HEART FOR THE HOUSE - Week 03

Welcome to the Celebration Church Orlando podcast.

Thank you so much for listening today.

We hope it encourages you and inspires you.

Here's today's message.

You can go ahead and take the seats at this time.

You can take the seats at this time.

We're so so glad that you're here with us today.

Man, I I've been waiting for a while to make this statement.

So let's let's lean in for a second.

Let's we gotta we gotta zoom right here, Josh.

I want to look into the camera.

I want to make sure everybody hears it.

So we can we can make sure because I want to I want the enemy to hear this.

We're back.

We're back.

I it is so good to be in this vicinity to worship with every single one of you today, even with you who are watching us from home.

It's a new venue, but it's the same God.

I've learned more often than not that God can switch up the environment a little bit, but it's the same God.

The same God that breathed in the lungs of Jesus and He rose from the grave is the same God that is breathing on his church.

We are back and we're more excited than we've ever been.

And I'm excited for the season that we're in because we're in a season that I think is really fit for where we are.

And we're talking about heart for the house.

That's kind of where we are.

And ultimately, what we resolved uh the past couple of weeks, we've been talking about that when God really, really begins to stir your heart, it's inevitable that it's gonna activate your hands.

That's just a byproduct of it.

Think about anything that you've ever really been passionate about.

At some point, you begin to put some action into it, and that's what we've been unpacking for the past couple of weeks.

We've been looking at it through the lens of Nehemiah.

And I'm I'm growing to learn that it's one of my favorite narratives in scripture.

That's a big statement for me.

Please believe me, I know it's a big statement, but I'm really learning because it literally deals with everything.

It deals with when you have a heart for some things, it deals with having vision, it deals with leadership, it has so many components to it.

And so for week one, we talked about how Nehemiah was sitting in his palace.

He was comfortable, he he was he was living his best life.

He was literally living in a palace, but when he heard about the broken condition of people that were more than 800 miles away, many of which he may have never met before, but yet God began to stir his heart.

He be he began to weep, he felt compelled that he had to do something about it.

We know that he got out of his comfort zone and he went into Judah and to Jerusalem and he began to rally the people to begin to build, and that's what we ultimately talked about.

Last week, Pastor Mike had preached an incredible message.

If you didn't hear it, I want you to go where you're I want you to go back and check it out.

Can we give it up for Pastor Mike?

He's sitting in the back right there, preached such a such an incredible word last week.

And and I love the title of it.

I mean, even even the title of his message had a little swag to it.

It was we're just getting started.

And I and I and I believe this, like you can't say that kinda you can't have a message title like that and and be too we're just getting started.

Like you know, you gotta put some stank on it when you're like, man, we just getting started.

Like we're just getting started.

So he really helped us to understand that we are just getting started.

He talked about the importance of Nehemiah beginning to inspect the environment, making sure he took inventory of what was around him so he knew how he needed to move forward.

It was such a strong message.

And this week I have a I have the incredible opportunity to continue in this.

Now, I want everyone that's in here, I want you to listen to me.

Everyone that's checking us out from at home.

This is one of those messages I want you to take notes on.

Because I really believe that this is something that I really believe will feed your soul for for decades to come.

If you have your Bibles, I want to invite you to join me in Nehemiah chapter four.

We're gonna look at three verses, but we're gonna hit some other scriptures during the course of our time together.

But but Nehemiah chapter four, starting at verse number one, this is what the word of God says.

Now, when Sambalat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged.

And he jeered at the Jews.

And he said in the presence of his brothers and the armies of Samaria, What are these feeble Jews doing?

Will they really restore it for themselves?

Will they make sacrifices?

Will they finish it all in one day?

Will they receive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish that have burned all like that?

Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and now Tobiah had some things he wanted to add to it.

He's like, he said, Yeah, where are they board?

What are they building?

If a fox goes up on it, it will break down their stone wall.

You see the you see the opposition, you see the tension, this this vision that God had given Nehemiah to build, this confidence, the people were beginning to move, and now we see that Sandbalad and Tobiah showed up and they had some really harsh words to talk about the activity of God amongst the community of God.

Today I want to talk about a very real subject, and that subject is opposition.

What do you do when you feel opposition from the thing that you know that God has called you to do?

Because the truth of the matter is sometimes it's not going to be a popularity contest.

The truth of the matter is sometimes you're gonna face some resistance, and I believe that if we can look at the way that Nehemiah responds to this, I believe it can be inspiration for every one of us.

If you're taking notes, this is what I simply entitled today's message, Protect the House.

Protect the house.

Let's pray.

God, we thank you.

We're so thankful for your word, we're thankful for opportunities where we can come together and gather in your name.

