Kingdom Success and Prosperity | Dr Mike Woods Sr | Radah Church | 18 April 2021

Come on, say it again. Say, God wants me to have success. He wants me to be prosperous. So again, among believers, the number is more than half of all humans. That's a problem because that's not God's plan. As a matter of fact, this is tragic. It's tragic because part of God's will for us is to have good success, is to advance the kingdom as successful people. I dare you to make that declaration today. Say, I am. Y'all didn't say it. Say, I am. Successful. So let's start by getting a working definition of success. I want you to write this down because, um, it's— you're not going to find this definition in the Webster's, but this is really what success is according to God, according to scripture. Because here's the problem why a lot of people don't achieve success: they really don't know what it is. Yes. Success is the discovery and fulfillment of your life's purpose. I'm gonna say that again. Real success is discovery and fulfillment of your life's purpose. So success is not getting a lot of cars, a whole lot of money in the bank, a fat job with 6 figures. Come on now. Success is not, um, having 100 million followers on Instagram, right? Right. Success actually, for real, is the discovery and the fulfillment of God's purpose for your life. Amen. That's it. If God's purpose for your life doesn't involve a million dollars and it only involves half a million or $200,000, that's success. Amen. Because you're doing what God designed for you. Many times we do what we see other people do because they were successful at it. Matter of fact, most people who are in their purpose doing something, they make it look real easy. Wow. And so a lot of times, because it's their purpose, it seems easy, and many people think they can duplicate it, right? When in reality, just because somebody else did it, if it's not your purpose, it's not going to be that easy for you. Amen. And most of the time you're going to be frustrated because true fulfillment is only found when you're doing what you're purposed to do. Hallelujah. Oh God, let's go to Proverbs 19:21. Let me show you something. So again, success is the discovery and fulfillment. Not enough for you to know what your purpose is. You got to fulfill it to be successful. Before you die, you need to complete your life's assignment on earth. Hallelujah! Are y'all here? Yes, sir. Proverbs 19:21. The Bible says this. I'm reading out of the New International Version. It says, many of the plans in a person's heart. Yes, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. So we can spend time with our little finite minds trying to plan our life. There's so many things we could do, there's so many dreams that go through our head. The Bible says there are many plans that we come up with, but the Bible said the only thing that prevails The only thing that stands is the Lord's purpose. Amen. The only thing that brings success— did y'all see that in scripture? Yeah, it's the Lord's purpose. So no matter what I'm doing, no matter if even if it seems successful, right, it's not going to prevail. It's not success. If it's not in alignment— y'all, excuse me. Thank you. With the Lord's purpose. Amen. Lord help us. Amen. So then we must take a quick look at purpose. And this is just introduction because I really can't go where I want to go without dealing with this. So then, Michael Woods, what is purpose? Purpose is the original intent for the creation of a thing. It is why it was created. I'll say it again. Purpose is the original intent for the creation of a thing. It's why you are here. It's not who you are. It's why you are. And success is connected to why you are. Yes. So again, purpose is God's original intention for you, his original plan. Here's what I've learned, even in my own life, that human beings are masters at messing up God's purpose. Y'all ain't got to say nothing because One, we assume things are purpose when they're not. So we start flowing at the stuff— relationships, jobs, businesses, ideas— that's not even in God's plan. And we stray so far away that we ruin what God planned, and it takes him to step in and get us back on track. That's right. I can only speak from experience. There have been seasons in my life I was so far off from what God wanted me to do. I was able to do it. I was smart enough to do what I was doing, and I was having some success in those areas, but it wasn't God's plan. Amen. And I had to get back on track because the only thing that prevails It's purpose. Purpose. Watch this. Purpose— write this down— is the key to fulfillment. We don't get meat today. This is not gravy, I'm telling you right now. It's not cereal, this meat. Purpose is the key to fulfillment. You'll never be really fulfilled in your life until you're doing what you're purposed to do. If you go to work and you're sitting there on your job looking at the clock saying, I can't wait to 5, that job ain't your purpose. If you dread working your business or doing marketing or attracting clients, you might not be doing that business. Because at the end of the day, that business is not your purpose. Most of the time, your purpose is highly connected to the things that stimulate you and placate you spiritually. Watch this: seeing a need and wanting to fulfill it— I need to address this— it's not— doesn't mean that's your purpose. Just because you see homeless people everywhere doesn't mean you're specifically called. We all should help people, but doesn't mean you should specifically start a homeless ministry. Amen. But what you're passionate about in your spirit usually lends itself to what your purpose is. Ah, God, it's the key to fulfillment. Hallelujah! Watch this. Everything in life is distinctive. Everything in life is authentic. Watch this. Every one of you, including myself, we have a unique vintage authentication about us that makes us qualified for who God said we're to be. We're different, we're distinct. Watch this, we're God's masterpiece. And you make sure that you never let anybody change the revelation of who God said you are, because many people have graduated from their distinction into carnality. Yes, which is terrible. And they start trusting their life to what people think about them. I've gotten to a point in my life I could care less what people think about Michael Woods. Y'all not talking to me. I live for the audience of one. I live to please God. And like it or lump it, I'm gonna be who I am. And that's what you have to decide to do. You cannot change like the weather for people. Right. That's one of the