Order of Operations - Week 3

We're gonna continue our series on the order of operations today. I'm gonna skip

the math problem today. Here's the reason. It's gonna be transparency, right,

one of our core values. I forgot to ask Pastor Clay what the

answer to it was before I got on the stage, and I'm not sure

I can figure it out. So we're just gonna jump right into the message.

Matthew, Chapter six, verse thirty three. Matthew, Chapter six,

verse thirty three. We're gonna read our our primary text for the series.

But seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things

shall be added to you. Doesn't matter what else you want to do,

doesn't matter what else we're talking about, family, finances, related, doesn't

matter. God has to be first. He has to be the foundation and

the principle in which we build everything else upon. If you don't get this

one right, you cannot get the right answer. Amen, Listen. I

know in math there were several times then my teacher would come to me after

a Tessa. She would say, Steve, I don't know how you got

there. You got the right answer, but nothing you did was right.

It doesn't work like this. You got to get this first part right,

or you will not be able to get the right answer. Jesus is Lord

and he is our everything. Amen. So we talked about children, We

talked about parenting, we talked about all those things. And now I want

to pick up where we left off last week. And if you didn't get

an opportunity to listen to us to that, go back and listen to it

this afternoon or in the morning on your way to work so that you can

figure out where we left off, because we're just gonna pick up from right

there, and we're gonna talk about grandparents this morning. We want to talk

about grandparents and that change of position that that when your your children get married.

I'm talking to grandparents. Now. When your children get married, your

position changes once again, and the order of operations changes. When your child

gets marriage, you go from commander, come on, somebody to counselor coach.

You shift from commander just do what I say, because I'm your daddy.

I do that all the time. They said why I have to do

that? Because I said so, right, But that that shifts and I

become I move into a different place in her life because now she is spouse.

Now her husband is the head of the household, so that changes,

and now I'm just counselor coach. I stand from afar and I try to

help them make the right decision, but I don't make them make decisions.

Come on, somebody, I counseled during those hard times. I coach in

those times when they just need a little push, just a little more to

get there. Because still we've had a lot more life experience than even our

children who have children. My children will never have more life experience than me

until they outlive me. Amen. So as a grandparent, what is that

role? What is that role from me now to that grandchild? Well,

I want to read a passage of scripture to you in Second Timothy, chapter

one, verse five, when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is

in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother law Us and your mother Unice.

And I am persuaded, is in you also heritage. Generational heritage is

the responsibility of the grandparent. Let's pray, Father, I thank you for

your words, the only change agent on the face of the planet, and

I pray that today you speak clearly, precisely and profoundly into our hearts.

Lord, that what I say today, even though some of the things will

be hard, that they're covered and received with the love I intend for them

to be covered in Lord, I love you, and I thank you in

Jesus name. Amen. So Paul's righting to Timoth and he says, hey,

you know, you are a You're a champion of God. You're you're

you're doing lots of good things. You're you're leading a thriving church. And

the g that are in you, they're not unique. They didn't start with

you. There's a heritage that goes all the way back to your grandmama,

and that grandmama imparted to your mama and then she imparted it into you.

See, as a grandparent, it is that family, that lineal that even

anointing heritage that is passed down and that we pour into our grandchildren. Now

listen what that means is and depending on what kind of grandparents you are in

my family. As stories, how many of you, the older people in

your family, they love to tell stories. Raise your hand. I mean

it's like story, story, story. We're gonna go see my mom this

afternoon and listen, it's gonna be stories, story and arts. I don't

think one thing series ever happened. They're all just funny and we laugh and

then angel get into carcis. I've heard those stories one hundred times, but

it's our heritage. There's life principles in every one of those stories. Here's

the thing, grandparents that you have to remember is that you have to impart

heritage without undermining parental authority. Let me say that again. You have to

impart heritage without undermining parental authority. You know, tell those stories, but

don't tell them in such a way that it demeans your grandchildren's parents. Tell

them in such a way that they can see the familial line and those things

that were important to your family and the wisdom that you possess, without undermining

the authority of the parents, because your child has been called to be that

parent, not you, and to cross that line will bring confusion to your

grandchild and they won't know who to look too, because after all, there's

I don't know how it happens, but it's like when when when my girls

are around their grandparents, I didn't get love like that. It's like where

was that? When I don't remember you rolling in the floor like that?

