WEBVTT

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Hallelujah. It's an honor to be with you once again, and

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today, I'm speaking on a subject that I'm very sure would help you so much.

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I'm speaking on how to work on yourself.

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I'm sure as you hear the subject, you're already resonating with it because you've probably thought to yourself or said to yourself that,

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I have to work on myself. I have to change this. I have to get this done. I have to work on this, and all kinds of things.

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You would hear people talk about working on themselves a lot when,

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maybe they're talking about the next step for their lives. Maybe a relationship. They'll say, "Oh, I have to work on myself first. I'm not yet ready."

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Or a certain opportunity, "Oh, I think I have to do some more work on myself.

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I'm not yet ready for this opportunity." Or some of these things also pop up when,

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perhaps you've made some mistakes, you've had some blowbacks, you've had things happen,

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you notice that you developed certain character and certain attitudes that are actually affecting you in a negative sense. And then you say to yourself that,

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I have to work on myself." Or sometimes you just don't feel like you are adequate, you're enough, or

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you are good enough for a certain role, a certain opportunity, a certain position, a certain

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connection, all kinds of things. So, this is a big thing. This is a big thing, working on yourself.

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And in this message, I want to provide a step-by-step guide for you

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to help you work on yourself. The problem when people say they are working on themselves, often times, is that

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there's actually nothing they are working on.

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Of course, there's something they are trying to change or something they are trying to get better at, but there's actually no process, no step-by-step process, no guide,

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no structured way by which they're working on themselves. So, it's very difficult to see progress, or it's very difficult to see

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changes. But in this message, you will learn what to do, okay? What to do. So, I'll keep this message

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very simple, very practical so that you can actually use it to help you

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work on whatsoever it is that God has laid on your heart or that you've identified

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that you need to work on, okay?

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Now, the first thing that I want to touch on in working on yourself

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is that you have to identify what it is that you have to work on.

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You have to identify what it is that you have to work on.

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Not in general terms but in very specific terms.

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Sometimes people just speak in general terms, "Oh, I think I just need to work on myself. I think I just need to

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change the way I behave." But those are very general things. They are general references.

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You'd have to be very specific about the kind of things you need to work on.

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Now, let me use the example of someone going to the hospital and they are having certain symptoms and all of that.

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A headache is a symptom. A body ache or stomachache or something can be a symptom

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of something much deeper. Usually, the symptoms are not exactly the problem.

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They just announce that there's something much deeper, and then we need to get deep. So, what the doctor will do is that,

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the doctor will take time to ask you questions to find out your history,

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to find out how you're feeling, where you're feeling the pain at. You have to run some tests, and then based on all the data that they are able to gather,

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they can pinpoint specifically. So, they can now say, "Okay, it's a heart issue. Okay, it's an issue with this particular organ of the body."

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They can pinpoint that particular issue and then give you the medication and the remedy for that particular solution.

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If they just focus on the symptoms, they are not going to be able to help you. The first key to working on yourself

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is identifying specifically,

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identifying specifically what you need to work on.

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Okay, what you need to work on. So,

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let's say, rather than say, "Oh, I think I have a bad attitude," what attitude is it? That attitude could be, "maybe I have anger issues,"

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as soon as someone criticizes or disagrees with what I say or what I do.

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So, that's more specific.

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That's that's much, much, much more specific.

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Okay. Maybe, I have issues choosing the wrong people all the time, you know, when it comes to relationships and friendships.

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That is that is specific, like I make bad choices. I choose the wrong people all the time.

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Maybe, I'm struggling with this particular addiction,

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you know, I'm struggling with this particular addiction.

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So, what I recommend in working on yourself is that is important to write it down. The Bible says, "write down the vision, make it plain, that he may run that

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that he may

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he that readeth it may run," okay? Now, you have to write it down. You have to write down exactly what you need to work on

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when it comes to yourself. Write it down. Have a journal, have a notebook, or have

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a digital notebook or something like that that allows you to write things down. You can never work on yourself if you're not writing things down.

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And the first thing is to identify or diagnose the issue, and then to write it down, to jot it down, to note it down.

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This is the problem that I'm facing.

