#ChosenByGod

I want somebody to know that you are not accidentally saved, you were hand-picked by God. God Himself hand-picked you and you are His intentionally. I need you to know that God had a plan for you before you knew Him or knew that He had a plan.

Everything God does, He does on purpose. That means He created you for a purpose. Hello and thanks for being here for this Monday edition of Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepherd. In the Gospel of John chapter 15 verse 16, Jesus said, You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit.

If you are a believer in Christ, you were selected to carry out a unique purpose, one designed by God before the foundation of the world. Today Pastor Paul challenges us to ask ourselves a critical question, What on earth am I doing for heaven's sake? Stay with us here or visit pastorpaul.net anytime to listen to any recent message on demand, including today's teaching, chosen by God.

Here's Pastor Paul. Social profiles and statuses are everything. Folk are constantly updating, changing their profiles and statuses, and making sure they keep their public aware of their identity and their activities as they move through life. And unfortunately, many people are not concerned about their status from a biblical perspective. But I decided it was time to talk a little bit about updating your status in terms of who you are from a biblical perspective.

See, there are a lot of people who are concerned about certain things on their status, and you know something's going on in their life when you see a certain word pop in to their profile or their status. You see somebody who's looking to eventually be able to put wifey. I'm a wifey now. And some folk long to be wifey.

And that's what they're living for and planning for and working for. Well, bless your heart, nothing wrong with being wifey if the right husbandy comes along. It's all right to be wifey when you got a good husbandy, but unfortunately, you got to make sure that you are not so focused on being wifey that you're willing to catch any old train coming down the track.

I just need to help somebody. You need to figure out I don't need to be wifey at awful cost. I cannot afford to change my status from single to wifey when it's nothing but breath and britches that's been talking to me. And you all know there's a whole lot of breath and britches out here.

Somebody who got nothing but a rap, nothing but a game that he runs. And some folk, not y'all, but people I have met are so desperate to become wifey that they'll just take a chance. They will just hope that this is going to work out and they make the biggest mistake. You've heard me say it perhaps before, but I need to say it. Do not marry a project. Don't even date a project soon as you find out it's a project that's not for you, boo. God didn't call you to work a project.

I think if I get a hold of him and work my magic, he will become something worth marrying. I need to tell you that is not the will of God for you to be the project manager, because you're going to mess around and you're going to find out that your project is over budget. Your project is behind schedule.

Your project is way more than you need to try to fool with. Amen. So you might as well figure it out. I know you want to change your status to wifey, but in the meantime, until the right fella who loves God doesn't want to break God's heart, is developing character, is accountable to other brothers, that's what you're looking for. Don't worry about abs. You're looking for somebody who knows how he needs to walk in accountability. Abs are fine, but I promise you, if all you get is abs and the man has no character and no integrity, you're going to be sick of them abs after a while. After a while, those abs won't mean a thing to you.

He'd come down there trying to impress you, you'd be like, you need to put on a shirt, that's what you need. Some folk want to change their status to things like that. Some folk want their status to change to wealthy.

Listen, let me help you with something. If the Lord blesses you with wealth, then use it for his glory, for his kingdom purpose, but don't strive merely to be wealthy. Strive to make a difference for the kingdom. Jesus said, seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and then what God wants to add will be added to your life. Put the kingdom out front. Don't put your bank account out front. I want to be wealthy, I want to be rich, money, money, money, money. Money.

Listen, it is not what it's cracked up to be. Glory to God. Jesus taught it very clearly. He said, don't be like that man who was building barn after barn because his harvest kept growing and he's building barns, but didn't have a purpose for why God had gave him all of that. Jesus said he's constantly storing up and building bigger barns, and Jesus said, what's going to happen when you die? Then whose wealth will this be?

That's what you need to figure out. I know you want to be wealthy, but before you get there, figure out why. Because God only gives it for his purpose. He doesn't want to give it to you so you just have house and land and car and money and then multiply those things over and over and over again and don't even have a kingdom purpose for it.

If you put the kingdom first, God will add to you what you need and you'll be able to be a blessing to other people. But if you keep your selfless interest out front, all folk are going to do when you die is fight over your stuff. And most of you all don't even have a will, so they're really going to fight over your stuff. You need to take some time and get your will written and make sure folk know when you're gone what you wanted to have happen with your stuff. Because I've been, as a pastor all these decades, I've been to the hospital with folk dying. They're laying there dying and I'm there walking them out to the gates and letting the Lord come get them and I'm there with them.

And no family members with me, they're all at the house fussing over stuff. I've seen it happen over and over again. I've seen folk come to blows, I mean, have to call the cops over stuff. You've got to make sure you know that money is a wonderful servant but it's a horrible master. Don't let money master you, it'll drive you crazy. It'll keep you from doing what God wants you to do with your life. It'll change your perspective on everything. It sends a bunch of raggedy people into your life and all they want is your stuff. You think they want you, they don't want you.

Amen. You got all these folk gold digging this male and female. Used to be the sisters was the diggers, now these brothers be digging for days. Oh my God, they hitting you up?

