When the Waiting Comes I Jentezen Franklin

Summary

Podcast Summary: "When the Waiting Comes" with Jentezen Franklin

Podcast: Jentezen Franklin at Free Chapel
Episode Date: March 9, 2026
Speaker/Host: Jentezen Franklin

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Overview

In this stirring message, Pastor Jentezen Franklin explores the theme of waiting on God—what it means to live in the space between God's promise and its fulfillment. Using the story of Abraham (Genesis 12–15) as the foundation, Franklin unpacks how faith, devotion, and spiritual warfare play a part during seasons of waiting, showing both the struggle and the hope inherent in trusting God's timing for oneself and one's family.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Calling of Abraham: Radical Obedience

• God’s call to Abraham was “seemingly over the top” (06:27), asking him to leave all that was familiar (family, security, homeland) without revealing the destination.
• Abraham’s call came from a context of idol worship; yet, he heard and obeyed God even without the spiritual pedigree.
• Quote:

  “It's a powerful thing when God calls you... If you ever encounter Jesus Christ and he calls you and he saves you as he will, if you'll call on him, he will call you out of the world that you're in.” (07:14)

2. The Importance of Personal Faith and Association

• Lot, Abraham’s nephew, prospered only by association with Abraham, not through his own relationship with God.
• Franklin warns: Don’t rely on the faith of others—your walk must be personal and direct.
• Quote:

  “Sometimes you can only walk with somebody who's walking with God so far, and then you'll miss it. You got to have your own walk.” (09:05)

• The people you associate with are “a photograph of your future.” (10:33)

3. The Battle for Family: Spiritual Warfare

• Franklin emphasizes that the “first battle in the Bible was not over land or borders. It was for family” (15:02). Abraham risked all to rescue Lot, modeling the necessity of fighting for loved ones in spiritual battle.
• He passionately urges listeners to prioritize the spiritual well-being of their families over petty offenses or material gains.
• Key moment:

  “There is no battle more important than the battle... for the family. You have to fight for your family. You have to fight for your marriage, you have to fight for your children.” (15:02)

4. The Choice Between God and the World's Offer

• After the rescue, Abraham is faced with the King of Sodom (representing the world’s riches and shortcuts) and Melchizedek (symbolizing divine provision).
• Abraham refuses to enrich himself through Sodom’s wealth, choosing integrity and God’s promises over expedient gain.
• Memorable declaration:

  “I will not take anything from yours, lest you should say, I have made Abraham rich.” (04:33)

5. The Season of Waiting: Between Promise and Fulfillment

• Despite Abraham’s radical obedience, fulfillment did not come instantly. God reiterates “I am your shield, your exceeding great reward,” yet Abraham still wrestles with delayed fulfillment (“I go childless,” 22:32).
• Franklin connects this to the lived experience of believers:
  There are days of strong belief and days of doubt—“Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief.” (23:12)
• Key quote:

  “There are days when you feel like it's going to happen. And there's days when you wonder, where is God? How long, O Lord, how do I know this thing is going to happen?” (23:08)

6. Driving Away the Vultures: Defending the Promise

• The “vultures” represent spiritual attacks—doubts, discouragement, negative reports—that circle during seasons of waiting (27:07).
• Abraham physically drives away buzzards from his sacrifice, symbolizing spiritual persistence to protect what God has promised.
• Franklin’s imagery:

  “While I'm waiting, I am not about to let you steal the promise of God... Right before the breakthrough comes, the vultures... show up.” (27:28)

7. Practical Spiritual Advice: Keeping the Promise Safe

Franklin offers practical, memorable spiritual counsel (32:39–36:47):

• Eliminate perches: Remove places of prayerlessness or weak praise where negativity can “land” in your life.

  • “Prayerlessness is a perch. Pitiful little weak praise is a perch.” (32:41)

• Hang up an effigy: Remind yourself and the enemy of past victories—let your faithfulness in trials serve as a warning to doubts and fears.

  • “You ought to hang up some of those past victories and say, I just want to remind you that the Lord did it then and he'll do it again.” (34:39)

• Pyrotechnics (Fire):
  Maintain spiritual fervor—a passionate, fiery relationship with God drives away discouragement and defeat.

