Joseph Prince - Answers For A Distracted World
Have you ever wondered what is the one thing that you can do that will produce prosperity and success in every area of your life? The Bible gives us the answer. You know, I love simple things, I love simple things, and I love the way the Lord shares with us in his Word simple things, amen, yet profound, amen. Words that he uses seems ordinary. He will talk about the sower sowing the seed, the fisherman and the catch, he will talk about the mustard seed being the least of all the herb trees, yet there's such wisdom. The more you meditate on it, there are layers and layers of it, amen. So, I love the answer that the Bible gives us. The one thing that you do that will produce prosperity and success in every area of your life is meditate.
If you've been following me, just last week we shared on meditation and how that one simple act that the Bible tells us and encourages us to do and seems to enforce us to focus on this being the priority in our life both day and night, not just one time you do it, but it's a lifestyle. Meditate on God's Word day and night. And the Bible says in Psalms 1, verse 3, it tells us that the one who meditates on God's Word day and night, "He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth his fruit in his season; his leaf will not wither; and whatsoever", see that whatsoever there? It includes everything, in every area of your life. "Whatsoever he does prospers". When he does parenting, it prospers, amen? When he does his husband's role, it prospers, amen. When he does his ministry role, it prospers. When he does his work, amen, it prospers.
It's like the Bible tells us, there are some things that you do that will cause prosperity to be effected in every area of your life. One of them is being generous. The Bible says if you are generous, you are willing to give and be generous, amen, be large-hearted, the Bible says the Lord your God will bless you in all the work of your hands. Notice the word all, in all the work of your hands. And I find the Bible, in my study of the Word of God, that these two things, meditation and being generous, are the things that result in prosperity in every area of your life. Now, when I say prosperity, I'm not just referring to one dimension. When people hear prosperity today, they always think of prosperity in terms of wealth, and that is how they esteem success in life, for many people, but success is just one in material things, or even in finances are things that can actually become a burden and a weight and a bondage in our life if we're not careful. But Jesus says it like this: "Take heed to this, that a man's life consists not in the abundance of the things that he possesses," amen. "Seek ye first," Jesus said, "the kingdom of God".
Notice the very first thing. He say, "Seek first the kingdom of God". And before he said that, he was talking about your clothes and don't worry about what to wear, about what you eat. Look at the birds of the air. Look at the lilies of the field. God takes care of them. God clothes the lilies better than Solomon in all his glory. God feeds the birds of the air. And then Jesus says it like this: "Seek you first". See, I love the Lord. He keeps things simple. If we're gonna pursue for something in life, "Seek you first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things". And all these things, in the context of what he shared, are material things. "They'll be added to you". So God is not against you having those things. God is not against you having money as well. In fact, for us to help the poor and to finance the Gospel of Jesus Christ in these last days, especially, will take lots of money, amen? But God doesn't want money to possess you, amen? Though you possess money, money should never be the reason that you serve the Lord or you work in your occupation, amen?
Even your job, it is not because of your working for the salary. If that is your life and you spend a lot of your time at work, if that is your single motivation, then your life will become boring. Your life will become a drag when you go to work, and you're just passing by the hours, and since you spend a lot of time at work, why not make it a mission? Ask God for the spirit of wisdom and revelation to enlighten you in that area, amen, to have a vision, amen, and many a times you'll find that the vision is always about the Lord Jesus Christ, that you are there knowing that whatever you do as unto the Lord, not with eye-service as men-pleasers, amen. "Of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance," amen? Praise the Lord. So Jesus said, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you".
So God is not against you having all these material things. So when I talk about prosperity, it's more than just these outward things and your material things that the world thinks about. It's only one small segment, amen. The Bible says in the end times there'll be people who teach that financial prosperity or gain is godliness. The context there is very clear. It's talking about material gain is godliness. In other words, if you have financial success, it's a sign that God is blessing you. No, not necessarily so, amen? That's not the way we should interpret, amen, God's blessings in our life. In fact, the Bible goes on to say, "But godliness with contentment is great gain," amen? With contentment. Godliness with contentment is great gain. Now, we have to be consistent. If the first part of the gain is material gain, amen, financial gain, then the last part, great gain, must be interpreted in the same light, amen? So when you are godly and with contentment, amen, the Bible says it's great gain, amen. So it's the same.
"Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you". In fact, the Bible says we are to exercise ourself unto godliness, amen. So what is godliness? We're gonna come to that. But meanwhile, look at what godliness can produce in your life. In 1 Timothy, chapter 4, it says, "Exercise yourself toward godliness". This word exercise is from the Greek word gymnazo, where you get our word today, gymnasium, amen? "Gymnazo yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise". A lot of people, you know, we go to the gym to build our body, amen? For greater profit than what the Bible is telling us profits a little. You see, the thing is that God knows that having muscles and all the gain that you have from working out.... And I believe in working out, amen. I do work out, amen. I don't work out all the time like Pastor Lawrence, but I do work out and... But the Bible says the profit is only in one area, a little.
But look at this: "But godliness is profitable for all things". There again, you have that word, all things. So "Godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is," the present life, "and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance". Now, the religious idea is that, you know, yeah, you know, bodily exercise profits a little, so don't exercise at all. That's not what the Bible is saying. In fact, if you look at the New Living Translation, it says, "Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come". So "Bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things". We have this idea sometimes that, you know, to be godly means to be poor and to have little, or else you'll be, you know, money-minded, and you'll be selfish, you'll be materialistic, you'll be worldly. It's not consistent with the Bible.
