The Heart of A Warrior!

Joy listening to the Cross Kingdom Sermon of the Week.

We hope you enjoyed this message from Justin Carpenter.

Can you hear me? Now?

I had a child ask me how old are you

a couple of minutes ago, and I said how old

do you think I am? And he said six. I

was like, yes, I've had a hard six years. But

so I am not going to teach on what I

did for service.

I don't feel like I'm supposed to. So if you

were in here first.

Service, you get to double dip and hear two different teachings,

so hopefully one of them sticks. Did I already tell

y'all about my amazing mental health day trip on Friday?

Okay? See, probably need another one.

Because it's only been an hour and fifteen minutes and

I was going to repeat my story. I want to

encourage y'all for those that can make it next week

or this coming Saturday, especially if you're interested in helping

walk alongside of people in this region over the next

honestly couple of years for sure, because it comes in waves.

A lot of times, but.

Having the tools in your toolbox, understanding how Jesus can

come in and heal trauma and deal with grief. Prayer, ministry,

inn healing is not the only tool, but it is

absolutely a foundational tool that, in my opinion, other tools

build upon. So in Isaiah sixty one and when it

says that He came to heal the broken heart, set

the captive free, open the door of the prison, that

is first and foremost us, and he desires for us

to be emotionally spiritually healthy. And I can promise you,

over the last month or so, many of you have

probably found where your cracks and your armor are from

the pressure. Right. And I am leaving with my family

this afternoon to go to port A for a few

days to literally clear our heads and get some rest

and prayer and recharge, and we'll be back. We'll be

back on Thursday. But take pictures.

There will be no.

Social media posting unless you see the front of my

feet in front of the beach. That's about it, y'all.

But Jesus said, in this life you're going to have trouble.

How many wish you would have like capitalized that bold

print and just took one page for it. In this

life you'll have trouble. But take heart, I've overcome so

in the midst of your faith being tested, in the

midst of the enemy overplaying his hand, we have an

ability to cultivate a life of overcoming. I want to

encourage you, and I've said this, and I don't mean

to be a Debbie downer or anything, but in some ways, y'all,

it's not going to get easier. As the birth pains

begin to increase and we get closer to the return

of Jesus these the earth is gonna groan, right. It

says that the earth is groaning for the manifestation of

the Sons of God, and we are literally I mean,

we just had the sixth strongest earthquake in recorded history.

We are seeing.

Geological occurrences. I mean, we have volcanoes going off, earthquakes, flooding,

and I really believe that a part of what we're

supposed to be doing in the days ahead, which we're

going to be praying into, is actually have a first

responders as a part of Cross Kingdom Ministries.

And just like.

Just like people have come from all over to help

our community, we can have a storehouse and we can

help others around the country. So I want to I

want to shift gears and I actually want to talk

to you about the heart of a warrior, because we're

in this unique place right now where we have a

hammer in one hand and we have a sword in

the other, where this is a knia maya moment. God

is calling us to rebuild physically spiritually, but he's also

calling us to a much higher level of spiritual warfare.

And we need to know when we're supposed to use

the hammer and when we're supposed to use the sword.

We need to understand that we don't clunk people over

the head with the hammer. We're building people, right We

want to build big people. And flesh and blood is

not our fight. We don't wrestle against flesh and blood.

And we all need to be reminded of that in

the season. And we all need to have grace, mercy

and understanding with each other. I can guarantee you every

one of you are gonna bump into each other's grieving process.

In the days ahead. Give grace to each other.

Y'all have like put yourself in the other person's shoes.

Are you with me?

It's so Love covers a multitude of sin, faith, hope,

and love. The greatest is love, and and there's last

time I checked, every single person in this room, including me, need.

The blood of Jesus. Amen.

My leaders are like, yes, yes, justin amen. Amen. But

we're all locking arms in this season and we're gonna

run together. We're gonna we're gonna be the hands and

feet of Jesus, and we're gonna build as a wise

master builder because we're gonna build with him. So I'm

one twenty seven those that build that the Lord builds

the house, right, unless he builds the house, those that

labor labor in vain. The last thing we want to

do is be building in vain. What does it mean

to build in vain? It means anything you're building that

He didn't call you to build, then it's vanity.

It's vain.

