2nd years Term 4 1 Week 5

0:06 Father God, we thank you Lord this evening that we can just come before you. Father, I thank you, Lord, that you would just do a great and mighty work, Father, in and through every single student, Father, that even as we [clears throat] pray for preparation in ministry, Father, even as we pray for your plan, your purpose to come upon their lives, Father, I thank you that this evening, Father, that as we bring this subject to a close, Father, that each and every single student would first and foremost remember their identity is found in Christ. I thank you, Father, that you would just do what only you can do. That you would affirm, reaffirm, establish, and even reestablish each and every single person. Father, I thank you, Lord, that I pray this evening that not one shall

0:52 fall by the wayside. Yes, Lord. Every single one of them will live out the plan and the purpose that you have for them. And I thank you, Father, that you would bless them, prosper them, keep them, that you would even order their steps, and that your word would be like a lamp unto their feet. That no matter where they go, that the the word would show them the way, Father. So, I thank you, Lord, that I can just pray over every single student this evening, Father. And I thank you, Father, that we can just release the blessing of the Lord upon their lives in Jesus' mighty name. And everybody said, "Amen." And amen. So we're wrapping up final week. We are now down to with this week six weeks but only five weeks left. Um so

1:38 time is is moving and you have all done very well so far. Of course meaning there's only five weeks meaning that graduation is around the corner. Um do you have dates teacher T? Yes I do. But so many of you owe me so many assessments. I don't think I can tell you the dates yet. Um I think by No, I'm kidding. Um so Cape Town is going to be already in November, meaning if you're in Cape Town, please make sure that your assignments are in that your graduation, it's going to be 500 rand graduation um that your robes and everything is ready um paid for and all of that kind of stuff. So for brackenfall or for the Cape Town

2:23 students, it is going to be um drum roll please. It's going to be the first Oh, I said November. It's going to be the 1st of December. 1st of December. So please book your calendar out. It's a Tuesday night. Make sure that you are there. um so that we can graduate you and then all the students are going and I teach great you guys are all going to be on the 17th of January in the Centurion campus it's a Sunday night so it will be a Sunday night um if you are in one of the other campuses where there are evening services please already now put in your notice that you won't be there

3:10 that evening Um but it's going to be in Centurion campus the 17th of Jan for our Koeng students and the 1st of December for our Cape Town students. So that means that I have to have reports and graduation and certificates and all of that kind of stuff already ready before the 1st of December. So please be gracious towards me and get those assignments in that I can start marking, start preparing your reports, start preparing your uh certificates. Otherwise, all that you are going to get is a blank A4 piece of paper. I will shake your hand. You can make it into a paper airplane. All right? So please second years, get cracking with it. Um I

3:57 need to to make sure John Michael's laughing. Do you know that they did that with us when I was in Bible school? Um, we shook their hand and everybody got a A4, those big A4 envelopes and inside there was not your report. It was not your certificate. It was a piece of paper to say, "Have you paid all your fees? If you have, you may go to the office and collect your report and your certificate." So, I mean, I don't think of these great ideas. I've actually walked the walk. I know. I've been a student. You all forget. I was there once upon a time. Um so please make sure that uh I can actually give you a certificate and a report at the end of the year. If you are doing it for enrichment purposes, your report will just say completed. Um and but if you are doing it for the the mark system

4:44 then please give me enough time to work out otherwise I may deduct like I don't know 40% 50% who knows. All right. Sounds like monopoly. I feel I'm telling you I'm telling you that well I mean that's one way to pay 500 rand and get an automatic A+ all the way. I mean, it would save me time and you time. No, I'm kidding. We don't take bribes in Bible school. We do things right because that is the way of the Lord. But please, on a serious note, get those assessments in. Go check in on your student when you log into the website. What is still outstanding? If there is something outstanding, let me know because that means that it hasn't synced it to me because I haven't marked it. So, please go check, get those subjects closed. Um,

5:31 otherwise it's just a whole bunch of gaps in your marking. All right, I am going to be stopping accepting assessments um around about the 20th. All right, so I'm going to start playing the clip and let's start off with the first one. I'm here. Use me. Here am I. Jesus calls. You say, "Yes, Lord, gladly." And you cry at the altar and Lord, thank you for your mercy and thank you for calling me and I'll give you my life and I'll do this and I'll do this and I'll do this and I'll do this and

6:16 next thing you know, he puts you on the shelf and ignores you. That's test number one. Why does he do that? Come on. Very simple. He's looking at your motives. He's checking your motives. The minute you go through this time test, that's the time that God begins to purify the motives inside of you. You will face trials and tribulations and difficulties where you will have to rely on the promises. >> Things will hit you hard and there'll be

7:03 nowhere else to go but the Bible. >> That's called the work test. In other words, suddenly uh uh disastrous things happen. Um uh suddenly you are persecuted or you are tried by your family or neglected by your parents or uh accused uh falsely and what you got to do and this only place to go. God will see where will they go when these troubles begin. Will they go away from me or will they come closer to me? God will put you through a season where the word is the only place you can turn to. You will be tested on your ability to

7:50 serve. I call that the servants test. God will put you in a place to see are you willing to serve another man. Everybody wants to serve God. We have to serve another pastor, another ministry before we can be chosen by God. God watches how do you treat his servants before he can even choose you. You say, "Well, how long will my test last?" As long as it takes to get the world out of you.

