Truth Collection: 07.26.26 (9am I Have A Reason To Praise) | Pastor Gregory Powe

version of it someplace there. But a lot of the

reason for that is because what takes place in

Matthew chapter 6 is actually why I have a reason

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

to praise. It's why I continue to have a reason

to praise. Amen? So I'm gonna start there. Let

me see what kind of time I got to make sure.

See if I don't do a good job of finishing when

I'm supposed to finish, y 'all. I'm gonna do

my best, amen? So I'm gonna read Matthew, Matthew

chapter six. Yes, I'm gonna read the whole of

Matthew chapter six. Don't tap out. You gotta

stay with me. What's in the Word is good. It's

good for us. It's good to us, amen? So here in

Matthew chapter 6 starting at verse 1 says is

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

beware of practicing your righteousness before

men to be noticed by them Otherwise you have

no reward with your father who is in heaven and

you're gonna see a theme here at the top of Matthew

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6 that Look, we do what we do, but we

don't do it for others In verse two it says this

so when you give to the poor Do not sound a trumpet

before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues

and in the streets So that they may be honored

by men Truly I say to you they have their reward

in full But when you give to the poor do not

let your left hand know what your right hand

is doing That is a crazy way of operation, right?

I'm doing my do I'm doing such a such a job Trying

not to be the pardon putting myself in front

of something. I ain't even letting what's happening

across my body get me in trouble Well, that's

a way of thinking any Verse four says so that

your giving will be in secret and your father

who sees what is done in secret will reward you

Verse five, when you pray, you are not to be

like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and

pray in the synagogues and on the street corners

so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say

to you, they have their reward in full. Verse

six, but you, when you pray. Go into your inner

room, close your door, and pray to your Father

who is in secret. And your Father who sees what

is done in secret will reward you. And when you

pray, do not use meaningless repetition as the

Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will

be heard for their many words. How many of y

'all know people got some words today? Got some

words, boy. So do not be like, verse eight, so

do not be like them uh for your father knows

what you need before you ask instead in verse

nine it tells us pray then in this way in this

way i know some of you all have probably been

doing this prayer forever and you have thought

to yourself this is The prayer but it says only

to pray in this way, but it says it's our father

who is in heaven Hallowed be your name your kingdom

come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven

verse 11 give us this day our daily bread and

forgive us our debts as we also For have forgiven

our debtors and do not lead us into temptation

But deliver us from evil for yours is the kingdom

and the power and the glory forever a man For

if you forgive others for their transgressions

your heavenly father will also forgive you verse

15 But if you do not forgive others, then your

father will not forgive your transgressions So

we got a practice forgiveness. Amen It's a lot

of good stuff in here. We're gonna we're gonna

chew it up in a moment But I want to lay this

out before we get into that In verse 16 it says

whenever you fast do not put on a gloomy face

as the hypocrites do For they neglect their appearance

so that they will be noticed by men when they

are fasting truly I say to you they have their

reward There's a theme coming along here. Don't

you see it? But when you fast anoint your head

and wash your face So that your fasting will

not be noticed by men But by your father who

is in secret and your father who sees what is

done in secret will reward you. Do not start

up for yourselves, store up, excuse me, for yourselves

treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy

and where thieves break in and steal, but store

up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where

neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves

do not break in and steal, for where your treasure

is, there your heart will be also. Verse 22 tells

us this, the eye is the lamp of the body and

so, So then your eye is clear. Your whole body,

if your eye is clear, your whole body will be

full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole

body will be full of darkness. If then the light

that is in your darkness, if then the light that

is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness?

No one can serve two masters for either he will

hate the one and love the other or he will devoted

he would be devoted to the one and despise the

other you cannot serve God and Some scriptures

say mammon some scriptures say money mine says

wealth Verse 25 for this reason I say to you

do not be worried about your life as to what

you will eat, or what you will drink, nor your

body as to what you will put on. Is not life

more than food and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds of the air that they do not

sow, nor reap, nor gather in barns, and yet your

heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth

much more than they? And who of you, by being

worried, can add a single hour to his life? How

many of you have done that before? You worried

up so much that you added to your life. If you

figured out how to worry and add to your life,

bottle that and sell it. And why are you worried

about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the

field grow. They do not twirl nor do they spin.

