Talk Back To It | Pastor Paul Strong | Pursue

Welcome to the Legacy Churches Podcast. We are so glad that you get join

us today. We prasent God speaks to you through his message and through his

work. Now let's tune into the message first Samuel, chapter seventeen. Go

ahead and put it up on the screen. David left his things with the

keeper of the supplies, ran to the battle lines and asked his brothers how

they were. And as he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philissine

champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance.

And David heard it, and whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all

fled him in great fear. Now, the Israelites had been saying, do

you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel.

The King will give him great wealth to the man who kills him.

You will also give him his daughter in marriage, and will exempt him his

family from taxes. Hallelujah. How may would like to be exempt from taxes?

I'm gonna tell her. Yeah, killed the Goliath in Israel. And

David asked the men standing near him, what will be done for the man

who kills the Philistine? Removes the disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised

philicy? That he should defy the armies of the Living God. They repeated

him what they had been saying and told him this is what will be done

for the man who kills him, And when they have His oldest brother heard

him speaking with men. He burned with anger at him and asked, why

have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep

in the wilderness. I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart

is. You came down only to watch the battle. Now what have I

done? Said David? Can I even speak? He then turned away to

someone else and brought up the same matter, and the man answered him,

as before, would you just bow your heads today? Father, have your

way. Lord. Today I pray for those that are dealing with discouragement.

I pray God today for those that are struggling in this room. Today,

God, that you would bring faith into their heart today, strengthen them,

God, remind them of your precious promise. Today, God, I pray

for those that are far from you today. God, I pray today that

they would discover you as their Lord and savior. I give you thanks and

praise in Jesus' name, and everybody said, Amen, middle school, you

can roll today. Come on, middle school, if you're a middle schooler,

I'm sorry, go ahead, middle school. Middle schools out of here

today. Amen. All the parents said, thank you Jesus. Amen.

Anybody got anybody a parent of middle school raged it wave at me. I'm

praying for you. I'm telling you today, I'm excited about what God's going

to do in this series. Last week I started a whole new series on

the idea of pursuit. How important is for us to pursue God in this

season of our lives, and how that we shouldn't slow down, but we

should stay consistent. How many consists and see, it's powerful. It's important

today that we are consistent in a world that's inconsistent. And today I just

want to challenge you to stay consistent. And one of the things that I

talked about last week was how we are called not to delay, how we're

supposed to walk in obedience and to stay faithful to the process that God has

for us. And today I'm going to talk about discouragement, because if the

devil can't delay you, he'll try to discourage you. Anybody ever been discouraged,

And today I'm gonna talk about discouragement. And I recognize, no matter

where you are in your faith, that all of us have to deal with

some level of discouragement. I grew up in church. I grew up in

church. Anybody grew up in church. It's okay, you know what I'm

saying. Not everybody grew up in church. I grew up. I thank

God for the heritage that I have. My grandmother and grandfather were elders of

the church that I was a part of. And my grandmother led the prayer

ministry, powerful woman of God. My parents loved the Lord. My dad

was called into ministry, went to Bible School. He passed away when I

was young as a child, but my parents grew me up in the House

of the Lord. And I remember, church is funny. How many churches

can be funny. We got our issues. Don't look at nobody, Okay,

we all got issues, and the churches got issues. And that's because

we're human. And I remember the big when the church we used to sing

from the song book. You all know what I'm talking about. You know

what I'm saying. I turned to page three twenty one Victory in Jesus.

I heard an old, old story. I mean, that's how they would

start and they start singing Victory in Jesus. They start singing the song.

There's power in the blood, There's power in the blood. Y'all know what

I'm talking about. Y'all looking at me like I'm crazy. This is what

we had to we'd turned the pages. Then I remember the day when they

moved to a projector and it wasn't even like a nice screen. There wasn't

even a screen to just as they put words on a wall with an old

projector that used to have the transparencies. Anybody know what I'm talking about?