8:43 I went through those 10 tests in three years. Three years all it took before God said, "All right, it's time. Let's go." Now, I pray that's how long. And I served a man named Jim Pointer. I took care of that man. And he would say to me, "Benny, why are you doing this?" I said because God is watching and I want to make sure I prove myself faithful to the Lord. He was a free motherless preacher who took me with him. I would go with him everywhere he would preach and I carried that accordion. It was heavier than me. But I served him and then he had a stroke and and and I even stayed with him then he died and went to be with with the Lord later and he became a

9:28 father to me in the spirit. I serve that man. >> I will tell you, I'm I'm standing here and before the God I serve, if Jim was alive today, I would still serve him. >> Even though I'm in my own ministry, I still serve him because I don't believe you quit serving. >> No way. Never. So warfare will come at you. You'll develop your weapons of war. And there's only one way out of warfare. Walk in the spirit. Walking in the spirit defeats every enemy. Number nine. I hope you're learning something. >> Number nine. Right be right before God uses you. The last test

10:17 is your vision. God will test your vision. He will come back to the vision of your life. Nehemiah chapter 1, I'm not going to give you because we're almost out of time. Nehemiah 1 1-11, Nehemiah 2 1-6, we see Nehemiah's vision tested. His vision was to rebuild the walls. His vision was to rebuild the temple. His vision was tested, Michael, to the limit. Enemies arose, tried to stop him from rebuilding. So he would build with one hand, fight with the other. Your vision becomes blurred by by girlfriends or friends or people that come in your way that try to steal away what God really wants to do

11:03 with you. And you got to stick with your vision and your vision will be tested. Now when you can prove to God that you still hold on to that vision, you're almost there. Your vision will be tested. Right? Habac 2 verse 1-3 talks about the vision. What you must do with the vision. In fact, can I give it to you quickly? I said, can I give it to you quickly? >> Okay, let's go to Habac, please. Mr. Barack, you turn to Habac uh chapter 2. Read for me verse 1, 2, and three. And I'll tell the people right now what they must do with this vision. Okay, let's Habac chapter 2 verse 1, 2,

11:49 and three. I will stand upon my watch and set me upon the tower and will watch to see what he will say unto me and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And the Lord answered me and said, "Write the vision." Now, the first thing you do when when your vision is retested, rewrite it down. Here's what God has called me to do. because God will has has targeted your life for a ministry of your own. That's the vision for your life. In the meantime, you've been called to serve another man. You you're walking on that road and the

12:36 last thing God will do before your own ministry is birth is your vision will be tested. You write it down. Number two, >> make it plain upon. >> Make it plain. You make it plain means you rehearse it to yourself to make sure you understand the vision for your life. It is not foggy. It is plain. It is simple. You target it. Number three, >> that he may run that readeth it. >> Now the third thing you do to see a vision fulfilled is go after it. But these are the things you do when you refocus the vision. Your vision will be attacked, tested. That's the last thing that'll happen before God promotes you. The minute you refocus on that vision, write it down, make it clear, go for it.

13:23 Now comes the last and final test, you will be tested. And here's what I call this test. God will test your ability in promoting you. In other words, it's a promotion test. He'll see, can this man handle exaltation? Can he handle promotion? Can he handle it when he gets on the platform and people start clapping? [applause] Because the man of God, like a bonkey, may have you minister one day. That's the promotion test. That's saying to you, you've proven yourself faithful to me, such and such. Come preach a message. Suddenly, God will watch. Let's see how he handles that.

14:10 Will he become proud, arrogant? Will he think to himself, "Mhm, I can replace Bonnie now. Just push him out of the way." God will see that in you. He'll test your heart. Remember, I I gave you last night. God tests the hearts. Proverbs 23:26 says, "Give him your heart. He'll test it. He'll ponder the heart. He'll search the heart." Jeremiah 7:17 tells us, "God searches the hearts." Now, when that time for promotion comes, God will see how you handle it. My promotion moment came. I'll never forget it as long as I live. I was in Toronto, Canada at a little Methodist church outside Toronto. A fellow who was a missionary in

14:55 Honduras asked me to come uh with him. He was preaching on a Sunday morning. That was the first time ever I was behind a pulpit. I wasn't in the ministry yet. I wasn't in a healing ministry yet. I had no ministry. I was still serving Jim Pointer. And this dear precious missionary said, "Benny, come up and and and and speak." First of all, I used to stutter, so I couldn't talk anyways. Which was a marvelous blessing at that moment. I just stood there and amazingly I was able to pray a very short prayer and went and sat down. And he said, "But I wanted you to minister him." What I said to him, I said, "This is not my time. This is your service. I respect your office. I cannot take from you what

15:42 doesn't belong to me. And I believe God looked at it and said, "Good boy." Because if I if I stepped in and pushed him out and began to preach and thought it was my service, I'll just be canceled out of the way. Be careful how you handle that last uh uh moment. that test. If I I'm I'm I'm going to say something that may not be understood, but I'll say it. God is very sensitive about that. >> Don't dishonor his servant. >> Don't dishonor his servant by taking away from him his mantle before he gives it to you. Remember

16:30 that Elijah's mantle fell from the chariot. Elisha didn't say to him, "Give it to me before you go." He would have lost his office. Did you hear what I just said? Elijah was on his way to heaven and Elisha said, "Give me I want a double portion." Now, some people will say, "Wait, wait, wait. Elijah, don't go yet before I get the mantle now, please." Had Elisha asked Elijah for the mantle that was on his body, he would have been dismissed from the call. But while the chariot was up, the mantle was given to him by itself. God will give you the mantle. You won't have to pull it off the man's shoulder. >> Oh yeah.

17:16 >> Did you hear that? >> That's called the promotion test. >> He'll promote you. He'll give you a a a moment in the light. Bonnke is a gracious man. He'll say, "Come on, minister. I need I I would love to bless you." Don't pull the mantle off his shoulders. It's still his. Let's all stand, please. That's my teaching for this morning. >> All right. Good evening. Sorry about that, students. We just had a bit of a technical issue on the first year's grouping. Um, so I am back and ready to assist. All right. Um, just due to battling with the videos for some other reason, I won't be able to play you video number

18:02 10 now. I might pop it on the group unless I can sort out the technical issue a little bit later with the first years. But I'm going to jump straight into the notes. So, we've been discussing quite a bit, you know, as far as preparation for ministry and as far as being chosen and we've established, you know, that God has called you. God has called all of us into his service, into whatever platform and place. You remember the story of Peter that we had gone through and we spoke about pursuing God which is so important when it comes to preparation in ministry that if we do not pursue God if we do not pursue God then it's going

