Peace In My Pocket

0:00:02.040 --> 0:00:04.560 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation 0:00:04.840 --> 0:00:07.040 Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank 0:00:07.080 --> 0:00:10.399 you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope 0:00:10.400 --> 0:00:12.480 it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:16.960 see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message. 0:00:17.840 --> 0:00:20.799 Pastor Carl Lyntz is in the house to preach God's word. 0:00:23.560 --> 0:00:26.400 I'm excited that our friend would come and be with 0:00:26.480 --> 0:00:28.960 us today. For many years I would preach on my 0:00:29.040 --> 0:00:31.920 anniversary and it seemed unfitting for me to have to 0:00:31.960 --> 0:00:35.680 bring a gift to my own birthday party. And there 0:00:35.720 --> 0:00:38.680 was only one person that I wanted to preach this weekend. 0:00:39.120 --> 0:00:41.200 And if he would have said no, then I would 0:00:41.200 --> 0:00:44.680 have quit returning his text messages for at least three months. 0:00:45.360 --> 0:00:48.600 But Pastor Carl Lynz is really one of the most 0:00:48.680 --> 0:00:52.040 christ Like people that I know. He is not afraid 0:00:52.120 --> 0:00:55.840 to be inconvenienced or controversial if it means bringing Jesus 0:00:55.880 --> 0:00:58.040 into the lives and hearts of people. I want to 0:00:58.080 --> 0:01:02.640 be more like that. I've noticed him being willing to 0:01:02.720 --> 0:01:06.120 associate with anyone and everyone on the same level, and 0:01:06.160 --> 0:01:08.200 I want to be more like that. I noticed that 0:01:08.240 --> 0:01:10.720 he is relentless in his drive to connect with people, 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:14.440 and at times that means sometimes at great expense to himself. 0:01:14.680 --> 0:01:16.480 And I want to be more like that. So I 0:01:16.520 --> 0:01:18.600 thank God for having a brother who can also be 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:21.560 an example. We love you and Laura. It's been a 0:01:21.640 --> 0:01:24.560 joy to ride with you, just even in the very 0:01:24.600 --> 0:01:26.880 back of the bus on the journey of Hillsong, New York, 0:01:27.040 --> 0:01:29.319 since the very beginning. And we have been friends for 0:01:29.360 --> 0:01:31.399 a long time now, and I love you more every 0:01:31.480 --> 0:01:33.520 day that I know you. In this last year, we've 0:01:33.520 --> 0:01:36.840 grown closer than ever before. So for the next you know, 0:01:37.440 --> 0:01:39.240 three or four hours, we don't have a team in 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:42.920 the game tonight. For the next few moments, don't get 0:01:42.959 --> 0:01:46.600 nervous hyperbole. For the next few minutes, treat this like 0:01:46.640 --> 0:01:49.880 this as your elevation church. We certainly consider you family. 0:01:50.120 --> 0:01:53.120 Welcome to the stage at every location EPHAM around the world. 0:01:53.440 --> 0:02:01.920 Pastor Carl Z. Before we sit down, I just want 0:02:01.920 --> 0:02:04.960 to say it never gets old to me being a 0:02:05.000 --> 0:02:07.920 part of your church. And when your pastor says that 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:10.200 they've been a part of this for a long time, 0:02:10.240 --> 0:02:12.000 and I should have asked if I could tell this story, 0:02:12.000 --> 0:02:13.400 if I'm just gonna do it and you could just 0:02:13.400 --> 0:02:15.760 delete it from the record. But when we first started 0:02:15.800 --> 0:02:17.600 Hillsong New York City, we didn't really know each other 0:02:17.639 --> 0:02:20.639 that way. I knew him from a forest, even in Holly. 0:02:21.280 --> 0:02:22.600 But he came to hang out in New York for 0:02:22.680 --> 0:02:25.639 something else and we had dinner and it was there 0:02:25.680 --> 0:02:28.359 was a catastrophic storm coming. This is like year one 0:02:28.360 --> 0:02:30.560 of Hillsong New York City, and we had to cancel 0:02:30.600 --> 0:02:32.760 our services, and I think he could see it. It 0:02:32.800 --> 0:02:34.680 was really heavy on my heart. I didn't know what 0:02:34.720 --> 0:02:38.200 to do. And when you started early church, every weekend 0:02:38.280 --> 0:02:40.560 really matters. And I don't know what the myth is 0:02:40.600 --> 0:02:43.040 of church plants, but sometimes if you've got to shut 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:44.799 it down for a week, it could really hurt you. 0:02:44.840 --> 0:02:46.200 And he looked at me and he just goes, you know, 0:02:46.240 --> 0:02:48.800 God's gonna come through. He's gonna come through. Just keep 0:02:48.840 --> 0:02:50.880 your head up. And I was like, it's easy for 0:02:50.919 --> 0:02:52.560 you to say. You know, you have your own planet 0:02:52.600 --> 0:02:55.919 at elevation and everything you do is incredible, like we're 0:02:55.960 --> 0:02:58.840 brand new. And he came back later that night at 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:00.359 dinner and he said, hey, you know, I feel like 0:03:00.400 --> 0:03:02.359 God's gonna answer your prayer and I'm like, that's great. 0:03:02.400 --> 0:03:04.680 He's like, you told me how much money it would 0:03:04.680 --> 0:03:06.760 cost to run your church for that that weekend, and 0:03:06.800 --> 0:03:10.400 he's like, our Elevation Church believes in church plants, and 0:03:10.440 --> 0:03:13.680 we're going to sew this into your church. And I 0:03:13.760 --> 0:03:17.919 remember calling my pastor. I said, you know this, these 0:03:18.000 --> 0:03:20.959 Verdict people. Do you know anything about this? Elevation Church 0:03:21.080 --> 0:03:23.679 have a fund that helps churches like ours, and we 0:03:24.440 --> 0:03:26.640 were able to keep it going. I don't know what 0:03:26.639 --> 0:03:29.359 would have happened had God not sent y'all in the 0:03:29.480 --> 0:03:32.440 form of your leadership in that moment. And so, whether 0:03:32.480 --> 0:03:34.400 you like it or not, you're with Hillsaw, New York 0:03:34.440 --> 0:03:38.120 City forever. Over two hundred thousand people have gotten saved. 0:03:38.680 --> 0:03:40.840 Who knows how many lives have been transformed, And we 0:03:40.880 --> 0:03:42.960 don't even know what we're doing yet, but thank you. 0:03:44.040 --> 0:03:48.080 And it's one day one year. It's like a one 0:03:48.200 --> 0:03:49.960 birthday party we get to have. So I'm gonna take 0:03:49.960 --> 0:03:52.600 an extra second here because it is true. We always 0:03:52.600 --> 0:03:54.800 talk about how some cultures are really weird with honor. 0:03:54.840 --> 0:03:56.920 For whatever reason, people get freaked out. It's okay to 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:00.120 honor people who God loves and who he's touched. And 0:04:01.120 --> 0:04:03.560 I tell Steven and Holly this, who are so much fun. 0:04:03.640 --> 0:04:06.480 By the way, Laura and Holly are fast friends because 0:04:06.480 --> 0:04:09.320 me and Steven are relatively serious at times, and both 0:04:09.360 --> 0:04:12.360 of our wives are really much cooler than both of us. 0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:14.960 But Lebron James, I don't know if you guys know 0:04:15.000 --> 0:04:19.440 who that is. This guy is so good that what 0:04:19.600 --> 0:04:22.360 it used to be exceptional has just become normal. So 0:04:22.400 --> 0:04:24.400 if you look at what Lebron James does on any 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:26.119 given night, you're like, oh, what do you have? Thirty 0:04:26.160 --> 0:04:29.080 seven seventeen, sixteen, fourteen and three steals and he gave 0:04:29.120 --> 0:04:32.520 them nine people water, and you expect you just expect 0:04:32.640 --> 0:04:34.359 Lebron to do that. The first couple of times he 0:04:34.400 --> 0:04:36.479 did it, people are like, Wow, that's amazing. Then you 0:04:36.480 --> 0:04:39.880 start expecting Lebron to do that, and what used to 0:04:39.880 --> 0:04:42.520 be special is no longer special. I think that we 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:44.880 got to do a great job just in general, of 0:04:45.120 --> 0:04:47.880 honoring the amazing things that God puts in our lives 0:04:47.880 --> 0:04:50.919 and keeping them special, and that includes your pastor. Let 0:04:50.960 --> 0:04:53.360 me tell you something, this is not normal. It's not 0:04:53.400 --> 0:04:56.960 normal to walk into a church that is incredible. It's excellent. 