I know that's a little interesting sometimes

in Florida. We don't have Valors like that, but

you know take a look on the internet It'll give

you what you need yet. I say to you that not

even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself

like one of these Here almost done y 'all we

right there but if God so clothed the grass of

the field which is alive today and Tomorrow is

thrown into the furnace. He will not much more

won't he excuse me? Will he not much more clothe

you, you of little faith? Do not worry then,

saying, what will we eat or what will we drink

or what will we wear for clothing? For the Gentiles

eagerly seek all these things. Your for your

heavenly father knows that you need all these

things. What does he tell us to do in 33? But

seek first the kingdom and his righteousness

and all these things what things everything that

came before we got here will be done what to

you added Unto you so do not worry about tomorrow

for tomorrow will care for itself each day has

enough trouble of its own each day has enough

trouble of its own. Now, I didn't read all of

that just to be reading all of that. I read all

of that with purpose because it foundations where

we're going today, okay? Let me do this real

quick. Everybody in here may not know who I am.

I am Pastor Greg Poe, Gregory Poe if you ask.

I am Pastor Brian's brother or Pastor Deborah's

son. and one of the pastors here at Revealing

Truth Church. So I'm not a random person that

showed up to talk to you today. I've actually

been coming to this building for many, many,

many a year. And I am a part of the pastoral

team here. So don't worry. I ain't a weirdo.

I ain't gonna do nothing crazy. But if you feel

like I've done something weird or crazy, just

come back next week. Pastor Brian will be here.

He'll make it right, amen. So in this truth collection,

we're talking about having a reason to praise.

Oftentimes our life doesn't give us what we want

in relation to that praise that we might be looking

for, you know? But we praise God not just for

the visible victories, right? That's not it.

We... I believe that our praise should align

us with the Father. Align us with the Father.

Align us with his heart. Bring us into a place

where what we see no longer becomes the reflection

of what I need. I don't care what I see. I just

care what he said. So I look at it like this

my praise today isn't born out of an ideal circumstance,

right? It's born out of an audience of one Being

God I praise now Same way. I praise years ago

same way. I praise Forever because of who God

is and what he's already done You know second

service pastor damage is gonna be teaching, right?

And one of the fun things about Pastor Gamage

and I is we've known each other for a good little

minute. And one of the first things that we did

that actually connected us was I would do this

thing. I'd get up, especially if things had become

stressful, a lot was going on. I'd just get in

my car and drive. And I would drive and drive

and drive. I'd never leave the Tampa Bay area.

but I would just drive, put three, 400 miles

on, going absolutely nowhere. Granted, gas was

cheaper back then. Let's be clear. There were

no three digits in the numbers that it was on

my gas. It was under a dollar. So back then again

fill it up and just go for a ride, right? Welcome

to today. Things are very different I don't know

if you could do it like that now, but um, but

I would I would get my car and just go Put on

some worship music and just let God do a work

that needed to be done And I says, uh, I don't

know how he ended up in the car But he ended

up in the car with me windows down top open and

we just riding I later on found out he thought

it was one of the weirdest things in the world

to him because Like, who do this? Who just gets

in a car, driving with people, don't say no words

for just a long, just driving? They ain't said

nothing. Amen? This is my worship. This is what

I do. This is how me and God get realigned. Amen?

But it also is what solidified a bond between

he and I, because it came through a time of worship.

You know, when we... When we look at Matthew

chapter six, there's a big thing that's taking

place here, and it's basically telling us, beware

of practicing your righteousness before other

people, right? You don't do it with the purpose

of being seen. That's not the deal. It has nothing

to do. I mean, I'm glad you might be able to

see me do whatever it is I do, and that's wonderful,

but even with the people that worship here on

these stages, they're not here for your entertainment.

Not at all. not to offend anybody. So if you

get offended, just know it wasn't my intention.

Boom. I put my, what do they call that? Disclaimer

is in the wind. One of the greatest worship leaders

we have ever had the privilege of experiencing

in this church was, is, ain't the was cause it's

still here, is Adrian Moore. That man. That man,

that boy, he will praise God like nobody's business.

As if not a single person was even around. Him

and God had a thing going on. And it's beautiful

to watch. I even see him every night again. I

ain't gonna tell you, you may not know who he

is, so I don't wanna make it awkward. But he'd

be in his spot. And he'd still be going in. And

I'd be like, that's my worship leader right there,

y 'all. But there was something about his praise

that pointed to heaven like nobody's business.

And here's the deal, it could change an atmosphere.

It could change an atmosphere. Now here's the

beauty. I love this part. I'm going a little

off script, but I'm gonna say it anyway. Y 'all

gotta remember, our church, the church, this

church is a place where we come to Be prepared

so that we can go out there and do the work.

Come in here, we get right. Yeah, we come broken,

we come hurt, we come feeling a type of way,

we come with all the stuff. But it's so that

we're prepared to go out there and deal with

whatever's coming in life, amen? So yes, people

do some interesting things in church sometimes.