18:50 to not be very long before you dry out or before you feel exhausted or before you cannot anymore because we cannot do what God is asking us to do outside of him. Um it cannot just be based on our own ability. So we spoke about that and then last week we spoke about being you know the church the body of Christ the necessity of understanding that God doesn't just call us but he calls us to something greater to a fellowship to become part of the body of Christ. And so this week we're going to wrap up preparing for a life of ministry um by discussing seeking out disciplehip. All right. So seek out disciplehip all

19:36 the time when preparing for ministry. Never ever have an attitude like I know and because I know you know that is what it is. So seek out disciplehip when preparing for ministry. The word disciple means to be a learner. When Peter and James and John and even the other apostles followed Christ, they became his disciples. They chose to be with him and to listen and to learn from him. So in a broader sense, all believers are continually being discipled by God himself through his word, his spirit and his life experiences. Yet God also desires that disciplehip should be lived out through intentional relationships with other and

20:24 may I say mature believers. When it comes from disciplehip, it is from somebody that will invest in you, that will guide in you and somebody that already models Christ likeness. So disciplehip is not just about information. It's really about transformation and true disciples will grow and usher a person into a deeper walk with God. So that kind of shaping will really shape who we become. They say um show me who you hang around and I'll show you what your future will look like. You know, if you hang around with chickens, you can be an eagle, but eventually you'll become like a chicken. I'll never forget I was much much younger and I went camping with my parents and there was a kudu. The kudu's

21:10 name was Daisy. But because this massive kudu called Daisy grew up with horses, Daisy walked around between the campsites. She had no idea she was a kudu. In her head because she was raised with the horses, she acted like a horse. She walked like a horse. She even ate like horses would eat. Um, and so Daisy never understood that she was much bigger than your average size horse. And I remember Daisy, we were all taking an afternoon nap, my parents in the caravan, me in the tent, and I woke up to a crunching sound. And here was Daisy with her head through my parents's caravan window, busy helping herself to the fruit bowl.

21:57 But Daisy never understood her capacity. She never understood how amazing she could be. She never understood who she really was because identity is built by those we hang around with, those we assoc associate ourselves with, those that we talk together with. All right? So be careful of I always talk about the power of association. So if we look at the example that we have in the Bible between Paul and Timothy probably one of the best relationships that we can see disciplehip Timothy came through faith because of one of Paul's teachings and then he spent years um being mentored by by Paul and by the time Paul wrote one and two Timothy Timothy was already in

22:44 leadership in uh if in the church in Ephesus in the Ephesian church but he was still even though in a position of authority and in a position in the church. He was still receiving mentorship and spiritual guidance from Paul. So Paul calls Timothy his true child in faith and his beloved child. But through every single letter, Paul commends, he honors, he exalts and reminds Timothy of Timothy's calling. So it is important to have the right kind of people around you when it comes to mentorship. Disciplehip. Why disciplehip matters? It strengthens faith. That's the first thing. It strengthens faith. Colossians chapter 2. Number two, it

23:31 provides accountability. Hebrews chapter 10. It provides accountability. Number three, it develops a Christlike character. That's in Romans 8. Number four, it equips us for ministry in Mark chapter 3. And then number five, it fosters multiplication. 2 Timothy 2 and verse 2. And so when we seek out disciplehip or you have disciples seeking to come under your um leadership, your guidance, your mentorship, whatever it may be, first of all, before going under somebody or allowing somebody to come under you, first go and pray. Pray. Seek God's guidance in the matter. Are you the right person? Is this the right person?

24:18 Is this the kind of fruit you want in your life? Number two, look for godly examples. Find people that are succeeding, people that are doing it, people that you can look up to. So, if you are looking to go and start off a business, all right, and you're looking um ultimately for somebody to mentor you in the business arena, um I don't think it's a great idea to go to the person who has folded six times in his business. Okay? I don't think it is a good idea to go and speak to a grade 11 person if you want mentorship in business. All right? So look for good godly examples. And for me I have one

25:06 spiritual father, one spiritual mother, but then I do have mentors. Mentors that for example in the Bible school that I look up to, mentors that help me grow in that avenue. I have a business mentor, a person that I look up to in business wise. Um, I have mentors for example that help me with the visual comms for example, the photography people that I look up to and respect that have done greater things than I have done, but I like their fruit and I aspire to become like that. So there's nothing wrong in having good godly examples, especially ones that are able to invest back in your life. Then be intentional. Like you know, a lot of people watch TV church,

25:54 right? Uh they're in Joyce Meyer's church. They might be in TD Jake's church. Um and you know, great, but they are not intentionally walking a journey with you. You can't phone Joyce M and say, "Hey, Joyce Mai, it's Tanya. I'm watching from Ptoria. Um, I'm going through something right now. Can you assist me? Can you help me?" Because they are not intentionally directly impacting your life. All right? So, when it comes to seeking out disciplehip, mentorship, go and directly ask them. Be like, "Hey, I just want to know, you know, I really look up towards you and you're a great home cell leader. you have or you're a great person who leads people to the

26:40 Lord and I want you to journey with me in faith. Maybe it's somebody who is a amazing prayer warrior. You know, I remember going when I used to be in the prayer rooms and when I first started in revival church and they would sh and I mean I I could barely even get I mean I was you know I I was man it I was so pulled back and so intimidated by these giants not only in age but in spiritual capacity like literally pulling down the atmospheres. And here I come with my little sandwich prayer. Lord, bless my sandwich in Jesus' name. Amen. Kind of prayer. All right? And they've got these powerful prayers and I feel intimidated.

