Josh Brake: Hey, what's
going on everybody?

Thanks for tuning in, uh, for
another episode of, um, this podcast.

Um, we're, we're excited.

We, um, had a couple of interest
meetings this last week.

I had somebody tell me, Hey, you
need to be more consistent with

your podcast 'cause we love 'em.

And I was honored by that.

Um, and I was like, really?

Wow.

Okay.

Um.

I guess I'll be more consistent.

So, Tom, if you're listening, Hey, this
is me trying to be more consistent.

Um, I had another woman tell me
she's been listening and I, I

didn't even know who she was.

I met her for the first time
at this interest meeting and

she's like, man, a few of your
podcasts have just been so great.

And I'm like, wow.

Thank you.

I, I didn't even know you listened to it.

I, I don't know if people are listening
to this and apparently you guys are.

So, uh, I appreciate, I appreciate
y'all listening and I have a few

updates and then some vision I
would like to share with you.

Um.

And I'm still working some
of the vision out, and so I'm

gonna share it and not, not be.

So, um, I'll try to be as
clear and concise as I can.

Um.

But first off, updates.

So, uh, interest meetings
went really well.

Probably had about 70 people
between the two come through and

hear about Breakthrough Church and
what we're doing and who we are.

And, um, uh, some people gave
money at the interest meeting.

Some people were interested
in being on the launch team.

Uh, biggest highlight for me was the,
my current launch team just killed it.

They showed up, they served, they did
everything that they needed to do.

I didn't even have to tell 'em what to do.

They just.

Jumped in and did it.

Uh, and that was really cool.

And some feedback I got from the
end, uh, when we grouped up as

a team after the lunches was we
need language, common language to

talk about breakthrough church.

And I thought that was a
great idea and I had it on my

to-do list already to do that.

And so, um, so yeah, I, I, um, I've
just been processing a lot of language.

What kinda language do we
want to use, um, as a church?

Um.

Uh, that's very unique to us
and to me, and no one else.

And I'm gonna share some of that.

It's probably not a finished
product, but, uh, part of this

helps me process out loud.

And so if you hear me go silent, it's
'cause I'm processing it out loud.

Uh, but one more update is,
man, we've raised $440,000.

I don't have it, it's
just that's committed.

Um, but that's unreal.

When I first made the goal of
$500,000 and had no money, I was like.

Oh man, how's this gonna happen?

And, and, and he has
almost got us to that goal.

And it's only March and
we launched in September.

I'm actually thinking about raising
that goal, um, and really going

big, which I thought I was going
big, but apparently, according to

the Lord, I didn't go big enough.

So I'm processing that
and praying about that.

It's really, really exciting.

Okay.

When you think about, uh, language
and culture, obviously the, the, you

know, the church is a disciple making.

Organism.

It is a place that makes
disciples, uh, Jesus said, go

therefore and make disciples.

Uh, and then at the end of that great
commission, he says, and behold, I'm with

you, uh, until the very end of the age.

And one of the things I've been working
on is trying to define a disciple.

And not just a disciple, but
what is discipleship or the

process of becoming a disciple?

And if I had to give a working
definition of a disciple, I.

Yeah, that's not necessarily helpful in
practice, but I think it casts a vision

for what it means to follow Jesus.

A disciple of Jesus is someone
who stewards God's presence

in every area of their life.

We have been entrusted with
the very spirit of Jesus.

I.

He said he'd be with us until
the very end of the age.

And you look at the book of Acts
and it's just a, people trying to

keep up with the pace of the spirit.

I mean, there's not a lot
of structure at first.

There's not a lot of organization, and
that comes later, but it's just people

trying to steward the presence of the
spirit in every area of their lives.

And it's unto people seeing Jesus.

It's, it's really, they're
trying to reveal Jesus to people.

Um, but, but they're doing that
by just stewarding God's presence.

And what I love about that language is.

Um, it, it puts the
onus on God, not on me.

He's the one moving and working.

It's my job to just steward
what I sense him doing.

Our job is to grow in our
sensitivity to his presence.

How can we be sensitive to his
presence in every area of our life?

And I'm, I'm gonna spare you how
I got to what I'm about to share.

'cause it is very granular and detailed
out of the Old Testament when it comes to

the tabernacle and the tribes of Israel.

How they were ordered around the
tabernacle of meeting, the tent

of meeting and how they would set
out when the cloud would move.

In other words, how did they respond
when they sensed the Holy Spirit?

Doing something or they sense the
presence of God on the move, how

did they then respond to that?

Um, so if a disciple of Jesus is a, is
a steward of God's presence in every

area of their life, then we've got
to learn how to sense his presence.

We have to be people of the presence.

Right?