0:04:57.040 --> 0:04:59.440 They work hard. All they do is exist to bring 0:04:59.520 --> 0:05:03.120 people to and just the preaching alone. Most pastors preach 0:05:03.240 --> 0:05:07.479 two good messages in their whole life. He just wrote 0:05:07.520 --> 0:05:09.479 a new one for next week right now. That'll be 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:12.720 better than anything else somebody else could construct. All that 0:05:12.800 --> 0:05:18.080 to say, when you walk into this church, don't take 0:05:18.120 --> 0:05:21.640 the ushers for granted. Don't take these musicians for granted. 0:05:22.000 --> 0:05:24.560 Don't take the fact that you have lights on for granted. 0:05:24.960 --> 0:05:27.440 Don't take the fact that people are getting saved for granted. 0:05:27.760 --> 0:05:32.400 And don't take your pastors who are supernaturally special for granted. 0:05:32.440 --> 0:05:35.200 Can we show them some love on this thirteen year celebration? 0:05:37.760 --> 0:05:45.039 Need you give somebody a quick high five and a 0:05:45.120 --> 0:05:47.360 hug and you take your seat, and we're gonna get 0:05:47.400 --> 0:05:50.040 to this word And it was worth it. However time, 0:05:50.680 --> 0:05:52.680 however much time you got to take off that clock, 0:05:53.520 --> 0:05:57.359 do it. But it's an honor to be able to 0:05:57.360 --> 0:05:59.359 be here on a special day. And LJ you're sticking 0:05:59.400 --> 0:06:03.520 with me, my brother, Thank you phenomenal. Do you like 0:06:03.560 --> 0:06:07.240 who you're sitting next to. I wouldn't have been mad 0:06:07.279 --> 0:06:12.479 if we just kept singing that powerful? How good is 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:16.200 worship in church? It's cool? Everywhere, but there's something special 0:06:16.240 --> 0:06:17.600 about it. I had a friend of mine who just 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:21.560 doesn't get charismatic worship at all, and he was like, 0:06:21.600 --> 0:06:23.479 it just seems so weird to me, and I'm like, yeah, 0:06:23.520 --> 0:06:26.200 but have you ever seen yourself in the clubs you 0:06:26.240 --> 0:06:30.120 go to. You're weird too. But I explained to him. 0:06:30.160 --> 0:06:32.360 I said, we don't lift our hands because it's charismatic. 0:06:33.040 --> 0:06:35.200 We don't lift our hands and do stuff because a 0:06:35.200 --> 0:06:38.320 worship leader says stuff. It's just a desperation thing. When 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:40.440 I first started coming to church, I would barely muster 0:06:40.720 --> 0:06:44.920 a worship frisbee. And then the more desperate I got, 0:06:44.920 --> 0:06:48.559 the less I cared about what anybody else thought. And 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:52.800 I'll sing if I can't sing, lift my hands if 0:06:52.800 --> 0:06:54.320 I have to. There are some weeks where I don't 0:06:54.360 --> 0:06:56.680 do that. But the point is this, it's pretty incredible 0:06:56.680 --> 0:06:59.039 to be able to just come and do a place 0:06:59.080 --> 0:07:01.120 like this and worship free. I don't take it for 0:07:01.160 --> 0:07:04.360 granted to you, hope not. Do you like career sitting 0:07:04.400 --> 0:07:06.280 next to right now, look at them deeply in their 0:07:06.320 --> 0:07:09.000 eyes and tell them I prayed all day that I 0:07:09.000 --> 0:07:14.120 would sit right next to you and then look at 0:07:14.160 --> 0:07:16.440 them and say, God loves Tom Brady board than everybody else. 0:07:16.480 --> 0:07:20.280 These are facts. I'm just kidding. I have no dog 0:07:20.320 --> 0:07:24.800 in that fight. I don't care at all. Plus, it's 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:28.920 not really gonna be a game because of Tom Brady. 0:07:29.440 --> 0:07:31.400 Only two types of people in this world Tom Brady 0:07:31.440 --> 0:07:33.360 fans and I'm kidding. Okay, let me stop with the 0:07:33.400 --> 0:07:37.000 football believe them. For Cam to have a breakthrough year, 0:07:37.200 --> 0:07:43.360 can I get a Carolina panther? Amen? Anybody need more 0:07:43.400 --> 0:07:51.480 peace in your life? Anybody ever struggled with fear, anxiety, worry, pressure, nobody? Wow, 0:07:51.640 --> 0:07:56.080 this place is really put together. Pastor, I think Jesus 0:07:56.160 --> 0:07:57.600 had a lot to say about it. And I'm gonna 0:07:57.600 --> 0:08:00.600 read you a scripture that really brings peace to my soul. 0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:07.080 And a huge shout out to Columbia Uptown, Morrisville, Concord, Blakeney, Raleigh. 0:08:08.080 --> 0:08:10.320 I am an NC state alone. Shout out to the 0:08:10.400 --> 0:08:15.760 NC state well fact, Winston, Salem Riverwalk, you see Asheville, Matthew, Toronto, Gaston, 0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:17.040 laken I know this is the top of my head. 0:08:17.120 --> 0:08:28.160 Roanoke Online, Melbourne Valentine. Jesus said this, and he's talking 0:08:28.160 --> 0:08:32.520 to guys that are headed into pretty uncertain futures, and 0:08:32.520 --> 0:08:34.400 he's letting them know what they can expect, how to 0:08:34.440 --> 0:08:37.640 live what's gonna be coming their way. And I love 0:08:37.640 --> 0:08:39.840 what he says because they can. This scripture alone can 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:41.480 get you through this week and get you through your 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:43.400 whole life when you realize what you have in you 0:08:43.800 --> 0:08:46.400 who are God is? And he says this, Now you 0:08:46.559 --> 0:08:49.560 finally believe in me. And the time has come when 0:08:49.600 --> 0:08:51.600 you will be scattered, and each one of you will 0:08:51.640 --> 0:08:55.520 go your own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am 0:08:55.679 --> 0:08:59.080 never alone, for the Father is always with me. And 0:08:59.200 --> 0:09:01.560 everything I've told WW ought you is so that the 0:09:01.679 --> 0:09:07.400 peace which is in me will be in you and 0:09:07.480 --> 0:09:11.400 will give you great confidence as you rest in me. 0:09:11.840 --> 0:09:15.240 For in this unbelieving world, you will experience trouble, and 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:19.520 you will experience sorrows. But you must be courageous, for 0:09:19.800 --> 0:09:28.000 I have conquered the world. The world called this message 0:09:28.559 --> 0:09:34.240 with the twenty minutes I of remaining peace in my pocket. 0:09:35.600 --> 0:09:37.679 Look at somebody who say I got peace in my pocket. 0:09:39.679 --> 0:09:42.360 You find it funny how when you are under pressure 0:09:42.440 --> 0:09:46.000 or under stress or dealing with anxiety, you're just not yourself. 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:48.680 You don't say the things you normally say. You don't 0:09:48.720 --> 0:09:51.400 act right. It just kind of makes you different than normal. 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:53.520 Who knows what I'm talking about, Like, if you're under pressure, 0:09:53.559 --> 0:09:56.400 anxiety is hitting you. For me, the way that outworks 0:09:56.400 --> 0:09:59.400 itself stress is that I just forget stuff. You have 0:09:59.440 --> 0:10:01.439 any friends here know what I'm talking about. Like, when 0:10:01.440 --> 0:10:03.960 you're under pressure, you forget stuff and you're looking for 0:10:04.000 --> 0:10:05.600 things that you don't even know if you really ever 0:10:05.600 --> 0:10:08.199 lost them in the first place. Recently, I was under 0:10:08.240 --> 0:10:10.800 some pressure, regular life stuff like all of us, and 0:10:10.880 --> 0:10:12.640 I was trying to find what I needed to just 0:10:12.720 --> 0:10:15.280 get going with the rest of my day, and my 0:10:15.320 --> 0:10:17.559 wife was not in the house or right away. I'm 0:10:17.600 --> 0:10:20.560 in trouble, and I am searching everywhere for two things 0:10:20.559 --> 0:10:23.559 that I needed, my phone and my keys. And after 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:27.200 uprooting the whole house, losing my faith a few times, 0:10:27.960 --> 0:10:30.880 getting saved again, and sitting there just depleted after I 0:10:30.920 --> 0:10:32.920 couldn't find it, my wife walks in. She goes, what 0:10:32.960 --> 0:10:35.160 you're looking for? I said, I'm looking for my keys 0:10:35.520 --> 0:10:37.840 and I'm looking for my phone. Have you seen them? 0:10:37.880 --> 0:10:39.440 Because I know you moved them? You know, to start 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:43.000 blaming people when you under pressure? Was you? And she 0:10:43.160 --> 0:10:47.240 goes mate, because she's Australian mate, did you check your pocket? Smack? 