Why Can't You See What I See for You?

Sometime during last October, I was talking to my daughter about the promise land on our way home from Springfield when the Lord spoke these very words to me, “Why can’t you see what I see for you in Ava.” The other day I woke up and was pondering on the promise land again. I kept saying to myself do you see what God sees in Ava over and over again. Then all the sudden I remembered a song that had the line do you see what I see? in it. The actual title is “Do you hear what I hear”. This song was written during the Cuban Missile Crisis, which tells me sometimes trying to see your promise land isn’t always easy when difficulties are already taking place.

As I am writing this out, the Lord showed me His sense of humor, this song was written in October. Funny, how the Lord uses things to get your attention. Anyways, this song has four verses in it, each has a focal point: Do you see what I see?, Do you hear what I hear?, Do you know what I know?, and Listen to what I say! I want to talk about each focal point from a different view, since we know this song is about Jesus. Good news, Jesus is still part of this focal point. God promised you a special place even when it doesn’t appear so promising.  So no, you don’t have to wait to go to Heaven to see your promise land working. Remember, heaven is a place where no difficulties take place anyways. Each focal point does work hand in hand. Let’s get started.

Do you see what I see? - This reminds me of the story of the twelve spies spying out the promise land. Numbers 13:17-20 17) “And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain: 18) And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many; 19) And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; 20) And what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes.” Gee! What a start. It tells you what you’re to focus on. Yes, the good, the bad, including some ugly. Why? The good represent the promises and blessings you’re to automatically receive no matter where God sends you; just know it’s your promised land. God needs you to be aware of any trials or tribulations before entering into your promised land. Don’t be afraid. Remember, God is right there for you in those situations. Here’s an interesting fact. God will be showing His power and glory to all mankind on your behalf. Yes, for the believers, non believers, and the enemy (satan and his workers) as a testimony, He’s in control, especially for those who believe and follow after him. You can stand on these scriptures. John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulations: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” Psalm 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Exodus 14:14 “The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.” Don’t forsake any scriptures that the Lord shows you about obtaining your promised land. God will point out more and more as you go. Always position yourself in seeing what God sees, so you will gain the victory in your promised land or otherwise it will start slipping away.

Do you hear what I hear? – One thing is for certain with hearing from God. You won’t be mislead if you’ve heard God correctly. Hearing from God works with following after His ways. Proverbs 3:5-6 5) “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6) In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Every bit of this is truth. His ways are always correct, even when it doesn’t appear that way to you. When you begin to hear God correctly, you can use the expression ‘you can take that to the bank,’ because that’s where you will end up at. Psalm 23:1-3 1) “The LORD is my shepherd: I shall not want. 2) He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3) He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” That’s the place to be in. You don’t have to be living without your promises, because it’s going to be provided for you, all you have to do is sit back and rest knowing that God has your back. I want to clarify something here, God may be in control, but you can’t totally ‘sit back and rest’ either. It still takes action on your part, too. It’s called keeping faith in God. God moves for you when you keep your faith in him along with following His instructions, which means working, not resting. Resting does come when you’ve done your part. Now, do your part by keeping the faith and follow after His ways without putting your own interpretation or twist to it. Why? I don’t know about you, but I know when I hear from God and His truths, I usually begin to move faster than him. Yes, I took control of the reins after what I heard from God and tried to finish it without listening for more details. This is like praying and getting up quickly to leave. Once you start doing this, the promised land doesn’t look so promising anymore. We will get to more of this towards the end, but for now step back and refocus on what you have seen and heard from God about your promised land so far. Then, watch Matthew 6:33 start working for you. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” There’s no better place than being in a place where God’s promises are working for you; that’s your promised land.

