1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,640 But today, though, we get to continue in this valleys, the 2 00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:05,800 sermon series. And man, has God not been 3 00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:09,320 present in this series? I've just sensed him moving in 4 00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:12,640 great ways in my life. I didn't realize how many 5 00:00:12,640 --> 00:00:16,400 valleys I I, I am currently in. Sometimes you can be in the 6 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:19,040 valleys of life and not realize you're there. 7 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:21,840 Come on, you just kind of cruising along and then all of a 8 00:00:21,840 --> 00:00:24,800 sudden you're like, I guess I do have stress in my life. 9 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:27,680 Somebody came up to me and said, Steve, you really got to learn 10 00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:29,200 to manage your stress. And I'm like, I don't have any 11 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:31,520 stress. And I started looking what? 12 00:00:31,520 --> 00:00:33,360 I'm like, oh, my gosh, I've got stress. 13 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,480 I just didn't realize that what I was doing was stressful. 14 00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:38,040 Anybody been there? Come on. 15 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:39,840 New moms, parents. Yeah. 16 00:00:39,840 --> 00:00:42,040 Why are you arguing more? Because you're not getting any 17 00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:43,960 sleep and you're frustrated all the time. 18 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:47,200 And you have stress to the Max and there's not enough coffee to 19 00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:48,320 get you through the day. Come on. 20 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:50,760 Somebody say Amen. If that's you. 21 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:55,960 One thing for sure, if you're not in the Valley today, stand 22 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:58,560 by. You will be in one, you will be 23 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:01,320 in a valley, you will have challenges, you will have 24 00:01:01,320 --> 00:01:03,960 struggles. It's part of our growth 25 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:06,280 mechanism. See, God doesn't bring the 26 00:01:06,280 --> 00:01:10,680 valleys, the trying moments, the challenges to punish us. 27 00:01:10,960 --> 00:01:15,080 He allows them to come so that we can grow and so that we can 28 00:01:15,240 --> 00:01:18,640 be different and we can overcome issues. 29 00:01:18,640 --> 00:01:22,200 He does not punish us this way, but He'll leverage it. 30 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:25,120 He'll allow us to see. So far this month, we've looked 31 00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:28,400 at the valley of crisis. We'll have crisis in our life 32 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:31,960 and things that are just so much more than we could handle will 33 00:01:31,960 --> 00:01:34,920 come into your life. Some of you say God won't give 34 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:37,480 you more than you can handle. You ever heard that before? 35 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:40,720 I'm like, Oh my gosh, my God's given me way more than I can 36 00:01:40,720 --> 00:01:42,240 handle sometimes. Why? 37 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:45,880 So he can come in and he can save me and he can rescue me. 38 00:01:46,200 --> 00:01:47,720 What about the valley of dry bones? 39 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:50,320 You've gone through dry seasons like Lord, where are you? 40 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:53,120 I, I've heard you before. I'm struggling to hear you 41 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:54,520 today. I'm stuck. 42 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:57,400 What about weeping? Last week we learned it's OK to 43 00:01:57,400 --> 00:01:58,920 cry. Some of y'all still crying, 44 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:00,880 right? You got you got you just taking 45 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:04,640 stock and Kleenex and it's OK because you got emotions and 46 00:02:04,640 --> 00:02:08,560 it's all part of life. Well, today we're going to talk 47 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:11,680 about opposition the the valley of opposition. 48 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,720 I'm going to tell you right now from the onset, if somebody's 49 00:02:14,720 --> 00:02:17,600 not coming against you because of your faith, I would challenge 50 00:02:17,600 --> 00:02:21,000 you that you're not expressing it very well because we ought to 51 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:24,960 have some opposition. For some reason, many people 52 00:02:24,960 --> 00:02:28,600 believe that, hey, once I become a Christian, I'm going to ride 53 00:02:28,600 --> 00:02:31,880 the gravy train. This when life gets easy, right? 54 00:02:31,880 --> 00:02:35,960 Oh man, the outsiders looking in think that Christians have it 55 00:02:35,960 --> 00:02:38,080 easy. I don't know about you, but 56 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,800 there's no easy gravy train for me when it comes to walking with 57 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:43,920 Christ. There's opposition. 58 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:47,720 Whenever you stand for something, an opposing force is 59 00:02:47,720 --> 00:02:51,720 going to make itself known. There's no such thing as a 60 00:02:51,720 --> 00:02:54,840 trouble free life. But good news, what's common to 61 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:57,080 1 is common to all the Bible says. 62 00:02:57,280 --> 00:02:59,360 So we all face the same struggles. 63 00:02:59,360 --> 00:03:02,720 We all have the same opposition. In a sense, I get it right. 64 00:03:02,720 --> 00:03:07,240 Like OK, we're walking with the Lord, so live ought to be easy, 65 00:03:07,600 --> 00:03:10,920 but it doesn't work that way. We're walking with the Lord. 66 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:14,400 So it means that when we go through opposition, when we go 67 00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:19,640 through pressure times that He's with us, He's going to walk with 68 00:03:19,640 --> 00:03:21,760 us, He won't leave us nor forsaken. 