The Bible actually encourages you to exercise yourself unto godliness, because godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is. In other words, it will produce profits, amen, in this life, in our health, amen, in our emotions, in our relationships, in our parenting, in our married life, in our social life. It will produce profit, amen. Praise the Lord. It has profit. The idea of profit there, don't just put it, you know, spiritual profit, because the first part there, bodily exercise profits little, must be interpreted in the same context, so bodily exercise is not profiting you spiritually, all right? So the idea there is profitable for all things, amen, spiritual, material, mental, physical, social, in every area of your life, amen, amen. So what is godliness? And the Bible says that this is a faithful saying, to teach godliness is profitable for all things is actually a faithful saying, worthy of all acceptation, amen. To teach that financial prosperity is a sign that God is blessing you is not right, amen? The Bible says that is not Scripture, amen? That is not Bible, amen. Bible doesn't teach that. It says gain is godliness. It's not the teaching or what the Word of God is telling us. But the Word of God is saying, "But godliness with contentment is great gain".
I hope you got that by now, praise the Lord. And we gotta realize that, first and foremost, God wants our soul prosperity. In 3 John 2, it says, "Beloved, I pray above all things that you prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers". Now, the way the verse is written, it can go both ways. It can say, "I pray above all things," like the King James says, "I wish above all things that you prosper and be in health," as if the priority is above all things. It's that you prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers, or like other translation says, I wish, or I pray that you prosper in all aspects, in every area, amen, and be in health, even as your soul prospers. Now, if you look at the Greek of the word even as, it is exactly in proportion to, amen?
So we have this idea that, you know, to teach that you can be in health and prosper materially even, according to your soul prosperity... notice the criteria: according to your soul prosperity is not Bible. But on the contrary, the Bible teaches us that our prosperity outwardly and our health is in exact proportion to our soul prosperity. It behooves us, then, amen, to make sure that our souls are prospering, hallelujah. So the priority is that your soul prosperity comes first, amen. But even then, it doesn't mean that people who are prospering in their souls, they're automatically in good health or even prospering outside, because the Bible actually tells us that John is praying for Gaius. He's praying, and that's the Word of God. I mean, John would not wish something that is contrary to God's will. So the word there is pray. I pray, not just wish. I pray that you prosper in all things and be in health even as your soul prospers. So if somebody's soul is prospering, but they're not in health, or they're not prospering outwardly, you ought to pray for them. Pray. Pray for your children, pray for your spouse, pray for your friends, for those that you know that needs a breakthrough, and you know their souls are prospering.
In fact, if you read carefully, Gaius, whom John is writing to, his soul is already prospering. Why? He's walking in the truth. He's walking in love, amen, and many of us, we are walking in love, amen. We know there's no bitterness in our hearts and all that, so it is a given that your souls are prospering when this word comes to you, amen. So God is saying even then you need to pray that God effect it. What is inside, that soul prosperity, comes outside, and for that, it takes prayer, so I pray, pray for your children. I pray that they prosper and be in health, amen, even as their souls prospers. If they are studying, amen, I pray that they prosper in all their studies and be in health even as their souls prosper. That is not a materialistic prayer. That is a prayer from the Bible, hallelujah. Thank you, Lord Jesus. The next question we need to ask is, "What is exercise yourself unto godliness"? What is godliness? What is godliness?
Now, we have this idea godliness is defined as the English word godliness, all right, God-likeness. Yes, but actually the word eusebeia, all right, is the word "good," Eu- means good, and the other word is actually the word for homage or worship, good worship. Actually, it's a noun, not so much a verb as a noun. We ought to be involved and engrossed in something called godliness, and in this will cause the profit to result in our lives. So what is this exercise that we are to be engaged with? Now, this is chapter 4, 1 Timothy 4. Now, he will not tell us about godliness without telling us what godliness is, right? So if you look at the chapter before this, the ending of the chapter 3, it says here in 1 Timothy 3, verse 16, "Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness". Whenever you see the word mystery in the New Testament, it is not something hidden anymore. It was once hidden. Musterion in the Greek means it was once hidden but now revealed. So what is the mystery of godliness? What is this godliness that's now revealed? "God was manifested in the flesh". Who is that? That's our Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice the word godliness here is in the noun. It is not a verb. It is not something that you do. It is something that you exercise yourself unto when your thoughts and your mind is engaged, when all your studies, you're pursuing the redemptive truths in the Bible. You're studying the life of Jesus, the work of Jesus at the cross. God is saying that is an exercise of godliness. God was manifested in the flesh. This is godliness. "God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world," and finally, our Lord Jesus was received up in glory. That's the entire Gospel story right there as well as all the writings of Paul and the other apostles in the New Testament. In other words, whenever you spend your time meditating and studying and reading on the life of Jesus and on the work of Jesus, amen, it's all throughout the New Testament, amen, and the more you engage in this, you are actually exercising yourself unto godliness.
It is not trying to dress in a certain way or cut your hair in a certain length and all these outward facade, or you don't wear makeup, or you know, and you think that you're holy when actually you have a tongue so long that while you're sitting in the room, you can lick a spoon inside the kitchen, amen? In other words, you are gossiping, you are backbiting, you are condemning people, amen. That's not godliness, amen? This idea, the idea of godliness there, of course, amen, the word piety, reverence is there, but it is a noun, amen? It is when we are engaged with the life of Jesus, the redemptive truth, amen, of Scripture, amen, the redemptive truths part of Scripture, amen. That is an exercise in godliness. And in fact, in 1 Timothy 4, where it talks about exercise yourself unto godliness because godliness is profitable for all things, amen. In that same chapter, if you keep on reading the context there, then we come to what we shared on last week about meditate upon these things. Give yourself wholly to them.