That girl look like she got a little equity. And he come around there hitting on you for your stuff. You all got to figure this stuff out. If somebody wants you for you, they would have wanted you when you were poor. When you didn't have anything, they'd have been still pushing up on you.

Why all of a sudden you finally got a steady job and what have you and now here he come grinning. So you got to figure this thing out. Make sure your status changes that you're desiring are governed by biblical principles. So that God can keep you on the path of fulfilling his plan.

Because many other plans in the man's heart, but what's important is the will of God. And so we've got to figure that out. Some folk want to be the CEO of their own company. Oh, I want to be my own. I'm tired of working for folk.

I hear that often. I want to be my own boss. I want to pay myself. I want to be my own. Okay, but before you get there, how well are you doing helping somebody else? See, I'm a big believer that you can't be an operator till you're a good cooperator. We got a whole lot of people want to operate, but they don't know how to cooperate.

You ever seen anybody who wreaks havoc on a job, but they want to be an entrepreneur. Well, the Bible speaks to stuff like that. The Lord Jesus told you clearly in Luke 16, how God don't give you property of your own and you don't know how to take care of somebody else's property. How you going to be a ruler over much and you can't even handle the little that belongs to somebody else? I'm in the book.

You don't worry about it. I'm preaching truth and you need to figure out. Let me be a good servant before I try to become the master. We'll be right back with more of today's destined for victory message from Pastor Paul Shepherd, Senior Pastor Destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California. Remember, you can subscribe to the podcast and get the program delivered to you automatically.

It's available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get yours. You can also listen on demand at PastorPaul.net. That's PastorPaul.net and shop our online store for lots of great resources, including books and DVD messages from Pastor Paul Shepherd. Stay with us after today's message when Pastor Paul joins me from a studio in California.

But first, let's rejoin him for the second half of today's teaching chosen by God. I'm glad I didn't start out being a senior pastor. I started out being in a church under a pastor and I started out being a Sunday school teacher. I started out being a deacon. I started out being an assistant pastor who just did whatever the pastor said do. And later on, as I kept growing, I kept learning. So when I finally become senior pastor, I know how to handle it. And we need to learn that in every phase of life. Master the platform you're on now before you aspire to a higher platform. Be an expert where you are.

Pass your test where you are so that you can qualify for more. Updating your status needs to be based on a biblical world view. And I want to encourage you. And let me just give you one word that I want you to add to your status, if not on your actual social profile, at least in your heart.

I need you to understand. Here's the word chosen. I want somebody to make up your mind today. I'm changing my status in my heart to be chosen.

What do I mean by that? I am chosen by God. Listen to what the word of God says in 1 Peter 2, 9. You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own special people that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. But it started out by saying you are a chosen generation. I want somebody to know that you are not accidentally saved. You are handpicked by God. God Himself handpicked you, and you are His intentionally. I need you to know that God had a plan for you before you knew Him or knew that He had a plan. John 15, 16, here's what Jesus said. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, that your fruit would remain, that whatever you ask, then, Father, in the name of Jesus, He will give it to you.

You need to understand this, my brother, my sister. You were chosen. You didn't wake up one day and say, you know what, I think I need to get saved, and let me go on and give my life to the Lord. You didn't choose Him. He chose you. You said, but I remember the day I got convicted. I know you did.

I did too. But that doesn't mean you chose Him. He was at work in your heart long before you came to faith in Christ. He ordained an eternity past that you would give your life to Him, and that's why He put folk in your life who were praying, and some of them you knew, some of them you probably didn't, but God had people praying you into the kingdom, and you were chosen by God, chosen to bear fruit, chosen to do good works. Ephesians 2, 10 tells us we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Do you know what that means? That means God knew He wanted to do something out of your life, so when He saved you, He had a plan to get some good works out of you. So when you get saved, you're supposed to get some stuff done. Do you know you're not here to just kill time until you go to heaven? You're supposed to get some things done on earth for the kingdom of God. So the appropriate question is, what are you doing on earth for heaven's sake? What are you doing on earth for heaven's sake? What are you doing here that matters there? That's what you and I ought to be about, our Father's business.

You know why? Because at the end of the day, only what you do for Christ is going to last. And so we all need to be about our Father's business. And you are preordained to do some things. He said we're His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. So are you doing the stuff He prepared you in advance to do? And you can't spend all your time trying to update your status on worldly things when you are not about your Father's business.

And I want to encourage you to make sure that you are doing the will of God. And the advantage to really owning the fact that you were chosen is that you will never again allow people to decide who you are. Oh, I'm on a mission these days to help folk understand you don't get to decide who I am. You don't get to decide my worth. My worth isn't determined by your opinion. I'm not taking a popularity poll to figure out if people think I'm significant or important. Some of you all need to stop worrying about folk. Who do men say that I am?

Here's my answer. What does that matter? What people say that I am? I am who God says I am because He is the one who chose me. He chose me by His grace and by His love. He chose me to make a difference for Him in this world.

He chose me to show forth His praises. And that's why I am here. Some of you need to stop letting people define you. If they define you, they own you.

Whoever writes the dictionary has ownership of your life. And you all got to quit it. You got to stop letting people decide they like you so now I'm somebody because this person really thinks I'm special.