amazing things I love about my wife. No matter where she goes, what she do, she ain't changing. Amen. She is who she is. Amen. And I appreciate that because she never tries to be someone else. Amen. Praise God. You have to make up in your mind, I'm gonna be me all the time. Yes. Because guess what? When God comes looking for you He gonna be looking for you. He ain't gonna be looking for your representative. Y'all not talking. He wants you to show up and say, here I am, use me. Glory to God. See, that's the reality. Everything in life does have a purpose. Everything in life is distinct and authentic. But here's a problem, y'all. While everything has a purpose Every purpose is not known. Amen. Which hinders kingdom success. When purpose is not known, life abuse is inevitable. When you don't know your life's purpose, you will abuse your life. Abuse is two words: abuse. Abnormal use. You use your life in areas it should not be used in because you're not living according to the purpose of God. And I'm not just talking about being churchy. Most church folk think, I mean, my purpose because I go to church on Sunday, because I'm in Bible study every week, and I wear my dress down to my ankle. That's not— it's a whole lot of people doing that that's not in their purpose. Glory to God. There's a whole lot of people jump, shout, speak in tongues, spit, blow bubbles, roll in the floor that ain't in their purpose. That's a dangerous thing, and they're abusing their life because when they leave church, they make no impact in the kingdom. Amen. Purpose many times is displayed outside of the church building. Yes, yes, yes. As many times manifest and has its greatest impact when we leave the church. Let me tell you something, guys. Let me just throw this in right here. This free. Glory to the name of God. If your heart is beating, if breath is running through your lungs, it is a truth that your purpose is necessary still. Amen. If you were not necessary, you would have already died. Yes, come on. But the very fact that you still got a heartbeat, yes, you still can breathe, you still got a neurological system that thinks properly, it suggests that you're still necessary. Amen. If you didn't have purpose, you would have died at birth. You would have died years ago. There have been several instances where guns have been placed in my face. Yes, I remember one time I was living— we was living on Moreland Avenue, Custer Avenue, in those apartments. And I was a little boy, just had got through playing basketball with my friend Stacy. Lord rest Stacy's soul, he's going on to be with the Lord. And he and I had got through playing basketball and there was a path. I had no business leaving the apartments anyway. Watch this. I left the complex going through the path. A guy comes running through the path with a gun in his hand. Wow. And he stops and looks at us, points the gun, And I don't know what he saw, but he couldn't shoot us. And I believe that there was an angel standing behind us. Yes, I believe because the purpose of God was so great on my life that he could not pull the trigger. Come to find out later, this same guy, yeah, had just killed a guy and was running away from him shooting, he had just shot the dude. And we saw his face. And you know, when you kill somebody, you shoot everybody that see you. Y'all not talking to me here 'cause you don't want no witnesses. But it was something on my life that he could not pull the trigger. I wanna tell you something, because your heart is poof, poof, poof, beating in your chest, You got reason. Yes, preacher. There's something God still wants to do with you. Maybe somebody watching me, you're about to give up, you're about to throw in the towel. I want to tell you, you have purpose in your life that's going to produce kingdom success and prosperity. Yes, hallelujah, hallelujah. So success Again, it's the discovery and the fulfillment of purpose. What's prosperity? Let's get a working definition of that, 'cause people don't know what that is. They think they know, they think prosperity is a Bentley or Benz. No. Prosperity, watch this, is progression, accumulation, and/or increase that is approved by God. I'll say that again. Prosperity is progression, accumulation. Oh God, I love that word. Matter of fact, while I'm talking, I, I just got a glimpse of heaven. There is blessings right now while I'm talking accumulating in the heaven. Yes. Hallelujah. And God says as we position ourselves in purpose, he's going to cause those blessings that he's accumulating— oh my God, it's massive, y'all. I'm talking about, I see big accumulation. Hallelujah. And God's about to superimpose what he's accumulating on us, but he says we got to position ourselves in purpose and in faith so he can intentionally progress us. Amen. And bring prosperity in our life. So again, it is progression, accumulation, or increase that God has approved. Yes. So I'm not prosperous. Hear me. If I get $10 million selling drugs. No. Come on now. But somebody looking at it and say, oh, he's prosperous. Yeah, God didn't ordain that. I'm not prosperous if I'm making shady business deals, doing things on the table, lying and cheating. That's not prosperity. Real prosperity is what God approves. And can I tell you something? There are some blessings that God has already approved. Listen, when you know you're pre-approved for something, you act different. You show up different. You don't go to the car dealership nervous when you pre-approved. Folks, they don't know what's gonna happen when they fill out the application, go to the car dealership nervous. But when you pre-approved and you know God's got you, yes, you show up looking at a house with your chest out saying, you know, my daddy got this. Y'all not talking to me here. You show up buying a car saying, my daddy got this. Yes. You know, the Lord had me to shift. My car was paid for, so I ordered a new car that's going to be here Wednesday. I didn't even, I didn't even flinch when I got ready to buy it. Wow. Because I knew my daddy had me. Yes. Y'all not talking to me here. You gotta know Glory to the name of God that your daddy has already approved you. Yes, no matter what you desire. Touch yourself and say, I'm approved. People may have rejected you, but God has already approved you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go to Philippians 4. Let me— let's look at prosperity real quick. Philippians 4, I'm going to read verses 17 through 19. The Bible says— this is the Apostle Paul talking— he says, not that I desire your gifts What I desire is that more be credited to your account. Let me say something to you. You got a heavenly account. Yes. And Paul is saying, I don't desire you to give me nothing. But the reason I want you to give, the reason I want you to sow, is because every time you sow into me, is what Paul was saying, you get credit in your account. Yes. Come on, preacher. Okay. And that's prosperity that God's ordained because He's gonna honor his word concerning sowing and reaping. That's right. He said, watch this, I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are fragrant offering and acceptable sacrifice pleasing to God. And my God, listen to this, will supply, meet all your needs according to his riches in glory. That's prosperity. If you got to do it yourself, it ain't really prosperity. God says, I want to supply according to my riches. Amen. Do you know it ain't enough people in the world to give you what God can give you? Amen. Oh, Paul said, I don't need what you got. I got God. I'm fully paid. 