From PRESSURE to PROMISE | Angie Hawkins | EP 115

I'm choosing to not look at every negative thing that's going on around. I have to kind of shut that out and go, okay, Lord, what are you saying about me? God didn't take stripes on His back just for physical healing. That's for emotional healing. Maybe the answers could be found just in being heard and being seen and finding someone else that understands. I was seeing God's hand in the prayers that I was praying for other people. When you are not focused on yourself, it frees you to actually be part of a miracle in somebody else's life. Welcome to iRefresh, where we talk about the power of prayer and God's Word. Through the lens. Okay. Welcome to another episode of I Refresh. I am with my friend, Angie Hawkins. Welcome. Thank you. I'm glad to be here. This is going to be a great and powerful episode because we're going to talk about breakthrough. Sometimes you feel like you're in a place where you're broken. You feel dismantled. Like life has handed you just one trial after another. And there's just like no space to take a deep breath. There's something ongoing that happens where it's just relentless. You're like, okay, Lord, I need, I've said, okay, Lord, I just need a little vacation from all that and all the chaos. Yeah. So sometimes, you know, but the great thing we know is our God does designed rest on a weekly basis. He has created a pattern and I'll have to say, my son is so good about creating that Sabbath, like. as a holy time of rest. But while we're in that place of rest, I believe that God wants to help us. And so, you know, you've gone through some situations in your life where God led you into a place of restoration. And so I would love for us to just have that dialogue. Absolutely. I love that place. We were just talking earlier about just some things that we're believing God for. And in the middle of that, there's hardship, there's frustrations. But God desires to manifest that. those things that we're believing him for and restore those places in us that where frustration has crept in disappointments crept in. Maybe our faith came to a place where it was almost at a halt or non-active and God desires to get us refreshed, strengthened and refocused back on that word, back on that promise and back onto that path of that next step in season that's on our lives. And I know that God is, pushing with all he can to get the harvest because that's ultimately what he's after. And just as much as God wants breakthrough and he wants that provision and he's desiring those next steps in that next season to come to pass, so does the enemy. He's after your joy. He's trying to stop. you any way he can bring distractions, hindrances to get your focus off of that word, off of that plan. And over here, looking somewhere else, our attention shouldn't be so that our time is now shifted to try to put this fire out all the while the enemy's advancing. And this was something I was thinking about when God was really stirring my heart to be very, very, very, Vigilant. Be aware of what's going on. If things that you're believing for are taking longer than you expected, why? What's going on behind the smoke screen that the enemy's creating to get you distracted? And I love this scripture that was so good. This is 1 Peter 5, 8. Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary goes as a roaring lion, walks about seeking whom he may devour. He's looking for an opportunity to shut down the plan of God. And if he can get you distracted and frustrated, then he can get us detoured and not focused and standing actively in faith for what God has in store for us. And I remember just thinking on, What's been really going on? And it brought me to this next scripture where it brought my faith to be on a very action step minded place. And this is in Isaiah. This is 21, 5 through 12. And it says, get up, you officers. This is like the body of Christ. Smear oil on the shields. Be ready for battle. For this is what the Lord has told me. Go and guard at your post. And you must report what you see. When you see chariots or teams of horses, which I'm thinking, are they taxed? Are they even coming? Be alert. be very, very alert of what's going on and sound the watch on the watchtower and stand your guard. And I remember the Lord bringing that scripture to me and saying, you need to stand guard when you're pressing through, when you're believing for the promise, be on the guard and water that word, speak the word over that situation, spend that time in prayer, spend that time to get a your direction from me. And if Satan's got something planned, you're in tune and you can take authority over those things rather than just be blindsided by all this time that's gone by all these interferences that came to pass and you're left bewildered at why that happened. Okay. So if you're not someone who knows the word very well, sure. that's a whole different overwhelming. Like you just, they just shut down. Like they've skipped on to the next podcast. That's not me. I don't know how to do that. And I, that's overwhelming. Yeah. I think what we need to do is also like how, where do we begin with someone who has gone through a lot of battles and, and life distracts us. But, you know, we can get distracted when we just get on the road. Oh, yeah. And I can't go out on my edition without road construction and which means create