  • “We need fire in our worship. We need fire in our preaching. We need fire in our relationship with Jesus. That's what the devil fears.” (36:49)

8. God’s Arrival: Faith Rewarded

• After Abraham’s perseverance, God appears as a flaming torch, passes through the sacrifices, and reiterates his covenant—signifying God’s faithfulness to those who wait.
• Quote:

  “After he drove them away… a flaming torch… it was God. And he walked between the sacrifices… driving away the vultures of death and doubt and discouragement.” (38:39)

9. Final Admonition: Take Action for Your Family

• Franklin calls families—especially fathers and mothers—to spiritual arms: don’t let the buzzards of division, addiction, or apathy settle in your home.
• Key challenge:

  “If you feel like the first battle in the Bible was for a man's family, that ought to be first in your life. My family.” (41:01)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On radical obedience:
  “It's a powerful thing when God calls you... If you ever encounter Jesus Christ and he calls you and he saves you as he will, if you'll call on him, he will call you out of the world that you're in.” (07:14)
• On spiritual independence:
  “You can only walk with someone who's walking with God so far... you got to have your own walk.” (09:05)
• On fighting for family:
  “There is no battle more important than the battle... for the family. You have to fight for your family. You have to fight for your marriage, you have to fight for your children.” (15:02)
• On the world's shortcuts:
  “I will not take anything from yours, lest you should say, I have made Abraham rich.” (04:33)
• On waiting:
  “There are days when you feel like it's going to happen. And there's days when you wonder, where is God? How long, O Lord, how do I know this thing is going to happen?” (23:08)
• On spiritual attack in waiting:
  “While I'm waiting, I am not about to let you steal the promise of God... Right before the breakthrough comes, the vultures... show up.” (27:28)
• On driving out negativity:
  “Prayerlessness is a perch. Pitiful little weak praise is a perch.” (32:41)
• On fire in faith:
  “We need fire in our worship. We need fire in our preaching. We need fire in our relationship with Jesus. That's what the devil fears.” (36:49)

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Notable Segment Timestamps

• 00:33–04:33: Scripture reading and exposition—Abraham’s calling, Lot’s captivity, first mention of tithing.
• 06:25–08:50: Radical nature of Abraham’s obedience and the transformative power of a divine call.
• 10:23–12:34: Influence of association, and the importance of personal walk with God.
• 14:03–16:47: Abraham’s rescue of Lot—the Bible’s first battle, prioritizing spiritual warfare for family.
• 22:17–24:56: Wrestling with God during unfulfilled promises; “Lord, I believe. Help thou my unbelief.”
• 27:07–31:35: The imagery and meaning of driving away vultures—persevering through doubt and discouragement.
• 32:39–36:47: Practical advice: eliminating “perches,” hanging up effigies, igniting spiritual fire.
• 38:03–39:08: God’s response—a flaming torch confirms the covenant through sacrificial waiting.

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Flow & Tone

• Franklin’s tone is deeply pastoral yet urgent—encouraging listeners with stories, practical steps, and passionate exhortation.
• He blends biblical depth with relatable real-life examples, creating an atmosphere of hope and spiritual challenge.
• The message flows from biblical exposition to personal application, ending in a corporate call to action for families and individuals to contend for God’s promises.

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Conclusion

This message provides encouragement and practical strategies for anyone navigating a long season of waiting on God’s promises—especially regarding family and spiritual breakthrough. Franklin insists that spiritual passivity is not an option: waiting is active, involving prayer, praise, fervor, and spiritual warfare. Protect your promise, resist discouragement, and stay positioned for God’s eventual, faithful fulfillment.

Core Takeaway:
In the waiting, protect your promise—fight for your family, drive away discouragement, and trust that God will do what He said He would do.

Transcript

[A]

Hello, this is Jensen Franklin, and thank you so much for joining us for this week's podcast. Our goal is to provide you with biblically based teachings that will challenge, inspire, and equip you to live for Jesus. If you haven't already, I'd love for you to go ahead and subscribe today to this podcast so you can get the latest updates from us and you don't ever have to miss a new message.