'Cause I got Father God on my side. Fully blessed. Oh, y'all hearing this? See, people get concerned about people. Yeah, I tell people all the time, you don't need a big church to do kingdom in church. All you need is one person to be preoccupied with what you're doing. That's right. You just need one Stanton Graham. Yes. Y'all ain't got to say nothing. You just need one Oprah. To say, I like what you're doing, let me drop this seed in your life. Yes, hallelujah! You need one Tyler Perry. Yes, come on, church! Yeah, that says, yeah, I'm, I'm preoccupied. I like what you're teaching, I'm preoccupied with that. See, God knows how to bless you without a crowd. All right, that's why I don't follow the crowd, I follow the cloud. Glory to the name of God! Israel followed the cloud. Not the crowd. Glory to the name. The crowd was complaining, but Moses said, no, we're gonna follow this cloud right here because God is in the cloud. See, we be looking for God in the crowd, but he ain't in the crowd, he's in the cloud, baby. And I want to be where the cloud is. And I ain't talking about that cloud on your device neither, your phone. No, God's in the glory. Glory to God. And we got to learn how to crawl up in the glory and fellowship with him. Yes, right. Come on now, we already prosperous. Our needs are met. Yes, they are. According to Symphaneo in Greek. According— what does that mean? If you look, the word Symphaneo is kind of words like symphony. Yeah. So if you ever been to the symphony, there are different kinds of instruments. There's percussion, there's wood instruments, there's brass, there's strings. But watch this, if they play a piece of music in the key of C, although they're different, that music comes into accord. Yes, it does. And it's the same. Hear me, God says, I'm not going to bless you out of what I have. He's going to bless you according to what I got. Yes, listen, if I, if I bless you out of what I have, I can say, here go $5. Y'all not talking to me here. But if I bless you according to, that's gonna be way more than $5. Are y'all hearing me? God says, I'm gonna bless you out of what I got. He didn't say I'm not gonna bless you according to what's in your bank account. So kingdom success is totally connected to God and his provision for us. Yes, and his plan for us. So let's get into this, guys. True success and prosperity— excuse me, true success and prosperity in the kingdom is found in these 4 things I'm going to teach you today. It's found in crisis, focus, time, and work. You'll never have kingdom success if you don't embrace these 4 things. Let's talk about crisis first. Go to 1 Peter 5 and verse number 10. These are some principles for having kingdom success. It says this, it says, and I'm reading on the Amplified, it says, and after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, yes, hallelujah, who imparts all blessing and favor who has called you to his own eternal glory in Christ will himself— watch this— complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely. Sound like success to me. And strengthen and settle you. But he said, I'm not gonna make you what you ought to be, I'm not gonna ground you and give you stability, I'm not going to give you strength and settle you down and endow you with the blessing until you suffer a while. Yes, he said you got to go through seasons of crisis, right? Because seasons of crisis teach you how to appreciate the blessing when it comes, right? Write these things down about crisis. Number 1, don't curse your crisis. Hallelujah. Most people, when crisis show up, they want to get out of it quick. Oh, I want to go through that. I don't want to suffer through that. Lord Jesus, please get me out. The church has escapism mentality. Yeah, that when trials show up, we want to escape. And it's rooted in the escapism spirit that is on the whole church to get to heaven. Most of the church has their bag packed, looking out the window saying, Jesus, please come back. Jesus, please come on. I'm trying to get out of that virus. Come get me, Lord, please. Jesus, just come on back. The Lord not trying to get us out of here. He's trying to get us to have kingdom success and prosperity where we can take over. Glory to God. So don't curse the crisis. Write this down, cuz crisis will test your belief system. Crisis and adversity will teach you what you really believe. Yes, it's easy to say I believe God when all your bills paid. It's easy to say Oh, I'm so in love with Jesus. As long as the blessings is falling into your bank account. But what do you do when crisis hits your finances? Hallelujah. What do you do when you're behind? Come on, do you complain? I wrote something this week which is true. Pressure don't lie. Who you are under pressure is who you are. That's right. Y'all ain't got to say nothing. Oh yeah, yeah, y'all not talking to me this morning, but it's okay. I prayed before I got here. You got to understand, your real you surfaces when you're in crisis. Let me see how you act when you're going through it, when everything is not falling in place like you want it to. God says, I got so much I want to give you. I need to be able to trust you with these billions I'm about to pour on you. I used to be mad at the crisis I've been in, my— we've been through. Yeah, I said, Lord, why I got to go through all of that? He said, well, you told me you wanted to be a billionaire. You told me you wanted to prosper and be— have good kingdom success. So I need to trust you with what I'm about to break you off with. Y'all ain't got to talk to me here. Most people despise crisis, but guess what? Any crisis you don't endure, you will have to repeat