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You Won't Know Until You Let Go!
- †† Dr. G. Denise Gray
- Aug 2
- 10 min read
Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
Welcome to Manifestation of His Glory Network, Inc. I am so grateful that you've joined me today.
Whether this is your very first time visiting our online sanctuary or you've been walking with us for years, I believe you're here because God has ordered your steps. You didn't stumble across this message. I believe the Holy Spirit led you here because there is a Word with your name on it.
Remember, we are an online sanctuary. I don't want to keep you long, but I do want to leave you with something that will stay with you long after you close this page. I want to leave you with a Word that will strengthen your faith, encourage your heart, challenge your walk, and remind you that God is still in control.
Never underestimate what God can do through one encounter with His presence!
Just because we're online doesn't mean the Holy Spirit cannot meet you exactly where you are. Whether you're reading this from your home, your office, your vehicle during a break, or somewhere on the other side of the world, I believe God is able to speak directly to your heart.
My prayer is simple. That you log in one way and log out another!
Let's pray.
Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank You for this opportunity to gather around Your Word. Thank You for every person reading this message today. You know exactly where they are, what they're carrying, and what they need from You. As we prepare to receive Your Word, remove every distraction and every hindrance. Open our hearts to receive, our ears to hear, and our spirits to respond to Your voice. Let this Word bring healing, restoration, direction, encouragement, and hope. We declare that no one will leave this moment unchanged because Your Word never returns void. We thank You for what You're about to do.
In Jesus' name, Amen!
Now, let's get into the Word of God!
Our foundation Scripture comes from Isaiah 43:18–19 (KJV).
"Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert."
As I sought the Lord concerning this first Sunday in August, I kept hearing these words in my spirit.
You won't know until you let go!
The more I prayed, the stronger those words became.
You won't know until you let go!
Then the Lord brought me back to Isaiah 43.
Before God spoke about the new thing, He dealt with the former things.
Before He spoke about rivers in the desert, He addressed what His people were still carrying from the past.
That is how God works. He deals with what was before He introduces what is next.
He deals with the old mindset before He brings you into a new season.
He deals with the old wound before He connects you to new relationships.
He deals with the old habits before He entrusts you with new responsibility.
Come on!
We keep asking God, "Lord, what's next?"
But maybe the better question is, "Lord, what do I need to release before I can receive what's next?"
Fear?
Disappointment?
Unforgiveness?
Control?
A relationship?
A mindset that no longer agrees with where God is taking you?
If we're honest, we've all held on to something longer than we should have.
Sometimes we spend so much time asking God for another blessing that we never stop to ask Him what He wants us to release.
Sometimes we ask for open doors while we're still holding on to doors God already closed.
Sometimes we pray for increase while refusing to surrender what has become comfortable.
Remember!
You won't know until you let go!
This brings me to my first point.
You've got to let go of what is familiar!
Go with me to Genesis, chapter 12.
The Lord said to Abram, "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee."
I love this passage because God never gave Abram a map.
He gave him an instruction.
Come on here!
God didn't tell Abram everything that was waiting for him.
He simply said, "Go."
Think about that for a moment.
How many times have we asked God for another word while we're still standing on the last instruction He gave us?
We're asking God for direction.
God is waiting on our obedience.
We're asking God for another word.
God is saying, "What did you do with the last word I gave you?"
Come on!
It's time out for giving God ultimatums.
"Father, if You show me this, then I'll move."
"Lord, if You do this, then I'll obey."
That's not faith.
Faith says, "Father, because You spoke it, I trust You enough to move."
The Word of God tells us in James that faith without works is dead.
Faith requires action.
Abram didn't become the father of many nations because he talked about going.
He became the father of many nations because he got up and went.
Come on here!
Obedience unlocks what hesitation never will.
What instruction has God already given you that you're still waiting to obey?
Because the next instruction may very well be waiting on your obedience to the last one.
What has become so familiar that you've mistaken it for God's will?
Just because you've always been there doesn't mean you're supposed to stay there.
Just because it's comfortable doesn't mean it's your assignment.
Sometimes familiarity becomes the greatest enemy of our future because comfort has a way of convincing us that where we are is enough.
But God is saying, "I've called you higher!"
Come on here!
Abram didn't know he would become the father of many nations.
He didn't know kings would come from his lineage.
He didn't know the promise was greater than the place he was leaving.
He simply trusted the voice of God.
What if the greatest blessing of your life is waiting on the other side of your obedience?
What if what you've been praying for is connected to what God has already told you to release?
I believe there are people reading this message today who know exactly what God has been saying.
The question isn't whether God has spoken.
The question is, will you obey?
Remember!
You won't know what God has for you until you let go!
You won't know where God is taking you until you let go!
You won't know what He's preparing for you until you let go!
Come on!
Trust Him enough to let go of what is familiar.
Trust Him enough to obey His voice.
Trust Him enough to take the first step, even when you can't see the whole staircase.
When you trust Him with your obedience, you'll discover that what He has prepared for you is greater than anything you were afraid to leave behind.
All right!
Let's go a little deeper.
Is this good to you? Because I know it's good to me!
We've dealt with what is familiar.
Now let's deal with something that's a little more personal.
Everybody has been wounded.
Whether it was by family, friends, church, relationships, or even your own decisions, every one of us has experienced pain.
The question isn't whether you've been wounded.
The question is, have you healed?
