Nick Vujicic | First Conference 2019

Bless you, thank you, love you.

Thank you for the welcome.

And if there was another four minutes of other video that you wanted to play for the other campuses, no joke, I think they did you want to play the other video and I can just wait, or are we just good to go?

Sweet to go.

Hello, Gateway.

Uh, Pastor Robert, Debbie, all the pastoral leader team, thank you so much for having me here at Gateway.

Everyone watching online at all the other six campuses.

Uh, happy new year.

Yeah.

Uh, what an awesome, awesome time to uh be thinking about a year in advance of what God wants to do in us, through us, for him.

Um, it is my honor and privilege to be here today uh to tell you that I love you and God has a plan for you.

And this is not a message really for someone who um doesn't know Jesus yet.

This is gonna be more of an encouraging hoorah message for those of us who do believe in God, who believe that heaven is real.

I just want to encourage you to uh to really go all in.

And for me to be part of this first conference of Gateway, thank you for having me.

Thank you for your support and your love.

And if you're a Christian and you sometimes take notes, this is definitely uh a time where you can quote some scriptures from me on your just a reference of uh the scriptures that I'm gonna be quoting from up here on stage.

Real quick though, um I am so privileged to announce that my amazing, most beautiful wife, Kanee, is front seat.

So uh all the campuses can see you.

Baby, have a wave of that camera right over there.

Her name is Kane.

She's the most incredible wife and mother.

And if you could at the sound desk turn me down a little bit and turn the tribs down a little bit, I'm a little OCD, sorry about that.

And then we also, though, have a little bit of a couple photos of family photos.

Here we go.

Um, this is our family.

Uh so my wife and I, we've been married now for seven years, and uh it was love at first sight.

I looked at her, she looked at me, I couldn't feel my legs.

And then um Kiyoshi on the left is five years old, Dan on the right is three, and our twin baby girls, we also have a close-up shot of them.

Um, this is Olivia and Allie.

They're they just turned one a couple weeks ago, and they're already nearly my height.

Really cool.

Um so we have a second home here in Allen.

Uh, we actually met in McKinney.

So my wife uh was a resident in Dallas here for 10 years, and uh wonderful that you're here, my love, love you.

And real quick, I know that some of you saw me speak at maybe the men's conference or a youth night.

Um, since seeing you a couple years ago, I think it's been that.

Um I I I have a photo of a really cool report just to just fun.

Um, this is Ukraine.

This is the 17th of September 2017.

800,000 people were there face to face, 400,000 gave their life to Jesus Christ that day.

And um the coolest thing was that we had 26 countries watching live without commercial breaks in 20 languages to 52.7 million people.

And so the fact that God can use the foolish things of this world to confound the wise is so awesome.

And um, God has opened up incredible doors for the minister of our ministry called Life Without Limbs from California to just open up those doors that are normally not open.

And God opens up those doors, and I get my little foot in there and kick them open.

And um, we were in Iran in August.

I go to Dublin, Ireland tomorrow.

Um, and I just thank you for your prayers and your love and support.

And in praying for our country, I want to show you a very encouraging photo.

This is the government of Ukraine.

This is the Senate, the House of Representatives, everyone but the president was there.

If you notice closely, they're actually not sitting on their seats, they're on their knees.

This was in April 2017 when I was able to address the government about faith and God and honoring God as nations, and they asked for the forgiveness of sins on National Life TV and asked God to heal their land in Ukraine.

Now, if you ever told me as a kid that God's gonna use you to be the hands and feet of him and to stand in front of the gates of hell and redirect traffic, I would say you're crazy.

But he can do exceedingly abundantly more than we can ever ask, imagine, or attain.

Amen.

And in my 36 years of life, 21 years walking with the Lord, I feel like I've kind of finally hit a graduation, like a promotion kind of thing.

And I feel like all the things that have brought us up until this point, whether you're ever on the stage, whether you ever have a title or not, everything that has led up to our life up until this moment, if God gives us tomorrow, everything that has ever happened can propel us for the things of tomorrow, good or bad.

But what I want to talk about is get out of the bubble.

Everyone say, bubble.

Because his ways and thoughts are higher than ours.