69 00:03:22,200 --> 00:03:25,080 He's in the business of being with you. 70 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:28,880 He's in the business of walking with you. 71 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:35,040 Here's the truth, as a Christ follower, you will face 72 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:39,160 opposition, but fear not. Fear not, the Lord is with you. 73 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,040 Fear not. Don't be embarrassed, don't be 74 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:47,440 ashamed, don't be afraid to say, man, I'm in a valley season and 75 00:03:47,440 --> 00:03:50,280 they're coming against me at work, man, I'm in a valley 76 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:53,240 season and my neighbors, man, they're, they're pressing on me. 77 00:03:54,480 --> 00:03:59,200 God will equip you if you'll stand firm in your faith, if 78 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:03,360 you'll stand for Christ as we strive to what? 79 00:04:03,640 --> 00:04:06,880 Be more like Jesus. Man, I didn't know what this was 80 00:04:06,880 --> 00:04:10,200 going to do when Stacey and I renewed our our vision for this 81 00:04:10,200 --> 00:04:13,000 year, but we got these stickers and I put this on the inside of 82 00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:15,560 the windshield of my truck. Be more like Jesus. 83 00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:19,360 And I can't tell you when I read this and I see this sticker on 84 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:23,480 the inside of my windshield, how many times I've struggled to be 85 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:28,320 like Jesus and how many opposing forces are coming against me. 86 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:32,520 Hello, I-45 traffic. Why they got to close it down 87 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:35,320 like that to paint a stripe, I don't know, right. 88 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:39,000 Like just, I mean, Kramer did it, you know, with, with his car 89 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:41,240 and a roller. If you're old enough to know, 90 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:44,680 you know, if you don't, well, you just missed the greatest 91 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:47,680 show of all time. Hey, look, that's, that's 92 00:04:47,680 --> 00:04:49,080 sticker. There's a few. 93 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:53,320 I, I decided to buy some for my family and I say, well, we ought 94 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,440 to buy more. So I bought like 50 of them and 95 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:58,560 they're in the, they're in the coffee shop. 96 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,320 If you want to buy one for 5 bucks, put it on your 97 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:05,560 windshield, put it someplace to remind you church overcome 98 00:05:05,560 --> 00:05:08,120 opposition. You've got to be more like 99 00:05:08,120 --> 00:05:10,800 Jesus. Just be more like him. 100 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:14,040 And when you're more like him, just try to be more like him. 101 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:17,520 It's just this perpetual thing. Look, John tells us in chapter 102 00:05:17,840 --> 00:05:21,400 15, verse 20, remember what I told you, A servant is not 103 00:05:21,400 --> 00:05:24,760 greater than his master. If they persecuted me, look at 104 00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:28,920 this, they will also persecute you. 105 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:31,960 You will be persecuted. When you stand for your faith, 106 00:05:32,560 --> 00:05:36,240 there will be resistance that comes along with you. 107 00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:41,560 Look, it's resistance. It's the opposition that makes 108 00:05:41,600 --> 00:05:45,960 you spiritually strong. It's what allows you to, to have 109 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,600 some strength to be able to, to walk. 110 00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,280 And I'm going to risk, I'm going to risk out this morning. 111 00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:55,120 You know, if you're a guest in the house, we don't, don't be, 112 00:05:55,280 --> 00:05:57,600 don't be afraid. We don't, we don't normally do 113 00:05:57,600 --> 00:05:59,440 this right. But there's a guest. 114 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:01,600 There's that. He just happens to be a friend 115 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:03,640 of mine. And I'm. 116 00:06:03,640 --> 00:06:05,600 I'm going to put him on his. Patrick, will you come up here 117 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:07,480 with me, brother? Will you just come stand up 118 00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:09,080 here? Y'all give it up for Patrick, 119 00:06:09,080 --> 00:06:12,400 man. Just a just a great dude, man. 120 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:14,240 He's a friend. He's a brother. 121 00:06:14,600 --> 00:06:17,080 He's strong. I'm not. 122 00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:22,720 Yeah, you know what I'm saying? OK, look, this guy, you can tell 123 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:25,800 he goes to the gym, right? You can tell I don't go to the 124 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:27,160 gym. It's all yoga. 125 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:29,960 It's yoga. It's not hot yoga. 126 00:06:30,280 --> 00:06:33,680 This is not hot yoga. This dude, this dude may be hot, 127 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,760 but it ain't yoga, right? So what? 128 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:38,960 It is what it is. You can tell Patrick has had 129 00:06:38,960 --> 00:06:43,000 more opposition and his muscles than I have, right? 130 00:06:43,320 --> 00:06:47,040 He goes to the gym, he works out, he has resistance training 131 00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:49,680 and it makes him physically strong, right? 132 00:06:49,920 --> 00:06:55,800 Me, not so much, not so much. But spiritually, we can get 133 00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:57,720 strong together. You can't see it, right? 134 00:06:57,920 --> 00:07:02,240 And so Patrick and I as brothers sharpening one another, we 135 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:05,200 become stronger. You just, you can see it on his 136 00:07:05,200 --> 00:07:06,800 body. You can't see it on my body, 137 00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:08,360 right? Y'all give it up for Patrick. 138 00:07:08,360 --> 00:07:12,000 I know it's super uncomfortable. Great dude. 139 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:16,240 Great dude that challenges me. He looks intimidating, but he's 140 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:19,920 like a big teddy bear. He really is, right, Rachel? 141 00:07:20,320 --> 00:07:21,080 Yeah. He really. 142 00:07:21,080 --> 00:07:26,280 He really is just awesome guy. See, look, some of you, you're 143 00:07:26,280 --> 00:07:29,520 spiritually strong, like Patrick is physically strong. 144 00:07:31,840 --> 00:07:36,240 And some of you are spiritually weak, like I am physically weak, 145 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:39,800 right, right. Like I would like, I'd like, 146 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:41,280 hey, Patrick, man, I want to get stronger. 