They're getting it off, they got to. They can't

do none of this wherever they're going. Some

people can't even say God in the places that

they reside. They can't do nothing that points

towards heaven at all. They're getting it all

out right here. So leave them alone while they

praise, amen? But look at this, in the Greek

theater, a hypocrite was an actor wearing a mask.

Jesus exposes the difference between internal

devotion and external performance. That's what

he's talking about when he's talking about a

hypocrite there. Praise happens when we take

off the mask and realize God saw you in secret.

He sustained you in secret. But because he did

it all in secret, he now deserves the praise

in public. See, I love when we're in certain

scenarios and people will say, well, why are

you able to be whatever it is you're able to

be? Because see, as a believer in the world that

we reside in, we should be a representation of

Christ, amen? And in being that representation

of Christ, it should look like something that

they can't do. In other words, when they walked

in and they told everybody in the company, Ain't

gonna be no more raises, ain't gonna be no this,

ain't gonna be no that, and you over there rejoicing.

Matter of fact, the Lord said, go out and buy

a new car. They said, wait a minute, why are

you buying a new car? They told you they're taking

the money away. Man, what are you talking about?

That ain't got nothing to do with what God told

me to do. This was never my source. My father

was always the source. Amen? Because that is

the case, people will look and ask. I mean, why

you ain't bothered like I'm bothered? Why you

ain't worried about the changes in the, what

do you call it, in the stock market? Why you

ain't shifting and moving weird? Oh man, I can

answer this, right? Because maybe you're in a

place where they don't do too good with the God,

right? But if they ask, simple answer, I can

tell you, but do you really wanna know? Because

I'll open the door and let you know just how

good my God has been to me It ain't got nothing

to do with what they're doing over here these

places out Those are great moments to spread

the gospel a man just just in case you were wondering

great moments to spread the gospel You know,

it's interesting life brings us seasons where,

you know, human promises can sometimes fall short,

where platforms shift and where people change

and expectations crumble. You know, the world

that we live in is exactly that. It is always

something that is moving in a way that you probably

did not expect it to move. Always. Every one

of us, I'm sure, has been promised something

and it did not come out like you thought it was

going to come out. Matthew chapter six through

19 through 21, Jesus is warning us against storing

up treasures where moths and rusts destroy, right?

When we anchor our hope in human commitments

and unfulfilled promises, it leads to a broken

faith. Why does it lead to a broken faith? Because

I'm looking at the wrong thing, right? If I'm

looking at you to be the fulfillment of anything

that God promised, I'm already looking in the

wrong. Now, it's interesting because, you know,

to give those who may not be aware a bit of the

back story on Greg Poe, this one, not the one

before me, not the one after me, because that

joke will run around here somewhere. I am my

parents' first child, right? you know as first

children go they did all that they knew to do

the best way they knew how to do it and uh that

came with a lot of ups and a lot of downs but

it was i would say more ups and downs right my

my parents were and are well my mom is just absolutely

amazing right and the thing about that is is

because they are who they are and they they functioned

and have continued to function the way they have

what is a parent is that there were times where

God would use them as the source, right? The

source of that blessing that I might have thought

was coming. But I remember hitting a point in

life where I was like, yeah, yeah, I don't care

what any person has done, I am the source. If

it didn't come through me, it didn't come, period.

That's the way this works, I am the source. And

I remember distinctly saying to my mom, man,

it was so awesome when God did whatever this

thing was at a particular time. She looked at

me and she said, God didn't do that, we did that.

I said, true, you were the conduit, but it was

from him. For all I know, God blessed you with

whatever the whatever was so that it would come

through you. I don't care that it came through

you, I'm just glad God did the blessing. Why

is that important? Because now I take a man,

a woman, a person out of the seat of God and

I put God back where he belongs. Amen? See, I

have to praise God because it wasn't anything

that a man could have done to see the fulfillment

of what I am getting to enjoy today. Right because

if you really want to know the truth about it

man made promise and not all of them could be

fulfilled But everything God promised It's always

right there Let's talk a moment about the danger

of misplaced trust In Matthew 24 tells us what

no one can serve how many masters two masters

nobody can serve Two things at the same time.

This is just what it is, right? The Bible tells

us you would love the one and despise the other,

or you hate the one and love the other, but you

cannot love God and what? Man, more mammon money.

Misplaced trust happens when we expect people

to deliver what God can guarantee, right? Now,

we're talking about what God guarantees, not

what man guarantees. There's an interesting thing

about contentment. You know, I remember being

at a point, a lot of stuff was not going as I

had desired it to go. And at this point, my dad

was like, hey, instead of coming to the church

to do your job, come to my house every day. It's

like, all right, I'm gonna come to the house.