So, Lord, we pray over the next few moments that you give us open eyes that we can see you, give us open ears that we can hear everything that you want to speak to us, God, and give us open hearts to receive everything that you have for us.

It's in Jesus' name that we pray.

Amen and amen.

What are the lengths that you go to to protect what is yours?

I I took some time to really consider that for just a moment.

I took some time to think about the varying security measures that we have in our lives.

I I think about something as simple as my phone.

We have facial recognition because you don't want someone who is not you to get access to your stuff.

I begin to think about how when I go to the ATM machine and I and I need to take some money out, we have a pen code because you want to make sure that you protect what is yours.

It's just a it's a common thing that we do.

We even have now the technology that allows us to have like cameras on our doorbells so that when someone shows up, we can actually see them.

Hello, we see them at, we see them at our door.

Just a couple of weeks ago, my wife was telling me that in a neighborhood right down the street from us, that that a man was carjacked right in his yard, right there, right in front of him.

But they were able to catch them because he had one of those fancy cameras that saw the people because oddly enough, even in a day of COVID, they're doing crimes and they still don't wear masks.

You would think of all times, you could get away with wearing a mask right now, and people don't think it's weird.

Even then they still didn't have a mask on, and so they were right there for the camera and they were able to catch them.

That's the links that we often go through to make sure we protect what is ours.

I remember when Megan and I moved into our home, the first thing that we bought was a state-of-the-art.

Well, wait a minute.

The second thing that we bought was the security.

So the first thing we bought was I had to get cable.

Like, like you don't got you guys don't understand the struggle.

Like when we were saving up for our house, we cut off cable, we cut off the internet, I was hijacking other people's resources just so I could I I even cut off Netflix.

I would like to open up a new Netflix account every 30 days when it expired.

That's kind of that's the kind of grind that we were on when we were saving up for our house.

So for me, it was like a it was like a point of freedom that when we moved into our house, didn't have no furniture.

If if I really think about it, Dave Ramsey would be so upset.

But uh, but we didn't have any furniture, we didn't have anything.

But the first thing I said is I need to have my internet, I need to have every cable channel that was ever created there.

No TV, but it just made me feel good that we finally had some things that I had to say no to for a long time.

Real true story.

But then after I did all that, the next thing we did is we is we went and got a state-of-the-art alarm system with cameras and all those things because I wanted to protect what is mine.

We even went and got one of those signs that you put in the front yard to let everybody know this house is protected.

You can you can walk by here if you want.

I got cameras all around here, this house is protected.

I got signage and everything.

But it makes me think if the enemy of our soul began to take survey around our house, would he know that our house is protected?

If the enemy began to kind of look in your windows and he was looking at what God is doing in your life, is there evidence that the protection in the presence of God is there?

I think sometimes we can lose sight of the fact that we have a very real enemy that has a very real strategy, and all he wants to do is to come inside and take everything that God has promised and has given you.

Let me show you some scriptures in the Bible that helps me to make my point.

John 10 10 refers to the enemy as a thief who comes to steal, to kill, and destroy.

Job chapter 2, verse number 2.

Job 2 · chapter mention

When the Lord is speaking to Satan, he says, Where have you come from?

This is what Satan responds.

Lord, I'm just going from to and fro on the earth.

I'm just looking around.

I'm just I'm just looking around, looking for my opportunity, looking for my window for me to move.

1 Peter 5 8.

Be sober-minded and watchful, for your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

We have a very real enemy that's often looking to see where are the vulnerabilities in our lives so that he can come in and do everything he can to exploit it.

You see, I think this is this is why I've really grown to love Nehemiah.

I think I've really grown to appreciate everything that this passage of scripture really does represent because it allows us to recognize when you could be so fired up for God, that moment when Nehemiah heard about what was happening to his people 800 miles away, that moment where he was able to get the resources that he needed to go, the moment that he went and rallied and was able to lead the people who had been vulnerable and broken, but he inspired them to begin to move and do the things that God has called them to do.

And as they're beginning to get traction, opposition shows up.

Doesn't that sound a little bit like our lives, how we can find ourselves doing some things, but then opposition begins to show up?

I've learned something that when something really begins to stir your heart, it's going to activate your hands.

But when your hands are activated, you will face opposition.

And I want us to be understanding about this.

The opposition is very real.

See, the the writer C.S.

Lewis, he wrote this incredible book called The Screw Tape Letters.

If you haven't read it, I want to encourage you to go and check it out.

But what it does is it's actually a letter that gives you the perspective of the enemy and how they see us as human beings.

It really is like one of those like role reversal things.

So when you're reading, when you're reading the book, you're actually reading it from the enemy's perspective.