147 00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:43,000 Can I go to the gym with you? And then I'm like, that's a 148 00:07:43,120 --> 00:07:48,200 stupid idea, right? Some of you need to hang around 149 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:52,640 with some spiritually stronger friends so that you can become 150 00:07:52,640 --> 00:07:57,880 spiritually stronger through the opposition that God is going to 151 00:07:57,880 --> 00:08:01,440 put in front of you. And it's the resistance that's 152 00:08:01,440 --> 00:08:06,240 going to allow your soul and your spirit to become strong. 153 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:11,200 See, life in Christ is not free from resistance. 154 00:08:12,600 --> 00:08:17,480 It wouldn't be good for you spiritually if it were true that 155 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:19,840 Christianity was the gravy train. 156 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:23,520 It was the easy. See, sitting in these chairs 157 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:26,080 does not make you a follower of Christ. 158 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:29,200 It makes you a church, a tender it. 159 00:08:29,240 --> 00:08:32,280 It makes you somebody that says, yes, I go to church. 160 00:08:32,480 --> 00:08:36,240 But friends, going to church isn't going to do anything for 161 00:08:36,240 --> 00:08:39,280 you. Sadly not. 162 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:43,480 I often say rows are not as good as circles. 163 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:46,880 Please come, don't hear, don't misunderstand me. 164 00:08:47,120 --> 00:08:50,120 Come be a part. Let's celebrate what God is 165 00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:53,160 doing so we can go out and we can serve God on mission. 166 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:55,520 But we're about to smart start small groups. 167 00:08:55,520 --> 00:08:58,880 I'm telling you, if you don't sit in a circle with some 168 00:08:58,880 --> 00:09:03,080 friends and get spiritually strong and talk about the 169 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:08,640 opposition and really take these messages are a topical study or 170 00:09:09,600 --> 00:09:12,240 it's not hot yoga, but the ladies work out on the porch 171 00:09:12,680 --> 00:09:18,080 right on Mondays, Monday morning and Monday nights workout 172 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:19,360 groups. I understand there's a men's 173 00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:23,040 workout group coming to look. So you can get your soul strong. 174 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,920 You can get your body strong. Like whatever it is, right? 175 00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:28,720 Mind, body, soul. We ought to be facing some 176 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:31,920 resistance, some opposition, so that we can become stronger. 177 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:35,760 Here's the good news. We're not being killed today 178 00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:41,800 because we're following Jesus. The resistance isn't going to 179 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:45,520 kill you. The opposition's not going to 180 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:49,960 lay you down because God has already won the battle. 181 00:09:49,960 --> 00:09:52,840 There's places in the world today where you will be killed 182 00:09:52,840 --> 00:09:56,360 for doing what we get to do. There's places in the world 183 00:09:56,360 --> 00:09:59,000 today, well, they'll just cut your head off if you're 184 00:09:59,120 --> 00:10:04,000 professing Jesus Christ. We have the freedom to share our 185 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:07,680 faith in the United States of America, and most people will be 186 00:10:07,680 --> 00:10:10,960 satisfied with sitting in a chair at a church and say I'm 187 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:13,480 good. There's no opposition. 188 00:10:14,440 --> 00:10:17,160 I mean, if the hardest thing you have to do is stay awake through 189 00:10:17,160 --> 00:10:20,520 a sermon so that you can walk a Christian life that you're not, 190 00:10:20,520 --> 00:10:22,480 you're not doing much. Friends. 191 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:26,000 See, look, here's some opposition's Americans face. 192 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:30,440 I want you to see this workplace opposition, like the pressure to 193 00:10:30,440 --> 00:10:33,160 confirm the policies. Yeah, you got to follow the 194 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:34,960 policies of your of your workplace. 195 00:10:34,960 --> 00:10:37,600 But come on, some policies are a little bit off. 196 00:10:38,600 --> 00:10:43,520 Social opposition let me get are ridiculed online institutional 197 00:10:43,520 --> 00:10:46,080 opposition. Look at what's going on in 198 00:10:46,080 --> 00:10:50,320 academia, ecologists and the government. 199 00:10:51,560 --> 00:10:56,080 What about legal opposition? Remember all the cake maker that 200 00:10:56,080 --> 00:10:59,280 wouldn't make a cake for certain types of people, right? 201 00:10:59,680 --> 00:11:02,040 Like there's you have to stand up against the opposition. 202 00:11:02,040 --> 00:11:05,240 Political opposition, controversy about praying in 203 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:08,160 schools, 10 commandments on the wall. 204 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:10,720 Some of us are like, yeah, Hallelujah. 205 00:11:10,720 --> 00:11:12,560 Others are like, burn the school down, right? 206 00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:15,120 Because what side are we on? You know, if you're like, if we 207 00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:19,920 can't do this, what? Cultural opposition, Mockery of 208 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:23,200 Christianity. Remember the 24 Olympics and the 209 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:25,720 image of the Last Supper? But do you all see the 210 00:11:25,720 --> 00:11:28,080 opposition that's coming against Christianity? 211 00:11:28,880 --> 00:11:33,200 It ought to make us stronger, not cause us to run. 212 00:11:33,360 --> 00:11:36,240 But I'm grateful that opposition's not the end game. 213 00:11:37,040 --> 00:11:39,160 The opposition should become an opportunity. 214 00:11:39,160 --> 00:11:41,600 And today I want to quickly go through three things that should 215 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:44,720 help you #1 will you expect it? Don't be surprised by it. 216 00:11:45,320 --> 00:11:49,800 Like expect opposition, expect the resistance, expect somebody 217 00:11:49,800 --> 00:11:52,200 to come against you. Like weeping last week. 218 00:11:52,200 --> 00:11:55,080 Can we normalize it? Can we just normalize when you 219 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:57,360 come in and go, man, they're they're coming against me today. 