Elevate Conversation Series: Building Minds, Shaping Futures

Welcome to the official podcast of Rock Hill Baptist Church 2

where we are focused on glorifying God, spreading the

gospel, and making disciples of Jesus Christ right here in the

heart of Greenville, SC. Each week we bring you a life

changing word from our Senior Pastor, Pastor Matthew D Long

Junior, or one of our anointed guest speakers.

We pray this message strengthens your faith, deepens your

understanding, and empowers you to elevate in every area of your

life. Let's join the service already

in progress. Fathered in a sense hundreds of

of youth around the country and still do.

I mean, I say, father, I use it from the definition I've given

to you before of establishing patterns that they, they

literally produce a certain type of individual, not just in

Greenville, SC, but literally across this country.

And they have tapped into a blueprint that is relevant, that

is necessary for the 21st century.

So, if you don't mind, can you give a rousing applause for Mr.

Alfius Anderson as he comes in Graces today?

Yes, Sir. Yes, Sir, Yes, Sir.

So I hope you got your Bible because I've got Bible for you

all day, all day long. But I, I found that sometimes

you read Scripture and we mess it up.

I mean read it like Tang. Is that really what it says?

Is that what I make it say? And recently I was in

Ecclesiastes chapter 6 and I ran across something that really,

Ecclesiastes 6 · chapter mention

really, really, really changed my perspective.

Matter of fact, read it with me. I want you to read this

Ecclesiastes chapter 6, and let's see, I can do that.

Ecclesiastes 6 · chapter mention

You got your bow. OK, let's do verse number.

How about verse #4? I think that's what I want.

That's it. I'm, I'm sorry, Ephesians,

that's Ecclesiastes. Ephesians chapter 6.

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

Is it not looking familiar to you?

OK, so as a kid, this this script used to I mean, you let

me do something wrong and and then get that Bible out.

That's my dad. You know, let's preach.

I'm 4th generation PK and he will say, come on, read the

Bible. And so before he be with me

because it is Father's Day, I'm going to tell the Business Today

who I'm going to tell it. He he would he would make me

read the word. I said you will get this word,

but you get your butt cut. Read it verse for children.

Obey your parents in the is that what your Bible say?

Thank you, mother Spurgeous. Oh yeah, uh huh.

Obey your parents in the Lord Colon for this is right and that

we right we together we on the OK verse 2 honor thy father

mother, which is the first commandment with promise three

that it may be well with thee you and so that you can have

long life on the earth. I'm on the edge of my seat like

oh Lord, I'm about to come back get cut today.

Verse 4 is not where we ever went to.

We stopped at verse 3. Verse 4 says and ye fathers,

provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the

nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Check this out. It's crazy as I was just just

doing a little work, a little work.

I was looking up that the Greek for this and when you read

Ephesians chapter 6 verse 4 says and you Father's provoke not

Ephesians 6:4

your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and

admonition Lord, that that phrase provoked to wrath is one

word. It's not 3 words.

It is one word. Matter of fact, I'm gonna help

you speak in tongues today. That word is pangizio.

Help me out. Say I'm sorry.

Paragizio, paragizio. Say it again.

Paragizio, Paragizio, paragizio paragizio paragizio.

Paragizio. Paragizio is comes from 2 words.

The 1st word of the root word is para.

Para is a preposition which means from, of, AT, by, besides,

near. And then the second root of the

second-half of that word is or Giza or Giza which means to

provoke, to rouse, to anger. When you research this, it

really means to pull out from what's hidden.

So he says, fathers don't pull out.

What's hidden? Hidden anger.

Wow, look at your Bible then. It has some colons, Colon says.

We need to expound more on this. He says, but now y'all old

school? Who's in the room?

What does the mayor say? Old school?

Schoolhouse Rock, Right? Let us know.

Conjunction, Conjunction. What's your function?

Right, right that that butt says, ah, halt.

But bring them up in the nurture.

Nurturing is always synonymous with mothering, right in the

nurture and admonition of the Lord.

