The Potter's House Podcast

Walk It Out Wednesday: Never Been Done Before | Sarah Jakes Roberts

Date: January 8, 2026
Host: Sarah Jakes Roberts, The Potter’s House

Episode Overview

In this enriching Walk It Out Wednesday, Pastor Sarah Jakes Roberts leads an interactive teaching called "Never Been Done Before." Drawing from scripture and lived experience, Pastor Sarah explores how stepping outside comfort zones and shedding inherited and cultural habits are essential to unlocking God's supernatural plans for our lives. The conversation revolves around reclaiming our original, God-given identity, learning to protect and activate divine words over our lives, and embracing transformation so that we can become beacons of change for others. Pastor Sarah answers live audience questions, offers practical strategies for spiritual growth, and encourages believers to walk boldly in faith, even—especially—when it means doing something that's never been done before.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Embracing the "Never Been Done Before" Mandate

• Call to Action for 2026:

  • Pastor Sarah proclaims this as the "year of doing things outside our norm," urging the congregation to break free of familiar patterns and embrace new, often uncomfortable directions from God.
  • Quote (03:47): "Unlocking God's supernatural plan for our lives requires us to abandon what comes natural to us." - Sarah Jakes Roberts

• Biblical Foundation: Genesis & Our Nature

  • Humanity's original identity was to walk with confidence and dominion, made in God's image (Genesis 1:27-28).
  • The "fall" in Genesis 3 shifted us into a "second nature," marked by insecurity and disconnection—a state we are called to overcome.

• Doubting God and Ourselves

  • The serpent’s deception in Eden was effective because it made Adam and Eve second-guess God’s word, undermining their original nature.
  • Quote (13:15): "If you second guess God, you'll second guess yourself. Because now if I can't believe what God says about me, then I can't trust where God places me." - Sarah Jakes Roberts

Activating and Protecting God's Word

• Immediate Action Required:

  • When God gives you a word, move on it quickly; lingering leads to doubt and inaction.
  • "What is it going to take for me to activate this word? Even if activation just means I let it marinate..." (17:23).

• Guarding the Word

  • Protect divine revelation from unsupportive environments or people.
  • “There are some environments that will kill the word. There are some friendships that don’t know how to handle the word that God has given you.” (20:55)
  • Sacrifice is necessary—comfort must sometimes be forfeited to nurture the new word.

Overcoming the Second Nature & Generational Patterns

• Inherited Habits and Second Nature

  • Biology and environment shape us, but not always in alignment with God’s vision for our lives.
  • Part of discipleship involves laying down not just sin but generational cultural conditioning that doesn’t reflect God’s best.
  • Quote (27:38): "We may not have the luxury of being ourselves if who we have become is actually a result of brokenness, of sin, of trauma or shame."

• Reflection and Correction

  • Not all confrontation is hate—sometimes it’s a mirror revealing what needs transformation.
  • “It is easy to assume—just because you can see their poison doesn’t mean you don’t have any yourself.” (31:50)

Practical Example: Jesus and Environment (Luke 2)

• Jesus, though full of wisdom at twelve, submits to Mary and Joseph—a model for growing in unfamiliar or uncomfortable environments.

• Sometimes you are in spaces not to shine in your strength, but to develop your weaknesses.

  • Quote (39:24): "If we resist the areas where we are underdeveloped... we will miss out on the fullness of who God wants us to become."

• The value of environmental shifts:

  • Sometimes the issue isn’t the location or the people—it’s how you show up. Change yourself, and your environment will respond (43:00).
  • "Focus on you, the environment will shift already. When you shift, God will highlight the way you’re supposed to move..." (44:43)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Immediate Obedience:
  • “That is our key to defeating the enemy, is that we act into what God says about us... You have to ask yourself, what is it going to take for me to activate this Word?” (17:23)
• On Protecting Divine Revelation:
  • "There are some environments that will kill the Word... It is on you to protect it." (20:55)
• On Sacrifice:
  • "It costs something to keep the Word alive. It’s not supposed to come easy." (22:14)
• On Transformation:
  • "Lord, anything that doesn’t look like you, highlight it. I want to see it." (28:50)
• On Generational Change:
  • “You want to see healing in your family, but if your family has never seen it, maybe God placed it on your heart so that you can put it on display.” (51:45)
• On Catching God’s Signs:
  • “Anytime God gives you any fruit towards his word, you better take that as a sign that the big harvest is coming. I caught that!” (59:13)

Answering Audience Questions (Timestamps)

[1:03:08] — How do you find your inheritance in God amidst storms?

