Dominic Yeo returned to CHC with a bold and encouraging word on how to exercise faith when blessings appear to dry up.
CN PHOTOS: Aaron Tan, Charles Foo & Michael Chan.
Faith is the means of activating God in a Christian’s life; without faith, it is impossible to please Him.
To illustrate this important point, Dominic Yeo, senior pastor of Trinity Christian Centre, invited four male congregants up on stage.
The preacher had them sit on four chairs sideways, and then lie back till their heads rested on each other’s thighs. Yeo then carefully removed the chairs one at a time, leaving the four men “sitting on air”, each leaning their weight on the other in order to stay up. After congratulating the four on the success of this admirable feat, Yeo quipped he was going to leave them in that position until the end of the session.
Through this simple act, Yeo demonstrated the Biblical truth that trust and faith are in fact, synonymous. It took faith to lean one’s weight entirely on the other, and that is how we should trust God—by leaning completely on Him.
Yeo was the guest preacher at City Harvest Church for the weekend of Mar 15 and 16. Besides pastoring Trinity Christian Centre, an Assemblies of God church in Singapore with over 7,000 in weekly attendance, Yeo also holds the titles of General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God of Singapore and the Executive Council Member of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship. He is widely known for his gift for bringing timely messages on powerful breakthroughs and transformation to international congregations.
WHAT DOES ONE DO WHEN THE BROOK DRIES UP?
Yeo began his message drawing from 1 Kings 17 where Elijah had proclaimed a drought in the land. He was instructed by God to hide in the brook Cherith and to drink from the brook. However, even the brook dried up after a while.
“So what should one do when the brook dries up?” Yeo posed the question to the congregation.
The story goes that God instructed Elijah to go to Zarephath and ask a widow to provide him with food. The widow only had a handful of flour and a little oil but she was willing to do as the prophet said and use them to make him a cake to eat.
Elijah then said to her: “For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain on the land.’” (1 Kings 17:14) The Scripture assures us that the jug will not grow empty, he preached. Thus, one can strengthen their faith in the Lord.
“Elijah was walking in blessing every day, the ravens fed him, and there was water to drink from the brook even in the drought,” Yeo said. “It’s the same for us; we walk in the blessings of God every day. But when the brook starts to dry up, what should our response be?”
Yeo taught the church four things to do in such a situation.
1) The heart of faith needs to know that God is up to something great
“Because God is a good God,” Yeo explained.
The drying up of the brook in one’s life is for God to prepare him for something great—it is about the movement of God. When a believer is in the winter season in life, God moves them out of the comfort zone so that they can receive new revelations.
Hence, it is necessary to develop a heart of faith that begins to discern the greatness that one is able to behold. When facing major issues in life, it is not a question of “why” but “what”. Asking the right question provides the currency of faith and answers the question of “how”.
2) The ears of faith must hear God for the miracle
For that to happen, believers must know who God is. God has a track record of goodness and is constant in His supply and provision.
“If God has been good to you in the past, He will do even better in the future! God’s past record is an indication of where He will take his people in the future.”
Yeo went on to assure the church that God does not turn a cold shoulder to his people just because they have sinned. He gave an example of God speaking to Abraham even after he had sinned. The truth is God wants to speak to His people because He is a Father who communicates.
The ability to hear God then lies in the believer’s proximity to Him—it will also determine the height and depth of His revelation that would be poured into his life. These revelations will bring forth God’s strategies from Heaven.
Yeo illustrated such a revelation from his personal experience. Prior to the Asian financial stock market crash in 2008, God gave Yeo a revelation to sell his flat at a time when his wife was retrenched and he was serving in the ministry. However, being certain that when one hears from God one will be well, Yeo heeded God’s call. He sold his flat for a nice profit before the downturn. When the market crashed, he could afford a condominium. When the brook dries up, the ears of faith must hear from God.
3) The walk of faith takes one to his blessing
The walk of faith will take one to unlikely places. God told Yeo that he would receive a piece of land as his inheritance. Yeo began the search for land—a house. God arranged it so that he made an offer on a house that turned out to be owned by his ex-girlfriend’s mother, who was happy to sell it to a pastor. Yeo received his promise from God, walking entirely in faith throughout his amazing journey.
4) The eyes of faith must see things that are accomplished before they actually happen
In 1 King 1:13, Elijah said to the widow, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son.”
Elijah was telling the woman not to focus on herself or her perceived poverty but instead, to focus on the vastness of God. Yeo told the story of his young son Matthias who, at Sunday school, decided to pledge S$500 to Trinity Christian Centre’s building fund. When asked how he planned to fulfill his pledge, the boy replied that his father would account for the amount.
In conclusion, God is the Supplier. Fear and intimidation are things that do not make sense in the Kingdom of God. One needs the Holy Spirit to see, through holy eyes, what is to come.