So let me give you the revelation as we get into this

conversation. Could it be that in giving a

pattern to sons, sons gender neutral, male and female to

children, that is the responsibility of the father?

Not to draw out the anger, but to then instead nurture them and

to put them in an environment where they are surrounded by

only the presence of the Lord. Totally different spin on that

tax. Totally different.

So all my life, always known as that Daddy may not make that son

mad. Don't don't make your child

angry. But statistically, we have a

generation full of angry kids. Oh, I don't like your mouth.

It's it's too clap too close for me.

You got to talk to me that that we've got mad and angry kids.

And could it be because we've misinterpreted the scripture and

we thought that I just was supposed to make you mad?

But really the the text is saying don't constantly pull out

the anger that's in the child. So how do I not do that?

That's why we're here. We do that and how we move the

child. Everybody say the mind, the mind

one more time. Say the mind third time.

Come on, say the mind, the mind, the mind, the mind.

That's that's that's what God's come to save.

He's coming to save our soul. Our soul is harbored in the mind

and the mind let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ

Jesus. The mind, the mind.

The issue is what happens to the mind?

What happens to the mind? We're talking about fathers,

fatherhood, oftentimes we, and again, this is no, no ripe over

wash over, but we talk about poor examples, poor moments, and

it could be because we just don't simply understand the

mind. I got a word for you.

You ready? Thank you.

I appreciate you. It's adult ISM.

Write that one down adult and add ISM at the end.

Adult ISM. Adult ISM is something that I

have suffered with because I said as a kid I can't wait to be

an adult because when I'm an adult, I'm going to be the one.

When I'm the adult. Ain't nobody going to tell me

when I'm the adult. And the truth is, I became that

adult. I'm going to be very honest.

Let me give it to you in a second and be very honest.

In my work as the director of education, Youth Services, it

has caused me to confront a lot of errors in my thought process,

in my mind, because I thought, because I was the adult, because

the authority rested in me, did that mean I was the end all be

all? Praise the Lord, because at the

end of the day, before anybody else get a charge, a call,

responsibility, it's always the man.

It's stuck. It stops with the buck, stops

with us. Been taught that all my life.

Man up right, man up on the job, man up in your homes.

Well, I realized that that could have been that could have been

half correct as well. Adultism.

What is that? That's a good question.

Adultism is when you have a prejudice against a younger

person. Let me use another another word

for that, because those big words, it is when you you say,

you demonstrate. You enact only what you think

and approve to be correct and true Adultism.

All right, somebody said, this still ain't hitting me.

It's OK. Have you ever heard a child say,

why Mama? Why daddy?

And there's a famous response. It's a part of the adult package

you get you get in the flash card and when you need it, you

know, you just you just go back and you say because I said so.

If it feel good being able to say that too, I ain't going to

lie. I ain't got to explain because I

said so. That's adultism.

I know I can't prepare to slay a couple devils.

I did. I knew it was going to be here.

It's adultism. That is when you remove the

voice of a younger individual, the voice that comes from a

heart and a mind that is in development.

So a lot of times kids are asking questions and we refer to

adult ISM or we go into the adult ISM because we don't want

to deal with it. What does it do?

It provokes children to anchor. Oh, that's, that is that's

tough. Go back and listen to this

again. Feast on this again.

Because all those moments I was, you know, because I said because

I did, I was wrong. Check this out.

The brain the brain. The brain of a 2 year old has

twice as many synapses as an adult.

It is constantly living in this emotional state.

You love it, but eventually you get a little tired of him.

Y'all tight on me? I don't know what it take Deacon

has this heat must must be getting you.

It's it's the emotional response that sometimes messes with our

adult ISM not realizing that that 2 year old, that child,

that baby is communicating. Check this out according to its

brain development. Let's go a little bit.

Let's get a little older. All right you, you, you have a

an 8 year old 7 year old right. Each I figure out who keep

eating Oh my candy, who keeps messing with the little Debbie's

who is sneaking into my Eminem power right Yeah Oh, I'm sorry.

I almost got some different kids.

Well, the the brain of of that 7-8 year old has not just only

been steeped in emotionalism as we would say, but the part of

the brain now realized that it wants instant satisfaction and

it is living its life off of dopamine.