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This is the challenge that I am facing.

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Once you do that, then you can begin to find remedies and find solutions to what that particular problem is.

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So, write it down. You know, writing also helps you clarify what it is you're thinking or feeling. That's why writing is a very important exercise. I know that in the day of ChatGPT and all of that,

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we we outsource our writing to various AI models and all of that, but there are things that you should write down yourself. You should

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clarify to yourself because as you're writing, it forces you to

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think through exactly what it is, okay? So, the first thing is to identify the problem.

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To identify the problem.

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Now, in working on yourself, so identify the problem. Let's say, you've identified, "Okay, I have anger issues,"

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or "I get angry very quickly when someone says something that I don't like."

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Okay, when someone says something that

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is critical of me. Now,

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the next step after identifying the issue is to find out where from this issue.

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Where is this issue from? Where from this behavior? Where from this attitude?

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And this is a very important step in the process of working on yourself. Where is this coming from? Why do I behave like this? Why am I like this?

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Okay.

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And most of the time,

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we can trace a behavior, an attitude to a certain stronghold in the mind.

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Now, strongholds can come from events, it can come from

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your upbringing.

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Sometimes something happened in your in your past that has affected you. You know, I remember some time ago, I was talking to someone who was struggling a lot with lust, and she was just sleeping around and all of that.

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standard, and that becomes the problem. That becomes the problem. Okay. That becomes the problem. So

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And then, in my conversations, we're able to trace it back, and I've noticed that with many, many people,

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look at the reasons for which you behave the way you behave. Someone who is

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lazy for instance, you you don't have a lot of desire, you don't have a lot of... you can trace it back to something, you'll be amazed, okay? There are people who could be very good academically,

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we're able to trace it back, she was raped when she was young, rather unfortunately, by a family member.

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And, amazingly, she has a love-hate relationship with men. So,

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but a lot of very terrible things have been said about them. Maybe when they did not pass their exams, when they did not do well, someone said something about them, their parents or someone,

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that rape has affected her mind in a sense that it has devalued her body to herself.

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Now, her body is is something not worth being cherished.

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and that has affected their confidence, that has affected their ability. Maybe you were laughed at. Many, many things. I'm trying to give as many scenarios to cover a lot of bases.

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She's grown up, gone through school, and every time they are talking about virginity, they are celebrating virgins and all that. So, she found herself devalued. So, if it's already devalued, well, any and everybody can just come and and do whatever they want with it.

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But whatever your unique situation is, it is important to sit down with yourself

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and to go back and identify, why do I think this way? Why am I like this?

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Why am I like this? And writing it down would help you. Okay.

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Now, so when you're able to write it down, you notice the problem, you notice the reason for the problem.

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Okay, it's important to trace it back. It's like going back to the hospital example again.

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When they notice the issue,

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one of the things they have to also look at is what is causing this? What are you eating? What is what is what is causing this?

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Okay, because even if they try to get a medication for you and the

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thing that is causing the issue still exists,

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Then the third thing is to get into the word of God and find out what God says about it.

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there's not going to be any forward motion. You're just going to be going forward and coming back, going forward and coming back in the same breath, okay?

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So, you have to sit down with yourself and all this time you are writing. This is very important. All this time you are writing,

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Okay. Remember at the beginning, I mentioned that every problem is a mindset problem, okay? The way you behave, your mind is the nerve center of your life. Your mind is

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what

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your mind decides everything you do, your reactions, your feelings, they are all products of how you think, how your mind works. And how your mind works

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what in my past, what kind of experiences, what events,

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what in my upbringing has made me this kind of this kind of way? Because we are all products of our upbringing. We are all products of our beliefs. We are all products

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is is um influenced by what you've experienced, okay?

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of our experiences. We are shaped by our experiences. You are shaped by your environment,

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So, now, if you are going to change how your mind works, you have to get into God's thoughts. You have to get God's way of thinking into your mind.

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So, now, find out what the word of God says concerning that behavior, concerning that attitude, concerning that issue.

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Okay, so let me take a few examples and I'll help you with that. So let's take anger. I've been using anger a lot in this in this example. Um don't feel bad if you have anger issues, okay?