220 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:02,760 Like the the amendment right that we have to evangelize and 221 00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:05,960 share our faith ought to encourage you to go to your 222 00:12:05,960 --> 00:12:10,200 workplace and be able to talk about Jesus, use his name. 223 00:12:11,000 --> 00:12:13,160 You can say God, it seems to be OK. 224 00:12:13,160 --> 00:12:16,120 I've been there, right? And then all of a sudden you say 225 00:12:16,120 --> 00:12:19,320 Jesus and like, people start sucking air like a Hoover vacuum 226 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:21,560 cleaner, right? They're so worried they're 227 00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:24,360 struggling. Like because Jesus still offends 228 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:27,760 2000 years later, it's still real because he's a person and 229 00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:30,800 he's alive and he's coming back and we all inside know he's 230 00:12:30,800 --> 00:12:32,360 there. Will you stand for him? 231 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:36,680 I don't know about you, but sometimes unexpected things can 232 00:12:36,680 --> 00:12:40,400 still shock me. Like you see the news And why 233 00:12:40,400 --> 00:12:44,640 are we shocked? We're like, what's going on? 234 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:48,440 It ought not shock us. We ought to be expecting it. 235 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:52,160 Yeah, of course this is going to happen before Christ return. 236 00:12:52,400 --> 00:12:53,720 These are things are going to happen. 237 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,320 Listen close. The Lord has already won your 238 00:12:56,320 --> 00:12:58,640 battle. Are you willing to stand up and 239 00:12:58,640 --> 00:13:00,760 fight it? Because you're going to be the 240 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:02,840 one that has to stand up against the opposition. 241 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:05,280 You're going to have to be the one parent that's going to stand 242 00:13:05,280 --> 00:13:07,840 up against the teacher that's telling your child that he can't 243 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:10,320 or she can't open her Bible in school. 244 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:13,760 Oh, no, they can. And you ought to support them. 245 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:16,200 You ought to stand up. American Center for Law and 246 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:19,000 Justice and Jay Sekulow and all these attorneys, they're ready 247 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:22,080 to go fight for you. If you're willing to take a 248 00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:26,280 stand, Exodus 1414 says the Lord will fight for you. 249 00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:30,440 You only need be still. It's the hardest thing to do is 250 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:36,000 to have face with opposition. And the Lord says, I got this 251 00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:39,960 piece still close your mouth. Just wait here. 252 00:13:39,960 --> 00:13:44,840 Here's a question for you. How are you being still in the 253 00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:46,720 face of the valley of opposition? 254 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:50,680 What is the Lord asking you to do? 255 00:13:51,480 --> 00:13:56,600 Are you quick to turn? Are you quick to wait so you 256 00:13:56,600 --> 00:13:59,920 listen for the Spirit of God and do you move when he says to 257 00:13:59,920 --> 00:14:03,840 move, some of you jump right out of the Kleiner and you get to 258 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:05,920 work. Oh no, he didn't right And off 259 00:14:05,920 --> 00:14:08,960 you go. Some of you were like, let's do 260 00:14:08,960 --> 00:14:09,400 it. Come on. 261 00:14:09,400 --> 00:14:11,440 When you put the Dukes like, hey, time out. 262 00:14:11,520 --> 00:14:14,960 Think first, let's let the Lord, yes, resistance came. 263 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:17,880 Opposition is at the front door, but hold tight. 264 00:14:18,160 --> 00:14:20,360 Let's think about this. Let's strategize. 265 00:14:20,360 --> 00:14:22,640 Stop being surprised when others come against you. 266 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:27,040 Stop being shocked. Matter of fact, it ought to if 267 00:14:27,040 --> 00:14:31,040 you're living a life that it reflects Jesus Christ and the 268 00:14:31,200 --> 00:14:35,080 and the values of of this book. Trust me, it's not hard to stand 269 00:14:35,080 --> 00:14:38,680 out. It's not hard, it's not hard. 270 00:14:38,840 --> 00:14:41,880 Just just try, practice, put the put a little Christian sticker, 271 00:14:41,880 --> 00:14:44,720 a refuge church sticker on the back of your car and then start 272 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:47,520 driving around and watch how many times you're challenged. 273 00:14:49,600 --> 00:14:53,080 Start driving like Christ would drive, right? 274 00:14:53,320 --> 00:14:56,200 You know, I'm like, yeah, that's tough. 275 00:14:57,160 --> 00:14:58,760 Sure, He was in a hurry to get somewhere. 276 00:15:03,800 --> 00:15:06,760 I can't tell you how many times somebody told me I couldn't do 277 00:15:06,760 --> 00:15:09,920 something. I'll never forget the first time 278 00:15:09,920 --> 00:15:13,600 I put a Bible on my desk, and I'm going to tell you something. 279 00:15:13,920 --> 00:15:17,800 There's a difference in having a Bible on your desk and having an 280 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:22,440 open Bible on your desk. You can't do that here. 281 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:25,240 All the conversations. Why? 282 00:15:25,240 --> 00:15:29,480 Why can't I do that here? You can't talk about Jesus, 283 00:15:30,480 --> 00:15:33,240 can't talk about church, separation of church and state. 284 00:15:33,240 --> 00:15:38,480 You can't talk about Jesus here. Who says where? 285 00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:41,560 Why? You know what you need to do. 286 00:15:41,560 --> 00:15:43,360 You need to check your religion at the door. 287 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:48,760 Do you? Do you succumb to that? 288 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:50,120 Do you go? You know what? 289 00:15:50,120 --> 00:15:51,320 You're right. It's just easier. 290 00:15:52,160 --> 00:15:54,680 It's easier to be quiet. It's easier just to follow 291 00:15:54,680 --> 00:15:56,880 along. It's easier not to talk about 292 00:15:56,880 --> 00:15:59,120 that here. It's politically charged, so 293 00:15:59,120 --> 00:16:01,440 we're not. Who said that politics and 294 00:16:01,440 --> 00:16:03,080 religion ought not be talked together? 295 00:16:03,280 --> 00:16:06,840 They should be. The founders of our nation used 296 00:16:06,840 --> 00:16:09,800 the religion to build the documents. 297 00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:12,680 Because it works. Can't you see Satan trying to 298 00:16:12,680 --> 00:16:14,600 separate the two? And he's going to bring 299 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:18,000 opposition, and we've got to be able to say no. 300 00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:23,640 Doesn't work that way #2 it's a word of warning. 