Who It was like a fight in church over that. We got how many

church has always been a little slow, don't look at nobody. And so

they had the transparency and they had the transparency, and they'd have all the

words of the lyrics on the transparency and they'd put on the projector and they

would go up on the wall and we would sing from the wall and they

would sing. The only problem was though sister Yae Yay gets so excited singing

the song, she'd forget that we'd gone to another chorus. And then the

same old song would be on there and we'd have gone to another song and

so and then we finally went to a digital world where we have projectors,

and the whole purpose of the projector was so that it could magnify the words.

It could be able to share the words across the congregation so they wouldn't

have to be reading a book. And it's amazing how that projector helped us

bring clarity and magnet and magnified. So we're all on the same page and

this story. There's something going on because because we recognize that fear projects can

be projected, and discouragement is projected by fear, and this fear that has

been that has been projected, it can get into our hearts. That most

of the time when discouragement comes in, it comes from in the form of

fear. It starts with fear. Something has become magnified, something that has

been projected in life has become magnified in our lives. Maybe it was a

problem, maybe it was an issue, maybe it was a storm, maybe

it was a sin, maybe it was a struggle, but whatever it is,

we need to recognize that that fear frames words. You know, that

fear has an author. Just like faith has an author, fear has an

author. And the author of fear comes from the pit of Hell, the

father of lies, who speaks into our hearts and tells us that the mountain

is too big or the china is too great, and it begins to bring

discouragement. And for forty days, the children of God had begin to listen

to this champion named Goliath. And for forty days he went down there,

and he ridiculed the children of God and the armies of Israel, and said,

give me a man, give me somebody to fight, Give me somebody

every day. And what happened was every time he went down there, that

fear became to become rooted into their hearts, to the point that they fled.

There was no resistance, there was no there was no there was no

resistance to what he was saying. And and and it's so important today because

we need to recognize that fear always starts with words. Who is talking to

you? Who said that about you? What are you listening to? It's

important today because you will either feed your faith or you will feed your fears.

And it's important today that we protect the gates of our hearts it's important

that we that we guard our hearts, for out of that flows the wellspring

of life. And it's important today because whatever is being put into us,

we'll get into us. It's important that we listen and take notice of what

is going on, and it's important that we check those words because if we're

not careful, they'll get into us. I deal with problems. If I

deal with problems, I don't have nobody talking to me today. I mean

I deal with problems, and I deal with issues, and I deal with

struggles, and I deal with something going on externally, something maybe going on

in the family, something may be going on in the church, or maybe

somebody who's getting sick and maybe getting going through a maybe a biopsy, and

they're concerned, and it's important that I'm praying for them and encouraging them because

they're listening to every word that's been spoken. Because the doctor's report isn't always

filled with faith. Sometimes the workplace is not always filled with faith. And

you're you're dealing with negative people, the negative Nancy and downy Debbie's over there

talking about this and talking about that, and you gotta be careful what you're

listening to because if it's not careful, they'll bring up stuff and it'll get

to you, and then it'll get in you and you'll be on your drive

time listening and thinking about what's going on at the workplace. They said that