But when you align yourself with his heart and his will,

because you wake up every morning and you bury your cross,

you feel the splinters of your cross, then your position

to start that day out walking in the kingdom. Jeremiah

twenty eleven says, but the Lord is with me as

a dread warrior. Therefore my persecutors will stumble, they will

not overcome me. They will be greatly shamed, for they

will not succeed their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.

You gotta love these old covenant prophets.

You know what I'm saying.

But Jeremiah, in fact, go to Jeremiah Jeremiah three. Believe.

And if you're wondering if I had this planned out,

absolutely not.

So here we are. Let's go on an adventure.

Actually, let me back up Jeremiah one. Now, the word

of the Lord came to me, saying, before I formed

you in the womb, I knew you, and before you

were born, I consecrated you. I appointed you a prophet

to the nations. Then I said, ah, Lord God, behold,

I I do not know how to speak, for I'm

only a youth. But the Lord said to me, do

not say I'm only a youth. For to all to

whom I send you.

You shall go.

That that's voluntold. If you're wondering about that, you shall go.

And whatever I command you you shall speak. Do not

be afraid of them, for I will deliver you, says

the Lord.

Here's the party says.

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth,

and the Lord said to me, behold, I've put my

word words in your mouth, y'all. Even in the New Covenant,

we are encouraged to speak His word, and that we're

literally supposed to be speaking the oracles of God, every

one of us. Why do you think he's sat there

and talked about prophecy above all the gifts. I'd rather

you prophisey because it's for edification, exhortation and comfort of

the church. And if y'all need some encouragement this morning,

anybody need to strengthen your spirit?

Do y'all need to strengthen your spirit? Okay?

Okay, he says, sees, sees, sees, see. I've set you

this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up

and to break down, to destroy, and to overflow, overthrow,

to build and to plant. Y'all, we are building right now.

Ecclesiastes talks about the times and seasons. Right there's a

time for this, a time for that. We are rebuilding,

but we are rebuilding spiritually. We are going to be

in the process of rebuilding people's hearts. And God desires

to raise up an end time army like Joel's army.

He really does We're in.

I believe wholeheartedly that if he pulled back the curtain

in this moment, and we knew how little time we may.

Have left before his return.

A lot of things that we have been prioritizing in

our life would diminish quickly. That person that you keep

putting off by not telling them about Jesus and sharing

the Gospel with them, all of a sudden, it might

get a whole lot more important because I don't know

about you, but I don't want a single person in

my life lost that I didn't at least try to

share the Gospel with.

I don't want to see.

Them at the end. And they go, why didn't you

love me?

What? What do you mean?

I didn't love you? You didn't love me enough to

tell me about the Gospel. You didn't love me enough

to tell me about eternity. I think it was the

you know, pen and teller. He says, how much do

you have to hate a person to not tell them

about the Gospel of you're a believer, and he's an atheist,

and he said, if you really believe this, y'all, we

are gonna have to get very comfortable with difficult times

and tests. We're gonna have to be very comfortable and

we're gonna have to I said this last week, We're

gonna have to get comfortable with the sufferings of Christ

and understand that we're blessed and His glory rest upon

us when we share.

In his sufferings.

I know it's not popular, and I sound just like

that and my intercessory whining time at times. That's I

think that when we're whining to the Lord, I think

that's what he hears.

We're all like Lord in heaven.

It's like, thank you Lord. But he said he's like

a dread warrior. David and first Samuel twenty two to

two did not have a great crowd of men come

to him. In fact, you would you would probably be like, oh,

e thee. It says in everyone who was in distress,

and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was

bitter and soul gathered to him. That just sounds like

a good pastoring time, you know what I'm saying. Could

you hear that distress, debt, bitter of soul? And they

gathered to him and he became commander over them, and

there were with him about four hundred men. But you

understand that David carried something inside of him and because

these other four hundred men got around him.

That was not their description.

In the end, they went from bitterness, indebted, just not

in a great place. Right. They're having a bad day,

probably weren't smiling, and they were upset. And when they

got around David and his heart after God, that began

to rub off on him, and all of a sudden

they became David's mighty men. They weren't mighty in the beginning.

Don't despise small beginnings. I don't care where you're at.

Promotion comes in the battlefield. Promotion comes in the battlefield.

It doesn't come when you're hanging out at the beach.

There's nothing wrong with the beach. I just want to say,

I love the beach.

It's amazing.