My mom and dad were refugees escaping Yugoslavia in the 1960s.

My dad uh straddled three jobs while he voluntarily planted a church.

And when I was born, they said, What is up with this?

Where is God?

What kind of plan does God have?

And I want you to know for those of you who need a reassurance, let me say that if you've ever struggled in 2018 even closely to the word of depression, I really feel that one of the biggest things to instigate life again is actually putting yourself in a place where you see the purposes of God fulfilled through your life.

So many people say, Nick, I've been praying for God to do something or give me something, and I don't know what my purpose is.

Well, read the Bible.

It says to love God with all your heart, might, soul, and strength, and then to love your neighbor as yourself.

You see, we know that the world here as we know it is not going to last forever.

The statistics are pretty awesome.

For every person who is born dies.

And it's because we're citizens of heaven passing through.

And in the end, the bottom line of bottom lines is that when we go to heaven and we see God face to face, we get to see Him, we live there eternally.

There is no devil, there is no pain, there's no sickness or disease, no powers or principalities of darkness.

He is done, done, done.

And I can't wait for that, and I can't wait to have arms and legs, and I can't wait to, yes, sure, see my wife and throw her up in the air with my new arms.

Yeah, but the first hand that I'm gonna hold is the peace hand of my savior, and I'm gonna hug him.

And then it says in the Bible that there are gonna be treasures stored in heaven, and if you don't know this, for every person that you encourage, it's the evangelist in me, just letting you know.

But this is what I live for.

When you understand that you take nothing with you, God will have very little questions.

You think you will have a lot of them, but trust me, it's way beyond what we could ever think or imagine.

And in a split second, I'm sure every question will be answered without anyone talking.

And when we get to heaven, though, there is one thing that I'm looking forward to to hugging people who said, Thank you for being a neighbor to me in Frisco, in Allen, in Dallas.

Thank you for not being too busy, B-U-S-Y, being under Satan's yoke, and so busy with busyness that you took time, everyone say, took time, took time to tell me about Jesus.

You will be surprised how many people I meet who are age 40 to 60 who have best friends who would not go to church, and you don't though think, well, maybe you should share your testimony anyway.

When we're at the cashier check, uh the cashier of your grocery store, when that 17-year-old girl is getting your stuff and she's going, beep, beep, beep, beep.

What are we doing?

We're on our phones, and we don't take time to look up and say, Hi.

You want to practice that with me?

Everyone say hi.

And you can say, Hey, can I pray for you?

What's the worst thing that could ever happen?

She says, No.

Oh my gosh.

And so, what do you do?

You say, Okay, I understand, but when I go to my car, I'm gonna pray for you anyway, so why don't you just tell me what you want me to pray for since I'm going to the throne?

What's the worst thing that can ever happen if you ever invite someone to your church?

They say, No, what's the worst thing if you never invite them to church?

Think of your five best friends.

Do they know how Jesus grabbed a hold of you?

Have you even written your testimony down?

Because the only treasures in heaven we will ever have is us when we live outside of our bubble to know that we ain't here trying to set up our bubble.

We're here on a mission trip for 90 years.

This is a mission trip.

This is war.

And when you know that spiritual powers are against you, that's why we pray.

We go back to the simplicity things, as the brother said.

2019, going back to simple things.

You know, I've struggled on a daily basis to pray for more than two, three minutes.

So, guess what I've done?

I've written out my prayer.

I now pray 11 minutes a day.

Every single day I pray, but now I have something, I've got a line for wisdom.

I need discernment, I need health, I need protection.

When was the last time we ever prayed for a relative who doesn't know Jesus?

It's interesting when we go to American church and you hi, brother, how are you?

God, God bless you.

How's everything?

Fine.

Hey, I'm praying for you.

No, you're not the power of prayer when you really believe it.

You when you pray, God sends angels.

Now, can God give me arms and legs, whether or not I ask for them?

Yes, he can do anything he wants, he's gone.

But when we pray for the lost, we mean it.

It's easier to write a check at Christmas, but take time and pray for those you cannot see, understanding that we can't change hearts, but God can.

And when we are a part of someone knowing that Jesus is Lord, we get in heaven jewels in our crown.