more chaos. Like you can lose your peace, like trying to get out of, you know, your housing edition. Right. How do you describe to someone is how to find scriptures, how to find like, what is it that you began to do to create this pattern to help to begin to speak scripture over your life? Well, I began to make God a priority. And I thought, if there's something I'm going through, I need God's word on it. Because that's the final say. God's word, he watches over to perform it. If there's a situation that goes on that needs to change, God's word is what God will honor to change that situation. Not my wishes, my hopes, and my dreams. Such as I would like that. Okay. So what's a given situation you had and you went and sought for the word of what was the answer? Because the word says it's the answer. What's a situation you maybe could give an example of like, okay, this is what I found that the word is when maybe in a relationship. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I mean, for me, there's been a lot of family relationships. And I would just say, Lord, if I'm in a situation, it seems like maybe tensions are high or I'm in a place where I need your peace over the situation. I'll say, all right, Lord, what do I do here? And he would just lead me to come aside and just like, give all your cares, all your concerns, all your worries. Give that to me. That's Matthew. First and foremost. And I remember just thinking, okay, Lord, every care, every concern, I give that to you. I choose to let go of the stress. I choose to let go of the anxiety that's running rampant over the situation. And I come to you and I say, I'm giving this to you. And now I'm choosing to keep my thoughts on your peace that passes all understanding. I'm choosing to not look at every negative thing that's going on around me. I have to kind of shut that out and go, okay, Lord, what are you saying about me? And that's an example of when it says take capture every thought under the obedience of Jesus Christ. So that is what it means. It's like you can continue to go and listen to lies or things when it's derogatory towards someone. Well, that's not from God. Right. Like, so those are given obvious things. So we means we have to stop thinking if we're speaking, thinking judgment. That's not God. So we have to stop the thoughts. So the way we do it is we replace the thought was, okay, how God, how do you see those, that person? If there's tensions rising towards them, like, okay, Lord, help me to see them through your lens. Right. So that I can be able to love them. And Lord, I may not have a lot of love for them. But you said in your word that I have to have that chapter in 1 Corinthians is such a bummer sometimes. It's like you meant everybody but a few people. Right, right. We have those exceptions to that rule. Like I meant that except for this person. But I love that God is wanting us to, if we get our thoughts right, we need to speak right. Because you can't think right and then speak negatively. Your life is going the direction of what you're thinking and speaking. And I love in Proverbs 18, 21 where it says, death and life are in the power of the tongue. You know, if God spoke this world into existence, we're speaking in our world into existence, something negative or something positive. And if I'm standing and I'm believing for something, I need to be speaking out what words that are in alignment with his word, his plan towards that situation. If I'm believing for a financial breakthrough, then I need to be thinking about things that are prosperous. If I'm believing for a situation for a turnaround. over someone's life, then I need to be praying Ephesians prayers. But my words and my scriptures have to be in line with what God has said. Because now you're speaking into the atmosphere. You're literally changing the atmosphere around your situation with your words. And you can even go a step into that place where we can also begin to thank the Lord. We can. Speak those things as though they were. So I'm thanking you, Lord. I'm declaring it and decreeing something over my life and over my family's life. But I'm also going to give you praise. So, Lord, I thank you for the outcome. I know that, God, you love us all and your desire for all of that. We would all live in peace and in harmony. So I just thank you that, God, you are making a way where it seems impossible to bring peace into my family. Exactly. Well, and that's just what faith is in a nutshell. It's believing what God's word says is true. just being fully persuaded of that. And that just takes time. The more you spend around someone, the more you want to be around him, the more you believe things they say. When you have that relationship established that we talked about previously, that's what is really that glue and that foundation of that trust in faith, in what God has said. Without trust, without that relationship established, it makes it really hard to go, okay, God, you said this, I'm going to believe you 100%, but you don't have that relationship established. So really you're mentally assessing, you agree. But in your heart, you're going, I really don't know. And I was in that place. And I had to go back and say, okay, God, I'm going to keep spending time with you. I'm going to go back and think on your faithfulness and things that you brought me through. And continue to make that the