And it gives you some really profound insight if you really consider the fact that we are dealing with strategic and intelligent evil that really does want to oppose us.

One of the quotes that he says in there coming from the enemy's perspective, he's actually encouraging another one of his disciples and how he can attack the people of God.

And this is what it says if you can once get them to the point of thinking that religion is very good up to a point, you can feel quite happy with the condition of his soul.

Moderate religion is as good as no religion at all.

What he was saying is, it's okay if they go to church.

I'm not worried about that.

It's okay if they pray with their families maybe once every six months.

I'm okay with that.

He was saying that basically partial freedom is still total bondage.

Because if you're not really walking in wholeness, then the enemy knows that he still has a foothold in your life.

But when you really begin to do some things for the kingdom of God, when you really begin to say, I'm not gonna just come to church occasionally, but now that we are able to engage God in worship, I'm gonna make sure that whenever the doors are open, and if I can find my space, I'm gonna be there.

That when I'm home with my family, that I'm gonna sit down with them, I'm gonna pray with them, I'm gonna walk them through the word of God.

The enemy is not concerned about you coming to church, he's concerned about you bringing the church into your home.

And so when you can begin to do some things in your home, that's when the enemy begins to get stirred up.

That's when the enemy begins to get frustrated because he actually sees that you're beginning to move the needle.

This opposition is a very real thing.

And I realize that amongst some of us right now, regardless of the context, some of us are probably feeling a little bit of opposition in some area of our life.

And you may be wondering, where is it coming from?

I'm I mean, I'm I'm literally not doing anything to hurt anybody, I'm not doing anything to hold anybody back, but for some reason, it seems as if I'm facing this opposition.

I want to encourage you right now and let you know that you're in good company.

I want to tell you about this young lady named Ruby Bridges.

On November 14th, she she went to school.

It seemed like a regular day, but it was anything but regular.

As she was walking to the school, to the entrance of the school, she noticed a group of people, hundreds of people that were lined up, yelling at her, saying some of the most harsh things you can ever imagine.

She was facing so much opposition, and all she was trying to do is go to school.

It turns out that this was in 1960.

And Ruby Bridges, she was the first African American to ever go into this school.

And so there were people, adults, teachers, who were standing there yelling at this little girl, and all she wanted to do is go to school.

I find myself when I read her story, asking myself, reliving the moment, like, why would she, why would she walk through so much opposition?

Why would she allow herself to deal with so much challenges if it was me?

And I'm just being honest, I would tell my kids, like, let's just go to some place where you feel accepted.

Let's just go somewhere where you don't have to deal with the resistance.

But as I was reading through it, her parents said that we knew that it was bigger than us.

We were facing opposition, but we knew we had to persevere through it because if we can get through this, we're gonna break some barriers that will make it easier for someone else to come after us.

I'm trying to talk to somebody in here right now.

Some of us are dealing with some opposition and you don't know where it's coming from.

And there's a part of you that's saying, Why am I dealing with this?

Why would I even consider why don't I just go back to the way that things work?

Why don't I just go back to what is in my comfort zone?

But if you can have that conviction in your heart and say, No, this is bigger than me.

If I can survive this, if I can get on the other side of this, this is actually gonna strengthen my family for the generations to come.

It's beginning to have a view to recognize we're breaking barriers, we're not trying to feed our comfort.

I want you to know that you're in good company.

Have you ever considered for a moment that every significant movement that is labeled as a kingdom movement has faced opposition?

Martin Luther King Jr.

faced opposition.

Let's get into the Bible.

Do you know that Moses faced opposition, not only from the Egyptian, but from his own people?

They constantly were looking into the past, trying to say, if we could just get back to the way that things were.

They were three days into freedom and they began to talk about Moses.

Why is our human condition so much so that whenever we get out of our comfort zone, we have to begin to create opposition?

John the Baptist faced opposition.

They said, man, he's out in the wilderness.

What's he doing out there, man?

He's a he's a crazy man.

He doesn't even eat like the rest of us.

Because we know some people that got those crazy dyes for, like, man, that's that's weird.

My daughter has one of those.

That's weird.

Why are you eating like that?

You face you face opposition, you're facing opposition.

Why do you why do you eat those foods?

Like, but John the Baptist faced opposition.

Did you know that Jesus faced opposition?

Hello, he got killed for it.

I don't know where we've built this theology that the masses of support is an evidence of the presence of God.

It's not in the Bible that I read.

What I've seen is every move of God faces massive, significant resistance because when you begin to do something that transcends generation, that's when the enemy begins to get frustrated.

So when we look at this passage of scripture here with Nehemiah, he is going through a season where he's doing what God has called him to do, but he's facing massive opposition.

