00:34:51.524 --> 00:34:53.904
I don't ever know when he died. I don't think they mentioned it,

00:34:53.964 --> 00:34:58.324
but he just continued four different kings, four different reigns,

00:34:58.384 --> 00:35:03.584
more experiences with God at every level, more supernatural experience with

00:35:03.584 --> 00:35:05.444
God where angels show up and talk to him.

00:35:05.651 --> 00:35:12.571
Because he determined in his soul that he would not be part of this Babylonian system.

00:35:12.991 --> 00:35:16.971
Joseph was sold into Egypt, but Egypt did not cancel his purpose.

00:35:17.431 --> 00:35:21.191
Captivity is a condition. Covenant is an identity.

00:35:21.591 --> 00:35:26.591
Boundage may describe what happened, but it does not define who God called you to be.

00:35:26.811 --> 00:35:31.891
That is why the Exodus story is so powerful. God not only brought Israel out

00:35:31.891 --> 00:35:40.011
of Egypt physically, but he also, he had to teach them how to stop thinking like slaves.

00:35:40.231 --> 00:35:43.951
And the Lord told them in Exodus three, he says, you will not go out empty.

00:35:44.231 --> 00:35:47.991
You know, and that when I was in Bible school, that was a scripture that God showed me.

00:35:48.271 --> 00:35:52.251
And he had, in Bible school, you have to, you know, you do like a five minute

00:35:52.251 --> 00:35:55.591
preaching section, you know, I think it was about five minutes.

00:35:55.731 --> 00:36:00.171
And you had to hit certain key points of scripture and you have to make the

00:36:00.171 --> 00:36:03.431
point and then you have to close it out in prayer. It was just a simple time.

00:36:03.611 --> 00:36:08.551
And as I was like, Lord, the whole Bible is so full. What can I preach for five minutes?

00:36:08.791 --> 00:36:13.211
And it was Exodus 3, I think it was verse 16 or so.

00:36:13.571 --> 00:36:17.171
I don't know the exact words, but it says, ye should not go out empty.

00:36:17.371 --> 00:36:22.651
And that scripture still reminds me today because at the time he gave me that

00:36:22.651 --> 00:36:24.811
word, guess what? I was empty.

00:36:25.402 --> 00:36:29.562
I didn't have anything. I didn't have nothing. I had the clothes on my back,

00:36:29.582 --> 00:36:31.302
but I was blessed in Bible school.

00:36:31.442 --> 00:36:35.702
People gave me suits. They gave me, when you pray to God, be specific.

00:36:36.102 --> 00:36:39.142
Don't ask God just for clothes. Ask God for specific. I said,

00:36:39.242 --> 00:36:45.162
Lord, I don't have any clothes for Bible school, so I want some suits.

00:36:45.382 --> 00:36:49.382
And the Lord showed me how to go find suits at the consignment shops and all

00:36:49.382 --> 00:36:55.382
these cool places. And these were new suits, $5 suits on the rack at like a

00:36:55.382 --> 00:36:58.082
Salvation Army in a fancy neighborhood.

00:36:58.242 --> 00:37:02.362
He just showed me that. But most important, people gave to me suits.

00:37:02.562 --> 00:37:03.942
Because you set your tone.

00:37:04.182 --> 00:37:08.102
They said, oh, you like suits? And this lady pulled up her. She had like,

00:37:08.182 --> 00:37:10.522
I think it was kind of a SUV.

00:37:10.802 --> 00:37:15.822
And in her back, it had racks of clothes. And they were all mine. She gave them all to me.

00:37:16.022 --> 00:37:19.102
I think it was about 30 or 40 suits. And they fit.

00:37:19.560 --> 00:37:24.140
The suit said, I always wanted to have, you know, that's after I preached my

00:37:24.140 --> 00:37:25.960
little five minute sermon about

00:37:25.960 --> 00:37:29.240
ye should not go empty. That was the title of ye should not go empty.