before the blessing shows up. Yes, sir. I'm gonna say it again. If you don't endure it and successfully get through it, you will have to repeat it. That's right. Oh my God. Oh my God. Come on, you got to survive it so that when you come through it— we read it— he can make you what you ought to be, which is kingdom successful, kingdom prosperous. Hallelujah. To crown you securely, that you will never be moved. My God, I used to hear the old saints sing the song out of the song, I shall not, I shall not be moved. I shall not, I shall not be moved. Like a tree planted by the water, I shall not be moved. Funny thing about that, a lot of them that was singing it, they got moved. Yeah, right. They got moved. They got moved out of the way. They got knocked down, either with sickness or poverty or some bad things happening in their life. Because they never stood through crisis. That's right. So God could trust them with more. Mm-hmm. Listen, write this down. Crisis is the incubator of creativity. My God. Mm-hmm. God sends crisis so you can tap into the creative edge down in you. Mm. He'll put you in a situation so you'll create yourself out of it. Come on. Oh God, have mercy. Uh, watch this. Seldom Have humans created anything that was of lasting value except they were in pain? Wow. Or had some inconvenience? All right. Alexander Graham Bell created the telephone because he had a person he was in love with that was miles away and he wanted to talk to her. Yes. He couldn't get to her. He didn't have buggy. He didn't have horse. He wasn't gonna walk that far. His heart was in pain. He needed to hear that voice and the telephone. So in crisis— are y'all seeing this? Okay, I can take you deeper. The Wright Brothers, yes, they didn't just want to create an airplane. They were in a crisis. One of the brothers was sick. And the remedy he needed was on the other side of the country. Yeah. And the quickest way to get them there was going to be to build an airplane. And out of that, they start building a plane out of crisis. That's how, that's how the airplane came forth. That's what we know as the airplane today. Oh boy, your device, your, your phone, whether it's a Android or Apple, that device, the system that it operates on was created in a crisis. Man drops out of school, Steve Jobs, and says, I can't do this no more. I gotta figure out a way to make my life better without having to go through this college. He was in a crisis. He was in a dilemma. Glory to God. So I'm telling you, anything of lasting value is created many a times in crisis. So don't curse it. And we're— watch this— in America, we're in crisis. We got coronavirus, we got systematic racism, we got voting issues in Georgia. We're in a crisis. We got hurricanes. That hit certain parts of the country. Yes, we got snowstorms that people just came through. Crisis. Yes, how do we deal with it? We gotta create. Yes, listen, you are creative because the Holy Spirit lives in you. Yes, yes, yes. Do you know the same God that created heaven and earth lives in you? Yes. Oh my God, the same God that created heaven and earth lives in you. Yes. Just touch your belly right now and say this. Say, I'm a creator. I'm a creator. Because the Holy Spirit— because the Holy Spirit lives in me. Let's say it with the people watching. Touch your belly again. Say, I'm a creator. Creator. Because the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit lives in me. See, Holy Spirit is for more than prophesying, speaking in tongues, discerning spirits. It's to create. Yes. And often God— watch this— our children were created in pain. They have lasting value. Somebody say, you crazy, devil is a lie. My children were created in pain. I enjoyed every minute of making them. But no, they're coming forth. Yes, they were born in a crisis. Yes, that could have went one or two ways. They could have lived or died. Watch this, the thing that protects them, yes, right, for 9 months, at the end of 9 months becomes their greatest hindrance. Yes, the water has to break, they got to break forth out of the womb. That same thing that protected them became the greatest hindrance. Yes, that's good. Now watch this. Think about a chicken. It's an egg. Yeah, that shell that protected that chicken to birth, when it's time for him to come forth, he gotta peck his way out of there. That's right. The thing that protected him become the greatest interest. Watch this. In the church, most people do obtain kingdom success and prosperity because religion protected them for so long. My goodness, that they guard their heart and ears to truth and won't let it in. The thing that protected them has become their greatest hindrance to a higher level of living. Oh my God, I've been on that too long. This last thing about crisis, write this down. Crisis creates a new way of thinking about an old problem. I'll say it again. Crisis will cause you to think differently about an old problem you had. Let's say for instance, you get in a crisis, you lose your job. Mm-hmm. You got a problem now. Mm-hmm. You got a mortgage. You got rent, you got car note, but crisis will cause you to think differently. Yeah, you'll find a way to solve that problem. Are you hearing me? All right, I want to challenge you. Stop resorting to the old ways of doing things to solve your problems. Oh my God, when problems arise make up your mind that you're gonna try something different. Yes, because watch this, if you do what you always did, you don't always get the same results. That's right. Your results are consistent. Yes, when you have the same actions. That's right. So allow your crisis to push you into another dimension. That's right. Oh, glory to God. Say crisis. Crisis. Here's principle number 2: focus. You cannot be successful in the kingdom without focus. Focus. You got to have the right focus. Go to Proverbs 23 and verse number 7. Just one. I'm gonna read the A clause. I'm not gonna read the whole thing. The Bible said, for as he thinks, yes. Oh boy, that word thinketh or thinks in Hebrew is a word shaar. S-H-A-A-R. Shaar is how it's pronounced. And watch this, it means to act. It's a verb that means to act as a gatekeeper. A gatekeeper, a security guard, a watchman in the military has to be extremely focused. A Secret Service agent is a shay'ar. He has to watch for everything to make sure the president is protected. That's focus. He said, as you focus in your heart, so is he. Guess what? What you focus on, you become. What you focus on often manifests in your life. If you keep focusing on my mama had cancer, my daddy had cancer, my mama died of a heart attack, my