The truth of the matter is he had more opposition than he had support, but above all else, he still had God.

I think that someone needed to hear that.

Maybe you feel like you're facing more opposition than you have support, but you still have God.

This is where those scriptures where it says, if God be for me, who can be against me?

That's when those scriptures begin to take legs and have a different level of reality for you.

Because as long as you got God, you got everything you need.

As long as God is on your side, you can get to wherever God is calling you to go.

That is the God that we serve.

And so we know that Nehemiah, like his opposition had actual names attached to it.

It wasn't like these theory ideas, but these were these were actual names attached to it.

And the main guy, the ringleader, his name was Sam Ballot.

And in Sam Ballot, he he would stand outside and he would just mock Nehemiah.

Now, I I gotta pause and give you some context for a moment.

Because Sam Balad's name, his name literally means sin that gives life.

That means this.

It's when he's so destructive and so opposing that it actually takes on upon a life of its own.

This is kind of like how, like you ever see the telephone game, how like gossip starts, like somebody says one thing and then it takes on another form and takes on another form.

It's like how it just takes on a life of its own.

That's what the root name of Sam Ballot's name was.

It wasn't that I'm just opposing you, but I'm gonna plant seeds that's gonna take on a life of its own, and it's gonna get so weird out there, you're gonna wonder how did we even arrive to that conclusion?

That is what Sam Ballot's mission was.

He began to oppose the work of God, and that was his name.

But then we see some very specific strategies that he uses.

Here's the first strategy he uses mocking, laughing at them.

Yo, what you're doing is really weird.

I I don't understand why you're like, are you are you you guys don't even have the strength to do that?

It literally makes no sense what you're doing right now, the the mocking that's there.

Then he he shifts it to another lane criticism, critiquing everything that they were doing.

Just man, like, why are you doing it that way?

And then his friend came alongside, like, yeah, like you're trying to build a wall, like if a little fox ran up that wall, it's gonna fall down.

In other words, you don't have any stability, you're not even doing it right.

Have you ever noticed that there's a shortage of a lot of things, but there never seems to be a shortage of critics?

My God.

You can have a shortage of resources, you can have a shortage of patience, me, um, or and but there's never seems to be a shortage of critics.

I've never seen more experts at things they've never done before in my entire life.

It's it's amazing how everyone who's never done what you've done wants to tell you how to do it.

Let me move on.

They were dealing with criticism, just just just opposition and and and resistance.

And then the next thing was, well, let's bring confusion into the equation when you study the narrative and you begin to see Sam Ballard, he begins to just uh show confusion amongst the people.

He's trying to bring some confusion and then he shifts into intimidation with threats.

Man, we're gonna hurt you.

This is gonna hurt you, this is actually going to set you back.

Then he begins to attack Nehemiah's character.

He begins to attack his character and then begins to plot attacks against the people.

Listen to me.

Maybe one of those things stood out to you right now.

Maybe that you're thinking, like, you know what, man, I'm I feel like I'm dealing with a lot of criticism right now.

Whenever you're doing something that God has called you to do, at some point people are going to critique it.

And and the quicker we can embrace that, the quicker that we can resolve that, the quicker we can get to where God's calling us to go.

It's when we're surprised that the criticism is a thing that should be concerning to us.

I've gotten to a place that I'm surprised when I don't have opposition.

I've actually gotten to a place where I'm concerned with it.

Because here's what I know in the Bible, whenever you're doing something for the kingdom of God, there is resistance.

If I'm doing something and everything is super smooth and easy, at some point I gotta say, God, am I doing it the way that you want me to do it?

Now listen, I'm not looking for problems.

Listen, we don't, I'm not looking for we got no problems, big fella.

I'm not looking for any problems.

But what I am saying is I recognize that if I'm doing some things for the kingdom of God, at some point we're going to begin to face resistance.

At some point, people are gonna criticize us, at some point, someone's gonna mock it.

At some point, people are gonna be confused, at some point you're gonna have to deal with some threats and intimidation.

This is what the Bible subscribes to us and is preparing us for how we respond when we face oppositions from a very real enemy.

Stay-at-home mom who decided to forgo all the education that you have, but you decided to stay home to take care of your family, you're gonna deal with criticism.

Stay-at-home dad that decides that I'm gonna say no to some things, I'm not gonna travel as much, but I know that I need to be home with my children, you're gonna face some criticism from it.

That people are gonna say, like, no, you need to do more so you can make more, but maybe God is compelling you that you just need to stay put and make sure that you're protecting your house.

I'm trying to encourage some of us in here today that when we make decisions that can go a generation beyond us, you will begin to face some opposition.

