When You're Asked To Do The Impossible

Dear Saddleback Family, 

Use the Message Action Plan below to help put the things you learned this weekend into practice. If you missed last weekend's message, click here to watch it online.

When YOU'RE ASKED TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE
UNSHAKABLE! Thriving No Matter What They Throw At You — Part 4
Rick Warren
August 20-21, 2016

"Nobody can do what you ask! . . . What you're asking is impossible . . ."  Daniel 2:10-11 (Mes)

WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT PREDICTING THE FUTURE

1. NO ONE KNOWS THE FUTURE EXCEPT GOD
   
   "No one can tell the future!"  Ecclesiastes 8:7 (CEV) 
   
   Note: God reveals only what I need to obey Him in that moment.  He wants me to trust Him for all the rest.
2. All psychic & mediums ARE FRAUDS AND FAKES
   
   God: "I make fools of psychics and fortunetellers and I frustrate the predictions of astrologers . . .  their 'wisdom' is foolishness."  Isaiah 44:25
   
   God: "I am against anyone who goes to mediums or fortune-tellers for advice, because that person is being unfaithful to me. So I will cut him off."  Leviticus 20:6 (NCV)
3. The test of a true prophet of God is 100% accuracy
   
   "If you want to know if a prophet's message is really from God, here's how to test him: If any part doesn't come true, that prophecy is false and not from God. He was presumptuously speaking his own ideas and you should pay him no attention nor fear him."Deuteronomy 18:21-22
   
   "'Check their predictions against my Word,' says the Lord. 'If their predictions are different from my Word, it is because there is no light or truth in them.'"  Isaiah 8:20

4. WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU'RE ASKED TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE

   1. DON'T PANIC OR BE AFRAID
      
      "When Arioch, the commander of the king's guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion."  Daniel 2:14 (NLT) 
      
      ACTION PLAN:  Name one thing you are panicking about right now.  Get on your knees and spend at least 5 minutes every day this week talking to God about it.
   2. ASK WHY: LEARN THE FACTS AND MOTIVATION
      
      "Daniel asked the king's captain, 'Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?' So Arioch told him all that had happened."  Daniel 2:15
   3. ASK FOR TIME TO CREATE A SOLUTION
      
      "Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time so he could interpret the meaning of the dream for the king."  Daniel 2:16
   4. ENLIST PRAYER SUPPORT FROM FRIENDS
      
      "Then Daniel went home and told his 3 friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened. Then he said, 'Praythat the God who rules from heaven will be merciful and explain this mystery, so that we and the other advisors won't be put to death.'"  Daniel 2:17-18
      
      ACTION PLAN:  Create a contact list of people that you will reach out to for prayer support. This could be in your phone, as an email group, whatever is your preferred way to communicate. Have this group ready so that you can contact them at any time you need prayer support.
   5. PRAY AND EXPECT GOD TO GIVE SUPERNATURAL HELP
      
      God: "Call to me and I'll answer you, and I'll show you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own!" Jeremiah 33:3 (Mes) 
      
      "If you need wisdom, ask God, and he will gladly give it to you. He won't resent you asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord." James 1:5-7
   6. WORSHIP GOD
      
      "During the night God revealed and explained the mystery of the dream to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven."  Daniel 2:19
      • Praise God for who He is
        
        "Then Daniel praised God saying, 'Our God, your name will be praised forever and forever! You are all-powerful, and you know everything!'"  Daniel 2:19b-20 (CEV)
      • Honor God for what He does
        
        "YOU control human events. YOU give rulers their power and YOU take it away. YOU are the source of wisdom and knowledge. YOU explain deep mysteries, because even the dark is light to you! YOU are the God worshiped by my ancestors."  Daniel 2:21-23a (CEV)
   7. • • Thank God for helping me
          
          "Now I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors, for you have given me wisdom and strength. You have told me what I asked for and revealed to me what the king demanded."  Daniel 2:23 (NLT)
          
          ACTION PLAN:  Write down these three steps and use them when you pray. Share with your small group any insights you may gain on how these steps affect your prayer life.
      • USE WHAT GOD SHOWS ME TO SAVE OTHERS
        
        "Then Daniel rushed to see Arioch, who'd been ordered toexecute all the king's advisors. He said 'Call off the execution, and take me to the king and I'll explain the meaning of his dream.'"  Daniel 2:24
      • POINT PEOPLE TO GOD
        
        Daniel replied, "No wise man or psychic or fortune teller or astrologer can explain the mystery of your dream. BUTthere is a God in heaven who
        reveals mysteries and he has chosen to show you what will happen in the future . . . And now, God has revealed this mystery to me, not because I'm smarter than everyone else, but for your benefit, so that you O king may understand it."     Daniel 2:27-30
        
        ACTION PLAN:  Make it a point this week to look for ways to point people to God. Give God the credit for something that gets accomplished, tell somebody about how God has been working in your life, etc.