27:27 But I was intentional to go to people and say, "Listen, journey with me, help with me." Um, I remember when it came to wanting to get married, I wanted a good godly kind of advice. Um, the world offers a lot of wrong advice when it comes to marriages. And I wanted good, sound, God, God advice. And so what I did is I intentionally went to women in the church and I asked them to tell me about marriage, the good, the bad, and the ugly as they say. Um, but it was for me important to get intentional good kind of advice and that helped me massively. Then number four, be teachable. Always be willing to learn, to be corrected, and to grow. It's not always fun to be, you know, corrected,

28:13 but be teachable. And then number five, and this is the big one, commit to the process. It may mean that you need to be vulnerable and be like okay I mean if I take just the ladies conference um I had to become vulnerable with certain um the the guest speaker was talking about nearended issues like you know if you are scared to fail or if you are always negative or if you are um if you need validation or whatever your near-ended weakness can be. I had to become vulnerable in that moment to ask the Holy Spirit to do a work and to see my mentor say to me, listen, you know, you you need to go and you need to deal with certain things and you got to

29:01 be able to commit to the process. It is a process. It does take time, but be consistent. But the other side of disciplehip is not just you seeking disciplehip. It is coming to the place that you are able to now go and make disciples. You see, a person who's gone through a good disciplehip process makes good strong disciples after them. And I've seen it over and over again. So when you have come through the process, you are able to guide, to lead, and to impart much better than a person who kind of just got the title. you know, you're able to say, "Listen, this is what I've learned through scripture. This is what life has taught me. This is what being a

29:48 Christian has taught me. This is what, you know, just daytoday things have taught me." So, I want to say that a disciple maker is a disciple with good experience. All right? So, have that kind of experience. 1 Corinthians 11:1 says, "Follow me as I follow Christ." And that for me is a beautiful scripture. As you follow Christ, others will begin to follow. And as you disciple, as long as you're following Christ, you will do no harm to the body of Christ. You know, we have sometimes the wrong kind of people and the wrong kind of places doing the wrong kind of things. But if you can stick to this principle, follow me as I follow Christ, you will not go wrong.

30:33 So the fun part, getting to the 10 tests. Number one, the time test, right? The time test. Habac 2:3, for the vision is yet for an appointed time. Though it's terry, wait for it because it will surely come. The time test is the wait. The wait and the wait and the wait and the wait again. It is the test that is designed to build your faith but crucify your flesh. It is a test that instills God's timing into us. And it's not a comfortable one, but it will purify your motive and your attitude. Many people come in and they fly into

31:20 the church and they, you know, they want to sit in the front row or whatever the case may be. And what I do many times is I put them on a time test because there's nothing that will show me your heart like a time test. There is nothing that will bring to surface everything and anything like a time test. So a time test, you know, God cannot use us when we are still bound by selfish motives, by selfish attitudes. We have to get that out of us. And so a time test will bring that to the surface. Do people like the time test? No way. The time test is a test where

32:05 even people around you succeed before you even get a chance to succeed. And then everyone's like, that's so unfair. How did that happen? How did they get more blessed than I got? How come they receiving this? Why are they acknowledged teacher T? And I mean I I can talk about this because it's BI. How come they got, you know, a a certificate that has a P in front of it or evangel in front of it, you know, and people get upset because and then I go just remember there is a time test. So often people will come to me and they're like because they see their peers maybe, you know, um being ordained or running a

32:51 department or speaking on communion or speaking in the deliverance conference and they go, "It's so unfair." But some people are put on a time test. And I want to tell you, if you ever find yourself in a time test, the quickest way to get out of it is to get your heart right. We were I was dealing with it just this week um with somebody that was just like, you know, the Lord's blessing everybody except her. And then I'm going, it's the time test. You say you're called for all these things. You say all these things. You're just being put on a time test. God is testing your heart. He's testing your motives. Number two, the word test. Psalms 105:E 19. until the time came to fulfill his

33:36 dreams. The Lord tested Joseph's character. Man, God will allow his word to test you over and o over and over again. So, the word of God says in and you guys know I've often prayed the scripture Timothy 2:15 to study to show yourself approved. But you must also study until the word is written in your heart and not just in your notes, not just in your Bible. So when his word flows from your heart, you can begin to stand on it. Um the word of God speaks about the double-edged sword. And if you go study out the double-edged sword, it's it's sharp on both sides. Um but it is where that sword is um when you go

34:25 study out the Greek it is double breathd in other words God breathed his word the first time but when we breathe it the second time it becomes double-edged so the word of God was breathed when he was giving it to the earth to write the Bible that was the first time we got the word of God but when you quote the word of God you make it double-edged So it mustn't just be in your mouth. It must be in your heart. It mustn't just be something that you know you you quote like a chap fact, you know, open up a chap rapper and you get a fact and you read it and you feel like that's how it works. There's some people that go, "Oh, I read my Bible and that's fantastic. What'd you read?" No, no, let me just get my screen out and there's one little

35:12 verse. I'm going that doesn't even count. I mean the Chappies rapper has more value than that. Now that's great. That's a start, but that's not enough in this kind of a test. So, if you were just happily going along waiting for somebody to send you a pretty little picture with a couple of words on it, um, and calling that your Bible study, tonight, the Lord digs you deeper in a word test. But the word must flow from our hearts. It must be something that we can stand off in and out of season. and students if I can give you just one small nugget of wisdom from I don't know I I think I worked out if I take my childhood years where I was serving the kingdom of god while I was still in school um I mean I was running a youth

35:59 group at 16 years old um I was starting with a home cell when I was 11 12 years old um take it from somebody who's who's been around the block for more than a decade more than two decad decades. I would ask you to seek the Lord with prayer and fasting and supplication and get a scripture over your life. Get something that God is is telling you and talking to you because in these kinds of tests, the only thing that is going to keep you sane is knowing the promise of the Lord. I don't I don't know that all of you are on the word which again I say every single week go on the word because somehow while I'm preparing the word it is speaking into

36:46 the second year and the first year classes and last night I was dealing with Genesis chapter 14 Genesis chapter 15 and I was I was chatting about how God had or or how Abram he had not yet become Abraham had asked God four times to repeat himself about the promise of land and the promise of his child. Four times, four different occasions. And it isn't because of a place of doubt. It is because of a place of I want to strengthen my faith in it. So, I want the reassurance. I'm not doubting that you're going to do this, but reassure me. Because God says to him the first time, listen, I'll make them so innumerous you won't be able to count. Now, that's pretty big. And then the second time he's like, "Okay, no, no,

