1 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:09,680 Welcome this morning. If you're joining us on Livestream. Thank you for joining us today. 2 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:14,800 Let's start with this. Do you want to leave the same way you 3 00:00:14,800 --> 00:00:15,120 came? 4 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:24,280 Maybe. Today'S a real 5 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:27,350 opportunity, I believe, for 6 00:00:28,230 --> 00:00:31,990 you to leave in a different way than what you came. 7 00:00:32,950 --> 00:00:36,790 And it's really up to you to open your heart and open 8 00:00:36,790 --> 00:00:39,910 your spirit to what the Holy Spirit wants to do today. And 9 00:00:40,870 --> 00:00:44,630 so I'm believing that the Lord wants to set some people free. 10 00:00:45,190 --> 00:00:48,750 And the minute I say that, some of you go, oh, well, that does not 11 00:00:48,750 --> 00:00:52,230 pertain to me. Well, I would maybe submit that some. Of us are 12 00:00:52,230 --> 00:00:55,870 probably locked up in. Some caves this morning that we don't know anything about. And 13 00:00:55,870 --> 00:00:59,410 the Holy Spirit's going to minister to us through the message today. 14 00:01:00,530 --> 00:01:04,050 And. And I believe that he wants to do something. So let's not make this 15 00:01:04,050 --> 00:01:07,330 just, you know, a mundane Sunday. 16 00:01:07,890 --> 00:01:11,610 Why don't we actually believe in the. Holy Spirit of God 17 00:01:11,610 --> 00:01:15,450 and his ability to infiltrate our hearts and do something mighty today? 18 00:01:15,450 --> 00:01:19,250 Amen. Amen. Amen. Well, before we get started with that, 19 00:01:19,250 --> 00:01:22,770 let me give two quick announcements. Number one, we have something called 20 00:01:22,770 --> 00:01:26,510 Open Tables that we're doing every second 21 00:01:26,590 --> 00:01:30,270 Sunday. And some of you have been a part of this. And essentially, if 22 00:01:30,270 --> 00:01:33,990 there's one thing I know about churchgoing folks, it's we like to eat lunch after 23 00:01:33,990 --> 00:01:37,830 church. And so the question is, why not do that 24 00:01:37,830 --> 00:01:41,390 with somebody else? Why not build a community and do that with people 25 00:01:41,470 --> 00:01:45,230 around you? So on the app, you can sign up for Open Tables. 26 00:01:45,230 --> 00:01:49,070 There's just a variety of restaurants around town, and there's groups that are gonna 27 00:01:49,070 --> 00:01:51,950 be meeting at those restaurants, and you can sit down and meet with them and 28 00:01:51,950 --> 00:01:55,510 eat with them and get to. Know them a little bit better. So we encourage 29 00:01:55,510 --> 00:01:59,330 you. How many have been a part of Open Tables before? Raise your 30 00:01:59,330 --> 00:02:03,170 hand. Okay. Oh, lots of you. Okay, so you're familiar with this. So go 31 00:02:03,170 --> 00:02:06,330 and eat with people and. Get to know somebody 32 00:02:06,810 --> 00:02:09,850 from Spring House. And then the second thing is, 33 00:02:11,290 --> 00:02:14,770 guys, you don't want to miss this. If you are an entrepreneur, business owner. On 34 00:02:14,770 --> 00:02:18,170 Tuesday morning, Josh McLeod's going to. Bring fire 35 00:02:18,570 --> 00:02:22,210 because of the Holy Spirit inside that man. For the business collective at 36 00:02:22,210 --> 00:02:25,930 8am free breakfast. Come and be a part of it. If you 37 00:02:25,930 --> 00:02:29,470 are a business owner, manager, entrepreneur, that is for you. 38 00:02:29,470 --> 00:02:33,270 Business collective Tuesday, 8 o'. Clock. Does that sound good? All right, here 39 00:02:33,270 --> 00:02:36,550 we go. We are in part two of Faith Over Fear. 40 00:02:36,870 --> 00:02:40,110 And last week, there were so many of you who shared 41 00:02:40,110 --> 00:02:43,830 testimonies of God's faithfulness. Anybody still have their lighters? 42 00:02:43,910 --> 00:02:46,830 You know, I had the whole bucket of lighters left over. And I thought, we 43 00:02:46,830 --> 00:02:50,590 need more faith in this church, like 70 or 80 more lighters. 44 00:02:50,590 --> 00:02:52,950 And I thought we'd give them out to the kids at vbs, so that would 45 00:02:52,950 --> 00:02:53,270 be great. 46 00:02:56,850 --> 00:03:00,130 And tell them, go light up your home in the Lord. Of course, 47 00:03:01,090 --> 00:03:04,370 we're talking about Elijah in First Kings 17 48 00:03:05,490 --> 00:03:09,250 through 19. And last week we went up through faith 49 00:03:09,250 --> 00:03:12,530 and we talked about how Elijah was met by God 50 00:03:12,850 --> 00:03:16,410 through the feeding through ravens and how he met a 51 00:03:16,410 --> 00:03:20,050 widow and the Lord provided for him food there, and he 52 00:03:20,050 --> 00:03:23,720 helped raise her child from the dead. And then after 53 00:03:23,720 --> 00:03:27,080 that, we saw Elijah be used to. To 54 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:30,800 encounter the most evil king in Israel. And. 55 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:34,320 And then, of course, we. We saw Elijah, or we read about Elijah 56 00:03:34,640 --> 00:03:38,120 calling down fire from heaven and God answering that prayer. What 57 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:41,640 faith it must have taken to call fire down to 58 00:03:41,640 --> 00:03:45,200 a wet trench in the Lord. To lick that trench up with fire, 59 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:48,880 man. God is so, so faithful. We also learned last week 60 00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:52,860 that without fire it is, what, Impossible to 61 00:03:52,860 --> 00:03:56,660 please God. It's impossible to please God without faith. I 62 00:03:56,660 --> 00:04:00,500 want you to think about that for a second. I want 63 00:04:00,500 --> 00:04:03,060 to be a pleaser of Jesus. 64 00:04:04,180 --> 00:04:07,900 I want to please the Lord God Almighty, and I can't do it 65 00:04:07,900 --> 00:04:11,620 without faith. And so today I believe that our 66 00:04:11,620 --> 00:04:15,420 faith is going to be challenged and stretched in a different way, 67 00:04:15,420 --> 00:04:18,980 because a lot of times we have faith to believe that he'll provide for this 68 00:04:18,980 --> 00:04:22,520 or he'll heal this, or all this. But I believe that today 69 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:26,280 God wants us to stretch our faith internally with some of the things that 70 00:04:26,280 --> 00:04:29,520 we may be contending with. So if you'll stand with me this morning, we're going 71 00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:33,320 to read two brief scriptures that are not from First Kings, but they 72 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:37,120 are connected to the direction we're going today. So if 73 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:39,840 you will read this as. If 74 00:04:41,280 --> 00:04:44,960 your soul is on fire for the Lord Jesus. Here we go. Let's read it. 75 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:50,240 There you go. I knew that was coming. Thank you, Connie. 76 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,920 Here we go. God has not given us a spirit of 77 00:04:53,920 --> 00:04:57,440 fear, but of power and of love and of a 78 00:04:57,440 --> 00:05:01,120 sound mind. It is for freedom that 79 00:05:01,120 --> 00:05:04,720 Christ has set us free. Stand firm then. 80 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:08,400 And do not let yourselves be burdened again by 81 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:12,000 yoke of slavery. Father, thank you for your word. I thank you for its 82 00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:15,720 truth. I pray, Lord, that you would transform our lives today in Jesus 83 00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:19,440 name. And everybody said, amen. High five someone you don't like on the way 84 00:05:19,440 --> 00:05:19,760 down 85 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:26,560 and then sign up to go to lunch with them next week. 86 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:33,720 If you know me at all you know that I have a strong aversion towards 87 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:37,120 spiders. I do not like spiders. Anybody relate. 