And when I get to the house, what am I gonna

do? You're gonna do whatever it is I give you

to do when you get there. Okay, cool, no problem.

For the first, mom. It was always something to

do. Go do, fix this, change that, move this,

blah, blah, blah. I'm out there. I'm like, man,

this is great. I don't have to go to the office.

I can be here. Now, it was a little weird. He

wanted me to be there no matter what. Come in

like I was coming to the office, 830 to 430,

regardless of what I did. After a month, like

anybody else's house, he started to run out of

stuff to do. So now I'm showing up 830 in the

morning. He may or may not be at the house. Because

to know my father is to know, he ain't changing

nothing he doing just because of anything you

supposed to be doing. So I'm showing up. I mean,

what am I supposed to do? He ain't here. He ain't

answering the phone. I'm just at the house. Now,

he will show up no matter when, sometimes 3,

3, 4 o 'clock. Hey, man, what you been doing

all day? I mean, what have I been doing all day?

You ain't give me nothing to do all... I mean,

I've been kind of just, you know... Swept and

uh, yeah, I miss you been lazy all day. You waste

some you wasting my money. Wait, wait, I Feel

there should be some Responsibility to what I'm

supposed to do a yo house. Hey, man, it's cool

I now you say those words out loud by the way

kept that to myself. Oh Ain't trying to get fired

out here. You feel me You know, so I just yes,

sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir after another a couple

of weeks of emptiness, I started to get mad then.

Brought me from over there, I had stuff to do

now, I'm sitting at their house, I ain't doing

nothing. I mean, I'm complaining. At some points,

actually audibly loud, I was by myself, wasn't

nobody there. I was hot, I'm livid. God don't

work like this, got me out here this kind of

way. It was all the stuff. And it was in one

of those moments. God says, you know, contentment

is not complacency. You have to land at a place

wherever you are and become content with whatever

is happening because I'm working something through

you. I'm trying to create a person in you that

I need you to be for where I'm taking you and

you worried about why you ain't being praised

and why, because mind you, I'm out here, I'm

working. It's folks over here going man, Greg

don't come to work every day no more man. I sure

wish I could do what he was doing Show what you

I ain't doing nothing. I Want to be doing something

This was this was fun at first. This ain't fun

no more, you know until again know my father

whatever he had going on he had going on like

People thought it was the greatest thing in the

world. I mean, you get to fly with Pastor when

he go to do the whatever. I'm like, man, it was

cool, but it was work. If that plane landed at

4 o 'clock in the morning, you know where he

expected me to be at 5 30 in the morning? At

the gym with him doing whatever he was doing.

It was like that. I'm like, yeah, but then and

then look at this. He gonna go home, take a shower,

do whatever he gonna do. Probably take a nap.

I got to go to the job. and do whatever other

work needed to be done, because that was the

expectation. I'm working five, six, ten times

more than everybody else, but they thought, some

people thought it was just the dream. It was

like, my man, a plane is a plane is a plane.

I had to get from here to there, and boy oh boy,

all this did was just increase the schedule,

right? But it set me in a place. That period

of time set me in a place where I stopped looking

at man as the source You know when we talk about

mammon or wealth It really deals with this this

issue of status, you know, it's a it's really

it really comes to a place of external validation

and if you're looking for external validation

I can promise you it will create anxiety. It

has to. It will. Because people will always do

something that don't fit your way. I promise

you, people will always do something that don't

fit your way. One of the things I learned was

that when human promises fall through, God's

presence still remains. Ultimately, through those

periods of time, my focus shifted from the disappointment

of what didn't happen to the quiet sufficiency

of God. You know, we were getting taught some

really powerful things during those times. And

one of the great things that was being taught

that is just a linchpin to our current understanding

of the faith was grace. And one of the statements

that was made constantly throughout our services

was God's grace is sufficient. It's sufficient,

period. God's grace is sufficient. The value

of that became great when I get a call one day,

this was shortly after Gregory was born. Roshonda

was at home taking care of him, and our then

administrator calls me and says, Greg, I got

this thing in the mail that these people sent

the thing, they're gonna garnish your wages.

They're gonna garnish my wages. I'd never heard

the term, I didn't even know what that meant.

Okay, cool, they're gonna garnish my wages. What

does that mean? Well, they're gonna take a portion

of your check. Okay, how much of my check are

they going to take? Oh, they're gonna take that

much? Hey, that's, wait a minute. I just looked

at it, I said, okay, do whatever you need to

do. I'll figure out how to work this out another

better. So I called Rashaan and I said, hey,

you know, this is what I've been told. The only

word she used was God's grace is sufficient.