I think when we look at Nehemiah, there's three things that he does that could be encouraging for us, that could be helpful for us, that can give us some hope, that could be a pathway of how we can and should respond when we find ourselves facing opposition.

Here's the first thing.

Here's the first thing.

It's super important.

Make up your mind.

Just make up your mind.

Here, let me read to you what it says here in verse number six.

So this is after they faced their initial opposition.

It says this So we built the wall, and the wall was joined together at half of its height, for the people had a mind to work.

That means that even while the enemy was criticizing them, they made up their mind.

That means that even while they were facing attacks, they had made up their mind.

That even while the enemy was threatening them, they had made up their minds.

They had made their minds up that they were gonna do what God has called them to do.

Listen to me, church.

Let me help you in here.

If you can just make up your mind that no matter what you face, you're gonna be faithful to the things that God has called you to do, you'd be surprised at how much peace and strength you will have.

If you can just make up your mind that God has called me to do it, and even if I face opposition, even if I face challenges, I've made up in my mind that I'm gonna do it.

I am convinced there is nothing more of a waste than someone who is incredibly indecisive.

I just feel it's a waste of energy.

You guys have heard me talk about this before, but I have a family full of finicky eaters, and everybody has a different diet, and everybody has a different preference.

So it literally becomes like a family meeting when we're just trying to figure out what do we want to order for Uber Eats, and it drives me crazy.

I'm like, hey, can somebody just make up their mind?

I don't care what we do.

We can eat Taco Bell, and that's not my calling.

We can eat whatever you guys want, but can you just make up your mind?

Can you please make up your mind?

Because watch this the longer that we don't have our minds made up, the hungrier that we still are going to be.

But if somebody can just make up their mind, then we can actually begin to get nourished and begin to move forward.

If you can just make up your mind.

Here is what the Bible says regarding that.

James 1 8 says that a double minded man is unstable in all of his ways.

You're trying to figure it out.

Can you imagine if you had to make up your mind?

Every day about things that you should have already made a decision on.

Like, just imagine, like, I know for me, there are days when I get up, I walk into my closet, and here's how I let me just give you all a little bit of information about me.

When I walk into my closet and I'm trying to determine what is the garments that God wants me to wrap myself with today, I yeah, it's a it's a decision-making process.

Typically for me, it starts with the shoe.

I don't I don't work with anything, I start with the shoe.

I'm like, okay, what shoe will the Lord have me to wear today?

Because blessed are the feet of those who preach the gospel.

I believe that.

I got Bible for this stuff, but but I'm I start with the shoe.

But I'm surprised that even after I look at the shoe, I'm gonna tell myself, I just got so many choices.

Do I want to go with the black ones?

Do I want to go with the tan ones?

Do I want to go with the brown ones?

Do I want to go with the red ones?

Do I want to go with the black ones?

Like, I find myself spending time just staring at my closet because I can't make up my mind of what I want to do.

It's an interesting thing when you have so many choices, it's so hard to make up our minds.

But if I could just begin to narrow it down, I could begin to look and and and reduce the outcome that I want.

When I make up my mind, it's amazing how quickly I can go.

Those nights when I decide in advance what I'm gonna wear for the next day, I'm not wasting time that day trying to figure it out.

I hope you're seeing what I'm saying.

That if you can just make up your mind that every day I'm gonna put on the armor of God, if you can make up your mind that I've already decided that I'm gonna stay in this marriage, if you can just make up your mind and know that I'm gonna stay at the place that God has called me, you don't have to redecide decisions that you've already made.

The enemy loves to get us to a place where we need to redecide something that we've already made a decision on.

Just redeciding.

We're like, we're like one, we're like one moment away from having our minds changed.

Imagine if Nehemiah had the mindset like, hey, we're gonna build this wall.

Oh man, we're facing opposition, man.

Maybe that's not the will of God.

Let's let's dip back.

But the Bible says that they made up their mind.

I've seen so many people.

They cheat on the future because they romanticize the past.

God's calling me to do something else, but I'm in love with what was.

And I miss out on what can be.

Make up your mind.

Wherever God has called you to be, make up your mind.

Whatever God has called you to do, make up your mind.

Don't redecide something that you've already decided.

The enemy loves to get us stuck in a place of indecision.

I said it this way make up your mind instead of letting your feelings make you.

I make up my mind because I'm not gonna let my feelings make me.

Because God knows.

If I if I if I lean on my own understanding, if I lean on my feelings, the Bible said that the heart is wicked, you can't trust it.

Make up your mind, the renewal of your mind.

Here's the second point.

I want to I want to move on.

Here's the next thing I want you to do.

Guard what's yours.

Guard what's yours.

You have to make up your mind, but you have to guard what's yours.