88 00:05:37,280 --> 00:05:41,080 Spiders just kind of creep me out. And, you know, several years 89 00:05:41,080 --> 00:05:44,240 ago, I was preparing a message on fear. And 90 00:05:45,050 --> 00:05:48,770 ironically. Well, not ironically. Every Saturday I would come and I would tread 91 00:05:48,770 --> 00:05:51,890 this carpet back and forth. I'd be praying for you. I'd be praying for the 92 00:05:51,890 --> 00:05:55,650 message. Asking the Lord to share with me what he 93 00:05:55,650 --> 00:05:58,570 would want me to share with you. And I got over here in this section. 94 00:05:58,570 --> 00:06:01,690 This is where the youth used to sit. I got over here, this youth section. 95 00:06:01,690 --> 00:06:05,250 As I'm walking, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, this spider plops down off 96 00:06:05,250 --> 00:06:08,530 the ceiling in front of my face. Can I just tell you, I was glad 97 00:06:08,530 --> 00:06:12,360 I was the only one in the room at that moment. Because my 98 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:16,080 reaction would have gotten some definite responses from. From a 99 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:19,640 crowd. But boy, let me tell you, after my scream, I moved this way and 100 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:23,400 I started treading carpet. Only about halfway. I just started 101 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:27,120 going back and forth. Now, isn't it silly to think, man, this spider, that 102 00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:30,520 was. You know. And of course, we always make it larger than it really was, 103 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:33,520 right? When we tell the story. It was like a dime size or a nickel, 104 00:06:33,520 --> 00:06:37,310 you know. And so anyway, so this small spider, and it's on the ground. 105 00:06:37,310 --> 00:06:41,150 And I'm like. I start to laugh at myself. Because I'm 106 00:06:41,310 --> 00:06:43,990 only going to right here. Cause there's a spider over there. And I thought to 107 00:06:43,990 --> 00:06:47,710 think, kevin, you. Are so much bigger than this spider. 108 00:06:48,350 --> 00:06:51,870 Like, there is not a reason for you not to go to this half of 109 00:06:51,870 --> 00:06:55,670 the room. This half of the room needs the anointing as well. So I need 110 00:06:55,670 --> 00:06:58,230 to come over here and pray as well. So I get over here and of 111 00:06:58,230 --> 00:07:01,950 course, the Lord illuminates the spider on the ground. And I. Forgive me. 112 00:07:01,950 --> 00:07:05,710 I crushed. Breathed its last that day. 113 00:07:05,870 --> 00:07:08,890 And I took a picture of it. Cause I wanted to show the car congregation. 114 00:07:08,890 --> 00:07:12,730 But, you know, I didn't take the picture from up here. I got real close 115 00:07:12,730 --> 00:07:15,330 to the spider. You know why? Because I wanted y' all to see how big 116 00:07:15,330 --> 00:07:19,090 it was, you know. But it was really that big. Hey, there's a saying 117 00:07:19,090 --> 00:07:21,970 that goes like this. It says, you need to face your fears. Have you ever 118 00:07:21,970 --> 00:07:25,770 heard that? You need to face your fears. And I don't know. I don't know. 119 00:07:25,770 --> 00:07:28,090 I'm still chewing on this. But I don't know that that's biblical. 120 00:07:30,970 --> 00:07:34,730 Because when somebody says, go face your fears, it solicits the idea that on your 121 00:07:34,730 --> 00:07:38,480 own strength, you need to go face your Fears. I think instead of going after 122 00:07:38,480 --> 00:07:42,040 and facing our fears, we need to face God and allow 123 00:07:42,040 --> 00:07:45,800 God to do what. He'S going to do in and through us. So 124 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:49,120 today, we're talking about fear. We're talking about 125 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:52,840 fear. Now, sometimes when we talk about fear, we can kind of 126 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:56,440 check out, because when we think of fear, we think of that moment like when 127 00:07:56,440 --> 00:08:00,000 the spider falls and you jump, okay. And that type of thing. 128 00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:03,990 There's different levels of fear. And may I suggest that some. 129 00:08:04,220 --> 00:08:07,900 Some of us have actually ordered the. Steps of our lives based on. 130 00:08:08,700 --> 00:08:12,420 Fueled by fear. Fueled by fear. And 131 00:08:12,420 --> 00:08:15,580 so today we're going to continue the story of 132 00:08:16,220 --> 00:08:19,979 Elijah. Like I said last week, it starts with a man named Ahab. Ahab is 133 00:08:19,979 --> 00:08:23,620 the evilest king, most evil king in all of Israel. He's married to a 134 00:08:23,620 --> 00:08:27,260 lady named Jezebel. And Jezebel is man. She is a warrior. 135 00:08:27,260 --> 00:08:30,820 She is a force to be reckoned with. She is out to kill you if 136 00:08:30,820 --> 00:08:34,460 you get in her way. She's strong and mighty. And 137 00:08:34,460 --> 00:08:38,080 Ahab, I believe, was an insecure, insecure king. I think that's probably why he was 138 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:40,880 the most evil king, because I think. He just did what everybody told him to 139 00:08:40,880 --> 00:08:44,680 do. And he pouts. He pouts. And when he 140 00:08:44,680 --> 00:08:46,440 pouts, Jezebel comes to his rescue 141 00:08:48,360 --> 00:08:51,839 and will make things happen for him. And then God raises up in the middle 142 00:08:51,839 --> 00:08:55,680 of 1st Kings 17, he raises up this guy named Elijah. And Elijah means the 143 00:08:55,680 --> 00:08:59,480 Lord is my God. Would you say that the Lord is my God? 144 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:03,140 Say it again. The Lord is my God. Oh, that. Would 145 00:09:03,140 --> 00:09:06,780 that be, like, our names that I could say? Kevin, the Lord 146 00:09:06,780 --> 00:09:10,140 is my God. Tina, the Lord is my God. 147 00:09:10,380 --> 00:09:14,100 What would it be like that we would actually have that anthem about our name? 148 00:09:14,100 --> 00:09:17,780 When somebody spoke about us, they knew the Lord God, the 149 00:09:17,780 --> 00:09:21,540 true living God, is their God. And so he raises up Elijah 150 00:09:21,540 --> 00:09:25,140 seemingly out of nowhere, though we believe. I believe he's got a story that 151 00:09:25,140 --> 00:09:28,980 we. That we don't know about, because I believe the Lord was maturing him 152 00:09:28,980 --> 00:09:32,690 and getting him ready for that appointed moment. But he's raised 153 00:09:32,690 --> 00:09:35,570 up for such a time as this. And God takes him through these things and 154 00:09:35,570 --> 00:09:39,410 builds his faith. Builds his faith. We stood with Elijah on 155 00:09:39,410 --> 00:09:43,130 Mount Carmel. He prayed boldly, and he poured 156 00:09:43,130 --> 00:09:46,850 water on that altar. And God answered with fire. 157 00:09:47,250 --> 00:09:50,970 The people fell on their faces and declared, the Lord, he 158 00:09:50,970 --> 00:09:54,530 is God. It was a defining moment of 159 00:09:54,530 --> 00:09:58,290 faith, boldness, and power. The power of God fully 160 00:09:58,290 --> 00:10:01,940 on display. Display. But today, just one chapter 161 00:10:01,940 --> 00:10:05,500 later, we find Elijah is hiding in a 162 00:10:05,500 --> 