Paul Geerling - Looking forward, Looking back

Devotional

Day 1: Stone Pillows and Ladder Dreams

Jacob collapsed onto a desert stone, fleeing his brother’s rage. As he slept, heaven tore open. Angels ascended a glowing ladder while God vowed: “I will not leave you.” Jacob woke, anointed the stone, and named the place Bethel – “House of God.” That rock became a memorial of divine encounter. [10:02]

God meets us in our wildernesses. Jacob’s stone marked where shame became destiny. The ladder revealed God’s relentless presence – not earned, but given. Our Bethel moments remind us heaven invades earth for strugglers and schemers.

What desert are you crossing? Name one stone in your life – a crisis, failure, or lonely night – where God met you. Anoint it through remembrance. How might revisiting your Bethel shift your perspective today?

“He came to a certain place and stayed there all night… He dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven… And behold, the Lord stood above it.”
(Genesis 28:10-12, NKJV)

Prayer: Thank God for His presence in your hardest nights. Ask Him to awaken you to new Bethel moments.

Challenge: Write down one past “stone pillow” experience where God met you. Share it with someone today.

Day 2: Twelve Stones in the Riverbed

Joshua commanded twelve men to haul boulders from the Jordan’s dry bed. These stones stood as a memorial: “When your children ask, ‘What do these mean?’ tell them…” Miracle became memory. Memory fueled faith for future battles. [12:07]

God builds generational faith through tangible reminders. The stones weren’t for the warriors – they were for the toddlers. Our testimonies arm the next generation against doubt. Every breakthrough left unrecorded is a weapon lost.

What “Jordan stones” have you carried from life’s rivers? Your salvation story? A healed relationship? Financial provision? Write them down. Who in your circle needs to hear how God parted waters for you?

“Take twelve stones… carry them over with you… that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’”
(Joshua 4:4-7, ESV)

Prayer: Ask God to reveal which testimonies you’ve buried. Seek courage to resurrect one today.

Challenge: Text one person under 25 a brief testimony of God’s faithfulness in your life.

Day 3: Eyes Unseen, Ears Unheard

The West African couple cradled their newborn, marveling at sterile hospital tools. The Australian husband grumbled about short maternity stays. Same hospital. Same care. Different vision. Paul declared: “No eye has seen what God prepares for lovers of Him!” [16:22]

Expectation lenses color our world. The Israelites saw giants; Joshua saw God’s promise. Our focus on lack blinds us to latent miracles. Heaven reserves surprises for those anticipating goodness.

What “hospital moments” make you complain versus celebrate? List three areas where you’ve lowered expectations. How might 1 Corinthians 2:9 recalibrate your vision?

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”
(1 Corinthians 2:9, NLT)

Prayer: Confess one area of cynicism. Ask for fresh expectation.

Challenge: Replace three complaints today with “God prepared better than this.”

Day 4: Confident in the Unfinished

Paul botched prophecies and hid from pastors. Joseph organized grain while forgotten in prison. Both discovered: God finishes what He starts. Philippians 1:6 isn’t about our stamina – it’s about His faithfulness. Construction zones mean progress, not failure. [17:16]

Your unresolved story testifies to God’s ongoing work. Half-built cathedrals inspired medieval believers – the unfinished pointed to coming glory. Our gaps become His grace displays.

Where do you feel incomplete? A lingering prayer? Unmet promise? Write “WORK IN PROGRESS” over it. How might today’s frustrations be tomorrow’s testimonies?

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 1:6, NIV)

Prayer: Thank God for His patience with your unfinished areas.

Challenge: Circle one “incomplete” in your journal. Write “God’s hands here” beside it.

Day 5: Pressing Toward the Prize

Paul’s father refused Holland’s war-scarred memories. The apostle wrote: “Forgetting what’s behind, I press on.” Not denial – deliberate focus. Some stones memorialize; some tombstones imprison. Resurrection requires released graves. [30:52]

What weighs your hands from grasping new grace? Unforgiven hurts? Past successes? Failed plans? Christ’s call forward demands open palms. The finish line awaits runners, not historians.

