Next Year Starts Now // End in Triumph: Damaged But Not Destroyed (Part 12) // Charles Metcalf

Welcome to Transformation Church Podcast, where we represent God to the lost and found

for transformation in Christ. We're so glad you're here and wherever you're listening from,

we believe God will transform your life. Do today's message? All right,

y'all ready for the word today? Thank you three people who are ready.

I'll appreciate to you the rest of y'all just in here. No,

we have been in a series called damage but not Destroyed. Everybody say damage

but not destroyed. And we made a shift the last two weeks to talking

about we are going to end in triumph. Somebody say end in triumph.

We have made an intentional adjustment that we're not just focusing on the trauma that

we've experienced, but we're shifting into experiencing triumph. That we're not just going

to focus on what went wrong. And this can be so easy to happen

in today's time and culture. People can get focused on their trauma and in

a Beautiful Heart, we're talking about the importance of counseling and having a therapist

and talking about what you went through. But if you're not careful, you

will get stuck in old stories and that become your narrative. You will get

stuck in who wasn't there for you and what you didn't have and how it

didn't go your way, and all those things are true. But if you're

not careful and intentional, you will get stuck in a lens of trauma.

So not anybody who reminds you kind of that one person that didn't call you

back. Now, everybody don't like you. Nobody see, nobody likes me.

Everybody talks about me, and I just sometimes we be in meeting,

sometimes at church, this happens all the time. Will be like, you

know, people are just saying, I'm always guys like whoo, who was

it? How many people? Well, you know, like just a couple

of people. Where are they though? Like what's their names? Because sometimes

without doing the work, we just generalize whole groups of people. When my

family don't like me, they're all talking about me really because it's really just

that we are cousin that you don't even really like anyways. But for some

reason, y'all, I've been competitive since y'all was eight, So their word

means a lot to you. All of a sudden. Not everybody. You

gotta be intentional to deal with and understand. Okay, I'm gonna acknowledge my

trauma. I have to do something about it. But at some point I

have to shift my perspective to triumph is in front of me. There is

greater in front of me than there is behind me. So we made that

decision. The last couple of weeks and Pastor Michael preached a sermon called a

sudden switch, that there was gonna be something that happened in our heart and

our spirit, and he talked about this idea that a sudden switch often happens

with a subtle switch, something small in a mindset, something small in your

discipline, something small in how you manage your money, something small and communicating

in your marriage. Then last week, there is triumph in trying again.

If there's gonna be switched at some point, you gotta try. At some

point, you gotta with this. I just thought of a story. My

son. He's four years old, and literally this is yesterday. I'm thinking

about this real time, And yesterday I go into the bathroom and he's like,

Dad, I need you to help me. And I'm like, all

right, buddy, I'm gonna help you. And this is a little team,

but we all got kids up here. We're grown. He's still learned

how to wipe his bottom, so we be having to help Usop, buddy,

I'm gonna teach you. He's like, I can't do it. And

I'm like, baby, our daddy's here to teach you. He's like,

no, I promise you, I'm not gonna be able to do what you're

about to say. I was like, he's so my son. He has

like such an articulate He's like, whatever you're about to say, I'm not

gonna be able to do it. He literally, I'm like, just grab

the toilet paper and he's like ah, and then he just rips it off

and starts smacking his But he's like, see, look, it's not working.

We just had to call it a wash. We were just like,

okay, we'll revisit this at another time. Clearly, your emotions are too

high to learn how to wipe yourself, but at some point you gotta try.

You gotta decide. Some of us, that's how we feel. Come

on, I'm gonna teach you how to be pure. God, I can't

do it. Look out good look it is. I'm gonna teach you how

to communicate. Ah, I can't communicate. At some point, God's like,

Okay, calm down, take a deep breath, let me teach you.

And we're talking about these ideas. And today I told you this,

but I believe the Holy Spirit has given me such a clear next step in

that. And so I want to start off today with a statement, the

statement. If you're taking notes, you're gonna want to write this down.

This is I'm gonna give you a whole sermon in one statement, and then

I'm just gonna prove to you, oh, for the next thirty five minutes

and fifty forty nine seconds why this statement has the power to change your life

forever. Now I have to warn you this is a dangerous statement. This

is a statement full of expectation. This statement is not for the subtle of

heart. This statement is not for people who are really connected to their past

and their fears and their failures. And this is not for people who want

to live in try I'm gonna warn you. If you want to live in

trauma, you can ignore me. But if you might want to step into

triumph, if you want to live with an expectation every day, if you

want to live believing that God is still God and he can turn any situation

around. If you want to wake up in the morning and say, you

know what, I got breast in my lungs. So I believe God's about

to do. If you believe you are damaged but not destroyed, this statement

is for you. Here it is. I had to make a bit.

Can you put it on a screen for me. I'm just gonna read it

off the back. I got my Bible over there. That's the title of

my sermon. Don't tell him that yet, but it's okay. Everybody closed

your eyes. It was a surprise, all right, I'll just read.

Okay, here we go. Today could be the day that changes all your

days. Thank you for the golf clap. I'm about to prove it.