00:10:07,700 cave. Exhausted 163 00:10:08,660 --> 00:10:11,620 Discouraged, afraid, 164 00:10:12,340 --> 00:10:15,940 and alone. Have you ever felt exhausted, 165 00:10:16,980 --> 00:10:19,540 discouraged, afraid, 166 00:10:20,660 --> 00:10:23,940 or alone? What happened here? 167 00:10:25,310 --> 00:10:28,990 In one moment, you're calling down fire. From 168 00:10:28,990 --> 00:10:32,350 heaven, and the next moment you're running for your life 169 00:10:32,750 --> 00:10:34,990 and hiding in a cave. 170 00:10:37,310 --> 00:10:40,630 Now, we like to look at that story. And like I told you a few. 171 00:10:40,630 --> 00:10:43,870 Weeks ago, sometimes I look at characters. In Scripture and I read the story. And 172 00:10:43,870 --> 00:10:47,630 I go, how foolish is that, man? How weak of a person. But, 173 00:10:47,630 --> 00:10:51,360 man, if I'm honest with you, Kevin is one 174 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:55,000 that will call down. Fire and in the next moment, be hiding in a 175 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:57,960 cave. Be hiding in a cave. 176 00:10:59,320 --> 00:11:02,440 I wonder how many people here are. Hiding in caves this morning. 177 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:07,880 And so, after the fire comes down, 178 00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:12,200 God is going to address this issue of no rain. Okay? 179 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:13,960 Jack. Come here, buddy. 180 00:11:17,170 --> 00:11:19,890 All right. Now, the last person did this broke my sign. But I want you 181 00:11:19,890 --> 00:11:22,690 to hop over on stage and don't break the sign on your way up, okay? 182 00:11:23,010 --> 00:11:25,330 All right. Can you sit down here 183 00:11:27,090 --> 00:11:30,890 and. No, put your legs over. No, back up. Okay. Put your head between your 184 00:11:30,890 --> 00:11:34,490 knees. Okay. And put your hands on your head and stay right 185 00:11:34,490 --> 00:11:36,530 there. Okay. 186 00:11:38,770 --> 00:11:42,490 Elijah said to Ahab, go eat and drink, for there is 187 00:11:42,490 --> 00:11:46,230 a sound of heavy rain. Just like insecure Ahab. He just 188 00:11:46,230 --> 00:11:49,510 does what he's told to do. Ahab went off and eat and drink. And 189 00:11:49,510 --> 00:11:53,270 Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel, bent down to the ground and put 190 00:11:53,270 --> 00:11:57,110 his face between his knees. Now, I don't know 191 00:11:57,110 --> 00:12:00,589 about you, but this does not look like a position. Of faith to me. 192 00:12:02,350 --> 00:12:06,070 This posture does not look like a faith posture 193 00:12:06,070 --> 00:12:09,870 to me. The word of God continues. Go and look toward the sea, he 194 00:12:09,870 --> 00:12:13,570 told his servant. And he went up and looked. There's nothing there. He 195 00:12:13,570 --> 00:12:17,250 said seven times. Elijah said, go back, 196 00:12:17,810 --> 00:12:19,970 go back, go back. 197 00:12:22,130 --> 00:12:25,730 I wonder what it would look like. If we would have the faith to believe, 198 00:12:25,810 --> 00:12:27,810 to go back one more time. 199 00:12:29,810 --> 00:12:33,490 You see, Elijah was going to give this. He had already given the 200 00:12:33,490 --> 00:12:37,290 word. He told Ahab, hey, hitch your chariots. There's a 201 00:12:37,290 --> 00:12:40,980 sound of rain coming. The boldness of faith 202 00:12:40,980 --> 00:12:44,820 gave him the Holy Spirit. The God of the universe gave 203 00:12:44,820 --> 00:12:48,260 him the boldness to say, there's rain coming, but there was no cloud in the 204 00:12:48,260 --> 00:12:51,900 sky. You see, he had just called fire 205 00:12:51,980 --> 00:12:55,740 from heaven. He just called fire from heaven. And now 206 00:12:55,740 --> 00:12:59,300 he's in a position where it seems that God is causing 207 00:12:59,300 --> 00:13:01,660 him. To wait on the answer. 208 00:13:03,740 --> 00:13:07,500 Can I tell you that sometimes God does not answer 209 00:13:07,500 --> 00:13:10,370 immediately, but he's going to answer 210 00:13:11,160 --> 00:13:14,760 time. There are times in our life where he 211 00:13:14,760 --> 00:13:18,080 will cause us to wait on him until 212 00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:21,760 he's ready to move for the appointed time. Can you 213 00:13:21,760 --> 00:13:25,400 imagine if Elijah had only sent his servant back three or four 214 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,120 times? And some of us will throw in 215 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:32,960 the towel on time number four or time number five. And 216 00:13:32,960 --> 00:13:36,800 God's saying, I need you to come back to me one more time. I need 217 00:13:36,800 --> 00:13:40,280 you to come back one more time. What is your one more time 218 00:13:40,360 --> 00:13:44,000 thing this morning? What is that thing that you just 219 00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:47,320 wanted to throw in the towel and give up on? Is your head between your 220 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:50,760 knees not believing the Lord that he's going to do it? I believe that 221 00:13:50,760 --> 00:13:54,560 Elijah began to have a moment where 222 00:13:54,560 --> 00:13:58,080 he was going, Lord, are you actually going to answer this prayer? Are you actually 223 00:13:58,080 --> 00:14:01,560 going to do what you say you're going to do? And on the seventh time, 224 00:14:01,560 --> 00:14:04,700 it says that a cloud the size of the. Fist shows up 225 00:14:05,180 --> 00:14:08,780 and God answers the prayer. What would it look 226 00:14:08,780 --> 00:14:12,580 like if we. Went back once more, guys? I lose 227 00:14:12,580 --> 00:14:16,380 my keys all the time. Anybody can relate. I lose 228 00:14:16,380 --> 00:14:20,140 my keys all the time. And I will go and look for my keys, and 229 00:14:20,140 --> 00:14:23,300 I will go look in the spot that they should be in, and I'll be 230 00:14:23,300 --> 00:14:26,420 fretting and I'll be upset. And then Shari will say to me, did you pray 231 00:14:26,420 --> 00:14:28,780 about it? No, I didn't pray about it. 232 00:14:31,880 --> 00:14:35,400 And then I pray about it, and I go back once more 233 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:39,240 to the spot that I thought they were in. And guess what's sitting right there? 234 00:14:39,880 --> 00:14:43,680 The keys. I wonder. I wonder if you have 235 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:47,440 a once. More in your spirit this morning. I wonder if you have 236 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:51,000 given up so much that you've thrown in the towel and you just conceded the 237 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:54,680 race. But God is saying, come back once more. Come back once 238 00:14:54,680 --> 00:14:58,450 more and see what I might do. Now, as fun as it is 239 00:14:58,450 --> 00:15:00,450 to watch you do this, the whole service, I'm going to let you get down 240 00:15:00,450 --> 00:15:01,610 now. Thank you. Give him a hand. 241 00:15:07,130 --> 00:15:10,890 Here's the point. The move of God yesterday lays the foundation for faith 242 00:15:10,890 --> 00:15:14,210 action today. The move of God yesterday lays the 243 00:15:14,210 --> 00:15:17,890 foundation for faith action today. This is why it's so important for us to 244 00:15:17,890 --> 00:15:21,370 tell our stories, people, to write them down. 245 00:15:22,310 --> 00:15:25,870 Can I confess to you this morning that I am ashamed at how little 246 00:15:25,870 --> 00:15:29,590 faith I often have in certain situations after having 247 00:15:29,670 --> 00:15:33,430 been around and part of such an amazing move of God. 248 00:15:35,590 --> 00:15:39,310 The move of God yesterday sets a foundation and is 249 00:15:39,310 --> 00:15:41,590 a springboard for your faith action today. 