daddy died of a heart attack— you keep focusing on that, it's going to show up at your house. But you got to focus on what you want. Focus on being healthy. Focus on being prosperous. Oh, everybody in my family was broken. You be focused on we ain't none of us gonna have nothing. The devil is a liar. You better focus on something bigger and better. Just— and you, you can't let your focus be making sure people are happy about you. Yes. I'm never gonna apologize for being blessed. I'm never gonna come down to accommodate somebody's perception of me. All right, I know I have people in my life, including family members, who have a perception of me. Yes, that they want me to stay in to make them feel good about their insecurities, about their poverty, about their lack. But the devil is a liar. You got the same opportunity I got. And what you need to do is focus, because guess what I stopped doing? I stopped focusing on you. Uh, listen, I'm telling you right now, I, I don't pay attention to that. I focus on who God says I am and my purpose is I don't have to go down the same road you— there's a way that seemed right to a man, and the end of that way is the way of death. I'm not following you down the road to dead finances. I know that's bad health. Y'all not talking a road to debt. Yeah, no, I'm going another way, bro. I'm going toward being debt-free. I'm going toward billionaire status. I'm going toward winning in everything I touch. Come on. I can't think like that. I gotta focus. Yes, focus. You know, and I'm so quick And I have to pray sometimes because I'm so quick to dismiss people who do not align with what my focus is. And the Lord had to tell me sometimes, well, you need— you're just going and, and deal with that because you got to be a light to them. Because I don't want to waste my time. I need to make sure you're coachable, you teachable, you, you're willing to receive. Because guess what? If you bring something and I need it, I'm gonna receive it. That's right, right. Because you can learn from anybody. That's right. But if you, if you so busy covering your insecurity, right, and you know in my head is what you need— y'all ain't talking to me here. Just open up and say, man, you know what, I need what you got. And you know what I learned? I'm not chasing nobody. That need what I got. Amen. Okay, stop doing that. That breaks your focus. If I give you access to me and you got my number— matter of fact, you access anybody now. Just go to Facebook Messenger. They done made connected the whole world. Folk I don't even know text my phone from Messenger. I'm trying to figure out how in the world do I get this off my phone and still be able to use Facebook. I don't need that. I don't know them people. Are y'all hearing what I'm saying? You got to stay focused and not get distracted. Say focus. Y'all didn't say it. Say focus. Focus. So what is focus, Michael Woods? Focus is to concentrate intensely on a central point. That causes attraction, attention, and activity. So you want to make sure that you focus so that, that what you're focusing on becomes so attractive to you, so irresistible to you, that you don't quit until you get it. Oh boy, some of y'all done did that before. You wanted something bad enough, you focused on it, you got it. Glory to God. You got to focus so until— watch this— your pursuit of it becomes a pursuit of you, of the thing you're pursuing. Amen. Watch this, the proof of desire is focus. You can't tell me you desire it if you ain't focused on it. You don't want it. If you really desire it, you focus. You know, I play better golf when I'm focused, when I go on the golf course and don't think about nobody else. I don't care who's around me. Sometimes they might say, you all right, Doc? Yeah, I'm good. I'm trying to win, so that's why I'm not talking to you right now. I'll talk to you when we get through, but right now I'm focused because focus creates great results. See, to have real kingdom success, you need some RPMs in your life. Say RPM. RPM. I'm giving you some good stuff this morning. In your car, you, you probably often wonder, you got a speedometer that may go up to 85, 150, whatever your car do, but then right beside it you got another gauge that may go up to 6, 7, 8. That's your RPM gauge. What that gauge is telling you, the number of revolutions per minute. What does that mean? That means it's measuring how many times your crankshaft goes around the engine in a minute. So if it's on 3, that means your engine is going around— your crankshaft is going around your engine 3 times in 1 minute. If that thing gets up to 5 or 6, you're going too fast and you about to tear up your car, especially if your car ain't built to hold them kind of RPMs. Wow. Your engine should be going 6 times, or crankshaft 6 times around the engine in a minute. Unless you're driving a Maserati or something, a Ferrari. Yeah. Listen, I took that because I think in our life we need to constantly have focus going around in our head of the things we want to achieve. And I took the acronym RPM, right? So you need some results-oriented, purpose-driven, massive action plans. Write that down: results-oriented, purpose-driven, massive action plan. You need RPM. So you need to be thinking on all cylinders about getting results. See, if you want to be successful in the kingdom, you need to want to get results around your purpose. A lot of times, that which God is purpose seems hard because it requires supernatural assistance. There's no way you can get it done in your flesh. So you gotta number one decide, I'm gonna get some RPMs in my head because I need a system of thinking that's going to produce the results I desire. This system of thinking asks basically 3 questions. First of all, the results piece— results-oriented. Say that with me. Say results-oriented. So what it does, it asks the question, what do I want? You don't know what kind of success you're trying to ascertain if you don't know what you want. Listen, you gotta know what you want. There's so many people walking around life clueless. To what they want. You know, I used to tell my wife all the time, uh, before we got married, that a lot of times I would be places and I would just— I would tell you, you know, I'm really tired. This is what I would— this is how I would word it. I'll tell her, I'm really tired of being a piece of meat. And she was like, what you talking about? I said, you know, Because at that time, you— because I was single, we have all these single women coming to church and they, they weren't there to hear nothing I had to say. And I would just feel— I