Let's look at it: "Till I come, give attention to reading". Now, it's the same chapter where it talks about exercise yourself unto godliness and how godliness is profitable for this life and the life to come in all things, amen? Then he goes on to say, "Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine". Now I know this "Till I come" is referring to Paul writing to Timothy, but this is the word of God, and there's also a prophetic, like, a prophetic meaning there. The Lord Jesus is telling us, "Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine". Give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. "Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things. Give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all". There you go again. When you meditate your progress in the King James Version, that thy profiting may appear to all. In the New King James, that your progress. Another translation says your advancement may be evident to all.
And friends, this is amazing, because may be evident to all really tells you, in fact, there are some versions of the Bible that actually says may be evident in all. That means that your profiting is evident in all things in your life, amen? I believe it's both, and that's why the versions are not completely settled. Some says that your profiting might appear to all, that means everyone can see it, but there's also versions that interpret the Greek there as saying that you are profiting in all things. What I'm trying to say, my friend, is that one thing that you do when you meditate upon God's Word day and night, whatever you do prospers. Whatever you do prospers. Here it says when you meditate upon God's Word, your profiting may appear to all. All your profiting will be evident in all things. It'll be visible. It'll be clear in all things, amen, to all people. They can see it. Hallelujah, praise the name of Jesus, amen.
You know, even Potiphar saw... and he's a heathen. He doesn't believe in God, but Potiphar saw that the Lord was with Joseph, and whatever he did, God made it to prosper, amen. So it behooves us, then, to meditate upon these things, amen? Give ourself wholly to them. Pastors, preachers, leaders, those who share the Word of God, the Bible says, "You meditate upon God's Word," and the next verse tells you when you meditate upon God's word, it says, "Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you". And I shared last week about the word saved. He's not telling Timothy that, you know, you'll save yourself, and you'll save those who hear you from hell, amen? Save yourself. Timothy is already saved, amen? But the word sozo is all inclusive, amen? It is not save from hell here in this context, but the word sozo is also used for healing, amen? Of course, save you from a sinful lifestyle, amen, save you from addiction, save you also in your body, amen, from sickness and disease, amen. And that's an area that's been neglected.
You know, the book of Acts is full of healings and full of signs and wonders, and it's not our place to make ourself an authority to say all this has ceased. Where do you find that? Just based on 1 Corinthians 13, where it says, "They shall cease," and one day we see Jesus face-to-face, we don't need these gifts anymore, amen. That's the time when the perfect has come. Has the perfect come? No, amen. When the perfect is come, all these things will cease. My friend, all these things are gifts from God. How can we despise them? If they are gifts from God, God must know that they are very important in our lives. In fact, the Bible says it like this: "Covet earnestly the best gifts". The word covet, you know, it sounds very carnal. Be greedy for, amen? Covet, amen? Or be eagerly... not enough to say covet, be greedy for, amen, but it says earnestly, covet earnestly. Combine them together is intense longing, an intense longing for the gifts of the Spirit.
You know, before I preach, I pray and ask the Lord, I'm craving earnestly for the gifts of healings to flow like a mighty river. I crave for it, amen? Amen, I spiritually, I salivate over the idea that the word gifts of healings is both plural, gifts of healings, and God has gifts of healing for every kind of ailment that the world can come up with, that the devil can try to effect in this lifetime, amen? God has gifts, plural, of healings, plural. That's in the original, amen? Now, it tells you that we are to covet earnestly for the best gifts, yet walk in love, amen? Don't say, "I walk in love and I don't need the gifts". You know, you see a $100 bill on the floor and a $10 bill. Which one do you pick up? Both, amen. The Bible doesn't say, amen, just walk in love, love is the more excellent way. Yes, it tells you that, but it tells you follow after love and desire spiritual gifts, amen. Amen? But rather that you may prophesy.
And there's something that many people who believe the gifts have ceased have neglected that portion of Scripture, and therefore, they don't see the results in the lives of their ministry, or the people in their ministry. And I want everything that God has for you, amen? I want you to be blessed, amen, because Jesus says, "I am come". Why did he come? He says, "I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly," amen? Praise the Lord. The Bible says in Psalms 39, and this is a beautiful verse for those who are budding preachers and those who wanna, you know, increase in this gifting of teaching and preaching, and the Bible says all of us ought to be able to teach one another, amen? But many, unfortunately, when the book of Hebrews was written, it says that, "By the time you ought to be teachers, you have need again that you be taught all the fundamentals," amen? But God wants us all to be teachers.
There are those who have the gift of the fivefold ministry, amen. The Bible says he gave some pastors, he gave some teachers, amen, so there is a fivefold ministry gift of teaching. There's a greater anointing in that teaching, but all of us are called to teach, amen. For those of you who are teaching, this is an amazing verse for you to hold onto, amen, because knowing that when you meditate you'll produce results of good fruit that will glorify God, amen. You will increase in the knowledge of God, and you will prosper in all that you do, amen? Psalms 39, verse 3, says, "My heart was hot within me. While I was musing, the fire burned. Then I spoke with my tongue". I love it. I love what David says here, "While I was musing, the fire burned".
Now, this has been the guiding principle of all my preaching. I don't preach what is not hot in my heart. I make sure that, you know, I don't believe that God will make you preach something that your heart is not burning for. And that's why I always advise those who are teaching and preaching that one of the ways to prepare your message is actually to see what God has written on your heart, what God is causing a passion for in the past few days or for the past week, amen, leading to your speaking engagement, see what is boiling in your heart, amen? And when you preach what's boiling in your heart, amen, there be fire, amen, there'll be a prophetic anointing on it, praise the Lord. Because my heart... You know, the word anointing actually has the word of bubbling up, amen, the Hebrew word for navi, a prophet, it's from the word that says bubble up, amen, to bubble up.