What if let me prose the statement as a question. What if today on

what what's today's day, the seventeenth? What if on December seventeenth could be

the one day that changes all of your days. I want to present it

to you. Not tomorrow, not Christmas, not New Year's Eve, not

once you get more money, not once you get married, not once you

have whatever you feel. What if God wanted to do something today? What

if God wanted to break the pattern today what if God wanted to renew your

mind today? What if what God wanted to dry up the cancer on the

inside of your body today? What if? Now? A statement like this

is hard to grab onto because some of us have lived so long with low

expectation that this statement feels dangerous. I get it. Our trauma has trained

us. It's safer to not believe that you don't have high expectation. You

can't get disappointed. If you don't expect nothing, then when you get nothing,

you're good. But does that sound like the reason that God went to

the cross and went into the grave for three days and defeated death. Hell?

Is that why he died for us? Is that the life that's supposed

to be attractive to our coworkers and our neighbors. You know, me just

living with low expectation. I serve God, but I don't want to expect

too much. That way, if he doesn't come through, you know,

I don't look bad. He doesn't look bad. That really sounds like the

people who turn the world upside down an axe. It really sounds like a

church that's gonna take ground and have dominion. Is a church just with some

nice medium expectation and we would never say it that way, but the way

we live is with this statement eyes just another day, you know, it's

just, it's just, it's Sunday. I got my routine, I got

my plan, and I just I don't want to mess anything up, So

let me not get my expectation too high. The only problem is is many

of us, when it comes to dealing with our trauma, we have been

in it so long that we have always pushed our expectation and the change in

our life to tomorrow. I'll get around to, you know, tomorrow,

I'll deal with that. Tomorrow, I'll go to counseling tomorrow, I'll say

I'm sorry tomorrow. But what if today, what if you said, you

know what, I don't need another day. I don't need no more time.

I don't need a special date on my calendar. I don't need whatever

magic dust we think happens on New Year's Eve. But today could be the

day that changes all my days. What if I didn't wait to become who

I knew God called me to be? What if I didn't wait to be

the husband God called me to be? What if I didn't wait to write

the book he told me to write? What if I didn't wait. And

there are so many different things that we put up in our life when it

comes from going to trauma to triumph. That is all about tomorrow. Well,

you know it's already twelve o'clock. What I once depend You know how

long you preach, I may not be out even home for a while.

You've already made plans stuff he was gonna do today. You've already pushed it

to tomorrow. You already have decided. I don't know if I'm gonna get

around to that. And I want to submit to you today that as a

follower of Jesus Christ, to live with the expectation and hope. And here's

what I really mean, the entitlement of tomorrow. I know that now this

is, this is gonna be this is gonna be tight, but it's gonna

be right. As a believer, some of us feel like we are entitled

to tomorrow because we ain't read all the scriptures in your Bible. You got

jeremih twenty line. I have a hope for planing for you. Absolutely yes,

all those things, and the Bible is very clear. Don't worry about

tomorrow. Tomorrow's got enough worries ourselves. In Psalms, it says teach us

to number our days so that we could develop a heart of wisdom. The

Bible talks all throughout Scripture of the importance of today and today. I'm coming

to submit to you that maybe you haven't been able to turn the corner of

trauma to triumph because you've been banking on becoming the version of yourself you've always

wanted to become. Not today, but tomorrow. I'm gonna. I'm gonna

do that. But just when I get around to it, tomorrow, I'm

gonna, I'm gonna. I'm gonna go to counseling. I prompt. And

you've been saying tomorrow for twenty five years. I feel you, We've all

done it. This is not like a oh man, I'm just saying,

what if. What if you woke up with some expectation that you know what.

I think today God wants to do something. I think today God wants

to do something in my heart. I think today God wants to shift something

in my spirit. I think today God wants to This is an expectation telling

you what would happen to your life? How would you show up to work?

How would you show up to parent your kids. How would you show

up in your life if you really believed today might be the day that changes

all of my days. Now here's some of us, because some of us

feel like you know, that's just hype, that's just living in a false

reality. And you call it hype. The Bible calls it hope. And

because we have gotten so critical and pessimistic, we have lost our ability to

hope. We've lost our bit. You want to know what sounds like hype?

A man coming to people who ain't got no house, no money,

no proof of nothing, and he stands up on a mountain and says,

I have true riches for you. The whole story, you believe is all

around stuff that with a bad attitude, with a pessimistic mindset, you could

say the whole thing is hype. Well, why would three kings get on

donkeys and travel to go see this little baby that's supposed to be a king

of the world. That sound like hype to me? Or it sounds like

God's plan from the beginning of time to send a savior into the world.

Keep your bad attitude, if you want to, keep your half glass half

empty attitude, if you want to but as for me in my house,

and I would submit to you today for your house. We choose to live

with the expectation God, you want to do something today. God you want

to use me in some way today. I want to read you a scripture

of why today is important, Why today God wants to do something, Why

today he wants to change something in your heart. Why you could leave today

deciding who you're gonna be, Why you could leave today. You know I'm

saying, you know what, if nobody ever sees my value, I'm gonna

keep doing what God told me to do. I'm not waiting on nobody.

I'm not waiting on no one's approval of me. Today might be the day.

Here's the thing, whether you realize it or not, that mindset and

that idea happens to the entire world one day a year, every single year.