0:10:48.240 --> 0:10:52.120 And I looked at her and I'm like, yeah, sure enough, 0:10:52.559 --> 0:10:56.559 phone here, keys here. And I looked at her and 0:10:56.600 --> 0:10:59.000 I was like, that's just making sure you knew where 0:10:59.000 --> 0:11:02.200 they were. And I left and shame, and I thought 0:11:02.240 --> 0:11:04.840 about how interesting it is that if we're not careful, 0:11:05.400 --> 0:11:08.679 we can forget the fact that Jesus actually said in 0:11:08.760 --> 0:11:13.800 John sixteen that we have peace because of him, and 0:11:13.880 --> 0:11:17.160 if he is with us, that also means that peace 0:11:17.800 --> 0:11:21.120 is with us. And we have people who don't understand that. 0:11:21.240 --> 0:11:25.280 During anxious times and pressure and fear, sometimes we end 0:11:25.400 --> 0:11:28.520 up looking for stuff we never lost. We start wandering 0:11:28.559 --> 0:11:31.199 in the areas we have been freed from. We start 0:11:31.240 --> 0:11:33.719 going to other sources, trying to find things that are 0:11:33.800 --> 0:11:38.400 clearly already in our possession. If there is somebody in 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:40.960 here who feels like you've lost your peace or you 0:11:41.040 --> 0:11:43.920 can't find your peace and you're desperate for more of it, 0:11:44.000 --> 0:11:46.839 I would tell you today you have more peace in 0:11:46.920 --> 0:11:49.800 your pocket in your life than you think you do. 0:11:50.080 --> 0:11:53.040 Maybe you just need to start asking the Holy Spirit 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:55.720 to open up your eyes and show you just how 0:11:55.840 --> 0:11:59.120 much He has put inside you. Maybe you forgot about it, 0:11:59.240 --> 0:12:01.240 maybe you haven't learn how to pull it out yet. 0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:04.360 But if you lost your peace, that would have to 0:12:04.400 --> 0:12:07.600 mean that Jesus has abandoned you. And I got good news. 0:12:07.640 --> 0:12:10.800 He doesn't leave us, he doesn't forsake us, he doesn't 0:12:10.880 --> 0:12:14.080 leave us high and dry. So therefore your peace is 0:12:14.160 --> 0:12:20.200 in you, because Jesus is with out. If you thought 0:12:20.280 --> 0:12:24.240 you lost your peace, you did not. If you thought 0:12:24.280 --> 0:12:27.480 that somebody had access to more peace than you, they 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:31.040 do not. Some of us are just quicker to remember 0:12:31.080 --> 0:12:33.920 the fact that Jesus told us he's with me. Therefore 0:12:34.040 --> 0:12:37.920 peace is in my soul. Take a deep breath that 0:12:37.960 --> 0:12:40.240 it feels good to know that you're a Christian. Therefore 0:12:40.240 --> 0:12:42.520 peace is with you. I'll break it down in two 0:12:42.600 --> 0:12:45.120 quick ways. It helps me. It's one thing when we 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:48.600 talk about peace. It's one thing to understand that making 0:12:48.640 --> 0:12:52.800 your peace with God important step. But it's a whole 0:12:52.840 --> 0:12:56.960 nother ballgame to be able to find your peace in Jesus' 0:12:57.320 --> 0:13:00.680 daily Can I break this down for you? We got 0:13:00.679 --> 0:13:04.360 four hours, so get comfy. It's one thing to make 0:13:04.400 --> 0:13:06.720 your peace with God. I don't love that term, but 0:13:06.760 --> 0:13:08.760 it's a term that people kind of understand, because I 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:11.280 feel like God made his peace with us by giving 0:13:11.320 --> 0:13:14.160 us a chance to get saved through Jesus. But making 0:13:14.160 --> 0:13:16.240 your peace with God is typically the only part of 0:13:16.280 --> 0:13:19.320 peace people really understand. We call this salvation. So if 0:13:19.360 --> 0:13:20.840 you're new to this church and you have yet to 0:13:20.920 --> 0:13:22.920 make your peace with God, that's going to change in 0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:25.960 approximately seventeen minutes. But this is when we bow our 0:13:26.000 --> 0:13:28.280 knee and we realize that God has saved us and 0:13:28.320 --> 0:13:30.640 he has set us free. We can have peace today 0:13:30.679 --> 0:13:33.600 knowing if our lives ended now, we would be with 0:13:33.720 --> 0:13:36.520 Him someday in heaven, not because of what we've done, 0:13:36.559 --> 0:13:38.920 but because of the beautiful thing Jesus did on the 0:13:38.960 --> 0:13:42.320 cross and his grace set us free. In fact, it's 0:13:42.360 --> 0:13:44.120 the case if you need to hear it, Romans five 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:46.839 says this. This is mind blowing. It says our faith 0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:50.959 in Jesus transfers God's righteousness to us, and he now 0:13:51.040 --> 0:13:56.640 declares us flawless in his eyes. Anybody wake up today 0:13:56.679 --> 0:14:01.760 Elevation Church and go, oh, that's how good God is, 0:14:01.840 --> 0:14:04.720 flawless in his eyes. This means we can now enjoy 0:14:04.880 --> 0:14:08.280 true and lasting peace with God, all because of what 0:14:08.360 --> 0:14:11.400 our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, has done for us. 0:14:11.760 --> 0:14:15.880 Our faith guarantees us permanent access into this marvelous kindness, 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:18.840 and it's given us a perfect relationship with God. So 0:14:18.960 --> 0:14:22.040 now we've made our peace here, right, There's a lot 0:14:22.040 --> 0:14:24.040 of people who still don't get this. And even though 0:14:24.080 --> 0:14:26.320 you're sitting in church, I'm not doubting your faith, but 0:14:26.360 --> 0:14:29.120 I know people who have yet to understand. You need 0:14:29.160 --> 0:14:31.520 to make your peace with the fact that God has 0:14:31.560 --> 0:14:33.960 made his peace with you because of Jesus. You can't 0:14:33.960 --> 0:14:37.760 outsin this grace. You can't out backslide the love of God. 0:14:37.840 --> 0:14:40.440 I know people who get saved in church every week. 0:14:41.240 --> 0:14:42.800 I have a friend who's the first hand to go 0:14:42.880 --> 0:14:44.920 up every altar call we do. And I finally was like, 0:14:45.000 --> 0:14:47.320 my man, just so you know, you can get saved 0:14:47.360 --> 0:14:50.040 all you want, but you have bowed your knee, you 0:14:50.080 --> 0:14:53.600 have confessed your sin. You are rejecting your old sinful ways. 0:14:53.640 --> 0:14:55.520 You are saved. God loves you. He goes, yeah, but 0:14:55.560 --> 0:14:57.800 I had a really rough week. I said, Mama, Yeah, 0:14:58.680 --> 0:15:02.560 thank God, it's not about our Our peace comes from Jesus. 0:15:04.120 --> 0:15:05.640 So some of y'all might need to make your peace 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:09.800 with that today. But There's this other thing called finding 0:15:09.840 --> 0:15:13.200 your peace in Jesus daily that we probably need to 0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:15.880 talk about, because this is where you walk with it, 0:15:16.280 --> 0:15:18.760 and you talk with Jesus and you know his voice 0:15:18.800 --> 0:15:21.680 and you know his tempo, and you know what it 0:15:21.720 --> 0:15:23.920 feels like to be surrounded by him. This is when 0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:25.840 you have so much peace you can give it away. 0:15:26.160 --> 0:15:27.840 This is when you have so much peace you can 0:15:27.880 --> 0:15:30.320 access it at any time. There are so many people 0:15:30.480 --> 0:15:33.800 who only know the peace of God eternally, maybe, but 0:15:33.880 --> 0:15:36.280 they don't know anything about the fact that God did 0:15:36.360 --> 0:15:39.040 not just save us so we can have some weird 0:15:39.280 --> 0:15:43.080 eternal security. God saved us and Jesus gave us peace 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:47.840 so we could live differently while we're here. I don't 0:15:47.880 --> 0:15:50.320 want to just get saved and just exists, knowing someday 0:15:50.360 --> 0:15:52.360 I'll be in heaven. But while I'm here on earth, 0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:54.680 I got to go through what everybody else is going through. 