250 00:15:42,550 --> 00:15:46,190 Remembering what God has done, how he's been faithful. When 251 00:15:46,190 --> 00:15:49,970 you're sitting there, when Elijah is sitting there, sitting there, and God has given him 252 00:15:49,970 --> 00:15:53,730 the promise of rain, it doesn't mean God's promises 253 00:15:53,730 --> 00:15:57,450 are null and void. God's promises are yes and amen. And so 254 00:15:57,450 --> 00:16:00,890 he's got this promise of rain. And God has answered at the 255 00:16:00,890 --> 00:16:04,730 ravens. He's answered with the widow. He's answered on the. On the mountain. He's done 256 00:16:04,730 --> 00:16:08,410 all of these things. And God is going to answer Elijah 257 00:16:08,410 --> 00:16:11,450 this time, too. And can I tell you, he's going to answer you as well. 258 00:16:11,930 --> 00:16:15,510 We have to remember. We have to remember that he 259 00:16:15,510 --> 00:16:19,150 healed that person, that he brought the prodigal home. We have to 260 00:16:19,150 --> 00:16:22,990 remember what he's done in our lives. We have to remember because we're so fickle 261 00:16:22,990 --> 00:16:26,750 and we forget. But it is a bolster of faith. 262 00:16:26,750 --> 00:16:30,190 To hear testimonies of God's supernatural move in our lives. 263 00:16:30,990 --> 00:16:34,710 And when he moves and when we share those stories, it enables, 264 00:16:34,710 --> 00:16:38,190 it renders us, it puts us in a place where we can say, man, maybe 265 00:16:38,190 --> 00:16:41,950 I can have that type of faith for what I'm needing God to do 266 00:16:42,350 --> 00:16:46,190 now. For what I'm needing God to do now. Revelation 267 00:16:46,190 --> 00:16:49,990 tells us that they overcame by what? The blood of the and 268 00:16:49,990 --> 00:16:53,790 the Word. Of the Word of the testimony. Our 269 00:16:53,790 --> 00:16:57,590 testimony doesn't mean squat without the blood of Christ. We 270 00:16:57,590 --> 00:17:01,230 need the blood of Christ. And then there's power in the 271 00:17:01,230 --> 00:17:05,070 testimony. There's power in the Word. There's power 272 00:17:05,150 --> 00:17:08,950 in your story. Share your story. We've started to do a 273 00:17:08,950 --> 00:17:12,130 moment every service where we tell stories. Is that just because we. We don't have 274 00:17:12,130 --> 00:17:15,890 enough to do? No, it's because I want people's faith to be bolstered and we 275 00:17:15,890 --> 00:17:19,170 sing about this great, glorious God. There's nothing better than to come in and get 276 00:17:19,170 --> 00:17:22,970 our mind off of the distraction we walked in here with and say, let me 277 00:17:22,970 --> 00:17:26,490 tell you what God did for me. And now let's go praise Him. Now let's 278 00:17:26,490 --> 00:17:30,290 go to the King and praise him. Guys, we gotta tell the story. We gotta 279 00:17:30,290 --> 00:17:34,130 tell the story. So Jezebel hears what happens on 280 00:17:34,130 --> 00:17:37,210 Mount. Carmel and sends a message. 281 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:41,560 And the message is, Elijah, I love you. You're great. 282 00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:45,720 You're wonderful. She says, I'm going to kill you. 283 00:17:47,560 --> 00:17:50,600 I'm going to kill you. By this time tomorrow, you're dead. I'm going to kill 284 00:17:50,600 --> 00:17:54,440 you. And Elijah 285 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:58,120 responds with this, says, Elijah was afraid 286 00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:01,840 and ran for his life. Would you say that Elijah 287 00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:05,400 was afraid and ran for his life? Guys, this doesn't make sense. 288 00:18:07,470 --> 00:18:10,190 Why would Elijah run for his life? 289 00:18:11,710 --> 00:18:15,230 You just saw God move. You know his 290 00:18:15,230 --> 00:18:18,990 promises are yes and amen. You just listened to that podcast on 291 00:18:18,990 --> 00:18:22,710 faith. You just went to church on that Sunday and heard the pastor preach. You 292 00:18:22,710 --> 00:18:25,830 just prayed for somebody and they got healed. You just saw the 293 00:18:25,830 --> 00:18:29,670 supernatural move of God. You just witnessed the move of God, and you 294 00:18:29,670 --> 00:18:32,270 were just telling somebody else to believe by faith. 295 00:18:33,900 --> 00:18:37,580 Yet you end up running for your. Life the minute you 296 00:18:37,580 --> 00:18:41,380 come up against something hard. Can I tell you, there is 297 00:18:41,380 --> 00:18:45,100 nothing that you will come up against that your God is 298 00:18:45,100 --> 00:18:48,940 not bigger than and stronger than. There is nothing that you are 299 00:18:48,940 --> 00:18:52,700 contending with that your great glorious God won't meet you in 300 00:18:52,700 --> 00:18:56,060 the middle and fight valiant for you. More are you 301 00:18:56,060 --> 00:18:59,500 surrounded by right, Lord, than your 302 00:18:59,500 --> 00:19:03,140 enemies. He has you. He will carry you. 303 00:19:03,140 --> 00:19:06,980 He is faithful and just to supply. Your needs, 304 00:19:07,220 --> 00:19:08,340 to be with you. 305 00:19:10,900 --> 00:19:14,660 To give you the victory. By this tomorrow, you're going to 306 00:19:14,660 --> 00:19:18,460 be dead. And Elijah runs. He runs into the 307 00:19:18,460 --> 00:19:21,700 wilderness, collapses under a broom bush, and says this. 308 00:19:22,660 --> 00:19:25,590 And I wonder if we've said this before. I've had enough, Lord. 309 00:19:27,100 --> 00:19:30,740 Take my life. I am no better than my 310 00:19:30,740 --> 00:19:34,180 ancestors. Now, I know that 311 00:19:34,180 --> 00:19:37,140 Elijah is about. To have this moment with the Lord on the mountain, but I 312 00:19:37,140 --> 00:19:40,140 believe that this is the moment where he woke up and realized, 313 00:19:41,100 --> 00:19:44,820 I've made a mistake. Because he says I'm 314 00:19:44,820 --> 00:19:48,140 no better than my ancestors. Why would he say that? 315 00:19:48,620 --> 00:19:52,340 He's saying that to say, you've done all of this 316 00:19:52,340 --> 00:19:55,980 stuff through me. But here I am running for my life, 317 00:19:56,700 --> 00:20:00,340 not trusting your word. Take my life. Take 318 00:20:00,340 --> 00:20:03,900 me home. Is there 319 00:20:03,900 --> 00:20:06,620 anybody in this room who has gotten to that point? 320 00:20:10,540 --> 00:20:14,260 Lord, the fight's too tough. I'm ready to throw in the 321 00:20:14,260 --> 00:20:17,860 towel. I'm sick and tired 322 00:20:17,860 --> 00:20:21,500 of contending with the same old, same old God. Just take 323 00:20:21,740 --> 00:20:23,240 me out. 324 00:20:25,960 --> 00:20:29,400 And if we're honest with ourselves, there would be a large percentage of people. In 325 00:20:29,400 --> 00:20:33,160 this room who have prayed that prayer, who have thought that 326 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:36,840 thought. And somebody may be in this room this morning carrying that 327 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,240 weight and hiding behind a smile that you walked in with. 328 00:20:43,000 --> 00:20:44,200 I've had enough, Lord. 329 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:48,200 I've had enough. 330 00:20:52,810 --> 00:20:56,170 I like roller coasters. Anybody like a good roller coaster? 331 00:20:56,650 --> 00:21:00,330 Took my family, my extended family, to a theme park 332 00:21:00,970 --> 00:21:04,770 a while back and. Took my niece, Brooklyn. She's back there 333 00:21:04,770 --> 00:21:07,770 in the back. She's much older now. She's so happy I'm telling this story. 