It had become the verbiage of our home. God's

grace is sufficient. It was all, like the only

way we talked about anything, God's grace is

sufficient. It became such a vital part of how

we communicated that even though we were facing

a situation that complete insufficiency was imminent.

They was taking a lot. They was taking like 40%.

So, you know, everything was necessary. And I

told you I had a new baby and this little joker

didn't want to drink regular milk. He had had

that little special milk, you know, the kind

that come in the real color that's only one size

at a time, and they was hitting, look, whoo,

Jesus. I remember we were sitting at the doctor,

they says, well, you know, we're gonna have to

give him this milk, and so and so and so. I said,

okay, I'm, whatever, I don't know. Lady said,

hey, anytime you need some, just come by, we'll

give it to you. They give us the samples, we'll

just give them to you. I was like, man, get out

of here, it's just milk. And then I went to that

store, I was like, oh, my God. What time they

close down? Good grief. And then that joker hit

one of them, I'm just gonna drink everything

spurs? I was like, oh no, I think it's time for

this one to get on some real food. Grandma, where

you at? Come on down here and take my mans over

to the other side. But what we learn is truly

God's grace. was sufficient. We actually lacked

for nothing. During that period of time, we lacked

for nothing. Just like them folks offered us

that milk, everything we needed was there. And

to this day, I can't tell you how, but everything

we needed was there. But there was an important

thing that I think needs to be brought out. because

it was a part of this transition as well. In

verse five through 18, Jesus confronts those

who use long prayers, religious fasting, and

public displays to prove how spiritual they are,

right? I believe it's too easy to over -index

spirituality, right? Especially in the church.

And if you don't know what I mean by that, people

tend to Just overdo it You're giving God things

that he's actually given you You know God created

this world and in the creation of the world who

did he give it to man? He's worked through man

to Perfect and make things well in the earth.

That's why we have doctors That's why we have

all these engineers and all these people that

are creating the better world that we get to

live in He's anointed them just like he's anointed

you. And oftentimes, one of the things we try

to do is we go, well, I'm gonna pray my way,

so to say, out of this. Well, you can pray all

you want, but if the thing that needs to happen

is a natural thing, you still gotta do the natural

thing. You know, I live in this body. This body

functions in this world. I can spend 30 hours

up here at this altar, and all the problems are

still out there. The difference comes when I

realize my father has an answer, regardless of

what I see. Yes, I live by the spirit not to

mask the reality of my world, but to understand

there's a greater source than what I'm dealing

with. I know, it ain't, Pastor Brian's done a

great job of helping us understand we have to

live through what we live through. If the bank

account is low, the bank account is low. Now,

the truth is, I don't have to have anything in

that bank for God to be a blessing to me. It

could be absolutely zero and God will still do

the work that he promised to do. I don't have

to miss a meal. Amen. Don't have to come up short

on nothing gas will still be in the tank even

though it costs way more than it did when I started

driving God knows how to handle all those things

But the problem becomes I'm gonna pray pray pray

pray pray pray pray pray pray pray God's given

answers and you're not doing any of the work

And then who do you blame God? You know, that

is part of the problem with, I hate to use that

word that way. That's what I believe brings us

sometimes into these positions of anxiety, right?

We get into these places of anxiety because we're

trying to get God to do something he's already

fulfilled the promise of doing. He already said

you were whole. He already said you were healed.

He already said you had what you needed. He already

promised you all that he's promised you. It's

just you wanted to come the way you wanted to

come. Whole time he's saying none. I got you

But but if you allow me to work this thing the

way I want to work this thing when you get whatever

it is You think it is you supposed to have you

won't lose it? Because you will be built to the

to the person that I've designed you to be capable

of all that is there But see here's the problem

if you're not capable of all that that's that's

that's the equivalent of me giving you a hundred

foot yacht. As good as it sounds, unless I also

gave you the money to operate that yacht, it

is a burden. First of all, the tax man coming

to see you before you get up out of here. You're

like, wait, wait, you gave me this and now all

of a sudden I owe? How did that happen? Because

that's how the laws work, right? So you're sitting

out here trying to enjoy stuff or thinking that

you need stuff to be something, and the whole

time God said, no, I got it. Don't worry about

the stuff. I'll take care of it all. Don't be

anxious, right? This is important. Don't be anxious.

It basically tells us that four times through

the latter part of Matthew chapter six. Jesus

doesn't ask us to deny reality, right? He points

us to who? The birds and the lilies. How many

of y 'all remember the message? Look at the birds.

Look at the birds. Look at the birds. Look at

the birds. Sometimes I get out there and you

go, God, oh, they kinda in the way. They living

their own life. They doing what they wanna do.