forefront of my attention. And establish and further strengthen that relationship. And as that strengthens, doubt and fear begin to weaken. And that's ultimately what I want. Because I need God's promise and his answers stronger than the doubt that's coming against my mind. over what I'm believing for or what I'm standing for. Well, that's where you begin to see that place of where you can have the breakthrough. Right. So, you know, it doesn't really matter what the situation is, whether it's in relationships or events, could be in your workplace. You know, there are all kinds of things that we need to break through in our lives. And so I think you're right. It's being intentional to find God to lead us into the word, that we begin to speak over that and pray and then bless the Lord for it. and then watch it happen. Exactly. And I'll find myself going back and saying, okay, God, I was with you, and then something happened that was a curve ball. And I was like, okay, I didn't see that coming. You kind of warned me. And I thought, well, if I didn't see that coming, I got to check back on me again. Was I spending time in the prayer? Because God says he withholds no good thing. So if he's not withholding, then I need to get back in tune again. And there's one scripture I just love so much. It's Galatians 6, 9. He says, let us not grow weary or become discouraged in doing good. staying at it, staying with it, staying encouraged. Let us not grow weary in those things for at the proper time we'll reap. And I love that there is a time of harvest and there's always that journey in between. So in that journey in between, that's where I'm saying, okay, God, I put my attention and my focus on you. I'm going to continue to keep my trust in you. I'm going to continue to keep my trust. praying over the situation because my words have to go ahead of me like railroad on a train track it has to pave the way and as my prayers going out as my words are going out i'm continuing to keep my focus on things above not on the distractions not on what's going on around me and yes it's challenging but i thought well I have options. If I don't keep my attention on you, that I'm going to be stressed out of my mind and frustrated. And I think I'd rather pick being at peace. So I have to actively choose. I keep my attention on you. I may have thoughts like a machine gun running at my mind saying, it's not going to work. You're going to fail. Things won't turn around, but I'm choosing to ignore those voices of distraction and say, Lord, your word says this, your word says to not grow weary. Your word says that you will prove and bring all things to pass. You're a man of your word. I am trusting that you're faithful to turn this around. And because I can trust you, I refuse to pay attention to what the enemy is trying to do to bring it to a stop. You know, the amount of breakthrough that people may need in their lives is harder when you're around people that don't speak the same language. Because if you're speaking hope and someone else is speaking fear or you just fear. feel their fear or they they're acting out of fear you know it's hard we have to really be really grounded and stay in that time our quiet time with the lord so that we we choose to pick up a certain amount of time with those people that are that way so that hopefully we create the atmosphere versus them stampeding on ours and then we lose our joy we lose that peace right you're like okay I think that there's a grace where God has to say it's okay to be away from those that might be toxic or it's not healthy for us if we can't really. It takes us down. And especially when you're believing for something serious. It could be even a physical breakthrough, you know, that you're going through a health journey. Exactly. You have to protect your own. I remember hearing of a friend who... had a bad diagnosis, but she refused to tell everybody about it. She went to that quiet space. She was a worship leader and she just spent a massive amount of time with the Lord, building herself in the faith and avoided anyone who would try to stampede the faith walk she had. God took her through this incredible journey. And I thought, I wonder what's going on. I'm like, I haven't seen anything about her. And I reached out and I'm like, okay, but God took her and she felt the Lord lead her into where she isolated herself to be in a, in a state of total faith for God to do the health journey of breakthrough for her. And she's overcome an incredibly, very bad diagnosis. And yet she, You know, sometimes we just got to recognize, too, it might be that we need to pull away a little bit. You know, Jesus said a lot of times he would go away to be alone with the Father. Right. Well, and it's so important because you have to shut out the noise. I love that when Jesus raised up a girl that was dead, he cleared the room. Yes. And I remember thinking of that. What was he doing? He was clearing the room of doubt, unbelief and distraction. And he was inviting an atmosphere of faith and belief. And, you know, God's word so full of that. So, you know, bad company corrupts good character. And he's also talking about just being watchful. A fool utters their whole heart. And I'm right now, I've been so careful the past couple of years to be very careful what I say and to who I say it to. Because, you know, people will trample all over your