TD Jakes - Shatter Your Truth
Great breakthroughs come in seasons of "not knowing"—embracing uncertainty, discomfort, and curiosity rather than clinging to false certainties or familiar routines. Like the blind man led out of Bethsaida, God often takes us out of safe, predictable environments to perform miracles we could never receive while staying comfortable in what we already "know."
The Power of Not Knowing
Everything wonderful that ever exploded in my life came in a place of not knowing. I was willing to be scared. I was willing to have my heart beating in my chest. I was willing to walk into rooms where I did not know what to say. I was willing to stand up in front of people that were not just church people.
I was willing to go where other people had not gone before and do things that other people had not done before. I was willing to walk by faith and not by sight. As long as you keep going back to what is safe, you will never grow. Until you are willing to be led out of your routine—outside of your understanding of yourself—you will never run into your miracle until you embrace the art of not knowing.
Managing Uncertainty
The period of not knowing is very important—and yet it is very painful. The period of not knowing is what separates the men from the boys. Your ability to manage uncertainty—to deal with the unknown—to withstand the pressure of not knowing rather than to create an illusive idea to comfort yourself with something that is not true.
How you manage this instability will determine the next ten years of your life—how you handle not knowing—how you handle not knowing.
I moved to Dallas and I looked at a house in a particular neighborhood over on White Rock Lake—and a friend of mine told me—this was 23 years ago—he said, "You cannot buy a house over there. They do not sell houses to us over there." And I bought it—because I did not know.
See, he had processed some information to be factual that really was not factual. My benefit was I did not know. You can do more sometimes when you do not know than you can when you are dealing with people... I did not know I could not do it—so I did it.
The Danger of Knowing Too Much
I did not know that I could not rent the World Congress Center—the Philips Arena—and the Georgia Dome—and throw a party for Christians and have it packed to the gills. I did not know I could not do it—so I could do it.
See, sometimes your enemy is that you know too much. You know too much. You know too much. You know too much. You have bought into too many false ideas because the brain has rushed to a conclusion that God has not taken you to yet—and sometimes your knowing so much limits you from seeing into the depth of the possibilities of what can be done in your life if you understood the art of not knowing.
Touch somebody and say, "I do not know." Not knowing is much like a computer—buffering almost painfully—desperately attempting to connect with truth... Have you ever had your phone trying to pick up a signal and the little wheel is turning—and it is just buffering and it is buffering—and it is neither here nor there—and you cannot do anything with it because it is trying to make a connection that it has not made? That is what the brain goes through trying to figure out something. It does not like the instability.
Desperate for Closure
Psychologists call it "intellectual closure": we are so desperate to know that if we do not know—we will come up with a conclusion and call it a fact. Oh my God—I am going somewhere.
The other day my phone was so desperate to connect to Wi-Fi—and it was not picking up a signal—that it picked up the Wi-Fi on my air conditioning system. It picked up the Wi-Fi on my air conditioning system—but the problem is the Wi-Fi on my air conditioning system was not strong enough to handle the load that I was going to put on the phone.
In the absence of not knowing—it was desperate to grab anything—but when you are going to do great things—just anything will not do. You have to withstand not knowing till you get to something that can hold what you are trying to build.
Touch three people and tell them, "I am going to wait on a good signal." Yes-yes-yes-yes-yes—I am going to wait—yes-yes—I am going to wait on a good signal. I do not know how long it is going to take—I do not know how long I will have to buffer—I do not know how long I will have to be uncertain—but I would rather be uncertain than to tie into an air conditioning Wi-Fi and not be able to fulfill my mission.
The art of not knowing—the art of not knowing—the art of not knowing.
Not Knowing in Relationships and Growth
"The Art of Not Knowing"—the lack of this message has killed marriages. It has destroyed marriages because you think you know what your spouse needs—because you do not want to admit that you do not know. You are giving them what they used to need.
Somebody else who does not know that he does not do that comes along and exposes him—and all of a sudden you cannot figure out what is going on. It was your rule book about them: you knew too much about them—you stopped being curious.