0:15:54.680 --> 0:15:57.400 No way, I need to know what I have access to. 0:15:58.880 --> 0:16:00.640 Come on, I'm preaching to you, so at least seven 0:16:00.640 --> 0:16:03.520 people in here, mainly in this area right here, this 0:16:03.600 --> 0:16:07.840 is the faith filled people. How I just don't want 0:16:07.840 --> 0:16:11.000 to be a victim of not knowing what I had 0:16:11.120 --> 0:16:13.560 access to when it comes to the things of God 0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:16.360 means I got to work at It means I got 0:16:16.360 --> 0:16:18.720 to go explore this. It means I have to outside 0:16:18.720 --> 0:16:21.760 of my church experience, get on my own knees, sing 0:16:21.800 --> 0:16:25.240 my own songs, pray my own prayer, try to know 0:16:25.280 --> 0:16:27.560 who Jesus is for me so I don't get lost 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:31.000 in all this stuff. Yeah, three hallelujahs. That's what I 0:16:31.040 --> 0:16:33.880 always say when I'm preaching this. I mean, I have 0:16:34.080 --> 0:16:35.760 a phone like everybody in here, and I don't know 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:37.680 about you, if you're tech savvy or not. I'm not 0:16:37.760 --> 0:16:39.720 very tech savvy. My daughters make fun of me all 0:16:39.760 --> 0:16:43.440 the time. But I recently had a iPhone breakdown and 0:16:43.480 --> 0:16:46.240 that frustrates me because they're far too expensive to not 0:16:46.360 --> 0:16:49.000 work all the time. And so I was like, you 0:16:49.040 --> 0:16:51.360 know what, I want to actually talk to the maker. 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:53.080 I want to talk to the people who are taking 0:16:53.120 --> 0:16:55.160 my money. So I went into Apple and I went 0:16:55.240 --> 0:16:57.920 up to this guy and I'm like, Sir, my new 0:16:57.960 --> 0:16:59.960 iPhone that you forced me to get by giving me 0:17:00.080 --> 0:17:02.000 updates that have bugs in it in my text freeze, 0:17:02.000 --> 0:17:04.400 you know what I'm talking about. Yeah, that one it's 0:17:04.440 --> 0:17:06.200 not working, and I needed to work. He goes, oh, 0:17:06.200 --> 0:17:08.840 great to have you at Apple today, Sir. We're glad 0:17:08.920 --> 0:17:11.560 so you have problems with your phone. Okay, cool, If 0:17:11.600 --> 0:17:14.399 you can just go back there to that line and 0:17:14.440 --> 0:17:17.320 make your appointment at the Genius bar, one of our 0:17:17.359 --> 0:17:19.400 geniuses will be with you very soon. I'm like, nah, 0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:21.680 I didn't come here talk to a genius. I came 0:17:21.720 --> 0:17:24.080 here to get what I'm owed. Okay, I don't want 0:17:24.080 --> 0:17:25.440 to talk to a genius. I want you to fix 0:17:25.480 --> 0:17:27.480 my phoney. He's like, it's great to have you. That's 0:17:27.480 --> 0:17:31.000 what we do. We go to the line and I 0:17:31.080 --> 0:17:32.840 just thought, you know what, I will see this thing through. 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:34.520 And I sat in the line and I made friends 0:17:34.520 --> 0:17:36.679 with people in the line who were also frustrated. And 0:17:36.800 --> 0:17:39.760 I finally got there and the guy starts breaking down 0:17:39.760 --> 0:17:41.879 my phone for me. He's like, man, you have a 0:17:41.880 --> 0:17:44.160 lot to learn about this phone, sir. And I'm like, really, 0:17:44.200 --> 0:17:46.600 I don't want to learn about my phone. I just 0:17:46.640 --> 0:17:48.560 wanted to work. And he goes, I said, what are 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:50.560 my options? Like, well, you could leave here now and 0:17:50.640 --> 0:17:52.520 just have a phone that doesn't work right, or you 0:17:52.520 --> 0:17:56.879 can let me explain it to him like you. And 0:17:56.920 --> 0:17:59.760 I sat there not for that long, and he just 0:17:59.800 --> 0:18:02.479 lit broke down stuff I didn't know, and I started 0:18:02.520 --> 0:18:04.720 taking a little bit of enjoyment, started to have a 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:06.720 little bit of faith rise up in me because I'm like, wow, 0:18:06.760 --> 0:18:08.480 I didn't know this. I left there and I FaceTime 0:18:08.600 --> 0:18:11.479 multiple people. I was like, using features, I didn't know 0:18:11.520 --> 0:18:14.520 we're there, and I thought, Wow, fifteen minutes with the 0:18:14.520 --> 0:18:17.119 guy who knows more than me, and I'm more productive 0:18:17.320 --> 0:18:20.399 just like that. But yet, we're gonna put it on 0:18:21.480 --> 0:18:24.480 our pastors to teach us how God's gonna do this. 0:18:24.520 --> 0:18:26.920 We're gonna try to get on some conference to make 0:18:26.960 --> 0:18:29.120 sure we know who God is for us. I came 0:18:29.160 --> 0:18:32.359 to tell somebody right now, you have as much access 0:18:32.440 --> 0:18:35.280 to the peace of God as anybody else does. But 0:18:35.320 --> 0:18:38.280 it's gonna take your work. It's gonna take your passion 0:18:38.520 --> 0:18:40.439 to say. I don't want to look back on my 0:18:40.560 --> 0:18:43.119 life and find out that I had peace that I 0:18:43.160 --> 0:18:46.200 didn't use, confidence that I didn't use. All I had 0:18:46.200 --> 0:18:48.720 to do was go to the maker and say, Lord, 0:18:48.840 --> 0:18:52.440 teach me your what come on, somebody? I got peace 0:18:52.480 --> 0:18:55.080 in my pocket and I don't want to leave it. Oh, 0:18:56.320 --> 0:19:00.000 somebody's gonna leave here today. Accessing more of the peace 0:19:00.160 --> 0:19:02.040 of God than you ever have before in your life 0:19:02.080 --> 0:19:04.520 is gonna change because of it. You believe that you 0:19:04.560 --> 0:19:07.639 believe God is that good. Here's why we need it. 0:19:07.640 --> 0:19:10.080 I'm gonna fly through this because I asked your pastor, 0:19:10.119 --> 0:19:11.960 I said, can we go old school Pentecostal. At the 0:19:12.000 --> 0:19:17.000 end of this, we're gonna bring out the animals, really 0:19:17.000 --> 0:19:23.000 get the blogs going, pray for people, push them over 0:19:23.119 --> 0:19:34.040 modesty blanket. The paramount reason why I think we need 0:19:34.040 --> 0:19:40.239 more peace is because uncertainty is not going anywhere. And 0:19:40.280 --> 0:19:43.320 I get to talk about this on your thirteen year 0:19:43.720 --> 0:19:49.560 birthday celebration. Guess what the future holds more uncertainty. As 0:19:49.640 --> 0:19:52.639 awesome as these thirteen years have been, I came to 0:19:52.640 --> 0:19:55.000 tell you if you're thinking stuff's gonna smooth out now, 0:19:55.240 --> 0:19:57.199 Pastor Stephen, and how they gonna chill out a little bit, 0:19:57.240 --> 0:19:59.080 we get to have some I hate to break it 0:19:59.080 --> 0:20:02.040 to you, doesn't work like that. The grace of God 0:20:02.080 --> 0:20:04.840 doesn't work like that. Part of the foundation of our 0:20:04.920 --> 0:20:08.479 faith is the ability to not understand where we're going, 0:20:08.680 --> 0:20:15.520 but go anyway. So if we cannot have a gift 0:20:15.640 --> 0:20:18.879 of being able to find our peace in uncertain waters. 0:20:18.880 --> 0:20:23.720 We're gonna have a very boring nominal American Christianity where 0:20:23.760 --> 0:20:25.439 you show up and you don't look any different, you 0:20:25.440 --> 0:20:27.840 don't sound any different, year after year after year, and 0:20:27.840 --> 0:20:31.000 your only Christian involvement is your one time of week 0:20:31.000 --> 0:20:33.400 at church. Visit Now, I feel like God has called 0:20:33.440 --> 0:20:36.080 us to so much more in our lives, and we 0:20:36.160 --> 0:20:37.760 got to know how to find peace in the middle 0:20:37.800 --> 0:20:39.760 of it. It's like a new parent. Have you ever 0:20:39.800 --> 0:20:42.199 seen a new parent who as an infant and they 0:20:42.200 --> 0:20:44.120 don't know all the rules of the game just yet, 0:20:44.119 --> 0:20:45.560 and you can see they haven't slept, and they're like, 0:20:45.640 --> 0:20:48.760 I can't wait until my child grows up a little 0:20:48.800 --> 0:20:50.880 bit and then I'm gonna get some of my sleep back. 0:20:50.920 --> 0:20:55.600 And you look at them like, so cute. Day's never 0:20:55.640 --> 0:20:58.920 gonna come. You better find out how to get your 0:20:59.000 --> 0:21:01.440 rest because those two and grow up and they stay 0:21:01.480 --> 0:21:07.080 complicated the whole way through. Yet we keep thinking there's 0:21:07.119 --> 0:21:10.240 gonna be this mythical season of Christianity where the job 0:21:10.320 --> 0:21:13.360 is right and I'm right and everything certain, then I'm 0:21:13.359 --> 