Then you gotta remember, look at the birds. This

is where I'm supposed to be, amen? Look at the

birds to show us that the Father who manages

creation manages us. Real faith doesn't ignore

the painful realities of life. Real faith brings

us those realities to an all -knowing Father

in the secret place. Look, I don't care what

I see. I take it to the Father in prayer. I don't

care what I see. I take it to the Father in prayer.

I had a great conversation with somebody the

other day, and we were just talking about the

fact that what we were taught as young people

has had to adapt to the day, right? What worked

at a time don't work today. We've all heard the

saying, our parents could tell us, sit down,

shut up, and do it, because I said so. I mean,

I can say it, but Lord knows that legend. First

of all, we shouldn't be saying words like, shut

up. That's kind of mean. Why is it that you'd

like me to sit down? Is there something that

I'm sitting down to do? Is this like, bro, what's

up? Just sit down. I had an administrator, one

of his administrators one time tell me, she said,

you know, These are horrible qualities for children,

but great qualities for adults. And I watch him

and I think to myself, this is a wonderful trait,

that one day, if I don't kill it, it will keep

him from making some horrible decisions. Because

how many of us have signed something just because

we was tired of signing stuff, and then signed

away something that you didn't intend to sign

away? It's okay, it's cool, we ain't gotta go

too far. So I'm saying these things because I

want us to understand, I personally worship through

it all. I praise and worship through it all.

My reason to praise is not because of what I

see. Man, I started working here at the church

27 years ago. And the interesting thing about

my start here, my dad goes, hey, we ain't gonna

be able to pay you. Like, you know, you should

be paid, but I promise you won't lack for anything.

And I'm like, all right. I mean, I was young.

What, 18, 19? Oh, whatever, man. It's all good.

Obviously, by the time I got married, that mattered.

Oh. But also, you can ask anybody who's been

in administration here. I've never one time asked

for a raise, ever. I just come and do the work.

I come and serve because I believe this is what

God has called me to. And I'm not saying somebody

should never ask for anything. I'm that way because

I believe that if God knew that there was a need,

he also knew how to supply it. I don't look for

my supply to come through this church. I'm grateful

when it does, but I don't look for it. My God

knows how to supply all of my needs. And not

just according to what I desire, but according

to what he says, his riches and his glory. Amen.

And so I don't look over the past 27 years and

go, hey man, you know, economy's changing, you

know, I got extra kids, hey, you know, no. God

knew that today would be today before today was

ever today. And his supply can be greater to

me than anything that anybody could ever. So

I'm not looking for man to fulfill anything God

already promised. So when I serve this church,

I serve it with a heart of praise. I serve it

with a heart of worship. I look out here, I told

Pastor Gamers, I said, one of the things that

I am appreciative of from our time was that these

walls, these doors, this church remained open

all the time for us. anybody from background

that time knows we would be here to God awful

times of the night, long throughout our days.

Why? Because there was nowhere else to be. Not

like you couldn't go somewhere, but there was

nowhere else you wanted to be. There was nowhere

else. I got life here. I got life here. Now,

I got somewhere to be today. You know what I'm

saying? I got kids. I got my wife. I love going

home. But there are people that are coming through

these doors now who were just like we were then.

I ain't got nowhere to be. If I don't get life

here, there will be no life given. And it becomes

so important. That's why I serve. That's why

I give what I give. That's why I behave the way

I behave. That's why I can walk through that

parking lot in the morning and picking up stuff

and come in here and stand on this stage, because

I'm here for all that God is doing here. My reason

to praise is because God has been so good to

me. Period. I'm like, yeah, I had expectations,

right? And they were in man at a early time.

But as God reshaped me, molded me into the person

he needed me to be, it changed in a great way

how I present my own life to the Father. Man

my worship in secret Ain't nothing like what

you may ever see in public because it's between

me and him It's between me and him It is it is

I say I'm Actively working to even present that

side of worship to my own my wife and my kids

Because this is a me and God thing But I have

to I have to make sure I'm teaching my people

too. I'm not out here willy -nilly. Yes, I do

read my Bible. Yes, I do pray. Yes, I just don't

do it in front of you. Because it was, you gotta

understand, my dad told me something years ago.

Greg, your greatest victories will come through

humility. And he didn't tell me that because

it was fun to say. He told me that because pride

was at the door at all times. looking to overtake

me in any chance it could. So man, I've worked

heavily to keep the issue of pride away. So when

I look into a Matthew chapter six and Matthew

chapter six tells me, think on these things and

tells me how to operate, no, I literally feel

that way. My work is to the Father. My work is

to the kingdom. I'm not looking to garner anything

that God hadn't promised. You can ask me to do

anything, man. Over my time here, I remember

the first two weeks I was here, I was under the

stage pulling wires or something. I can't do

it today because I'm too fat, but it is what

it is. The way them Joy star under there. I tried,

I had tried to go through that one more. The

boy ain't what he used to be, but God is still

good. You can still find me in all the corners

doing as much as I can because I was here and

have always been here with a heart to serve.