Do it get get the reward of happiness that you want.

And they are at the stage, but they just want to be happy.

If it's going to make them happy, they're going to do it.

At this stage, they've got the back of their brain from that

brain stem to another part on the side that's developing.

But you know what is not fully developed?

That prefrontal frontal lobe, that that part that helps decide

what to do or not to do. And you know what the issue is?

What you say, I didn't hear you, what you say, talk loud to me,

decision making. So the issue becomes you have

your 57 year old brain and you're trying to take your 57

year old brain and and conditioned it to a 8 year old

brain and it doesn't match adultism.

And what happens? We provoke them to anger because

then instead of talking, get out.

God, if you don't get up by my camera.

It's happened to all of us. All right, let me let me get to

my last one and I'm gonna hand it over for real. 1314151617

comes that brains been steeped in emotions.

It's been chasing reward, but now a third part of that brain

really starts developing and this part of the brain has

advanced emotions in and out, inside out.

I think it's inside out one. And two, if you've never seen

those movies, great movies to watch to really understand

what's happening in your child's brain.

It's at this moment that child now is not just chasing a high,

that child is also chasing risk that the part of the brain that

says we can do it is always on 100.

So these emotions go from extremely high to extremely low

and our 37 year old brain is trying to rationalize the risk,

the reward and we suck at the recovery.

So what do we do? Provoke them to anger.

And we got we got young kings man at the house who's going

through all these changes, all these changes.

There's a there's research out there that says children between

zero to 15 or 16, I believe, are processing based upon your face

how and what to do. But 40% of the time they

misunderstand what your face is saying to ain't that something

they hear you say one thing. And their brain is trying to

process with their eyes what they see on your face.

So no, was this really good? It's really bad.

Are they happy? Are they sad?

And the whole time they have big emotions on the inside.

So I'm going to give my last point and we will really get to

this conversation. What do you do?

What you do is you have conversations.

One, one thing that we have struggled with is talking and,

and I, I know you won't, you won't beat the hell out of them.

So all you have is heaven left. That's what my dad would say.

But I would suggest that you would take the time to really

get into their actual brain because that developing brain is

trying to figure out what to do. So you got to help them talk out

what is the thing to do or not to do.

Why did they do it? We struggle with that.

If you can do that, I promise you your child would be a

millionaire. Because the things most children

struggle with is computing and then giving the analytics, the

data, the, the rationale or what they were computing in their

brain. For that reason, I got to tap

into the blueprint, the, the, the guru, the strategist of how

in the world do you get all of these kids who are in all these

different phases of their, their, their brain development

and they follow you. How do you do it?

First of all, you can't just ask me that question.

And then 3 minutes ago you just unloaded what you just unloaded.

That was a lot, right? That was a lot because there was

a lot of deductions that now I have some, some bombs going off

in my head because I was that little 8 year old saying why

mommy, why? And so I'm, I'm 43 now and I'm

still saying, why Anybody like me still saying, why?

Like, why do we have this? Why did, why did you do that?

I know many of you guys are saying, why do we have this

president And all God's people said, all right, I know, I know

people just asking God why and it's OK, Everybody says, OK, but

but Pastor, if I may back up, just rewind a little bit.

You said something that I'm dealing with because there's a

scripture that says hope deferred or a dream deferred

makes the heart sick. Hope deferred.

So when I see hope or a dream, anybody have a dream in the

room? Raise your hand.

You know, we're, we're, you know, young and old and so it

hasn't happened yet. Raise your hand.

So that's like a question mark. So what you just said is

interesting. I've never heard it lifted that

way. When we leave students with the

question mark rocking, walking around with the question mark,

we provoke them to anger. And immediately the scripture

came to mind. Is hope deferred makes the heart

sick or perhaps what you just lifted.

So we need to answer the question somebody say answer

the. Questions.

Answer the questions. The hard question, everybody say

answer the questions. Answer the questions.

And perhaps you get rid of the anger.

OK, perhaps. How do I get kids to?