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okay?

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If if, let's say, you were to go abroad and live, if you were born in New Zealand, for instance, you'd be very different because you'd be shaped by that environment. Your

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accent will be different, the way you speak English will be different, the way you think about things will be different. So, we are all shaped by our environment,

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and there are good and bad things in our environment or in our upbringing, and it's important to notice them. So, you you write it down. You look

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All right, so anger, what do you do? You get into the word of God. What does the word of God say?

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at it, okay? If I have anger issues,

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what what is causing this? Why? Why am I

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You know, Romans chapter 5,

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like this, okay?

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Sometimes when it comes to anger, for instance, I've noticed that people who have a lot of anger issues,

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verse number 5 talks about the love of God shed abroad in our hearts. The Bible says for the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts. So God knows that you have all these issues, all these problems. Everybody has one challenge or the other,

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are people who are

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one thing or the other they need to work on, okay? And he says that the love of God is shed abroad. I like how the Bible puts it. It says it's shed abroad, it means it covers every aspect, every area, every hurt, every pain of your of your heart. It's shed abroad in our hearts.

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insecure about a lot of things, okay? So, if you are not confident

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and secure about a lot of things, as soon as something is mentioned, you get angry,

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Okay, so now because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, we can only now produce love. We can only now demonstrate love. The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts. Okay.

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You you read in Galatians chapter 5 verse 22, it talks about the fruit of the Spirit. You know, the fruit of the Spirit is self-control. The thing about anger is not that it's a problem, it is

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um unhappiness about a situation getting out of control. That's anger. You're unhappy about a situation, and it's gotten out

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okay? Or you get upset.

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When you're insecure, you become very sensitive, unusually sensitive to things that you should not be sensitive to. So, you become very

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very angry. Let's say, you've you've you've failed your exams, and then in the family they are saying, or maybe they are watching TV and then someone say something like, "Oh, all the people who fail their exams," and then someone

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assents to it in the in the living room as you are there, immediately you get angry, "Why are they talking about me?"

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So, there's there's anger building. Sometimes anger

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of control, okay? So self-control is what you have received now in Christ.

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is transmitted from our parents, the way they related with us.

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Okay? So, because they were very angry, they were very bitter,

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Okay, now, so you need to sit down and look at what the word of God says and renew your mind. The Bible says that do not conform to the pattern of this world. There's a pattern of this world,

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before you know it, you've been transmitted to you. You've picked it up without even realizing it. You don't like it,

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but be ye transformed. How does transformation happen? How does change happen? It happens by the renewing of your mind. The renewing of your mind, okay?

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but because that's what you are

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involved in, that's what you're used to, you become that after a while.

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And you need to get into the word of God, find verses, find scriptures that speak about the situation

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Okay? So, it's important to look at what events, what events,

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in that and address it specifically.

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And meditate on those scriptures. Listen to messages along those lines. Read books along those lines. You see, a stronghold is not something that you just attend to once and forget about it.

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what events,

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what events, okay?

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Angry people are people who get very angry are people who probably have been hurt a lot,

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I notice. They've been hurt a lot. So, the anger is a defensive mechanism

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to prevent other people from hurting them.

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Think about think about um malt in a bottle, okay? Let's assume that the the filth or the challenges or the difficulties, the issues in your mind are the malt in the bottle.

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For instance, there are people who don't open up much, and it's because they've probably opened up and they've been hurt a lot of times. They've opened up to friendships, they've been hurt a lot of times.

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So,

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all the things you've experienced

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Now, if you put malt in a bottle, a malt bottle,

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growing up has shaped you.

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just under a tap and open it, okay? What happens is that immediately the malt begins to displace as the water goes in.

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Maybe you've had a lot of broken hearts and all of that, so it's it's shaped you.

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Sometimes, I I talk to people who are lesbians and one of the things you notice is that for some of them, it's not even just a matter of mere desire, it's because men have treated them in ways that

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However, if you stop it, okay,

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were very terrible.

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it just does a bit. So the malt is a bit diluted, but it's not fully diluted, okay? It's the same, think about the malt as all the things in your mind, all the mindset and all the things you've picked up, okay?