A heart to serve the assignment of the church.

Heart for you all as people. That's why I believe

God wanted me to read out of What was that Galatians

when we started was a Galatians. It was Galatians

We're not here For our own benefit my dad would

say it this way I got one, but I only need one

chair Everything you see is the direct result

of what God was brought has brought you here

to do What I hate to see is people get off of

what God has brought them here to do because

it's not looking like they thought it was going

to look. Man, I'm gonna tell you guys this, and

I hope it lands where it's supposed to. My dad,

I remember going to my dad, I had heard from

God about something that I believe I was supposed

to do. And I was excited. Everybody in the five

-fold class has heard me tell this story before,

but I'm gonna tell you guys this story. I was

excited because here it is, I believe I'd heard

from God to go run and do something. And so I

walk in, he was in his office. This was, I guess,

unannounced, so maybe I should've got what I

deserved. But anyhow, I knock on the door, hey,

Dad, I got something I wanna talk to you about.

Oh, okay, cool, what you wanna talk about? Man,

I wanna. I want to tell you what God showed me,

what he wants me to do. And I go through this

whole thing. And I'm laying it out there. I'm

excited. You know how we all get when we believe

we heard from the Lord. And so I'm laying it

on him. God is my witness. My father never addressed

what I said. He was like this whole time. He's

sitting at his desk. He looks up and he goes,

hey, aren't we supposed to be going out of town

tomorrow to go do the blah, blah, blah, blah,

blah. I said to myself, man, I know what I just

told you. That thing, you know how you be when

you be by yourself and it be hitting you real

good. And you like, man, I'm on 10, I'm excited,

I'm ready to run. Now I done came and told you

and my man didn't even acknowledge it. He didn't

even hit me with the, oh man, good hearing from

God, nothing, nothing. Where we going? And that

was it. I was like, all right. Well, I guess

we ain't talking about this no more. We leave

the conversation. I can't even remember how many

years later. It was many years later. About three

months before he passed away, he calls me up,

and we're chit -chatting about whatever. And

Rashaunda happened to be there, and I'm like,

man, I'm trying to get him off the phone, because

we was doing whatever we was doing. I'm like,

hey, man, I'm here with Rashaunda. We got a blah,

blah, blah. Man, let me talk to her. He then

picked up the phone, talked to her for. I don't

know, 10, 15 minutes, whatever they had going

on. Then he gets back on the phone and he goes,

hey, that thing you told me about, back so and

so and so, it's time to start that. And I'm like,

huh? Man, I thought you didn't even listen. He

was like, no, God told me not to say anything

because there was nothing to be done. There was

work in you that still needed to be perfected

before you could touch that. So there was nothing

for me to say. But I heard it all and now it's

time to move. I'm saying that because oftentimes

we find ourselves hearing well from God, bringing

it to places and wondering why it seemed like

it didn't land. And it didn't land because it

may not be time. But God has a way through our

praise of settling our heart. understanding that

I continue to put one foot in front of the other,

and what I'm looking for is for his approval

only. I want God to nod at me well. I like to

say it this way these days, everything I'm doing,

I'm doing with the idea that it's for the glory

of the Lord. It's for his glory. Amen? And I

implore you, to live out your days through your

reasons to praise, whatever they may be, for

the glory of the Lord. Find yourself at peace,

not because you're doing a thing. Man, I done

did all the things, all of the things. I wrote

a resume some 10 years ago, and it was like,

you did all that stuff. I was like, sure did.

And I've done so much more since then, but none

of it marks who I am. None of it, don't even

care. More often than not, you wouldn't know

I've done most of the things I've done, because

I'm not gonna tell you. And it's not because

I'm ashamed of them or there's a problem with

them, but I've only been after one thing in my

adult life, and that's to preach the gospel.

All this other stuff was just stuff that was

a supporting cast to preach the gospel Amen and

so I Have a reason to praise I pray you examine

your life and realize you have a reason to praise

and it stretches beyond Beyond well beyond a

Physical like a thing a job title a position

or any of that stuff, and it is always going

to be about the people he's called you to reach,

amen? Amen. Stand up with me if you don't mind.