So I'm still dealing with that. I may talk about that for the

rest of the week. Just notice when you just just

know when you leave a kid, when a kid leaves your presence with

a question mark, perhaps they are going to be angry because

perhaps they may not trust me or trust you because you supposed

to be an adult and you don't have answers.

I'm 6 and you 60. You ain't got a better answer

than that. So they're probably going to

pick up their device and find an answer that's different than

what you would like for them to have in their thinking or in

their mind, in their spirit, in their heart or in their levolve,

not the physical heart, levolve, metaphysical heart.

So just one more time, I just want to lift this up.

Everybody say get answered, get answered.

I mean, I mean, the Bible even encourage us as Christians.

All the Christians in the house make some noise.

All right, yes. So I got my fan too because I'm

I ate good this week. So I get hot when I eat good.

So I know we're fanning. So I just wanted to wake us up.

The Bible even encourages Christians, even if you don't

know all of the details, it says to be ready to give an answer

for the hope that's in you. That's right, a defense and

answer so y'all get answers. What was the question again?

How have you, How have you garnered and gathered all these

youth that follow you as they're going through these

developmental stages? First of all, I do feel like I'm

I'm corny and I may look hip. I don't know if I, if you think

I look hip, I don't listen to hip hop, you know, I don't.

I mean, I grill out, I play golf.

But I think the biggest thing is to be organic.

Organic students can spot a fake, you can fake it on your

face, but they, they, they know that behind that, whatever

you're giving off, it's something deeper that's not

real, Amen. They know when it's an you're

only there for a photo op Amen. And so just be organic.

I mean that if there's more, but one, be consistent.

If I say consistent or consistently organic because the

Bible says Jesus is the same when yesterday, today and what

that sounds like consistency to me and because he's consistent.

Guess what we are what attracted to to him.

Jesus is attractive. God is attractive because he's

what he don't flip on on you like your friends.

Amen. He's not finicky Amen and so if

you are consistent, it's attractive.

Pastor is consistent. OK, I think I'm going to

continue to go to the church he leads.

Mr. Alphaeus is always bringing food at rehearsals, like always.

If it's two kids or if it's fifty kids, he's always bringing

food. That's what that's being

consistent. Amen.

Wow. Amen.

Amen. So you said be organic,

consistent, just put it together and be consistently organic.

Consistently organic. That consistently organic

methodology has allowed you to I guess I get in trouble.

It's, it's my church anyways that the Lord's given me.

It's it's allowed you to have more youth than most churches

right now. How many, how many youth in pure

in heart, Pure in heart ensemble, USC Upstate Give us,

give us the stats, give us the stats.

I, I would say so if you, if you're not aware, my wife and I,

my wife is here, right here to my right, almost 20 years, clap

your hands for it right here in the yellow.

And so we've been blessed to start a community youth choir.

I am not a pastor, Amen. And we don't have a, our

organization, we don't have a physical building, we don't

have, we don't have tithes coming in every week, Amen.

We have whoever wants to volunteer and help us out.

We're at the mercy of, of, of and it's a good place to be with

the mercy of God's favor and, and, and how he provides for our

vision, Amen. So it is, it is, it's, even

though it's a community organization, a community choir,

it is definitely harder in my opinion, because a church, we

have a, a building, Amen. We have a nice building, we have

TV's everywhere, Amen. In this church, I'm sitting

behind, in front of four TV's. We have a location, we have

givers, we have bodies, Amen. And So what we've been favored

to do is nothing but a miracle, I'm telling you.

But at our our greatest, we had 402 students in one place at one

time. A part of our situation, 402.

Imagine 402 people in your house or in this church right now.

We're putting out chairs, Amen, Amen.

So you that is definitely glamorous, but that's also

liability, Amen. That's also management, Amen.

That's, I mean, and so it is a choir, but what we started is

more than a choir. And we've, we've transitioned

to, to more than just getting students together to sing.

And even in the in the past couple of years, we started a

foundation where we want to do where we've already started to

do cohorts. So we've left the 402 now for 12

because remember what know what Jesus did with the 12 disciples

changed the whole world. Well, how many?