Will me? And now you one hundred and eight. There's just something and

if you crossed that line of authority and they start coming to you for direction,

for parental direction, then that overwhelming love will often lead to the permissiveness

of certain things that will derail that child's progress as they move forward. So

make sure that in the grandparenting that you do it in the right way so

that the heritage is imparted, but you're not undermining the authority of the parent.

I want to read a long passage of Scripture to you because you know

there's something as we become grandparents or at that age, and I know that

some people become grandparents much earlier. And what I just taught you is true

no matter what age you become a grandparent. But we're gonna move into something

now that is very important that we don't talk about very much in church.

And that's that's that's end of life, because we all move into that that

place. Amen, Really, there's something that happens. I call it the

legacy switch. There are there are all kinds of different things that happen in

our lives, different different cognitions that happen at different places of our life,

Like your child's ability to read until they have that cognitive switch that happens in

their brain. They're not going to read. It doesn't matter how hard you

make them try. They're not going to do it. They don't have the

cognition to do it. But once it switches, then that's when they start.

There's many of these in our lives, and there's something that happens as

we get older and we move into that last third of our life. I

call that the end of life phase, and that legacy switch begins to flip

and we begin to see things differently than we saw them before. As a

young person, it's all about building for tomorrow, building for tomorrow, building

for tomorrow, building for tomorrow. And then the legacy switch happens and we

look back and we think, oh, I didn't quite get it built,

So what can I do to leave an imprint after I'm gone. It's that

legacy switch, And if we're not careful, the legacy switch is what pulls

us across those authority lines when we're grand parody, because we see the mistakes

we made while we were parenting, and we all make them matter fact,

I just want them. I don't want anybody to be alone today as a

parent, raise your hand if you've ever made a mistake, look as if

there's any liars, hold on, keep your hands up. And when that

legacy switch corrects, we think this is our our my grandkid is the only

opportunity I have to fix that. You can't do that. Legacy is about

building towards something that is, that is eternal and stands the test of time.

In Genesis chapter forty eight, starting in verse eight, it says,

than Israel, now this is not talking about the nation of Israel, is

talking about the man Israel previously was known as Jacob. God changed his name

to Israel. So it's easy when we jump in the middle of a passage

of scripture for us not to realize what's happening. This is the man Israel,

not the people group Israel. Then Israel saw Joseph's sons and said,

who are these? And Joseph said to his father, these are my sons

whom God has given me in this place, And he said, please bring

them to me and I will bless them. Then Joseph brought them near him

and kissed them and embraced them, and Israel said to Joseph, I had

not thought to see your face. But in fact God has also shown me

your offspring. So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed

down with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim

with his right hand towards Israel's left hand, and Manassa with his left hand

towards Israel's right hand, and brought it Efraim with his right hand, and

Israel brought them near him, Israel with his right hand, who was the

younger, and his left hand on Manassa's head. Guiding, said God,

before whom my father's Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me

all my life long to this day. The Angel who has redeemed me from

all evil, blessed the lads. Let my name be upon them, and

the name of my father's Abraham and Isaac. Let them grow into a multitude

in the midst of the earth. Now, when Joseph saw that his father

has laid his right hand on the head of Efraim, it displeased him,

so he took hold of his father's hand to remove it from Ephraim's head.

This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head. But

his father refused and said, I know, my son. I know he

shall also become a people, and he shall also be great. But truly

his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become the

multitudes of nation. So he blessed them that day. It's a grandparents having

an encounter with his grandchildren, and there's something significant that happens that I think

God intended for all humanity. But it doesn't happen that way. When we

look at the way culture changes, it's always the new generation that presses against

tradition. Amen. I mean, I know that my kids don't want to

do things the way I do things. I didn't want to do things the

way my parents did things, and my parents didn't want to do things the

way their parents did things. And we have a younger generation that presses against

tradition. But here's the problem with that is that if there hasn't been an

impartation of heritage and an understanding of those things, they're pressing against good things

because they have limited life experience. There's not enough life experience to know whether

those traditions should be pressed against. But here in this passage of scripture,

we see something significant happen because Israel, his grandsons are brought to him,

and it is the tradition had been, the tradition always been the tradition that

the oldest son received the blessing, received the birthright, which was a two

thirds part. That that was the tradition and it had never been done otherwise.