So far, we've seen a million souls give their life to Jesus Christ face to face.

And when you have a crown, what do we do with our crowns?

We lay them at the feet of Jesus.

Why?

Because I do no longer live for me, but Christ that lives in me.

I am here to, yes, love him, but listen up: the pinnacle of my relationship with Jesus Christ is not when he blesses me.

The pinnacle of my relationship with Jesus Christ is despite what I see, despite what I feel, I will trust him and I want to fulfill the will of God in my life.

Arms and legs or not, cancer or not, rich or poor, I know that God has a plan for me.

Jeremiah 29, verse 11.

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord.

Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

You don't know the plans of God yet?

Then read on, verse 12.

Then you will call upon me, come pray to me, and I will listen to you.

You will seek me and find me when you search me with all your heart.

I will be found by you, declares the Lord.

When we click over a year from 2018 to 2019, we're thinking about me.

Me.

I challenge you to write down ten people that you know that are not saved, and I ask and commission you to pray for them every single day.

How much do you want to see them in heaven?

Then the first thing is pray.

Amen.

Write down the five close friends of yours that you've never shared your testimony.

How can I share my testimony to my work colleagues?

Oh my gosh.

It's easy.

You know what you do?

Hey, do you want to go out and have lunch?

Coffee?

Sure.

Lunch break.

You know what you do on the first lunch break, say, hey, so tell me your story.

Okay.

Was that hard?

Then you listen to their story.

And guess what happens after they stop talking?

Anyone guess?

What's your story?

I thought you'd never ask.

If God can use a man without arms and legs to be his hands and feet, then God can use any willing heart.

Do not be afraid of what to say, for it's not you who's speaking, but God through you.

He's not looking for anything else than you saying, here I am, whatever I am, send me.

I am yours.

Money, drugs, sex, alcohol, pornography, fame, and fortune, this happiness or that this world can never give you will never satisfy you.

Some of your 55-year-old brothers, all you want to do is pay off your house and get a couple print rental properties in Frisco.

It's not gonna finish.

That's not the end of your race.

Little did I know that I would find something not just to live for but to die for.

That's purpose.

I have joy because I know the truth, and the truth has set me free.

I'm not just a kid without arms and legs, I'm an ambassador of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

I will never forget in Indonesia there was a guy who told me if I ever came back to that country, he emailed us, said you ever come back and we see another 60,000 people give their life to Jesus, we will kill you.

We went back three years later.

Not because we're stupid or testing God, but there's no safer place to be than when God has you, right?

Went back there, we got an email later, another 60,000 gave their life to Jesus.

We got an email saying, I came there to kill you, but I gave my life to Jesus Christ instead.

Yeah.

Um, some people think that because I've been hurt by a church and a Christian that we're all bad, and that's their excuse for things about why they don't become a Christian.

But a Christian is actually a follower of Jesus, that's what a definition is.

Some people have problems with unanswered prayer, some people feel like it's just too simple to believe.

Some people believe that God can't ever forgive me of what I've done wrong.

But I want you to know if you don't know Jesus, is your soul well?

First of all, I want to give you an acronym before I give you the verse up here.

Bubble B-U-B-B-L-E.

Ready?

Being under biblical beliefs lacking evidence, being under biblical beliefs lacking evidence.

The first evidence that God talks about is love.

Because God is love, amen.

First John chapter 4, verse 17.

1 John 4:17

Oh wow, I need glasses to read that.

Love has been perfected among us in this, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world.

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out all fear.

You know what stuck out to me when I read this yesterday?

Because fear involves torment.

But he who fears has not been sorry, but he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

We love him because he first loved us.

I look disabled.

And when you spell the word D-I-S-A-B-L-E-D, when you walk by faith and not by sight, our pinnacle of our relationship with God is not when we're blessed, but when we trust in him no matter what, when we still serve him despite what we see, despite what we feel, and we still go.

I feel inadequate, says Moses.

I'm just a boy, I'm young, Jeremiah.

Don't say that you're young, we feel inadequate.

But when we go, we put a G O in front of the word disabled, it spells God is able.

And how amazing it is that when you leave the chains of torment, of need and want, and a soul that is heavy, and you become free, all you want to do is help someone else be free.

