Gregory Dickow - Freedom From FOMO - Part 2
Well you know, in times of uncertainty, we can absolutely be certain, and we can be sure about some things that will give us peace. We can be sure about some things that give us hope, give us faith, give us courage to move forward no matter what's going on in this world. We can absolutely be sure that we're going to make it; that we're going to hit the target, so to speak. Because so many people are afraid that they're going to miss out. So many people are living in the fear of missing out. It's a pretty common acronym now around the world, F.O.M.O. FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out.
Well, you're not going to miss out. And God gives us a promise that we're not going to miss Him. We're not going to miss the will of God. We're not going to miss the target. The target is much bigger than we realize. And God's will is much more liberating than we realize. It's not constricting; it's liberating, God's purpose, God's will, God's path. You know, there's only one path to God, Jesus. But there're many paths to joy. And there're many paths to peace. And there're many paths to fulfilling God's purpose for your life. I really want to encourage you in this world of fear, in this world of insecurity, that you can be secure in God. You can be secure in Christ.
The promise of my message today, as I pick up where I left off last Sunday, the promise of this message is you are not going to miss it. You are not going to miss the will of God. I'll show you three ways that you can know that you're not going to miss the will of God. But you need to be encouraged today. You need to have peace today. You need to lean in today. Lean in to God's Word. Lean into God's presence. Lean in to the awareness of God's presence in your life. Lean into that awareness. Boy, there's one thing that we can do in this world and we can do in this life. No matter what's going on in this world, no matter what's going on in your world, you can always give glory to God. You know, I think we will never truly be satisfied in life until we do what we were created to do. We were created to worship. We were created to glorify God; to worship Him.
You know, I love the Scripture in Romans, chapter four, verse 20, where it says that Abraham did not waver in unbelief but he grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God promised, He was able also to perform. Now, I want you to see in this verse that Abraham did not waver, but he grew strong in faith. And how did he grow strong in faith? By saying, "I'm just a strong man"? By saying, "I have strong faith"? No, It says that he grew strong in faith by giving glory to God. You see, when you're on top of the mountain, you've heard me say, give Him glory because He got you there. When you're in the bottom of the valley, give Him glory because He's with you there.
See, no matter what situation you're in, when you learn to give God glory, when you learn to give Him the praise, when you learn that life is about finding something to praise God about... Look for something to praise God about. Look at an ocean. Look at a sunset. Look at your children, Look at your family. Look at where you are right now; the cell phone you're watching this on, or the computer that you're watching this on, or the screen you're watching this on. God gave you that. God created that. God gave man and woman, women ideas; mankind, ideas to create technology. God gave that to us. Let's give Him the glory. Give Him the glory for the job you have. Give Him the glory for the job you're going to have. Give Him the glory for, you know, whatever happened that caused you to lose the last job you had, or lose the relationship that you had.
You know, give God glory because He knows how to take something bad and turn it into something good. He knows how to take a closed door and turn it into an opened door. He knows how to. When something negative happens in our life, God knows how to take it, mold it, shape it, turn it into something positive for our lives. He who began a good work in you, He'll finish it. God is good. Joseph said, "though you meant evil against me," talking to his brothers. Yet, God turned it into something good; our God. Romans, let's not forget to Romans 8:28 our lives. The Bible says that that God causes all things to work together for good. It doesn't say He causes all things. But He causes all things to work together for good.
This is the promise. This is why you're not going to miss it. This is why you're not going to miss out on God's will for your life. You're not going to miss out on the things that everybody's afraid they're going to miss out on. They're going to miss out on being popular, miss out on being a part of the group, miss out on being successful, miss out on being, you know, living their best life. Like, you are not. You do not have to live in the fear of missing out. Because giving glory to God is how your faith grows. It's how you grow strong in faith. Giving glory to God is when you know that God who made the promise is also God who fulfills the promise. That God giving us a promise is not a challenge to us to somehow make it come to pass. God giving us a promise is an announcement to us that He's going to make sure that it comes to pass.