But he said, hey, you know what, I'm not sure that

tradition has worked. I'm not really sure that that's the way, because,

after all, the Lord has definitely spoken, and the younger is going to

be the greater in this situation. So why would I convey blessing on the

older when I know the younger one is greater. Why don't we just get

it right the first time? I see? I have a theory that it

shouldn't be the younger that presses against traditions that don't work. I think the

older generation should press against traditions that don't work, because you see that they

don't work. Come on, somebody see a lot of times as older people,

and I am one. If I used to not count myself in that,

but now I do. I'm not old, but I'm older. I'm

not a senior, but I'm getting pretty close. My wife laughed at me

because one of my one of the greatest things, one of my most exciting

moments was a few months ago I applied for my AARP card. Come on,

Somebody, and it came into mail, and I was so excited because

I got it, and that means I get to eat. I get a

discount at the restaurant. Come on, Somebody's, Wow, do you give

an AARP discount? And see, there's some things that I see. There's

some things that I see that that maybe we haven't done right in the church.

And what I could do is just hold on to those things like the

sacred cows that they are, or I could lead out and I could present

the best possible way for the younger generation to lead through and stop them from

having to break those traditions and be ostrastized by the older generations and give them

a clear path to lead where God wants them to be. See, that's

our role. As we move into that legacy phase. We should begin to

tear down the things that don't work, the things that have been broken,

and the things that make things difficult and the way things are hard, and

we impart those good traditions, those things that uplift those things that are always

true God's principles. But we look at systems, and we look at the

things around us that don't quite work right, and we press against those things

because it's up to us to make it easier on the next generation, not

harder on the next generation. My hope is that when Pastor Clay or whoever

is next, I mean, I may I live Pastor Clay, I don't

know. I probably will. I'm just tougher. But when they come through

the pathway needs to be paid so that they have an opportunity to make greater

gains than we have ever made. You know, I have the privilege of

having three amazing men of God who have poured into my life. Past Gary

poured into my life and gave me opportunities that I shouldn't have gotten because I

was a really bad preacher when he let me preach Amen. But he loved

me and he showed me how to love people. Pastor Robbie gave me opportunities,

and he he pioneered some things so that I had an easy way through.

And Bishop Lance Johnson told me how to taught me how to think about

things differently and to not worry about what people think. The only thing that

matters is what God thinks. And I have those manners that rest upon me,

and then I have to sort through those things, because with all the

good, there's some I don't know too. And you sort through those things

and you try to bring the most positive parts of that heritage forward so that

you create a path for the next generation to walk through being a stumbling block

and a sticking point, and make things go easier on the next generation.

It's what Israel did as he crossed his arms that day and he prayed the

prayer because he didn't see things fixed in a box, but he saw things

in real time. And I want to tell you I see things in real

time. I want to go ahead and clear something up for you right now,

because I know some of you are already starting to think about it.

You've you've seen it on social media. If new lockdowns come, I want

to say that I look back, and it didn't work last time. Didn't

work last time, So I want to go ahead and clear this up for

you. We're not gonna close, We're never gonna make you wear a ma

asks, and we're not gonna check your vaccination status before you come in the

door. I mean, we're just not gonna do that. And listen has

nothing to do with being political. But here's the thing. I can either

follow a president or a king, and I think that for too long the

Church has marched to the beat of the wrong flag. And I'm trying to

make it easier on the next generation to realize that even if I get penalized

because of it, it's worth taking a stand for kingdom things, because it's

been a long time since the church has done that. Grandparents, are you

willing to take a stand and push against the traditions that held you down?

But you still perpetuate those things and you press them on your grandchildren? Or

when you pull down those high places, will you pull down those strongholds so

that they can march through them easier. Things don't have to be the way

they've always been. They can be better, but we have to lead the

change. And as we move through this end of life, this legacy stage,

we have to realize that there's other people involved in our end of life,

that as we move into that last third, that we have to understand

that beginning of life. Listen to me, hear my heart, Beginning of

life requires more input than end of life, because a lot of times our

families are trapped in the middle where they're calling their children into the beginning of

life and they're trying to deal with us as we're at the end of life.

And there's this tug of war and this guilt that happens for those that

are trapped in the middle about where do I give my attention and where do

I give my resources and where do I where do I pay Now, listen,

I'm not talking about neglect. I'm not talking about put your mama in

a closet because she's old. That's not what I'm talking about. Okay,

don't hear that. But there's this guilt that happens when I feel like I'm

not spending enough time there and I miss the impartation and the heritage and the

foundation of people in the beginning of life because I become fixated on my parents'

end of life. Let me let me let me clear something up for you.