The Bible says here at verse uh 14, it says, And I looked and I rose and I said to the nobles and the officials and the rest of the people, do not be afraid of them.

Remember the Lord who is great and who is awesome.

Fight for your brothers, fight for your sons, fight for your daughters, fight for your wives, fight for your homes.

Make like you have to make a decision that I'm going to guard what is mine.

Let me give us a little bit of a breakdown as what was happening right here.

They were facing attacks on every side.

So here's what that means: they're facing attacks at home.

They're facing attacks at work, they're facing attacks with their friend group.

Like there was no place that they didn't have peace.

So Nehemiah had to put a strategy in place to make sure that they were in a position that they could protect everything that God had given them.

He had actually put watchmen on the wall so they could be in a perspective where they could see where the enemy was coming from.

In other words, Nehemiah began to implement a strategy in preparation for the attacks of the enemy instead of reacting when the enemy showed up.

We know that the enemy's gonna come for us.

We know that the enemy's gonna have a strategy, so we need to have a strategy that begins to guard what is yours.

You almost need to have something in place that prepares for when the enemy shows up.

Begin to implement that strategy.

A few years ago when Megan and I were we were moving from our home, we had some movers in the house and they were there and they were helping us to pack our stuff up.

And the in and the quintessential thing happens.

While we're there chilling, relaxing, I go out and get some some Dunkin' Donuts for the family.

I'm just being a good shepherd and just loving my family as good fathers do.

I go and get some I go and get some donuts and I come home and my wife has this look on her eyes.

Now, so so husbands, boyfriends, fiances, you know that look when you know like there's a problem.

So I walk in, I'm like, hey babe, what's going on?

I thought I didn't get like the right donuts or something.

She's like, hey, I can't find my ring.

So here it is.

I'm like, man, like I'm not gonna go and confront these dudes about them.

I'm I'm thinking, here's what I'm honestly thinking.

This is what goes on in the mind of Keith Pittman.

I'm thinking, there's far richer people than they've ever been in the homes of.

Let them steal from them.

They're not gonna come to us and take from us.

There's no way they would ever come into our home.

So I'm saying to her, like, are you sure?

Did you look everywhere?

I know where I put it.

I put it on the kitchen counter and it's not there no more.

And so she's then she kind of gives you that look like, so what you gonna do about it?

Husband, provider.

What you gonna do about it?

Like, you know, just go to me on.

So, like, I'm like, all right, man, these guys, like, they're they're working hard, men are sweating.

So I I casually walk up to one of the guys and like, hey man, have you have you guys had a happen to see a ring?

My wife thinks she left her ring out here.

She's like, I know I left it out there.

It's like she's had it behind me, like, I know I left it out.

I'm like, just I I got I got this.

Relax, calm down.

Like, um, she thinks she may have left it out here.

I'm not I'm not sure.

And they were like, no, we didn't see it.

But there was something about the way that they responded that made me feel a little bit uncomfortable.

It wasn't like, oh sir, no, I didn't see it.

Like, we'll look for it.

It was like, no, we didn't see it.

What ring?

What no, we didn't see it.

So now I'm like, okay, that was a little bit shady.

So I was like, okay, so nobody's seen it.

So Megan's like, so nobody's seen it, huh?

Nobody's seen my ring out here, huh?

Nobody's seen that ring that was sitting on this counter.

Like, you know, I don't know why she bounces up and down, but it's like a box of like, like, we can take these earrings out, they could be whatever you want it to be.

Like, so she's like, like, so nobody's seen it.

So I'm like getting stirred up because now you got a hype person in your corner.

I'm like, so nobody's seen my wife's ring?

So she's like, nobody's seen my ring.

I'm like, nobody's seen her ring?

Like, where's the ring?

Like, so I'm like, okay, nobody's seen a ring.

I'm like, you know what?

Who probably saw a ring?

Look up.

They turned around, I didn't know there was a camera in my house that was facing the entire thing.

I said, I'm gonna go into the garage and I'm gonna go and review the footage.

I'm pretty sure we'll see what happened to the ring then.

You can't have a better drop the mic moment in your life.

You may get one or two of those in your entire existence.

I was like, I'll be back.

I go out to the garage before I can even open up my phone.

Mr.

Pittman, Mr.

Pittman, we we found the ring.

It was, it was under, it was under the cabinets.

I'm like, word.

I didn't fire him because I actually still need him to pack the stuff up so I could move.

But I kept an eye on him.

But but watch this, watch this.

There was something, there was an eye in the sky that was watching, that was already in position.

So when a question came up, I was able to go to a source that would allow me to review the tape so that I could know how to respond when the enemy began to attack.