00:37:29.720 --> 00:37:34.780
And how after I preached that and I was empty, after I preached it and I sat

00:37:34.780 --> 00:37:38.960
down, someone walked up to me and gave me a folded up $50 bill and people just

00:37:38.960 --> 00:37:41.040
kept giving me money after money after money.

00:37:41.220 --> 00:37:46.740
I left Bible school with way more money than I had because I had to get my clothes

00:37:46.740 --> 00:37:49.180
out of the storage and God.

00:37:49.520 --> 00:37:52.460
And this right here reminds me that do not give up.

00:37:52.620 --> 00:37:57.720
You will not go empty. You should make this a personal word or declaration out

00:37:57.720 --> 00:38:00.060
of your mouth that you will not go empty.

00:38:00.300 --> 00:38:05.360
And it kept coming and coming and coming because God made a promise.

00:38:05.500 --> 00:38:08.920
You're going to go over here. It's going to feel like this, but you're not going

00:38:08.920 --> 00:38:11.480
to stay that way. And it never stopped.

00:38:11.660 --> 00:38:16.000
And I don't know that they shared the message, but I knew in my heart that this

00:38:16.000 --> 00:38:17.700
time I didn't have any money in my hand.

00:38:17.880 --> 00:38:21.320
God was providing for me supernaturally. And then all of a sudden I started

00:38:21.320 --> 00:38:24.880
having money. People walk up to me and do that handshake and money was in my hand.

00:38:25.020 --> 00:38:27.900
And I just put the money in a bank. I didn't know what to do with it because

00:38:27.900 --> 00:38:30.660
I haven't had that much money because I was in Bible school.

00:38:30.800 --> 00:38:32.000
I didn't have a lot of anything.

00:38:32.451 --> 00:38:36.891
But I went there on faith, believing that God will provide all my needs.

00:38:37.011 --> 00:38:39.251
And he did. Let's continue.

00:38:39.551 --> 00:38:43.311
We have to understand that the Exodus story is powerful.

00:38:43.611 --> 00:38:48.211
Not only did he bring them out of Egypt physically, he taught them how to stop

00:38:48.211 --> 00:38:51.171
thinking like slaves. What do slaves think like?

00:38:51.531 --> 00:38:54.971
They think like this never end. You get depressed. You lost your identity.

00:38:55.171 --> 00:38:59.611
You lost your family. You're sad and depressed. and yet things are not going

00:38:59.611 --> 00:39:02.511
as you thought and you missed your home front.

00:39:02.711 --> 00:39:06.831
But remember, even though they asked him to sing, I want you to sing those songs

00:39:06.831 --> 00:39:09.591
you were singing when we took you captive, they did.

00:39:09.791 --> 00:39:13.291
They were able to. There's some old slave rituals, not rituals.

00:39:14.051 --> 00:39:17.691
Gospels that they sang when they were enslaved while they were working,

00:39:17.931 --> 00:39:19.531
even though they were in bondage.

00:39:19.691 --> 00:39:23.091
They came out of Egypt, but sometimes the Egypt didn't come out of them.

00:39:23.331 --> 00:39:26.591
And that's when it makes it so personal because sometimes when you're no longer

00:39:26.591 --> 00:39:29.431
physically bound, you still are mentally captive.

00:39:29.831 --> 00:39:35.351
Some people are no longer legally enslaved, but they still carry the wounds of inferiority.

00:39:35.571 --> 00:39:40.531
The people are free on paper, but they still live under the labels of lies and limitations.

00:39:40.851 --> 00:39:46.211
And that's why Jesus said in John 8, 36, if the son therefore makes you free,

00:39:46.471 --> 00:39:48.951
you should be free indeed.

00:39:49.511 --> 00:39:53.611
True freedom is not only being released from bondage, true freedom is being

00:39:53.611 --> 00:39:57.531
restored to the truth. What did captivity try to steal?

00:39:57.971 --> 00:40:02.471
Captivity tried to steal the name, but God said, I call thee by name.

00:40:02.751 --> 00:40:07.751
Captivity tried to steal the land, but the Lord God says, the earth is the Lord's.