dreams, your hopes, if they're not on that same page. And so I'm very careful what I say because I'm guarding and protecting that word. I'm speaking words of life and I'm not allowing the enemy to try to bring influences to discourage that word. And then therefore doubt and unbelief can try to come in and undo the word. Well, you know, I just spoke about that recently in a gathering about dreams because, you know, we see that Joseph had a mistake. I observe it as a mistake because he was so zealous to tell his brothers about his dream. Right. Well, it just perpetuated incredible friction in the family. Right. So the jealousy created a lot of anger. And I've learned over time that sometimes whenever God's given us a dream and something that we're supposed to believe in, sometimes we just need to. keep it quiet and wait for God and his timing before we release it to other people and protect it. Because otherwise you're, you're, you're, you have, you got all this extra stuff going on. Right. And you're trying to counter all that. Like I'm still trying to stand on God. Right. Believe, you know, believe in what God says. It's true. And yet you're, you're hearing those voices, you know, and you know, you know, look at the example of David. And David's brother was like, why are you here? He came to visit and see what was going on, you know, and he's like, why are you here? Why aren't you with your little flock? Yeah. And I'm like, what did David do? He just totally ignored his brother. Right. Right. He just went on. And sometimes we just have to ignore the voices. Right. Which can be distracting. And like, okay, Lord, what is it you say? Right. Well, you're just, you're protecting that word, you're protecting your peace. And you have to, when God gives you word, he's wanting you to water that word with his word. So that it can take root, so it can be established, so it can strengthen, and it can take these roots deep down in. And you're anchored now in that word. Like it talks in Hebrews, that you are steadfast with a hope that cannot be moved, that cannot be shaken. God wants us to be anchored and steadfast in that word. So when you're still in that process of getting your faith fully persuaded, over that word, over that situation, that's the time that I stay quiet because I can't afford to have negative voices coming in and undoing that word or causing me to doubt what God has spoken. So I'll pull aside and I will water that word. It gets strengthened, whatever time that takes before I utter anything. Because God's word says, a fool utters his whole heart. And I'm like, I'm not going to be that fool anymore. I may have done that in the past, but we're changing. I was like, we're learning. You don't tell everything you know. You take time to water that, get strengthened in it. Then when someone says something to you, you're unmoved, you're unshaken. You're like, Nope, I know what God said, but it's important to build that foundation over that situation and stay anchored. I remember in the old Testament, we're talking about, he's building the wall and he said, why he turns to all the crowd below that are trying to get him distracted. And he says, why would I stop the work of God to talk to you? And I love that. He was really making a parallel of saying, why would I stop and believe what God's saying and what God's telling me to do to come listen to your opposing thoughts of what he's saying. And I thought, that is so true. Why would I stop the work of God? Why would I stop believing what God said to explain this to you when you're going to try to contradict what God spoke in? Why would I do that? You have to be protective over that word. Right. Well, as we're closing, why don't you share with our audience just a way of just encouraging them is what they need to do to continue to press through, not quit, but press through the hard moments so that you can gain your breakthrough. Well, there's a few keys that I'll briefly go over that were really pivotal for me for breakthrough. The first one is bringing God in remembrance of his word concerning that situation. Isaiah 43, 26, put me in remembrance and declare unto me. that you may be justified. That's established. Number two, resist all doubt and unbelief. You know, it says in James 4, 7, submit to the authority of God and resist the devil, resist the opposition, resist the unbelief. It's coming against your mind, challenging what God has spoken. And then the next thing on step three, I'm going to put my trust in him. And Proverbs 16, three through four, before I do anything, put your trust completely in God, not in yourself, not in your wisdom, but in his so that your every plan may succeed. I love that part. So that every plan may succeed when our trust is in him, not in ourselves, not in our own doings, but in him. And then I'm speaking victory over that situation. I can't speak negatively if I'm wanting a positive outcome. over that. I have to speak positive. So I'm going to speak victory over that death and life and power of the tongue. So I'm speaking God's word over it. And I'm keeping my attention, my focused on him because everything in life is going to fight for your attention to get you distracted. I have to fight just as strongly to keep my attention on him. I have that time in the word making him the priority. Then throughout that day, no matter what's going on, I made a decision ahead