mean, they're just sitting there lost and I'm looking like a T-bone steak. Y'all are talking to me here? Ridiculous. And I said, you know, They think they can focus on this long enough, no matter what I say, that it'll change my perception of them. Yeah, not gonna happen. Wasn't gonna happen. You know, the reality is when you want something bad enough, if you're not careful, you'll miss the real purpose and blessing of why you connected to something. Yeah. Having the wrong motive, trying to get the wrong result. That's right. And most of them people, someone's struggling now, going through it because they should have been connected. But they were involved for the wrong reason. Glory to God. Say results. Results. What do I want? What's the outcome after this process, after the crisis? What do I want to see come forth? Hallelujah. What, what's a real measurable result? That God has ordained. See, most people are not results-driven. They just live life. They're not trying to really get results. They talk about it, they got it in their head, but they really don't want it. Because when it's in your head and you really want it, you start trying to figure out, one, does it connect to purpose? Two, how am I gonna make this happen? Oh boy, listen, you gotta know what you want. Let me give you an example. There's a difference in I want to lose weight and I want to lose 30 pounds. You can say I want to lose weight and lose 1 pound, but you got to be specific. Measure the result. I'm serious. You listen, you say I want some money and somebody give you a dollar and say get out of here. Be specific. What results you want? God, I want a billion. What do you want? When last time have you asked God for what you want? Listen, I want you to do two things on your paper this morning. Do this for me, write it down. Number one, I want you to write one result that you ultimately want to achieve in your life that's not financial. One result that, that's been in your head, a dream that you want to fulfill. Write that main one down. Everybody's got one. What result do you want to see? And then secondly, I want you to write your number down. This was financial peace. Everybody's got a number. When they all— when the brass tacks is finished, what do you want your net worth to be? A million? 5 million? 10 million? A billion? 100,000? What do you want? Single people watching this, if you want a husband, start doing what you need to do as a single woman. Hide. If you really want it, hide. He that finds a wife finds a good thing. You're not gonna get no husband chasing me, not the one God ordained, because God told you to hide. You can't be found if you're not hidden. You can't find nothing not hidden. So you got to get lost in your purpose, lost in what God has called you to do, lost in your dreams. And the man that's supposed to connect to you will find you. He that finds, not she that find. Oh Lord, so put some clothes on on Instagram. Glory to God. That, that ain't gonna get you no husband. It gets you something else, but it definitely gonna get you a husband. Glory to God. Hallelujah. So what do you want? The second question a results-oriented mindset asks is, why am I doing this? That's the purpose-driven part of it. Why? I told you earlier that purpose is why. Listen, you got to have a real why that you want to have kingdom success. It can't be money. There's got to be a real reason why you want to be successful that's connected to a purpose that's bigger than you. Hoshaia mesketenebe. Bruce ketabaya mansorabo. Thank you, God. You gotta understand why this is more than I should do it, and you got to determine why I must do it. Yeah, see, we do a lot of stuff we should do. Yeah, I should go to work, I should date this person, I should marry him or her. No, you need to be where you must be. Yeah, cuz that's where you going to have the greatest fulfillment and the greatest success. Yes. What must you do? Glory to God. Listen, you got to have a quality that's indwelt, that's lined with your purpose, that's so strong. Yeah, that makes— watch this— your life meaningful is so much that you don't sleep. And when you do get up, you— all you're focused on is that. You rise to do that. You don't need coffee to get going, you just need purpose. Purpose will excite you. When you really got meaning, you'll wake up in the morning, throw your clothes up in the air, run up under them, and run into your day. You might not stop by the tub, but at the end of the day, purpose will get you going. Thank you, Lord. Third question it asks. So it asks, number one, what do I want? Number two, why am I doing this? Number three, what do I need to do? What's my massive action plan? You'll never have kingdom success if you don't focus every day on fulfilling a part of the plan. You need a plan to open that business. Glory to God. My wife talks to me all the time about her plans, and I'm glad she talks about her desire to open a restaurant, open, open a bakery, because as she talking, I'm thinking about the planning to do it so that we don't create another job when she retires. So there's a business that's running seamlessly and she's reaping the benefits of it. But there's a massive action plan that I've been developing for that. Yes, you— every phase of my life, this church, my business, everything I'm doing, I got a plan. I work on those plans daily. Watch this. When God brings thoughts to your mind, the worst thing you can do is let them sit there. That's right. You gotta chunk them out. When God brings something to you, write it down, speak it in the tape recorder, because your mind can only process so much. So put it to paper, bring it to life so you can focus on it. Habakkuk 2:2, write the vision, make it plain, so he that reads it can run with it. In other words, write it so you can focus on it. Are y'all with me this morning? So the third way we get kingdom success— I gotta go. So the first way was crisis. Say crisis. Second way is focus. I hope y'all getting something out of this. The third way is time. You'll never have kingdom success if you don't use your time wisely. Let's go to John 9, verse 4. I'm moving quickly to a close. Hallelujah. John 9:4 says this, it says, we must work the works of him who sent me. And be busy with his business while it is daylight. Night is coming on when no man can work. He said we got to do the works of who? Him. So we can't— again, there's purpose. Again, we can't do what we want to do. I know it seems good, it feels right, we're comfortable doing it. Because we're— we, we are— we, we feel like our intelligence matches what we're trying to do. But