Spirit of Faith with Ps Julia McDonell 28 June 2026

(Transcribed by TurboScribe. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) Good morning church, how are you?

Amen brother.

You know, come up here Kim, where's the

kids?

They're supposed to be here.

Are they here?

Yeah, can somebody get the kids?

This morning, church, we're farewelling Kim and Jesse

and I refused to be sad because I

said to Don, he's gone off to Church

Unlimited and I get the job and I

was thinking, oh my goodness, I'll just cry.

And I thought, no, I'm going to make

this joyful for Kim, my cat Kim.

Because actually, I've been watching Michael this morning

and it's really, I don't know whether you,

I'm an observer of things.

And every time you said the name Jesus

and sang Jesus, it was like God was

breaking you open and there was like, there's

all this joy coming on into you.

You know, isn't it?

You can't say the name of Jesus and

stay the same.

Just something awesome happens to you, doesn't it

Michael?

He's so good.

Well, Harvey's here.

Where's the rest of them kids?

You know, I was praying this morning.

I was, no, you can and

at nine o'clock I thought, shoot, I've

got to go to church.

And I left up and, but God gave

me this word and it's not sad, Kim.

It's not sad, darling.

Don't you cry.

It says, lift up a great shout of

joy to the Lord.

Go ahead and do it everyone, everywhere as

you serve him.

We're still together because we're serving him.

Be glad and worship him.

Sing your way into his presence with joy

and realise what this really means.

We have the privilege of worshipping the Lord,

our God, for he is our creator and

we belong to him.

So we're all family and it doesn't matter

where we go.

We are the people of his pleasure.

We can pass through his open gates with

the password of praise.

Did you know that?

We have a password into God's presence and

it's just praise, singing to him.

Come right into his presence with thanksgiving.

Come bring your thanks, um, gee, my eyes

are watering a bit.

Bring, come bring your thank offering to him

and affectionately bless his beautiful name.

Oh my goodness, the words are going a

bit blurry for me.

For the Lord is always good and ready

to receive you.

He is so loving that it will amaze

you, so kind that it will astound you,

and he is famous for his faithfulness towards

you.

Everyone knows our God can be trusted for

he keeps his promises to every generation.

So he's going to continue to keep his

promises.

He's going to keep loving you and as

you're worshipping him, he's going to do amazing,

amazing things for you.

Now I'm a nana.

Did you know that?

Yes.

I don't, Keely doesn't think I look that

old guys.

So I'm going to tell you kids one

thing and I know you know how to

worship and I know you know how to

praise and pray because your parents have taught

you.

From this nana, I'm telling you if you

ever feel afraid and you feel in an

unsafe place, just say the blood of Jesus,

the blood of Jesus, because you know what?

No evil, awful thing can touch you when

you ask for the blood of Jesus because

he comes down and he covers you and

keeps you safe.

You know sometimes we have to do things

and we're a little bit scared.

It's the blood of Jesus and he comes

and he's with you.

Cool, come on Dave, come up.

Come on church, we're going to pray for

them.

We're just so thankful for you.

I still see the young teenage girl sitting

at our reception desk, welcoming everybody into church

with the most beautiful smile.

Gee, it's hard doing this.

Hey, it's just the next step of your

journey and you have to go past us

to get there.

So it's all right to come and see

mum, okay.

You're always part of this house and you're

always welcome back and thank you for the

great things you've done.

I think you can pray Dave.

Hallelujah.

Man, I've been expecting for this moment man.

Yeah man, I've been seeking God all week

for you guys man and I really believe

Jesse that this next season bro, like God,

I saw a picture of you bro down

in your secret place bro and it was

hard bro and God was stripping things and

he was changing things and he was breaking

things in your life bro and it was

hard bro but then when you came and

gave me that feather before bro, that's what

it's for bro because the Holy Spirit wants

to blow you bro.