Wow, let that give you peace today. Let that calm your heart today. Let that speak to your soul today and let it bring you rest. And let it bring you confidence. And let it bring you to focus on God in everything. Focus on giving Him glory. Give Him glory in the good times. Give Him glory in the bad times. Give Him glory in the easy times. Give Him glory in the difficult times. Give Him glory when you got enough. Give Him glory when you don't have enough. Because giving God glory is how your faith grows, giving Him praise, worshiping Him, magnifying Him. We're not making God bigger, but we're magnifying our view of Him. When you take a magnifying glass, you're not magnifying the thing. It's not getting bigger, but you're seeing it bigger.
And this is how we need to see God. We need to see God so big that we're not going to miss Him. He's so big, we're going to run into Him. He's so big, we're going to accidentally stumble into Him. He's so big, you can't miss Him. Remember when David and his brothers were up against Goliath? The brothers were so afraid. They looked at Goliath and said, "Wow, he's too big for us to kill". But David looked at that giant and said, "He's too big for me to miss. He's too big for me to miss". We need to realize... Now I'm not trying to compare God to Goliath. God is much bigger, obviously. And He's our friend, not our enemy. But you understand what I'm saying. You understand that David saw... They both saw the same thing, they just looked at it differently.
And we need to realize, most human beings in this world, they know there is a Creator. They know that this world did not happen by accident. They know that this world is created by design. The human body is created by design. That our ability to communicate was created by design. It's impossible to be as amazing as you are, and for that to have just accidentally come together through some explosion in the sky. Sorry, not buying into that delusion. You were created in God's image for God's glory. And when you give Him glory, you're stepping in to His purpose for your life. When you give Him glory, you're stepping in to His calling for your life. When you give Him glory, you're stepping in to His will for your life. You can't miss it. He's too big to miss.
You know, God is so big that this universe can't even fit Him. The universe is just one of the things that God created in this world. The universe is just one of God's creations. It's very small to God. It's beautiful to Him, and it means something to Him, but it's very small in comparison to Him. It's big to us, the universe, the stars, the galaxies, even the sky, even the moon, even the sun. These are amazing things. These are huge things to us. If we got one, if the earth was one inch closer to the sun, we'd all burn up. If it was one inch further away from the sun, we'd all freeze to death. This is how amazing God is, that He created all of that. And He spun all of that into existence. And that was just some normal, average day for God, creating the universe. But when He created you, He created the crown of His creation. He created man, male and female, in His image. Wow. And when He created you in His image, He put you in this universe.
So, He created the universe for you and me. And He put us in this universe. But then He took eternity, and all the dreams, and all the hopes, and all the purposes of eternity, and He put that inside of us. Look at this verse, this amazing verse in Ecclesiastes, chapter three, verse 11. And I want you to see this. I'll read this from the NIV Bible. It says, for "He has made everything beautiful in its time". Wow, I love this verse. And that part of the verse is magnificent. He has made everything beautiful in its time. If it's not beautiful yet, it's not time yet. It still needs time in the oven. It still needs to cook a little bit longer. If it's not beautiful, it's not time.
But this next part of this verse is what really has been speaking to me the last few weeks. And it says He has also set eternity and put eternity in the human heart. He literally has put eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom all that God has done from the beginning to the end. It's impossible. He's so big, it's impossible for us to fathom all that He's done. And yet He has put eternity in our hearts. Boy, this will really give you peace. God created a universe and put you in it. But He took eternity and put it in you. That's how big He is, and that's how big you are. He took all the dreams, all the possibilities, beyond our wildest imagination, along with everlasting life, and He put it inside of us. And He hid it inside of you. He must think pretty well of us to invest eternity into us. He must think pretty highly of you to invest eternity in you.