In about nineteen days, people around the world, regardless of race,

religion, or background, are going to live with an expectation for New Year's

Eve. Were gonna stay up all night, We're gonna have parties because the

whole world, regardless of what you believe, decides that something different is gonna

happen tomorrow. This is why people are making lists. This is why people

have New Year's resolutions. It's because for some reason we believe at New Year's

Eve, something's gonna change. I'm gonna start working out, even though i

ain't touched the weight in eighty six years. I'm gonna we completely forget our

old patterns. Come on, go with it. You completely ignore how you've

been acting for twenty years. And you say, but tomorrow, something's about

to happen. It's New Year's Eve. How come we have more expectation for

a random calendar date change than realizing you have the God of the universe.

The Bible says it this way. The same spirit that raised Christ from the

dead lives on the inside of me. So I'm not waiting for the calendar

to tell me what I'm capable of. But because I'm breathing, y'all,

Okay, I'm about to go preach to this wall back here. I don't

know if you are sleeping. I'm trying to remind you of who you are.

God puts something down on the inside of you that you don't have to

wait for other people's approval. You don't have to wait for New Year's Eve.

But you cancide. Today, I'm acting different today. God wants to

move today. There's going to be a healing. I expect the impossible because

God is on my side today, not tomorrow, not Christmas. Now when

I get more money, not win fill in the blank today. What do

you have to lose? Because I see everybody you so close up. Oh,

I just don't know if I could do, what do you have to

lose? Because at the very least, you still got what you got.

You still gonna be exactly where you are. So what would happen if you

decided you know what happened? If I put a little hope in what God

could do today? What if God could could come through in a way where

somebody God was speaking to somebody else in the exact amount of money I was

short for something that God would bless me through. What if what if forget?

Forget because some of us got So that's the first time you clapp this

whole summer. Yeah some money? Okay? Great? Yeah? What if

today God could give me a million dollars? That million dollars would ruin your

life? What if today God could give you the discipline where he could trust

you with a million dollars. What if today God could give you the ability

to not keep faking like you're okay and admit you don't know what to do.

See, that would be one of the most transformative things. Let me

talk to the men for a second. That would be one of the most

transformative things that could happen to your marriage. Is you to tell your own

wife, I don't know. To my man laughing, he's like, absolutely

not. That would be the worst thing. You keep yourself so put together.

Absolutely, I'm gonna do this, and i'm'na work my plan and I'm

gonna do this. These plans is all stuff you made up. Let's keep

it honest, brother, you just made that up. The truth is you

need help. You don't know what's going on. You don't know how to

deal with that teenage child that you adopted because you wanted to show up.

You don't know what to do when they lay you off your job. And

one of the most beautiful things that you could happen is for you to say,

I don't know, but today God could give me the wisdom I need

today. He could shift something in these children's heart that I've been trying to

pour into Today. I was y'all doesn't see my title now, So I'm

gonna ahead and say it. Here's what I'm gonna give you today. What

if you decide they really ruined it? Man, that stuff, God,

it's like a magic trick. It's like he's like, yeah, the rabbits

in his hat. Just it's like God, Okay, it's like actual stuff.

You're seeing me really throw a fit up here. Next year starts now.

I'm not I'm not waiting on New Year's Eve. I'm not waiting on

no special moment. Next year starts now. I'm gonna be who God told

me to be. Now, I'm gonna live with integrity. Now, I'm

gonna see miracles now. Next year starts now for me. I know everybody

else waiting on New Year's Eve, but next year starts now for me,

because guess what would happen many of us? You have plans right now that

you already know you need to be doing, and instead of starting today,

you're banking on starting January first. You know you already know I need to

be drinking more water. You know what, in two and a half weeks,

I'm gonna start drinking water. Okay, yes, I think that's great,

And what if next year's starting now? What if on January first,

when everybody else is saying starting to the gym, you are posting day twenty

of going to the gym you miss? What if all of the stuff you

have pushed to tomorrow. Because here's the thing about the year. We all

get stuck so much on January. I'm gonna deal with my trauma in January.

I'm gonna go from trauma to triumph in January. Let's just get through

Christmas. Let me just get through this hard stuff. God did not die

for your mindset to let me just get through. What if you made a

decision today, I'm gonna call them today because here's the thing. What you

do today is not a matter of ability, It's a matter of value.

If I told you, hey, I need you call your mama and I'm

gonna give you ten million dollars, you would not be like I justtle my

schedule and it just I was gonna get canes after this. So I'm not

sure because all of a sudden, the value of that meant something that made

all of a sudden today be the most prime day for you to do it.

But there are so many things of value gotta Hey, why don't you

call them because you have no idea how I'm trying to use you to get

to them today. Look what the Bible says in James. There's a beautiful

piece of scripture, and there's old Testament for this, there's new Testament for

this. But I want to read James four verse thirteen. Look here,

you who say today or tomorrow, we're gonna go to a certain town and

we'll stay there a year, and we'll do business there and make a profit.

How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? He stops

in the middle of that. I know you made plans for tomorrow, But

quick question, when did you figure out what tomorrow was gonna be? How

do you know exactly what's gonna happen tomorrow? This is what it says.