Like he wants you to be blowable bro

and he's gonna bro and then I saw

you like going into your next season as

a coach and I really believe that the

Holy Spirit wants to partner with you to

coach people, to move in his ways and

to coach people like you'll be an ambassador

bro like but I really believe that your

next season bro is going to be really

powerful with the Holy Spirit and bro I

just want to say bro like awesome man,

so faithful serving bro and you know there's

rewards for that bro and you know it's

been an honour to serve in the exec

team with you bro and you know praise

God man and Kim, for you I've seen

like a gosh give me a picture of

like a young young girl you know quite

timid and quite shy you know and then

and then he showed me a picture of

you standing as you are now next to

Jesse with the glory of God just shining

on you and and man you were just

you're just so bright now and you're so

confident now you know and you know and

I just really feel that God's saying man

I love you Kim, man you're faithful Kim

you know and I just feel the love

of God for you today man and there

but um yeah church if we can raise

our hands man and well I don't want

no weak prayers man like these guys have

been faithful let's pray hard over these like

favour, blessing, wisdom you know understanding like strategy

for the next season in Jesus name hallelujah

Jesus yeah Lord God we're just anointing Jesse

right now Father Lord God for the next

season Lord Jesus with power with authority Lord

God with faith Lord God with the burning

of your spirit Lord Jesus Holy Ghost of

hunger in Jesus name Lord God I thank

you that you go before him Lord God

that you've prepared the soil Lord Jesus I

thank you Lord Jesus just as you paid

the price for the people Lord God Lord

God that you're calling him to pay the

new price Lord God for the new people

he's leading Lord God I thank you Lord

Jesus that he's going to be faithful with

that Lord God I thank you Lord Jesus

for wisdom power understanding knowledge Lord Jesus Lord

God I say a full equipping for the

next season Lord God by the power of

your Holy Spirit Holy Spirit fire on him

this morning in Jesus name Lord God we

just pray for Kim right now Lord God

and I thank you for her heart Lord

Jesus Lord God I pray you larger capacity

Lord God I thank you Lord Jesus that

you see her as a shining shining bright

daughter for you Lord God Lord God I

pray boldness and courage over her this morning

in the mighty name of Jesus Lord God

I pray a rising up a stirring up

in her spirit Lord God I thank you

Lord God we call out Lord Jesus Lord

God the woman that she's meant to be

the woman you've called her to be Lord

God that she'll stand strong and mighty Lord

God Lord God that she'll press forward Lord

God that she'll run that race Lord Jesus

Lord God we thank you for the victory

over the family Lord God we lift up

these little ones here this morning Lord God

pray your protection over them pray a blood

covering them over Lord God thank you Lord

Jesus they're going to see mighty things Lord

God Lord God that nothing can separate you

from your love this morning Lord God we

thank you for your love power and mercy

Lord God and Lord God God more impossible

let them see the impossible Lord God Lord

God visions in the nighttime Lord God dreams

during the day Lord God Father God don't

hold back Lord Jesus Lord God as they

go in their next season Lord God let

them run the race with perseverance Lord God

thank you for your grace and mercy Lord

Jesus upon their lives Father hallelujah in the

mighty name of Jesus I think we've got

some presents here I

don't know about them leaving but I reckon

they should leave the kids you may be

seated you know Don's such a big baby

he made sure he wasn't here to do

that because he didn't want to cry in

front of anybody it's sort of hard to

compose yourself well welcome to church everybody welcome

to people online welcome to inspire I just

do a shout out to Lam in Vietnam

I was praying for you this morning Lam

and God says that you are the apple

of his eye you're such a good girl

and you staying the course and you're fighting

the fight and keep going you're going to

see revival in that land of Vietnam so

it's good to technology is good sometimes because

it goes out across the world and we

can declare things um oh this is a

bit hard I don't make your eyes go

blue when they water though welcome back to

everybody who's been away we've missed you and

it's good to see you don't take a

photo while I'm playing my nose look at

this I think

um we've been on this journey of um

speaking on faith and there's there's always this

it's almost like an oxymoron between things you

know like it goes backwards and forwards and

and I was thinking about faith and I

was thinking about trust and I was thinking

about intimacy and you know they've all got

to be part and parcel of the whole

of the whole thing to trust God you've

got to be intimate with him but to

gain trust yeah it's you gotta have trust

to be intimate so it just goes round

you know and um I was thinking about

the gap in life and um I'm getting

ahead of myself I'll read you my scripture

first and then and I was going to

read you my scripture which is in the

middle of my sermon that's how good I

am okay Proverbs three five to six it