First Chronicles twelve eight, some gas joined David at the

stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained

for battle, who could handle shield and spear, whose faces

were like the faces of lions. And we're as swift

as gazelle's on the mountains. So in other words, it's

like when I'm working out. That's the description of me.

I'm just making sure y'all are listening. But and I

mentioned this about Jonathan a few weeks ago. But y'all,

in the midst of tension, his plans are not going

to be your plans. The way he desires to work

things together are probably going to be way higher than

what you're thinking. In the moment right now, all of us,

whether you were affected directly or indirectly by what we

just went through, this entire community has been affected. There

are people carrying burdens like easy and in the in

the entire city is affected. So in this moment we

want to say, Lord, how do you want to build?

Lord? How do you want to change things?

Lord?

Who do you want me to partner with?

I believe I said this first service, But out of

all the meetings that I've been asked to go into

in the last three weeks or so, I didn't ask

for any of those meetings. All we did as a body,

as a tribe, was we showed up from day one

and started serving those around us and serving with excellence.

And because of that, and because of serving with excellence

and trying to bring.

A clear communication in the midst of stuff, doors begin

to open. And now we get to be We get

to continue after this little six week pause to be

a part of watching West Kerr rebuild. You know, eighty

five percent of the damage it was of in Kerr

County was in West Kerr. And I mean, y'all, I

told you all this morning about the Community Foundation, right, yeah,

who wasn't here when I first started? Okay, Well, for

those of you that didn't raise your hand, the Community

Foundation Friday gave us a grant for two hundred thousand

dollars and so we're able to keep trucking with applications

to help flood victims, which.

Is an awesome thing.

And to this date we've been able to give out

over two hundred grand and over thirty applicants. And so

if y'all know folks that have not been helped, well,

like this is all going into our community to the people.

So that's an awesome privilege that we have.

So but in the midst of.

Turbulent times, God needs warriors, He needs people with the

heart of a warrior. Jonathan. I love Jonathan's battle plan.

I've talked about this for Samuel fourteen. Jonathan said to

the young man who carried his armor, come let us

go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised Would it

be cool if we still talk like that, and maybe

that the Lord will work for us. For nothing hinder

nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or

by few. And his armor bearer said to him, do

all that's in your heart, do as you wish. Behold,

I'm with you, heart and soul. Then Jonathan said, behold,

we will cross over.

To the men.

We will show our selves to them. And if they

say wait until we come to you, then we will

stand still in our place and we will not go

up to them. But if they say come up to us,

then we will go up. For the Lord has given

them into our hand the worst battle plan in the

history of humanity.

Would you agree? And this shall be the sign to us.

So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of

the Philistines.

I just have a picture of them, like moon in

them or something.

And the Philistines said, look, Hebrews are coming out of

the holes where they are hidden, where they've hidden themselves.

And the men of the garrison hailed Jonathan and his

armor bearer and said, come up to us, and we'll

show you a thing. And Jonathan said to his armor bearer,

come up after me, for the Lord has given them

into our hand y'all. This is a horrible idea. There

is nothing logically sound about this army, this battle plan.

Like I would have been like, hey, dude, if they

say we're coming down, we got a chance. Not climb

the cliff and take a chance of them throwing rocks

on your head while you're trying to go up the cliff,

and think, oh, yeah, that's brilliant. That's got to be

the Lord. And so Jonathan climbed up on his hands

and feet, and his armor bearer after him, and they

fell before Jonathan and his armor bearer killed them after him.

And that first strike which Jonathan and his armor bearer

made killed about twenty men within as it were half

a furl's length and an ink and an acre of land.

And there was a panic in the camp, in the

field and among the people. You know why from the

nat I mean, obviously you know why from the natural

why this looks like a ridiculous plan.

But why it was? He was able to tell it

was the.

Lord because he understood the principle that nothing's possible with men,

but all things are possible with the Lord. And so

he set his heart to follow the Lord and live

a life of impossible. He didn't want to just visit

the impossible. He actually wanted to live his entire life

in the impossible and give God plenty of opportunities.

To show up.

Y'all, we play it safe so much, so much, and

then we wonder why we don't see the Lord show

up in crazy, magnificent ways because we're so many times

calculating every step we make and call it faith, when

really it's just the wisdom of the world.

Are y all with me?