Do you know what I know? - You could fit this with do you hear what I hear just by hearing from God, but the question remains, do you actually know what God knows? One thing is for certain, you completely understand when things are operating smoothly and according to God’s will when you’re in sync with Him. Your promised land will be looking big and bright, too. Now, on the other hand, when you first arrive at your promised land and things aren’t flowing so well, you’ll be asking God a lot of questions. How do I know? That’s what I did. I asked God, are you certain about this, everything doesn’t appear to look so good when I started walking through my promised land. So, I do believe many of you could be at this place, too. How do you know that you’re in God’s place according to His will for your life? The story of Joseph comes to mind when he was taken to Egypt. It didn’t look so promising for Joseph up front. Joseph probably thought uh-oh this doesn’t look too good. Yes, many of us are familiar with how Joseph actually ended up in Egypt. I am not here to debate on the what ifs, the therefores, or any other circumstances at this time, but for you to understand, Joseph had a very similar point of view when he arrived in Egypt. See, Joseph didn’t have a clear picture about being taken to Egypt or that it would be his promised land from God. Joseph had to learn how to overcome many trials and tribulations or some might say obstacles. Through those trying moments, Joseph had to see himself as a victor and not one who was defeated. Here’s why. Joseph learned to know that’s where God wanted him no matter what it looked like at the moment. Joseph’s needs were met according to the will of God during his time in Egypt. It may appear that it was coming from the Pharaoh, but it wasn’t.  It was according to the will of God for Joseph’s life. God used Pharaoh and the land of Egypt to supply all of Joseph’s needs. This wasn’t just for Joseph, but for his whole family.

I have to take the same approach here in Ava as Joseph did in Egypt. I need to understand that everyone isn’t going to see it that way either, because I didn’t always see it, but for those who will begin to see it the way I do, they will begin to understand do you know what I know?, because God knows. This brings me back to what I should have known from the start. Psalm 25:12-15 12) “What man is he that feareth the LORD? Him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. 13) His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth. 14) The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant. 15) Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.” This was my promising passage. God knew all along about leaving Rockdale, Texas and moving to Ava, Missouri. Obviously I didn’t, because I missed out on one verse. All I knew was bringing my family to Ava was going to flow according to God’s promises from verses 12-14, but the moment trials and tribulations came I failed to know it was still the place to be. Why? Verse 15 should have told me, but I didn’t go back to that verse when I should have.  I missed out seeing that God’s protection was going to be there for me and my family even when rough times came about. Again, God knew this. I didn’t realize it all the way. So yes, that meant every trap set by the enemy would be removed including any negative situation that would pop up, because God was going to turn that around, too. All I had to do was stay focused on every part of that passage while walking through my promised land. This is very important and you will see why next.

​Listen to what I say! - At times, I could have gone all day without seeing this focal point. Some might say they don’t have a problem in this area, but I know that I do. Chances are you do too, even if you don’t want to admit it. It takes knowing God’s plan and seeing it to the fullest with no self interpretation or twist added to it. Yes, you have to pay attention to every detail that God is trying to provide for you to establish your promised land. Let’s go back to the basics. Habakkuk 2:1-3 1) “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. 2) And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. 3) For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” When you don’t follow this basic format your promised land may begin to look a little harder to reach. IT’s that important to follow all of God’s instructions. Please don’t miss out on any little details like forgetting to dot the (i’s) or crossing the (t’s), because they are that important. Matthew 5:18 “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Here’s the thing, God wants to fulfill all that He has promised you including the location. Yes, you have to follow God and all His ways. I see the word law as him leading me to the promised land not as a condemnation to beat me over the head kind of thing. It’s God’s love steering me back into position again. Of course, some of God’s ways are difficult, but His ways will always lead you to His righteousness, which involves His promises for you. Another interesting fact, Jesus came and rose again so that your promised land would be fulfilled on earth as is in heaven. The Bible as a whole was written with instructions in mind. There’s an acronym for the word Bible: basic instructions before leaving earth. Well, I don’t know about you, but I want everything in my promised land here on earth, too. Give a shout out! Glory to God! All this caused me to sit down and re-examine once again ‘why can’t you see what I see in Ava for you.’ I want to start seeing what God sees in Ava for me, my family, and for this ministry right here and right now. I also need to be prepared for any change of directions, too. Like I said earlier, God is in control, but I still have to work with God, so I can establish my promised land to the fullest. I pray that this message will help you see and get you to your promised land.

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