37:33 no. Look up at the stars. You see the stars?" Because he could count the stars. So, it made it feel more realistic. It made it feel like, "Okay, because I can see this. I can wrap my faith around it." Um, and the first time he didn't he just said it would be a son. When when Abraham is is in this place of asking God for confirmation again, he's like, "Okay, so it's not going to be, you know, my son. And so what I want to tell you is that whenever I've been tested in my life in and various seasons, seasons that were really challenging, what I did was I went back I went back to the scripture God gave me because that was an unshakable promise. The word of God is never going to change. His word

38:20 remains the same yesterday, today, and forever more. So, you know, it's it's fine to get a prophetic word to confirm it, but men and women of God fall all the time. So, the last thing you want is to have a prophetic word, and that man or woman of God fails in some arena, and now you think they've failed you in that word, and so you walk away from God. So, go and fast and pray and get a scripture over your life. I did it for my kids. Um, and I see God speaking all the time through their scripture. I always say God loved me the most. So when the when this pastor told me to get a scripture over my life, God gave me a whole chapter and I said that's just because how God is with me, right? Um, I turn to

39:05 the word. I know that if I'm going through something hectic, God will send me to some other daughter of Zion. If I see those words, I tremble and I shake because I know God is speaking very serious seriously to me. Um, but I I got my my scripture was Isaiah 49 and it is actually called the servants's command and I didn't know it was the servants's command but it is really a scripture that speaks to me. So when I couldn't fall pregnant, it spoke to me. When I felt like I shouldn't be in ministry anymore, it spoke to me. when I felt like I'm not sure which way to go, what's going on. So, every single time I turn back to that scripture and I repay it through. So, if I can give you a

39:50 little bit of advice, get a scripture. Get the word because the word doesn't change. The third test is the servants test. Luke 16:10, whoever can be trusted with very little can be trusted with much. So this test proves your faithfulness. You can never make an able man or you can never make an able man faithful, but you can make a faithful man able. Right? If you're not faithful, I I mean, you can be gifted, but if you're not faithful, no thank you. All right? Um, if you stay and serve even when it's uncomfortable, even when it's not a great place of honor, even when it

40:38 is something seemed mediocre, this is the kind of test that tests if you're going to be faithful to the long run or not. We I I Pastor J and I have the term never besome. We see it all the time. I mean, we've been in ministry for long enough and we'll see the new broom come in. And the new broom may come with all sorts of promises. And I mean, it looks like a a brand new broom and it a brand new broom sweeps well for a while, but then it isn't the same. And so many people come as as a new as a new broom. I think it was with you or first years I can't remember it was with you guys that

41:23 I was I was chatting about depending on how long you want to be. You can be a pumpkin which is a seed that takes six to nine months and there you are and gone tomorrow or you can be an oak tree that takes years and years and years but stands and becomes steadfast and becomes valuable and becomes strong and becomes in the Lord. It's your choice. But then there never be a Sims. The the pumpkin seeds that come in, get planted, shoot out a beautiful pumpkin. They're in today and gone tomorrow. And so be careful of that. Be careful of missing the servants test. The servants test is a test of loyalty. It's a test of faithfulness. Elisha and Elijah went through it and because he was um loyal, he got a double portion. Number four,

42:10 the wilderness test. This one is a terrible one. Like, I can handle you asking me to know the word. I know the word of God, right? You can ask me to do the most simplest things. I'm I'm really quite okay. Like, the Martha in me would choose to sit and babysit the toilets for a whole conference than to actually have to get on stage. I I would be content checking on the toilet paper levels because that's me. But the wilderness test, this is a personal test that is very difficult for me. This is a test. Matthew 4:1, then Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. This test teaches you the ways of the spirit by

42:56 stripping away the ways of the world. This is a painful test. It is a test. I mean, Moses spent 40 years in the wilderness. Jesus spent time in the wilderness. You cannot bypass this test. It's going to be there. And the wilderness is not a punishment. It's a place of separation, consecration, and teaching, man. It is it is a quiet place. It is a lonely place. And you have to come to the place in the spirit that you can discern cuz many people find this test as punishment. And I I find it as terrorizing like I feel is the most terrorizing test for me because I don't

43:42 like isolation. I don't like feeling separated from the Holy Spirit. I I don't like feeling cut off. And that's what it will feel like. It will feel like it will feel like going to church and nobody has a prophetic word for you anymore. You know what have I done wrong? Why am I being punished? Everybody else has got a word. Nobody's got a word for me, right? I promise you I go through this test often for some other reason. I'm just saying, okay, it's my harder test. All right, the other ones I I I got through easy. This one for me is more difficult because I don't like being cut off. I don't like going into that place of consecration and being alone because for me it's it's easier in the crowd. It's

44:29 easier just to go with the flow. It's easier just to but in this place it is really stepping into the stillness of God. You know how hard it is when God gives you the scripture be still and know that I am God aka Tanya's version shut it I'm going Lord you don't understand Lord you're not hearing me Lord. And then I then I get it again be still. And then I'm like but Lord how am I supposed to be still? And then I get again like be still. And I'm like, Lord, I'm trying to be still and then the penny will drop that I kind of got to just [snorts] shut it down. All right, number five, the patience test. Psalms 37:7, be still. Be still. Huh? I told

45:15 you, be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. See, I've got no problem to wait patiently. But it's that be still. Be still that I'm still trying to conquer, right? But the patience test, Noah was 500 years old before God revealed his assignment. Okay? Abraham had to wait 25 years for his son. So the patience test, the patience test is there to refine our obedience and to wait and wait upon the Lord and so that will come. Lord, why is my breakthrough not happening? Why? The patience test. Number six, the frustration test. 2 Corinthians 4:17. For our light and momentary troubles are

46:01 achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So this test it when it comes to the frustration test it takes your eyes off of the physical because when everything is broken then what else are you going to look at when everything in the natural is going all wrong I mean it's not difficult then to picture yourself in eternity right when everything is going terrible everything is breaking everything is not working. It's so much easier to go hang around in the upper room and just pretend like none of it exists. So, the frustration test will take your eyes off of the

46:48 temporary stuff and put it back on eternal focus. All of a sudden, in the frustration test, it's going to be a test of a series of events or a series of things happening and you're so frustrated, you're so irritated. And then you go back to um it's Ecclesiastes that says vanity, vanity. All things are vanity. You come to this place that once you're like at that brink of wanting to pull your hair out and everybody around you's hair out that you're all bald together, this aha moment comes and it's like, okay, but hang on. Is this actually important? Is this worth actually getting worked up about? So the frustration test is there to help us. It's there to sometimes poke us.