Beginning of life is not guaranteed. If nobody has you, you're not

here that I mean, there's lots of ways for you not to end up

here. But if you end up here, one hundred percent of us will

end up an end of life, and God has intended certain things for end

of life. It's normal. Don't get your feelings hurt with me. But

it's normal for end of life to feel lonelier than beginning of life. And

the reason is because it requires a lot of input in the beginning of life

that it doesn't require at the end of life. I have begged my children,

when the time comes, carry me to the woods and turn me loose.

I'll be okay, I'll be happy. Now, kids, if you're

in that place, remember that your parents were the caregivers. And it's a

very very delicate time when you have to give care to them, and you

have to learn to love without being authoritative. You have to learn to love

and compassion. You have to be there and and bring comfort without demeaning,

and it's a hard skill set. Your primary responsibility is beginning of life,

your secondary end of life. That is the Kingdom way Joseph, Joseph's daddy,

Israel, did not even recognize his grandchildren, but Joseph raised some pretty

good kids. The attentiveness to the order of things is important for us to

be successful kingdom families. I talk about kingdom citizenship all the time. But

for us to be successful kingdom families, we have to get things in the

right order. End of life where I'm going to be very soon. I

believe I'm probably in the last third of my life. If I don't quit

eating, I might be you know, I might have ten percent left.

I don't know. We can't be selfish and put demands on people that are

unrealistic. As we move towards end of life, we have to understand that

that life has to continue to be lived, and we impart the good heritage

without being selfish and put demands on people that are unrealistic, because there are

still things that have to be done in those family units, and children that

have to be raised, and goals that have to be met, and kingdom

priorities that have to be seen about. So matter of fact, we see

it in the life of Jesus. Jesus on the Cross in John chapter nineteen,

he says, now there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother

and his mother's sister married the wife of Clopus and Mary Magdalen. When Jesus

therefore saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing by, he said

to his mother, woman behold your son. Then he said to the disciples,

behold your mother. And from that hour that disciple took her to his

own home. Jesus made arrangements, he made sure she was cared for,

but he did not stop the plan of God because there wasn't anybody there.

We cannot forsake what God has called us to just because there's a situation in

somewhere, just because there's something happening somewhere. The plant of God is the

most important thing in our lives. And I know that sounds hard, and

the reason preachers don't preach about it is because we don't want to sound mean,

because they The reality is, the people that have entered the legacy phase

of life give more than the people that are in the beginning of a few

years ago. God called us to get out of debt, and we are

completely debt free here, so I can say hard things to you and don't

have to worry about making a building payment. Come on, somebody, don't

be selfish in our end of life moments. Show generosity like you've never shown

before. If there's things that are important to you now, I'm about to

step on your kid's toast. If there's things that are important to you.

Make provision for those things right now as a legacy in your will. If

there are things that are important to you that you want to build, things

that you want to leave a mark, put those things in your will.

Don't just trust your children that they're going to do the things you want them

to do. It's your legacy. My dad calls me all the time.

It says, son, I'm will spend some of your inheritance. And I

said, Dad, it's your money. I don't care what you spend.

If you want a boat, buy a boat. If you want a lawn

more, buy a lawn more. It's your money. If there's anything left

over, that's cake. That's You're not my provider. My mother, father

is my provider. That's the way it works. It's yours. Leave your

legacy. I want to give you one even better, instead of putting it

in your will. Make an impact while you can still see it happen.

Make an impact where you can still see us happening and listen. If you

want to make an impact, let me give you two areas you can make

an impact. I believe that at the pace in which we are feeding people

in our community, that we got to do more of it. And I

really have a vision by the time twenty thirty rolls around, that we have

multiple food distribution points all over this county and this community, where we're able

to distribute food in more locations, in more areas, so that people don't

have to drive so far, so that it's close to their home because they

don't have enough money for food, they don't have enough money for gas,

And that we can add food trucks to it so that we can go into

the neighbor hoods of the one and six children that go to bed hungry every

night, and that we can feed them. And I can't think of a

better thing than right now for you to make an investment in that and have

the Gary Ostein food truck. Y'all are laughing. I might call y'all's name

the ted Dappy Food Warehouse and leave a legacy that helps pull people into a

better situation. Or maybe you know what, you you got your eyes somewhere

else and you think, WHOA, you know, that's great, but we're

already feeding some people. But what else could I do? Maybe maybe you

want to invest in something like the Cornerstone Resource Center on Islands throughout the Caribbean