301 00:16:24,280 --> 00:16:28,160 You got to examine the source. What's the source of the 302 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:31,440 opposition? You better know this word enough 303 00:16:31,440 --> 00:16:36,720 to understand what it feels like to walk with the Spirit of God 304 00:16:36,880 --> 00:16:39,720 and receive the opposition, because you got to know where 305 00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:43,560 it's coming from. You got to know the source. 306 00:16:44,480 --> 00:16:48,560 If your boss is coming down on you for poor performance, 307 00:16:48,560 --> 00:16:53,240 probably not the time to say get behind me, Satan, right? 308 00:16:54,360 --> 00:16:55,880 You probably ought to get to work. 309 00:16:56,800 --> 00:16:59,240 You probably ought to figure out what's happening here, right? 310 00:16:59,400 --> 00:17:01,120 That's the. So you got to understand the 311 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:03,880 source and where it's coming from. 312 00:17:04,800 --> 00:17:07,040 Not all opposition comes from the same place. 313 00:17:07,240 --> 00:17:09,280 Some can be spiritual from the enemy. 314 00:17:09,760 --> 00:17:13,119 Some can be external people. I, I what's the opposition 315 00:17:13,200 --> 00:17:17,280 within our church? Opposing forces. 316 00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:21,800 Don't think for a second that Satan won't work in here too. 317 00:17:22,359 --> 00:17:25,480 I tell you right now, this is his favorite place to work. 318 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:30,040 Satan will send people in here to create opposition. 319 00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:33,320 Oh, it's his favorite place. Don't think for a minute you're 320 00:17:33,320 --> 00:17:35,840 going to come into a church and you're going to find people 321 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:40,840 group any of our churches across the whole planet where it's 100% 322 00:17:40,840 --> 00:17:42,960 harmony. We're going to have opposing 323 00:17:42,960 --> 00:17:45,200 forces. We're going to have to overcome 324 00:17:45,200 --> 00:17:47,600 struggles and trials. You're going to meet in small 325 00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:50,560 groups here soon. And in those small groups, 326 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:52,760 you're going to get to know people a lot more than sitting 327 00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:54,720 in these rows. And you're going to go, oh, that 328 00:17:54,720 --> 00:17:56,280 person's not who I thought they were. 329 00:17:56,840 --> 00:18:00,560 Some of you going to sit in my small group in my house, in my 330 00:18:00,560 --> 00:18:03,000 living room, and you're going to be like, I didn't think he was 331 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:04,520 like this. Come on. 332 00:18:04,520 --> 00:18:06,560 If you've been in my group, you understand what I'm talking 333 00:18:06,560 --> 00:18:08,080 about. Why? 334 00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:09,800 Because you know what I say from the very beginning. 335 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:12,680 First thing I say, you come into my house, you sit in my small 336 00:18:12,680 --> 00:18:15,000 group. I say, I hate to say this, but I 337 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:16,800 need to say this. I'm going to offend you. 338 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:20,280 I'm going to it's going to be one of two things. 339 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:24,440 It's going to be the scriptures are the lesson that we're using 340 00:18:24,600 --> 00:18:27,280 and we're going to process this and I'm going to share it. 341 00:18:27,440 --> 00:18:29,960 And really it's the word that's offending you. 342 00:18:30,120 --> 00:18:32,440 But you can point at me because it's easy, because I'm a person 343 00:18:32,440 --> 00:18:36,800 and one saying it other times it's the filter between here and 344 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:39,520 here doesn't work. And I'll say things that this 345 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:42,200 thing hadn't fact checked yet. And I'm like, why did I say 346 00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:43,920 that? What did I do? 347 00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:47,080 Opposition. What are we going to do? 348 00:18:47,840 --> 00:18:50,560 How do we handle it? How do we address it? 349 00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:54,800 See Nehemiah, he faced ridicule and mockery from his enemies 350 00:18:55,320 --> 00:18:58,120 while he was rebuilding a wall that the Lord said rebuild it. 351 00:18:58,120 --> 00:19:00,240 The wall came down. Nehemiah started building it 352 00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:04,080 back up and all of a sudden he said, OK, Lord, I'm going to do 353 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:07,880 what you've called me to do. And then opposition comes. 354 00:19:07,880 --> 00:19:12,000 Let's look in chapter 4, verse one, when Sam Balat, he heard 355 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:15,240 that they were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was 356 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:18,560 greatly incensed. He was he was ready to ridicule. 357 00:19:18,720 --> 00:19:23,560 He ridiculed the Jews, saying what are those feeble Jews 358 00:19:23,560 --> 00:19:26,280 doing? Will they restore their wall? 359 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:29,600 Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? 360 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:33,800 Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of 361 00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:36,280 rubble? Come on, have you seen people 362 00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:39,480 mock you and your faith? Who do they think they are? 363 00:19:39,560 --> 00:19:42,360 Oh goody 2 shoes. Look at the Bible, thumper. 364 00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:44,680 Oh, he made a mistake. I didn't think Christians made 365 00:19:44,680 --> 00:19:47,840 mistakes, right? You see it all over the place. 366 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:49,760 I can't believe you voted for that guy. 367 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:51,160 He's a felon or something, right? 368 00:19:51,400 --> 00:19:53,080 I mean, come on, it's all over the place. 369 00:19:53,120 --> 00:19:55,680 The mockery and ridicule, it's all coming out. 370 00:19:56,440 --> 00:19:59,640 This is Tobiah the Ammonite. He was at his side. 371 00:19:59,640 --> 00:20:03,240 He says, what are they building? Even a fox climbing up on it 372 00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:05,200 would break down their walls of stone. 373 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:09,200 Can you see the scene? And here's the Christian 374 00:20:09,680 --> 00:20:13,480 following the Lord listening to all this chunk. 