[B]

Let's go right into the service.

[A]

Record it at Freechapel. I believe it's going to bless you today.

[C]

Genesis, chapter 12. Now, the Lord said to Abram, get out of your country, from your family, from your father's house to the land. I'll show you. I'll make you a great nation. I will bless you. I will make your name great. You shall be a blessing. This is the beginning promise of the nation of Israel that would bring the Messiah through the line of the tribe of Judah. Jesus Christ. It was all in this God speaking to a man. And you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those that bless you, and I will curse those that curse you. And in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed. And Abram departed as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was 75 years old when he departed from Haran. I want to go to the 14th chapter of Genesis quickly. Verse 12 says they took Lot. Abraham's calls him his brother, but he's saying he's my blood. He was actually technically Abraham's. Abraham was his uncle. He was. Lot was the nephew in the family relationship. And when Abram heard this, that his brother was taken captive, he armed 318 trained servants who were born in his own house and went in pursuit as far as Dan. Verse 16. They brought back all the goods, brought back his brother Lot, his goods, all the women and the people. Notice verse 17. The King of Sodom came out to meet him. The king of Sodom came and he. It tells us in a moment that he made him an offer. And we also have the king of Salem, which was Michelzadec. It's our first introduction of him. I'm going to make sense out of all of this in a moment. And he brings him wine and he brings him bread as the priest of God. And he accepts what he offers. He doesn't accept what the king of Sodom offered, but he receives the bread and the wine. We know in the first few chapters of the Bible is the very communion meal that we just celebrated that Christ would enter into in Passover with his disciples. Beautiful types and shadows. How can anybody doubt the truth of God's word? Writers writing centuries apart and yet hand in glove. It's just amazing to me. The prophecies and verse 18. Then Michelzedek, King of Salem, brought the bread and the wine. And he said, blessed be Abraham. Blessed be God most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand. This is interesting. First time tithing is mentioned. And he gave him a tithe of it all. This is Abraham.

[B]

There was no law.

[C]

There was no Moses. This was Abraham. Something in him said, of the portion that I have received, I want to give this man a 10th who is the priest of God. It's very powerful. Now, the king of Sodom said to Abraham, give me and take the goods for yourself. And Abram said, listen to that. Give me and take. Give me and take. See, one voice, the voice of this king of Sodom is, give me and you take. But the other one is bringing the bread and the wine. And Abraham said to the king of Sodom, I've raised my hand to the Lord most guy, the possessor, the Lord God Most High, the possessor of heaven and earth. And I will take nothing, not even a shoe strap. I will not take anything from yours. Lest you should say, I have made Abraham rich in verse 15 or verse 1 of chapter 15. Now, after these things, he just turned down incredible riches and wealth. Verse 15. And after these things, the word of the Lord came saying, do not be afraid, Abram, and I am your shield, your exceeding great reward. And I'll notice this next verse. And Abram said, lord God, what will you give me, seeing I go childless? I want to stop there. I know, I read a lot. I'll sum it all up in this message and I'll give you my title in just a moment. But this is a text that deals with especially chapter 12, the calling. Abraham, what a powerful thing it is to be called of God. I remember when his calling voice found me. I trembled. I knew God had spoken to me to preach the gospel. It's a powerful thing when God calls you. And Abraham heard God call him. It's even more astounding that he was not in a home of faith. His father was an idol worshiper. There was no sacrifices, there was no teaching of Jehovah God. There was none of that in his life. And yet he heard God clearly call him.

[B]

And when God called him and gave

[C]

him a ridiculous, seemingly over the top demand to leave his family, to leave his friends, to leave everything that was familiar, everything that was Secure financially, in every other way. Pack it up, get your family and move.

[B]

And he didn't even tell him where he was going. Move in the direction and I'll let

[C]

you know when you get there. And this man of extreme devotion, Abraham, the father of faith, Hebrews, calls him

[B]

the father of us all. He began to follow that voice.