47:35 Remember last week um you you kick the the goats. If you remember Paul when he was kicking against the goats, the goats were there to poke you, to keep you in direction. And so the frustration test is exactly that. And we can kick and scream against it. Um or we can use it to draw us back to the kingdom. Okay. So the frustration test is there. The prayer test 1 Thessalonians 5:17, pray without ceasing. When you are pressed, what comes out? Anger, fear, frustration contentment resentment. So, this is, you know, when when God moves Egypt out of your heart, when you've got to pray and pray without ceasing. I don't know if you know

48:22 sometimes you can pray with a person and the next day they come with a testimony and thinking but Lord I've been praying for 36 months and my mountain hasn't moved. All right or so that is is where God really takes Egypt out of our hearts that we pray and we pray irrelevant of the outcome irrelevant of what is going to happen. We pray just because we love him not because of anything else. Then the warfare test. 2 Corinthians 10 verse4. This develops strength. There's nothing like a warfare. There's nothing like things arising that can cause us to become stronger. Now listen, God is not an author of confusion. He's

49:08 not an author to cause decay or loss or death or anything like that. So many people think that because they're facing a battle, it is because of God. Now, it's not because of God. The reason why we're losing the battle is because we don't have the armor of God on. The battles are coming because we have a very rife power and principality and enemy. The problem with the warfare test is that many of us don't even make it to the test. By the time the enemy has shot the first dart, we're pulled out on the floor because we haven't got the armor of God on. So, when it comes to the warfare test, it has got to do with pulling down strongholds. God doesn't go, listen, I'm

49:54 going to put up strongholds. I'm going to put up an obstacle course for you. The obstacle course is there because the word of God says that the devil is the ruler of this ion. Ion meaning age, right? He's the ruler right now that is in rulership on this earth. Another scripture, he walks around like a roaring lion seeing whom he can devour. So if I can put it this way, he is the one who set up all the obstacles. He's the one who's put up all the strongholds. This warfare test is how we fight it using what we have. We have prayer. We have the word. We have righteousness. We have our salvation. The problem is many of us buckle out of this thinking that

50:39 God is a cruel God putting us through boot camp and how terrible God could think to put us for 6 months on boot camp when God said, "I'm not putting you in the fight to lose. I'm putting you in the fight to show you how to win." So that's the warfare test. Number nine, the vision test. Habacook 2:2. Write the vision. Make it plain on tablets that he who may run. He that runs can read it. This one is going to strengthen your prayer. It's going to strengthen your perseverance. And you need to be able to see beyond. That's the vision test. Can you see beyond? When Abraham going back to last night's lesson, go check it out. I'll load it up

51:24 before the end of the week onto RevivalBI's YouTube. But when Abraham is about to co covenant to say that his sons will inherit the land, he falls asleep. God puts him asleep, but he falls asleep and the first thing that he hears is how his children are going to be in four years of a problem. It's going to be hard for them, but thereafter they will come with great assets and they will come to that land. But first, it's going to get dark. Before it's going to get light. And so when it comes to the vision test, do you have the vision inside that even if you hear the negative, even if you hear the struggle? Even if you hear what it's going to take to get there, will you still go on? And so many people fall out on that

52:10 vision test because they don't want to endure. Number 10, the final test, the promotion test. 1 Peter 5:6, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." This test is a test that comes from the Lord, not man. Man can promote you. I can now print out a certificate and send it to you that you are the CEO of Pick and Pay and it means nothing. It means nothing cuz what promotion can man give? I can make you a gold plaque. I can I can make you a number plate that says you are the king of South Africa,

52:56 the president of South Africa, the archbishop of South Africa. Man's appointment means nothing. If God has not promoted, you have not been promoted at all. So wait, wait patiently. Wait, be in the word. Persevere, seek God, be in disciplehip. Remember to pursue God. Why? Because in all of this that I've spoken to you, God will promote you. I was in the church operating under my ministry, my mantle, my calling for I kid you not students at least 3 to four years before I was ever ordained. Other people were ordained. Teacher T didn't get her until

53:45 four years later. And that was for me okay cuz I was still operating in what God had put on my life. When I got my hordana as teacher team, there were no angels. There was no red carpet. I didn't get a special parking when I went to our pick and pay or even at church. I did I mean when I walked, they didn't put gold down. They didn't lay down golding for me. If God doesn't promote you, you're not promoted at all. Let God do the promotion. He will anoint you. He will appoint you. And he will carry you. So let me end off with this. Ministry is

54:31 not just for the elite Christian. It's reserved for the radical, not the religious. The ministry is the responsibility of every believer. But it's your choice if you want to or if you don't. Luke 5 11. So they pulled their boats on the shore, left everything and followed him. Ministry is for those who learn over time that their all is in Christ. It is for those who pursue knowing him, who connect with his church despite its flaws, despite its politics, despite the color of the carpet that you don't like and embraces the church as Jesus's model of disciplehip. So take the necessary

55:17 steps to prepare for the future in ministry. No matter your age, your profession, your circumstance, live in such a way that the world will recognize that you've been with Jesus. So with closing, if everybody can just bow your eyes, bow your heads, close your eyes, bow your eyes, close your heads, whichever order you want to do it in. Father, I pray over every single student this evening. Father, in preparation for ministry, I pray one thing over their life. That no matter what they do, where they go, what they achieve, how they achieve it, no matter what test they're in, that they will always be seen as one who has been with Jesus. That's my only prayer for them, Lord. That no matter what they do, that they would have been