0:21:16.399 gonna find my piece doesn't work like that. God's actually 0:21:16.400 --> 0:21:18.639 called you to thrive in the middle of waters. You 0:21:18.680 --> 0:21:22.920 do not understand. And here's how we know it. Can 0:21:22.960 --> 0:21:24.640 I take you to the Book of Matthew real quick, 0:21:26.160 --> 0:21:30.800 you guys know it by heart. Okay, it's a dead joke. 0:21:30.800 --> 0:21:34.520 It's right there on Stephen's pool pet. Jesus said this 0:21:35.440 --> 0:21:36.760 because as I read it, I want you to think 0:21:36.800 --> 0:21:39.639 about where do you go for your peace? Where do 0:21:39.680 --> 0:21:41.320 you go for your peace of mind? Where do you 0:21:41.400 --> 0:21:44.360 go when anxiety strikes? Here's what Jesus said. He said, 0:21:44.400 --> 0:21:47.640 are you weary? Are you carrying a heavy burden? Then 0:21:47.720 --> 0:21:51.880 come to me and I will refresh your life. I 0:21:51.960 --> 0:21:56.359 am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn 0:21:56.440 --> 0:21:59.640 my ways, and you'll discover that I'm gentle and I'm humble, 0:22:00.040 --> 0:22:04.000 and I'm easy to please. You'll find refreshment and rest 0:22:04.359 --> 0:22:07.480 in me. Break this down for you real quick, because 0:22:07.480 --> 0:22:11.119 it's that important. Jesus often said come and follow me, 0:22:11.800 --> 0:22:15.080 but in this text he specifically says, come to me. 0:22:16.320 --> 0:22:19.240 What's the inference when we're talking about peace. I'm gonna 0:22:19.240 --> 0:22:21.199 make this different than everything else. I want you to 0:22:21.240 --> 0:22:25.640 come to me, meaning I am your peace, I am 0:22:25.680 --> 0:22:29.800 your sustaining joy, I am your supplier. So when you're 0:22:29.800 --> 0:22:33.119 at your wits, and the only place that's gonna fulfill you, 0:22:33.440 --> 0:22:37.040 it's gonna be me. I wonder where you go because 0:22:37.040 --> 0:22:39.280 there's people who are still looking for peace where maybe 0:22:39.280 --> 0:22:41.480 they have it and they don't know it yet. I 0:22:41.560 --> 0:22:43.800 read this and I go, wow, it would have been cool, 0:22:43.880 --> 0:22:46.320 Jesus if you would have told us where we head 0:22:46.400 --> 0:22:48.720 after that. Wouldn't that be cool? If the Bible threw 0:22:48.760 --> 0:22:51.040 in some directions once in a while, maybe an eta, 0:22:51.440 --> 0:22:53.640 maybe a roadmap. Wouldn't it be cool if Jesus said, 0:22:53.640 --> 0:22:56.520 come to me elevation and I will give you rest, 0:22:56.640 --> 0:23:00.919 and then we're gonna head to Tahiti. Whoo. But Jesus 0:23:00.920 --> 0:23:05.200 doesn't say anything. Why the silent inference is that I 0:23:05.280 --> 0:23:08.720 am enough? And if you would focus more on who 0:23:08.800 --> 0:23:12.919 you're going with rather than where you're headed all the time. 0:23:13.080 --> 0:23:16.439 Maybe the point is that because you're with Jesus, he 0:23:16.520 --> 0:23:19.280 can sends you in directions you would never go on 0:23:19.320 --> 0:23:22.080 your own. He can sends you into places you would 0:23:22.080 --> 0:23:26.320 never choose to go without him because God is with you. Now, 0:23:26.520 --> 0:23:28.720 you're not trying to go to places that you can 0:23:28.760 --> 0:23:31.200 go to. You're trying to go into places that only 0:23:31.359 --> 0:23:34.800 God can sustain you. In. That's where miracles lie. That's 0:23:34.840 --> 0:23:37.560 where the great zone is, and people who have peace 0:23:37.720 --> 0:23:41.359 end up there all the time. We know right away, 0:23:41.480 --> 0:23:45.240 peace is not a feeling. Peace is not a place. 0:23:46.040 --> 0:23:49.280 Peace is a person. And if you get this today, 0:23:49.280 --> 0:23:53.080 I'm starting to walk too fast. But if you understand 0:23:53.119 --> 0:23:56.439 this now, you stop looking for the perfect situation and 0:23:56.480 --> 0:23:58.639 you go, I have the perfect savior. Put me in 0:23:58.680 --> 0:24:02.800 the worst situation, and I'm bringing peace with me. I'm 0:24:02.840 --> 0:24:05.240 bringing hope with me. There are so many people are like, 0:24:05.280 --> 0:24:08.320 where's the peace? You're supposed to bring it with me? 0:24:11.359 --> 0:24:14.760 Can you imagine that? Y'all know that panic is contagious, 0:24:15.520 --> 0:24:19.520 but so is peace. They ever seen people panic? It's 0:24:19.560 --> 0:24:22.280 like those Christmas target videos where they open up the 0:24:22.320 --> 0:24:26.560 doors and people are just like trampling other people. Panic 0:24:26.640 --> 0:24:29.920 is contagious. Are cultures filled with it? Social media? Panic, 0:24:30.320 --> 0:24:33.760 the news? Panic? What's going on? Panic? Can you imagine 0:24:33.840 --> 0:24:35.960 if there was a revival of Christians that were so 0:24:36.119 --> 0:24:40.520 peaceful that people who couldn't find peace anywhere else, they're like, man, 0:24:40.560 --> 0:24:42.280 I think it's you. And they might think that for 0:24:42.359 --> 0:24:44.119 a little bit and they get a little bit closer 0:24:44.119 --> 0:24:46.040 and say, where do you find your peace. You get said, 0:24:46.040 --> 0:24:49.879 Oh I got saved Jesus, He's my peace, and you 0:24:49.960 --> 0:24:53.760 can have the same piece in your marriage and your life. 0:24:54.560 --> 0:24:57.639 The best evangelistic weapon in the Christian Kingdom. It is 0:24:57.680 --> 0:24:59.919 not a fancy church. It is not a cool sir, 0:25:00.520 --> 0:25:03.119 it is not flashy music. It is Christians that have 0:25:03.240 --> 0:25:05.680 the peace of God in the middle of the work. 0:25:09.760 --> 0:25:12.600 I just don't want to be a Christian that can 0:25:12.640 --> 0:25:18.000 only function when everything is functional. I'm tired of that. 0:25:18.000 --> 0:25:20.000 That's been me too often. You know what I mean 0:25:20.040 --> 0:25:23.159 by that? Like I'm awesome if everything's awesome, but the 0:25:23.240 --> 0:25:26.680 moment something goes wrong, I forget I'm a Christian, lose 0:25:26.720 --> 0:25:30.399 my faith, question God. Seven o'clock, gotta repent again. Eight 0:25:30.480 --> 0:25:33.879 o'clock might get saved again. Nine o'clock, get ready to 0:25:33.880 --> 0:25:36.720 start all over. Like I'm good if it's all good, 0:25:37.320 --> 0:25:40.040 but if one thing goes bad, I can't function. I 0:25:40.080 --> 0:25:42.919 actually believe God has called us to be the opposite, 0:25:43.080 --> 0:25:45.719 because otherwise we're going to be mountaintop Christians where we're 0:25:45.760 --> 0:25:49.159 all just celebrating on the good days. Who can't have 0:25:49.240 --> 0:25:51.560 peace when you're holding the trophy? Who can't have peace 0:25:51.600 --> 0:25:56.359 when all your money's in your account. But the reality 0:25:56.359 --> 0:25:58.800 of the Christian life, y'all, it is not the mountaintops. 0:25:58.840 --> 0:26:00.960 Hate to break it to you. The reality of the 0:26:01.040 --> 0:26:06.240 Christian life. It's valley valley darkness at times. I'm alone 0:26:06.280 --> 0:26:08.600 at times. I'm fighting for my faith at times. And 0:26:08.640 --> 0:26:11.640 if we can't find out how to function when everything 0:26:11.720 --> 0:26:13.800 is going crazy around us, it's not going to be 0:26:13.880 --> 0:26:16.680 the life God has planned for us. And I came 0:26:16.720 --> 0:26:19.320 to tell this whole amazing church on the ed of 0:26:19.400 --> 0:26:22.040 this brand new season for y'all as you go into 0:26:22.119 --> 0:26:27.240 year fourteen, who God has something for you? But when 0:26:27.280 --> 0:26:30.399 he opens up doors you do not recognize? Look around 0:26:30.400 --> 0:26:32.080 and say, even though it doesn't look like I can 0:26:32.119 --> 0:26:34.040 make it in there, that means God is going to 0:26:34.119 --> 0:26:40.000 lead me through it. Come on, I'm preaching to somebody's faith, 0:26:40.119 --> 0:26:47.040 Gene right now. I want to function when it's dysfunctional. 