375 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:19,360 Look, people often usher. In my position at the hand of 376 00:20:19,360 --> 00:20:25,000 Satan, what are you going to do? I cannot tell you how often 377 00:20:25,360 --> 00:20:30,680 people come after pastors. I can't tell you how many people 378 00:20:30,920 --> 00:20:34,760 come after me. I was standing up here this 379 00:20:34,760 --> 00:20:36,360 morning. A sweet lady came up and she 380 00:20:36,360 --> 00:20:39,920 says, pastor, I can't tell you how much I enjoy your sermons. 381 00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:45,120 And I was like, wait, what? I said most people come up and 382 00:20:45,120 --> 00:20:48,600 tell me what I've done wrong. Most people come up and say it's 383 00:20:48,600 --> 00:20:50,600 too dark in here, It's too loud in here. 384 00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:53,920 I can't believe we use haze. Why do we have so many lights? 385 00:20:55,600 --> 00:20:57,240 Why do we do and then fill it in. 386 00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:00,720 I was like, oh, you refreshed me today. 387 00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:08,160 You've encouraged me today. You fire darts. 388 00:21:09,120 --> 00:21:12,320 Some people will leave churches. Maybe you've maybe you're here 389 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:14,680 because you've left another. I pray this. 390 00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:18,040 Don't fire darts back into where you used to be. 391 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:24,160 Don't fire darts back. Don't, don't, don't be talking 392 00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:26,920 bad about pastors. Come on, people all over the 393 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:33,240 place talking bad about pastors. We don't even know these people. 394 00:21:33,840 --> 00:21:37,440 Some of them are prominent and they're all over the the TV or 395 00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:40,560 all over your YouTube or all over your streaming devices and 396 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:43,080 everybody coming against certain people. 397 00:21:43,080 --> 00:21:46,080 Oh, don't listen to them. I promise you, these pastors, 398 00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:49,600 these leaders, these people that God has called out and set 399 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:52,400 aside, They do not wake up in the morning and say, how can I 400 00:21:52,400 --> 00:21:56,400 lead all these people astray? They're trying to do the best 401 00:21:56,400 --> 00:21:58,880 that they can with what God has given them. 402 00:22:00,480 --> 00:22:06,480 But look, because the pastors face opposition, so will you. 403 00:22:07,360 --> 00:22:11,600 I have learned that my struggles become your struggles. 404 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:16,000 I, I, I don't know how why there's a spiritual piece to 405 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:19,680 this, but often when I'm struggling with or my family 406 00:22:19,680 --> 00:22:22,320 struggles with, I'll start hearing your families are 407 00:22:22,320 --> 00:22:27,520 struggling with the same thing. And I, it just blows my mind how 408 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:31,480 this spiritually works. I go to the Lord in prayer. 409 00:22:32,600 --> 00:22:37,080 I seek affirmation from my mentors and then I move how the 410 00:22:37,080 --> 00:22:40,680 Lord has called me to, and I want you to do the same. 411 00:22:41,640 --> 00:22:45,280 I want you to have coaches and mentors, and when opposition 412 00:22:45,280 --> 00:22:48,320 comes to you, I want you to be able to reach up to your 413 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:50,480 mentors. I want you to pray to the Lord, 414 00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:52,320 say God, am I doing what you want me to do? 415 00:22:52,480 --> 00:22:55,520 Am I going in the direction you've called me to correct 416 00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:59,400 anything like burn a fire of the things that are not supposed to 417 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:01,760 be? And I want to become more like 418 00:23:01,760 --> 00:23:03,880 you. Be more like Jesus, he says. 419 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:06,120 And when he says go, just keep going. 420 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:10,040 Just keep going. Just keep going. 421 00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:11,400 What is it? Just keep swimming. 422 00:23:11,840 --> 00:23:13,800 That Nemo. Yeah. 423 00:23:14,280 --> 00:23:15,520 Dory. Dory. 424 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:17,840 Yeah. Thank you, Allie, for keeping me 425 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:20,160 straight. Just keep swimming. 426 00:23:20,560 --> 00:23:21,800 Come on. I got the fish shirt on and 427 00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:25,560 everything today. And then move. 428 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:29,280 Move forward. Don't listen to them, don't 429 00:23:29,280 --> 00:23:31,840 listen to what they're saying. The book of Proverbs is not 430 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:34,800 short on wisdom here. Look at 1522. 431 00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:37,920 Plans fell for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they 432 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:39,440 succeed. Who you talking to? 433 00:23:40,120 --> 00:23:41,560 When opposition comes, who is it? 434 00:23:41,560 --> 00:23:44,440 You're listening to Proverbs 12/15. 435 00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:46,400 The way of fool seems right to them. 436 00:23:46,400 --> 00:23:49,320 But the wise listen to advice. Hello Hallelujah, praise the 437 00:23:49,320 --> 00:23:51,080 Lord. You can see it when you start 438 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:53,160 looking. What about this one? 439 00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:56,720 Listen to advice and accept discipline. 440 00:23:56,720 --> 00:24:00,240 Can y'all do that? And at the end you'll be counted 441 00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:03,840 among the wise. Will you listen for correction? 442 00:24:04,840 --> 00:24:07,920 Maybe the intent was good, but the action wasn't. 443 00:24:08,880 --> 00:24:10,640 So many times I'm like, I didn't turn out. 444 00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:11,960 I thought it was going to turn out. 445 00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:15,040 I didn't come out the way I thought it was going to. 446 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:19,120 Do you listen or do you or do you move forward, advance the 447 00:24:19,120 --> 00:24:23,720 field of faith friends like take a stand, process the opposition, 448 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:26,960 understand where it's coming from because the source of it's 449 00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:30,360 going to change your behavior. But you got to understand where 450 00:24:30,360 --> 00:24:32,920 it comes from. Lord, is this from you? 451 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:38,240 Lord, what from this do you want me to hear and change? 