Click HERE to view Rev. Rogers’ guided meditation during the service.
Okay; so we’re going to play a game tonight. And the game is called, “LIFE.” And there’s some rules to LIFE. And the problem is that, if we don’t know the rules, it doesn’t always work out well. True? Have you ever tried to learn a new game, and they were teaching the rules as you went along? And then you said, “Well, why didn’t you tell me that before? I wouldn’t have discarded the aces if I knew they were the best cards.” Right?
So sometimes we play this game called LIFE and the people who are actually teaching us the rules to LIFE may not have a very developed understanding of the game. Have you ever been taught by somebody who didn’t really understand the game? And they gave you this whole thing … And so tonight we’re going to talk about LIFE and I want to make sure you understand the rules.
And the first rule of LIFE is that EVERYONE IS GIVEN A KINGDOM OR A QUEENDOM. And that means that your life is a kingdom or a queendom and it’s not a small, little thing. It’s a queendom! It’s a kingdom! And that means that every one of us was born as a king or queen of our own experience.
Now, that may sound odd. But I want you to really kind of check in with yourself tonight. Do you really feel like the king or the queen of your own life? Because if you don’t feel like the king or the queen of your own life, when’s that going to happen?
See, some of us feel more like a worker bee than the queen bee. Have you ever felt like the worker bee of your own life? That we’re the worker bee; we get all the stuff done. But we never really get to the moment of being able to sit at our throne and observe our kingdom.
And there’s a moment where you sit on your throne and it is the power place! When you sit on the throne, you observe your kingdom, your queendom, and then you get to decide the direction that your kingdom or queendom is going to go.
So everyone is given a kingdom or a queendom. That’s the first rule.
Second rule: That WE EITHER CREATE OUR KINGDOM OR QUEENDOM CONSCIOUSLY OR UNCONSCIOUSLY. We either do it intentionally or we just kind of do it haphazard. And whatever shows up, we never know what’s going to show up. And we don’t really do it intentionally; it’s just kind of a “catch or catch can.”
And I want you to see that, for many of us, there’s a moment where we realize, “Oh! I really haven’t been creating my own kingdom. I’ve been creating this kingdom the way I thought it was supposed to be created, but it was never my kingdom. It was never what I wanted to create.”
So everyone is given a kingdom. Your kingdom can be created either consciously or unconsciously.
And the third rule is: IN YOUR KINGDOM — like all kingdoms — EVERYTHING IS ALLOWED. And this is the one we object to sometimes the most strenuously. Because we believe there are things that should be in our kingdom and there are definitely things that shouldn’t be in our kingdom. Right? But the reality is: God has created a universe where everything is allowed: the good; the bad; the light; the dark; the fear; the hope. Everything is allowed and you get to decide — because you have free will — what you want to invite into your kingdom.
And over and over again, there’s this resistance to the fact that everything is allowed. Because we only want the good stuff or the happy stuff or the beautiful stuff. And yet, because you are the king or the queen of your own kingdom, you actually get to decide. And sometimes when you don’t decide, it means that you have given permission to everything to show up. Whether you want it or not, it gets to slide in.
So the first thing is: You’re given a kingdom. Your kingdom can either be created consciously or unconsciously. in your kingdom everything is allowed.
And four: IN YOUR KINGDOM, EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE. So there is no limitation to the possibilities in your kingdom. You can create whatever you choose to create. There is an infinite supply and, in your kingdom, everything is possible: rich or poor; sad or ugly. Everything is possible.
Five: YOUR KINGDOM CO-EXISTS WITH ALL THE OTHER KINGDOMS. Meaning that everybody else’s kingdom is going on all around you, through you. Everybody is living their life: family, friends, neighbors. Everybody’s kingdom co-exists and it’s all touching your kingdom whether you like it or not. Right? This is the reason we have kind of “groupmind.” We have mob consciousness. Because sometimes the group — because all the kingdoms co-exist together. But that’s also why Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I draw all people unto me.” Because any time your kingdom goes to a higher level, because we all co-exist together, everything moves up. Everything moves forward.
So whether your kingdom is expanding or contracting, it’s happening all around you. And everyone is impacted.
Six: KINGDOMS TEND TO BE STABLE. Now, that sounds like a good thing, right? Would you want your kingdom all over the place? No! Kingdoms tend to be stable, and the thing that we need to remember is: The longer your kingdom takes a certain form, the more energy it takes to move it in a new direction. Okay?
So if you’ve been living a certain way — if your kingdom has rules or things a certain way — and you want to move it to a different direction or a different place or a different creation, it actually takes more energy to move it the longer it’s been a certain way. So if you’ve lived in poverty or ill health or crummy relationships, and you decide that’s not really fun in your kingdom and you want to move it in a new direction, the more it’s been that — for the longer time it’s been like that — the more difficult it is to move it. And that’s why in Newton’s first of motion said that, “Bodies at rest want to remain at rest. Bodies in motion want to stay in motion in a straight line unless acted upon by an outside force.”