Your life is like the morning fog. It's here a little while and then

it's gone. What you ought to say is if the Lord wants us to,

we will live and do this or that. Otherwise you are boasting about

your own pretentious plans. Such boasting as evil. Remember it's a sin to

know what you ought to do and then not do it. I know we

have our list of stuff that's a sin, and ah, they doing this

and they live in that and they slept with that person, and they smoking

this, and ooh they talk. You see how they fail. Oh my

gosh, oh I heard. I know you got your list of sin.

Now, Now, before we go into this, because this isn't again,

I want to be very clear. This is not an asserment of condemnation.

This is a sermon of what could God do with today. The word sin,

it's an archery term. It means to miss the mark. The scripture

says it is missing the mark. If you know you need to do something

and you don't do it, it's missing the mark. If you know you

need to apologize to your kids and you don't do it, it's missing the

mark. If you know you need to do something different and you just say,

I'll get to it tomorrow. So iran is not an attitude or a

perspective of, oh gosh, what could happen tomorrow, so I better do

it all today. The perspective is, oh gosh, what could happen today.

It's not fear of tomorrow, but it's faith for today. It's not

fear of oh gosh, I better do all this stuff, you know,

because the Bible says, I don't even know what's gonna happen tomorrow. You're

right, I don't know what's gonna happen. No, no, no,

no, that is not the perspective. The perspective is with God on my

side, if He is for me, if that's spirit of raised Christ from

the dead, what could he do today? How could he move today?

What could shift in my children today? What could God do in your life

today? Because what I've realized is as long as you are banking on tomorrow,

it is very hard to be present today, as long as you are

holding onto the promise of what will happen then. And here's the mark of

the believer. The believer absolutely because another thing I want to clarify it because

so we can understand this correctly. You one hundred percent, the Bible is

very clear you should have vision for your life as a believer. You should

be full of so much vision of what God's about to do. You should

know, oh, God's about to do this, and I see He's gonna

do this, and He's preparing me for that. One hundred percent that is

true. But where we could have gone wrong, as the church is gotten

so focused on your vision that you have no value for what you do today

to get there. So it's all about who God's about to use me.

I prom once I graduate school, God's about to open up doors. Yes,

and will you be ready to walk through the door by what you did

today? I know God, your husband is on the way right talk Abo

Shi. I believe it for you. But have you lived in a way

where you ain't mad at somebody for your own issues? Today? We have

to that these are not enemies. It's not tomorrow or today, and I

gotta pick one. No, no, no, they work together. I

set a vision for my life that I prepare for today. When God came

to know and said, hey, it's gonna rain and it needs you to

build a boat, he wasn't like, whoo man, God told me I'm

about to build a boat. Who this boat is gonna be be? It's

gonna be, It's gonna be. At some point he had to say,

I don't know's here's the beautiful thing. Thank you only spirit. I don't

know when it's gonna start raining, so I better start building. I'm telling

you that is a word for somebody. You don't know when it's gonna start

raining, so you better start building. You don't know when that friendship you've

been praying on is gonna show up in your life, so you better start

preparing. You have no idea when your child's gonna come to you and say,

I have a couple questions about my future and I'm trying to decide if

I'm gonna live for God. You better start building today. You have no

idea when God is gonna start opening up door that no man can shut,

so you better start. You have no idea what He stands ready to do,

so you better start building now. I'm not waiting. The scripture says

now, faith, not tomorrow, Faith not no now faith, God wants

to do something today. What if you woke up and your first confession was

not just another day, it was What if God, today could be the

one day. I know I've been trying to pour into this relationship over and

over again and they've never received it. But God, what if today is

the day it clicks. I know I've been trying to show love to this

teenager over and over again, and they're not making the right decisions, and

they keep ignoring me, and they won't let me talk to them, and

they're not being honest. But what if today, What if today is the

moment that it clicks. What if today they realize they're beautifully and wonderfully made.

What if today is today God does something? What if here's the problem

with just another day. It's literally not true at all. Name another December

seventeenth, twenty twenty three. It's not just another day. It's literally the

only day like this that has ever been or will ever be. It's exact

opposite of just another day. It's the only day. And in fact,

the Bible says today is today the Lord has made. So to ignore today

banking on tomorrow is to say God, I know you uniquely handcrafted this day

together, and your sovereignty brought all these relationships into my life, and you

woke me up with breath in my body. But tomorrow, God's sitting there

thinking I brought all I did all of that for today. Matter of fact,

there's a scripture in Lamentations three. Can you put it on the screen

for me? This is this is so beautiful and it's so much more powerful

than New Year's Eve. You want to know what the Bible says, the

stepfast love of the Lord never ends, and is Mercy's come never come to

an end. They are new every morning. You want to know why you

can wake up with some expectation because the Bible's clear, no matter where you

are, no matter what you're going through, no matter what's happening to you,

you can wake up and say, you know what, I got new

mercy for today. I'm not waiting on a new year. I got new

mercy. I'm not waiting on a new month. I have new mercy.

His mercies are new every morning. I know this is a simple idea.

I keep saying it over and over and over again, but I promise you

your life would look completely different if you woke up saying God strategically gave me

the exact mercy I needed to do everything He's called me to do today.