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And so, they feel more comfortable with women. They feel they feel better with women, and so they gravitate towards that. We are all gravitating, we are all

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Now, you need to put this under running water, and water represents the word of God. Put it under running water consistently until all the malt in the, all the filth, all the challenges, all the issues are displaced completely

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by the word of God. And this is very important. This is very, very important. The word of God, listen. You can talk about therapy, you can talk about motivational speaking, you can talk about... but nothing has the power of transformation like the word of God. That's why Paul said,

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either running towards or running away from the way we were brought up,

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okay?

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And what that does is that it makes the way we were brought up the

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in Romans chapter 1 verse 16, 'I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.' It is the power the gospel is the power of God unto salvation. The gospel is what is able to change you, what is able to transform you, what is able to renew you. The gospel is the power of God.

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So what should you do? You should you should keep listening to the word of God over and over and over and over and over again.

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Usually what I'll even recommend is a word diet. You know when you go to the hospital, sometimes what they will do is that they will change your diet.

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Because a lot of the medical problems are diet related. It depends on what you're eating, what you're taking in, what you're breathing, what what your body is basically taking in is what is contaminating and and affecting your body. So some things must be reduced, some things must be increased.

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You see? So what it means is that if you're going through a particular thing, what you are taking in, what you are taking in... the Bible says a man is defiled by what he takes in. You see?

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Aha, what you are taking in, what you are taking in is very important,

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very, very important. So decide that you're going to take in the word of God consistently.

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You're going to read the word of God consistently. So sometimes you can put yourself on a diet. Maybe 30 days of studying about this particular subject. So you realize that you're struggling to love, you're you're struggling with lust. 30 days on the matter of lust, okay?

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reading the scriptures that have to do with self-control, that have to do with who we are in Christ, that have to do with um mortifying the flesh, the flesh and its desires, that have to do with carnality and all of that. You put yourself on a word diet until the word of God mightily prevails.

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You see, the Bible says so mightily grew the word of God and prevailed. The word of God must grow

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in your heart, in your mind, until it prevails over every feeling, every desire, and every proclivity.

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That's the word of God. It must grow. It must grow, it must become stronger in your heart, stronger in your mind. So take in the word of God. Okay? Let's say let's say you're struggling with lust, there are some movies that you should stop feeding on,

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and then you should feed more on the word of God. You see, we are just a product of what we are feeding on, what we are feeding on. Can you see it? So

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you change what you are feeding on, find out what the word of God says concerning that particular situation, that particular issue, and begin to feed on the word of God consistently. Begin to focus on what the word of God says

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until your mindset changes completely. You see, your mindset changes completely. Sometimes the feelings may not change immediately, but remember, the mind controls the feelings, not the other way around.

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holding.

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Where from that beholding stage, you are transformed

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So, once you strengthen your mind, you can let your mind control your feelings, okay? So whatever it is,

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into the butterfly experience, where you can fly, you're so beautiful, and all of that. So wherever you are, maybe you're struggling with an addiction, and you are wondering, it's like a caterpillar phase, and you are wondering, can I get into the butterfly phase?

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take your time, go through the word of God step-by-step, read books, listen to messages. Saturate yourself with the word of God that can change

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Yes, you can get there.

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I hope the metaphor helps you appreciate it a little bit more. But, yes, you can get there. You can get there. You can enjoy

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that particular situation. Uh-huh. You know, 1 Timothy chapter 4 verse 15,

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the goodness of God. You can enjoy the glory of God. You can enjoy the beauty of God. It comes with a word diet.

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Paul told Timothy, 'Practice these things, immerse...' I like the word immerse, 'immerse yourself in them so that all may see your progress.' Immerse yourself consistently in the word of God. Immerse yourself in what God is saying so that your progress can be seen.

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Listening to the Word of God, focusing on the Word of God continuously, hearing the Word of God. It makes all the difference.

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Okay, without that, your progress won't be seen. 'So that thy profiting may appear unto all.' That's what the King James says. So immerse yourself in the word of God. Confess the word of God, speak the word of God, meditate on the word of God, take in the word of God like a diet consistently, consistently, consistently, consistently.