What I want to know is do you have some things in place so that when the enemy shows up, you already know how to respond to it instead of reacting to it?

You need to be able to put some things in place so that when the enemy comes in like a flood, you're not scrambling trying to figure out what to do.

But if you're saying, I've been preparing for this, I've been conditioned for this, I've been ready for this, I've been praying for this, I'm not reacting to the enemy, I have a response for the enemy.

I'm ready for whenever he shows up.

What Nehemiah did is he put some critical things in place.

Some of the men had swords, some of them had shields, some of them had bricks in their hand, but they were ready to keep moving forward because they were prepared for when the enemy shows up.

But what I love is the Bible says that everywhere Nehemiah went, he had this guy who had a trumpet next to him.

Everywhere he went, I look at that as like a weird flex.

Everywhere he went, there was a guy with a trumpet standing next to him.

Because what the trumpet was is that when we see the enemy coming, we're gonna blow the trumpet and everyone converges to where we are.

It was almost like his battle playlist.

That when he knew that the enemy was coming, I already know what I'm going to play so that when the enemy shows up, we will ultimately know that he's going to be defeated.

Here's my question for us, church: do you have a battle playlist ready?

You need to have some things in place so that when the enemy shows up, you already know how to respond to it.

Here's my battle playlist.

I have some people in my life that no matter what's going on, I know that I can call them because they are for me.

I know that I can tell them that it's a 9-1-1 and they're praying for me.

They got my back.

Do you have people that when all hell is breaking loose?

I got some people that were some rod or die, some real ones that I can call, and I know that in a moment's notice, they'll hop on a plane.

In a moment's notice, they'll pray for me right on the spot.

In a moment's notice, they're gonna show up.

You gotta have some people that are already in place that they can respond to it.

But beyond that, I have some other things that I have already in position.

So when the enemy showed up, I have some passages of scripture already lined up.

I already have a whole narrative of different scriptures in different seasons so that when I feel like I'm being attacked by the enemy, I'm not wondering where's that verse that deals with anxiety?

Where's that verse that deals with stress?

Where's that verse that deals with fear?

I just open up my trusty resource and I go to the file that says anxiety, and I've been able to read from what the word of God says about how I need to respond.

And I have a passage of scripture that I'm able to refer to.

When I feel like I'm under attack, I'll turn to Isaiah 54, 17.

I'm reminding myself that no weapon formed against me shall prosper.

When I'm feeling isolated and alone and rejected, I will find myself turning to Deuteronomy 31, where God says, I will never leave you, I will never forsake you.

I am with you, saith God.

You gotta have a battle playlist where you're able to recognize what God is doing in your life.

When I find myself feeling that I don't have what I need, I'll turn to a good old song that I love.

Psalm 23, the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

God is with me.

And if you don't have a battle playlist ready, you're gonna find yourselves trying to scramble when you have the resources right in front of you.

I even have a worship playlist that's already queued up.

Just some songs that you know that'll take you in.

And Tark, I'm not talking about the songs that God, it takes you eight minutes to get to the good part.

I'm talking about I need some songs sometime that we entering in immediately.

I'm gonna I'm gonna give you my age right now, but I'm talking about some good old-fashioned Fred Hammond.

Some of y'all don't know about that.

Y'all Google, y'all Google a little bit of friend.

You know what I'm talking about, Jonathan.

No weapon formed.

Like, okay, I'm not gonna grass the best I got.

No weapon formed against me shall prosper.

That'll get you in your fields, I'm telling you.

Turn to a little bit of Tasha Cobb.

There is power in the name of Jesus.

Come on, you start to get some of those songs in your spirit, it'll make you feel like you could do anything.

My my daughter, she recently really got me on like this Maverick City thing.

Real real talk.

Like, so I remember like she has it blaring every single morning.

It's it's borderline obnoxious.

But you'll have this music blaring so loud every morning, and I'm like, I can't take it.

She said, Dad, you gotta you gotta listen to Maverick City.

I'm like, no, like I'm used to listening to some old school folks.

I'm choosed to listening to some some I'll listen to a little bit of You Make Me Brave When I'm Feeling Afraid.

Like, I got some playlist, but she's like, no, I need you to, I need you to listen to a little bit of Maverick City.

I clowned her for almost a year, refused to do it.

And then one day she was playing volume one of their third their third album, and it said, Fill the room, fill the room.

Oh man, Holy Spirit, fill the room.

It began to, it began to like change my disposition.

I found myself really beginning to listen to these words, and it began to be a source of encouragement for me.

I began to listen to songs like Refiner that begins to help you to understand that you can purify me by fire.

I found myself listening to songs like you're a man of your word, knowing that if you said it, then I will see it.

