{"id":2855,"date":"2025-01-08T00:40:41","date_gmt":"2025-01-08T06:40:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/?p=2855"},"modified":"2025-01-08T00:55:54","modified_gmt":"2025-01-08T06:55:54","slug":"blessed-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/2025\/01\/08\/blessed-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Blessed &#8211; Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--powerpress_player--><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5902\"><!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-2855-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3\">http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\">Podcast: <a href=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"2025-01-05.mp3\">Download<\/a> (Duration: 30:45 &#8212; 28.2MB)<\/p>\n<p>January 5, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Ephesians 1:3-4<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ephesians 3:19<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Romans 8:38-39<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>1 Peter 2:9<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong>21 Days of Fasting &amp; Prayer<br>January 6th-26th<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>3 Corporate times of prayer &amp; worship<\/strong>:<br>Wednesday 8th &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pm<br>Wednesday 15th &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pm<br>Wednesday 22nd &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pm<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text\/html' width='640' height='360' src='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pMQwMcdtkJ4?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;fs=1&#038;autohide=2&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;wmode=transparent' allowfullscreen='true' style='border:0;'><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p>Pastor Gene&#8217;s sermon revolves around the theme &#8220;Blessed,&#8221; which he introduces as the church&#8217;s focus for the new year. He emphasizes that true blessing transcends material possessions and resides in spiritual blessings provided by God. Here are the key points from the sermon:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Definition of Blessing<\/strong>: Blessing is described as &#8220;God&#8217;s divine favor working in our lives.&#8221; Material blessings are temporary, while spiritual blessings bring security, purpose, and fulfillment in all areas of life.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Spiritual vs. Material Focus<\/strong>: Pastor Gene encourages prioritizing spiritual blessings over material ones. Spiritual blessings provide a foundation that sustains life through all circumstances, including hardships.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Paul&#8217;s Example<\/strong>: Drawing from Ephesians 1:3\u20134, Pastor Gene highlights the Apostle Paul&#8217;s declaration of being blessed with every spiritual blessing, even while imprisoned and stripped of all material possessions. This underscores the sufficiency of spiritual blessings in any situation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Core Spiritual Blessings<\/strong>:\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Being Loved<\/strong>: God&#8217;s love is unconditional, not based on performance, and was established before creation. It is secure, unstoppable, and the ultimate source of fulfillment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Being Chosen<\/strong>: Believers are chosen by God, a truth that should inspire humility and gratitude. This choice signifies being part of God&#8217;s family and reflects His intentional love.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Application for 2025<\/strong>:\n<ul>\n<li>Pastor Gene challenges the congregation to open their eyes to recognize and embrace the spiritual blessings they already possess.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>He calls for a shift in focus from external validation to internal contentment rooted in God&#8217;s love and choice.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Over the next 21 days, he invites members to meditate on these blessings and experience a transformative realization of being &#8220;already blessed, loved, and chosen.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Call to Faith<\/strong>: The sermon concludes with an invitation for those who haven\u2019t yet accepted Jesus to embrace His love and forgiveness, affirming that this relationship is the greatest blessing one can receive.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>The sermon inspires a perspective change, urging listeners to prioritize spiritual fulfillment and live with the assurance of God&#8217;s unwavering love and blessings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<!--powerpress_player--><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5904\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-2855-3\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3?_=3\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3\">http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\">Podcast: <a href=\"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"2025-01-05.mp3\">Download<\/a> (Duration: 30:45 &#8212; 28.2MB)<\/p><p>http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-01-05.mp3 Podcast: Download (Duration: 30:45 &#8212; 28.2MB) January 5, 2025 21 Days of Fasting &amp; PrayerJanuary 6th-26th 3 Corporate times of prayer &amp; worship:Wednesday 8th &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pmWednesday 15th &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pmWednesday 22nd &#8211; 6:00pm to 7:00pm<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[862,863],"tags":[266,29,780,208,342],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5z53F-K3","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2855"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2855"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2855\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2860,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2855\/revisions\/2860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2855"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mydestinychurch.com\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}