Words of Inspiration - Creative Destruction

[00:00:37] [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to The Bible Speaks with your host Elgin Carelock.

[00:00:42] [SPEAKER_00]: The Bible Speaks is a daily podcast dedicated to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, rightly

[00:00:49] [SPEAKER_00]: dividing the Word of Truth and learning how to apply it to our daily lives.

[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00]: You may contact Elgin at the address given at the end of the broadcast.

[00:01:00] [SPEAKER_00]: And now here's Elgin.

[00:01:02] [SPEAKER_01]: Hey, brothers and sisters, I welcome you, whoever you are, wherever you are, and whenever you're

[00:01:09] [SPEAKER_01]: listening to another edition of Words of Inspiration, where we explore God's Word and

[00:01:16] [SPEAKER_01]: how it empowers us to live out our purpose in the world.

[00:01:21] [SPEAKER_01]: And today we're going to talk on a very interesting concept, the concept of creative

[00:01:30] [SPEAKER_01]: destruction.

[00:01:32] [SPEAKER_01]: Creative Destruction is an economic concept introduced by Australian economist Joseph

[00:01:39] [SPEAKER_01]: Schumpeter in the early 1940s.

[00:01:43] [SPEAKER_01]: It describes the process by which new innovation, replace and render obsolete older technologies

[00:01:50] [SPEAKER_01]: and practices, driving economic growth and transformation.

[00:01:56] [SPEAKER_01]: This is also true in our Christian journey.

[00:02:00] [SPEAKER_01]: And our spiritual inspiration comes from Isaiah 43, verse 19.

[00:02:08] [SPEAKER_01]: And reading from the New Living Translation it reads,

[00:02:13] [SPEAKER_01]: For I'm about to do something new.

[00:02:16] [SPEAKER_01]: See, I've already begun.

[00:02:19] [SPEAKER_01]: Do you not see it?

[00:02:21] [SPEAKER_01]: I will make a path through the wilderness.

[00:02:23] [SPEAKER_01]: I will create rivers in a dry wasteland.

[00:02:28] [SPEAKER_01]: This verse speaks to God's transformative power and the newness he brings into our lives.

[00:02:35] [SPEAKER_01]: But for something new to emerge, sometimes the old thing must be destroyed.

[00:02:41] [SPEAKER_01]: So today we'll talk about how we were created to be creators,

[00:02:46] [SPEAKER_01]: made in God's image to have dominion over our lives and circumstances,

[00:02:52] [SPEAKER_01]: and how that creative power requires removing or destroying what keeps us from fulfilling

[00:02:58] [SPEAKER_01]: our God given purpose.

[00:03:02] [SPEAKER_01]: Isaiah 43 and 19 reminds us that God is constantly at work,

[00:03:08] [SPEAKER_01]: doing something new in our lives, even when we can't immediately see it.

[00:03:13] [SPEAKER_01]: God specializes in creating pathways through wildernesses and rivers and wastelands.

[00:03:19] [SPEAKER_01]: But what we often miss is that this creation process can't happen until the old ways are removed.

[00:03:26] [SPEAKER_01]: Just like a gardener must uproot weeds and make room for new growth,

[00:03:32] [SPEAKER_01]: God sometimes has to destroy the things in our lives that are holding us back,

[00:03:37] [SPEAKER_01]: whether that's old habits, toxic relationships, or limiting beliefs.

[00:03:43] [SPEAKER_01]: God is the ultimate creator and because we are made in his image, we too are creators.

[00:03:51] [SPEAKER_01]: Genesis 1 in 26, reading from the New Living Translation says,

[00:04:14] [SPEAKER_01]: This dominion is not just over animals, but over circumstances in our lives.

[00:04:19] [SPEAKER_01]: We are meant to exercise creative power and shaping our reality in alignment with God's will.

[00:04:27] [SPEAKER_01]: But to do this, we have to be willing to let go or destroy the things that no longer serve his purpose for us.

[00:04:36] [SPEAKER_01]: The idea of creative destruction is that sometimes in order to create,

[00:04:42] [SPEAKER_01]: something else has to be dismantled or torn down.

[00:04:46] [SPEAKER_01]: This concept is seen throughout Scripture. Think about how God called Abram to leave

[00:04:51] [SPEAKER_01]: everything familiar behind to birth a new nation, or how he led the Israelites out of Egypt,

[00:04:58] [SPEAKER_01]: destroying their old life of slavery to bring them into the Promised Land.

[00:05:04] [SPEAKER_01]: In our own lives, we can't fully step into the new things God has for us until we allow him to remove the old barriers.