56:04 seen with Jesus. And so, I leave that with every student this evening. No matter what you do, what you accomplish, may you always be one who has been seen with Jesus. Amen. So I'm going to give over to Nvula and then I will see you in the second session or the third session rather. Thank you. Good evening. Good evening everyone. How are you? sign Danila a sign at least [laughter] good evening how are you not and John Michael good evening this is our last class today I am still in Kimberly so

56:52 it's good to be home [sighs and gasps] you see when they say I'm working from home I'm working from home home this is now working from home because I'm at my parents house okay good evening and uh we will stand on what um on the prayer already from from pastor Tanya Mr. Davids you know was when they have these formal functions in government and then they have to observe protocol to say the chairperson and whatever so people no longer do go that way they just say I stand on the protocol that has already been laid n so for this session as well I stand on the prayer that has already been laid as pastor Tanya was closing the the prayer session so we will just close in prayer

57:39 I want us to go back to the point of last week before we even that what what there's a question that you had and we couldn't answer it. remember if you can just remind me. Okay, maybe you'll catch it, you know, when you remember it. Uh uh uh remember we were talking about the leadership, you know, how to lead as an individual, how to lead as a uh lead one another, lead an organization. And then do you remember now He's trying to unmute, I think.

58:26 Are you trying to unmute? It doesn't seem so. >> No, the headphones that I have on, I have to disconnect first because it doesn't have speakers on. >> Okay. Can you remember what your question was or your comment? >> Yes. My question was um how I I I received the feedback of my store visit and then with that I just um went and give them the wrong information just as is. Yes. >> And then afterwards I felt like maybe I >> I stepped on their toes. Maybe I gave it the wrong way. Maybe they picked up picked it up the wrong way. I I remember

59:12 Danila also made a comment on it. >> Yeah. Then I felt guilty while we was in it because um one of the points was as a leader we need to uh respect the people that that we lead and [clears throat] we need to consider their feelings and and how to approach them. I think it was something like that. >> Yes. Yes. Yes. Okay. I remember and I remember even the conversation we had because I remember Danila also made an input. I think the reason why I was still lingering on it is to say that look because the way I understood it you know the person that you are reporting to conveyed the message and you had to convey it to the people that are reporting to you and then I said usually

59:59 you know there's a lot of things that come to play because sometimes let us say you are uh uh reporting to not the way she says it unfortunately you also catch feeling things if I have to explain it that way. So by the time you go and relay it, you relay it not the way it was relayed to you but also the impact that it made on you. So as your aquaters because say by by example a as the your manager is relating the message is like yes Andrew you are also too soft with these people that is why they do one two three. So by the time you relay the message you are also impacted because already you are relaying this message and in between you are the

1:00:45 failure. Maybe you could have been labeled as a failure. I'm just making an example. I'm not saying that's the case but also sometimes you know that sometimes we become very lenient on the people that are reporting to us and we actually catch straws and and weapons on their behalf and yet we find them not to be grateful. But they can't be because they do not know what you are fighting for. But at the same time, we also cannot be responsible on how they react. Because remember today I could be some saying something to you. But because there's already so many things that had happened, you respond to me from the place where you are emotionally at that time. That is why you know when it comes to children of the Lord, we are able to first pray. You know, you'll say, "Let me pray about it before I go and and you

1:01:32 know maybe and and and relate it." But next week I could be saying the very same thing to you and you do not become angry. So so so I think the feelings of guilt sometimes you want to carry too much because you cannot be responsible on how people are going to react to you because it all depends you know what are the uh uh um circumstances surrounding that. Let me give you an example and it is not necessarily leadership. So there was a time that I was in grade 8 and a friend of mine came to school but she was kind of burned. So I did not understand what was happening but she had like she had hidden it but whilst we are standing there we are waiting for the teacher.

1:02:21 I just went like what happened like but somebody else went but she cried and when everybody's asking what happened no it's asking whatever but I know because I was close to her I like said what happened it's just that the other one went ah and by the time she's crying I'm the one that's next to her but as dev Do you understand? And now all of a sudden she felt as if now all eyes were on her. So that those surrounding circumstances I felt so guilty but [screaming] after she could have like maybe 2 months after she only tells me

1:03:06 then not I was not crying because of what you asked is the one that went ah and I'm thinking but everybody blamed me the whole time. Why didn't you say it then? Do you understand? So sometimes we feel guilty but I'm responding to you in that way simply because of I've got my own frustrations but there there's no excuse on how people then react to you. That is why we must at all time they say we must try to regulate we must try to regulate our emotions. So I think um that is just what I wanted to answer on so we can close it at that. Let me now share screen. [laughter] I'm a Zoom person.

1:03:55 Let me go. Are you able to see the screen? >> Oh, good. >> Okay. Okay. Sharp. So now we are on our not you must just know I'm preparing you now. You are going to warmly close for us in prayer. So yeah. Okay. Then we go to session five. And then as I said session five is now chapter 10. And then here I tried to incorporate scriptures as much as I could. I just don't know now how to move this. Let me do this. Okay.