Not 402. How many 12?

Look at somebody say quality. Quality over quantity.

My 11th year USC Upstate, who is now a stellar award nominated

choir. Yep.

And so I'm working with your students and I'm working with

with with freshman in college. So I have to code switch.

So I am definitely consistently or and I'm organic, but I do

meet them where they are. I do something write this down

called OTL. Everybody say OTL, which means I

get on their level. Amen.

I'm 43, how am I able to get do OTL with the six year old I have

to get on their level. Amen.

On their level. Say it.

You know, I'm a musician. Say it on their level, on their

level. And what you lifted is

phenomenal because the prefront frontal cortex is still

developing and and so I'll yield to you.

So when you say on the level, I think you're directly in the

text. And then Ephesians 6 and four

says, Fathers, provoke not your children's of wrath, but bring

them up in the nurture on their level, on their level and

ammunition of the Lord. So you say you get on their

level. What else do you do?

Because these knees get tired. Yep.

It's back. I'm going to give out sometimes

food costs a whole lot of money. That's what Adult ISM says.

Prays a lot. Adults say how?

How do we continue to mold and make that that child, that team,

that young adult, what? Was the question.

Now I'm just kidding and buy you some time.

I mean, obviously you, you, I have my giftings.

I have my genius. I'm I'm, I'm ADD.

I'm anointed, dangerous and discipline.

Get the T-shirt. I got them in the car.

ADDT shirts. Anybody else anointed, dangerous

and discipline. I'm ADD.

Amen. And so, you know, I have my

genius. And so Jethro told Moses to

delegate. If I said delegate, delegate,

you cannot I can't do it all. My wife and I, we can't do it

all. Amen.

And so we delegate, we outsource, we partner and we get

help because the Bible says 1 can do what chase 1000 Come on,

I know y'all, y'all you guys know the Bible here one can do

what chase 1001 can sit loud one the Bible says 1 can chase 1000.

Now you doing something to me, if you, if you, if you're

managing or you're impacting 1000 people, you're doing

something to me. I think that's worth the

handclap. Amen.

I mean, I mean, we can't ignore that, but it said two can do

what the Bible actually says 1 chases, 2 puts.

It's a difference between chasing and putting.

It seems like with more people you're more in control chasing

seems like you're not in control If I'm chasing you ever chase a

little kid around the around the around the room who's in

control? You think you ain't you pay the

bills, but you chasing 2 year old, you ain't in control.

But you ever see a daddy say and then he go over there didn't say

nothing. He just pointed that's you ain't

control. That's pudding.

One can chase, you're not in control.

But two, you're more in control. I get help, pastor.

We get help. You got to get help.

That's so good. And I say that because the

culture we live in makes us think that we have to do it by

ourselves, right? So I'm the single parent where

the single family is just our church, right?

Since she ended plummeted plug. So he's an author.

Is this the second book or the first one?

2nd? That's the second book.

The latest? The newest, the newest.

One the new car smellish. No, no youth, no church

solutions, right. And and the first book when we

had a meeting and you tell me, have you read the book and you

give all these things to do go and find out this person, that

person, this business, this organization, 30 mile radius all

around you. Do they know you?

Do they you know they know you, you know them.

But then you start talking about building out the team and give

all these solutions that are good for a church to build a

youth group, but also for really a parent or a church in itself

to just build the youth that you need partnership.

But in the partnership, everyone has a specific job in the

partnership that I first of all, thank you.

I needed some help that I can't just bring you on the team

without giving you an assignment.

Talk, talk more about that. Talk more about that.

I mean, statistics, studies say, I mean, a kid does better with a

mom and a dad. Amen.

Amen. Yeah, it does does better, not

impossible, no condemnation. Life happens.

People are still even adults are still under construction.

Amen. But you, you, you know, even but

but then disclaimer, you can have mommy and daddy and you can

still have a student or a kid. That's you know, you know what

I'm trying to say. Hey, man, but but definitely so

that speaks to roles. That speaks to genius, your

genius. It speaks to putting people in

the right place to get it done. Amen.