of time. My attention's on you. I'm choosing to believe what you said, no matter what hell comes I'm focused on you. And then in the end of that, I have to have an attitude of... refusing to not give up and some tenacity and no give up attitude because life is going to throw a lot of curve balls. And what am I going to do in the midst of it? I have to stand strong. I refuse to give up hell or high water. I'm obeying God because I'm accountable to him when I go to heaven and I have to give an account. So I have to stand not just for me, but what we talked about that our obedience is so much bigger than us. It's connected to the people that are attached to our yes, And so I, for them, they're sick too, not just mine. I have to follow through. I have to be consistent. I have to persevere for their sake too. I don't want to be another reason that God says, well, I wanted this to happen, but they said, no, now you're saying no. Now he's got to go to someone else. I want to be the one that says yes. So he can depend on me saying she'll get it done. She may be crying, but she'll come through. She'll persevere. She'll stand. And I love that in Galatians 6, 9, let us not grow weary in well-doing. Without wavering, without hope, let's be encouraged, be strengthened for at the proper time, God will fulfill it. And in Hebrews 10, 23, hold fast, unmoved, unshaken upon that promise. It's not easy. Most of things are not, but it's worth it. I have two choices. I can go and freak out and lose it every time something happens negatively, or I can make it a priority to put God first and keep my attention and my focus on him so that the direction I'm supposed to go takes place. And you're going to have some setbacks along the way. The thing is, is, is when you have a place where, you know, you struggle and you go back into maybe some old nature, don't stay in that place where you have those bad thoughts of like, so discouraged, like, oh, I, I, I try, but I, that's the thing is you try and you fail. It doesn't mean you stop. Right. It's, it's to get back up and you're creating the pattern. You're creating a place where you repent. Right. And then you keep on pressing through because each new day says that it's new every morning. Great is your faithfulness because God is merciful and faithful every day. So it means he already knows and he's planned it. So all I need to do is have an active willingness to repent and get my heart realigned with the Lord. Amen. And that brings the strength that we need for the journey. I mean, things are going to happen and things are going to fall through sometimes. But that's where I'm saying, okay, Lord, I'm going to be strong. I'm going to come back to what you said. I'm going to encourage myself again. But then I'm also going to hang around people that they have that same mindset. They don't give up when things get hard. They have some stick to it. They have some perseverance. They don't back down and they keep pushing through. So if I'm feeling weak, then I'm going to hang around somebody who's not in that place. And they're like, oh, things are great. I'm like, good. I'm hanging around you because I need the encouragement. Find those people. Find those people that they've gone through some battles, but they kept going. They kept persevering. And I have to have those people, that army of believers that are supporting and pushing through hardship because you're going to go through some battles, but you want your army of believers around you. keeping your walls up. Like Moses had his hands lifted by his sons through that battle. As long as his hands were lifted, they won the battle. And I love that. That was a sign of him and his army of believers, holding his hands up, staying firm and going after the plan and winning the victory. Now I'll also add to that too, is I think too, is every time we can get an opportunity to give out to someone else, you know, It keeps us to where we're not so self-focused and that we can look and see that other people have as many challenges that I'm walking through. And there's definitely a place of, oh, they feel the pain as much as I have felt the pain. Oh, I'm not alone. I think a lot of times the enemy plays to where we feel isolated and alone, but it's not really actually truth. And so when you're talking about getting around other people, part of it, too, is let's encourage each other because we're all going through different seasons where we just... Some can definitely be the arms and hands of Jesus and to raise each other up. And we can be each other's cheerleader. Right. Which is fun. Right. It is. Because we need that. Yeah. But you're continuing to sit that atmosphere of winning, that atmosphere of pushing through. And you're going to go through those things. But the end result is God said that we win. And that's where I'm keeping my focus, not on how I feel. My emotions don't dictate my future. Thank the Lord. Well, Andrew, thank you so much for sharing great scriptures, amazing scriptures. And really, it's just for you. We hope that you understand that God has hope. He's got a vision for you to have a freedom from life. what you're going through, whether it's emotionally, spiritually, physically, that you need a breakthrough. Trust Him. Go to the Word. See what the Father has for you. And I know because His Word is true, He will accomplish it. So thank you. Thank you, Robin.