I have expectation that God wants to do something he's never done before today.

It's so powerful to think about what could happen if there was a church full

of expectation of what God could do today. What if you walked into your

workplace with the mindset, God, how do you want to use me to

transform someone's life today? You walk through those cubicles looking for somebody who need

encouragement. But you need encouragement your head down. Let me tell you good

news, but you see you feel a little discouraged. Oh my gosh,

can I tell you something I've been thinking of? Today might be the day

that changes all of your day. You're in a business meeting, man,

we're down five percent, and you know the pitch didn't go out we wanted

it to, and we're feeling a little unsure. Hey, guys, can

I say something? I don't know why I feel this way, but I

have an expectation. We've been putting in the work, we believe in this

product. I believe today could be the day that changes this whole company.

I get it. You don't want to look weird. That would just be

weird if some of us we feel like we be those people you ever met,

those people that feel like they're just a little too excited about life,

Like it's like you so excited you might have had some illegal health to get

that excited like you. I'm just submitting to you, Do you want the

life you got in every single area? She said? No, No,

I don't. What sets before you to be gained with a perspective shift That

next year starts now. Because here's the thing about whenever you decide to take

control of something, whenever you decide to step into something, whenever you decide

to go from trauma to triumph. I heard Pastor Craig Groshell say it this

way. It may not have been your fault, but it is now your

responsibility. I feel you all want to stop and acknowledge the stuff that happened

to you, The traumas you experienced, wasn't your fault. Should have never

happened, should have never happened to you that way. They should have never

talked to you that way. They should never done that to you, They

should have never left you that way. I want to stop and acknowledge that

it's very real. I would also like to submit to you that you have

everything you need on the inside of you to change something today. That today

could be the day that you no longer walk insecure because of what people said

about you. That today could be the day that you no longer walk around

trying to please everybody else because you're not sure of who you are. That

today could be the day that you walk around knowing that God chose you for

a purpose and that you are here for a reason that today could be the

day. Today might be the day. I'm not sure. I got a

lot of questions. There's a lot of stuff I don't know about, but

today might be the day. I want to give you four things. This

is the title. We're gonna close this thing out, how to Live Tomorrow

Today. Everything you was banking on doing tomorrow, We're gonna do it today.

Not not everything you know, say, because you got a rest,

you gotta sad, but you get the idea. Some of y'all just take

these Somebody gonna hear a clip be like that doesn't even make any sense.

Okay, calm down, all these TikTok theologians all of a sudden, guns.

It's like you are sixteen. How do you know anyways? You need

gas money? Okay, let me stop. I just all right back to

the word of God. How to Live Tomorrow day. First thing is,

you need a vision where do I want to be? You need a vision

where do I want to be? There's something I know that I've been putting

off for tomorrow. But I know there needs to be something that changes on

the inside of me. I'm going from trauma to triumph. I'm stepping out

of my comfort zone. I'm shifting something on saying I need a vision.

I need something worth dedicating to I need something that means something to me.

I need something that means more than my current situation, and I'm willing to

do it enough to get out of where I am today. I need a

vision now, I want I want to use a clarifying definition for vision.

Many of us have vision for some areas, and then if we were honest,

some of us just have good ideas. Let me let me submit it

to you this way. If you came to me and say, you know

what, I got a vision a spending Christmas in the countryside of France.

Oh that sounds amazing. So are you willing to sell all the Christmas presents

you just bought, tell your family you're not gonna be here for Christmas,

go on the ten hour flight. And he said, no, So you

don't have a vision. You got a good idea. A vision is something

that means so much to you you are willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to

achieve that vision. So let's be honest. Do you have a vision of

being healthy or you got an idea? Oh? No, Now I can't

say nothing. Ah, I'm just saying just be honest, because if you

have a vision, that means you're gonna have to adjust some stuff in your

life. You're gonna have to commit to some discipline. You might have to

go to bed earlier so you wake up earlier. There's a lot. You

can't just uber eats McDonald's at midnight, like, there's just some stuff.

So it would be better for you to say, you know what, that's

just an idea for me right now. I'm serious. This sounds so hilarious,

but I'm here. There's a book called The Speed of Trust by Stephen

Covey, and he says this, the biggest place people lose trust first is

not in the relationships, it is in themselves. Here's what he submits as

the study for this. He says, many people start off the day not

trusting themselves. You wanna know why because they set their alarm for six am

and snoozed it ten times. So if you can't wake up to what you

said you was gonna do, why you think you're gonna do that anywhere else?

He submits, it would be better for you to set your alarm for

eight and wake up at seven thirty, because you would wake up the day

with some motivation, thinking, man, I did better than I thought I

was gonna do. I know some of y'all this sound like semantics, but

you got what you got right now because you don't believe you're gonna keep your

own word to yourself. This is why it's hard for you to decide I'm

gonna be disciplined in this area because you said you were gonna be disciplined before

and it didn't work out. What I'm submitting to you today is, why

don't you set a vision that is worth sacrificing for? So instead of you

where you are now physically, and you say, you know what, I

want to have a six pack and I want to be shredded and I just

want to instead of doing that, why don't you say, you know what,

I got a vision of me working out five more minutes a day than

I am right now. That could start to build some trust in yourself.