"Yes, I already know him. He eats at two o'clock—goes to bed at eight o'clock." "I already know her. She does not wear makeup till the weekend." That is what is wrong—you know too much. When you were curious and you did not know—you were exciting—you were searching—you were investigative—you were assertive—you were engaged—but now that you know—he almost wants somebody who does not know—"Search me."
Staying Curious
I know you cannot say nothing because you are sitting there beside each other and I am hitting a little too close to home—but if you cannot say "amen"—wiggle your toe. Before you knew your wife—you searched your wife—you chased your wife—you dated your wife. But now that you feel like you know her—you are not curious anymore and the marriage withers because of this false information your brain has embraced to supply the feeling of satiety because you do not like not knowing.
It is going to get tough in here in a minute. You need to close—you need to know—you need to know.
The reason you do not like that new coworker that has come to work—and they can do things more progressively even though you have been there 20 years longer—they know how to do the technology in a way that you do not. The reason you have become a hater and you expel them out of the organization—and you manipulate them until they get pushed out of the organization—is because you are not comfortable with not knowing.
If you were to become more comfortable with not knowing—you could keep growing. You see—it is only he that hungers and thirsts.
Is there anybody left that is still hungry? I am trying to challenge you to be a fool again—to come to the text with more questions than answers—to walk into your business and stare at it and say, "I do not know how to do this and maybe there is a better way that I have not thought of—and maybe there is a better move I can make—and maybe there is a better location I could be in—and maybe I have got the wrong people up front—and maybe there is a new woman in the woman I got—and maybe there is a new man in the man that I got—and maybe my rules are not true. Maybe my rules"...
Shattering Your Truth
Oh no—I am going to mess with you a little bit—I am going to mess with you a little bit—I am going to mess with you a little bit because—before it is over—I am going to challenge you to shatter your truth. "The people in this city—they just do not want to do nothing. They are just not progressive."
Look at how your mind got tired of buffering and decided that you have capped out—and somebody else could take them people and build a cathedral—and somebody else could take that business and open it up in multiple locations—and somebody else could take that man and turn him into Superman—and somebody else could take that woman and turn her into something you did not even recognize.
Your problem is you know too much—and until you shatter what you know—you cannot open your mind to the possibility that all things are possible. Good God.
Slap three people and say, "All things are possible." They do not believe you—find somebody that believes all things are possible. All things are possible. What you told yourself is true is not true. All things are possible. You can do it anywhere. You can build it everywhere. You can turn it completely around.
Leaving Bethsaida
Jesus said no-no-no-no-no—come out of everything that you used to do—everything that you used to do—everything that was normal to you. God is getting ready to change the game for somebody in this room.
This is Mark 8:22 through 26—you ready for this? This is a brief story that I want you to get somebody out of—the art of not knowing. "They came to Bethsaida—and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him." They begged Jesus to touch him.
"He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When He had spit on the man's eyes and put His hands on him—Jesus asked, 'Do you see anything?' He looked up and said, 'I see people; they look like trees walking around.' Once more Jesus put His hands on the man's eyes. Then his eyes were opened—his sight was restored—and he saw everything clearly. Jesus sent him home—saying, 'Do not even go into the village.'"
No Miracles in the Familiar
"What is your point?" I am glad you asked. My point is not, "All you need is a second touch—oh-ho-ho—there—there is going to be a second touch tonight that is going to change your life completely. Oh-ho-oh—He will pick you up and turn you around." That is not my point.
My point is—Jesus came to Bethsaida. They brought to Him a blind man. Jesus took him out of Bethsaida. Now—you have to understand—blind people survive by knowing their environment. There are blind people in this city that live alone—unattended—and do fine—and they can do fine and they can take care of themselves and they can cook and they can manage their house because they know, "I am ten steps to the refrigerator—three steps to the stove—five steps to the table."
And as long as you do not move anything—I can survive off of what I know. The only problem is—I cannot get outside. See—some of you are trapped in what you know—and as long as we keep you in the prison that you have measured out—you can survive just fine because you have already counted out.
"First Sunday—everybody wears white; third Sunday is men's Sunday; fifth Sunday is youth Sunday; Wednesday night—we do Bible Class; Watch Night—we get out at 12:30." You have already marked off the steps. Nobody knows you are blind—because you do not need a vision when you have a tradition.