[C]

He walked away to follow in obedience to God. He put the world behind him that

[B]

he had come out of. He heard a voice call him and he came out of the world that he was in. Everything changed for him at the calling of God. If you ever encounter Jesus Christ and he calls you and he saves you as he will, if you'll call on him, he will call you out of

[C]

the world that you're in.

[B]

You do not stay the same. You do not just continue. Now, after praying a prayer in the same lifestyle, he calls you out. It's a beautiful picture of the world that you were in. Into a brand new life. If any man be in Christ, he

[C]

is a new creation.

[B]

The old things have passed away. And behold all I live now for you. I'll give up everything I have for you. I'm selling out to you. This is not some casual Christianity that you just kind of love the Lord and do your own thing all week long. This is this extreme devotion, this heartfelt faith that says, I believe in you more than anything I can see and I will chase after you. And the Bible said he began to build altars. He built seven altars.

[C]

I preached on all of those altars one time.

[B]

And he built altars every place God took him.

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He would build an altar and offer a sacrifice. And he kept building them all of his life. And then something happened. Lot was with him.

[B]

God didn't call Lot, but Lot was

[C]

a smart man because he said, if

[B]

I don't have the favor of God, I'm going to get around somebody that does have the favor of God. If the blessing is not on me, I'm going to get around somebody blessed. If you're the smartest one in your group, you need to get a new group. You need to get around somebody who knows something you don't know. And Lot to his, to his. You know, we need to give him credit. He. He followed this guy, he knew this guy and he got. He wasn't spiritual. But, you know, sometimes you can only walk with somebody who's walking with God so far, and then you'll miss it. You got to have your own walk. It's good. See, Lot was a man that was following a man who was walking with God. And there's a difference between that and you having your own walk, God. But it'll help you until you get your own at some point. I can't take you on the journey if you don't start walking your own walk and talking your own talk with Jesus. No, Mama's prayers can't get you there. You've got to pray yourself. You walk with people that walk with God, but God wants to walk and talk with you. And Lot reached a point where he really missed it. Because the scripture said, as Abraham went along, I didn't have time to read it in the next chapter, in chapter

[C]

13, it said God blessed him. And he had cattle and he had wealth and his Lot, his nephew, just because of association.

[B]

I'm telling you, check out the kind of people your friends are. A photograph of your future.

[C]

Who are you hanging out with?

[B]

What kind of people do you run with? Do they love God with all of their heart? Are they honoring God with their life, with their substance? Are they good people?

[C]

Amen.

[B]

And the scripture said Lot began to prosper so much that there was a fight between the herdsmen of Lot, the

[C]

nephew, and the uncle Abraham. And Abraham, being a peacemaker, said, hey, we're brothers.

[B]

Let's not fight.

[C]

Not have a family squabble over material things you choose.

[B]

It should have been the lesser making, being told what to do by the

[C]

elder and the guy Abraham that God had called.

[B]

But instead, this young little fool named Lot thought he knew everything. Watch him now. He doesn't have a walk with God. And he looks at the green pastures and that were headed towards Sodom and Gomorrah. And he says, I'll take that land to feed my cattle.

[C]

And you take that way, which was the desert.

[B]

And it looks like Abraham's going to

[C]

lose and Lot is going to win.

[B]

But watch. Lot goes towards Sodom and Gomorrah, and temporarily he prospers. And for a little while, he does well. And man, it looks like he's on top of the world. And he ends up in Sodom and Gomorrah and.

[C]

And his family does too.

[B]

And Abraham's out in the desert.

[C]

But while he's in the desert, God

[B]

says, come out of your tent.

[C]

And he walks out of his tent and he says, look up into the sky and see the stars.

[B]

As the stars are in heaven, so

[C]

will your seed be. And the sand. Pick it up in your hand.