That could start to say, you know what, I might go for eight

minutes today. Hold on, I'm feeling kind of good. And now you're

building the discipline. Now you're building something in you. I know it's not

impressive, and I know you want to be able to post you before and

after after three months and it looked like you transformed in Christ. I feel

you. I believe you can do that. But it's going to start with

a small decision today. You have to have a vision that you're worth sacrificing

for the next day. You have to have is as a matter of value.

What has to change today? If I have a vision of being financially

free, there is some values that have to change today. This is a

real conversation. Me and my wife were talking about all this stuff we want

to set up for the kids, and where we want to be financially and

all this. So we had answer what has to change today? How I

relate to money, how we use our money, how we spend our money.

How does that have to change today? Because I can say I want

to be a blessed, to be a blessing, and I want to be

able to give this much money, and I want to be able to help

these needy people, and I want to be able to show up for friends

who weren't even expecting it. All of that is great, But if you

don't change the value, if you don't change how you are disciplined, in

the area. If you don't address the value, the vision is just an

idea. What would have to change today? If I want to have a

marriage that is safe, what would have? What value would have? Or

here's what would have to change? The value for my opinion over theirs because

you have a vision of a safe marriage. But every time they say something,

you'd be like, that's dumb. Oh well, that sounds very inviting

to talk to you about their nervous ideas. You have a vision of being

friends with your children when they're in their thirties, but right now they're twenty

and you still talk to them like they're two. The vision and the value

doesn't make sense. What would have to change? You know it? Even

though I feel like I know better, even though I feel like I'm grown,

even though I feel like if they're going the wrong way, do I

want to be have a relationship and still have the ability to speak into their

life or I do I want them to know that is not the best for

your life and we did not raise you to be that way. Okay,

but maybe they already feel enough shame because they know that already. What if

today could be the day where you say you know what no matter what you

do, Mom and Dad will always love you, no matter what where you

find yourself, no matter what questions you have about God, no matter where

you are right now, we will always love you. What if that day

was the day that changed everything? You have to have vision. You have

to address your value the next one. You gotta voice it. You got

to tell somebody, hey, here's the vision I have for my friendships.

I want to have three to four trusted friends. Matter of fact, one

to two because I don't know these haters out here. You start with a

win, you know what I'm saying. Three to four, whoo man,

One to two, I could do that. I want to have one to

two friends. So the value that's gonna shift through me is I'm gonna try

to be more open. I'm not just gonna sit at the corner and look

at everybody's sideways at the New Year's Eve party and then be mad. Nobody

want to talk to me. Well, you look mad, sweetheart, So

maybe put a smile on your face. But tell your friend, hey,

I'm trying to shift something today in my life. So I need you to

keep me accountable. When you see me sitting in the corner looking at everybody

sideways going and tell me my woe is me attitude. I need you to

grab me and say, this is my friend Sarah, and she was sitting

over in the corner. You know them extra her friends that you're kind of

mad at some of y'all introvers Do you tell your extra her friend you trying

to grow, You're trying to get out of your comfort zone. And I

know, I know you showed up for like a raimer like angels flying word.

But I promise you, if you did today what you was betting on

doing tomorrow, if you showed up today thinking today might be the day that

changes, you have that vision value voice it the last one. Go with

me. Invest. You have to invest. If I went to Bank of

America right now and I walked in, or the tellers was like, hey,

how can I help you? And I was like, I am here

to withdraw eighty thousand dollars today, That's what I'm talk about, momaclaue.

Today, they would look at me and say, you ain't getting nothing today,

because it would be unwives for me to expect a withdrawal somewhere. I've

never invested. I ain't got no money in Bank of America. I never

put no money in Bank of America, So why would I expect to see

a withdraw in an area that I'm never invested in. Why do we have

such a big expectation for our friendships we haven't invested in. Why do we

have such an expectation for stuff to be different if we haven't addressed our patterns

and invested in a new one. I'm submitting to you today that if you

want a different vision for your life, if you want to stand and sit

in the service next year and thinking this is the best year, everything is

completely different, It's gonna take some investment, and that you don't have to

wait to invest tomorrow. You don't have to wait to invest till New Year's

But what if today practical thing? What if there's one thing you left service

today? I'm gonna give you some home work. Even though growing up in

school I loathed homework. My mom didn't let me say hate. I strongly

disliked Metcalfe house. You couldn't say hate. I don't know why. But

anyways, what if there's something you know you was planning on doing tomorrow and

you decide to do it today. I just want to submit it to you

for your confidence, for your ability to build trusted yourself. What if and

I'm not talking nothing to be because some of y'all went immediately to I'm gonna

go stand up and tell my boss that I am worth more than this,

and you must It's like, okay, that's great. I was more so

talking about like airing up your tires, like you know what I'm saying,

like something, because you know, when it get cold, your tires to

get low and you just ride with them low. What if today, team

band, y'all can come back up. I'm gonna close out with this thought.

If I came to you and I said, hey, I want to

make a deal with you, I'm gonna give you eighty six thousand dollars.