So David is saying, "My heart was hot, then while I was musing". How do you stoke the fire? "While I was musing". Now, the word musing in our English, amen, is the word meditate. In fact, in the Hebrew it is also meditate. It is from the word, it's the noun of the verb hagah. Here it is hagig. While I was musing. Hagig is the noun of hagah, remember hagah? We learned that last week in Joshua 1:8, "This Book of the Law shall not depart of your mouth," but you shall what? Hagah, meditate on it day and night, and you will make your way prosperous. There you have it again, "and you will have good success". In Psalms 1 it says, "his delight is in the law of the Lord; and on his law," doth he what? Hagah. in the Hebrew, hagah, he meditates on the Word day and night. "And he shall be like a tree," and whatever he does prospers, amen? So, notice the word hagah, and it's the same word here, but in the noun form, amen. Here it says, "While I was musing," hagig, the fire burned. That's how you stoke the fire in you. "Then I spoke with my tongue," amen.
If you speak with a fire in your heart, that's when it penetrates, amen. That's when it goes right into the heart, hallelujah. And you got to believe in what you preach, amen. And the way to stoke the fire is to meditate, meditate on what God has shown you, amen. So, while I was musing, while I was musing, the fire burned, amen. This word musing is very interesting. In the English, we have the word amuse. Amuse is the opposite of muse, muse means you are silently contemplating, amen, you are meditating, you are revolving a thought over and over in your mind, amen. In the Hebrew concept of meditation you mutter it. Hagah is the mutter, amen. Hagah, meditate, in Psalms 1, Joshua 1:8 is the word mutter. Here is the word mutter, the noun form of hagah. While I was muttering on God's Word, the fire burned.
Musing is opposite from amusement, amuse. Today, everyone is looking to amuse themselves, amen. They turn on, you know, their television because they want to be amused, they are engaged in social media because there's a constant craving to be amused, and the current world is a society that is running for amusement, and it's like, you know, they want a dopamine release. You know, the dopamine chemicals are those chemicals that make you feel good, and every time you win a game, amen, you feel good, right? And now there's a dopamine craze. It's like everyone wants to be entertained, they want to be entertained. Please entertain me, please entertain me, please entertain me, and now the scientists are telling us... in fact there's a word. A lot of people are suffering from this now. They are telling us that this word, anhedonia, anhedonia. You know, hedonia means pleasure. Anhedonia is a condition where the people cannot experience pleasure anymore, an inability to experience pleasure, why? Well, there are many reasons.
One of the reasons is that physically they are not able to, there's a cognitive impairment, or there are things got to do with the brain usually, right? But there's also more and more studies showing that the more you indulge in this dopamine, the more you indulge in this release of feel-good chemicals, the more you look forward to be entertained, to amuse yourself, you can come to a place of anhedonia. Anhedonia is the inability to experience pleasure, and that's why God's Word tells us things like, there are times, you know, you need to exercise self control. Some things are good, like eating, amen. It's good to eat, no problem, amen. A lot of things in life is okay. The smart phone, it's good, amen, but you know, it's something else when you are addicted to it. If you're addicted to eating, you're addicted to social media, amen, that's when you have an addiction to hedonism, which is pleasure. Anhedonia, with an A in front always negates the pleasure, which means the lack of pleasure, the inability to experience pleasure.
So a lot of people are suffering from anhedonia, amen. The Bible says the more you abstain, it doesn't mean you abstain so that you never have pleasure anymore. God says when you abstain at the right time, the pleasure's gonna be great, amen. So God says even for food, amen. If you're eating all the time and never fasting, amen, you never have a lifestyle that is fasted or controlling your eating, you cannot enjoy food all the time if you are pursuing after the pleasures of eating, amen. Now, I know this can be controversial for a lot of people, but without controversy, the Word of God is true, amen. The Word of God tells us clearly that "while I was meditating, the fire burned," amen? And today we have lost that art of musing. "While I was musing," while I was musing over the truth of God's Word, "the fire burned. Then I spoke with my tongue".
That's when there's power in your words, amen. We have forgotten this art of silent contemplation or just muttering to ourselves. You know, when you're muttering, you're not muttering to someone. They can't hear you. They'll say, "Speak up," right, amen? Muttering's always to yourself. And the word hagah in Hebrew is to mutter to yourself. So you're muttering to yourself, amen. But instead, the opposite is happening. Instead of musing, we are amusing ourself, with an A in front in the English word, that a-muse the A negates the musing, amen. I thought it's very interesting when I realize the word amuse come from the word muse, actually which is meditate, contemplate, amen? And amuse means there's no time for contemplation because somebody else is thinking for you, somebody else is entertaining you, somebody else is being creative for you, and you just lie down there and you just take in or you are looking at your phone and you are just going from one page after another and you're on social media.
And I'm not against social media. Listen carefully, my friend, but I think that in the context of what God is saying, I feel like God is saying to me, amen, the now word is be free from the bondage of social media, amen. Now, I say bondage. You can use social media as a tool even for your job and some work and all that, to bring attention to what you are doing, amen. It's fine but it's something else when you have to answer emails on your phone. You can answer emails on your laptop, amen, when you go home. When you're working, during your working time, but to bring your work everywhere, that is a bondage, amen? Every time there's a ping, you gotta look at it. Every time someone, you know, sends you a message, you have to look at it and you're spending time with your children, you're spending time with your wife, and you are occupied with this.