And knowing the Bible says, know those who what labor, labor

among you? Look at somebody say, do you

know me? Do you know me?

This church is a wonderful church in a great location, one

of the most coveted zip codes in up in the upstate.

You guys are listen, you guys are going somewhere.

I thought somebody was going to clap.

You guys are already somewhere. You guys are going to do

something great. Come on, y'all should clap for

you. I am I'm giving you all props.

Y'all, y'all got it going on. You're doing better than you

think you are. I said you doing better than you

What I said you doing better than you what the right seat.

We have our genius. You have your genius and it's

putting all of that together. I want to say so much, but

there's something called TYM. Let me lift this real quick.

It's Tandem youth ministry. Everybody say TYM, Tandem youth

ministry, Tandem youth ministry. You guys have the location, you

have the location. Another church down the street,

they have the money, they have the bag.

Another church down the street, they have the students, but they

don't have the location and they don't have the bag.

Imagine if we all come together to reach the next generation.

What a time. I'm a musician.

Don't make me get on that organ. What a time, what a time, what a

time, TYM, Who cares who gets the credit?

Everybody said who cares who gets the credit?

There's students that are struggling.

They are in a burning building and it is on fire, I'm telling

you, and it's about to come down.

We got to get them out of the burning building before it comes

down. We don't want to read the

newspaper no more. Anymore with suicide, fight,

shooting, Amen. We can stop this.

We can intercept this. That's right, Drop the ego and

save a life. Get the song, Drop the ego and

save the save a life. Amen, Amen, Amen.

That's why we don't partner pastor, because we want all the

credit. We don't want nobody else to

join us because we want all the credit, Amen, But not this

church, Amen. We're going to lead the way,

Amen. We're leading the way, leading

the way. So so he he didn't ask me to say

this. So you guys trust what your

pastor is doing with these partnerships in these

out-of-the-box things to reach the community, Amen, Amen.

We can, we can, we can, we can have trends.

Say this with me everybody say trends that don't that.

Don't. Bend, a lot of trends are going

to come from this man, man of God.

But you can trendy and not bendy, not bendy because it's

all about the word Amen. But trends for sure.

Trends that don't bend right. And I appreciate all that you

say. How many stellar awards you

have? 2.

Hold on. Put it to me.

Put put, put. We, we, we have two.

Yes, we have two. Amen.

We have two stellar awards, Stellar awards.

I I used to do radio. I did radio for a number of

years. I don't know if you remember

those, those things back in bed, Gospel bat radio.

Sean, man, you all all of that. Yeah, that's right.

Yeah, something Spartanburg. Street and now we're doing

podcast. Now we don't.

Podcast this is this is next level.

Stellar wards I know small accomplishments of course

immediately you said we and that we is inclusive course of your

life. Honest to God, truth is is real.

I should have her up here as well.

I don't know because it's Father's Day.

I just asked you to come up here because you move as one.

Mother's Day was last month is our time.

They travel together like the the, the vlog, all of it's

beautiful. Love it.

We and then also our team, you know, I could, I could, I could

name the Miss Rita's, I could name the Miss Kathy's, the Josh,

the, the incredible musicians because normally kids choirs

don't have the best music. But we, we, we got a, we got a

nice band at times in production.

And so, so when I say we, it is, it's a lot of us.

It's a lot of us. I said that because I wanted you

to really dig into that. The accomplishment that we're

trying to chase for building our children has a lot of people

that standing behind, pushing, putting together.

And when you start looking at the list of who's in the life of

your child, who's in the life of your youth ministry, I think it

requires some mind mapping, mind mappings take idea and you start

just breaking it all the way down.

This is connected to this, this is connected to this and it

yields this. It's going to produce this that

if if I want my child to be you ready more than that NFL star,

more than an NBA player, which they already have slow chance,

slow, slow odds of being. But I but I want them to be that

narrow side scientist, the music producer that I've got to map

out the team. That's what you're saying and

mapping out the team means being involved in my church because

being involved in my church means that community.