0:26:47.320 --> 0:26:48.879 I went to go, how many parents do we have 0:26:48.920 --> 0:26:52.080 in here? Well, that's a lot. How many single people 0:26:52.080 --> 0:26:56.400 do we have in here? Wow? Single people? Keep it up. 0:26:57.480 --> 0:27:02.080 Have a quick look around. Go ahead. I went to 0:27:02.119 --> 0:27:05.280 pick up my daughter from her normal bus stop, which 0:27:05.280 --> 0:27:07.880 I normally don't do. I made it a specific point 0:27:08.240 --> 0:27:10.720 to go pick her up because I felt like that's 0:27:11.160 --> 0:27:13.280 it's a normal, reasonable dad thing to do, and I 0:27:13.359 --> 0:27:15.720 scheduled my whole day around it. But as it got 0:27:15.720 --> 0:27:18.440 time to that two point fifteen drop off, I realized 0:27:18.440 --> 0:27:21.560 I was stuck in traffic because New York City and 0:27:21.640 --> 0:27:23.640 I wasn't gonna be able to make it. And as 0:27:23.720 --> 0:27:26.520 I am lamenting my lack of planning, I can feel 0:27:26.560 --> 0:27:29.560 the pressure, the anxiety, the worry creeping up on me. 0:27:29.600 --> 0:27:31.239 I'm like, oh my gosh, she's gonna be sitting there 0:27:31.280 --> 0:27:33.720 on that bus stop by herself. Other parents are going 0:27:33.720 --> 0:27:36.040 to judge me. They're better than me, and they're gonna 0:27:36.040 --> 0:27:37.919 know that I'm late. They already think I'm weird. Like 0:27:38.000 --> 0:27:40.960 all this stuff starts to swirl as I am getting 0:27:41.000 --> 0:27:44.959 closer to the bus stop, and apocalyptic rainstorm hits, and 0:27:45.000 --> 0:27:47.840 so now my hypothetical fears grow even further. I'm like, 0:27:47.840 --> 0:27:49.880 now she's gonna be sitting there in a puddle, just 0:27:49.920 --> 0:27:53.760 like people are gonna pick her up, and child Service 0:27:53.800 --> 0:27:55.840 can be like it's the weird past her dad, no more, 0:27:55.920 --> 0:28:00.600 you knowing. I come flying around the corner get out, 0:28:00.640 --> 0:28:03.679 and half of my hypothetical was real. It was pouring, 0:28:03.960 --> 0:28:06.560 and she was by herself, and she wasn't a puddle, 0:28:06.880 --> 0:28:09.080 but she wasn't sitting there crying. She was just in 0:28:09.119 --> 0:28:14.160 this puddle like this. I come running around the corner. 0:28:14.160 --> 0:28:17.040 I'm like, Charlie, I'm so sorry, I'm late. I can't 0:28:17.040 --> 0:28:19.399 believe that I left you here. And she goes, Dad's cool. 0:28:19.680 --> 0:28:21.840 I knew you were coming. I knew something must have happened. 0:28:21.840 --> 0:28:25.280 But have you danced in the rain lately? How amazing 0:28:25.440 --> 0:28:28.639 is rain? Come here, Dad, get in this puddled I'm like, 0:28:28.840 --> 0:28:34.879 these are Jordans, but ye. And she's in there and 0:28:34.920 --> 0:28:37.240 we're dancing in the rain, and she goes, Dad, it's 0:28:37.280 --> 0:28:39.840 been sunny for so long that I forgot how much 0:28:39.840 --> 0:28:42.120 fun rain can be. I mean, just feel a rain. 0:28:42.200 --> 0:28:44.520 It's really beautiful, isn't it. He looked at splash me. 0:28:44.680 --> 0:28:46.680 I splashed. And we sat there in the rain, and 0:28:46.680 --> 0:28:50.320 I'm glad it was raining because I was balling, because 0:28:50.320 --> 0:28:52.640 I thought, Lord forgives me. I want to be more 0:28:52.760 --> 0:28:55.920 like my daughter. I want to be able to smile 0:28:56.120 --> 0:28:58.840 when it's raining. I want to be able to worship 0:28:59.040 --> 0:29:01.600 when I'm losing. I want to be able to love 0:29:01.720 --> 0:29:04.600 somebody in the face up there. Hey, let me be 0:29:04.760 --> 0:29:08.240 a Christian that loves you more than I love. Everything 0:29:08.360 --> 0:29:13.880 going right now is where the peace of God. God 0:29:13.920 --> 0:29:17.080 is still good when you're sick. God is still good 0:29:17.120 --> 0:29:20.840 when you're problem. God is still good when everybody's going 0:29:20.880 --> 0:29:24.080 the other way and you won't beware is everybody? God 0:29:24.200 --> 0:29:28.200 is there. I don't know who I'm preaching to today, 0:29:28.240 --> 0:29:30.400 but hear me out. If you are in a season 0:29:30.440 --> 0:29:33.800 with rain on your face, I believe a brighter day 0:29:33.840 --> 0:29:37.920 is coming. But why not defy the devil anyway and 0:29:38.040 --> 0:29:40.600 worship him? Like you know what, Even if Jesus never 0:29:40.680 --> 0:29:43.760 did another thing for me, which he will, he doesn't 0:29:43.800 --> 0:29:46.400 need to because he already saved my life. So I 0:29:46.440 --> 0:29:49.960 will worship him. I will lift my hands, I will 0:29:50.000 --> 0:29:52.880 love my enemy. I will do what God tells me 0:29:52.960 --> 0:29:58.440 to do anyway, because He is my peace. That's our goal, y'all. 0:30:01.840 --> 0:30:05.280 I want to function when it's breaking down all around me. 0:30:06.560 --> 0:30:08.440 Let me tell you how I got one thought for you. 0:30:09.080 --> 0:30:12.800 And it's really simple. And I told your pastor, I said, 0:30:12.800 --> 0:30:15.720 there's no pressure to preach a good message at your church. 0:30:15.760 --> 0:30:18.800 You know why you're the best. So I can just 0:30:18.800 --> 0:30:21.320 come in and be normal And for all of you 0:30:21.400 --> 0:30:23.400 visitors who are bummed because Steven isn't here, I was 0:30:23.440 --> 0:30:28.240 kind of bummed too. Please come back next week and 0:30:28.280 --> 0:30:30.200 here one of the greatest preachers you'll ever hear in 0:30:30.280 --> 0:30:35.000 his own pulpit. Can I get a Pentecostal amen? It's 0:30:35.000 --> 0:30:37.160 okay to have friends that are better than you had stuff. 0:30:37.200 --> 0:30:41.600 By the way, it's the essence of life. Here's one way. 0:30:41.640 --> 0:30:44.200 I feel like it's really practical. I mean, I passed 0:30:44.200 --> 0:30:45.520 her in New York City. We don't have a lot 0:30:45.520 --> 0:30:47.520 of time for fancy church stuff, so all of our 0:30:47.560 --> 0:30:50.000 points are small and practical. Hopefully you can deal with 0:30:50.000 --> 0:30:51.800 that because you're smarter here in Charlotte. I get it 0:30:51.840 --> 0:30:55.520 to the South. I'm from Virginia, so I have that bias. 0:30:56.760 --> 0:30:58.840 God loves us more down here. Can I get an amen? 0:31:00.000 --> 0:31:03.240 Strike that from the tape if it's there. But I 0:31:03.280 --> 0:31:04.720 feel like we need to do a better job of 0:31:04.800 --> 0:31:07.640 letting people know if you struggle with anxiety and you 0:31:07.680 --> 0:31:11.320 struggle with worry, it's okay to talk about it. The 0:31:11.400 --> 0:31:15.280 church world for too long has put more more condemnation 0:31:15.440 --> 0:31:18.520 on people with awful stuff, like if you love Jesus more, 0:31:19.000 --> 0:31:22.320 you wouldn't feel like you feel, or the horrid pray 0:31:22.400 --> 0:31:25.400 through it. Prayer is incredible. I'm about to talk about it. 0:31:25.440 --> 0:31:28.080 But the truth is all answers start with Jesus and 0:31:28.240 --> 0:31:30.760 end with Jesus. But in the middle there's doctors, and 0:31:30.800 --> 0:31:34.760 there's therapy, and there's connect groups, and there's recovery groups, 0:31:34.960 --> 0:31:37.200 and that doctor might even lead you to another doctor 0:31:37.240 --> 0:31:40.000 who can help you find something that can help you 0:31:40.120 --> 0:31:42.360 on your journey. So, if you've ever felt like you're 0:31:42.960 --> 0:31:46.040 a lesser Christian because you deal with pain that nobody 0:31:46.040 --> 0:31:48.440 can see, it's the same as anybody else with pain 0:31:48.520 --> 0:31:51.719 you can see, So shame off you, especially if you're 0:31:51.760 --> 0:31:55.120 a man. By the way, men are a lot worse 0:31:55.160 --> 0:31:57.200 than women when it comes to being honest with what 0:31:57.280 --> 0:31:59.280 you struggle with, because we'll say things like a guy 0:31:59.280 --> 0:32:01.520 told me the other day, pastor, I struggle with anxiety. 