334 00:21:08,410 --> 00:21:12,170 And I really wanted to go on the roller coaster, 335 00:21:12,330 --> 00:21:15,090 but, you know, you had to be a certain height to go on the roller 336 00:21:15,090 --> 00:21:18,790 coaster. And she was scared. And she's like, is it scary? Is it 337 00:21:18,790 --> 00:21:21,990 gonna. Like, are we gonna. And I was like, no, it's gonna be fine. You're 338 00:21:21,990 --> 00:21:25,790 gonna be Absolutely fine. Going on this roller coaster. And so we 339 00:21:25,790 --> 00:21:29,190 took her on this roller coaster. Now she is the small one there 340 00:21:29,190 --> 00:21:32,790 beside her dad. Now, in case you can't see her face, this is 341 00:21:32,790 --> 00:21:36,590 her holding on for dear 342 00:21:36,590 --> 00:21:40,110 life because she believed her 343 00:21:40,110 --> 00:21:42,950 crazy uncle Kevin when he said, this is gonna be fine. 344 00:21:44,470 --> 00:21:47,910 Here's my point. Fear doesn't need a lot of evidence. It just needs a small 345 00:21:47,910 --> 00:21:49,110 voice with the right lie. 346 00:21:51,750 --> 00:21:55,510 Fear does not need a lot of evidence. It just needs a small voice with 347 00:21:55,510 --> 00:21:58,430 the right lie. And can I tell you, some of. You have built your life 348 00:21:58,430 --> 00:22:02,230 around this lie. You've built 349 00:22:02,550 --> 00:22:06,070 your camp, your house, your actions, your family, 350 00:22:06,230 --> 00:22:09,750 your relationships, your decisions. Around a small 351 00:22:10,660 --> 00:22:14,380 lie. You have allowed the enemy to come into your 352 00:22:14,380 --> 00:22:18,060 life and say something that is completely opposite than God's 353 00:22:18,060 --> 00:22:20,020 truth, God's word. 354 00:22:22,900 --> 00:22:26,580 And God is saying, I want to. Speak truth into that situation 355 00:22:26,660 --> 00:22:30,340 this morning. I want to speak truth 356 00:22:30,580 --> 00:22:34,100 into that lie that you've bought into. But God, I've so bought into this lie 357 00:22:34,100 --> 00:22:37,920 that I'm so far deep, there's no coming back. Can 358 00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:40,440 I tell you that's a lie. From the enemy, too? 359 00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:46,440 The mighty arm of the Lord is never, never too short to 360 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:50,120 save. And he can save you today. He 361 00:22:50,120 --> 00:22:53,840 can save you today. In other words, you can leave here. Not the 362 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:57,600 same way you came. You can leave here 363 00:22:57,600 --> 00:23:00,200 not the same way you came. 364 00:23:02,120 --> 00:23:05,970 When fear wins, we forget what God has just proved to us. 365 00:23:06,930 --> 00:23:09,970 We run from the very places where we saw his glory fall. 366 00:23:10,530 --> 00:23:13,410 Listen, Elijah is physically, emotionally, and 367 00:23:13,650 --> 00:23:17,250 spiritually done. But notice what 368 00:23:17,250 --> 00:23:21,010 God does. See, we have made up in our. Mind when we get to places, 369 00:23:21,250 --> 00:23:25,090 when. We bought into the lie, when we. When we're in shame, when our heads 370 00:23:25,090 --> 00:23:28,610 are between our legs, we have made up in our mind that this great big 371 00:23:28,610 --> 00:23:32,420 God is out to smite us and punish us for not having the faith that 372 00:23:32,420 --> 00:23:35,980 we need to render cause. Because when we're in this place and we're 373 00:23:35,980 --> 00:23:39,740 depleted, when we're in our flesh, that also is symptomatic 374 00:23:39,740 --> 00:23:43,420 because there's sin attached to it. Because we will soothe. We will go after things 375 00:23:43,660 --> 00:23:46,380 to make us feel better. And so we've got this whole realm of sin. And 376 00:23:46,380 --> 00:23:49,340 we. And we make up in our mind that this God is out with a 377 00:23:49,340 --> 00:23:51,340 big fly swatter just to swat us. 378 00:23:53,180 --> 00:23:55,890 But that's not what God does. Here to Elijah, 379 00:23:56,920 --> 00:24:00,280 the man of God. Whom he's chosen to use, it says 380 00:24:01,720 --> 00:24:05,360 that he didn't correct him. He didn't 381 00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:08,840 rebuke him. It says he sent an angel with food, 382 00:24:09,080 --> 00:24:12,600 water, and Rest. He says this 383 00:24:12,760 --> 00:24:16,520 get up and eat. For the journey is too much for 384 00:24:16,520 --> 00:24:20,360 you. It's not a rebuke, it's a reminder. 385 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:23,630 You're not finished yet, Elijah. 386 00:24:24,670 --> 00:24:28,190 And can I tell you this morning, you're not finished yet, Sam. 387 00:24:29,390 --> 00:24:32,790 You're not finished yet, J.D. you're not 388 00:24:32,790 --> 00:24:36,430 finished yet. You're not finished yet. 389 00:24:39,550 --> 00:24:42,910 Some of us are expecting God to. Scold us in our weakness, but instead he 390 00:24:42,910 --> 00:24:44,030 meets us with mercy. 391 00:24:46,670 --> 00:24:50,310 Before God speaks to your fear, he. Will minister to your need. Do you ever 392 00:24:50,310 --> 00:24:53,830 notice if you read. The Gospels, do you ever notice that. Jesus 393 00:24:53,830 --> 00:24:57,670 always took care of the physical. Needs of people before he ministered to them 394 00:24:57,670 --> 00:25:01,430 spiritually? If you read the Gospels, you look at Jesus and he's all 395 00:25:01,430 --> 00:25:04,830 about touching them physically, blind seeing and 396 00:25:04,830 --> 00:25:08,350 supplying their needs. He's always moving in them physically before he 397 00:25:08,350 --> 00:25:11,990 ministers to them spiritually. And guys, can I tell you, this is a little side 398 00:25:11,990 --> 00:25:15,630 note, but we probably could take a beat from Jesus in this because it's so 399 00:25:15,630 --> 00:25:19,230 much easier for me to send a text sitting on my couch where I'm comfortable 400 00:25:19,230 --> 00:25:22,270 than it is to get up and go do something to encourage somebody who needs 401 00:25:22,270 --> 00:25:25,930 me present. Might we be 402 00:25:25,930 --> 00:25:29,610 a people who put our faith in action by 403 00:25:29,610 --> 00:25:33,370 not just encouraging people? Listen, there's nothing wrong with a good text 404 00:25:33,370 --> 00:25:36,970 message. I send text message scriptures all the time. I call people and do scripture 405 00:25:36,970 --> 00:25:39,290 all the time. When the Lord's telling me to do. That, I think that's a 406 00:25:39,290 --> 00:25:41,450 good thing. There's power in the Word. 407 00:25:43,370 --> 00:25:47,170 But if you're sitting there and the person is hungry, I can quote 408 00:25:47,170 --> 00:25:49,490 scripture at them all day long. If I got a loaf of bread in my 409 00:25:49,490 --> 00:25:51,210 hand and I'm not feeding them the loaf of bread, 410 00:25:54,990 --> 00:25:58,790 maybe that person just needs you to come sit with them. Maybe 411 00:25:58,790 --> 00:26:02,350 that person needs needs to go hang out with somebody. Maybe there's, there's a ton 412 00:26:02,350 --> 00:26:05,710 of things. But may we be people who put our faith in action. 413 00:26:07,470 --> 00:26:10,630 And guys most. Of the time, at least from my experience, and this might not 414 00:26:10,630 --> 00:26:13,390 be yours, but my experience is it is rarely convenient. 415 00:26:14,590 --> 00:26:18,310 It's rarely convenient when the Lord has me to go encourage somebody 416 00:26:18,310 --> 00:26:22,030 or to be a raven to somebody like he was to Elijah. 417 00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:26,200 It's rarely works well with my schedule. It rarely is 418 00:26:26,200 --> 00:26:29,800 convenient. But man, 419 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:33,640 the blessing of the sacrifice. The Word tells us obedience is better than sacrifice. 420 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:37,400 The blessing of being obedient and sacrificing my time. 421 00:26:38,119 --> 00:26:41,560 Oh my goodness. I really see the work of the Holy Spirit. 