Wow. The first secret or key to being sure and being certain that you're not going to miss, you can be free from the fear of missing out, is to simply give God glory. Because you're now doing what He created you to do. And that brings you into everything else that He has for your life. The beginning, the entry way into not missing out, the entry way into hitting the target, the entry way into being sure that you don't miss out on God's best for your life is by giving Him glory. The entry way is to give Him praise. The entry way is to give Him glory. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, the Bible says. Enter into His courts with praise. If we would really see how big He is and begin to focus on that, in our eyes, He'll get bigger and bigger. He is already bigger than we can fathom, but in our eyes He'll get bigger and bigger. And the bigger that we see Him, the bigger we begin to see ourselves because we're made in His image.
And then we therefore, stop living in fear. We stop seeing ourselves as grasshoppers and start seeing ourselves as the giants, rather than seeing others as the giants, or the enemy as the giant, or the mountain as the giant. But we start seeing ourselves bigger. Because the Bible says in First John 4:4, "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world". Greater is He that is in you. Bigger, larger, greater, more magnificent, more powerful, is He that is in you. So, when you realize you were created to give God glory, you start stepping in to the best that God has for you. You stop missing out on what God has for you. The second thing is when we realize Who's walking with us. It's not about where we're walking. "Oh, I got to make sure I take the right path. I got to make sure I turn left here; turn right here. I got to make sure I never miss God on this situation. I got to make sure I live in the right house. I got to make sure I have the right friends. I got to make sure I have the right brand. I got to make sure I'm the right this I'm the right that".
We're so focused on never making mistakes... We're so focused on trying to make sure we hit the target, hit the bull's eye, that we forgot it's not about where you're walking. It's about Who's walking with you. That's why David said in Psalm 23, "Yay, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil". Why? He doesn't... He's not free from the fear because he's not walking through some tough situations. He's free from the fear because of Who's walking with him. Did you hear that? He's not free from the fear of missing out because of the path he's on. He's free from the fear of missing out because of the One who's on the path with him. And God is with us. Realize how big He is and how big you are.
And then realize Who's walking with you. First realize you were created to give Him glory. Then realize how big God is and how big He made you in His image. And then realize Who's walking with you. In Genesis, chapter five, verse 24, it says, and Enoch walked with God, and He was no more for God took him. And Enoch walked with God, and he was no more. I like to play with words sometimes. And when I hear this phrase Enoch walked with God and he was no more. I've thought of a few things. Enoch walked with God, and he was no more. He was no more, afraid. He was no more, lonely. He was no more, unhappy. He was no more, empty. He was no more, worried. He was no more, insecure. He was no more, uncertain. For Enoch walked with God and he was no more of the things that he used to be without God. And Enoch walked with God and he was no more living in the fear of missing out.
That the secret to life is walking with God and your fears will become no more. Your worries will become no more. You're self-centeredness will become no more. You will no longer be so obsessed with making sure everybody likes you. You're no longer self-conscious thinking everybody's judging you. But now you're simply walking with God and you are no more. You are no more who you used to be. You are no more, insecure. You are no more, comparing yourself. You're no more, in fear. You are no more, angry. You are no more, worried. You're no more, anxious. You are no more, depressed Why? All of that comes when you walk with God. You see less of you and you see more of Him. You feel less of you and you feel more of Him.
What a beautiful opportunity that we have to walk with God and be no more; to walk with God. Some people just say sometimes in their life when they get embarrassed, "I just wish I could just disappear". Or they say, "I just wish I was no longer on this earth. I just wish Jesus would just take me". And we can actually experience the bliss of disappearing simply by walking with God. As we walk with God, we are no more. You see, It's less of us. It's less about us. We're less self-centered. We're less self-focused. We're less self-conscious. We're less of all of that. That's dying to self. Walk with God and you will be no more. Walk with God and you will no more be, what you were. Walk with Him.
How do you walk with God? You talk to Him. How do you walk with God? I'll tell you. You have to realize that He is walking with you, and that the Holy Spirit lives in you. We have to realize where the Holy Spirit dwells, and what the Holy Spirit does. And then we'll realize we're walking with God every day of our lives. The difference between walking with God for one person versus the other is how aware they are of God's presence. It's not one is more in God's presence than another. It's that one is more aware of God's presence than the other. Wow, the nearness of God needs to permeate our minds. The nearness of God needs to permeate our minds. Psalm 78, verse 23 says something very amazing. "But as for me, the nearness of God is my good," David said. The nearness of God is my good.