My friend, you are amusing yourself, you know, especially those with games, and you are distracting yourself. You might not be amusing yourself, like, playing games and looking at social media posts and all that. That's a form of amusement. That's the amusement that people are involved in today, but you can actually be in bondage and feel like you are missing out. You feel like if I don't get back, I'll be lost. My friend, it is not true. Do you know that social media companies, many of them, have engaged individuals called attention engineers. And what they do is that they borrow principles from Las Vegas gambling casinos, amen, to keep you addicted to their product. So the more you're addicted, the more they can extract profit from you, okay? The whole idea is to keep people addicted.
Now, that wasn't the dream that Steve Jobs had. In fact, Steve Jobs was a minimalist. He wanted to have a smartphone that could play music that people can bring along and just play music. But today is different. Today is like, every time you look in your social media, there are a lot of advertisements, a lot of product placement that's there to distract you. Even when you look at your Facebook, you don't mean to look longer than you should but before you know it, you're looking at things that you're not even interested in, just to amuse yourself, amen. You play games all the time just to amuse yourself. Even when you have a bored moment, amen, of nothing to do, amen, those are actually moments where if you allow yourself to be bored, you allow yourself to contemplate, you allow yourself to muse, creative thoughts will rise up, amen. In fact, that little muscle called creativity that has been lying dormant, amen, will start to be used.
And when you meditate on God's Word, the Bible says: "Meditate on God's Word". Imagine, you know, "But why God's Word, Pastor Prince? I'm so busy, I have to be involved". No, friend, you have a fear of missing out, amen. It's not that you have to be updated all the time, amen. I'm talking about the bondage. I'm not talking about social media, and the right use of it. The Bible says that "all things are lawful unto me," and this is where social media comes in. "All things are lawful unto me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. All things are lawful unto me but all things edify not. All things are lawful unto me, but I'll not be brought under the power of any". So it's one thing to be using social media, it's another thing to be brought under its power, amen?
You know, you see people all the time and you know, they are socializing and everyone is looking at their phone. Or they're out with their children and they are looking at the phone, amen? And their little child is on the swing, and they're looking at their phone. You know, just spend that time, live in the moment, live in the present, enjoy the now, hallelujah, amen. These are gifts all too soon before you know it, they grow up. And you're modeling before them, you know, the importance of looking at your phone, you know? And friend, like I said, I'm not against social media, per se. I'm against the bondage it's brought on people to the point that now there's a constant desire to be amused, to be entertained, to focus on the pursuit of pleasure until there is no more pleasure left, or they have lost the capacity to enjoy pleasure. We need to teach our children delayed gratification, amen. Some things you give up right now but you enjoy greatly later, amen?
You know, this generation zed is a generation that has grown up with the social media, and it has been said by college mental health experts, many of them have said that you can almost pinpoint it to the year that the social media came in for the explosion of anxiety disorders on campuses. You can almost trace it, they'll tell you that, amen. With this pervasive influence of social media and people getting involved in it, there has been a rising tide, an explosion (they use the word explosion) of anxiety disorders.
It reminds me of what Jesus said, look up here. Now, if you look at Luke 10, verse 38, it says, "Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus's feet and heard His Word". Notice, she sat at Jesus's feet and heard his word. "Martha was distracted with much serving". Now, this word distracted is very interesting, it is the word to be pulled, to be drawn away in a circle, like, in a circular way, like in every direction she's been drawn away. The word peri-, which is in this Greek word here. Peri- means like a circle, all around, all around, she's been drawn all around, so that's what caused distraction, alright? So, she was distracted with much serving. Maybe she's trying, I need to add this spice, I need to add this vegetable, I need to add this, I need to milk this sheep, I need to, you know, she's distracted all around.
"And she approached Jesus and said, 'Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.'" So, notice that she got a little bit short fuse right now, and notice that she blamed the Lord, "Do you not care that my sister has left me"? And she blamed her sister as well. "Therefore tell her to help me". And now she's even almost commanding the Lord. "Therefore tell her to help me". Now, she said all this in the presence of Mary, obviously, you know, people that are short fused, people who are irritable, it's because they are distracted, and not only that, Jesus said it like this. "Jesus answered and said to her, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed".
I love the Lord's simplicity, amen. Yet there is such wisdom in this simplicity. One thing is needed. Only one thing is needed, not many, not even a few, one thing. "One thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her". Now, look at this word again, "Martha, Martha, you are worried". And the word worried is the Greek word merimnaó. Merimnaó. Merimnaó. A. T. Robertson defines it as, "Divided into parts". It is actually the idea of being separated into different parts, being pulled in different directions, alright? To be pulled in different directions. And we saw that just like the word distracted, she's now being drawn from every direction, amen, like in a circle. she's going in a merry-go-round, you know, as far as her life is concerned, she's distracted, so many things. And the Lord is there. She's not even enjoying the Lord. Now, in a nutshell, I just want to say that this is a picture of the many, many people today, amen. Even believers, they are being distracted.
Now, you might think that the physical part of going to... having Jesus in the house, I'm talking about spiritually, that's what we are doing. We are being distracted all the time by the phone, amen, by social media. We have to be updated, we have to respond, we have to look, amen. The moment we feel bored, we have to have that dopamine release, we have to have some amusement, we have to be entertained, amen. So, all the while this pursuit is costing more and more anhedonism in your life. And notice that as she was focused on all, being distracted and all these different things, in her mind she probably legitimized the whole thing, just like people who are in bondage to social media, they probably legitimize everything, alright? I have need to do this, I must do this, it's part of my work, you don't understand, amen.