0:32:02.640 --> 0:32:05.040 What's that anxiety? Is? Like? Yeah, anxiety? I want anybody 0:32:05.080 --> 0:32:08.400 to know. I'm like, trust me, they already know. Well, 0:32:08.400 --> 0:32:10.560 why would you whisper that to me? Because he's heard 0:32:10.560 --> 0:32:12.560 stuff like his whole life? Man up, what does that 0:32:12.600 --> 0:32:14.840 even mean? We're a part of the new generation man 0:32:14.880 --> 0:32:18.000 down on our knees, waiting for God to do whatever 0:32:18.080 --> 0:32:20.280 he wants to do. I would rather be a man 0:32:20.360 --> 0:32:23.440 on my knees looking vulnerable than being a man on 0:32:23.480 --> 0:32:26.320 my feet living shaky because I don't want God to 0:32:26.400 --> 0:32:28.960 actually help me because somebody might know I don't have 0:32:29.040 --> 0:32:39.320 it all again, So shame off you. If you need 0:32:39.360 --> 0:32:41.600 to get some help, get help. This church is filled 0:32:41.600 --> 0:32:43.640 with people that would love to get beside you and 0:32:43.680 --> 0:32:46.320 do whatever it takes to see God continue to heal 0:32:46.360 --> 0:32:48.440 your life one way and then we're out of here, 0:32:48.440 --> 0:32:50.920 I promise, Okay, and I've got seven closes. Don't get 0:32:50.960 --> 0:32:54.640 too excited. But those of you that want to access 0:32:55.080 --> 0:32:58.400 more peace rather than just hear cheesy Christian answers. Isn't 0:32:58.400 --> 0:33:00.720 that funny when you tell a Christian like, hey, I 0:33:01.040 --> 0:33:02.520 got a problem with fear and worry and they say 0:33:02.520 --> 0:33:06.360 stuff like well, pastor Stephen, just don't worry worry less. 0:33:06.360 --> 0:33:11.280 It's like, thank you genius, never thought of that. Now. 0:33:11.320 --> 0:33:14.280 Thankfully Jesus gave us some recourse. And here's one big 0:33:14.280 --> 0:33:16.600 way ready if you want to access the peace that 0:33:16.680 --> 0:33:19.080 is in your pocket, that is in your soul. The 0:33:19.160 --> 0:33:24.240 King of kings. Control what you can control, Control what 0:33:24.360 --> 0:33:29.640 you can, and then pray about the rest. Control what 0:33:29.720 --> 0:33:33.640 you can, which is your spirit, and then pray about 0:33:33.640 --> 0:33:37.920 the rest, which is your situation. Normally we get these 0:33:37.920 --> 0:33:40.800 things mixed up. There's so much about your situation that 0:33:40.880 --> 0:33:43.800 you cannot control. You can't always control your boss, can't 0:33:43.800 --> 0:33:46.360 always control what the world is doing to you. But 0:33:46.400 --> 0:33:49.400 we are Christians. What is happening to us does not 0:33:49.520 --> 0:33:51.760 have to change what is coming through us. We have 0:33:51.840 --> 0:33:55.400 the right to control our eyes. We can control our ears. 0:33:55.560 --> 0:33:58.280 We can control what we consume, what we feed our 0:33:58.400 --> 0:34:01.920 soul with. We can control our declaration, we can control 0:34:01.960 --> 0:34:05.160 our confession. There is so much we can do. And 0:34:05.200 --> 0:34:07.440 when it comes to the stuff that we can't, God 0:34:07.560 --> 0:34:11.600 has it covered. And I'm gonna read you this scripture 0:34:11.600 --> 0:34:14.120 out of Philippians, which is just mind blowing. Can I 0:34:14.120 --> 0:34:16.920 read you one more scripture? What are you gonna say? 0:34:16.960 --> 0:34:18.640 Don't you love it when preachers ask you questions like 0:34:18.719 --> 0:34:21.839 you have any recourse? Guys, mind if I read this, 0:34:21.880 --> 0:34:25.560 I'm gonna do it anyway. Remember, because Paul here is 0:34:25.640 --> 0:34:28.759 letting us know. God's not afraid of your worry. He's 0:34:28.800 --> 0:34:31.080 not afraid of what you have going on. But there's 0:34:31.120 --> 0:34:35.200 an order to this. Pray before you panic, Pray before 0:34:35.239 --> 0:34:37.560 you feel that pressure. He says this. Don't be pulled 0:34:37.560 --> 0:34:42.399 in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated 0:34:42.440 --> 0:34:45.800 in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith filled request 0:34:45.920 --> 0:34:50.920 before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every single detail 0:34:50.960 --> 0:34:54.839 of your life. Than God's wonderful peace that transcends human understanding. 0:34:55.160 --> 0:34:57.960 We'll make the answers known to you through Jesus Christ. 0:34:58.080 --> 0:35:00.000 So keep your thoughts you ready for this. This is 0:35:00.040 --> 0:35:04.080 convicting and comforting. Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all 0:35:04.120 --> 0:35:06.799 that is authentic, all that is real, all that is 0:35:06.920 --> 0:35:12.200 honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful 0:35:12.200 --> 0:35:15.759 and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work 0:35:15.800 --> 0:35:19.720 of God, praising him always. One might say get off Twitter. 0:35:22.239 --> 0:35:25.480 One might say flee from anything that's getting your mind 0:35:25.520 --> 0:35:27.960 to go in a different direction. I don't know about you, 0:35:28.239 --> 0:35:30.719 but when it comes to controlling my thoughts, I got 0:35:30.719 --> 0:35:32.719 to make sure I understand that I want to fight 0:35:32.840 --> 0:35:36.280 this fear and anxiety wave that's plaguing so many people. 0:35:36.440 --> 0:35:38.799 It's going to start with me going to the throne room, 0:35:39.160 --> 0:35:41.160 me getting down on my knees once in a while 0:35:41.200 --> 0:35:43.880 and saying, Lord, I am willing to do whatever I 0:35:43.960 --> 0:35:46.279 have to do to make sure that this stuff that 0:35:46.320 --> 0:35:49.560 I cannot control stays out and the stuff I can't control, 0:35:49.600 --> 0:35:52.359 which is focusing on you, how good you've already been. 0:35:52.400 --> 0:35:55.280 How many more songs can your team write to remind 0:35:55.440 --> 0:35:58.319 us that God has been so faithful? I mean they 0:35:58.320 --> 0:36:00.680 say it different ways every time. The theme is this, 0:36:01.160 --> 0:36:04.960 how much more does God have to do to prove 0:36:05.040 --> 0:36:07.600 to us that it does no good to look at 0:36:07.600 --> 0:36:10.640 what he's not doing? Because there is so much that 0:36:10.680 --> 0:36:13.960 He is doing. It should take me forever to get 0:36:13.960 --> 0:36:16.600 through all my praise reports before I can even get 0:36:16.640 --> 0:36:19.359 out a problem, because that's how good God is bad. 0:36:24.560 --> 0:36:27.160 I'm almost done, Team Chris, y'all come up here. But 0:36:27.200 --> 0:36:29.759 I promise you this works, y'all. I promise you. If 0:36:29.760 --> 0:36:32.759 you leave here today and you look at whatever was 0:36:32.800 --> 0:36:35.200 the biggest cause of your worry where you feel like 0:36:35.239 --> 0:36:37.160 you were empty pocketed, when it comes to your piece 0:36:37.840 --> 0:36:40.920 and you start making little small shifts and changes before 0:36:40.920 --> 0:36:43.480 you know it, it's like, Wow, this situation isn't so bad. 0:36:43.520 --> 0:36:45.040 I did this the other day in the airport, which 0:36:45.080 --> 0:36:47.200 is the number one cause for stress for most humans. 0:36:48.000 --> 0:36:49.799 And I had stuff I had to get home to 0:36:50.000 --> 0:36:52.200 big weekend in church, had a date with my daughter, 0:36:52.320 --> 0:36:54.359 another date with my other daughter, and a date with 0:36:54.400 --> 0:36:56.520 my son. If that's weird, go ask me about later. 0:36:56.520 --> 0:36:59.600 I'll tell you why it's important and was supposed to be. 0:36:59.640 --> 0:37:02.200 That intent sounded really intense, and I just had stuff 0:37:02.200 --> 0:37:04.000 to do with my family. And I walk up to 0:37:04.080 --> 0:37:06.480 the gate and the guy says, yeah, your flight's been 0:37:06.480 --> 0:37:09.520 delayed any reason. And guy's of course not. And so 0:37:09.640 --> 0:37:11.600 that's the kind of thing that gets me going. Right there, 0:37:11.640 --> 0:37:14.040 I'm like, great, that meeting's gonna be canceled. Lawd's gonna 0:37:14.040 --> 0:37:16.080 be upset. I won't be able to do that, won't 0:37:16.120 --> 0:37:17.920 be able to do that. And just my mind starts 0:37:17.920 --> 0:37:21.680 to raise and I remembered my own preaching, really my 0:37:21.719 --> 0:37:24.600 own preaching, remember what Paul said, And I thought, let 0:37:24.640 --> 0:37:26.680 me just take a moment here, because I cannot control this. 0:37:27.040 --> 0:37:29.200 I cannot control all this stuff, So what am I 0:37:29.239 --> 0:37:30.520 gonna do? I don't want to be like this guy 0:37:30.560 --> 0:37:33.759 who's getting arrested for freaking out of the guy. Don't 0:37:33.760 --> 0:37:36.280 want to be like this passive aggressive lady who's just sighing. 0:37:36.480 --> 0:37:40.919 Sh So what can I do. I'm gonna pray, I'm 0:37:40.920 --> 0:37:43.759 gonna worship God. I'm gonna find something funny about this. 0:37:44.040 --> 0:37:46.560 And sure enough, there was a loud talker behind me, 0:37:46.680 --> 0:37:49.160 and my wife, for whatever reason, really loves to see 0:37:49.320 --> 0:37:51.120 loud talkers. So I'm like, I'm gonna make this funny 0:37:51.120 --> 0:37:52.840 because I can't do anything else. And I filmed this 0:37:52.920 --> 0:37:56.520 person who was talking super loud, and the guy next 0:37:56.560 --> 0:37:58.160 to me sees me doing it and he's like, man, 0:37:58.200 --> 0:38:00.680 can you believe loud talkers? I'm like, no, bro from Virginia, 0:38:00.719 --> 0:38:03.720 I was training better. He's like me too, become fast friends. 0:38:04.120 --> 0:38:06.040 I said, where are you headed? He goes, I'm actually 0:38:06.080 --> 0:38:07.839 headed to New Jersey. I said where are you coming from? 0:38:07.880 --> 0:38:10.080 He's like, right here, my first day out of rehab. 