Then it's filled with other key components and players so that

my my child isn't just always provoked to wrath, but they're

brought up in the admonition of the Lord, the Lord's plan.

I'd use some other words to talk about the the Spirit of the

Lord, but now what's about the plan of the Lord?

Because that mind's got to eventually have the mind of

Christ. This is my last deep and

revelatory point, and I'm going to let you have all the good

stuff for real. Is that the mind of Christ is so

complex. Everything you see came out the

mind of God. I want you to look around real

quick. Everything you see is a thought,

even yourself is a thought. Amen.

That that is avowed in and of itself to me.

It's a thought that God that gives to me and you to help

unlock each other so that we can expand the thought of God.

They're not going to go there so that we can create, be an

accomplished seller. Awards, Grammys, countless

awards as I close for real what? What do I do when I feel like I

don't know where to start? As the parent, as the church?

How do I get started? Because I've got I got this

child in development or from this church.

I have no youth. Where's my starting point?

Again, 20 seconds ago he just dropped the bomb.

Did y'all just hear that? He said we are here because of a

thought. Amen.

Everybody look around real quick.

I don't want to get in trouble. I want to answer that question

but I have books. I have books for those questions

and so everybody goes home today with a book.

Of course it cost, but you just said, I mean, you just looked at

something about that that is very important.

Did you guys know that this month is men's health month?

It's it's mental health month. Amen.

Everybody say mental health, mental health and, and again, I

know we're doing this a lot today, but look at somebody.

I think this is a secret to really, really changing the

world. We got to pay attention to each

other. And so perhaps if we if, if it's

just not routine and just we're just doing it out of tradition.

When you look at somebody in church, really look at them.

Hey, man, mental health, because mental health is you can't touch

it. I mean, you see what I'm

wearing. I hope I did OK for you guys.

Am I did All right? You know, you can, you can.

How did I do, fellas? How did I do?

Young men? Did I I'm OK.

I usually wear a hat. You can see that you can feel

this, But mental health is metaphysical.

Amen. And so look at somebody say, are

you OK? You know, I mean, if it's a fake

smile, say we need to talk after service.

We're going to, we're going to, we're going to, we're going to a

restaurant, we're going to talk. We're going to figure out what's

going on in your head and you and you're lifting thoughts and

you're lifting how God uses words, which are metaphysical

and words have power, which you just lifted.

And so just take a, just take just 20 seconds in and speak

something in the atmosphere and change the atmosphere, change

your spirit. Go to somebody and say

something. If you want to say something,

you don't even have to give them a $20 bill.

You could give them something that they can't feel, but they

can feel. Come on, do it right now.

Change your atmosphere, change your spirit.

Change this church. Change the trajectory of this

church in the next 20 seconds. Come on, lift up something in

the atmosphere with words. I will be successful.

I am going to live my best life the rest of my days.

I am going to make it. I am going to pay my bills.

I am going to graduate. I am not crazy.

I am going to have peace. Come on, say it. close mouth.

Don't get fed. Say it.

Say something. If you don't know what to say,

turn it into a praise. Give God praise, worship words.

I'm here for you. Yes, I'm here for you.

Come on, lift it up. Look at a family member and say,

I got your back. And you just may.

Look at the smile that comes on their face.

Look at somebody say I got your back, I got your back.

Look how this room is changing. Hope deferred makes the heart

sick. But words, prayer words is

metaphysical. It can really, really change a

thought. I mean, you're saying thought.

That's why Jesus wants us to think you started this.

There's a scripture that's that Jesus said, and I'll end with

this because it's Father's Day. Jesus said in Matthew, knowing

their thoughts, He said why? If I say why?

Jesus said knowing their thoughts, He was he was talking

about a group of people. He knew their thoughts.

Everybody say God knows everybody say God.

I think it's in Matthew 94, Matthew Chapter 9 verse 4.

Matthew 9:4

Knowing their thoughts, He said, why?

Everybody say why when Jesus asked a question, is he asking

that question for us or for him? Well, Mama, say who?

Who made this mess? And it's only you and Mama who

is she asking that question for? Jesus said, why do you entertain

evil thoughts in your in your heart?

Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your heart?

There's like a head thinking and there's a heart thinking.

If you think about something negative too much, it eventually

settle in your heart. So what I really wanted to end

with is Jesus wants us to think about our thinking.

Speaking of prefrontal cortex, Matthew 9/4 is medic.

Write this down. Metacognition.

Metacognition is basically thinking about your thinking.

Very simple, not deep. It's putting your own thoughts

under a surveillance camera and playing it back like you got the

Ring camera. You say, oh, what you're doing

at my house. You ever had to do that, talk to

someone on your Ring camera. But you, you looked at, you

looked at what was on the what think about your thinking.

Play it back. Why do you entertain evil

thoughts in your heart? Let's think more, Amen.

The mind of Christ, the mind of think, think, think, think,

think. So if you want to know how to

transform your youth ministry, get get the book Call Me and go

to the website, our YouTube channel.

But in this church, your pastor, he has a vision, Amen.

Amen. Without a vision, my people do

it. Parish or cast off restraints is

1 translation. Parish or cast off restraints.

Man, I'm I'm enjoying this time with you.

I've enjoyed this time with you. I don't know if that's my

clothes or I'm yielding to you, but.

Thank you. And it actually went exactly

where I I was hoping to go last year.

I was on a on a men's panel, but a lot of great leaders from our

our region and I'm in the closing words was Pastor Dogan

pastor shot the great Pastor Sean Duncan of the Long Branch

Baptist Church and he says pass along.

He says says our boys and our men need to think more.

And that has been sitting with me for the past year that we

are, we've got to continue to develop our brains and get out

of that that teenage mind as adults, as adults and to think,

think it all the way through. So as I close, please don't call

your child a king. And they're not a king.

Don't, don't give them a label before they've earned it.

Don't give them a title. Titles come with responsibility.

And when you call them the man of the house and there's still a

boy, not gonna be the girl, she's the Princess, not the

queen. Because there's there's

responsibility with being a queen.

I don't know if you've ever played chess, but the most

powerful piece on on the chess board is not the king, it's the

queen. The most coveted piece on the

chess board is the king. It's a difference.

Everybody wants to be coveted as the king, but they don't

understand the responsibility of the queen.

So before they become all those things, allow them to go through

the process. We're going to make mistakes as

adults, as pastors, as leaders, as community leaders.

We're going to make mistakes, but we got to own them quickly.

We can't. We can't just kind of like put

underneath the rug. We got to be honest with our

kids. I messed up.

My consequence was wrong. The way I attacked it was wrong.

That's the only way we're going to, and I don't want to use that

word save, but help develop our next generation because youth

voice is important. I'm going to leave with that.

Your child's voice is important. It's our responsibility as a

collective to help shape the volume, the tenor, the tone of

the voice. But the voice is important

because God has charged us to shoot them as arrows.

There are arrows again, thank you so much.

I, I, I can't say this enough how much I Revere the innocence

altogether that our, our city does not.

I'm sorry our region does not send and give you guys enough

honor because of the pioneering work that you do, literally that

you guys forge pathways, countless churches.

You guys are working with countless churches that that you

took from from zero and five to 25 to 50 youth and that's 50

youth becomes a strong church, eventually becomes a strong

community. It makes our world better, and I

am indebted greatly to your family for the gift that you are

not just to me as an individual, to our church.

You've been in our church so many times.

Nobody knew you were here. Thank you.

Thank you one more time. Can you guys put your hands

together? Thank you for tuning in to the

Rock Hill Baptist Church 2 Podcast.

We pray today's message planted something in your spirit and

gave you the strength to keep growing here at the Rock Hill

Baptist Church 2. We're a growing church, and

growth starts with one step. If you're ready to go deeper,

visit us online at www.myrockhill2.org and click

Next Steps to get connected, join a ministry, or give your

life to Christ. Be sure to follow the podcast so

you never miss a message and share this episode with someone

you know is ready to grow too. And remember, no matter what

comes your way, you were built to elevate.

Until next time, walk in purpose, live in power, and grow

in grace.