they're going to begin to start layoffs, and you've been listening to that,

and all of a sudden, the now the manager's talking about it, and

all of a sudden, in your head you're thinking about, well, you

know, I've only been here for six months, and you know, you

know Sally was got hired before me, and I you know, I'm the

last one, and they're thinking about cutting ten and you know I may be

getting getting all of a sudden shirts playing and all what am I going to

do? Because I just got this new car and I got a car payment

and I got to figure out how to pay for this, and you know

the insurance is high, and good lord, look at HB every time I

go to ACHB. Oh, my goodness, I just scan six things and

it's five hundred dollars. My god, And all of a sudden, you

start talking to yourself, and all of a sudden you start getting frustrated,

and then you look at the gas price. Oh, my lord, it's

two dollars and ninety nine cents. When is it gonna get down? And

you're looking at all these problems, and you get home and little Sally,

our little Johnny spills the milk, and all of a sudden you start screaming

at them, You're so stupid, Why are you doing this? And all

of a sudden you're in a panic because fear has gripped your soul. You

kick the cat, you cuss the dog, You look the eyeball, the

eyeball with the fish. Have you ever been listening to a lie for so

long that it transferred over to everybody around you? I know you, you

wear your halo so well and you're so perfect. But some of us we

start listening to the lives of the enemy, and we start listening to the

whispers and the fear, and we start listening to the economy, and we

start listening to Fox News and C and N and MSNBC and every type of

political point of view and all this. And I want you to know today,

if you listen to all that stuff, it will get in you,

and it will come out of you, and he'll come out on your kids

and on your family and on your friends. But I want to tell you

today, you got to learn how to stop fear in its tracks. Is

anybody want to know how to stop fear in his tracks? You got to

learn how to talk back. Just tell your neighbors say talk back. Anybody

ever had to talk back? You know. I don't encourage kids to talk

back. I don't care courage students to talk back. But every time there's

a voice that you know is bringing fear, you got to learn how to

talk back to it. Because the first thing that David did when he saw

this, this goliath down here, he heard him for the first time,

and he said, who are you, you uncircumcised philistine that you should defy

the armies of the living? And who are you? You got to learn

how to doubt? Doubt. You got to learn how to face your fears

and say, I don't know what you're talking about, but my God shall

supply all of my needs according to his richest in glory in Christ. She

says, I don't know what you're talking about. No, we are more

than conquerors through Him who loved us and gave his life for us. Know

if God before us, who can stand against us? Do I have anybody

that knows how to talk back. You got to learn how to talk back.

Just tell two or three people say talk back, talk back, Talk

back to every lie, talk back to every whisper, talk back to every

word that the enemy is trying to get you upset, frustrated, mad,

angry. No today, you got to talk back and tell the devil now,

tell him no, Tell him no. Every once in a while,

I'll be in the car and the thought will come into my head and I'll

just out loud say no, devil, you're a liar. My son,

my middle son. He looks at me, all crazy, Dad, You're

having a conversation with yourself. Everyone. And once in a while I'll be

sitting there just talking to myself and they'll be like and they'll be looking at

me, going, Dad, are you crazy? No, No, I

just gotta talk to myself because the enemy is trying to talk to me,

and I gotta learn how to talk back. I can't give him a voice.

And how I don't give him a voice as I don't get him up,

I don't get let him have a word left. He don't get a

word in. Every time he starts talking, I start talking about no you're

a liar. You're the father of lies. Every word you come out of

your mouth is a liar. You come to kill, stealing, destroyed.

But my God said, I'll come to give you life and more abundantly.

I'm talking back, taking devil. No, not here, not today,

Satan, not tomorrow, in this house, not in this family, not

in my finances, not in my marriage, not in my children, not

anywhere you got to go, Not today, Satan, not today. Fear.

Fear is not my future. I said. Fear is not my future.

He is. Fear is not my future. He is. And that's

why it's so important today to learn to talk back to the whispers. You

gotta vocalize your faith today. That's why it's so important that you read God's

word, Child of God, because you can't fight him in your words,

but you can fight him with his words. You notice what I said.