says trust in the Lord with all your

heart and lean not onto you unto your

own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him

and he shall direct your paths what wisdom

trust in the Lord with all your heart

and don't lean on your own understanding you

know sometimes life you just don't understand and

that's when you've got to trust God that

he's got you and he's going to get

you to the end in um one chronicles

28 and nine I love fathers speaking to

their sons and speaking wisdom and this is

David speaking to his son Solomon who's supposed

to be the wisest man he didn't do

some wise things but he was supposed to

be the wisest man on earth as for

you my son Solomon know the God of

your father and serve him with a loyal

heart and willing mind for the Lord searches

all hearts and understands all the intent of

your thoughts if you seek him he will

find you but if you forsake him he

will cast you off forever you know like

in our race we're in a race life's

a race and David was at the end

of nearing the end of his race and

Solomon was beginning him so David was giving

him wisdom for his life and wisdom to

build the temple at the beginning of a

race we are filled with enthusiasm and energy

who's been a runner I was a runner

you know you look along and you're figuring

right figuring who you can beat and you

know I could beat everybody except this girl

called Heather McLeish and for the life of

me we'd go to Northland finals and everything

and be her and I and I just

could not beat that Scot girl those Scotch

people can run at the beginning of a

race we're filled with enthusiasm and energy at

the finish holds of the promise as we

stretch and reach for the goal is that

right the middle the gap this is what

we've got to contend with is where the

tests are it's where our faith is tested

we can't see the finish line and what

it looks like but we have to believe

it don't we that's faith in Hebrews 12

1 to 2 it says let us lay

aside every weight all those worries and all

that stuff that we carry it says to

lay it aside and the sin which easily

ensnares us and let us run with endurance

the race that is set before us looking

unto Jesus the author and the finisher of

our faith who for the joy that was

set before him to endure you know I

was thinking about this because when you think

about it you're thinking Jesus thinking of the

cross with joy but he's looking way beyond

the cross and you know we have to

be like that as well we need to

look beyond death you know Don's got to

have surgery and and when you go for

surgery you know they've got to tell you

the good and the bad and and Don

says well what's the worst prognosis and he

says death and then Don just bursts out

laughing and he says but I'm never going

to die so there's nothing to worry about

and the doctor's saying what do you mean

and so Don explains to her about having

faith in Jesus Christ we don't have to

worry about the death because we just slip

into eternity Jesus our best friend just comes

and gets us and says come on we're

going to the father we're going to celebrate

so there's there's no problem and you know

this is how we can witness this is

how we witness in our life it's not

standing out on the street telling people turn

or burn it's ugly you know that actually

put me off Christianity we've got to do

it within the context of relationships with people

as we live our life you know and

then um and he said to Don what

are you worried about this operation Don says

oh no I've got I've got it um

sorted and the doctor said what do you

mean and he says well God gave me

a verse for you and and then he's

going God's giving you verses for me and

Don says yes and it was out of

Psalm 112 I can't remember and he says

God says that he will bless the hands

of the person who's trying to help him

so so Don says God's going to bless

your hands because you're helping me he says

to Don oh I really like that can

you give me that so I can go

and read it you see now he's going

he's going to read the Bible what a

good thing we need to be like this

with our faith that we're in this race

and and we need to cast all all

this stuff off and just carry what God

wants us to carry see Jesus wasn't looking

at the cross because that would not what

a smile on his face he was looking

beyond the cross to us and he was

thinking what I'm going to do is going

to sneak them out of the hands of

the devil and I'm taking them to glory

God I thought you'd all be a bit

more excited than that but the devil has

no control over your life now that's why

Jesus smiled because I've got them he's saying

I've got you what are you worried about

so exciting isn't it joy was not the

cross it was our lives changed redeemed and

living the best life and freedom and then

going to be with him in glory in

Philippians 3 13 and 14 says there is

one thing I always do forget do forgetting

the past and straining you know there's that

strain Jesus had to stretch we're going to

stretch church straining towards what is ahead forgetting

the past forget those lies the devil's telling

you you've dropped that off if you're born

again Jesus is lord of your life you're

baptized that's all gone forgetting the past and

straining towards what is head I keep trying

to reach the goal and get the prize

for which God called me so I'm reaching