You want something good to happen in your life? Realize the nearness of God is your good. Realize that the nearness of God is true goodness. That God is near you makes life good. That God is near you makes life fun. That God is near you makes life peaceful; that God is near you. The nearness of God needs to permeate our thinking. We got to stop living in this delusion, this illusion of, this myth of separation from God. It's an illusion. It's a myth that we're separated from God. Jesus brought us to Him. Jesus is the cross. He's the bridge. He's the... He closes the gap between us and God. We're now near Him. We're now seated with Him. We're now with Him. He's now with us. He's now in us. He's now walking with us. And the awareness of that is the difference between joy and sadness. The awareness of that is the difference between peacefulness and anxiety.
In Psalm 16, verse eight, David said, "I've set the Lord continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken". How could somebody like David go through all of the things that he went through? It's because he knew God was with him. How could he overcome his failures, his mistakes, his tragedies, His sins? Because he knew God was with him. In Hebrews chapter ten, verse 22, it says, "Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith..." Draw near, where? Draw near to the presence of God. How do we draw near? By the blood of Jesus.
He already said that in Hebrews, chapter ten, verse 19, we come into the holiest place by the blood of Jesus, having full assurance that our hearts are sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. We cannot wash ourselves to stand in God's presence. He washed us in His blood. We cannot create in ourselves a clean conscience. He cleans it for us with His blood. The nearness of God has to permeate our thinking. Jesus said, "I'm not going to leave you alone". In John, chapter 14, verse 18, He said, I will not leave you comfortless. "I will not leave you (as) orphans. I will come to you". You see, we have to realize who He's talking about here, the Holy Spirit.
In verse 16, He says, "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper," (a comforter) that He may be with you forever. That He may be with you forever. So many Christians are living in the fear that God's going to leave them, that God's going to disappoint them, that God is going to pull away from them because they pulled away from Him. That's not our God. He says; Jesus said, "I'm leaving, but I'm not leaving you empty handed. I'm not leaving you lonely. I am sending the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. And He will be with you forever". He will not be with you when you're living right, He will be with you forever. He will not be living... He will not be with you because you make all the right decisions, He will be with you forever. He will not be with you because you're so good, He will be with you forever. He's not. He's not going to leave you because you're bad, He will be with you forever.
I love this verse. "The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you". At that time, the Holy Spirit dwelled with Jesus' disciples because Jesus was there. But He didn't dwell in His disciples until Jesus went back to heaven after the Resurrection. And He sent the Holy Spirit. And now the Holy Spirit came and lived inside of them. That's why He promises in this verse. He promises He dwells with you, but He will be in you. And when did He come in us? The moment we were born again, the Holy Spirit came to live inside of us. What a beautiful promise. What a beautiful reality. He will be with you forever.
I love what John 14:26 says in the NIV. "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, (He) will teach you all things and will remind you of everything (that) I've said to you". Do you need to be taught something? Invite the Holy Spirit to teach you. Do you read things in school, or at work, or in life, and it's hard for you to understand? Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you because He said He'll teach you all things. And He'll remind you of everything that I've said to you. He will tell you everything you need to know. He will remind you of what Jesus said, the Holy Spirit. In the Amplified, I love this verse in John 14:26. "But the Helper (the comforter, the Advocate, the Intercessor, the Counselor, the Strengthener, the Standby...)"
These are all legitimate names for the Holy Spirit and what the word Comforter means in the original Greek language that John wrote with confidence inspired by the Holy Spirit, that the Holy Spirit Himself is the Helper. He's the Comforter. He's the Advocate. He's the Intercessor. He's the Strengthener, the Counselor; the Standby. You ever need somebody to stand by you? Welcome Holy Spirit. You ever need somebody to advocate for you and represent you? Welcome Holy Spirit. You ever need somebody to counsel you? Welcome the Holy Spirit. You ever need somebody to intercede for you; pray for you? Welcome the Holy Spirit. You ever need help; Somebody to help you? Welcome the Holy Spirit. He is our Helper. He is our Comforter.