You got twenty four hours to spend it. At the end of those twenty

four hours, I'm gonna come you're gonna have to give back to me what

you did not spend. I want you to spend it to further your family,

spend it to further your current life, maybe invest it in a way

that pays off for you. But whatever you do not spend eighty six thousand

dollars, I'm coming to get how many of you feel confident in your ability

to spend eighty six thousand dollars in one day. Come on, if I

was coming back for the rest of it, we got the second wave of

hands. You know, it's like I can probably, like I might be

able to do make something happen. What if I told you there's eighty six

thousand, four hundred seconds in a day and every twenty four hours is eighty

six thousand, four hundred little buckets of mercy that God laid out for you.

And what the scripture is saying is this mercy only lasts for today.

I got plenty for tomorrow, so I don't worry about tomorrow. I got

mercy upon mercy upon my Like, this ain't a short this ain't a poverty

mindset. But I set out for you eighty six thousand, four hundred moments

of my mercy. Some of us are leaving a lot of mercy on the

table. There's some beautiful conversations that would be some of the most healing things

in your life that you're betting on doing tomorrow, that you've actually got mercy

for today. I know it's super nerve wracking to imagine yourself calling that parent

and tell them how you really feel. But what if you saw that there's

eighty six four hundred buckets of mercy for that phone call. I know it's

crazy. Here's another one that's a little different, to set a boundary this

Christmas and say, hey, we're actually gonna do Christmas at our house.

We're not mad, we're not frustrated. You know, we're just trying to

build our family this year. And you know, we love you so much.

And because some of us, it's not some of us, we will

we all up in Christmas. Is that you don't need to be in some

of y'all spouses, y'all still trying to please one of the other parents,

and your spouse mad at that Christmas the whole time. But what if you

had enough mercy. What if you had enough mercy to tell your friend I

screwed up last night, And actually I've been messing up for like the last

two months, but I was just stuck in so much shame and pain.

I didn't want to tell anybody. But I just realized there's enough mercy for

today. And here's the beautiful thing about mercy. It's kind of a trick

because it's not just new every morning. It's new every moment. There's something

that when you live with an expectation that next year starts now, when you

live with an expectation saying today might be the day that changes all of my

days. Let me show you a mag trick that can happen. You know

what something I be doing with my kids, I'll be thinking there and we

be in it. And I'm telling you right now, I'm being honest.

I'm trying to develop patience with my children. You know, I grew up

my dad. He'll be chill, your chill and they'd be like Charles and

he'd like stamp. You know. You come into linemen right there, you

hit the like and I was like, I will never yell, and Abby

be telling you I'll be yelling all the time. I do. I really

be like, you know, be like you know God. And then what

happens is is I come home from work and they have ran my wife a

wild and they just beating her up and punching her and running by and like

hit her in the calf, you know, just like it's horrible. They

got they got tricks and setting up traps for us, and I feel like

I'm on an episode of Indiana Jones. When I come home, I'm like,

and so I see her stressed out, and I'm like, you are

not gonna stress out my wife. Everybody be quiet, shut down right now.

No talking for two years. Abby will tell you. I'll say the

most dramatic stuff. If anybody talks again right now, you literally won't eat.

Nobody's eating. And I'm literally taking all of your toys. I was

like, I have a question. This is not a place for questions.

There will be no questions. Yes, I mean every toy. I will

go find every action figure and I'll throw it in the trash. I've said

all of those things before. That was not an exaggeration. And then I

got these articular kids, and Arla's like, really every single like, oh

Dad, do you even mean my my dusty crop popper? Yes, the

dusty crop popper. It's out of here. I was just a whole skit

for no reason. Literally in those moments, I can't wait on the mercy

for tomorrow. In the morning, I have to go in my room.

You're not gonna You're not gonna throw away all the toys. That doesn't make

any sense. God give me patience to be the Dad, that fosters a

home where these children feel safe to ask questions and safe to be themselves.

Thank you for your mercy. Hey, buddy, I did this yesterday.

It was during naptime. Hey, buddy, you know how the other day

Dad yelled? He said, yes, I remember that, Dad. I

said, I was hoping you didn't. Today, Daddy's really gonna try to

be patient and Daddy's trying to figure it out. I'm trying to learn.

But today I would love to sit down and talk and hear whatever you want

to talk about. This was the other day. Abby was out at the

grocery store for like, I think it was six days. I think she

was gone. She said I'm gonna run to the grocery real quick, and

she comes back in. The kids are teenagers. It's weird. But I

sat there. I was like, oh, so arlo to what's you working

on? He's like, what do you mean? I was like, I

don't know. I had to grab mercy for the moment. I want to

encourage you. What could happen if you live with the perspective. Today might

be the day that changes everything. Today could be the day where I've lived

in trauma. But I step into triumph. Today might be the day where

I've been stuck in depression, but God transforms something in my heart and I

have joy again. Today might be the day where I say that thing to

my spouse and they receive it. Today might be the day that changes all

of my days. Everyone's standing all over this room. I'm invite the worship

team back up. We're going to close out service. I want to take

a moment and pray for two groups of people. We're about to be out

of here will be I'll be done, you'll be released to your car,

and four minutes, four minutes, it'll be twelve to fifty. If you're

in this room and you need to realize, recognize, and own your mercy

for today, maybe there's been things you've been putting off. There's been things