00:40:08.111 --> 00:40:12.691
Captivity tried to steal the language, but God said, I hear your cry.

00:40:13.091 --> 00:40:17.591
Captivity tried to steal families, but God said, I place the solitary.

00:40:18.228 --> 00:40:22.648
In families. I am the family. Captivity tried to steal the song,

00:40:22.788 --> 00:40:26.708
but God said, sing unto the Lord, what? A new song.

00:40:27.008 --> 00:40:31.488
Captivity tried to steal the future, but God said, I know the thoughts that

00:40:31.488 --> 00:40:34.948
I have and I think towards you. That's Jeremiah 29, 11.

00:40:35.468 --> 00:40:41.468
Captivity tried to steal the covenant, but God remembered Abraham as Isaac and Jacob.

00:40:41.968 --> 00:40:47.788
Captivity tried to steal dignity, But God said humanity has made is in his image.

00:40:48.128 --> 00:40:52.788
Everybody. Captivity tried to steal hope. But God says captivity of the mighty

00:40:52.788 --> 00:40:56.428
shall be delivered. Wow. Wow.

00:40:56.928 --> 00:41:01.128
Let's get into some decrees. I decree that captivity does not cancel the covenant.

00:41:01.408 --> 00:41:05.208
Say it with me. I decree that the bondage does not erase God's promise.

00:41:05.660 --> 00:41:10.620
I decree that God who heard Israel and Egypt still hears a cry of the oppressed.

00:41:10.860 --> 00:41:15.560
I decree according to Exodus 2.24 that God remembers his covenant.

00:41:15.800 --> 00:41:21.380
I decree according to Isaiah 49.25, even the captives of the mighty shall be delivered.

00:41:21.580 --> 00:41:24.920
I decree that what was scattered can be gathered.

00:41:25.280 --> 00:41:29.420
I decree that what was stolen can be restored. I decree that what was hidden

00:41:29.420 --> 00:41:36.240
can be revealed and will be revealed. I decree that I will not allow captivity to become my identity.

00:41:36.480 --> 00:41:41.560
I decree that my people's suffering will not be wasted, forgotten or erased.

00:41:41.720 --> 00:41:48.480
I decree that God is greater than the system of bondage. I decree the ship did not have the final word.

00:41:48.720 --> 00:41:56.160
I decree that slavery did not have the final word. I decree oppression do not have the final word.

00:41:56.380 --> 00:42:01.840
I decree that Christ has the final word. I decree according to John 8,

00:42:01.940 --> 00:42:06.320
36, whoever the Son makes free is free indeed.

00:42:06.780 --> 00:42:12.500
I decree that freedom is not only released from bondage, but restoration of truth.

00:42:12.840 --> 00:42:16.320
I decree that God is bringing his people out of false identity.

00:42:16.840 --> 00:42:20.040
False history, false shame, and false limitation.

00:42:20.400 --> 00:42:25.320
And I decree that the covenant memory is being restored. Let's pray.

00:42:25.660 --> 00:42:28.980
Father God, you are the God who hears the cry of the captive.

00:42:28.980 --> 00:42:31.680
You are the God who remembers Israel and Egypt.

00:42:31.940 --> 00:42:35.820
You are the God who saw the taskmasters, the burdens, the tears,

00:42:35.980 --> 00:42:38.660
the forced labor, and the groaning of your people.

00:42:38.820 --> 00:42:44.040
Lord, today, we bring before you every place of captivity, past and present.

00:42:44.060 --> 00:42:50.180
We bring you the history of stolen names, stolen labor, stolen lands,

00:42:50.600 --> 00:42:55.820
stolen children, stolen language, and stolen memory, and stolen dignity.

00:42:55.820 --> 00:43:00.600
We bring you the wounds that came through slavery, oppression.

00:43:01.120 --> 00:43:04.000
Scattering, and systems that took a break.

00:43:04.391 --> 00:43:09.351
That tried to break our identity. But Father, we also declare that captivity

00:43:09.351 --> 00:43:11.131
does not cancel the covenant.