Daniel eleven thirty two to thirty five? Those who do

wickedly against the Covenant, he shall corrupt with flattery.

Who's that.

The one that's going to corrupt with flattery? But the

people who know their God shall be strong and carry

out great exploits. And those of the people who understand

shall instruct many. Yet for many days they shall fall

by the sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. Now

when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help,

But many shall join them by intrigue.

What does that mean?

These exploits are going to be so crazy that people

are going to go who are these people? And they

literally just show up and they join because they're intrigued.

What are these Jesus followers up to?

And all of a sudden they start hearing all these

testimonies of great exploits that the Body of Christ is doing.

Because they've got a.

Heart of a warrior, and they're living in the impossible

and giving Jesus plenty of opportunity to show up on

their behalf. They're not running from the battlefield, they're running

towards it. And some of those of understandings shall fall

to refine them, purify them, and make them white until

the time of the end, because it is still for

the important time.

What does it look like.

For you in this moment to say, Lord, I haven't

seen this, let's go do it. Lord, show me where

you want to do this? Fill in the blank. Lord,

I want to rebuild this, but I don't want to

do it in vain. I want to see you build.

Where do you want to build?

Lord? Who do you want to touch? Today? Maybe you

get stuck.

At the grocery store and you know it's a super

long line, and you're irritated because you're late to get

back someplace, And all of a sudden you get you

quiet your soul just enough and he goes, hey, the

person in front of you suffering from depression, I want

you to pray for them, because I'm going to remove

it right now. See, instead of instead of having a

mindset that is full of unbelief and doubt, we have

the mind of Christ that's actually full of faith and

looks at the impossible as possible. Because the one who

created it all is inside of you. He's the one

that makes axe handles float. He's the one that opened

the eyes of Hagar. And she sees a well that's

not there in the natural, and she goes and pulls

water from that well and gives water to her son,

And even though nobody else saw it, she had access

to it. But it takes It takes a warrior mindset

to have the discipline to think like Jesus and to

continue to think like him every day you wake up.

It's a warrior's mindset that says, I'm going to get

in the word right away this morning, so I don't

have stinking thinking right so that I can think like Jesus,

so I can get well acquainted with his ways, so

that when the opportunity arises in front of me, it

may be cloaked to those around me, But I see

a door of encounter and I'll go through it. I

think there's a huge invitations as he's restoring things and

rebuilding things in this moment. As eye has not seen,

ear has not heard, neither has entered into our hearts

where the Lord hasn't stored for us, but he is

revealing those things to us as children. I want to

challenge you. I know this is a hard moment. I

know this is a tough moment, and everybody's fighting different

battles and it's been a very turbulent time, but I

want to challenge you to dream with God in some ways. Literally,

our land has been cleared out, and it's like a

fresh blueprint.

What is the Lord wanting to do right now?

And I don't mean that in a please don't mistake

that blueprint statement, but that we're rebuilding spiritually physically. The

enemy moved, but he doesn't get the last word. He

came in like a flood standards being raised. So what

does it look like to have a warrior's heart and

be a part of that standard to see the justice

of God and see things that.

Just really ticks the enemy off?

Would have all three hundred of us just said, you

know what, Lord, can we just tick the enemy off

when we wake up tomorrow. I think that's a brilliant plan. Personally,

charge Hell with a water.

Pistol, is what I like to say.

But that means we have to have the right perspective.

We have to view things from God's perspective, which means

we have to rise up above what we're looking at

and say, Lord, what do you sing?

What are you saying? What are you doing?

Because it says He's always moving Right now, God is

actively moving on our behalf when we wait for him.

He's moving in your life right now. You have no

idea how many acts of God, how many angels were

released to get you here in.

This very moment. I can tell you this.

That Friday morning, when I went to go to the

to move blinds, Matt tells me, Oh, I had a

dream last night we got in a car wreck. Are

we crashed the truck? I'm like, yeah, no, let's pray.

So we pray, and then we still blow out two

tires and ruin two rims and then blow another tire

out on the second trailer. So it's probably a good

thing that we prayed.

I'm just saying, y'all.

But the point is we have a real enemy out there,

and I can't give you all the wise. I can't

give you why this is allowed to happen and this

isn't And all I can tell you is that in

this moment, I'm staying locked arm in arm with Jesus

and I'm saying, Lord, what is your word? What do

you want to say over this? How do you want

to minister to that person in front of me that

just lost everything?