[B]

And can you count these numbers? There's natural Israel and spiritual Israel. There are two things on God's mind always. I don't care what you hear. I don't care what podcast you listen to. I don't care what the news says. I don't care what the United nations Sundays. There are two things on God's mind all the time. Number one, natural Israel, the nation of Israel, the Jewish people. Number two, spiritual Israel, the church, the stars of heaven, those of us who have been born again and engrafted by the cross and the blood of Jesus Christ. And anytime you separate from either one one of those two things, you I will bless those that bless you. I will curse those that curse you. True of the church, true of the nation of Israel. Not that we condone everything everybody does and every leader, of course not. But the right to have the land and the right to be a people that has the right to exist is given by God. It's prophecy. When you see all nations turn against him, it's being fulfilled right before your eyes every day.

[C]

Now watch this while Abraham is hearing from God. The Bible said that an evil king and his soldiers attacked Sodom and Gomorrah. And guess who was there?

[B]

Lot.

[C]

His family. And they kidnapped them. They kidnapped Lot and his family. And when Abraham heard the news, the scripture said he assembled his servants, his greatest fighting men. He took 318 and he said we're

[B]

stopping everything putting down. I don't care how busy we are because we have a family member who is being held hostage by hell and

[C]

we're going to get him out of that situation.

[B]

The first recorded battle in the Bible

[C]

was when a man was willing to

[B]

go to battle for his family. It is not a coincidence. It is not a happen chance.

[C]

It is not an accident that the

[B]

first battle in the Bible is not over real estate, over land, over borders. It is not between nation and nation. It is a man who saw one of his relatives who had been taken hostage by evildoers and something in his heart said I must go fight for my family. Telling you today that there is no battle more important than the battle. And the first time it's mentioned in the Bible lets you know the priority. There's no battle more important than the battle for the family. You have to fight for your family. You have to fight for your marriage, you have to fight for your children. You have to fight for your babies. When the enemy thinks he's going to hold them hostage with alcohol or drugs or some horrible situation. We don't just hope for things to get better. We are to go to war spiritually and we are to pray and we are to call on God because we have a promise. He's the God of our family. Our family should mean more to us than. Than our own hurt feelings. Your family should mean more to you than being offended. And who won't call first and all the nonsense. I tell you who's going to call first. The one that's got a prayer life. Because if you pray, God will say forgive. If you pray, you can't pray long until you bump right into that situation and you recognize God won't hear another thing I have to say. If I don't do right, I'm preaching

[C]

better and y' all letting on.

[B]

This morning, the first battle in the Bible was about the need to stop fighting one another and fight the devil. For our families, fight hell. The spirit of Sodom wants to take them, but hell can't have them. Hallelujah. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. And I just want the enemy to know that if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you shall be saved and your house. So let's go down to the enemy's camp. Let's take back what he's stolen from us. Let's claim the sons and the daughters. Let's claim those on drugs. Let's claim them. Let's get serious about it. Let's reach out. Let's go for it. Let's recommunicate. Let's get involved with it. Get a burden for it. Hallelujah. I want God to do something in our families today. I want God to touch our kids today. I want God to have men and moms and dads and grandparents that are ready to go to war today and say, I'm not going to be casual about eternity and salvation. I need a burden for my family again. I've almost forgotten that God made me

[C]

a promise concerning my seed. Just like Abraham. Go to war for your family, for your marriage, for your children.

[B]

Abraham was willing to put everything aside

[C]

for God and his family. He's devoted, he's dedicated, he's committed. And when a family member is in trouble, everybody ought to get concerned in the family.

[B]

If your daughter, if your son, if your wife, if your husband is being held hostage in Jesus name, we are all family. We're part of the body of Christ and we want to fight with you for them. I pray before they ever got here today that anyone who's been held hostage by Satan when they walk through these doors that the power of God would arrest their souls and that they would be born again before they leave this service. When A family member is in trouble. Pray for them. I love this. You know what happened?

[C]

The scripture said that the king that had conquered them, when Abraham got there, he defeated them.

[B]

He wiped them out. He took his nephew Lot back and he left with him and his family for a season.