Who am I messing with today? So when they brought the blind man to Jesus—Jesus took him by the hand and led him out of his tradition. Touch seven people—say, "I have got to get out of here—I have got to get out of here." There is no expectation here—there is no excitement here—there is no creativity here—there is no release here—there is no power here.
Ready for the Next Level
I need about 100 people who are ready to go somewhere fresh. If you came to this conference because you are ready to take it to the next level—make some noise in this place.
Tell your neighbor on your left and your right, "I am getting ready to leave—I am getting ready to leave." When you have lunch with your staff—tell them, "We are getting ready to leave—we are getting ready to leave." We have been in Bethsaida long enough—we stayed in Bethsaida long enough—we drank in Bethsaida long enough—we did business in Bethsaida long enough.
I am tired of knowing the same people—talking to the same people on the phone—same people coming over my house. I am getting out of Bethsaida. Holler at your boy.
Where are we, Jesus? Where are we, Jesus? You carried me where I am not familiar. You carried me out of my comfort zone. I am buffering—trying to find something that is familiar. Jesus said no-no-no-no-no—come out of everything that you used to do—everything that you used to do—everything that was normal to you. God is getting ready to change the game for somebody in this room.
I do not know who this is for. I do not know why He called me to preach it—but if it is you—for the next 30 seconds—give Him a crazy praise.
So they took him—Bethsaida—they took him by the hand. They led the blind man out. Can you imagine being blind in a new place? "Wait a minute—wait a minute—wait a minute—I am scared—wait a minute—I am scared—I tripped—I fell. Wait—I did not know that rock was there—I fell."
Seeing Something New
Jesus led him out of Bethsaida and then spat in his eye. He spat in his eye and touched him—and said, "What do you see?" I see something. Some of you—my God—some of you—some of you are starting—some of you are starting to see something—a little bit of light—a little bit of light is breaking through the darkness.
You are starting to see, "Maybe I can do something. Maybe I can build something. I do not see it clearly—I do not have all the answers—I do not have it all worked out yet—but I see something."
How many people see something? "I am not where I ought to be—but I sure am not where I used to be." Jesus brings him out to give him a miracle that he could have never gotten in Bethsaida.
There are no miracles in the familiar. Wait-wait-wait—I am not through with you yet—I am not through with you yet. There are no miracles in safe places. If you are not scared—you are not living. If you are not tripping over new stuff—you are not doing anything.
If you are not going someplace you have never been before—meeting people you never met before—reaching after stuff you have not reached after before—that is why God brought you here—to lead you—to lead you out of Bethsaida.
Your problem is not your eyes. It is your environment. Nothing is going to happen in your familiar. God is waiting for you in your scary place.
Breaking Limitations
I want to pray for people who suspect that there is more in you than what you have received—and you have been praying—asking God, "When, Lord? How, Lord? Why?" Those are the people I want—and I want you to come right now.
I am not going to beg—I am not going to plead—I am not going to sing a song—I am not going to climb a hill—I am not going to coach you. I want you to come because you want out of Bethsaida.
You only do business with people who are like you. What is wrong with other folks' money? Your services are so predictable that your children act out your church service.
In a moment—I am going to ask you to lift your hands... not yet. When you lift your hands—I want you to lift your hands as a sign of "I am surrendering what I told myself so that I can possess what God has for me." If you are ready to surrender it—lift your hands.
"Here it is, Lord. I give up my way of thinking—my way of leading—my way of talking to people—my way of handling situations. I am willing to relinquish all of that. I do not want to die in Bethsaida—blind."
I come against every voice that has been planted inside of you to limit your growth—to stop your creativity. I come against every voice. Some of them were planted all the way back in your childhood to terminate the possibilities of what God could do in your life.
I break every curse that has ever been on your life—every bondage—every word that has ever been spoken over you. I break that feeling of unworthiness. I break that feeling of self-sabotaging. I break that feeling that I am not supposed to be up here. I break that feeling of you not feeling like you deserve anything better than what you have.
I break that feeling that makes you think that some folks have it and some folks do not—and you are not one of them. I break it right now—in the name of Jesus.
Lift your hands and open your mouth—glory is about to break out in your life. Glory is about to break out—come on with me—glory is about to break out in your life.