What you don't know is they got an angle. The only reason they're pumping you up is because they got their own plans. They got their own methods that they want to bring into your life. And they want to shape you and form you in their image and after their likeness.

I need you to understand if you want to live in significance in this world, you got to stop letting people tell you who you are and let God tell you who you are. I'm eternally grateful that Dr. Miles Monroe, when he was here teaching, one of the things he taught so many of us well was the power of purpose. And he taught us principles that really revolutionized our thinking.

He taught us that God is a God of purpose, that everything God creates has a purpose, that not every purpose is known to us, but that where purpose is unknown, abuse is inevitable. And you got to understand that. If you don't know your purpose, then your life's going to be abused. That's why you got to know who God said you are because if you let somebody else determine your purpose or they leave you content to not know what you are, then they step in and give you their own agenda. And it's time for you to know that where purpose is unknown, abuse is inevitable. And here was another principle that blessed us. If you don't know the purpose of a thing, don't ask the thing. If you don't know the purpose of a thing, don't ask the thing.

And look at us. We live in a world where we got all these purposeless people walking around trying to figure out who they are. Go to your owner's manual because the Word of God tells you who you are. In Christ I am chosen. I was handpicked. I was selected by Him for His own purposes. And so you got to stop letting people tell you who they are because there are folks at every turn who will gladly adopt you for their own purposes.

They'll pull you into their world to accomplish their purpose in you and you can't be manipulated by anybody. You can't let your relatives manipulate you. I'm not owned by you. I know you're my parent but you don't own me.

I belong to God. Amen. And so you got to learn that. We've got to make sure people know boundaries are part of living. You can't let folk just bleed into your life, cross your boundaries and just manipulate things the way they want them to be. You got to figure out in order for me to do the will of God I got to keep you at a safe distance.

Even if you have significant others that you have willed to be in your inner circle your inner circle still has boundaries in it. You got to figure out, no, you can't be in all my business. You can only be in what I allow you to be in and what you demonstrate you have the maturity to be able to handle. I'm preaching well, you'll figure it out later on. We've got to make sure we know why God put us here.

We are chosen for His own purposes. So you've got to not allow people to dictate to you. And even when you go through tough times don't let tough times redefine you. I am not my trouble. I am not my affliction. I am not what I'm going through.

I am still who God said I am. Thanks so much for being here for today's Destin for Victory message chosen by God. Look for any of Pastor Paul's recent messages online on demand at pastorpaul.net That's pastorpaul.net You know every day on Destin for Victory we ask people to stand with us financially that's because we are a listener supportive ministry and let me underscore that for just a moment.

This means the only way we exist is through the prayers and financial support of people just like you. And in 2021 our prayers that you might consider if you haven't done so already becoming a Destin for Victory partner. Partners are a special group of people that give a monthly gift of at least $20.

If you can make that commitment today we have some special gifts I'll tell you about in just a moment. But Pastor Paul joins me right now. Pastor take a moment and tell us why partners are so important to this ministry.

Yeah I'm glad you brought that up Wayne. Partners are really the lifeline of this ministry. Without those people committed to giving regularly we literally could not continue doing what we're doing.

I guess people hear that a lot but it is really true. Without partners we simply can't get the gospel out to the world. The gospel is free but the plumbing costs an awful lot of money and we want to continue preaching.

As I've said in times past we've got generations to reach that have never heard the gospel and they misunderstand when they hear people talk about things like serving the Lord. And we need to make it plain to them the only way I can do it is with my partners helping us reach them through their generous gifts. I'm so grateful for every single partner and I'm praying in 2021 that God will give us thousands more.

There are many more outlets and many more opportunities we could take advantage of in our ministry but the only thing that holds us back is lack of income. So I'm praying that God's going to touch the heart of many more people to realize that with just your gift of $20 or more you can help us remain strong on the stations and outlets we're on and reach many more with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And if you make that commitment by pledging $20 or more per month to help us do that we'll send you with our thanks a couple of great gifts including one of Pastor Paul's most popular CDs The Best of Let My People Smile. It's a compilation of some of Pastor's most humorous illustrations and stories something that will be sure to make you laugh and learn at the same time. Call 855-339-5500 or mail your gift letting us know you wish to become a partner.

The address is Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538. You can also sign up by clicking Become a Partner right at the top of the homepage at PastorPaul.net And if you're already a partner, Pastor Paul wants to say a heartfelt thank you and challenge you to consider becoming a legacy partner. These are special ministry friends that are able to support us with gifts of $2500 or more each year.

The details are available at the website PastorPaul.net or by calling 855-339-5500. Now if you can't become a partner today but would like to make a generous donation we'll be glad to send you Pastor Paul's DVD message, Get Your Hopes Up. That's Get Your Hopes Up, our gift to you this month by request for your generous donation to Destined for Victory. Of course you light up my life. You give me hope to carry on. You light up my days.

Oh listen, if you let somebody come in there and light up your life, they own the light bulb. That's tomorrow when Pastor Paul Shepherd shares his message chosen by God. Until then remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ you are destined for victory.