1:04:43 Okay. Number one, when it comes to leadership, one of the other things is to look, you are leading because there's people that you need to lead and then they say we must obey, you know, leadership or obey authority. But just like the example that we made now to say you cannot force people to obey. Sometimes it's their own personalities is their own issues. And unfortunately also we end up uh uh uh leading people that are so rude towards us. There's unfortunate thing. Those are the things we are starting to experience now. If we even look at even children at school now how they are turning against their teachers you know in some of the schooling things that we know. But when it comes to to to to leadership, people

1:05:28 can obey you, but you cannot force them. But now the word of God tells us how to make people to obey us gladly. Gladly. So number one, do not give unreasonable instruction. People rebel against wicked, wicked and unre unreasonable men. And and here there's something else for me. I think yes this is what is written in the book but for me I think there's something else because it also end up going with character and how the person how your leader relates because sometimes Danila can give an instruction and I can give an instruction but the way that character-wise or how we relate to her you might end up obeying this one and then disobeying the other. That is why

1:06:14 sometimes you know you have an engagement then people say like Andrew is rude then you think huh which Andrew are we talking about the same Andrew. So can you already see there it's it's they say usually it's not what you say it's how you say it. So one of the biggest thing is giving unreasonable instructions but also sometimes the unreasonable instructions as well is is is how do you then re communicate them and how do you relate them but obviously there's unreasonable that is very obvious but there's unreasonable that people will say it's unreasonable even if it's not let's give an example of unreasonleness you say to people I'm going to expect you today guys let's put in some work and whatever let's please see if we cannot knock off

1:07:00 at Is unreasonable? Maybe you didn't tell the people on time and then people are not going to be paid over time because others don't care. You can say work until 10 as long as as long as they are getting paid. But then depending also how the relationship is, how they view you and how you also conduct yourself, have they trusted you, do they are you leading with integrity and all of that? Then you find people gladly saying no, let me just quickly make arrangements for the children with my husband or with my wife. Let me do this. And people end up working and they understand that you are not an unreasonable person but maybe for that particular assignment it was something that had to be done the day before also with them having received instructions uh elsewhere. You know in government usually they will say the minister said he wants that speech by

1:07:45 tomorrow then you have to sit together and make sure that you write it and send before you go. So sometimes it it will be like that. So the scripture there that gives us an example. It says slaves obey your earthly masters in everything and do it not only when their eye is on you and to carry their favor but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. There's many other scriptures that you might pick up that might make sense to you. But even in the book as well there's various scriptures. So you know I did just some of the selections and then the reason is because sometimes whatever it is that we do we do it as if we are doing it to the Lord but it doesn't say now we must do things even if it's not

1:08:31 within reason even if now some of the unreasonable instructions go as far as as as as you know uh uh uh uh what is this now uh uh uh uh um what is the word I want should use now you know go goes uh uh like and in mandling I know it's not the right word goes beyond the boundaries like it's so unreasonable that I mean like some of the other things uh you will find managers saying and we read we see these things on social media and all of that you are due for a promotion you are doing very well you are working well your performance is good but you cannot have that promotion unless you do one two three for me that's now like unreasonable so there is that

1:09:16 unreasonable but there's also the unreasonable that is within reason like the example that I made to say that there's this assignment that you need to do uh on behalf of the company maybe that is now you are only informed about the due date including your manager as well they are told you no late then teach your followers why certain things have to be done make people see that your instructions are for their own good when people understand why they are doing something they do it better okay okay others will do it because of no there's overtime I can always put in overtime but the thing is what are the reasons that are put forth now here is a beautiful examples uh in the book they

1:10:02 they they they write about that there's an example of 50 reason why Christians should be soul winners but we know most from our church I don't think apostle to go to 50 we just we just go to the scripture to say we are called to be fishers of men and we end up there. I'm just making an example. But now here there was now this example of of 50 reasons why Christians should be soul winners. And then also obviously you can get as much scriptures as you need. But the big thing here is wanting people to understand the instruction of Jesus. I mean you can see with us now at church uh I know that the evangelism team they go out they go out to the shops they go out on Sunday after uh church they go in the morning to the school and all of

1:10:49 that. So they they understand that to say why is it that certain things that needs to be done so that we can populate heaven and plunder hell. So one of the other big things is that sometimes there might not be reasons that satisfy you but you know when when when when when you have the wisdom and your understanding beyond is easy for you to know and and and here the example that is is that my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. So sometimes people do not follow instructions simply because they lack the knowledge. And then another example that falls still within that to say that as you are teaching people why they have to do certain things. Also explain the instruction in detail so that everyone

1:11:34 understands the the instructions. Sometimes people do not obey simply because they did not understand what you said. So it could be one of the of the reason and one another is that show people that you are not partial because one of the biggest thing that we struggle with they say um is favoritism. You know uh uh uh uh uh leaders are always um what is this now? Leaders are always uh uh blamed of favoritism. So there was another friend of mine that said no it's not favoritism. You know even Jesus just before crucification he had an inner circle. So I don't know how true that is. So people like to say no it's not favorism. And then number five the biggest one the biggest one that all

1:12:23 most leaders struggle with. Let the people see that you obey instructions yourself. We see it with pastor Tanya. We see it with pastor Manda. We see it with Apostle. They themselves they put themsel out when they say you know what we have to to to win souls. You know the harvest is plenty. They themselves lead by examples. So you as a leader you give examples so that people can also just see from your own actions. You cannot be saying the one thing and then you you you you do the next. Do you understand? So that is just the examples. And from us from a from a biblical perspective h it makes it very easy for us to understand and in the corporate as well you are saying to people you know what I mean we are seeing it now with our

1:13:09 government then they say they are fighting crime they are fighting corruption they are fighting what but look at the cases that are going on now it's mostly them it's mostly them in as much as they are able to catch the kingpins they are still then linked to some people that are in the upper echolons of leadership of government. Unfortunately, that is what we are saying. So, so people will obey instructions when when they see that you are also following them. And the example that we have there is Luke 7:8. It says, "For I myself am a man under authority with soldiers under me. I tell this one, go and he goes, and that one come and he comes. I say to my servant, do this," and he does it. So, I myself am under authority.

1:13:55 And then let us continue. I'm trying to make sure that at least we have some time to talk. Okay, we are still 22. We are still good. So, uh way number six, get rid of complaining and murmuring individuals. That one person might just have too much influence, you know, and end up, you know, influencing other. We see that a lot in the corporate space you know even sometimes you know that thing when you secretly as a manager you see that you see today I can see Andrew is not here then you think hey the meeting is going to go smooth. We have those kind of people you know that just go in and just

1:14:42 influence you know uh um everyone negatively. those people that just poison the atmosphere just by walking in the atmosphere in the room change. That is why it is important uh for us as leaders even in our corporate spaces we pray. I pray for every meeting as we

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