I didn't just say no. I said no, it is written man shall

not live by bread alone. But every word that proceeded out of the mouth,

No, No, God's word declares that I'm the head, am not

the tale. I'm a puver, have not beneath No. I gotta let

you know who I am because of whose I am. I am the righteousness

of God in Christian No, somebody shouting no, come on preach with me,

shouting no, I am a conqueror, a more than conqueror through Him

who loved me first. No, no, no, no, no,

devil, you must be talking to the wrong person. I'm seated in him

in heavenly play, says No, I'm not talking to you, and who

I am? I'm talking to you by whose I am? You fooling with

the wrong house, You fooling with the wrong child of God. I want

to be like David. No, who is this uncircum? I got a

covenant relationship with God, because if you don't, the fear will get in

your heart and remove your strength. He wants to He wants to take away

your strength, He wants to deplete your energy. And I want you to

see this. That it that it starts with fear, but it's enforced by

the familiar. See discouragement. It always comes through the whisper of fear,

but it's always enforced by the familiar. There are people that are around you

that are not for you, and the culture that get to you the more

they see what you are not instead of who you are. It's okay,

It's okay, okay. I don't want you just start going on about the

haters. It's not about the haters. You just gotta recognize, just gotta

recognize there are people in your life that are people in my life that are

not always on my side. That's okay. I just got to recognize that.

I've got to discern their voice. I gotta discern is that a voice

of concern or a voice of criticism? And how I know that is that?

How it parallels with the voice of fear? Are you asking questions out

of concern? Are you automatically belitterally mean because of fear that's in you?

Because we usually project who we are on other people, y'all not gonna preach

to me. I'm gonna come over to the left side. We tend to

project who we are on people, and we because we don't believe it can

happen for us, we think it can't happen for you. But the truth

is, just because it didn't work for you doesn't mean that's the same scenario

for me. Just because you got history doesn't mean that I have to live

in your history. I can still live in God's destiny. Just because you

got hurt doesn't mean that I'm going to get hurt. Just because you're afraid

doesn't mean that I'm going to fail. Are you hearing what I'm saying?

Because hurt people cast stones, and healed people cast grace. That lets me

know where your heart is. If you're hurt and you're broken and you're discouraged,

you will pour your discouragement on me. There's a reason why Elia was

afraid of what David was doing. Because Aliad was afraid of what Goliath could

do, and so he belittles him. Who are you? I know your

heart? Where is your small little sheep? And all of a sudden,

that voice, watch that voice sounds a lot like Goliath. And you got

to recognize there's people in your life that are by you, but are not

with you. It's okay, It's okay. And that's why parents, sometimes

when we don't see it, doesn't mean we should say it, because sometimes

we become critical because of what happened to us, and we protect it onto

our kids. And let me just say this to all the parents in the

room, because his Father's Day. You can't protect your kills. You have

to prepare your kids don't preach pastor you preaching better than they amen in today.

Can't protect my kids from mean people in the world. I can't protect

my kids from failure. I can't protect my kids from getting hurt. I

can't protect my kids from relationships that are going better. But I can't prepare

them to discern what they're dealing with so that they can't overcome. I remember

my mental son. He was a gamer like. He was a gamer like.

We would go to Cooper's football game, which is the youngest, and

Carson, my middle son, would go with us, but he wouldn't watch

the game. He would get into the to the chair, put a cover

over him, and play video games. Then in seventh grade, going into

eighth grade, he says, Dad, I want to start playing football.

I wanted to say you crazy, but I had to check myself because I

don't ever want to hinder my kids from dreaming. I want them to learn

and grow from their experience. I say, okay, all right, he

said, Dad, can you take me to the gym? I started taking

to the gym. Now he can squat more than me, Now he can

almost bench more than me. But I can still whoop you, ma man.

Don't play with me. Come on now, I don't care how big

you are. I'm still your daddy. I'll use what porn chops, I'll

use whatever I got, but I can still don't play with me. So

he he starts, he says, and so he starts playing. He starts

practicing with the football team. He says, Dad, I want to be

a running back. And when he said that, in my head, I

said, not ain't a good choice. You know what I'm saying. When

if your kid's ever told you that they want to be something and you were

thinking, I don't think so I said, okay, okay, I said,

have you thought of anybody else, thought about any other position? He

said, no, Dad, I really want to be running back. I

said, okay. I said, well you awfully big, and blah blah

blah, and I start talking about because I was concerned, but I didn't

want to damn for his spirit. Y'all followed me. Okay, he was

his I didn't want to discourage him and tell him, no, you can

can't be a running back. You ain't got this, You ain't got that.