So in your kingdom — just like in physics — your kingdom wants to stay stable. And sometimes that’s frustrating. Because sometimes we want to see movement; we want to see change; we want to see something brand new. And sometimes when we see the same thing over and over again, we get a little upset. Has anybody ever been disappointed that you’ve ever had an experience that you didn’t want more than once? Right? That it circles back around. Okay, so kingdoms tend to be stable.
And the seventh point is that YOUR KINGDOM IS ALWAYS GREATER THAN YOU REALIZE. See, many people don’t want to own the full extent of their kingdom. They want to own this little patch of their kingdom, where everything’s nice and clean and perfect. And they don’t really want to pay attention to the fact that their kingdom is literally bigger than that.
And if we’re going to be an effective king or queen, we need to be able to sit on our throne and see every aspect of our life. The part is just working and beautiful and everything’s groovy, and the parts over there that are like, “Man, that is just a mess!” Because for most of us, we want to just focus on this little part. But as a true and benevolent king or queen that you are, I want you to see that every aspect of the kingdom deserves your attention.
And this is what Jesus said in Luke 12: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
In Joshua 1 we read — and this is God speaking to Joshua after Moses has died. Joshua 1: “After the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua, son of Nun, Moses’ minister, ‘Moses, my servant, is dead. Now therefore rise, go over the Jordan, you and all these people, into the land which I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the soles of your feet will tread upon I have given to you, as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river Euphra’tes, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea to the going down of the sun shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, I will be with you. I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for you shall cause these people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.'”
And I want you to see that that’s the promise from the beginning of time that has been made to your soul! That your kingdom can be as big and as vast and as wonderful as you’re willing to own; as you’re willing to claim; as you’re willing to be the king or queen of your kingdom. Your kingdom is truly that amazing!
And for most of us, we keep wanting to say, “No. It’s just right here.”
Deuteronomy 8: “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates; a land of olive trees and honey; and land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will not lack anything; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you will dig copper. And you will eat and be full, and you shall be blessed by the Lord your God, for this land was good and it was given to you.”
See, I want you to really begin to own the possibilities for your life to transform whatever your kingdom looks like right now into the kingdom that totally satisfied and nurtures and supports your soul. And from the beginning of time, when we come into this world and we don’t realize we were given a kingdom, and we actually minimize the good; we minimize the life that we can live. And all the while, there’s this promise that it’s huge; that it’s vast; that it’s good. And that it can even be better than it’s ever been before.
So what do we do when we look out upon our kingdom and we realize that some of it needs a little work? We’ve got 40 acres over there that maybe isn’t working so well. You know, we’ve got some areas over here; this looks a little dry, a little parched. It’s not working so well!
And this is where I really want to talk about audacity. Because to change your kingdom requires two things. The first one is THE AUDACITY OF YOUR DESIRES. To create something new — to reach outside the current limitations of your life and to conceive of something greater — takes an audacity that most of us don’t fully comprehend. If your life has been limited — if it’s been limited for awhile — it takes a huge level of audacity to be willing to claim that which you’ve never known before. To speak directly to the universe and ask for a greater level of good takes audacity! Because the thought is, “Who am I that I should ever ask for that much? Why should I be able to ask for that much and receive it?
Mark 11:24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it will be yours.”
Remember the musical, Oliver? Oliver Twist? There’s this classic line in that old play that says, “Please, sir, I want some more.” And I believe that’s an acknowledgement in every soul that wants to speak that to the universe. “Please, sir, I want more.” And that we check ourselves over and over again and refuse to let ourselves really ask for all the things that we want. That we have a right to have a desire that is bigger than our current experience of life. That we have a right to ask for every one of our desires to be satisfied. It’s how we move our lives forward!
Was anybody else raised in a family where, if you asked for too much, you were shamed? Like, if you asked for too much … Like, if you asked, “Can I have dessert?” or “Can I have this?” or “Can I have my allowance now?”, then somehow you were looked at as a greedy, awful little thing.
And I want you to see tonight that that’s not our relationship with God. God is infinite! God wants to bless us all! Right?
Napoleon Hill, one of my favorite teachers of all time, said this: “The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep that constantly in mind. Weak desires bring forth weak results, just as small fires make a small amount of heat.” He goes on: “You are the master of your destiny. You can influence, direct, control your own environment. You can make your life what you want it to be.”
And in his book, Think and Grow Rich, he gives this poem that I just love:
I bargained with life for a penny,
And life would pay no more.
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store
For life is a just employer,
It gives you what you ask,
But once you’ve set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.
I worked for a menial’s hire,
Only to learn in dismay,
That whatever wage I had asked of life,
Life would have willingly paid.