00:43:11.451 --> 00:43:17.271
You remembered Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remember the people whose records were erased.

00:43:17.511 --> 00:43:20.051
Remember the families whose names were stripped away.

00:43:20.431 --> 00:43:24.591
Remember the people who cried in the fields, on the ships, in the chains,

00:43:24.851 --> 00:43:29.551
in hidden places, in generations that could not speak the fullness of their pain.

00:43:29.771 --> 00:43:34.431
Lord, do not let this study, this devotional, on this podcast,

00:43:34.751 --> 00:43:38.411
produce any bitterness in us. Let it produce wisdom.

00:43:38.611 --> 00:43:41.771
Let it produce discernment. Let it produce healing.

00:43:42.151 --> 00:43:49.551
Let it produce truth. Let it lead us back to you. Break every mental chain left behind by captivity.

00:43:50.051 --> 00:43:51.471
Break every false identity.

00:43:51.991 --> 00:43:56.051
Let it produce fruit of our labor. Let it produce truth.

00:43:56.411 --> 00:44:01.371
Let it produce healing. Let it remove every spirit of shame,

00:44:01.611 --> 00:44:04.271
inferiority, confusion, and hopelessness.

00:44:04.391 --> 00:44:09.651
Teach us that bondage may describe what happened, but it does not define who

00:44:09.651 --> 00:44:13.011
you called us to be. Restoring covenant memory.

00:44:13.291 --> 00:44:14.931
Restore righteous identity.

00:44:15.391 --> 00:44:22.471
Restore spiritual clarity. Restore the song and the songs that captivity tried to silence.

00:44:22.771 --> 00:44:27.191
And Father, just as you brought Israel out of Egypt, bring your people out of

00:44:27.191 --> 00:44:33.151
every false system, every false label, every false image, and every false story.

00:44:33.351 --> 00:44:36.131
And I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

00:44:36.631 --> 00:44:41.891
This was your host, Connie Morris. I hope that you take time to listen to it twice.

00:44:42.462 --> 00:44:50.082
And just remember that God hears your cry. He sees your oppression and he remembers his covenant.

00:44:50.322 --> 00:44:54.182
And I'll see you on the next episode. Before we close today,

00:44:54.422 --> 00:44:58.422
I don't want to take for granted that everyone listening knows Jesus personally.

00:44:58.702 --> 00:45:03.282
If you have listened to this episode or any other episodes and felt something

00:45:03.282 --> 00:45:08.322
stirring in your heart, maybe you know about God, but you're not sure you truly know him.

00:45:08.322 --> 00:45:12.722
Maybe you grew up in church, walked away, got hurt, became tired,

00:45:12.802 --> 00:45:15.402
and never fully surrendered your life to Jesus.

00:45:15.702 --> 00:45:20.282
I want you to know this. God loves you. He has not forgotten you.

00:45:20.402 --> 00:45:22.222
He is not waiting to shame you.

00:45:22.402 --> 00:45:25.262
He is calling you home.

00:45:25.502 --> 00:45:29.602
The Bible says in Romans 10, 9, if you declare with your mouth,

00:45:29.822 --> 00:45:37.042
Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

00:45:37.342 --> 00:45:42.782
Salvation is not about being perfect. It's about surrendering to the one who is perfect.

00:45:43.022 --> 00:45:50.482
Jesus died for your sins, rose again, and made a way for you to be forgiven, restored, and made new.

00:45:50.742 --> 00:45:54.182
So right where you are, you can pray this prayer with me.

00:45:54.342 --> 00:45:59.422
Lord Jesus, I come to you today with an open heart. I believe you are the son of God.

00:45:59.702 --> 00:46:06.702
I believe you died on the cross for my sins. And I believe that God raised you from the dead today.

00:46:07.507 --> 00:46:10.607
I confess that I need you. I repent of my sins.

00:46:10.827 --> 00:46:17.447
I ask you to forgive me, cleanse me, and make me brand new. Jesus, come into my heart.

00:46:17.667 --> 00:46:21.507
Be my Lord, my Savior, my Redeemer, and my King.