452 00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:41,200 Because I'm in this valley of opposition and I want this 453 00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:46,840 resistance to make me stronger #3 You got to have perseverance. 454 00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:51,440 You got to endure with perseverance. 455 00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:55,200 You got to go through it. Friends, I wish I could take 456 00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:59,400 your problem and just remove it, and then you could keep moving 457 00:24:59,400 --> 00:25:01,400 forward. But the problem that you're 458 00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:04,000 facing is there to make you stronger. 459 00:25:04,840 --> 00:25:07,920 It's there to help you. It's there to give you some 460 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:11,560 experience. I believe one of the best gifts 461 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:17,080 the Lord gives us is the ability to press on, to persevere. 462 00:25:18,120 --> 00:25:22,520 Could you imagine, like the fainting goats, if every time 463 00:25:22,520 --> 00:25:26,200 opposition came, we just right, we just fell over with no hope? 464 00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:28,520 Right? What? 465 00:25:29,240 --> 00:25:32,040 No, let's not do it. Let's not do it. 466 00:25:34,080 --> 00:25:38,560 You can get me off track. The opposition lasts longer than 467 00:25:38,560 --> 00:25:41,680 you wish. You got to go through it. 468 00:25:42,640 --> 00:25:44,000 We don't know when it's going to end. 469 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:45,200 We don't know when it's going to start. 470 00:25:45,200 --> 00:25:46,560 We don't know the valley seasons. 471 00:25:46,560 --> 00:25:49,320 We don't know the mountaintop experiences. 472 00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:53,480 Come on. You don't know what your life's 473 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:56,080 going to look like. You don't know when success is 474 00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:58,880 coming or failures coming. You don't know any of this. 475 00:25:59,120 --> 00:26:01,480 But Hallelujah. Because if you did, you'd mess 476 00:26:01,480 --> 00:26:04,480 it all up. You'd have a mountaintop 477 00:26:04,480 --> 00:26:06,720 experience coming. You're like, man, on September 478 00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:08,880 14th, we're going to be high in the sky. 479 00:26:09,000 --> 00:26:10,440 We're going to be in a mountaintop. 480 00:26:10,440 --> 00:26:14,040 I'd drive us right into the valley trying to get to the 481 00:26:14,040 --> 00:26:17,280 mountaintop. I'd mess it all up because I'm a 482 00:26:17,280 --> 00:26:23,120 human and I'll fail. But I but the Lord wants more 483 00:26:23,120 --> 00:26:25,800 for us. The valley, it can feel endless 484 00:26:27,520 --> 00:26:31,160 on, you know, the tunnel, right? And the light at the end, some 485 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:34,160 of y'all like probably a train, you know how it works, right? 486 00:26:34,880 --> 00:26:36,880 You're like, it's just, it's probably coming right at me. 487 00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:40,400 It might be, it might suck it in, get on the wall, let it go 488 00:26:40,400 --> 00:26:41,440 by. You know what I'm saying? 489 00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:45,480 I'm like, like, it might be, it might be another problem coming. 490 00:26:45,880 --> 00:26:49,720 God bless the armed family who's just going through some issues 491 00:26:49,720 --> 00:26:52,320 fighting cancer and car accidents and things that's 492 00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:54,080 going on. And some of you have stories 493 00:26:54,080 --> 00:26:57,280 that I'm like, oh, Lord, release the pressure on this family. 494 00:26:57,600 --> 00:27:01,920 Release the opposition, But often times he says, I'm not 495 00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:05,480 going to release the opposition. I'm going to make them stronger. 496 00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:11,720 I'm going to make you stronger. The resistance training is for 497 00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:17,880 you, not against you. How much sure are you? 498 00:27:19,480 --> 00:27:21,080 How much sure are you in your faith? 499 00:27:21,720 --> 00:27:24,600 Where are you in this season? Like be real. 500 00:27:24,600 --> 00:27:27,840 Think about it like when's the last time you persevered? 501 00:27:27,840 --> 00:27:31,160 Something for the Lord. When's the last time you were 502 00:27:31,160 --> 00:27:32,520 like, I don't think I can do this. 503 00:27:33,800 --> 00:27:35,880 I'm not so sure this is where I'm supposed to be. 504 00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:38,920 Like, when's the last time the Lord called you to do something 505 00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:42,320 hard and you said, all right, here we go. 506 00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:44,960 I'm all in. I don't know how it's going to 507 00:27:44,960 --> 00:27:46,600 turn out. I'm all here. 508 00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:50,160 I'm here for some of y'all. It's signing up to serve in the 509 00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:52,920 in the our kids program. Like I don't know why I'm here, 510 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:55,880 but the Lord just said sign up. And man, this is a lot harder 511 00:27:56,000 --> 00:27:58,440 than I thought. Some of y'all got messed up 512 00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:05,440 kids, right? Or maybe they dropped them off 513 00:28:05,440 --> 00:28:07,280 from another church. Probably what they did. 514 00:28:08,800 --> 00:28:10,640 Your kids are all right. It's just when they all get 515 00:28:10,640 --> 00:28:12,520 together in one spot, you know, come on. 516 00:28:12,760 --> 00:28:14,840 If you serve over there, if you're a teacher, you know what 517 00:28:14,840 --> 00:28:17,440 I'm talking about, right? I could say that my mom was a 518 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:19,720 teacher and I understand some of the stories, right? 519 00:28:19,920 --> 00:28:22,000 Like how much sure are you in your faith? 520 00:28:22,120 --> 00:28:24,480 How far can you persevere? The hardship? 521 00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:27,560 How long can you keep pressing the weight because you're going 522 00:28:27,560 --> 00:28:32,040 to get stronger? Romans 5, three through 5 is one 523 00:28:32,040 --> 00:28:37,320 of my favorite scriptures. Not only so, but we also glory 524 00:28:37,320 --> 00:28:39,720 in our sufferings. What? 525 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:45,240 Because we know that suffering produces perseverance, 526 00:28:45,720 --> 00:28:49,400 perseverance, character, and character hope. 527 00:28:50,360 --> 00:28:52,520 And hope does not put us to shame. 