What “Holland” do you need to release? Name one memory requiring a tombstone versus a testimony stone. How might laying it down free you for today’s race?

“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 3:12-14, NIV)

Prayer: Ask God to highlight one weight to release. Receive strength to drop it.

Challenge: Physically open your hands while praying “I release ______” three times aloud.

Sermon Summary

We remember the faithfulness of God in our past so that we move boldly into the future. We rehearse rescue stories, answered prayers, healings, provision, and conversion as stones of testimony that remind us who God proves himself to be. We choose to forget the defining power of past failures and wounds when those memories stunt our advance; we invite the Holy Spirit to bring healing so our hands stay free for new opportunities. We declare expectation for what God has not yet shown us, refusing cynical, fearful narratives that shrink our hope.

We cultivate three angles toward the future. First, we expect more because no eye has seen what God prepares for those who love him; expectation reorients perception and opens our hearts to surprise. Second, we build confidence in God’s ongoing work, not in our own perfection; when God begins a work in us, he sustains and completes it, so we persevere even when we feel unfinished. Third, we keep eternity in view; we invest time, resources, and sacrifices in the next generation and in souls beyond our lifespan, knowing the kingdom advances beyond our immediate gratification.

We pray for practical needs now: healing across bodies and minds, relief from insomnia and anxiety, and supernatural provision for finances and business strain. We commit to build with eternity in mind, not for personal legacy but to create space where future people meet Jesus. We refuse to let the enemy steal confidence through shame or comparison; instead we rehearse God’s past goodness and speak hope over our families, communities, and congregational projects. We press on, choosing actions that reflect trust rather than assumptions that circumstances define destiny. As we remember and look forward together, we prepare to see testimony after testimony arise from renewed expectation, God-completed work, and an eternal perspective that shapes our daily choices.

Key Takeaways

1. Remember God moments and promises We keep a catalogue of God’s interventions as a spiritual fuel tank. Those memories anchor our identity when current storms threaten to redefine us. Recalling specific deliverances trains our imagination to expect similar, though different, mercies ahead. [10:02]
2. Expect God to do more We refuse to reduce God to past patterns and instead posture for fresh surprises. Expectation opens us to creative solutions and shifts our interpretation of setbacks into rehearsal spaces. When expectation rises, prayer becomes anticipatory and action follows faith. [16:22]
3. Hold confidence in God’s work We root confidence in God’s character and promises rather than in our performance. This confidence endures seasons of incompletion because God completes what he begins in us. Confidence changes how we steward resources, take risks, and offer mercy. [17:16]
4. Press on with eternity in mind We invest in buildings, people, and ministries that outlast our lifespans and produce multigenerational fruit. Eternity-shaped decisions value discipleship, outreach, and the souls yet to come over short-term comforts. Keeping the upward call in view reorders priorities and fuels perseverance. [27:14]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:58] - Personal encouragement and commissioning
[03:13] - Prayer for physical healing
[04:02] - Prayer against insomnia and anxiety
[05:54] - Church planting testimony and vision
[09:08] - Looking back and looking forward introduced
[10:02] - Remembering God’s past faithfulness
[13:12] - Look forward with expectation
[17:16] - Building confidence in God’s completion
[26:45] - Pressing on with eternity in mind
[33:13] - Corporate prayer to shift expectation and reclaim confidence
[36:17] - Prayer for the church building and future fruit

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
1 Corinthians 2:9 (NIV)
“However, as it is written: ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’—the things God has prepared for those who love him.”

Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)
“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Observation Questions

In 1 Corinthians 2:9, what does Paul say about the future God has prepared for those who love Him? How does this connect to the idea of "raising expectations" mentioned in the sermon? [16:22]
The sermon contrasts two couples’ responses to similar hospital experiences (one complaining, one celebrating). What does this reveal about how expectation shapes perspective? [15:55]
Philippians 3:14 uses the phrase “press on.” What actions or attitudes does “pressing on” require, according to the sermon’s emphasis on healing, provision, and eternal focus? [27:14]

Interpretation Questions

Why does Paul emphasize forgetting what is behind in Philippians 3:13, even though the sermon also stresses remembering God’s faithfulness? How do these ideas work together?
The sermon says, “Confidence is rooted in God’s character, not our performance.” How does Philippians 1:6 support this claim, especially in seasons of feeling “unfinished”? [17:16]
How might testimonies of healing, answered prayer, or provision (like the Nigerian girl’s story [21:35]) train believers to interpret setbacks as “rehearsal spaces” for future faith?

Application Questions

What specific “God moment” from your past (healing, provision, answered prayer) could you rehearse this week to fuel hope for future challenges? How might sharing this story encourage someone else?
The sermon warns against letting past failures or wounds “stunt our advance.” Is there a memory or experience you need to release to God so your hands are free for new opportunities? What practical step could you take to invite healing in this area? [31:19]
Where do you feel most tempted to lower your expectations of God (e.g., relationships, finances, spiritual growth)? How could 1 Corinthians 2:9 reshape your prayers and actions in that area?
The church building project is described as an investment in “souls beyond our lifespan.” What is one way you could intentionally invest time, resources, or energy this month in something that outlasts your immediate needs? [36:17]
When have you seen confidence in God’s faithfulness (not your own ability) lead to bold steps? How might this kind of confidence change how you approach a current challenge?

Sermon Clips

37s

#BeConfidentInGod

“``Be confident. He can supply money for taxes for the disciples in the mouth of a fish. You can trust him to help you get employment or blessing in your business. Be confident. He can calm the wind and the waves with one spoken word. You can pray. You can believe for a breakthrough in your circumstances. Be confident. He parted the waters of the Red Sea. He enabled a shepherd boy with a slingshot to take down Goliath. You can trust him to make the impossible possible in your life. Be confident. He led the people of Israel by a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He got the wise men by a star from the East to go to Bethlehem. He can give you direction and major life decisions.”

36s

#GodIsFaithful

“Second Timothy says, even when we're faithless, he's still faithful to us. Being confident of this very thing that is he who began a good work in you will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus. We can be confident in God. He made the heavens and the earth. You can trust him with your life. Be confident of this. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. You can trust him with your finances. Be confident of this. He's the one that loved the prodigal son, left the 99 sheep to chase the one. You can trust him to reach your unsaved friends and family. Be confident of this. He raised Lazarus from the dead, healed the blind, the mute, the crippled. You can put your hope and trust for healing.”

43s

#FrameTheRightMemories

“Some things are good to remember, but some things we need to choose to forget. Sometimes we remember the wrong things in our lives. You know, if you come to my house, there's some beautiful photos in the world of my son's wedding and even our wedding went back there when I had hair. But there's not a there's not a photo of that time in 1996 I had a car crash and flipped my car on the freeway and nearly died. I'm not framing that moment of my life. And sometimes we frame the wrong moments, that that pain of divorce, that betrayal and bankruptcy, whatever it may be, that time you made a wrong decision, had bad consequences, and God's forgiven you, but you need to forgive yourself. I wanna encourage you. Let's frame the right moments in our life.”

27s

#GenerationalMiracles

“What's with that big old pile of rocks there? He said, once we were under we were slaves under the hand of pharaoh for four hundred years, but God delivered us through miracles under the hand of pharaoh. And we we and then we were forty years in the wilderness. God provided manna from heaven every day. Then we came to the River Jordan in full flood, and we crossed over on dry ground. Then we took down Jericho, and we entered the promised land. And if God can do that in my generation, grandson, imagine what he can do in your generation.”

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