you've been worried about. There's been things you've been banking on tomorrow. Maybe

you've been betting on becoming somebody tomorrow that you just realize, maybe God baby

gave me mercy today. If you need the ability, if you need empowerment,

if you just need the hope some of you, this whole thing,

this whole message, was really about living with expectation. And hope for every

day and you realize that your trauma has stolen your hope. If you need

hope today, I just want to pray for you. I want to take

just two minutes and pray for you. If you would just lift your hand

right now, you say, you know what I need. I need to

realize the mercy for today. There's an area of my life, there's a

relationship, there's a friendship. So many hands lifted here, all around the

world. I want to pray for you, Lord God. You see us

and we're admitting, Lord God, that we need to realize and recognize the

mercy for today. God, I thank you right now for those of us

who have lost hope, for those of us who have lost our ability to

believe, for those who have forgotten, Lord God, the opportunity of today,

for those of us who have missed out on moments. Lord God,

because we've been betting on tomorrow, would you supernaturally give us the ability to

be exponentially and supernaturally present. That's what I'm praying for right now, Lord

God, that our hope and expectation for today would allow us to be so

present. So here, I thank you, Lord Jesus even for these holidays,

that this would be the most present we had ever been, that we

would be sitting in these moments with our family, that we will be present

in the moment with our friendships, that we will be present in the moment

with you. And I thank you so much that today you want to do

something. Every head still about, every eye still close. There's people in

this room that today is the day your life changes. Today is the day

you give your life to Jesus. The gospel the Good News of Jesus.

I read it in Matthew twenty eight. The good news is that Jesus lived

a perfect life, and he died so that we did not have to.

It's so that we could have a clear relationship with God, with the God

of the universe. When we mess up, when we make a mistake,

that's sin. You feel it since you were a kid. It's those feelings

of shame. It's that stuff that makes you feel small. It's that stuff

that makes you not be who you know you were meant to be. Can

I tell you there's a better way. You don't have to live with the

weight of that. But there is a person named Jesus, and he came

into this earth, and he lived, and he died, and he is

truly alive. He walks with you. He's been with you every single day

of your life. And if you want to accept him into your life,

if you want to open the door of your life, if you want to

so render and say I can't do it by myself, I need Jesus.

I'm gonna count to the count of three. And if you've never accepted Jesus

in your life, or maybe you want to rededicate your life to Jesus,

this is going to be your moment. Some of you already prayed for you

and you have your hands up, you can put your hands down. This

moment is gonna be for those who are accepting Jesus for the first time.

I'm gonna count the three and I want you to lift your hand boldly.

You don't have to worry who's around you. In fact, when you lift

your hand, we're gonna celebrate and cheer because this is the best decision you

could ever make. One. He loves you. Two, he's proud of

you. Three lift your hand right now. If you want to accept Jesus

as your Lord and savior. I see you over there. I got you

on the top. I see you right here, bro, I'm so proud

of you. Oh, come on, people, I'm making I see you,

I see you so many Oh come on. Can we celebrate? Hey

one? Everybody, Everybody repeat this prayer out loud for the benefit of those

who just raise their hands. Everybody repeat this prayer. Say, Dear God,

thank you for loving me. I admit I've made mistakes, Save me,

change me, transform me. I'm yours in Jesus name. I pray

Amen. Can we give it up for people who just made the decision.

Everybody watching online, Hey, listen, if you just made that choice,

it's the best decision you could ever make. We're so happy for you.

We would love to be a resource to you. If you scan the QR

code that's on the screen. There's one right below me right now. If

you're watching online, please scan that and we would love love to empower you

and help you as you come to follow Jesus. The one thing I would

ask you is just keep coming back to church. There's a lot of questions.

What I gotta change, what I gotta do? You don't have to

figure that out all out tomorrow. Commit to get in a life giving church.

I promise it will change your life. If you're here in the room

and you gave your life to Jesus, we would love to give you a

gift in the lobby. There's two big areas that say represent you can go

there. We got a Bible for you, a gift for you, just

to tell you how proud of you we are. Hey, listen, we're

about to get out of here. The worship team is about to sing.

I'm gonna invite some of our prayer team to come down. If you need

prayer for anything, anything at all. There's some holidays coming up, maybe

you're just tired, maybe whatever it is, nothing too big, nothing too

small, you need prayer for anything. I'm gonna ask the prayer team to

come down right now and we're gonna be right here, ready and willing to

pray for you. And we're so grateful for you. Listen, we love

you so so much. Next week is Christmas. It's Christmas Eve services eleven

am. Bring somebody with you? What if that day? What if today?

What if today you left and say next week you coming to church with

me and I'll bribe you, I'll buy you some food after Hello, somebody

listen, bring somebody with you for Christmas Service. It's gonna be an amazing

time. We love you so so much. Go out and live a transformed

life. We love you, guys, we'll see you. Thank you for

joining us today. If you said that that prayer and accept it Jesus into

your heart, it's the best decision you could ever make. We want to

celebrate with you, and we have some tools to help you on your journey.

Tech saved to A two eight two A two, and to find out

more about TC text connect to a two A two A two. Be sure

to subscribe and share this podcast with your friends. Thanks for listening. Now,

go out and live a transform life.