[C]

They ended up back there, unfortunately, but

[B]

he took them out. But the king of Sodom came out. I love Abraham because he said, I'm going to fight for my family and I'm not going to make a deal with the devil. The king of Sodom came out and he said, here going to take. And you're going to take the spoils from this battle. And here I want you to take them. And I love Abraham. Abraham, think of the discernment of this. Think had he taken that wealth, he was going to go start a nation. And it would have been built off of the riches of Sodom and Gomorrah. That's how the devil wanted it to go. But Abraham said, I'm not for sale. And he said, I refuse all the wealth that you're offering me. I refuse it because I don't want it. Said, I won't even take a shoelace from you, lest it be said, you made me rich and gave me the resources that I needed to do God's plan for my life. I tell you, if you don't watch it, the world will. Will you? You'll buy into the lies of materialism and things above God. And when you do, you can lose your soul. We're not shocked anymore. We're seeing in real time that people have sold their whole souls to the devil. Their talents, their giftings. Like Jesus, they were taken to a mountain. And Satan said, bow down and worship me and I'll give you fame. I'll give you fortune. But here was Abraham. He said, I want take a thing from you. I'm not going to do it. And he walks away. He doesn't have what he needs. He's living not doing anything but obeying God, fighting for his family, saying no to the world. And that's where the story changes and the words come at the beginning of the chapter. Now, after these things, after he walked away from the life he was in, after he gave up all for Christ, after he went through. It looks like loss after loss, after. After he turned down the big contract because he knew it wasn't God's will

[C]

for his life, he turned. And after these things, it says that that night the Lord came in a vision and said, do not be afraid, Abraham. Watch this.

[B]

When you give up Stuff for God. I am your shield. I am your. Everybody say the next three words, exceeding great reward. And Abraham said, lord God, what will

[C]

you give me, seeing I go childless? You know what he was saying? He was saying, I hear you and I believe you.

[B]

You are my shield and you are my exceeding great reward. But you made me a promise way

[C]

back there, and I don't see it happening.

[B]

I don't see it coming to pass. But after these things, I thought God was going to show up. After these things, he said, I'll be your great reward. What about the promise?

[C]

Abraham said, and this is what I'm preaching on.

[B]

What about that which hasn't been done, that you told me you would do? He said, I put everything in order. I've done everything you told me to do. Lord, how will I know? Lord, I believe. One man said in the New Testament, like this, Lord, I believe. Help thou, my unbelief. It's one of those moments. How can you believe and be full of unbelief at the same time? I believe. It's days of belief and days of unbelief, really. When you're walking with God and you know that he's given you a promise, there'll be days of belief where you know it and you believe it. And I can remember, like, even with the raising of a family and stuff, there were days when I believed. And then there were days when. When the enemy would hit so hard, everything would happen that was the opposite of the promise. And I would have days where I was honest, where I said, well, I don't know, God, I don't know. But deep down inside, I still believe. But help my unbelief, because I'm wavering right here. There are days when you feel like it's going to happen. And there's days when you wonder, where is God? How long, O Lord, how do I know this thing is going to happen? If you believe he's not a man and he can't lie, I just believe. You need to get a clap in your hands right now. That's how you know. You just have to settle it. You just have to say, I don't care what you show me. I know God is not a man, that he can lie. How will I know?

[C]

God said, all right, here's your sign. And he tells him to take five animals. He says, take a ram and take a heifer, take a lamb, take a turtle dove and take another bird. And he says, a young pigeon. And he says, you take those three animals, not the birds, but Take those

[B]

three animals and cut them right down

[C]

the middle and lay half of the animal on one side and cause me to have a middle ground and a path to come to you to confirm that. I'm going to bring the promise concerning your family.

[B]

Because you went to war for your family. I watched you go to war for your family. Now watch. I'm almost where I want to be.

[C]

And the scripture said that's when once he had done everything he knew to do. He sat down and he waited. I'm preaching today on when the waiting comes. He's waiting and waiting and waiting.

[B]

The worship is not going to waste. The prayers that he prayed is not going to waste. The sacrifice is not going to spoil. But I need you to wait. Wait. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They that wait upon the Lord shall run and not be weary and walk in, not faint. Wait on the Lord and be of

[C]

good courage and he will strengthen your heart.

[B]

And see Abraham. He's now prepared everything and done exactly with great devotion. Everything God told him to do. He's surrendered and given up everything.