Let me just tell you this, the Lord loves you, and the Lord says, "Martha, Martha". There's such tenderness there, isn't it? When he repeats your name, Martha, Martha, you are merimnaó. You are being drawn in many directions, and you are troubled. And the word troubled there is troubled, alright? But in the Greek merimnaó means to be drawn in different directions. It's the same word used by the Lord in the Sermon on the Mount, where he says, "Be not worried about what you shall eat, or what you shall drink, nor for your body, what you shall put on". The same word, don't merimnaó, don't be drawn into different directions. Why do people worry? Because they think what is going to happen if I don't do this? What's going to happen if that happens? If that happens, then this will happen, if this happens, then this will happen, and before you know it, they're in a panic attack, and all the while they're always looking at the dark side. Their view is very pessimistic.
You know, the Bible says put on the helmet of salvation, amen, and it's because they are not focused on the one thing. So, you say, Pastor Prince, if I don't have the phone, I don't look at the phone, what do I do? Well, those quote-unquote boring moments, amen, when you feel like you have to be entertained, how about bringing up the verse of Scripture? In fact, I believe that one of the reasons God made the cow with four stomachs is to show us what the cow does. The cow will eat grass, amen, like the first part of the morning you will eat grass, lots of grass. And that's like us spending time in the Word, amen. We will read passages, we will read chapters, even a portion maybe, amen. That's like eating the grass, but that's not enough, amen. What the cow does is that the cow will lie down somewhere, and then he will chew on the grass.
Have you seen a cow chewing on the grass, amen? Here is a video of a cow that we took on Mount Arbel in one of my trips with my pastors. We came down Mount Arbel, and we saw this cow in a cave. And by the way, you know what's the theme of that trip that particular year? Meditation. And I never saw that cow again, in a cave, in Mount Arbel, it's as if God prepared that cow just to be in that cave to tell us, look at how relaxed he is, amen. You can almost see him chewing, chewing, then he stops, right? He's swallowing the cud, and then it goes into the first stomach, and he brings it up again. Notice, he starts chewing again, right? And this time it goes to the second stomach, and on and on to the fourth stomach until the grass becomes cud and becomes nutrients and strength and health to his body.
So, as you meditate on God's Word, God's Word has all the qualities, it says, "For the Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart". Look at this verse again. God's Word is what, living. In fact, Solomon says it like this in Proverbs 4, God's Words, "They are life to those that find them, and health to all their flesh". God's Word is health to all your flesh, amen. The Hebrew word there is medicine, health to all your flesh. Some medicine today, you know, is health to one part of your flesh, but it can bring bad side effects, contraindications, you know, and other problems in other parts of your body, but God's Word is health to all your flesh, amen. Jesus said it like this, "Men does not live by bread alone," or by rice, or by noodles, "but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God".
So, Jesus says, you know, it's like he's saying, just as necessary for you to eat every day, so is the Word of God. You cannot just live by your food, your physical food, you must live by the Word of God. So, life is in God's Word, life is in God's Word, amen. The Word of God is living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing, God's Word can pierce even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit. You know, soul and spirit is, in a simple form, okay, let me just tell you this. You ever wondered, is this voice that I hear inside, is this leading me or is it God speaking to me? I know God dwells in me, but is it me or God?
Now, God would be area of the spirit, amen, soul is you, you are the soul, amen. God dwells in your spirit, so if you spend time in God's Word, you will know what is God's voice or not, because as you spend time in God's Word, there is, like, it's hard for me to explain this, but it's an experience, you have to go through it. When it's reading God's Word for some time, you will find that there is a voice, there is a tone, there is a certain kind of intonation, a certain kind of timber of the voice that you'll be familiar with, and that's the voice that speaks to you, amen, on the inside. But God's Word, spending time in God's Word, you're able to divide soul, which is you, and spirit, where God dwells. And not only that, it divides joints and marrow. You know, joints is the part when, one of the first parts that have problems when you're growing old, isn't it? Because joints, you know, it's important for the cartilage to be healthy, because a healthy cartilage will not cause the bones to rub against each other, and your joints can go on and on, because healthy joints means, what?
You can be mobile, you can jump, you can walk, you can run, for a long, long time, amen. But God's Word is able to touch what, he mentions joints. And not only joints, he will penetrate to the joints and marrow. Now, the bone marrow is very important, because it is very important to our immune system, amen. Did you know that all your blood cells, and also the T and B lymphocytes, which is vital for your immune system, they're all created in your marrow. Now, some of you here people need a bone marrow donor, amen. For those with, like, leukemia, cancer of the blood, let me say this, God's will can penetrate to the joints and to the marrow. What do you think God's Word is going into that area for? To revitalize your immune system, amen. Reading God's Word brings life, it's not just a spiritual benefit my friend, it's profitable for all things.
Solomon says in Proverbs 4, "My son, attend to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh". Notice this word, give attention, give attention, it's the same word in the Septuagint, which is the Greek version of the Old Testament. The Old Testament is in Hebrew, but there's a Greek version, this word "attention" is the same Greek word used in 1 Timothy 4 just now. Let's go to 1 Timothy 4, "Till I come, give attention to reading," the word "attention" is the same word. Give attention, to what? Reading the Scriptures, to exhortation, same word, God is saying, prioritize my Word. Prioritize reading my Word, amen, exhortation is encouragement, amen, the building up of God's people to doctrine, which is a teaching of God's Word.
"Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them," same truth, "so that your profiting may appear to all," same truth, amen. It's telling you, when you meditate, when you muse on God's Word, you give attention to God's Word, amen, the profit, the result, the success, amen. The advancement will be evident in all areas of your life, amen. So, let's go back and close with this story, and Jesus in the house of Martha and Mary.
So Jesus says, "One thing is needed". So, "Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things," just like today, there are so many people in this predicament. They are worried and troubled, but they don't realize they are worried and troubled. They just find they're more irritable, amen, they're more short tempered, but because they are worried and troubled about what, many things, why? Because they are being pulled in all different directions, don't forget this word "worried" means, what, being pulled in all different directions. I have to do this, I have, I have, I have, you know, and just need to say, one thing is needed, there are a lot of what's seeming to be priorities in your life, but only one thing is needed, only one. "And Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her". One thing is needed, one thing is needed.
Now, I know that this goes against the grain of what is natural in the world today, amen, but let me tell you this, it goes against the grain of someone coming to your house who is an honored guest, and then instead of finding some refreshment for him, you sit at his feet, and you draw even more from him, amen, you draw more from him, but in the divine economy of things, amen, the Lord loves it. When the Lord comes to your house, he doesn't come for you to serve him, amen. He came to serve you, he came for you to take from him, I mean, he has everything, hallelujah. He is all powerful, amen, the desire of all nations, amen, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, hallelujah.
When he comes into your home, he wants you to take from him, amen. But instead, if we see him as needy, needing our ministry, well that's a wrong way to look at the Lord, amen, that doesn't please the Lord. Mary pleased the Lord, because she sat at his feet, and she heard his words, so she's a picture of those who are meditating on God's Word. Every, you know, moment where it seems bored and all that, they just meditate, amen. Nothing to do, stop looking at your phone, amen, meditate. Bring up that word, that Scripture verse, like the cow would bring up the cud and start chewing on it again, amen. By doing that, just saying, amen, that is the one thing needful. Do you really believe what the Lord said, that one thing, only one thing is needful, and it's going to take care of everything in your life. Yes, it came from the lips of the Master, amen. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Everything the devil does to distract us is to distract us especially from God's Word. And there's a lot of, even legitimate things, to distract us today, and friend if you find that you are losing the ability to enjoy things you used to enjoy, or pleasure doesn't seem pleasurable anymore, perhaps you're suffering from some form of anhedonism. Anhedonia is a condition that can grow on you without you even realizing, all of a sudden you find that you get bored, you get cynical with life, and the Lord loves you, the Lord wants to come into your home, not to take from you, but to give to you, amen, so shut down everything else that would distract you. Stop looking at your, you know, stop exposing yourself to all your friends's carefully curated positive portrayals of their life on social media. That will only leave you depressed, feeling isolated, feeling like you've been shortchanged, but my friend, switch all this off.
Don't be distracted. When the ping comes in, you don't always have to answer, especially when you're with people that you love, amen, or you're doing something that is important to you, maybe you're learning to play the guitar, amen, start getting back into some hobbies. For a while, trying to break that bondage is like detoxing, you know, okay, you have to, you find, oh, and there's a panic attack, you feel, what will I do without a phone, and a fear of missing out coming, and I don't know what to do, and friend, calm down, amen, it's just a detox process. Spend time, bring up the Word of Scripture, meditate on it day and night, amen, chew on it, nighttime, if you can't sleep, chew on it, amen, and the Word of God will release health, life, prosperity into your life in the name of Jesus, amen.
I pray that this has blessed you, hallelujah, it's something that you can hold onto, amen, especially when you're busy and all that, and take a good bite of Scripture in the morning or at night, and then use that the whole day the next day and just meditate, chew on that verse like a good cow, amen, bringing up that nutrient until, and chew on it again, until it becomes milk that will feed others, especially your young ones, amen, praise the Lord, thank you Lord Jesus, hallelujah.
Friend, we are living in a world that is becoming more and more a dangerous place, amen. People don't care, there's no more morality, all these situational ethics all depends on what is good at the moment. No friend, there is a right and there is a wrong, but especially for us, we don't have to worry about all that as we focus on the Lord Jesus, be occupied with him, see his beauty, see his glory, and that's the one thing needful. David said it like this, "One thing have I desired of the Lord... to behold the beauty of the Lord..". to behold the beauty of the Lord, and where do you behold this beauty? In his Word, amen, and that's the one thing needful. That is the word "meditate" amen, meditate on the Word of God, and make sure that what you meditate on is the mystery of Godliness. It's all about Jesus, amen, and it's all about his redemptive work for us, amen, meditate on it, meditate on it.
If you are sick in your body, amen, spend a time meditating on verses like Mathew 8:17, "He Himself took my infirmities and bore my sicknesses," 1 Peter 2:24, by whose stripes you were healed "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes you were healed," amen. I have a series of Scriptures on healing where I just quote it with beautiful music, you know, sounds of rain, and all that, and it's available if you want it, amen, but just focus on the Word of God in the area that you want to see the manifestation, amen. If it's healing, like I said, meditate on verses like, "You shall be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be a male or female barren among you," "You shall serve the Lord your God, and He shall bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you".
God's Word has the power to reproduce itself in your life, why not give it a chance my friend, amen. Focus on God's Word and find freedom, amen, to be effective in all things instead of being distracted by the many things and then lose out on the very one thing that will prosper you in every area of your life, amen, amen, praise the name of Jesus.