Lord?

How do you want to heal this person his heart

who was clinging to a tree for dear life. That's

what I care about, because we're building people, and we

can't ever forget that. We're called to build people first

and foremost, and right now it's time to build. It's

time to continue to step in the gap, standing in

the gap, which was the prophetic theme over this year,

and fighting for those.

That cannot fight for themselves. How many people need help

fighting right now.

And that only happens when we have a proper mindset

and we have a heart like a warrior. There were

the names of the men whom Moses sent out to

spy out the land, and Moses called Hoshiah, the son.

Of Nun Joshua.

Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan,

and said to them, go up into the nageb and

go up into the hill country Kerrville, I mean hill country,

and see what the land is, and whether the people

who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they

are few or many, and whether the land that they

dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities

that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, and whether

the land is rich or poor, and whether there are

trees in it or not. Be of good courage and

bring some of the fruit of the land. Now the

time was the season of the first ripe grapes. Y'all

they bring back. They bring back a deal of grapes.

It takes two men to carry one guy's on the end,

the other guys on the other end. And these great

I mean, I imagine like these grapes were massive, I

mean huge, huge grapes.

And it says that.

And they came to the valley of Eskol and cut

down from their branch with a single cluster of grapes,

and they carry it on.

A pole between the two of them.

They also brought some pomegranates and figs. That place was

called the Valley of Eskol because of the cluster that

the people of Israel cut down from there, and there

literally for forty days spying out this land. And they

came to Moses and Aaron into all the congregation of

the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran and Kadesh,

and they brought back words of them to all the

congregation and showed them the fruit of the land. I

remember John Paul Jackson sharing a testimony. He was in

Scotland and they were running into problem after problem after problem,

and I mean it was just resistant spiritual warfare. And

I think he'd gotten sick on this trip, all sorts

of stuff happening. And two angels showed up his light cylinders,

two or three of them, and one spoke to him

out of the light, and the angel said, there are

giants in the land, but the grapes are worth it.

What is your perspective? That's a warrior's perspective. And then

he meant this Irish prophet, who he was very didn't

really think the Irish prophet was much of a prophet.

And he goes, yeah, the Lord told me a couple

of things while sitting in me tub, and he started

talking about John Paul Jackson. He goes, yeah, the Lord

told me that you go about prophesion over the world.

And he's like, yeah, I do a little bit. And

and and he said something, and he goes, yeah a

little bit. He goes, Yeah, the Lord told me you'd

be falsely humble. He goes, I am not falsely humble.

He goes, and the Lord told me you'd be stubborn too.

I am not stubborn. Just look at you.

And he goes, And the Lord told me this, He said,

when I tell you this, you'll never doubt ever again

that I hear from him. He said, there's giants in

the land, but the grapes are worth it. True story.

Right now, we're facing a lot of giants in our land, destruction, trauma, grief.

We're facing lots of giants in our land right now,

But the grapes are worth it. But we have to

have the heart of a warrior. We have to have

perseverance in this hour. We got to know when to rest.

We got to know. I say this all the time.

If you're humble, hungry, and teachable, there is no limit

to where God can take you. But it all starts

with humility. He gives grace to the humble, but he

opposes the proud. It says, he will exalt you, he

will lift you up. He knows your address, y'all. He

knows where you sleep, he knows where you're born. He

predetermined the moment, every single one of you. He predetermined

to be here, in this moment, in this season, with

divine destiny over your life. And there's a plan and

a purpose that He has for you right now in Kerville.

And it's not just to sit back and be comfortable,

but it's to have a hammer in one hand and

a sword in the other. So they brought back word

to them and to all the congregation. It showed them

the fruit of the land, and they told them, we

came to the land to which you sent us. It

flows with milk and honey, and it is and this

is its fruit. However, the people who dwell in the

land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large.

And besides, we saw the descendants of a knock there.

That means the Nephalum and the Amalekites dwell in the

land of Negeb, the Hittites, the Jebi sites, the Amorites

dwell in the hill country, and the Canaanites dwell by

the sea, and along the Jordan.

All the Heites were there.