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Now,

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what is the next thing in the process of working on yourself? Now, the next thing in the process of working on yourself is that

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you have to depend on the Holy Spirit.

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Now, actually, this process could just be one step because all the processes

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have to do with the Holy Spirit. It's the Holy Spirit that will help you identify what the issue is. It's the Holy Spirit that will help you

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remind you of what happened and why it happened. And the Holy Spirit will help you, um, get the scriptures and meditate on the right scriptures.

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But I've taken I've taken out this step to highlight a very important point: depend on the Holy Spirit.

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Okay? Depend on the Holy Spirit for all the steps. And then also depend on the Holy Spirit for what specific things to do.

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Let's say you are struggling with fear. You're afraid, you're anxious concerning everything. What should you do? Look for scriptures on anxiety. Look for scriptures that deal with the particular thing you're anxious about. Maybe it's fear of the future. Look for scriptures that have to do with fear of the future.

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What specific things to do. You see, because there are things that, depending on your particular situation, I may not mention in this message.

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The Holy Spirit may ask you to sever contact with someone, to break up with someone, or to get in touch with someone, or to forgive someone, or to ask for forgiveness from someone, or to let go of something, or to confront something, or to to open up a secret. Many things. There are many things the Holy Spirit can help you do specifically.

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Sit down with those scriptures. Make your bed with those scriptures. Meditate on those scriptures. Okay.

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Maybe you are starting a business, you are wondering if you are good enough. Sit down with the scriptures. Sit down with the scriptures, you know? And you'll be amazed that the scriptures will give you the right foundation to be able to learn and do all that you need to do.

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Okay? Specifically.

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To To help you.

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Very important, very important. So that step is critical.

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To help you. Forgiveness is one of the most important ones. There are many situations that, um, we are still

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Get the word of God in. I'm saying it over and over because I want it to hit home, I want it to sink a little bit more. But get the word of God in, and

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at, things that we are still struggling with because we've not forgiven someone. A lot of the things you're trying to work on yourself, there's always there's almost always, not in every case,

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it will change your mind. It will change everything. You'll be amazed that many things will change just because the word of God is is coming to you consistently. It is only the word of God.

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but in a lot of cases there's someone that you need to forgive, there's someone that you need to let go, and it's the Holy Spirit that will bring that to your mind and help you say that,

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"This person, forgive this person. Let this person go. Allow this person to be."

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There's no motivational speaking that... motivational speaking can jolt you, but it's the word of God, it's the power of God unto salvation. It's the word of God that can change a man completely.

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Can you see it?

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And then that brings your healing, that brings your freedom, that brings your

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your joy.

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So, this is a very very very important aspect of the process: depend on the Holy Spirit.

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The Holy Spirit may tell you that, go on a retreat. Spend some time. The Holy Spirit may tell you, I remember there was a there was a time in my life the Holy Spirit told me,

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"Don't read any other book."

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Because I used to read a a lot of Christian literature and all of that. The Holy Spirit said, "For a year, don't read any other book. Just read the Bible."

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"Only read the Bible for a year." And that was an instruction. Okay? And I believe that the Holy Spirit wanted to help me.

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It was something that he needed to help me because at the time I was reading so many books and I was getting confused about so many things. I was not sure about this, I was not sure about that. It was all murky.

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But that instruction from the Holy Spirit helped me stay with the Word of God, and it became my foundation for everything.

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You know, let me read one of my favorite scriptures to you. This is 2 Corinthians chapter 3, the verse number 18. 2 Corinthians chapter 3, the verse number 18. The Bible says, 'But we all, with open faces, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory.' So, you are transformed into what you are seeing.

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So, now, everything is interpreted in the lens of the scriptures, not the other way around. So, it's the Holy Spirit. It's the Holy

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Okay, when you read the scriptures, you see what God wants you to see. You see the kind of person God wants you to be, what He has done for you. The more you see Jesus, you are transformed into that same image from glory to glory, from glory to glory. You are transformed into that same image from glory to glory. So

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Spirit that will help you.