And I have prayed for arms and legs, and I have a pair of shoes in my closet just in case he says yes.

But I'll tell you, there is gonna be one person in heaven waiting for me that I can't wait to meet him.

He's still alive on earth.

Daniel Martinez was born in California, no arms, no legs, just like me, a little foot like me, and my parents were able to encourage his parents to not give up.

I was able to go to his school because he was being bullied and teased.

So I went to his school in my wheelchair and I ran them all over.

In the end, indeed, no, that's not what Jesus would do.

Okay, I did not do that, but all of a sudden, Daniel, who has no arms and legs, realizes if God had a plan for Uncle Nick, then God has a plan for me.

Did you have an alcoholic father?

I'm sorry if you did.

I'm sorry if your father walked out on you.

I'm sorry if you were sexually abused.

I'm sorry if you've been verbally abused.

I'm sorry if you've been through the foster care system and home to home to home.

I am sorry for the things that you've gone through, and I will never tell anybody that I understand what you've gone through.

But God tells us that not only is his grace sufficient, but that he will never waste pain.

That if we allow him to take our broken pieces, he can make something amazing.

For instance, if you had an alcoholic father, now you know what alcohol can do in some families.

Now, if there is you who has an alcoholic father in their childhood, and there is a child over here whose father today is an alcoholic, and you felt like giving up, and you had thoughts of suicide at age 13, but now you're 30 years old and you press through and you can see that God still is God and He has a plan and He can give you strength and a life of peace, joy, love, you can encourage that child more than I.

Are you with me?

Not one preacher is more anointed or powerful than another.

If the Bible had the ability to do this, if God really wanted to, we could have, you know how we all have angels above our head writing everything down, what happens, what we say, what we did, what other things.

That's your history.

Your history is his story.

And in the end, my eyes are fixed on Jesus.

In the end, until that day where I can see my Savior face to face, and I can live forevermore.

Until then, for as God enables me, I want to see others see Jesus.

You are commissioned to be an evangelist.

We are not here to get comfortable.

We have a bubble.

The foolish man built his house upon the sand.

The foolish.

Then the wise man built his house upon the rock.

The 2018 church built the house on the rock and surrounded themselves with a bubble.

What am I talking about?

Well, if I can just have this and I can just have this, and God's gonna bless me.

Yes, God, I praise you because I know that one day you're gonna give me a wife.

What if he doesn't?

Lord, I know that one day you're gonna give me a big house.

What if he doesn't?

God, I know that one day you're gonna give me children.

What if he doesn't?

Are you all in?

And not just your first, but everything.

Come back to your first love.

Jesus died on the cross for my sins.

Who am I that he should send his son Jesus to die on the cross, resurrect from the dead?

I have a cure of everlasting life.

Yes, God, give me arms and legs.

Yes, God, give me children.

Yes, God, bless my home.

Yes, God, give me a wife.

But I love Shadrach, Meshach, and Nebednego, where they said to the king that said, bow down to the idol because we're gonna burn you up in the fire.

And what did they say?

Do it.

Because if you do it, God will save us.

And even if he doesn't, hallelujah! That's faith.

That's joy.

That's confidence.

That's peace.

When you don't have torment in your soul, I'm not living for me anymore.

I'm done.

This is this is flesh.

I can't wait to go home.

Amen.

But we're real estate brokers in heaven.

And every time someone gives their life to Jesus, you get a commission.

Love this.

Real quick, uh scripture of what do we got?

James chapter 2, verse 14 to 20.

James 2:14–20

Yeah, sorry, my eyes.

Oh, I didn't even write it down.

I'll have to do this.

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?

Can faith save him?

If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, Depart in peace, God bless you, be warm and filled.

But you do not give them the things which are needed for the body.

What does it profit?

Thus also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

But someone will say, Oh, don't worry about that.

We got that.

So I know.

I read it again, and we don't need the other verses.

But let me tell you, faith without works is dead.

Do you know there are 425,000 children in America waiting for a foster home?

Do you know there are 111,000 children in America that are waiting for a home to be adopted in?

Did you know that the highest rate of suicide is in Hawaii?

Did you know that the greatest rate of homelessness is in Hawaii?