422 00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:45,480 Before God speaks to your fear, he. Ministers to your need. 423 00:26:46,200 --> 00:26:49,720 Elijah travels 40 days to Mount Horeb and finds a cave. 424 00:26:49,960 --> 00:26:53,700 And the Lord says this, and I. Want to read it. This is the 425 00:26:53,700 --> 00:26:56,740 portion that we're familiar. With in the cave. The word of the Lord came to 426 00:26:56,740 --> 00:27:00,380 him, and he says this. What are you doing here, Elijah? 427 00:27:01,820 --> 00:27:05,260 He replied, I've been very zealous for the Lord God 428 00:27:05,260 --> 00:27:09,020 Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your 429 00:27:09,020 --> 00:27:12,500 covenant, torn down your altars, and put your 430 00:27:12,500 --> 00:27:15,820 prophets to death with the sword. I am the only 431 00:27:16,220 --> 00:27:19,110 one left. Bull. 432 00:27:22,070 --> 00:27:25,350 When we get isolated and alone and we throw our tantrums, 433 00:27:25,670 --> 00:27:29,110 I'm the only one. This only happens to me, 434 00:27:29,750 --> 00:27:33,430 right? I'm the only one here. This is 435 00:27:33,430 --> 00:27:36,790 just me. Have you ever. Anybody got little kids throw a temper 436 00:27:36,790 --> 00:27:40,550 tantrum, and it's like the problem's this big, but boy, their fit is 437 00:27:40,550 --> 00:27:42,310 this huge, right? 438 00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:46,800 Careful, we can get that way with the Lord real fast. 439 00:27:49,040 --> 00:27:52,800 The Lord said, go out and stand. On the mountain 440 00:27:52,800 --> 00:27:56,000 in the presence of. The Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by. 441 00:27:56,880 --> 00:28:00,560 It says, then a great powerful wind tore through the mountains and tore apart. 442 00:28:00,560 --> 00:28:04,400 And shattered the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. 443 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:08,200 Say that the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, 444 00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:12,020 there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. Say it. 445 00:28:12,020 --> 00:28:15,620 The Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire. 446 00:28:16,340 --> 00:28:19,740 But the Lord was not in the fire. Say it. The Lord was not in 447 00:28:19,740 --> 00:28:23,500 the fire. And after the fire came a 448 00:28:23,500 --> 00:28:27,140 gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, 449 00:28:27,220 --> 00:28:30,900 he pulled his cloak over his face and went 450 00:28:30,900 --> 00:28:34,620 out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then 451 00:28:34,620 --> 00:28:37,940 a voice said to him, what are you doing here, 452 00:28:37,940 --> 00:28:41,660 Elijah? Now, I want 453 00:28:41,660 --> 00:28:45,500 us to notice the. Sequence of events here, because when I. Used to just gloss 454 00:28:45,500 --> 00:28:48,020 over the story. Really quickly, I missed something very important. 455 00:28:49,940 --> 00:28:53,540 When the fire fell and the wind. Came and the earthquake 456 00:28:53,620 --> 00:28:56,820 happened, where was Elijah? 457 00:28:58,500 --> 00:29:00,940 He wasn't at the mouth of the cave. The Lord told him to go to 458 00:29:00,940 --> 00:29:03,180 the mouth of the cave, but he was not at the mouth of the. Cave 459 00:29:03,180 --> 00:29:06,820 at that point. He was inside the cave when the 460 00:29:06,820 --> 00:29:10,620 fire fell. When the earthquake happened and the wind happened, it wasn't 461 00:29:10,620 --> 00:29:14,180 until he heard the whisper of the Lord that he moved. 462 00:29:14,180 --> 00:29:17,860 Guys, can I tell you some of the largest mistakes we make is we try 463 00:29:17,860 --> 00:29:20,940 to move in the middle of the chaos. We try to make our moves and 464 00:29:20,940 --> 00:29:24,580 we try to fix things. When things, big things are happening, we're looking to 465 00:29:24,580 --> 00:29:28,180 see the earth shatter around us. And that's when we want to fix her. We 466 00:29:28,180 --> 00:29:31,030 want to see a move of God. And God is saying, be still and. Know 467 00:29:31,030 --> 00:29:34,870 that I'm God. He's saying, be still and wait for my whisper in 468 00:29:34,870 --> 00:29:37,790 the midst of the chaos surrounding your life. 469 00:29:39,310 --> 00:29:42,950 But sometimes we move. The Lord was not in the wind. He was not in 470 00:29:42,950 --> 00:29:44,110 the earthquake or the fire. 471 00:29:47,790 --> 00:29:51,230 He didn't move during the chaos. He waited for the whisper. 472 00:29:52,430 --> 00:29:55,470 And even though God had told him. To step out, Elijah didn't move 473 00:29:56,280 --> 00:29:59,320 through the shaking around him. 474 00:30:01,400 --> 00:30:04,840 God is holding Elijah steady. And God is holding you 475 00:30:04,920 --> 00:30:08,360 steady as well. He's holding you steady. 476 00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:12,280 God was saying to Elijah, I'm not in the noise. 477 00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:15,880 I'm not in the chaos. I'm in the whisper. 478 00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:20,600 We don't step out when things get loud. We step out when God speaks. 479 00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:24,760 And that's a fundamental truth that we. Need to own church. 480 00:30:26,780 --> 00:30:30,140 Even if it looks like we're. So here's the thing. He just called down fire 481 00:30:30,140 --> 00:30:33,220 from heaven. It would make sense to me. I see fire. That must be the 482 00:30:33,220 --> 00:30:36,980 Lord. But you got to know his voice in order 483 00:30:36,980 --> 00:30:40,420 to know and delineate whether it is the Lord. Because let me tell you, the 484 00:30:40,420 --> 00:30:44,220 world's got some schemes that can make things look a whole lot 485 00:30:44,220 --> 00:30:48,060 like God that are not God. But if you know his voice, 486 00:30:48,860 --> 00:30:52,550 then you can say, that's the Lord. But it 487 00:30:52,550 --> 00:30:56,230 looks like. It looks like the T shirt looks like. It looks like it's 488 00:30:56,230 --> 00:30:59,990 decorated like the Lord. It sounds like the Lord. If 489 00:30:59,990 --> 00:31:03,630 you don't know his voice. If you don't know his 490 00:31:03,630 --> 00:31:07,430 voice, you. Might be running your life off of something that's carnal, something that's of 491 00:31:07,430 --> 00:31:11,230 the. World, something that looks like the packaging. But doesn't have any type of gift 492 00:31:11,230 --> 00:31:14,950 inside. We need to know his 493 00:31:14,950 --> 00:31:17,960 voice. We need to know his voice. 494 00:31:18,680 --> 00:31:20,680 But guys, we're so distracted. 495 00:31:22,520 --> 00:31:26,120 In order to know his voice, we have to stop and 496 00:31:26,120 --> 00:31:28,440 slow down and listen. 497 00:31:31,080 --> 00:31:34,600 Well, I listened for 30 seconds yesterday, 498 00:31:35,080 --> 00:31:38,760 last week. I don't know about you, but when. I get into 499 00:31:38,760 --> 00:31:41,920 my listening time, I think I was talking to Joshua about this a few weeks 500 00:31:41,920 --> 00:31:45,720 ago. Get in my listening time. I'll go to the park sometimes. I'll walk that 501 00:31:45,720 --> 00:31:49,180 mile. I'll get in my listening time. Do you know I have to walk. Before 502 00:31:49,180 --> 00:31:52,940 I start listening? Because my brain, for the first time, I've shut myself 503 00:31:52,940 --> 00:31:56,500 down enough. And my brain's like. It's catch up time. And so everything 504 00:31:56,580 --> 00:31:59,860 floods to the front of my mind that I've been thinking about and worrying about. 505 00:31:59,860 --> 00:32:02,780 And then before I can get to a place where I actually quiet my spirit 506 00:32:02,780 --> 00:32:06,380 down and listen, I've actually got to walk that whole Mile. And then I can 507 00:32:06,380 --> 00:32:07,140 start listening. 