• Pastor Sarah references Romans 8:14-17.
  • Our true inheritance is rooted in spiritual identity, acquired not by flesh or tradition, but by embracing the Spirit.
  • “You must have faith that I have power over whatever is happening in my life that is keeping me away from the Lord.”

[1:08:23] — Handling Environments That Limit You

• Even if you’re in an environment with less capacity, God may be positioning you for growth in underdeveloped areas (Luke 2).
  • Your current constraints are temporary; intentional development ends up converging with your strengths for future impact.

[1:20:40] — Returning to Your First Nature

• Study and internalize the character of Jesus. Transformation happens by focusing on “one area at a time,” until the Bible begins to read you (not just you, it).

[1:24:39] — The “Where Are You?” Question

• God’s question to Adam is an invitation for self-examination, not condemnation.
  • "The Lord often asks us questions to make us dig to figure out how we got off track... The Lord wants to sit with us as we unpack what happened to us."
• Faith is developed not only through trials, but also through intimacy in seasons of peace and joy.

[1:34:57] — Planting Seeds Without Getting Ahead of God

• Use Abraham’s journey (Genesis 12) as a model for stepping out in faith but staying teachable and correctable. “Sometimes the lesson is just in the doing, not in the finished product.”

[1:43:14] — Sharing Your Dreams and Visions

• Be discerning with whom you share your dreams—seek people who can steward your vision, not those whose doubts could stifle it.

Special Guest Commentary

[1:49:15] — PT (Pastor Touré Roberts) on Intercession

• Inheritance is claimed through intercession:
  • The boundaries of your destiny are often unknown, but intercession moves those boundaries and allows you to see God’s potential for your life come to pass.
  • “Intercession is how we find the true limits of our life... There are some things literally that we will be able to shift and stop and to prevent from happening. That’s all a part of our inheritance too.”

Action Steps & Closing Prayers

[1:54:20+] — Building a Personal Altar & Sacrifice

• Pastor Sarah invites listeners to “build an altar” in prayer and offering, marking a commitment to step into new, uncharted faith territory.
• Closing prayer: "We lay this seed at your feet…and we say, first, Jesus, just build your church. Us, we are your church."

Challenge:

• Worship “out of your norm” and allow God to meet you in new ways.
• Focus on becoming who God says you are—change yourself, and trust God to shift everything else.

Key Segment Timestamps

| Topic/Quote | Timestamp | |--------------------------------------------------------|------------| | Main theme introduction (“Never Been Done Before”) | 02:00 | | Genesis 1&3, the fall, and our original/second nature | 05:19–12:30| | The enemy’s tactic: making us second guess God | 13:00-15:10| | Claiming and acting on God’s word | 17:23–22:00| | Shifting environments, the story of Hannah | 40:00–48:00| | Changing you to change your environment | 43:00–46:50| | Catching small blessings as signs of God’s promise | 59:13–1:01:30| | Q&A session begins (inheritance amidst storms) | 1:03:08 | | Intercession and PT’s prophetic word | 1:49:15–1:54:20| | Invitation to build a spiritual altar / closing prayer | 1:54:20–end|

Tone & Style

Pastor Sarah’s teaching is deeply biblical, conversational, and intensely practical. She affirms, challenges, and encourages with a mix of wisdom, humor, and prophetic insight. The tone is warm and bridging, welcoming even as it calls listeners to a higher, more sacrificial walk of faith. Audience questions receive thoughtful, personalized responses.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode is a vibrant call to faith—one that requires intention, sacrifice, self-examination, and radical obedience. Pastor Sarah reminds us that stepping into what’s “never been done before” is less about external circumstances and more about allowing God to transform our nature and renew our thinking. The message is clear: walk it out now, and don’t wait for perfect conditions—God has given you the power to shift your world by shifting yourself.

Memorable takeaways:

• “If you second guess God, you’ll second guess yourself.”
• “You’re going to be the leader in this way, and show them there’s another way to do it.”
• “Don’t let nothing pass you by...make sure you catch that.”
• “Our inheritance is claimed through intercession.”

Walk it out—with faith, boldness, and a willingness to do what’s truly never been done before.