Um, I'm gonna share four words, and
I think these four words, if, if a,

in terms of in terms of strategy.

So this is how you grow.

And your sensitivity to God's presence,
and this is how you're gonna steward it.

Well, okay, if you do these four
things, I think it's a good start.

It's a good strategy.

Um, number one is worship.

Uh, I, I've, uh, this was
true of my, my own life.

I think this is true of
how God set things up.

And scripture, again, I'm
not gonna go into all of it.

Um, but worship lines you up
with the true reality of heaven.

It opens you up to receive
the realities of heaven.

Into your own heart and soul.

Heaven is a 24 7 worship service.

Go read Revelations four, what's
happening 24 7 every day of the week.

All day for eternity.

There have been angels and elders
casting their crowns at the feet

of Jesus on the throne and praising
him and blessing the lamb of God

who takes away the sin of the world.

Worship is a 24 7 thing.

Worship releases the will of God
on the earth in your life and

in the life of those around you.

Worship is instrumental in becoming a
steward of God's presence because it is

worship that ushers in his presence in
a unique and tangible and manifest way.

Um, okay.

Let's think about this.

When you worship and usher in God's
presence, what does that really mean?

Does it mean God wasn't there?

No, it means God's God was there.

But what he's doing in that moment,
as we worship King Jesus and him being

crucified, as we worship him, God
is unveiling himself to that people.

He's revealing more of who he is.

Our response to that is to gaze to behold.

To look, to give all of
our attention to him.

This speaks of honor, it speaks
of deference, um, it speaks of,

um, what's the word?

I,

everything in that moment

stops, not in terms of worship.

I'm saying whatever agenda you had.

Whatever distractions were on your mind.

When God enters the room, when God
unveils himself, peels back the curtain,

the response of a steward of his
presence is to stop and stare and behold

the very one we're trying to steward
in our lives because he is worthy.

He is the king of the universe.

David's prayer and Psalms.

It says one thing, have
I asked of the Lord?

Psalm 27, 4.

One thing have I asked of the Lord
and that will I seek after to dwell

in the house of the Lord all the days
of my life to gaze upon the beauty

of the Lord and to inquire in his
temple, David's heart, the one thing

that he wanted in all of his life.

This is the greatest king of Israel.

This is.

Um, the, a mighty warrior, uh, who
killed Goliath, who had kings come

to him and bow down the, the, that
man David, his one desire was to gaze

at the Lord, to gaze at his beauty.

I.

He was a steward of God's presence.

He's the one that built a
tabernacle, which was a house for

his presence with 24 7 worship.

Why do you think he had worship happening?

'cause he knew it ushered
in the presence of God.

And the one thing he wanted
when that happened was to gaze

at him, to just behold the Son
of God as disciples of Jesus.

We not only worship him to receive his
presence, um, but we behold we then.

Remove our own agendas.

We remove what our own
plans were and we just gaze.

We behold at him, we or we behold him.

And in that place of beholding, um,
there's going to be some things said

there's going to be, ministry will
happen when God shows up, what happens?

The broken get healed, the sick,
it get healed, the oppressed get

delivered, the downtrodden and those
in darkness have light shined on them.

Um.

When we behold him and his presence
comes, then there's going to

be a response in its obedience.

Obedience is building trust with the Lord.

It's stewarding his presence by
saying, Hey, you came, I heard you

and I'm gonna do what you said.

What does that do?

It builds trust.

When my son obeys me, when I say
something, I can trust him to obey me

the next time, which means I might give
him a more important task next time.

'cause he was faithful with a little.

And he'll be faithful with much
obedience, builds trust with the Lord.

Um, and as we obey, as we steward
his presence, we'll begin to

learn, okay, what is his presence
in my life leading me to do?

And what did Jesus come to do?

What does it say in the book of Luke?

Jesus came to what?

Seek and save the lost.

So share, this is the last word.

As a disciple of Jesus who is seeking
to steward God's presence in every

area of my life, this includes my
efforts and evangelism and reaching

people who don't yet know Jesus.

The people I know that see the most
fruit in their lives that are the

most powerful in the spirit, that
enjoy God the most, that have been

given authority and influence.

Those people, they do these four things.

It's, it's not a formula, it's call
it a recipe, because I don't think

we ever move on from one of them.

It is a constant committing
to these four things.

So if I had to.

Really clarify, what does it look like
to do these four things in my life?

What practices would I need to
adopt to begin stewarding God's

presence in my life in a way that is
effective and building trust with God?

Okay, number one, you have to
have daily time with the Lord.

This, this is, could mean a
lot of different things, but,

but do not underestimate daily.

Remembering the blood of Jesus,
inviting and yielding to the Holy

Spirit and enjoying and delighting
in Him in his word every single

day, preferably in the morning.