0:38:10.280 --> 0:38:13.000 And I'm a little bit nervous because I know that 0:38:13.040 --> 0:38:14.799 God's going to do great things. I just my first 0:38:14.840 --> 0:38:17.120 day out. I'm like, man, that's crazy because I know 0:38:17.160 --> 0:38:19.160 a lot of people coming out of rehab who are 0:38:19.160 --> 0:38:22.120 now running rehab centers. Like God's going to use your life. 0:38:22.200 --> 0:38:24.600 Have no fear. We start to just and he looks 0:38:24.600 --> 0:38:28.200 at me this is great, though, And I was preaching 0:38:28.239 --> 0:38:29.920 out a church to night before and it goes to me, 0:38:30.000 --> 0:38:31.600 it's like so funny because I had to pack all 0:38:31.600 --> 0:38:33.919 my stuff and everybody else from my rehab. Last night, 0:38:34.160 --> 0:38:36.439 they went to this church conference in Florida and here's 0:38:36.440 --> 0:38:38.719 some guy named Carl or some Hillsong thing, and it 0:38:38.840 --> 0:38:41.080 sounded like he was preaching something just like that. I 0:38:41.120 --> 0:38:43.319 was like, dude, I know that guy, and I'll tell 0:38:43.360 --> 0:38:45.960 you exactly what he said. What he said last night 0:38:46.440 --> 0:38:49.160 was that God can use people that are broken to 0:38:49.320 --> 0:38:51.880 shine a light through. So no matter how bad you 0:38:51.920 --> 0:38:54.640 think your life is, hey, guess what, every single crack 0:38:55.000 --> 0:38:56.960 is a way for God to get the message out. 0:38:57.000 --> 0:38:59.319 So just be open with who you are. Let him 0:38:59.320 --> 0:39:02.720 do what he was. And me and this guy exchange numbers. 0:39:02.719 --> 0:39:05.680 We just talked today. He kind of lives closer than 0:39:05.680 --> 0:39:07.799 I thought. And before you know it, in that one 0:39:07.840 --> 0:39:12.000 moment of just choosing not to go in because that's 0:39:12.040 --> 0:39:15.480 what anxiety does, that's what fear does. God use me 0:39:15.840 --> 0:39:18.319 in a random airport, and I thought to myself, how 0:39:18.320 --> 0:39:21.960 many times might I have been so focused on my 0:39:22.160 --> 0:39:25.879 fear that God was not able to lift my head 0:39:25.920 --> 0:39:29.319 even for a moment. How many people are around us 0:39:29.400 --> 0:39:31.520 right now that we don't even know God wants to 0:39:31.640 --> 0:39:33.960 use us in their life because we're so focused on 0:39:34.040 --> 0:39:38.400 what's not happening in our life. Y'all, as you go 0:39:38.560 --> 0:39:42.759 forward Elevation Church, my I would plead with you. Yes, 0:39:42.880 --> 0:39:45.640 God has done a lot, but there is more in store. 0:39:45.880 --> 0:39:48.279 The best is yet to come. And if you can 0:39:48.360 --> 0:39:50.759 learn how to say Lord here I am. I am 0:39:50.800 --> 0:39:53.520 not gonna focus on the wrong thing. I'm gonna focus 0:39:53.560 --> 0:39:56.319 on the right thing. Watch what God will do with 0:39:56.600 --> 0:40:00.440 people like you because He is our portion. He is 0:40:00.480 --> 0:40:07.879 our sustainer, he is our strong time to all, I'm 0:40:07.880 --> 0:40:09.680 gonna leave you with this. I'm gonna hand this back 0:40:09.719 --> 0:40:16.080 over to the Bishop of Charlotte, the Queen City. Peace 0:40:16.160 --> 0:40:21.239 is your portion, accept nothing less. Can you say this 0:40:21.239 --> 0:40:27.719 with big Peace is my portion? How do we know that? 0:40:27.719 --> 0:40:29.680 Because Jesus said it. I pray that the peace that 0:40:29.800 --> 0:40:31.799 is in me will be in you. That means if 0:40:31.840 --> 0:40:34.080 there's any area in your life that does not have 0:40:34.160 --> 0:40:36.800 God's peace in it, fight for it because your portion 0:40:36.960 --> 0:40:40.040 is peace. I've met too many Christians. Maybe it's just 0:40:40.080 --> 0:40:42.279 New York, but people who just accept it. It's just 0:40:42.320 --> 0:40:44.759 the way I am. This is just what life has 0:40:44.840 --> 0:40:47.080 dealt me, so I might as well just deal with it. 0:40:47.160 --> 0:40:49.240 This is who I am. I'm always gonna be depressed, 0:40:49.440 --> 0:40:52.400 and I'm always gonna have broken relationships, and I'm always 0:40:52.440 --> 0:40:54.360 gonna have this kind of drama in my life. And 0:40:54.360 --> 0:40:57.280 I always say, who said that? Because Jesus said something different. 0:40:57.840 --> 0:41:00.200 Just because somebody sent it does not mean you have 0:41:00.280 --> 0:41:03.160 to accept it, digest it, and actually let it take 0:41:03.239 --> 0:41:05.319 root in your life. We don't do this in any 0:41:05.360 --> 0:41:09.920 area of life except for Christians. If you went to 0:41:09.960 --> 0:41:14.640 a restaurant today and you ordered some lava cake, who 0:41:14.640 --> 0:41:18.480 doesn't love lava cake? And the waiter came up to 0:41:18.520 --> 0:41:22.560 you and they handed you a kale salad, what would 0:41:22.600 --> 0:41:25.840 you say? You would say, sir, I appreciate you, but 0:41:25.920 --> 0:41:28.040 I did not do I look like a kale salad person. 0:41:28.239 --> 0:41:33.799 I ordered a lava cake, brownie, ice cream fudge, So respectfully, 0:41:33.960 --> 0:41:35.920 could you please go back to the kitchen where you 0:41:35.960 --> 0:41:39.160 came from and let them know the order has been 0:41:39.200 --> 0:41:41.600 mixed up. I'm gonna sit here until I see the 0:41:41.719 --> 0:41:44.960 lava cake come out and the kale go back to 0:41:45.000 --> 0:41:48.319 where it came from. This is what it's like to 0:41:48.360 --> 0:41:52.160 be a Christian. Every single time that the devil throws 0:41:52.200 --> 0:41:55.680 something on your plate that is not from God, that 0:41:55.800 --> 0:41:58.239 is not from peace, that is not from love, you 0:41:58.320 --> 0:42:02.440 have the right to say, respectfully decline that this is 0:42:02.520 --> 0:42:05.239 my portion. I'm gonna send it back, and I'm gonna 0:42:05.320 --> 0:42:08.000 keep fighting, and I'm gonna keep worshiping, and I'm gonna 0:42:08.080 --> 0:42:11.520 keep on in god glory until I get exactly what 0:42:11.600 --> 0:42:14.600 he says is my portion, and my portion is peace, 0:42:14.880 --> 0:42:19.720 My portion is healing, my portion is God's good. Fight 0:42:19.800 --> 0:42:25.000 for it gonna get you to bow your head. I'm 0:42:25.000 --> 0:42:27.000 gonna pray. I'm gonna hand this back over to you. 0:42:27.200 --> 0:42:36.160 Peace in your pocket, Peace in your soul. Keep fighting 0:42:36.200 --> 0:42:38.239 for those of you that have given up in the 0:42:38.320 --> 0:42:42.400 name of Jesus. Fight again. Those of you who feel 0:42:42.400 --> 0:42:44.680 like the die has been cast in the name of Jesus, 0:42:44.719 --> 0:42:49.080 it has not. Peace will be your portion. Those of 0:42:49.120 --> 0:42:51.319 you that can't sleep at night and you're just giving 0:42:51.400 --> 0:42:54.400 up on that fight in the name of Jesus, Peace 0:42:55.200 --> 0:43:00.640 will be your portion. Father, I pray that you encourage 0:43:00.640 --> 0:43:04.920 people today. Jesus, you are a gracious God, You are 0:43:04.920 --> 0:43:08.319 a gracious Save you Lord. I pray today. Wherever there 0:43:08.440 --> 0:43:11.400 is unrest, in the name of Jesus, we speak peace. 0:43:12.360 --> 0:43:15.080 Where there is sickness and people are waiting for their healing, 0:43:15.120 --> 0:43:18.880 in the name of Jesus, we speak peace. Where people 0:43:18.880 --> 0:43:22.000 are overwhelmed, Lord in the middle of it, remind them 0:43:22.080 --> 0:43:26.480 you are are peace. Can we give you praise ahead 0:43:26.520 --> 0:43:29.560 of time for all you're gonna do in Jesus name, 0:43:29.560 --> 0:43:32.200 Elevation Church. If you believe it, can we stand to 0:43:32.239 --> 0:43:34.520 our feet and just give God the biggest shot of praise. 0:43:35.560 --> 0:43:37.680 If you believe that peace is your poorchol come on, 0:43:37.800 --> 0:43:44.160 let them know. Scream it over you. We hope you 0:43:44.280 --> 0:43:46.600 enjoyed the podcast today, and if you did, there are 0:43:46.640 --> 0:43:48.719 just a couple things I'd love for you to do. 0:43:48.960 --> 0:43:52.439 Number One, subscribe to our show. That way, the most 0:43:52.480 --> 0:43:55.719 recent episode will always be in your feed, waiting for 0:43:55.760 --> 0:43:59.280 you ready when you are. And Secondly, if this ministry 0:43:59.280 --> 0:44:01.760 has impacted you and you'd like to help us continue 0:44:01.800 --> 0:44:03.840 to reach others, you can click the link in the 0:44:03.880 --> 0:44:06.680 description and you can give now and I'll see you 0:44:06.880 --> 0:44:09.320 next time on the Elevation Podcast.