I always pray that something that was said is

a blessing to you. You know, it's funny, I went

to Bible school and there was a, they taught

you all kind of stuff. And in my messages, I

always have these points where I feel like it's

about to be like that moment. But ever, oh, all

the way back since Bible school, God has always

tempered that moment with me and sobered the

delivery. And I always wonder why. But I've come

to the understanding that it's because of what

he wants you to hear. Gettin' excited is wonderful.

And we do that well at church. But more importantly,

you gotta go live some stuff. You gotta put action

to whatever's being said. So I pray that your

ears... of understanding have been opened and

your heart is well prepared to receive what it

is God wanted you to receive today. I don't ever

pray that prayer half -heartedly that we are

where we're supposed to be, that we're doing

the things we're supposed to do God knew ahead

of time that I would be here and you would be

here and you would be next to this person and

all the things that are taking place God is aware.

And so, Through this time, I pray that there's

something that's been imparted into you and that

it impacts something that God has for you to

do in your life. Amen. In these moments, we always

want to take the opportunity to give anybody

that's not saved a chance to be saved. Man, it's

one thing to know that there is a Jesus. It's

a whole other thing to receive him in your life

and allow him to dictate how you live. Man, when

you stand with your father, in your place of

prayer, in your place of worship, in your place

of praise, knowing that you're in a relationship

with one that loves you well, has all the best

set out and laid out for you, man, it changes.

It changes everything. Salvation is not just

a word we throw around. Salvation is literally

our relationship, the words we choose to use

to talk about our relationship with the Father.

If you haven't received Christ, we always want

to give you an opportunity to do so. If there's

anybody here that's not saved, if you'll raise

your hand, man, we'll wrap our arms around you.

We'll do that in love, as we like to say. Amen.

Is there anybody that's not saved? Anybody? 8

a .m. service ain't exactly the one where a whole

lot of unsaved people come in, but... What'd

I say? 8 a .m. There are 9 a .m. It used to be

a 6 a .m., so hey, do with that what you will.

If you do desire to be saved, if you want a prayer

for anything, if you want to receive the baptism

of the Holy Spirit, if you would go out... When

you leave out of the sanctuary, there is a set

of glass doors on your left -hand side. You go

in there, there are some people that will love

on you, help you understand what it is that is

going on, that pray with you, and make sure you

leave here full. Amen? Amen, amen, amen. Hey!

In the last four minutes, now you know exactly

how much longer we gonna be here. We want to

give everybody an opportunity to give, amen?

We believe in giving here at Reveal in Truth

Church. We believe in giving because it's a response

to how good God has been to us, amen? Like, if

God has been good to you at all, like, no one

here is going to try to get something out of

you. We ask that you only respond to how good

God has been to you If he's been good to you

be good to the church Yes, the money goes to

the church, but the beautiful thing about this

church is man We're gonna do everything under

the Sun to increase the kingdom of God. I absolutely

love our pastors their heart for for the people

of this church and and the people of the kingdom

of God because They're always open to whatever

it is God is saying. So when you sow into this

ministry, know that your seed is going to impact

the lives of many in every area that we're able

to touch. Amen. I can attest them folk ain't

taking your money to do nothing weird. I've watched

them all for many, many, many, many years. More

than that, I told Pastor Brian, I said, man,

you can't be like your daddy, man. You can't

give it all back to the church and be slim on

your end. God knows how to take care of you and

take care of the church. You deserve it. Amen.

I truly believe it. I pray for, I sow into, you

know, my wife and I believe in what God has called

us to do here at this church. Amen. Amen. Well,

take your time, give, do as you will. information

is on the screen for those who digitally do their

work. Tap the thing in front of you if that's

your jam. And we're gonna move into our benediction.

They're gonna put it on the screen. What? Nope,

there's a finger up. I'm supposed to do something

else. So yeah, they're gonna put the thing up.

Are we all locked in? We ready? I love it. I

know what they're doing. It is cool. It's cool.

It's cool. It's cool. Are you guys blessed? Listen.

Next service, Pastor Gamage, who is the executive

pastor of Revealing Truth Church, will be here

ministering to you what God has put in his heart.

I know it's a blessing. I know you will be blessed.

I look forward to what God is going to say through

him. Again, you know, you kind of got the tag

team today. If it don't work out for you, dismiss

this whole day, come back next week. Pastor Brian

will be back. Pastor Deborah will be locked in.

You'll be good to go, amen? Y 'all good? Thank

you, ma 'am. Thank you, ma 'am. Thank you, thank

you, thank you. Well listen I I absolutely appreciate

you all as we all do Hey, it's time to do the

thing y 'all ready time to go now into him that

is able to Keep you from falling and to present

you Faultless before the presence of his glory

with exceeding joy To the only wise God our Savior

be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both

now and forever. Have a phenomenal week.