we need to go against the grain and do something we need him to help us do and work those works that he has planned and ordained while this day— because night's coming, y'all— while you can see clearly, while you got a revelation While there is illumination on your life and you— and you're, you're full of passion and fire, go to work. Use your time wisely. Watch this, I'm going, I'm going, y'all. Time is one of those commodities that once you lose it, it's gone forever. It cannot be recovered. Only person can redeem time is God. Right. God, he's told us in his word, redeeming the time. He can do it. Yes, but we got to be careful that we don't lose so much time that God spends all his time trying to get us caught up. Yeah, right. We got to work on the right things. You can, you could be doing the right thing for the wrong reason, wrong reason, and be wasting a whole lot of time. See, to achieve kingdom success You got to allow your purpose and what God says about your life to define every part of your time, every minute of the day. You need to maximize it with purpose. I know somebody said, man, I got— I need to breathe. That purpose needs to become your life. You won't have kingdom success. It needs to be your life. It needs to be embedded in your spiritual DNA that you, you're not going to leave this planet until until you finish what God showed you. Hallelujah. Every moment of your life, you need to say, God, let it— and pray that way. God, let it be in alignment with your works for me. You shouldn't let people into your space that waste your time. Hallelujah. Matter of fact, I'm gonna tell you, and I'm gonna get off this. Avoid time wasters. Avoid procrastinators. When you see them coming, go the other way, because they're contagious, they're toxic. You notice Jesus didn't call anyone to follow him that was a time waster. He called men that were doing something. He called Luke, who was a physician, Matthew, who was a tax collector. He called Peter and John, who were fishermen. He called men who were busy. Yes. Why should you open your world up to people who's doing nothing? Only reason you open your door to them is to help them if they're willing to receive. But don't waste your time on people who don't want nothing, who don't know what they want, who don't know why they want it, who don't know how to put together a plan and not willing to learn. Ah God, distractions are costly. Yeah, when you get distracted by a time waster, the first thing it immediately does is create delays. Something that should took 6 months now takes 4 years because you brought a time waster into your life that procrastinates, that's lazy, that has no diligence, that has no passion. The scripture says the diligent soul shall be made fat. Yes, these distractions are fatal. They cause delays, and then from delay start taking shortcuts. You start taking these detours trying to not go through the process, the crisis. That qualifies you for where you're going because you don't got distracted by a time waste that pulled you into something that wasn't even purpose, that got you on board with something that did not align with who God says you are. Everything that glitters is not gold. Everything that looks good ain't good for you. Y'all ain't saying nothing. There's some things that could be good to you that ain't good for you. There's a 40-year-old man in the city that can be good to a 13-year-old girl, but he ain't good for her in no way. Are y'all hearing me? The reality is we gotta deal with distractions and manage them effectively. So that we don't get delayed and we don't get on a detour. Because the detour ultimately— watch this— is going to lead you to destruction. That's right. It's going to destroy the original purpose because you're going to be so busy on these detours, hopping here, hopping there, doing this, doing that, that you never get to the original authentic plan. Wow. Say time. Time. Say, I'm a guard mine. Hallelujah. Here's the final one. If you want to have kingdom success, you got to work. Most people want something to fall out of the sky. Sometimes you got to make sacrifices to do things that normally you wouldn't do so you can get to where you're going. Long as it aligns with your purpose and as long as God puts his seal of approval on it. So you don't be working to no end, but you want to work that has an end to it. Yeah, you don't want to just work with a means to a paycheck or means to money. You want to work as a means to a kingdom success. Yes, you want to create streams that lead you to kingdom success. That's right. Hallelujah. 2 Thessalonians 3:10. The Bible says, for while we were yet with you, we gave you this rule and charge: if anyone will not work, neither let him eat. Huh? You are not eating if you don't work. Listen, it was some people in Thessalonica trying to slide through, trying to hoodwink and swindle. And Paul said in his apostolic authority, listen, we charge you, if these jokers won't work with everybody else, they should not eat. That's right. There's no excuse for laziness. The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary. I'll say it again. The only place success comes before work in the dictionary. Success starts with S, work starts with W. Any other time, work is a prerequisite to success. Watch this. And real work is working in your area of purpose. It's not working to make someone else rich, or even if you're working on a job, it should be a means to to get you to your dream. Yes. Hallelujah. You should work it till it supplies what you need. Make it a stream of income. And I'm telling you, if you get a job, give 8 hours that job and give 8 hours to your business. You owe your business just as much as you owe that boss you work for. Yes. Hallelujah. Watch this. Real work doesn't bring glory to you. It brings glory to God. It always deflects the glory back to him. So when you're working on his stuff, he always is magnified and extolled and macrographed and sublimated, because what you're doing is bringing glory to him. Do you know every part of your life should lead people to God? Yes, people should see. Watch this. Let your light shine before men, that men may see your good works and glorify the Father which is in heaven. So whatever good works I'm doing, it shouldn't bring glory to Michael Woods. And you got so many people in this society today that's building kingdoms to themselves. Watch this, they're building kingdoms to themselves in the name of the Lord. That's right. The light is on them and they're getting all the glory. See, when God gets glory, he responds. He responds. You know he's