508 00:32:11,860 --> 00:32:15,100 So maybe when you're doing your devotional time and you're like, man, I read four 509 00:32:15,100 --> 00:32:17,460 pages, but I have no idea. What I just read because my mind's going so 510 00:32:17,460 --> 00:32:21,010 fast. Anybody. You might need to increase your time. In your word, 511 00:32:21,490 --> 00:32:24,210 get you a moment. To write down all those thoughts and get them out, get 512 00:32:24,210 --> 00:32:27,290 them out, get out. And here's the crazy thing about the Lord. You get out 513 00:32:27,290 --> 00:32:29,970 all those thoughts that are in there. He might minister to you about all that 514 00:32:29,970 --> 00:32:33,570 stuff you've been holding onto in your mind right in that moment. 515 00:32:36,450 --> 00:32:40,170 Something. Think about. Sometimes we want God to 516 00:32:40,170 --> 00:32:43,650 silence our. Fears, but instead he gently redirects us 517 00:32:43,980 --> 00:32:47,260 to what's true. Jezebel isn't the point. 518 00:32:47,660 --> 00:32:50,620 God is. God is the point. 519 00:32:51,420 --> 00:32:55,100 So he asks, what are you doing here, Elijah? What are you doing 520 00:32:55,100 --> 00:32:58,820 here? And here's what we want, guys. We want God to fix the 521 00:32:58,820 --> 00:33:00,780 fear. But instead he fixes our focus. 522 00:33:03,500 --> 00:33:07,220 How many times have I prayed, God. Remove this situation from 523 00:33:07,220 --> 00:33:10,860 my life. Remove this person from my life. I'm sick of feeling this way. 524 00:33:10,860 --> 00:33:14,660 Remove this thing, remove this obstacle. And God just continues to put that 525 00:33:14,660 --> 00:33:18,480 thing right here. Just right here, Just right here. And you know what he's saying? 526 00:33:18,480 --> 00:33:22,240 Get your eyes off the obstacle and. Start looking at me. If you start 527 00:33:22,240 --> 00:33:25,480 looking at me, then I will give you what you need to overcome the 528 00:33:25,480 --> 00:33:29,320 obstacle. But God just. He's just not 529 00:33:29,320 --> 00:33:33,120 in the business of. Making it disappear all the time. Can 530 00:33:33,120 --> 00:33:36,840 he do it? Sure. Rarely does he do it in my life. And 531 00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:40,680 here's the point. Whenever I trust him and focus on him and get 532 00:33:40,680 --> 00:33:44,440 the tools I need to overcome the obstacle, he's teaching Kevin. To become more 533 00:33:44,440 --> 00:33:48,260 like Jesus. And, guys, 534 00:33:48,260 --> 00:33:52,020 I'm a far cry from looking like Jesus. I 535 00:33:52,020 --> 00:33:54,620 need him. I need him to minister to me. 536 00:33:55,580 --> 00:33:59,100 Jezebel's threat wasn't worth addressing. Do you notice that 537 00:33:59,100 --> 00:34:02,780 God never addresses Jezebel? That's the 538 00:34:02,780 --> 00:34:06,540 reason he's in the cave. That's what driven. And God didn't say a thing. You 539 00:34:06,540 --> 00:34:08,980 know what we want God to say? Well, I'm going to take care of that 540 00:34:08,980 --> 00:34:11,500 Jezebel. I'm going to make sure. I'm going to. I'm going to be after her. 541 00:34:11,500 --> 00:34:14,660 You don't have to worry about that Jezebel. I'm going to surround her. God doesn't 542 00:34:14,820 --> 00:34:16,340 mention Jezebel one time. 543 00:34:23,060 --> 00:34:26,500 Because Jezebel's threat wasn't worth addressing. Because she 544 00:34:26,500 --> 00:34:30,300 doesn't hold Elijah's future. God does. And the thing that 545 00:34:30,300 --> 00:34:33,300 you fear doesn't hold your future. God does. 546 00:34:34,020 --> 00:34:37,860 God has a plan for your life. God has a plan to address 547 00:34:37,860 --> 00:34:41,070 the thing that is holding you captive. 548 00:34:41,710 --> 00:34:44,950 So what is it that drives out the fear in our life? This is what 549 00:34:44,950 --> 00:34:47,950 the Word says. There is no fear in love. 550 00:34:48,830 --> 00:34:50,830 Perfect love drives out fear. 551 00:34:52,590 --> 00:34:56,030 Perfect love drives out all fear. 552 00:34:56,110 --> 00:34:58,670 Fear isolates. Fear lies. 553 00:34:59,630 --> 00:35:03,350 Fear convinces you that you're the only. One that feels this way. But what 554 00:35:03,350 --> 00:35:06,490 does God say? He says, you're not the only one. Elijah, 555 00:35:08,800 --> 00:35:12,640 what are you doing here? And that's the question I have for you guys 556 00:35:12,640 --> 00:35:15,760 today. What are you doing here? Tina, 557 00:35:17,920 --> 00:35:20,960 what are you doing here? Joshua, what are you doing here? Merlin. 558 00:35:22,080 --> 00:35:25,840 Jeremy. Arwin, what are you doing? Taylor, what are you doing in this 559 00:35:25,840 --> 00:35:29,600 cave? Ronnie, what are you doing in this cave? Dana, 560 00:35:30,000 --> 00:35:32,800 what are you. What are you doing in this cave? Griffin, 561 00:35:34,790 --> 00:35:37,910 God's saying, I want to set you free. 562 00:35:39,190 --> 00:35:42,750 But you know what you did in the cave? You bought some curtains. You got 563 00:35:42,750 --> 00:35:46,230 yourself a bed. You started painting the walls. 564 00:35:46,870 --> 00:35:50,550 You started to make that cave so comfortable, it's 565 00:35:50,550 --> 00:35:53,910 easier just to stay put. But God's saying, 566 00:35:55,430 --> 00:35:59,270 I've got something so supernaturally wonderful on the outside of 567 00:35:59,270 --> 00:36:02,570 this cave that far supersedes a little shabby check 568 00:36:02,970 --> 00:36:06,690 you created for yourself in that cave. Are 569 00:36:06,690 --> 00:36:10,530 you willing to come out? Why are you in 570 00:36:10,530 --> 00:36:13,050 this head space? This despair, this isolation? 571 00:36:14,650 --> 00:36:17,930 The question of where are you, Elijah. Is not one of 572 00:36:17,930 --> 00:36:21,570 geography. It's one of perspective. Why 573 00:36:21,570 --> 00:36:25,210 are you here in this state. Of mind while I'm still on the throne? 574 00:36:26,260 --> 00:36:30,060 Why are you in this cave when you've already seen my fire and know 575 00:36:30,060 --> 00:36:33,700 what I can do? Why are you afraid of Jezebel when I am Yahweh, 576 00:36:35,460 --> 00:36:38,100 you do not have to be afraid. 577 00:36:40,900 --> 00:36:44,540 And so some of us are sitting in a cave of 578 00:36:44,540 --> 00:36:48,300 discouragement this morning. In the cave of pride, in 579 00:36:48,300 --> 00:36:51,780 a cave of lust, in a cave of. Shame, in a cave of 580 00:36:51,780 --> 00:36:55,260 comparison, in a cave of control, in a cave of 581 00:36:55,260 --> 00:36:57,430 bitterness, in a cave of unbelief cave. 582 00:36:59,430 --> 00:37:03,190 And a whole litany more of caves. That I haven't mentioned. We're sitting in them. 583 00:37:05,110 --> 00:37:08,950 And we can leave here today and. Go right back 584 00:37:08,950 --> 00:37:12,310 into that same cave and cook some breakfast tomorrow morning 585 00:37:12,710 --> 00:37:16,270 and live there. Or we can truly, by faith, 586 00:37:16,270 --> 00:37:19,670 experience. The supernatural move of God. 587 00:37:20,790 --> 00:37:24,480 It's your choice. It's your choice. 588 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:28,720 God has not wavered. God doesn't change 589 00:37:28,720 --> 00:37:32,480 like the shifting wind we do. He doesn't change. He's the same 590 00:37:32,480 --> 00:37:36,000 God yesterday, today, and forever and 591 00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:39,720 forevermore. With those who are going to minister to elements, please 592 00:37:39,720 --> 00:37:43,560 come Forward this morning. We're going 593 00:37:43,560 --> 00:37:45,440 to close the service. A little different today. 594 00:38:03,690 --> 00:38:06,810 Have you ever been in a moment. Of silence and it's uncomfortable? 