I didn't want to immediately react. Just because I was something doesn't mean

that he was something man. He started getting through the process, and all

of a sudden he tells me, he said, Dad, guess what they

need the lineup. I'm like what, And I'm thinking that he's getting ready

to become tight end. He gonna be on the line, he said,

Dad. I'm running back. I'm like what. Say what have you ever

got shocked by your own kids? Why am I trying to tell Because sometimes

when you're breeded in familiarity, sometimes you see your kids for what they are

instead of who they are. Sometimes you see their flaws more than anybody else,

and you don't think. But I came to tell you today. Don't

be a discourager, be an encourager. Be a cheerleader for your kids to

be there. I don't care if they got dyslexia. I don't care if

they got dysgraphia. I don't care if they got ADHD. You don't have

to label them. But you be the greatest cheerleader and say, you know

what, through God you can do all things. It's important because our words

have waited. And that's why I came to tell you today, Because every

decision that I have made, I've had family and friends tell me I was

doing it the wrong. Hello. I mean when I was going to Bible

school, my mom said, you are not going to Southwestern. In fact,

she said, that's not the will of God. Hello. I didn't

know when I went to Southwestern and Symbs of God University and walks to Hatchie,

Texas, I didn't know that my dad went there in nineteen seventy four

and seventy five. I didn't know that the reason why she was afraid of

Southwestern and Simbs of God was more about my dad than me, And she

was trying to protect me by dealing with her own pain. So she was

trying to keep me from where I was supposed to be because she was still

hurt over where he was. Are you hearing what I'm saying? But she

had to come to grips with reality that I had to follow God's will over

a people's opinion, because if you live by their praises, you will die

by their critic said, you gotta do something. You gotta consider the source.

Just tell your neighbors they consider the source. Consider the source. You

gotta recognize. Are they saying this out of hurt? Are they saying this

out of concern? Are they saying this out of fear? Are they saying

this out of faith? Are they saying this because they want the best for

me? Are they singing the worst in me? Are you hearing me?

You gotta consider the source because you gotta recognize, at the end of the

day, you can't take the bait. You can't take the bait. The

bait is trying to validate and prove them wrong. Some of us are in

this room and somebody has said something to us, and we've made our life

mission to prove them wrong. They ain't even thinking about you. I show

them. They don't even remember you a maiden name, let alone your married

name. They don't even remember what you look like. You're still trying to

prove it to Daddy. She'll trying to prove it to Mama. She'll trying

to prove it to somebody. Listen, Can I tell you something. The

best thing you can do is you got to learn how to redirect your attention

when there's discouragement coming towards you. You gotta learn how to pivot and turn

the other way. Why. Because you can't waste your time on people who

are committed to misunderstanding you. You gotta learn how to pivot. You don't

gotta talk back to them. You gotta learn talk away from them. He

talked to the giant. He talked away. He said, ilia really again.

He knew Iliap. He knew that Iliap was jealous and insecure whole life.

But David had learned to hear the voice of the shepherd, that the

Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He had learned the validation

that comes from his heavenly Father. And I want you to know today sometimes

you got to turn away so you can grow in your faith, because the

greatest battle you'll ever face is not in the valley. It's with the familiar.

It's with people who love you but don't see the best in you.