And I want you to see: How audacious are you willing to be with life? Especially in all those places where you feel like your kingdom — your experience — is too small? It’s too tight; it’s too cramped. Are you willing to lay and ask upon the Infinite for a greater life experience? And to trust that it can be greater than you could even imagine?
So that’s the first one. The first one is the audacity of desire.
And the second one is the AUDACITY OF WORTH. That I’m actually worthy of the desires that I ask for. Worthiness is the master program of life. You can’t create what you feel unworthy of. I want you to hear me say that! You can’t create what you don’t feel worthy of!
And I can think of so many times where people came to me and said, “Richard, will you pray with me about this or that,” or whatever it is, and you knew deep in their heart that they didn’t feel worthy of what they were asking for! And so, no matter how many times they begged God for this or that, they didn’t — in their own heart — feel worthy of having the desires that they wanted. And there was such a disconnect!
And if you look at the world around us, you see people at a high level of success — athletes, entertainers, politicians — who have been blessed at a very high level. But if they don’t feel worthy of that, they find a way to implode it. Can everybody think of somebody famous who, in the last 20 years, have imploded their life? We all can think of somebody! Because what happens, over and over again: If you don’t feel worthy of it, you find a way to get it to implode your life so it’s no longer part of it.
So every desire has to be held in the audacity: “I am worthy of that which I desire.”
Will you way that with me? [With congregation]: “I am worthy of that which I desire.”
Now, the first time you say this, is it going to instantly transform your sense of inner worth? Maybe not! But what I know to be true is that, when you take on healing your deepest wound, healing your sense of unworthiness; when you speak to the Universe — and I hope that you do! — and you feel worthy of it, it actually rolls into your life with such grace and ease, it’ll blow your mind! It is incredible that we have the ability to speak directly to the Universe — directly to God! And when we feel worthy of it, it is the simplest thing in the world for our good to come into our life.
Mary Pawlus, a blogger, wrote this. And it’s so good!
“Have you ever asked yourself these questions? Do you believe that you deserve to receive what you desire? Do you believe that you are worthy of your dreams?
These questions were recently asked of me by a friend of mine while we were discussing a very specific area of my life. When I thought about it, I realized that the shocking answer was, ‘No. I don’t believe it.’ That startled me! And thus began my journey into questioning a number of areas in my life.
I had never consciously allowed myself to go there and explore these beliefs and feelings of lack of worthiness. It was very uncomfortable and scary to face them. But I realized that these false beliefs were holding me back from getting everything that I desire. Talk about massive roadblocks!”
So here’s what I want tonight. I want you to look to see if there’s a desire in your heart that hasn’t been fully expressed in your kingdom. Does everybody have at least one? And it could be anything! It could be love; it could be joy; it could be abundance; it could be health. I want you to look at your kingdom and really look at your kingdom! I want you to sit on your throne! And I want you to look at every aspect of your life and say, “Is there any part of my life that is not fully expressing the desires of my heart? Is there any part of my life that’s not working?”
And I want you to really look! And if there’s an area, then I want you to speak your desire to the Infinite. “Oh! I want to know greater abundance. Or I want to know greater love. Or I want to know greater joy. I want to know greater peace. I want to know a greater expansion of my kingdom.”
And then I’m going to ask you to go after any sense of unworthiness. Because you are a child of God. And it’s the Father’s good pleasure, we’re told, to give you the kingdom. But if the kingdom is available to all of us, and any of us don’t feel worthy of it, we keep stopping the process.
Tonight I want you to take on any sense of unworthiness. And I want you to decide tonight that you’re going to heal anything that is kept you from feeling worthy.
“I am worthy of all the good I desire.”
Together: [with congregation] “I am worthy of all the good I desire.”
One more time like we mean it! [With congregation] “I am worthy of all the good I desire.”
And I want you to make this a commitment! [Laughs] You know, there’s a saying that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Well, I don’t think your kingdom is going to be transformed in a day. I think if there’s a desire of your heart that is bigger, greater than you’ve ever known before, as you take any sense of worthiness; and as you bring it into the light; as you ask God to heal it; as you ask God to transform any situation in your life that you’re going to be able to speak your desires. And then, “Oh. I am worthy of that! God does want to bless me with that! There is nothing that is keeping me from that much good; that much love; that much light; that much abundance; that much health; that much joy. There’s nothing that’s keeping me from that. And the moment I lay hands on it — the moment I actually allow my kingdom to be blessed with that — everyone around me is going to be inspired.”
“I create a greater kingdom.”
Together: [with congregation] “I create a greater kingdom.”
Will you pray with me?
And I invite you to open your heart, your mind, your soul to the one presence and the one power. And I want you to hear the rain. [Pouring rain hitting the roof is audible] And every drop is the good that God has for you. Every drop is the life that God is offering you. And there is no limit. The blessings of God, too numerous to count, desire to fill your life today. In the name and through the power of the Living Christ, we give thanks. And so it is. Amen.