But Caleb quieted the people before Moses said, let us

go up at once and occupy it, for we are

well able to overcome it. See, Caleb had the same

mindset as Jonathan. He looks at a cliff and says, hah,

you guys are toast be there in a second. Then

the men who had gone up with him, we're not

able to go up against the people, for they are

stronger than we are. So they brought to the people

of Israel a bad report of the land that they

had spied out, saying, the land through which we have

gone to spy it out as a land that devours

as inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in

it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephelum,

the sons of an Ok, who come from the Nephalum,

And we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we

seemed to them, if you're gonna slay giants and you're

gonna build in the kingdom. You cannot have grasshopper thinking.

You've got to allow the Lord to take out the

grasshopper thinking. And you got to have the mindset of

a warrior. You got to have the mindset of David.

You got to have the mindset of Caleb of Joshua.

You have to have the mindset of David's mighty men,

where you look at these things and you go, oh,

this is gonna be fun. Lord, what do you want

to do? If you focus on the other Guess what happens?

You end up full of doubt, unbelief, and you run

from your calling. You literally self sabotage the very thing

that God was trying to lead you into, because you're

more focused on the giant.

Than you are the fruit.

So warriors kill fear. No man shall be able to

stand before you all the days of your life, just

as I was with Moses, So I will be with you.

I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong

and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit

the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.

God did not give you a spirit of fear, but

of love, power, and a sound mind. And in those

moments when the enemy comes and starts accusing you and

shooting fiery darts and trying to put fear in you,

you go not today, junior. I don't have a spirit

of fear, but love, power and a sound mind. And

it's the love of Jesus that I carry that drives

your assignment away. Only be strong and very courageous. Be

careful to do according to all the law that Moses,

my servant, commanded. You do not turn from it the

right hand or to the left, that you may have

good success wherever you go. Multiple times he told them,

be of good courage, over and over. Be of good courage,

Be strong, be very courageous. He looks at Gideon and says, oh,

mighty man of valor, do you understand, your identity comes

from Jesus and him alone. Don't put your identity into

the hands of men. If I look to you to

tell me who I am, I'm giving you the power

to tell me who I'm not, and that's not happening.

Jesus is the only one that has the ability to

tell you who you are.

Period.

If you reject me, and I know that I'm fully

accepted in Jesus, then that's your problem and not mine.

But to the degree that that rejection hurts just exposes

how much I don't believe that I'm fully accepted and

unrejectable to him. Secular humanism has come so far into

the Church that our theologies are twisted. When Saul became Paul,

no one could change that. It's impartation, it's his identity.

When go on and on, Jacob Israel, you go on

and on and on with every one of these guys,

their name was changed. Well, guess what, y'all, the moment

you stepped into Jesus, the moment you repented of your

sin and said yes to the Lord, you were a

brand new creation, beyond normal.

Do you understand that?

Paul says, why are you acting like mere humans? Do

you not know you're gonna judge angels? There's a mandate

from Heaven on our life to not live naturally. It's

a part of our inheritance in Jesus to see the

impossible bow. And this is what he's calling us to.

We cannot afford to faint in this hour running with men,

because he's called us to run with horses.

One John four eighteen.

Fear involves torment, Since therefore the children share in flesh

and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things,

that through death he might destroy the one who has

the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver

all those who, through fear of death, were subject to

lifelong slavery. Psalm thirty four to four Delivered me from

all my fears Matthew ten twenty eight. Fear of man?

Do you know?

It says that the fear of man is a snare.

It will catch you, and it will keep you from

fulfilling your destiny. And if you don't deal with the

fear of man, once you step into that place, guess

what you will shipwreck your faith. Because that's exactly what

happened to Saul. Because God, because so all feared people

more than he feared God. He went out of kingship

into priesthood, and he and literally the Lord said, I

would have established my kingdom with you. Are you all tracking?

I'm gonna land the plane five minutes safely with no

tires blowing out. And the Lord said to Gideon, the

people are too still too many. I love this. The

Lord says to Gideon, the people are still too many.

You know. Remember he was thinning them down. He said,

take them down to the water, and I'll test them

for you there. And anyone of whom I say to you,

this one shall go with you, shall go with you.

And any one of whom I say to you, this

one shall not go with you, shall not go. So

he brought the people down to the water, and the

Lord said to Gideon, everyone who laps the water with

his tongue as a dog laps, you shall set by himself.

Likewise, everyone who kneels down to drink.