528 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:55,400 Like friends. You've got to go through the 529 00:28:55,800 --> 00:29:00,080 through the, through the challenge, persevere so your 530 00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:05,240 character can be made more like Christ, so that you can have 531 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:10,240 hope for the future. You can get through this because 532 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:14,360 you went through that. You can get through things 533 00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:19,240 because God is in you. I often remember what my dad 534 00:29:19,240 --> 00:29:20,520 taught me. My dad taught me. 535 00:29:20,680 --> 00:29:24,080 He said, Son, if you can learn from your mistakes, you're doing 536 00:29:24,080 --> 00:29:27,280 great, he says. But you, if you can learn from 537 00:29:27,280 --> 00:29:29,760 someone else's mistakes, you're doing even better. 538 00:29:30,520 --> 00:29:33,600 Like, are you paying attention? Are you growing and learning 539 00:29:33,600 --> 00:29:36,600 from other people? I told my dad when he was in 540 00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:41,320 Hospice care and he was, he was dying days before he was dying. 541 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:44,520 I was leaving for officer candidate school. 8 days later 542 00:29:44,520 --> 00:29:48,000 he died. I looked at him over his bed and 543 00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:51,880 I said, I said if the Lord calls you home, don't wait for me. 544 00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:55,480 And the other thing, the second thing I said to him, as I said, 545 00:29:55,480 --> 00:29:59,720 I'm not going to contract cancer to find the Jesus that you 546 00:29:59,720 --> 00:30:02,200 found. I learned from him. 547 00:30:02,800 --> 00:30:07,080 I am where I am today partly because of my dying Father. 548 00:30:07,640 --> 00:30:13,600 The perseverance built my character and my character that 549 00:30:13,600 --> 00:30:18,480 became Christ like gives me hope and here's what I here's what I 550 00:30:18,480 --> 00:30:23,960 pray for is that my hope instills some hope for you to be 551 00:30:23,960 --> 00:30:30,440 able to persevere and press that I can do anything today if the 552 00:30:30,440 --> 00:30:34,520 Lord is with me, you can do anything. 553 00:30:35,360 --> 00:30:39,600 James 112 says blessed is the one who perseveres under trial 554 00:30:41,160 --> 00:30:45,240 because having stood the test, that person look will receive 555 00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:50,160 the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love 556 00:30:50,160 --> 00:30:54,320 him. There's a crown for you. 557 00:30:54,320 --> 00:30:58,800 It's being manufactured in heaven. 558 00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:04,680 It's going to be your crown. It's going to many stones in it. 559 00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:09,320 The Bible says, imagine with me the day that the Lord places 560 00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:18,120 this crown on your head, and he says to you, well done, my good 561 00:31:18,120 --> 00:31:23,320 and faithful servant, like I long to hear that. 562 00:31:24,720 --> 00:31:29,200 Look, not all my days are easy. Not all your days are easy. 563 00:31:30,720 --> 00:31:36,960 You overcome some junk, but if you give it to the Lord and you 564 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:43,120 allow the resistance to train your spirit, oh oh, you'll 565 00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:47,440 become so strong. You'll be able to handle it and 566 00:31:47,440 --> 00:31:52,440 walk through the disagreements, the struggles, the trials, each 567 00:31:52,480 --> 00:31:57,400 opposition you overcome. It's an opportunity for you to 568 00:31:57,400 --> 00:32:00,480 grow. Will you welcome it? 569 00:32:01,560 --> 00:32:03,640 Can you change your viewfinder this month? 570 00:32:03,640 --> 00:32:06,320 It seems to be all about just changing the way you look at 571 00:32:06,320 --> 00:32:07,960 things. We can't change any of these 572 00:32:07,960 --> 00:32:11,000 valleys, y'all. We just have to go. 573 00:32:11,000 --> 00:32:12,360 I'm going to look at it different. 574 00:32:14,720 --> 00:32:17,360 I'm I'm going to the spiritual gym one day. 575 00:32:17,360 --> 00:32:19,640 I'll go the physical one. I pay for the membership. 576 00:32:21,080 --> 00:32:27,280 That's a start, right? I got a Planet Fitness body, you 577 00:32:27,280 --> 00:32:33,680 know, looks like a planet. Yeah, I can see y'all. 578 00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:41,000 I can agree. Let me tell you, my soul is made 579 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:43,760 right with Christ. Why? 580 00:32:44,760 --> 00:32:49,200 Because I faced the opposition. I've stood firm for Christ. 581 00:32:50,560 --> 00:32:54,000 We started something that many people said we couldn't do. 582 00:32:55,080 --> 00:32:59,560 We launched the church without 300 people that came from 583 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,800 Ascending Church. We helicoptered into Conroe from 584 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:06,320 Seabrook and said, yeah, this looks like a good place. 585 00:33:07,000 --> 00:33:08,920 We bought a home in River Plantation. 586 00:33:11,240 --> 00:33:14,720 We started with a couple handfuls of people in my living 587 00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:17,720 room and man, that sun would come right to the window and 588 00:33:17,720 --> 00:33:20,000 blind people and they get hot in there. 589 00:33:21,320 --> 00:33:27,440 But Stacey made casserole dishes come on, breakfast enchiladas. 590 00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:36,000 They were good. And people came Opposition, 591 00:33:36,960 --> 00:33:42,520 opposition, opposition. But along the way, I can look 592 00:33:42,520 --> 00:33:50,880 back and I can say it's only by His grace, His provision that we 593 00:33:51,640 --> 00:33:56,320 had success. And friends, it's just getting 594 00:33:56,320 --> 00:34:01,480 started. So what are you facing, Lord, 595 00:34:01,480 --> 00:34:06,240 today I ask that whatever this church body is facing, whatever 596 00:34:06,240 --> 00:34:09,679 individuals and families are hearing in this message today, 597 00:34:09,679 --> 00:34:12,840 whenever they're listening to it, God, that she would allow 598 00:34:12,840 --> 00:34:17,040 the opposition to make them stronger, to build spiritual 599 00:34:17,040 --> 00:34:21,639 muscles that are able to strengthen them for tomorrow. 600 00:34:21,760 --> 00:34:25,159 It's the perseverance that will build their character to become 601 00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:28,760 more like Jesus that gives them hope for a bright future. 602 00:34:28,760 --> 00:34:31,880 And God, I asked today that she would move. 603 00:34:32,520 --> 00:34:37,880 And great and mighty ways. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.