[00:05:14] [SPEAKER_01]: Sometimes that means letting go of comfort zones, unhealthy relationships,

[00:05:19] [SPEAKER_01]: or even mindsets that have been holding us back.

[00:05:22] [SPEAKER_01]: What habits or thought patterns are you holding onto that are preventing you from stepping into your purpose?

[00:05:30] [SPEAKER_01]: Colossians 3 verses 9 through 10, reading from the New Living Translation says,

[00:05:38] [SPEAKER_01]: Do not lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds.

[00:05:45] [SPEAKER_01]: Put on your new nature and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him.

[00:05:53] [SPEAKER_01]: This passage speaks directly to the idea that we must strip off the old nature in order to step into the new.

[00:06:00] [SPEAKER_01]: Renewed versions of ourselves that God intends for us.

[00:06:06] [SPEAKER_01]: The Bible tells us we are to have dominion, but dominion requires action.

[00:06:13] [SPEAKER_01]: It's not enough to simply want to change. We must actively participate in the process.

[00:06:19] [SPEAKER_01]: We have to take steps toward destroying those things that keep us from being who God has called us to be.

[00:06:27] [SPEAKER_01]: It might be fear, complacency, or even doubt.

[00:06:33] [SPEAKER_01]: These are the things that must be uprooted so that new growth can take place.

[00:06:39] [SPEAKER_01]: In 2 Corinthians 10 verses 4 through 5, reading from the NIV, Paul writes,

[00:06:47] [SPEAKER_01]: The weapons we fight with are not weapons of the world.

[00:06:51] [SPEAKER_01]: On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

[00:06:56] [SPEAKER_01]: We demolish arguments in every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God

[00:07:02] [SPEAKER_01]: and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

[00:07:07] [SPEAKER_01]: This is a call to spiritual warfare, but it's also a call to destroy anything,

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER_01]: be it thoughts or actions that holds us back from the knowledge of God and his purpose for us.

[00:07:20] [SPEAKER_01]: It's about stepping into the role of creator, taking authority over the things in our lives

[00:07:26] [SPEAKER_01]: that are hindering our spiritual growth. When we do that, God will begin to open doors,

[00:07:33] [SPEAKER_01]: make pathways in the wilderness, and bring forth rivers in the wasteland.

[00:07:40] [SPEAKER_01]: One of the most incredible things about God is that he doesn't just destroy for the sake of

[00:07:46] [SPEAKER_01]: destruction. He replaces what's been torn down with something better.

[00:07:52] [SPEAKER_01]: Just like the Israelites left the wilderness and stepped into the promised land,

[00:07:57] [SPEAKER_01]: God leaves us out of personal wildernesses and into new territories of purpose and blessing.

[00:08:04] [SPEAKER_01]: Isaiah 43 and 19 is a powerful reminder that God is already working. He says,

[00:08:12] [SPEAKER_01]: I've already begun. Can you perceive it?

[00:08:15] [SPEAKER_01]: He's already clearing the way, but we must be willing to embrace that process of transformation

[00:08:22] [SPEAKER_01]: which includes letting go of the old. It's not always easy. In fact,

[00:08:30] [SPEAKER_01]: creative destruction can be painful, but it's necessary for growth. Just like pruning a plant,

[00:08:37] [SPEAKER_01]: God may cut away the dead or overgrown parts of our lives so that the new, healthy growth can emerge.

[00:08:45] [SPEAKER_01]: John 15 verse two reading from the NIV says, he cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit.

[00:08:54] [SPEAKER_01]: While every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.

[00:09:01] [SPEAKER_01]: God isn't destroying your comfort zones to harm you. He's doing it to position you for greater

[00:09:08] [SPEAKER_01]: fruitfulness. So where is God leading you today? What needs to be destroyed in your life so that

[00:09:16] [SPEAKER_01]: you can step into your God given purpose? Remember, God's plans are always for your good.

[00:09:23] [SPEAKER_01]: And sometimes that means tearing down old structures so he can build something new.

[00:09:29] [SPEAKER_01]: Don't fear the process of creative destruction. God is already doing something new in your life

[00:09:35] [SPEAKER_01]: and he has given you the authority to create and shape the world around you.

[00:09:40] [SPEAKER_01]: Embrace the process. Trust God through the pruning and watch how he brings forth new growth,

[00:09:48] [SPEAKER_01]: new opportunities and new blessings. I thank you for spending time with me on today

[00:09:56] [SPEAKER_01]: and I look forward to our conversation on tomorrow. Until then, God bless.