that offers education and teach people business principles and life skills, and to be

able to teach vocational training so that people can learn to weld and people can

worry to be electricians and learn to be plumbers. And maybe you want to

make an investment in that. Do it. Do it, Stop worrying about

what if, and live your life in fullness of joy. That's why end

of life is supposed to be. But we've reduced it to sickness and decrepidness

and sadness and loneliness. It should be the most joyful time in your life

because you're looking back at the things you've seen and imparting heritage and building a

legacy. Y'all didn't get it, but it's okay. In Matthew, Chapter

eleven, verse twenty, I don't want the band to come to the stage.

I'm gonna go fast. I didn't realize what time it was. I'm

sorry. Chapter eleven, verse twenty eight. It says, come to me,

all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle

and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls from my

yoke is easy and my burden is light. Chances are I'm preaching to about

seventy percent of you who are just war out, because every life stage is

hard. Your war out, raising your kids, your war out, dealing

with with your parents or your grandparents. You you just don't know if you

can possibly pick up one more pair of your husband's dirty to where that he

left in the floor, and it pulls you across your energy line and you're

exhausted, and you think, you know what, I'm so tired. It's

affecting my job. It's affecting the way I raise my kids, it affects

the way I interact with my kids teachers. I've started spending money on things

that that I've never spent money on, and I know it's because I'm trying

to self medicate something because I'm so exhausted. And maybe you're here and you

feel exhausted and you don't even know why. So if you I can look

in your eyes and just see that you're just You're to the end of the

room. And Jesus said, listen, come come to me, Come to

me, because my anointing for that season of your life. It's easy,

it's light. Stop trying to do it yourself. Come to me before it's

broken. I think more families separating are divorced just because of fatigue than any

other reason. They're just so tired of life that they can't fight anymore.

But more sickness happens because we're just exhausting and we just can't fight it off

anymore. But today you have an opportunity to come to Jesus and lay down

that weariness, that heavy burden that you carry, and he'll give you rest.

Listen, if you're here today and you've never asked Jesus to forgive you

of your sins, you just decided to stop listening, turn your ears back

on. If you're here, you've never asked Jesus to forgive you of your

sins. You've never asked him to be the lord of your life. That's

the ancertain to the fatigue you feel. If you'll come to him, you'll

have peace that passes all human understanding. Who'll give you figure and vitality because

he's won the victory. He'll meet you at your point of need, and

listen. He doesn't need you to agree with him on everything. He just

needs you to come to him and lay down the heaviness of life. Stop

pulling that heavy load and come to Jesus. Today is your chance to surrender

it all to him. You're about to break, and I don't want to

see you broken. I want to see you healed. I want to see

you successful and accomplished. But it starts with surrender. It's on the count

of three. I don't even ask you to stand up on the count of

three. If you're here and you say I'm tired, worn out, Jesus

to give me rest. I want to receive him as my savior. I've

already received him as my savior, and I just need rest. On the

count of three, I want you to get up from where you are and

make your way to the front. Don't look around to see if anybody else

is moving. I'm not interested in popularity. I don't want you to wait

and see if everybody else raises their hand about Donald Trump. Before you raise

your hand about Donald Trump, I want you to get up and make a

decision that will change your life forever. I want you, finally to stop

looking to everybody else and to look to Jesus. I want you to stop

fitting in and start standing out because you're willing to follow the man who went

up the hill on your behalf. It's on the count of three. I

want you to get up and make your way to the front. Alter team,

come and get ready, one, two, three, move now.

Come on, where are you? Where are you? I'm worn out.

I gotta have rest, I gotta have help. Man. I got great

kids. They're just wearing me out. I love my mama. The boy

she's just she's she's sucking the energy out of me. I can't make the

I don't feel like I can make the right decision because I just don't feel

like I can hold my head. I'm long enough to even think about it

anymore. Come on, where are you? I know there's more. Just

a moment of honesty is all I'm asking for. One bold moment of honesty,

one bold moment of faith, one bold moment of courage. Get up

and come to Jesus. Get up and come to Jesus. Right now.

I'm still waiting on two people. Come on, Come on, where are

you? Come on? Come on, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,