595 00:38:09,290 --> 00:38:11,610 No. Yes. Okay. 596 00:38:14,650 --> 00:38:16,570 Allow yourself to get uncomfortable this morning 597 00:38:18,890 --> 00:38:22,330 because we're not going to have ambient music to let your mind drift away. 598 00:38:23,370 --> 00:38:27,210 We're going to come and take the Lord's table. Guys, why 599 00:38:27,210 --> 00:38:30,850 do we do the table every week? We go to the table every week 600 00:38:30,850 --> 00:38:34,610 because we are to remember what God 601 00:38:34,610 --> 00:38:38,370 has done. And so this morning, as we go to the table, 602 00:38:38,370 --> 00:38:42,010 I believe that the God of the universe has a whisper. For you in 603 00:38:42,010 --> 00:38:45,570 this room. And so we're going to take the body and the blood, 604 00:38:45,570 --> 00:38:49,170 and I want you to go back to your seat, and I'm going to ask 605 00:38:49,170 --> 00:38:51,970 you to do something for me. I'm going to ask James to scoot over so 606 00:38:51,970 --> 00:38:55,410 I can get this chair. First, I'm going to ask you to take your chair 607 00:38:55,650 --> 00:38:59,370 if you can. If you can't, it's fine. I want you to make it an 608 00:38:59,370 --> 00:39:03,210 altar space. And I want us to just 609 00:39:03,210 --> 00:39:06,450 spend a few moments and see if we might hear the 610 00:39:06,450 --> 00:39:09,170 whisper of an almighty God. 611 00:39:12,600 --> 00:39:16,200 And don't be surprised if that whisper says something like, 612 00:39:16,840 --> 00:39:18,200 why are you here, Belle? 613 00:39:20,440 --> 00:39:23,000 Why are you in this cave? Scotty, 614 00:39:24,280 --> 00:39:26,440 why is your cell phone on in the middle of service? 615 00:39:31,960 --> 00:39:35,770 So I'm going to pray, and you're going to be released. After a few 616 00:39:35,770 --> 00:39:38,970 moments of silence and us hearing his voice, I've asked the team to do a 617 00:39:38,970 --> 00:39:42,650 very special song, and I'm going to come back and wrap things up. Father, 618 00:39:42,650 --> 00:39:45,970 thank you for today. Thank you for the greatest gift you ever gave us. Your 619 00:39:45,970 --> 00:39:49,810 son, Jesus. Holy Spirit, I'm boldly asking 620 00:39:49,810 --> 00:39:53,210 right now that you would whisper to us in this 621 00:39:53,210 --> 00:39:56,850 moment, in Jesus name, you're released to take 622 00:39:56,850 --> 00:39:57,410 communion. 623 00:40:05,260 --> 00:40:09,100 My daughter Hadassah had a splinter when she 624 00:40:09,100 --> 00:40:12,940 was 6 or 7. And 625 00:40:15,660 --> 00:40:17,900 I got her, and she was crying 626 00:40:19,420 --> 00:40:22,820 real hard. She was scared. She was 627 00:40:22,820 --> 00:40:26,550 upset because she was 628 00:40:26,550 --> 00:40:30,350 hurting. And I picked her up and I 629 00:40:30,350 --> 00:40:32,390 put her on the counter, and I looked at her 630 00:40:33,750 --> 00:40:36,150 swelling eyeballs and said, hey, listen, 631 00:40:38,390 --> 00:40:42,229 if you'll let me pull this splinter out, the pain will go 632 00:40:42,310 --> 00:40:46,110 away. She didn't want to. She 633 00:40:46,110 --> 00:40:49,790 was screaming and crying. I tell you 634 00:40:49,790 --> 00:40:53,120 what, I grabbed her hand and I pulled that 635 00:40:53,120 --> 00:40:56,880 splinter out. And can I tell you, the moment I pulled that 636 00:40:56,880 --> 00:40:59,680 splinter out, the pain went away. 637 00:41:00,560 --> 00:41:04,400 Have you ever seen somebody cry and then they turn to laughter, but the tears 638 00:41:04,400 --> 00:41:08,000 are still there because she felt kind of silly, 639 00:41:08,160 --> 00:41:11,680 I think, for crying so much after the pain had 640 00:41:11,680 --> 00:41:15,520 begun. So the next morning, I'm driving to. School, 641 00:41:18,090 --> 00:41:19,770 and I said, see, Hadassah, 642 00:41:22,010 --> 00:41:25,610 the pain can go away. All you needed to do is trust Daddy. 643 00:41:26,410 --> 00:41:29,450 And she replied, daddy, I trust you. 644 00:41:30,010 --> 00:41:31,290 Except for when it hurts. 645 00:41:37,450 --> 00:41:39,290 Sometimes we trust this God 646 00:41:41,610 --> 00:41:43,290 with everything that feels good, 647 00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:47,960 but not when it hurts. 648 00:41:52,280 --> 00:41:56,040 I believe that some of us have been living in some 649 00:41:56,040 --> 00:41:59,880 caves, and it's not going to feel 650 00:41:59,880 --> 00:42:03,640 good to come out in your mind, get out of that 651 00:42:03,640 --> 00:42:07,240 cave. But I believe that if you'll take a faith 652 00:42:07,320 --> 00:42:09,880 step and step out of the cave this morning, 653 00:42:11,140 --> 00:42:14,780 the freedom that you will experience in the Lord will 654 00:42:14,780 --> 00:42:18,380 pale to anything that you've experienced in your 655 00:42:18,380 --> 00:42:20,420 life in this season. 656 00:42:28,580 --> 00:42:32,180 I know that you guys want to have a strong leader in your 657 00:42:32,180 --> 00:42:35,540 pastor this week. This week. 658 00:42:35,950 --> 00:42:39,750 I am weak. I'm not a strong leader 659 00:42:39,750 --> 00:42:43,510 right now. My cave 660 00:42:43,510 --> 00:42:46,670 is not just one cave. My cave has corridors and hallways and 661 00:42:46,750 --> 00:42:47,390 rooms. 662 00:42:50,830 --> 00:42:54,030 I'm dealing right now. I'm hurt and disappointed 663 00:42:54,030 --> 00:42:57,870 relationally. Right now. I am 664 00:42:58,270 --> 00:43:01,070 discouraged in my body right now, physically, 665 00:43:04,200 --> 00:43:07,800 I have questions that continuously are going 666 00:43:07,800 --> 00:43:11,520 unanswered. And, guys, I just. The Lord keeps saying, what are 667 00:43:11,520 --> 00:43:14,680 you doing here, Kevin? You've seen me move. 668 00:43:15,880 --> 00:43:19,400 And so, I don't know, maybe the message is just for me this morning. Guys, 669 00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:23,200 and I'm sorry to confess to you. I 670 00:43:23,200 --> 00:43:25,000 am vulnerable and I am weak, 671 00:43:28,310 --> 00:43:30,550 and I need this God to do something in my life. 672 00:43:32,390 --> 00:43:34,390 I don't want to be in the cave anymore. 673 00:43:36,630 --> 00:43:38,550 So I've asked the team to do this song, 674 00:43:42,150 --> 00:43:45,990 and we talked about, without faith, it's impossible to please him. 675 00:43:47,430 --> 00:43:50,470 And so I'm taking a faith step. In front of all of you people, 676 00:43:51,430 --> 00:43:54,780 and I'm just going to kneel before the Lord here at the opening of. This 677 00:43:54,780 --> 00:43:58,580 cave, this altar space, and I just 678 00:43:58,580 --> 00:44:02,380 want to be set free. If you want 679 00:44:02,380 --> 00:44:05,900 to join me, you can. You don't have to. The 680 00:44:05,900 --> 00:44:07,220 team's gonna do this song. 681 00:44:10,980 --> 00:44:12,500 Psalm 46 says this. 682 00:44:14,660 --> 00:44:18,260 God is our refuge and our strength. A very 683 00:44:18,260 --> 00:44:20,700 present and well proved help in trouble. 684 00:44:22,140 --> 00:44:25,020 Therefore we will not fear. Though the earth should change, 685 00:44:26,380 --> 00:44:30,060 though the mountains be shaken and slip into the heart of the seas, 686 00:44:30,300 --> 00:44:33,940 Though its waters roar and foam, Though its mountains tremble at its 687 00:44:33,940 --> 00:44:37,460 roaring. There is a river whose streams make. 688 00:44:37,460 --> 00:44:40,780 Glad the city of God, the holy 689 00:44:40,780 --> 00:44:44,580 dwelling places of the most high. God is in the 690 00:44:44,580 --> 00:44:48,310 midst of her. She. She will not be moved. God 691 00:44:48,310 --> 00:44:51,910 will help her. In the morning when it dawns, the. Nations 692 00:44:51,910 --> 00:44:55,430 make uproars and kingdoms totter, and we're moved. 693 00:44:55,670 --> 00:44:59,310 But he raises his voice and the earth melted. The Lord 694 00:44:59,310 --> 00:45:02,910 of hosts, he is with us. The God of 695 00:45:02,910 --> 00:45:05,510 Jacob is our stronghold. 696 00:45:13,520 --> 00:45:15,600 Would you guys stand and let me give you a blessing Today, 697 00:45:38,090 --> 00:45:41,850 may we be a people who have the faith to listen to his whispers. 698 00:45:42,250 --> 00:45:44,170 In Jesus name, amen.