Did you know that the greatest rate of veterans' homelessness is in Dallas?

Did you know that still 22 veterans commit suicide every single day?

Did you know that one in five children in Zambia, despite all the corruption, the$50 billion of aid going to Africa, by the age of five, 17% of kids still die just because of not having clean water?

I'm not trying to put it down, but let me just say, America, as a US citizen, I am all for praying, baby.

I am all for coming to this church.

In fact, if you are not a member of a home church yet, get into this church today.

God blesses our membership.

If it's not this church, find your home church, not as a consumer.

Well, I didn't like how that and that was.

And how many times are we gonna sing that song?

I didn't care what you think, you are not here just to be fed.

Yes, get fed, yes, get fed, but get plugged in, get plugged in and serve.

I am all for a million people praying for America, and in the end, my questions that I ask myself how many homeless people did I get a home to?

How many carless people did I give a car to?

How many meals did I give a hungry child?

Me and my wife, we're not bragging, but we now have 15 children sponsored.

13 of them through a lady, Holly, who helps 15,000 orphans.

There is much to do.

It's wonderful to get an education, it's wonderful to find a church, but if your teenagers are depressed and you are having problems connecting with your teenagers, here's the New Year's resolution.

Ready?

Take them on a missions trip.

Not alone, not alone, not alone, you go with them, baby.

You go with them, take it to Zambia, take them to Kenya, take them to building, and don't just build a house.

I'm all for building homes.

That's great, that's wonderful.

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

Build a home, but you know what I'm saying?

I can't wait to take my son to show him what an orphanage is.

Because my dad taught me never forget the poor, the widows, the orphans.

Because my dad sometimes only had bread to eat.

And his dad was jailed multiple times for his faith.

It is time to get out of our bubble.

Nothing wrong with making money.

Wonderful.

Make money.

But you ain't taking anything with you.

Ready, ready, ready, ready, ready.

And whether you leave your son with a hundred G or a million G.

A million G, a hundred G or a million dollars.

He ain't gonna remember that on his deathbed.

He's gonna remember your son on his deathbed will remember.

He told me who Jesus was, and he showed me how to be a good husband to my wife, how to be a good father, and how to burst out of that bubble and be courageous.

Do you know Jesus?

Then if you do, tell the world that's a command from God.

Your left neighbor, your right neighbor, the neighbor across the street.

Here's a tip for a guy with a thousand unread text messages on his phone.

If it ain't on the calendar, it ain't happening.

Three neighbors, five neighbors, one neighbor, a planet.

Put it in your calendar.

Do it.

Have dinner with them, break bread with them, and tell them about what you found.

Because when you see that God can use you, you realize it's got nothing to do with us.

It's through him in him for him.

Through him in him for him.

Don't ever be afraid.

Enough with the chains of torment.

They're just a little lie.

Hallelujah.

Amen.

Let's give God a shout of glory.

You're not saved by works, but faith without works is dead.

So let's come alive.

Some of you need to recommit your life to Jesus Christ.

Can we have Julia and play some keys back there?

I play keys, but I'm not warmed up yet.

I have to finish with this.

When you look at the world, we say that person or me, I'm helpless.

Do you understand?

I'm an evangelist who tried to commit suicide at age 10.

I felt helpless, but the truth was people were praying for me.

The truth was my parents stood by me.

The truth was God's grace was sufficient.

And if it wasn't for my parents who loved me, if it wasn't for the people who prayed for me, ready?

Put up your hand if you came to Jesus because of a friend in your life.

Put your hand up.

You came to Jesus because of a friend in your life.

Also, put your hand up if you came to Jesus because of a family member in your life.

Look at that.

Put your hand down.

It's family and friends, community.

And when help is offered, you're no longer helpless.

See, I'm limbless because I have no limbs, but helpless isn't the status of a conclusion of your life.

God ain't done with you.

And God ain't done with America.

And man, we're living in some exciting days.

But be a part.

You can sit on the rock in your nice lounge and your bubble.

That's great.

You'll still be saved.

But man.

Woe is me.

When I ask myself, how much selfishness do I have, really?

How much time do I pray with my wife?

Talk about God at home.

God, I'm ready.