[C]

And here he goes, deeply devoted,

[B]

and

[C]

instead,

[B]

God showing up.

[C]

Guess what the Bible said happened. Buzzards and vultures showed up. They invaded the space, and when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abraham drove them away.

[B]

Something in Abraham said, while I'm waiting, I am not about to let you

[C]

steal the promise of God.

[B]

I have sacrifices of praise laid out. I have prayers of sacrifice laid out. I have been obeying God the best I know laid out here, and here comes not God. But right before the breakthrough comes, the vultures who are whispering, it's dead, you know, they're only attracted to dead things. They show up, the vultures and the buzzards start flying in from all over the place. The buzzard of bad news says, you did all of this for nothing. The buzzard of bad report. The buzzard of a bad X ray. And it just says, just give up. The buzzard of a phone call that that child is in jail or that child is back on drugs. It's buzzards that come that say, give up now. It's not going to happen. It's too late. Forget it. You have to get to that place where the buzzards of doubt, the buzzards of depression. Hallelujah. I'm going to drive them away this morning. The buzzard of fear. He has not given you the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. The buzzard of faith. Hallelujah. In circumstances more than God drive it away. I don't walk by what I see. I walk by faith, not by sight. Those vile vultures, old buzzards, try to trip you up in your trust. They try to make you start to doubt the promise of God. Abraham declared a battle on those vultures. He said, you're not going to steal and create an atmosphere of death. When God said we would have a promise of life and he began to drive those buzzards away. If he got a stick or a torch, I don't know what he used, but he drove them away. They kept coming, trying to steal what God had promised. God wants to give you a revival of your confidence. A revival of knowing that what he promised he is able to perform. I believe that God will do it. I believe that God will show up. I believe that when the buzzards show up, I'm going to say, get off my prayers. I'm going to drive them away from my promises. I'm going to drive them away from my prophecies. Do you know when we were in the old church, there were prophecies that went forth. I was thinking about this the other day. I have one of them on that I framed that I look back on every once in a while and it amazes me. But there would be people who would come through and just prophec. Prophesy the word of the Lord. Sometimes you have to drive. And I'm so glad that I held on to those promises and the church held on to all those prophecies that went way back for generations. We are where we are today because we drove those buzzards off. Keep the buzzards at bay. You can't have my marriage. You can't have my children. You can't have my grandchildren. You can't have my wife. You can't have my husband. Somebody needs to get that fight back in you to say to those buzzards sent from hell to destroy your family. I will go to war for my family. I will not let you have my son, my daughter. You can't have them. You will release them from the hold of that hostage that you have on

[C]

them in Jesus name.

[B]

I'm preaching right now. It's not a time to turn into Pittie City. You know, over at the north campus

[C]

where my office is,

[B]

we've been having a problem.

[C]

I don't know where they've come from, but we have buzzards.

[B]

They're huge birds and they sit up on the cross of the old building

[C]

down there and they perch up on

[B]

the cross and it's almost like it's an omen or something. I look up there sometimes when I'm pulling out to come preach down here. I'll be backing up and those old buzzards will be sitting on the cross. And I've told the guys I want them to do something about it. I said, can we put some razor blades up there? I don't know. I don't know what we can do. No, we can't. I don't want PETA out here. Amen.

[C]

But

[B]

if you look up what to do about vultures and buzzards, I want to give you what they say will get rid of them. Number one, eliminate the perches. They won't stay anywhere. They can't find somewhere to perch. Remove anything they can perch on. Prayerlessness is a perch. Pitiful little weak. Praise is a perch. Give no place to the devil. This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. Hallelujah. You got to get rid of the purchase. Some of you just let the devil come in your home and perch. He's all in the house. You have to say, you're not welcome here. I'm driving you out. My children are going to live for the Lord. I am going to see salvation in every one of them. And you know I said that when I was fighting those buzzards. And they're all living for the Lord this morning to God be the Glo. No buzzard is going to perch on my house and my family. God is good and he gives us victory. But you have to say to those thoughts of fear and negativism and defeat, you're not going to perch here today. Depression. You're not going to perch here today. I put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Remove the purchase. The purchase. And then listen to this.