there. And I'm not talking about some religious, uh, just because the organ is going and just because up there is music, and just because all that religious stuff— no, God can walk in a building with no organ, that's right, with no drums, and sweep a place and let his glory take us over. Are y'all here? Are y'all tired of hearing the word? I'm here. I can go all day. Glory to God. Stay with me, I'm almost done. Listen, you gotta If you want to eat, you got to dump all the distractions. Touch yourself and say, dump the distractions. Every idea that's distracting you, every person that's distracting you from your assignment, every dream that God didn't give you, that's a distraction. Every family member That's a distraction. Oh God, let me tell you something. I'm a pro at cutting my family off when I need to because they can be distractions sometimes. And at the end of the day, when you gotta focus, you gotta focus. I don't have time to compete with your feelings and your ideologies about me when I'm trying to focus on something. So I'm just gonna pull back and let you do you. I'm gonna do me, and I'm gonna keep grinding. Then I'm gonna be like Arnold Schwarzenegger— I'll be back. And when I get back, I'm gonna help you, because if you don't, you can't eat. The young people say, it's time to eat. I'm Jason. It's time to eat. And if we're gonna eat in the kingdom, if we're gonna have the things and the success and the prosperity that God has for us, we gotta dump every distraction. That's right. The people that eat are people that get toxic people and distractions out of their life. That's right. Because you keep holding on to something that God's trying to take. I've been there, done that, holding on to something that God was trying to take away from me. Even when it left me, I was still holding it because I wanted it back and I wanted to correct my wrong. But God was trying to give me something else. Y'all not talking to me here. Even though I messed up and created a crisis in my life, God was going to work it together for my good as soon as I let go. Hallelujah! I could not eat until I released it. Yes. Oh boy, glory! You got to stop holding what God's trying to take. Thank you, Jesus. Don't— the distraction. Yes, some of you are distracted by old wounds. Maybe not in here, but maybe watching, you're distracted by what somebody did to you. Yes, my God. You can't focus because you're worried about them. Yes. And let me let you in on a secret— they done moved on. Yes. And you still stuck. Yes. And God is saying, I'm waiting on you to let this go. Yes. So you can eat. Yes. Hallelujah. You can't eat cuz you're holding on to that ex. They call the ex for a reason. Y'all not talking to me here. Ex, we get words like exit. They go. Yes, let them go, because if they were supposed to be in your life, if they were purpose, they would still be there. Yes, the Bible said if they had been for us, no doubt They would have remained with us. By virtue of the fact that they left us is proof that they were not supposed to be with us. And you got to determine that I'm going forward, I'm forgetting what's behind. Yes, come on. Epilophomai in Greek. I'm releasing it from my history, I'm releasing it from my life, I'm living as if it never happened. I am epilothomai. I am letting it go. I'm separating me from it permanently, and I'm reaching. Yes, God. Oh my God. Hallelujah. Reaching, stude in Greek, which literally means to stretch. Yes, God. Watch, as you ever seen the Fantastic Four? Like Mr. Fantastic. Yeah. To stand in one place and stretch toward what belongs to you. God is calling somebody that's listening to me to stretch. Yes, God, you got to make up in your mind you're gonna let go of yesterday, separate yourself so you can stretch. You have missed your superpowers, hallelujah, to move into your future because you refuse to let go of the past. Yes, God. Thank you, Jesus. But God said, you can be what you want to be. Yeah, you can do what I purposed you to do. Yes, it's bigger than what you thought. Oh yes, God. And I heard that God, God said to tell somebody, stop thinking. Ah, he said to tell you, you think too much. He said, because I'm able to do exceeding and abundantly and above all you're able to think. You've limited yourself in your finite mind, but he said, let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus. It's time to eat, y'all, but you gotta get your mind right so we can eat as kingdom people. We can't do church as usual. I'm so glad You know, I, I wish Harry was here, but I'm glad that it happened the way it did today because it shows we're mature enough to worship God without piano, without keyboard. We still went in, God still moved. Oh, thank you, Lord, because we can't, we can't be stuck in church as usual. Thank you, Lord. We can't be bound to religious processes. Because we got a world to change. Yes, God. Yeah, for real. Yes, Lord. And God needs his citizens to have kingdom success. Thank you, Jesus. And kingdom prosperity. Thank you, Jesus. Everybody stand. Hallelujah. We're going to say some of this out loud. Glory to God. Glory to God. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. We bless your name. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. Say this with me. Say, Heavenly Father, come on, say it. Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, shall receive the word. Say, I believe that you created me to have kingdom success and prosperity. Say, Lord, I know now that true success is discovery and fulfillment of my purpose. Say, Lord, I thank you in advance for making my purpose clear in my life, and I decree and declare I will follow that purpose to total fulfillment in Jesus' name. Jesus said, I understand I understand in order to have kingdom success and prosperity that I must endure crisis at every level of maturity and growth. Say, in the name of Jesus, I understand to achieve kingdom success and prosperity I must guard my time. I must work while it's yet day, for the night cometh when no man can work. Say, God, I decree and declare in the name of Jesus that everything I go through is designed to push me into purpose. Jesus. Say, I'm a person full of focus. I will not miss it to the left nor to the right because I am focused in the name of Jesus. As a God, I will work until it comes. In Jesus' name, amen. And thank God. If you believe what you just said, shout about it. Give God praise and glory. Hallelujah! We give you glory, God, for kingdom success and prosperity. Glory to God. Hallelujah! We praise you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. You can be seated.