If you're sick in your body right now, wherever you are suffering physically, I want to pray for you right now in the name of Jesus, just place your hand upon that area, amen, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Father, I thank you Lord for everyone under the sound of my voice, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pronounce their body healed from this condition, in the name of Jesus, from this disease, in the name of Jesus, and I pray for a restoration of health in that area in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, thank you Lord Jesus, praise the Lord, thank you Lord, joint conditions, just as I said joints earlier on, God is healing joints right now, if you have a joint condition, mobility condition, that you cannot bend but with pain, do it right now, bend your knee, bend your joints, all the hinges, amen, start moving, amen, God is healing joints right now in Jesus's name, amen.
I see a man who is not able to turn his head all the way, and I see you turning your head right now in Jesus's name, you are healed. Praise the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, thank you Lord Jesus, a lady who has a certain kind of pain when she moves her head like this, even like this she feels the pain, she can feel the pain to the back, God is healing you right now, move your neck, move your head in Jesus's name, there you are, praise the Lord, heal in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, thank you Lord Jesus. All kinds of joint conditions, do it right now in Jesus's name, amen, arthritis, amen, going, leaving you in Jesus's name, the Lord is healing you of arthritis in your fingers, amen, amen, praise the Lord Jesus, thank you Lord Jesus, amen, amen, amen, praise the Lord.
God's Word is penetrating into the joints and marrow, effecting a cure, amen, effecting a healing in that area in Jesus's name, hallelujah, thank you Lord Jesus, thank you Lord Jesus, and Father, I pray that your Word will also penetrate, Lord, into the marrows of all the people, Lord, producing healthy blood cells Lord, amen, in Jesus's name, hallelujah, in Jesus's name, thank you Lord Jesus, amen, amen, praise the Lord, thank you Lord, thank you Lord, thank you Lord. There's someone here, I see you with a huge, you're looking at something, it's your, it's like a form of your financial debt, and I see the Lord, like, canceling the whole thing with his blood, and it's a huge sum, you owe money, alright, it's a huge sum, and you know what is it, and I think it's even the portion of, like, six figures, and the Lord is releasing you and putting a cross right over it, a cancelation mark, amen, with his blood. You are redeemed, praise the Lord, from that debt, hallelujah, he still saves, he still redeems, hallelujah, thank you Lord Jesus, thank you Lord Jesus.
Now, some of you are saying right now, I want that to happen to me also, my debt is smaller, it's only about five figures, and mine could be a few hundred, we heard the Lord can do it, because right now faith is being released, and you can believe him for it, just right now Father in Jesus's name, I pray for a supernatural cancelation of debts in the lives of these people that are believing in you for it, amen. But where you are able to pay, where you are supposed to clear, amen, do it. God knows your situation, if God knows you cannot the miracle will happen, amen, but if you have, you know you have the money, you know you're able to, than you know what, you got to walk worthy of the Lord, amen, and honor the Lord, amen, by having a testimony to his glory, amen, and start telling the person the truth, if you can pay an amount, pay something first, praise God.
I don't know why I'm focused on this, but it seems like the Lord cares for people that are going through this. Many of you, this has been the area of your anxiety and concern, and the Lord says, come back to this truth, amen. Just focus on the one thing needful, receiving his Word, chewing on it, meditate on it, musing on it, and I'll take care of your finances, I'll take care of your life, amen, I'll take care of your needs, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, thank you Lord Jesus, amen, amen, amen.
If you've never invited Jesus to come into your life, you've never put your trust in him, friend, we've been sharing about God's Word and how God's Word produces, you know, success, and prosperity, not just materially, like I said, but in every area of our lives, that Jesus said it like this, "I come that you might have life, and have it more abundantly," and the greatest success, like I said earlier, is your soul prosperity, amen. To know that you are right with God, to know that all is well with my soul, amen, my sins are forgiven, heaven is my home, God is my father, and God will never impute sin to me, he's not going to deal with me based on sin, he's going to deal with me based... as a son, amen, on sonship, praise the Lord, I thank you Lord, amen, I thank you Lord for your love Lord, for these precious people, Lord, that are watching right now, I thank you Lord that it is you who have caused them to tune in Lord, so friend pray this prayer with me right now. Say:
Heavenly Father, I thank you for the gift of your Son, my Lord Jesus Christ. I confess him right now as my Savior and my Lord. Jesus Christ is my Lord, I thank you Christ died for my sins and Christ was raised from the dead when I was justified in him. Thank you, Father, you are now my Father, all my sins are forgiven, I have a brand new life, my soul prosperity has begun, and I pray Father, that from this day forth I prosper in all things and be in health even as my soul prospers in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen.
If you prayed that prayer my friend, you are now a child of God, amen, all your sins are forgiven, the Bible says it like this, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things are passed away, all things have become new. Let's all stand to our feet right now for the blessing, hallelujah, and like I said before, I'm going to say it again, amen, that this blessing is not just some nice words pronounced over you to soothe your emotions, no, no, the words spoken under the anointing of the Holy Spirit will set the course of this coming week, it will rearrange circumstances that otherwise would not have been, and it will stop and thwart and hinder the plans of the enemy against you, against your family, against your children, amen, amen. You can always set your course this week, you will make the crooked places straight. Lift your hands, hallelujah:
Father in the name of Jesus I thank you for everyone under the sound of my voice, and I thank you Father God that this week you will make it a special week for them, Lord, filled with your blessings. The Lord bless you, and the Lord keep you, preserve you, protect you, you and your loved ones, all throughout this week from the COVID-19 virus, from every infection, from every disease, from all the power of the evil one, the Lord make his face shine on you and your loved ones, and the Lord make his face to be favorable to you, amen, all throughout this week, and the Lord lift up his countenance on you and your families and grant to you and yours his wonderful shalom, wholeness, wellbeing, and peace, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen. Hallelujah.