How could that be the dichotomy that they love me, but they're not supporting

me. And I've got to learn how to deal. I gotta learn how

to deal. Not everybody in this room understands where you're going now. Not

everybody understands what God has called you to do, and you've got to learn

how to walk it out by faith. Your fight, Your fight is not

against flesh and blood. The fight today is to learn how to break away

from discourage, and you'll never win the battle with the unseen. Put this

down. You'll never win the battle with the unseen. And to learn,

you learn how to navigate around those that are around you. You gotta learn

how to navigate. I just gotta pivot, gotta turn my face in a

different direction. I gotta not give them. I don't gotta add fuel to

the fire. I don't gotta feed their energy. I don't gotta talk to

them about how they're wrong. I don't gotta try to convince them. No,

no, no, I'm doing a great work. God's called me to

doce this. I'm growing in my faith and I'm not gonna let discouragement take

hold. I know you don't understand, but you will later on. But

I gotta trust God in this process. And I gotta get around people today

that understand who I am and whose I am. That's why it's important today

that you're part of this house. That's why it's important that you're getting God's

word in you, because it's going to shape you and mold you and make

you and encourage you and strengthen you for the fight that you're going to fight.

Because the battle starts with those that are around you. Stay with me

today. Who oh God, Oh God, help us, Lord, help

us, Holy ghost. Families that are discouraged, parents, discouraged, individuals,

discouraged. Can I came, came to encourage you today. I'm trying

to tell you your strength comes from the Lord. The strength comes from the

Lord. Every hit bout, every good close and no one look around.

Today. You said, I'm having a battle with discouragement. Just raise your

hand. Come on, come on, come on, come on, raise

it, raise it, raise it, raise it, raise it. Thank

you, thank you for your boldness. Thank you, Thank you Lord,

thank you, Old God. Thank you. It's not going the way you

thought. The enemy is trying to play the movie. He's you an address

rehearsal on your failure. In the name of Jesus today, God, just

raise your hand. Come on, I'm discouraged. I'm discouraged. I'm discouraged.

It's not working. Father, in the name of Jesus today, come

on, just want you to do me a favor. I want you to

raise that other hand up. Come on and just turn your hands open.

Today. I'm gonna pray over you right now. In the name of Jesus.

I'm gonna pray over you. Father. I just think you. Right

now, I just pray for strength right now, I fraying for strength.

Right now. I'm fraik for peace. Right now, I declare today it's

not over. In Jesus' name, I declare today, in the name of

Jesus, today that this will not destroy them, This will not They are

not a failure, they are not a mistake. They are not going to

internalize us anymore. In the name of Jesus, I declare freedom and peace

and joy in the Holy Gsts. Right now, I speak life over them.

Right now, I speak life over their hearts. Today. I strengthen

them with the word of God today, strengthen them with the truth that you

declare today over them, that Lord, that there they are Your children today,

their airs and heirs with Christ, Jesus today and God. Today,

I pray that the same spirit that raise Christ from the dead shall quicken their

mortal body today. Strengthen them today. Strengthen them today, Father, strengthen

their hearts today, strengthen their minds today. Father, I thank you today

you put those hands down. You say, pastor day, don't have relationship

with Jesus Today today, can I tell you it starts and finish it starts

and ends with him. And today you don't have him as your lord of

your life. I want to invite you to know him personally and to receive

him as your savior. Today. You can't do it by yourself. You

need him. The sooner you discover your need of him, the greater your

victory and the greater your life will be. Not invase up this world's eyes,

but in the eyes of God and eternity. Say I don't have a

relationship with Jesus Christ, and I want to surrender my life to him.

Just raise your hand. Come on, come on, come on, come

on, thank you, thank you. I want you to buy your heads.

I want you to pray this prayer. Say Jesus today, come on,

say it out. I'll say, Jesus, Today, I surrender my

life to you. I confess my sins. I've done wrong Lord, to

myself and to others. And today the penalty of my sin is death.

But I thank you today because you said the gift of God is eternal life.

So I turned from my sin and I turn to you, and I

receive you as my savior, and I make you my Lord, Wash me

cleanse me, forgive me. Today. I confess you as my savior.

I make you my lord. From this day forward, I choose to follow

you. I give you praise, and I give you thanks in Jesus.

Then come on, give the Lord of praise today. Come on, come

on, come on. I