00:46:21.707 --> 00:46:26.787
I surrender my life to you. I give you my past, my present, and my future.

00:46:27.047 --> 00:46:31.047
Teach me how to walk with you. Fill me with your Holy Spirit.

00:46:31.487 --> 00:46:36.767
Lead me in truth, healing, obedience, and love. From this day forward,

00:46:36.927 --> 00:46:40.207
I belong to you. In Jesus' name, amen.

00:46:40.547 --> 00:46:45.567
If you pray that prayer from your heart, I want you to know that heaven has heard you.

00:46:45.747 --> 00:46:50.127
This is not the end. This is only the beginning of your walk with Jesus.

00:46:50.487 --> 00:46:54.267
Find a Bible-believing church, begin reading the word of God,

00:46:54.627 --> 00:46:57.547
pray daily, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you grow.

00:46:57.847 --> 00:47:02.567
God is not looking for perfection from you. He is inviting you into relationship,

00:47:03.047 --> 00:47:06.407
transformation, and eternal life. through Jesus Christ.

00:47:06.847 --> 00:47:12.827
And remember, you are loved, you are not forgotten, and God still has a purpose for your life.

00:47:13.127 --> 00:47:15.787
Thank you for listening to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast.

00:47:16.187 --> 00:47:20.587
Until next time, keep walking in truth, faith, and freedom.

00:47:31.421 --> 00:47:34.721
Family, thank you for spending time with me today.

00:47:35.001 --> 00:47:38.701
To every woman listening who has ever felt hidden, overlooked,

00:47:38.761 --> 00:47:41.121
or pushed aside, hear me clearly.

00:47:41.401 --> 00:47:45.921
God has not forgotten you, and neither have I.

00:47:46.181 --> 00:47:51.141
Now let's go before the Lord and close this out with a word from God.

00:47:51.441 --> 00:47:55.881
Because someone out there needs this reminder today.

00:47:56.201 --> 00:48:00.181
Jeremiah 29, 11, verses 11 through 14.

00:48:00.481 --> 00:48:05.561
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you

00:48:05.561 --> 00:48:09.401
and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

00:48:09.681 --> 00:48:14.501
Then when you call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you,

00:48:14.721 --> 00:48:19.961
you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

00:48:20.081 --> 00:48:26.041
I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and bring you back from captivity.

00:48:26.601 --> 00:48:32.421
Father God, we thank you for your word, that it is true, that it is living, that it is for us.

00:48:32.621 --> 00:48:37.741
You said you know the plans you have for us, plans to prosper us and not to

00:48:37.741 --> 00:48:40.541
harm us, plans to give us hope and a future.

00:48:40.841 --> 00:48:45.161
So today we receive that, not just in our minds, but in our hearts.

00:48:45.301 --> 00:48:49.141
When we feel overlooked, remind us you still see us.

00:48:49.301 --> 00:48:54.601
When we feel forgotten, remind us you still have a plan. And when we feel hidden,

00:48:54.861 --> 00:48:57.101
remind us you are still working.

00:48:57.541 --> 00:49:03.141
Your word says that when we call on you, you will listen. So we call on you now. Hear us.

00:49:03.481 --> 00:49:07.581
Strengthen us. Guide us. Help us to seek you with our whole heart,

00:49:07.801 --> 00:49:10.821
not halfway, not sometimes, but fully.

00:49:11.041 --> 00:49:15.441
And as we seek you, let us find you in every season, in every place.

00:49:16.005 --> 00:49:21.265
Even the hidden one. Restore what was lost, renew what feels broken,

00:49:21.465 --> 00:49:26.045
and remind us that nothing in our lives is wasted in your hand.

00:49:26.265 --> 00:49:32.385
Lord, we trust you, we believe you, and we stand on your word. In Jesus' name, amen.

00:49:32.925 --> 00:49:36.925
This is Diary of a Black Woman podcast, and I'm your host, Connie Morris,

00:49:37.105 --> 00:49:39.865
and I'll see you on the next episode.