for that that goal and the prize in

the middle of the race we need example

and encouragement to get the second wind and

focus on the prize that waits for us

you know we have some um our mission

statement is transforming lives together do you remember

this we are better together doing life together

you can belong in this house before you

ever believe you can come in and we

can love you you can become part of

this family before you believe but it's together

the strength is in our togetherness those who

have run before us have passed the baton

generation to generation and they've won some battles

for us without dropping the baton I love

um I've got a book on Queen Elizabeth

I I always think the queen was the

most beautiful woman on the planet and um

she had one regret in life isn't that

good she went to be with the lord

and she had one regret that I didn't

see the second coming of Jesus so I

can bow down and place my crown at

his feet what a great legacy from a

great woman that she recognized that she wasn't

the top person that there was a person

above her um Pastor Ken spoke at our

um our ANZAC weekend and I just loved

it because he spoke of the legacy that

has been passed down and the freedom that

has been passed down from the generations that

fought a war that we could have freedom

and um when you travel I love it

because um as soon as you tell people

you're a Kiwi you know like sometimes they

don't like you if you're English they don't

like you if you're American but if you

say you're a Kiwi they love you first

of all they like the all blacks but

but the older generation said they loved fighting

in the trenches with the Kiwis because they

were fearless relentless they never gave up and

what a great baton to pass down to

us church that they fought the good fight

and it wasn't easy they came home with

shrapnel and scars to prove what they had

done but they did it for us and

they passed us a baton and are we

going to sit in our lazy boy chair

with our feet up and be the lazy

generation that does not take more ground we

need if each generation needs to take ground

in our gap amen thank you Pastor Ken

I loved it to hear of what our

fathers have done and what they have passed

to us and the baton that they have

slapped and if you're in a relay race

when you are passed that baton they slap

it into your hand so you got it

it's there and you clench it and you

hold it and you run until you pass

it to the next person as Don's father

a great man of God what I spoke

over these children because we went on the

mission film we've been to many places and

the one thing he taught me because I

wasn't brought up in a Christian home my

dad came to the Lord just before he

passed but he said you never fear Jesus

I've never feared Julia plead the blood of

Jesus plead the blood of Jesus and and

I passed it down to my children and

every chance I get I pass it down

to the next generation because that blood is

as wet and as powerful today as the

day Jesus shed it for us and we

should be walking in victory we should be

walking we should be dancing because we shouldn't

be intimidated by the world because we have

truth and it has set us free and

we're walking in that legacy you know King

David he had been at war had won

the battle they come back home and the

enemy had pillaged their city taken their wives

and the men that he had been partying

and celebrated with wanted to kill him then

and what he did he he stepped aside

and he went and says David encouraged himself

in the Lord he went and you know

we have times in our lives this is

the testing of our faith that we need

to step aside and encourage ourselves in the

Lord and I've watched um the movie King

David and and he goes out out into

the desert out somewhere into the barren places

and he starts singing Adonai that sound it

just resonates in you we need to encourage

ourselves in the Lord when we are in

a hard place and when we are alone

and you know many times in my Christian

walk I've been alone because Don's been somewhere

around the world and I would get angry

at him because I had to face the

battle by myself until one day I was

in a hard place and I walked up

and I shut my eyes and I says

well here I am again God just you

and me his words to me this is

how I like it see it wasn't Don's

problem it was my problem because I want

you know so often we want a man

to come I wanted him to pray for

me I wanted him to take the hits

that I had to take because he wasn't

there in fact the other week we had

a healing thing and I came and I

stood right there and he he walked right

past me he walked right past I think

he prayed for Mark Codland and then some

people there and I actually said it to

God again well here I am God just

you and me but I smiled I smiled

because there's power in the him and me

there's some trusted faith strengthening coming that I

can trust him with just him and me

and we're so wimpy we want somebody else

we almost become Catholics we want the priest

to come and talk to God for us

and he says I ripped the veil I

ripped the veil and you have free access

watch what you pray don't pray manipulating bad

prayers I call them witchcraft if they aren't

aligned with the word of God because you

know why you have free access to the

throne room of God your prayers are powerful

so watch what you pray church