Ever need comfort? Ever need encouragement? Ever need strengthening? Ever need counsel? Ever need advice? Ever need guidance? Ever need direction? Ever need to know the future? He does it all, and He lives inside of you? And He'll be with you forever. I love what The Message says here. "The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you". Boy, the world tries to make everything complicated, and difficult, and hard to understand. But the Holy Spirit will make everything plain to you. "He will remind you of all the things I've told you. I'm leaving you well and whole. That's my parting gift to you". The Holy Spirit, "Peace. I don't leave you the way you're used to being left, feeling abandoned, bereft. So don't be upset. (And) Don't be distraught".
Because I'm sending the Holy Spirit. Let the peace of God hit you right now. Let the peace of God just run through your life with waves of peace, and assurance, and confidence, and love. Because that's the Holy Spirit working inside of you; living inside of you right now. We have to be so much more conscious of the presence of God than we are of our own failures, and mistakes, and our shortcomings. God's not focused on those things, so let's not be focused on them either. Wow, this will change your life forever, the knowledge of what we're talking about here. John 16:13 says, "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak of His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak".
And then I love this last part of this verse. And "He will disclose to you what is to come". Most people are afraid of missing out because they're not sure what's coming next. They're not sure what's going to happen next. They're not sure what technology breakthrough is going to happen next. They're not sure what war is going to break out next. They're not sure what economic problems are going to break out next; what pandemic, or what tragedy, or what's going to happen next in this world. We don't have to focus on those things.
The Holy Spirit will disclose to us what is to come. He will teach us all things. If you just went through this like a list; a checklist of all the things that Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would do for us... It says He will give. He will help us. He will be with us forever. He will advocate for us. He will teach you all things. He will teach us all things. He will remind us of everything that Jesus has said to us. He will tell us everything we need to know. He will comfort us, help us, advocate for us, intercede for us, counsel us, strengthen us, stand by us. He says He will represent Jesus and He will teach us all things. He will help us remember everything that Jesus has told us. He will not leave us ever. He will make everything plain to us. He will guide us into all the truth. And He will disclose to us what is to come.
What's there to be afraid of when you have the Holy Spirit doing all of those things for you? From the center seat in your soul, and the center seat in your heart, from the pilot's seat, guiding you, showing you, revealing to you, helping you, strengthening you. So many people get focused on the Holy Spirit convicting. But that isn't even an accurate interpretation. The Holy Spirit convicting us is the Holy Spirit convincing us. Not making us feel guilty; making us feel sure. Making us feel certain that the enemy has been defeated. Jesus is Lord. That we're in His will. We're in His plan. We're in His mind. We're in His heart. The conviction of the Holy Spirit is not the guilt trip that somebody tried to put on you. The conviction of the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit convincing you of what's true and who you are in Christ, and that the enemy has been defeated. There is no information that this world can give you to make your life better. But the Holy Spirit will give you all the information you need to know to make your life so much better. The awareness of His presence...
Lord, give us that new, greater sense of the awareness of Your presence, the awareness of what brings us into Your presence, the awareness that we're on this earth to give You glory, the awareness, Lord, of where the Holy Spirit dwells and what He does, the awareness of how big You are, Lord, and the awareness of how big we are in You; and You in us.
If there's anybody watching right now, you've never received Jesus into your life as your Savior? Pray right now. Just say:
Heavenly Father, I believe Jesus died for my sins and rose from the dead. If you're not sure you're going to heaven, pray this right now. I believe Jesus is the Son of God. I believe Jesus died for me and rose from the dead. From this moment forward... Come on say that out loud. From this moment forward I'm a child of God, in Jesus' Name, Amen.