Come on!
Some people have learned how to function while they're still bleeding.
They know how to smile.
They know how to worship.
They know how to serve.
They know how to encourage everybody else.
But when they get home, they're still carrying the weight of what happened yesterday.
Hear me today.
God never intended your wound to become your identity.
The hurt was real.
The betrayal was real.
The disappointment was real.
But our God is also real!
He is still a healer.
He is still a restorer.
He is still able to mend every broken place in your life.
The Apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:31–32,
"Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."
Notice Paul says, "Let it be put away."
There comes a moment when you have to make the decision that what happened to you will no longer have authority over you.
You cannot carry yesterday's wounds into tomorrow's promise.
Come on here!
Some of you have been praying for healthy relationships.
God is saying, "Let Me heal your heart first."
Some of you have been asking for new opportunities.
God is saying, "Let Me heal what disappointment tried to destroy."
Don't allow what wounded you to stop what God wants to do through you.
Remember!
You won't know what healing feels like until you let go!
You won't know what peace feels like until you let go!
You won't know what freedom feels like until you let go!
All right!
Stay with me.
We're getting ready to close, but I need you to receive this next part in your spirit.
I believe this is where somebody is about to be set free.
You've let go of some things.
You've let go of some people.
But there's one more thing God is calling you to release.
You've got to let go of who you used to be.
Second Corinthians 5:17 declares,
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
If God says you're new, why do you keep living like you're still the old you?
Why do you keep introducing yourself by yesterday's failures?
Why do you keep wearing labels that Jesus already removed?
Come on!
You are not who you were.
You are who God says you are.
You are forgiven.
You are redeemed.
You are chosen.
You are called.
You are victorious.
Walk in it!
Believe it!
Live it!
Today is the day you stop allowing your past to define your future.
Today is the day you stop agreeing with voices that God has already silenced.
Today is the day you let go of who you used to be so you can fully embrace who God has created you to become.
Remember!
You won't know what God has for you until you let go!
You won't know where He's taking you until you let go!
You won't know who He's connecting you to until you let go!
You won't know what He's preparing for you until you let go!
You won't know the peace that's waiting for you until you let go!
You won't know the joy that's waiting for you until you let go!
You won't know the freedom that's waiting for you until you let go!
And most of all, you won't know the fullness of who God has called you to be until you let go.
If God said it, believe Him.
If God promised it, trust Him.
If God instructed you, obey Him.
Then watch Him do exactly what He said He would do.
Come on here!
Remember!
You won't know until you let go!
If you're reading this message today and you've never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, or maybe you've drifted away from Him, I want you to know something.
God has not forgotten you.
He has not stopped loving you.
In fact, this very moment may be the reason He led you to this page.
You don't have to clean yourself up before you come to Him.
You don't have to have all the answers.
You simply have to come.
The same God who has been speaking to your heart throughout this message is extending His hand to you right now.
Will you receive Him today?
If your answer is yes, pray this prayer with me.
Heavenly Father, I come to You in the name of Jesus. I confess that I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day with all power in His hands. Today I repent of my sins and surrender my life to You. Jesus, come into my heart, be my Lord and my Savior. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and teach me to live according to Your Word. From this day forward, I choose to follow You. Thank You for saving me. Thank You for making me new.
In Jesus' name, Amen!
If you prayed that prayer today, welcome to the family of God! We are rejoicing with you because this is the greatest decision you will ever make.
Now, let me pray over you.
Father, I thank You for every person who has received this Word today. I thank You that You are giving them the courage to release what no longer belongs in this season of their lives. Strengthen those who are struggling to obey. Heal every wounded heart. Restore every place that has been broken. Remind them that Your plans are greater than their fears and that Your promises are greater than their past. As they walk into this new week, let them experience Your peace, Your wisdom, Your favor, and Your presence in a fresh way. We declare that every step of obedience will produce fruit for Your glory.
In Jesus' name, Amen!
Before we leave today, I want to give you an opportunity to worship the Lord through your giving.
If this ministry has encouraged you, strengthened your faith, or blessed your life, I invite you to partner with Manifestation of His Glory Network, Inc. as we continue sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ around the world.
You may give through:
Your faithful giving helps us continue reaching lives with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ. Thank you for your generosity, your prayers, and your partnership with this ministry.
As we prepare to leave, I want to encourage you to carry this Word with you throughout the week.
Remember!
You won't know until you let go!
You won't know what God has for you until you let go.
You won't know where He's taking you until you let go.
You won't know what He's preparing for you until you let go.
If God said it, believe Him.
If God promised it, trust Him.
If God instructed you, obey Him.
My prayer is that you don't simply close this page and move on with your day. My prayer is that you leave this moment with greater faith, greater hope, and a greater expectation of what God is about to do in your life.
Thank you for worshipping with us today.
Until next time, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the sweet communion of the Holy Spirit be with you always.
God bless you!
Apostle Dr. G. Denise Gray
Lead Apostle & General Overseer
Manifestation of His Glory Network, Inc.
Great Word of encouragement! Let go!
•"Sometimes we spend so much time asking God for another blessing that we never stop to ask Him what He wants us to release." ...
•"What if the greatest blessing of your life is waiting on the other side of your obedience?"
•"Just because you've learned how to function doesn't mean you've healed."
•"God never intended your wound to become your identity."
•"If God says you're new, why do you keep living like you're still the old you?"