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That will help you.

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keep reading the word and you'll be amazed. The word transform there is the word metamorphosis, which speaks about how a caterpillar is transformed into a butterfly. Now when you look at the make up of a caterpillar and the make up of a butterfly, um I mean they look like very different organisms.

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The Holy Spirit will also lead you to talk to someone.

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You see? He'll lead you to talk to someone because that's also an aspect of help.

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A caterpillar can barely move, not to talk of flying, but a butterfly just glides and is just so beautiful and just so glorious, okay? That's what happens. Okay? Sometimes it's like you have a caterpillar experience, you are struggling with something, you're not able to move much, you're not able to... there's no glory, there's nothing, right?

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Right? The Holy Spirit will lead you to your pastor, He'll lead you to a book, resource, something,

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a message, He will lead you to listen. The Holy Spirit will lead you. And a pastor

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can only really help you when he himself is led by the Holy Spirit. And by that, what I mean is that he's not helping you by his own strength,

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But there's there's a period of beholding. A period of

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but he's relying on the Holy Spirit to help you with whatever situation. So talking is a very important aspect of it.

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There are things that, um, if you go through and you don't talk to someone that you trust, and someone that you believe about it, you may have a lot of difficulty.

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You may have, um Now imagine you live your life without ever saying anything.

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Life is ruled by words. All the great things in this life happens by words. Think about it. I was thinking about it the other day. How do people get married?

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Words. Words, an exchange of words, really.

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An exchange of words.

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So, um, your mouth is supposed to be an outlet. And when you talk, you receive counsel.

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People are a good sounding board, Godly people, for that matter, sometimes friends. God will lead you,

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um, pastor, your shepherd. God will lead you to, to, to talk to that person,

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to seek help, to seek a prayer, to seek a, to seek counsel, to seek direction, to seek guidance.

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And it comes by the Holy Spirit leading you. That's why I'm emphasizing on the fact that

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allow the Holy Spirit to lead you. Allow Him to be your guide.

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Allow Him to take you every step of the way. Don't be going through something and just coiling, don't coil.

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Don't be struggling with something and just coiling. No, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you. And one of the ways He leads you to do that is that He will place someone on your mind. Okay, talk to your pastor, talk to your shepherd. You know you're supposed to talk to that person.

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And sometimes you have excuses, "Oh, he's busy, oh, it's this, it's that." No, the Holy Spirit will tell you, "Go ahead, make that call.

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Make that call." Okay? And, and that's the Holy Spirit, He will lead you.

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He'll lead you to be able to work on yourself. To be able to work on yourself.

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Now, um, one thing that I want to say as I wrap up this message is that

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it's important to include timelines.

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Okay?

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Sometimes, people say, "I'm working on myself," and then it's forever.

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I, I would say that, include timelines to challenge yourself. Not necessarily to give yourself pressure,

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but to challenge yourself. Say that in the next one year, in the next six months,

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I want to be a very different person. Timelines will help you. You, you may not even meet the six months, but

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you'll meet a certain timeframe that will actually help. Okay? So, sometimes, if I want to work on something

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about myself, I will say, "Okay. Um, in the next six months..." Of course, you make the decision immediately.

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All right? You make that decision immediately.

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Every change you're going to experience is a decision.

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Life is, life is just a compendium of decisions. You make the decision immediately that "I'm no longer going to do this."

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Um, sometimes there are bumps on the road even after you've made the decision. And that's what I mean by the timeline.

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So you give yourself a timeline. "By the next six months, I will not be struggling with this. I would be this kind of person."

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And then you work at it with the word diet, with the Holy Spirit helping you and all of that. And, and that's a very important

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process.

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Okay? Um, I hope this message has helped you. I hope it has provided some clarity on some of the steps you should take

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if you are working on yourself, or you want to see a different you, you want to see a better version, an upgraded version

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of yourself. I hope this message really helps you. And I believe very soon,

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the caterpla, the caterpillar experience,

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will be no more and then we'll have the butterfly experience of your life.

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In Jesus mighty name. God bless you for listening to the message. I'll catch you again another time. Bye bye.