And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands

in their mouths, was three hundred men. But all the

rest of the people knelt down to drink water. What

did he do? He was looking for the warriors. He

was looking for the ones that were trained, that knew

you don't go like this for water. You go like this,

keeping your eyes on the enemy, looking around so that.

You don't get ambushed.

And there were three hundred out of thirty thousand that

had that mindset, three hundred, and he took those three hundred,

and he saved a nation with three hundred people. They

were trained, they were equipped, they knew, they were trained

on the battlefield, and their promotion came on the battlefield.

Don't run from the front line, run to it. Jesus says,

I set a table before you, in the presence of

your enemy.

Come and dine.

Where's your problem, where's your stronghold, where's the habitual sin?

Go look for the table the Lord in the midst

of that, and say, okay, I'm gonna eat from your table.

I'm done eating from the table of demons.

Lord. Oh wait a minute, You want me to sit

down right there? Yeah, let's commune. But there's like five

massive demons right there. Yeah, who cares about them? Come

sit at my table. You're my son, you're my daughter.

Lay your addiction to the side, lay your sexual perversion

to the side.

And come to me.

What is it? What is it you've been battling? What

is the pacifier this morning? Because he's saying, come to

my table and lay all this aside. Warriors strengthen themselves

in the Lord. Remember when all of David's amazing guys,

the four hundred guys, were like.

We're gonna kill him. He's an idiot leader. We should

be leading.

I don't even know what's going on, you know, I'm

just imagining some of the stuff. They're trash talking David,

and David's just going hord what you do to me?

They're not mighty yet?

Are we gonna get there before I die?

And all of a sudden he.

Strengthens himself and the Lord, and then it says, then

he inquired of the Lord? Is that important? Because if

you don't go to God in faith, he's not pleased

and you don't get to hear.

If you believe in him.

You must come in faith. And He's a rewarder of

those who diligently seek him. So he strengthens himself. And

how does he do this? He literally recounts all the

testimonies of how God showed up in his life. And

he starts recounting these testimonies of how the Lord came through,

and all of a sudden, this supernatural strength is starting

to forge inside of him. And even in the midst

of going through all these things, you remember, it says,

taste and see the Lord is good. You remember the testimonies.

Over here, this person was healed, over here, this person

got delivered of a demon. I can literally go through

this room and recount over the last nine years of

how people's lives were completely transformed. A lady over here

one Sunday morning came to church with the intentions of

committing suicide after service, and a word of now about

suicide came forth, and the woman still alive today. You

start to strengthen yourself with his testimonies and what he's

done in your life, and all of a sudden, this strength,

that living water begins to come up.

And now you begin to look at.

The impossible as possible, because now the fear and the

doubt has gone. You punched fear in the face, and

you're looking at that and go, all right, Lord, let's

go warriors, cultivate an overcoming life. And the only way

you're going to overcome is if you learn how to

discipline your disappointments, because if you don't learn how to

discipline your disappointment, your disappointments are going to discipline you.

Hebacchic one one to five. The oracle that I tick

the prophet soul. Oh Lord, how long shall I cry

for help? Then you will not hear or cry to

you violence, and you will not save. Why do you

make me see iniquity? And why do you idly look

it wrong? Destruction and violence are before me. Strife and

contention arise, so the laws paralyzed, and justice never goes forth.

For the wicked surround the righteous. So justice goes forth perverted.

Look among the nations and see wonder and be astonished,

for I am doing a work in your days that

you would not believe if I told you. Again, getting

focused on the disappointments, getting focused on the wrong side

of the coin. And he says, no, son, I'm about

to do a work that you won't even believe. And

this is where we're at in this moment. Yes, the

enemies come in. There has been destruction, there has been death, loss.

We have gone through the ringer.

But he says, I'm doing a work in your days

that you would not believe if I told you. And

I believe that wholeheartedly. So he says, watch and pray.

I'll take my stand and my watch post and station

myself on the tower and look to see what he'll

say to me and what I will answer concerning my complaint.

You been there. That's where we get the intercessory whining from.

And the Lord answered me, write the vision, make it

plain on tablet so he may run who reads it

for still the vision awaits it's appointed time.

It hastens to the end.

It will not lie if it seems slow. If you're going, Lord,

why aren't you moving in a mighty way? Yet, why

aren't you touching this region in a way that literally

touches the nations? Yet wait for it. It will surely come, It.

Will not delay.

Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not upright

within him. But the righteous shall live by faith. So

have Heaven's perspective, For the earth is filled with the

knowledge of the glory of the Lord. As the waters

cover the sea, and rejoice in trials, give thanks in

all things, thankfulness and contending. These are all characteristics of

what it means to become a dread warrior in the

Kingdom of Heaven. Let me finish with this. I think

one of the most powerful, powerful things we can do

daily to stay healthy mentally and emotionally is thanksgiving. Even

if we can have that spiritual discipline no matter what,

because I can tell you there are things that we

can give thanks for every day of our life. There are.

And when you begin to feel overwhelmed by the trials,

the pressure, the tests, the loss your weapon, in that

moment is not carnal. Your weapon of righteousness in that

moment is God. Thank you, Thank you for your love,

thank you for your goodness, and you give thanks, even

if it's a sacrifice of praise. You start to praise

and thanksgiving and praise, and even if you feel nothing,

you just say, Lord, I feel nothing, but you're worthy.

Thank you Father, Thank you that even in spite of

what I'm feeling right now, it doesn't change who you are. Lord.

I thank you that you are great and powerful and

good and you only give good gifts. Lord, I thank

you that right now you're even turning around things I've

done to myself and to others for my good. That's

how good you are.

Lord.

And you just begin to go into thanksgiv and I

promise you in that moment that will push out the

assignment of that heaviness coming over your mind and heart.

Warriors know how to give thanks, Warriors know how to

praise in the midst of the storm. Warriors know how

to strengthen themselves when their own men want to kill them.

This is the heart of a warrior. Jesus has that heart,

and Jesus is inside of you, and you can do

all things through Him. So we're going to arise and rebuild.

We're gonna have a hammer in one hand, and we're

gonna have a sword in the other, and we're gonna

have the wisdom of God to know when to use

the hammer and when to use the sword. And we're

gonna have the insight and the ability to see so

that on that battlefield, we don't hurt each other, We

only hit the enemy.

Amen.

Let's stand.

Y'all. Good.

Look to the person next to you, so you look

better now than when you came in. Don't say that

to your wife though. Sorry, I was supposed to say

that for if I can get the prayer teams to

come forward.

You know what prayer teams.

I wasn't crying because nobody was showing up. I mean,

it just needs needs you all to come. If you're

on the prayer team, come forward, please, you know, y'all.

Scripture says your life is a vapor. It appears for

a little while and then vanishes. Our home is eternal,

and there there was no pain, there's no suffering, there

is no loss, there is no heartache, there are no tears.

Where we're going, then it's going to be beautiful. But

we're here right now in a fallen world, and a

lot of stinky things happen while we're here. But it's

such a gift to know Jesus. I don't know what

people do right now that don't know the Lord, trying

to go through this life, trying trying to go through

crisis and loss and and just the instability of the nations.

And you might be here this morning finding yourself like

I'm not quite sure if I really really really know Jesus.

Can I encourage you don't leave without coming up here

and saying, hey, you know what I don't I don't

really think I know Jesus, but I want to know him.

I can promise you.

In that moment, you'll actually begin a journey of discovering

who He created you to be, and you'll even begin

to understand yourself better because He created you, He knitted

you together in your mother's womb. So please don't leave

here this morning not knowing where you're headed when you

breathe your last breath on earth. So Father, I just

thank you for your love. I thank you for your goodness.

I thank you that you so loved us, so loved

the world that you gave your only son that whoever

believes in him shall have eternal life, because you didn't

send him into the world to condemn it, but through

him the world would be saved. So Jesus, would you

magnify your presence and your name in this moment. Lord,

would you come in power by your spirit, Lord, and

begin to minister to the hearts of the people. Would you,

holy spirit, convict of sin, righteousness and judgment. Lord, I

pray that no one would leave here, not surrendered to you,

That no one would leave, Lord, not knowing you, that

no one would leave bound up and oppressed, tormented. Lord,

because you are the healer, He the sun sets free,

is free indeed, So Lord, thank you. And I asked

that you would keep us sensitive this week as we

go forth. Lord, that we would love on the ones

in front of us, that we would continue to be

your hands and feet. And Lord, I just thank you

for continuing to make a name for yourself among us

and in our region. I ask all of these things

in the mighty name of the Lord Jesus.

Amen.

Thank you for listening.

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