[C]

They said you need an effigy.

[B]

E, F, F, I G Y. What is it?

[C]

Effigy.

[B]

It's something that looks like what you want to not come. You make something like a scarecrow and you hang it upside down. It's what the native Indians would do when. When they caught a cowboy or something on their property. They would dispose of them and hang them upside down. And even in wars, the Japanese and Korean wars, things like this there's well documented, they would hang a person and it would say to the soldiers there to create fear that if you come here the same thing that happened to them is going to happen to you. Well, you've got past victories and you ought to say to the present vultures that are telling you God's not faithful. You ought to hang up some of those past victories and say, I just want to remind you that the Lord did it then and he'll do it again. I'm not going to let you rule and reign. No, no. You're not going to come in with fear and your assaults, but I'm going to drive you out the faithfulness of God. I'm going to tell you, all my life, he has been faithful. All of my life since he called me, he's been my provider. And I'm not going to fear now. Hallelujah. Oh, somebody who's got something from the past, you can hold up and say, devil. That's what you said last time. Look what the Lord has done. He fought my battle.

[C]

You know, some of you been sitting

[B]

on your hands the whole service,

[C]

but

[B]

you wouldn't be here if God hadn't fought your battle.

[C]

You have to hang it up and

[B]

say, devil, you're a liar. The last time you tried to destroy me didn't work. And here's another one. You know what they said? They said, if you want to get rid of the vultures, you know what you need to do?

[C]

This is the exact word they used.

[B]

Pyrotechnics. Get you some fire. That's what I want. I want a blowtorch. So if I see them up there on a Sunday morning telling me that nobody's going to get saved and it's going to be a dead dry service at Free Chapel, I just want to. I want to have so much fire. Jesus said, I'll baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire that when I get up here and I sing and we sing and the praise team sings, and we got. We need fire in our worship. We need fire in our preaching. We need fire in our relationship. We need a passionate, fiery relationship with Jesus. That's what the devil fears. He took note of them. They had been with the Lord. God showed up. Now, let me close this sermon.

[C]

They came early, and that's never good because people start running for the exit. Amen. But let me finish this sermon. You can stand. Stand up, please.

[B]

But don't leave.

[C]

The Bible said that suddenly thick darkness came after he drove them away. And a flaming torch

[B]

started.

[C]

It's like the invisible man was carrying it. It was God. And he walked between the sacrifices and all you could see was a flame

[B]

of fire

[C]

driving away the vultures of death and doubt and discouragement. God said, this is it. You will have a son.

[B]

His name will be Isaac. And he'll have a son named Jacob. And Jacob's name will be changed to Israel.

[C]

And I will do a work and

[B]

I will save the world. And it came because you knew what to do. While you were waiting, you drove away those vultures. The last thing they said on the Internet that will get rid of those vultures is noise. It's called praise. That's called thank you, Jesus. And I don't know who I'm preaching to today, but I know one thing that I am directed to do. I am directed to tell every father, every man in this house that you need to drive away the buzzards that are telling you to leave that home or leave that family or give up on that son or give up on that daughter. And you need to say to every mother, I say to every mother in this room today that don't you ever give up on your babies because you have great power to drive away. Don't give those buzzards a place to perch. Get on fire this morning. Make some noise this morning. Be filled with the holy sp. He never comes with discouragement. He never comes with unbelief and doubt. He is the spirit of truth and he wants to fill us with faith for our families. If your marriage is in trouble, don't you let those buzzards set up of divorce run them off. Say Satan, you're a liar. Because greater is he that's in us. So if you're here today and you feel like the first battle in the Bible was for a man's family, that ought to be first in your life.

[C]

My family,

[A]

I really want to say thank you for joining us this week. If you haven't already, make sure you click on the subscription button and leave us a review. It helps this podcast reach even more people when you comment, when you give us your feedback. For more messages and inspirational materials, download the Jensen Franklin app or you can head over to JensenFranklin.org I want to thank all of you who give generously to help us produce weekly content like this to reach the world with the message of Jesus. God bless you and we'll see you next time.