First love types thing like the tithe
of your day is given to the Lord.

You cannot underestimate the power
that will have the breakthrough you'll

experience if you simply remember the
blood and yield to the Holy Spirit.

Every single day, it takes time, right?

Sometimes it takes me like two
hours to really feel like I'm doing

that and that's not God, that's me.

'cause I'm going through stuff
and then some days I enter in like

immediately and I just sense God's
presence and I'm enjoying him.

I'm loving him, he's speaking to
me and it's just this amazing time.

Okay?

So it's different every day, but
committing to daily, remembering the

blood and yielding to the spirit.

It'll change your life.

I'm telling you, it'll change your life.

Um, another practice to, uh,
to, to consecrate yourself unto

the Lord, um, and to the spirit
is weekly fasting and prayer.

I've been doing this for a few
years now, and I fast for one

day a week, and, um, it's hard to
under, it's hard to understate.

No, it's hard to overstate the
impact that that's had on my life.

I feel like I've grown in my
effectiveness when I'm praying for people.

I've grown in my intimacy with the Lord.

I've grown in my attention span.

I've, I've, my anxiety has gone down
because I'm still for a long time in

those days, there's just so many benefits.

Um, I mean it if it, it basically
doesn't kill your flesh, but

it suppresses your flesh.

Um, for a time which is really healthy.

Uh, physically it's healthy, um,
but spiritually it's just a boost.

I mean, it keeps that fire going
in your heart, uh, for the Lord.

Um,

um,

yeah.

And then I think that there should be
a, a regular practice in your life of

interceding for those in your life.

Intercessory prayer.

Um, which is the role of a priest, right?

It's to bring into remembrance,
um, the people of, uh, that

God has entrusted to you.

And then there's gotta be a regular
practice of blessing people.

And for some people that, that
like, like sharing the gospel

and, and living a, a holy life.

Um.

I think that as you, yeah.

Anyways, I'm, I'm starting to ramble
now, but there has to be a practice,

a daily practice of remembering the
blood and yielding to the spirit.

There has to be a weekly
practice of fasting and prayer.

I think that's so important.

And then there has to be a, a regular
practice of interceding in prayer for the

sake of those around you and in your life.

And then I think there has to be some
sort of outlet for evangelism and sharing

the gospel and blessing people that you
don't know or that you do know, uh, on

a regular basis daily, if not weekly.

I.

Um, the weekly rhythm of doing that.

I believe that if you do those things,
I think it builds trust with the Lord.

I think he sees you as trustworthy.

Um, you'll grow in holiness,
uh, and righteousness.

He'll expose sin, he'll
expose fears you have.

Uh, and, and all of that is good because
he'll flush you of those things and

then fill and replace the, those things
with his very own presence with himself.

Uh, and that's the goal, right?

And we'll begin to grow in fruit.

We'll be released in
the gifts of the spirit.

Um, I, I, I, I think the times in my
life where I have done really good with

worship and beholding and kind of with
obeying, but I haven't been great with

sharing the gospel and being evangelistic.

Um, I do notice I.

There is a less of a fire in me because
when you are used by God to bless

somebody, uh, it really lights a fire and
you get kind of addicted to it for a time.

But if you're not consistently doing
it, then that fire will go out.

Um, and, and the Lord will stop, um,
not stop using you, but he will, um,

maybe reserve a little bit of himself
in, in those ways until you commit.

Um, to do those things in evangelism.

It's a partnership, right?

We're partnering with the Lord
that we're stewarding his presence.

He's, he doesn't force us to do anything.

He, he goes somewhere, and then it's
our job to say yes and to go and do it.

And I think being a steward of
God's presence in every area of our

life, uh, means that we need to be
worshiping him, be holding Jesus,

obeying Jesus, and sharing Jesus.

Um, uh, so anyways, that's, those are
some things that I've been thinking about,

some language that I've been creating.

Um, and, uh, I hope it blesses
you, and if you have any feedback

or thoughts, please email me.

I have a new email that I'm
not sure is connected to this

podcast yet, which is fine.

You can still respond to this
email or to this podcast, and

I'll, I'll get it, uh, at my email.

So, um, all right, that's
all I got for this week.

Bless you guys.

Um, I pray that the presence of
God, the love of Jesus, would

overwhelm you today, that you would
know how much he loves you and.

How eager the Holy Spirit
is to be with you today.

Uh, he is so jealous for you.

Uh, he's so jealous for you
and he wants time daily with

you and he wants to use you.

He wants you to be useful to
the master is what the book

of, I think it's Timothy says.

Um, so be useful today.

Um, God bless you guys.

Love y'all.