It's these songs that begin to minister to you.

So now I've added that to my battle playlist.

So when I'm finding myself, when I'm being attacked by all sides, I'm not looking to react to it.

I have a response.

I'm like, oh, the enemy's trying to attack me with anxiety.

Let me put on my anxiety playlist.

The enemy's trying to attack me with fear, let me put on my fear playlist.

You've got to put some things in place in your life so that way when the enemy shows up, you're not reacting to it, but you have a response to it.

You have to guard what God has given you.

And here's the third and final point just stay where you are.

Stay where you are.

The enemy was showing up, the enemy was giving opposition.

But Nehemiah had to stay where he was.

Stay, just stay where you are.

Just listen to me.

Just stay where you are.

The enemy's trying to get you off the place that God has called you to be, but stay where you are.

The the mock he's trying to make you leave, but stay where you are.

The fear and everything telling you it's gonna fall apart, but just stay where you are.

There's times when we can really allow the enemy to convince us that God is not with us, but if God has called you to it, he's gonna complete it through you.

Just stay where you are.

I love what it says here in the scriptures where it talks about how Nehemiah's response to Sandballot, like, should I come down to you?

We have far too great of work that we're doing right now.

The enemy was trying to get him to come down, the enemy was trying to get him to back down, but Nehemiah had a response like, Man, I am doing what God has called me to do.

Am I supposed to stop the work of the kingdom to come down there and deal with you?

But but here's here's the thing that I find to be very concerning.

Because you would think that after Sam Balat came at Nehemiah with everything, false accusations, attacks, everything you can think of, that that somehow, somehow, he didn't give up.

There's another part of the scripture that talks to us about this man that comes and consults with Nehemiah.

He says, Nehemiah, I want you to come and talk to me.

Let's come and talk in the house of God.

So Nehemiah goes into the temple to have a conversation with this prophet.

And the prophet says, Nehemiah, listen, they're they're gonna kill you.

You need to stay here and hide out with me.

Hide out in the temple, don't deal with it.

Hide out here.

Let me say that one more time.

Don't deal with the issues at home.

Let's just hide out in the church.

Let's not let's not really begin to make revival happen in your life beyond the four walls of the just hide out here.

He was trying to convince him to just hide out in the house of God.

This was a prophet, he's supposed to represent the voice of God, but as we do a little bit of deeper inventory, we find out that this prophet was actually hired by Sandballot to say those false things to him.

We gotta be real careful that just because somebody's quoting scripture doesn't mean they're speaking truth.

That just because someone can add in Jesus' name to the end of a statement, it doesn't mean that God sent them.

1 John 4 1 says this beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.

For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

There's a lot of Christian needs out there.

And there will be even be people that say, I've been praying for you, and and and God told me that you're you're it's time for you to move on.

God told me that it's time for you to give up.

The work that he called you to do, the thing that he gave you the resources to do, everything that he was leading you to do.

Now God's telling me to stop it when we haven't seen it complete it, your season's up.

But the scripture says that God didn't send them.

It says, try every spirit.

Please understand that the enemy will use every single strategy that he has to convince you to leave the thing that God has called you to do.

Let us not forget that Satan can quote scriptures too.

Let us not forget that the enemy has the ability to transform himself into an angel of light to convince us to get off the thing that God has called us to do.

So here's here's my plea for you.

Whatever it is that God has called you to do, wherever it is that God has called you to be, stay there.

Stay there.

Stay stay in that marriage.

That even though someone came up to you and said that, yeah, and you actually can leave, stay there.

Stay at the place that God has called you to be.

And the question you have to ask yourself is, Is my assignment complete?

Not and is my feelings done, but the thing that God has called me to do, is it finished?

Remember, remember, when Jesus is about to go to the cross, that Peter was like, bro, you're all wrong.

You will not die.

But Jesus' last words on the cross is it is finished.

Jesus was able to rebuke Peter because he knew he didn't complete the thing that God had told him to do.

I think so often we were waiting for someone to tell us and give us permission to follow our calling, but what is the vision that God has given you?

Stay where you are, finish the thing that God has called you to finish.

Don't abandon your calling, don't abandon your purpose.

Don't abandon the vision that God has given you.

Don't abandon all hope.

We're gonna face opposition, we're gonna face challenges, we're gonna face rejection.

You're gonna deal with all these things.

You are in good company.

But ask yourself, did I finish my assignment?

And I found more often than not that a lot of the voices, the crowd and the group think God didn't send them.

Stay faithful and be rooted where you are.

I think one of my favorite things about this passage of scripture is recognizing that God provided the entire way.

That when Nehemiah's heart was stirred to go and support and care for his people, that God had provided him with the resources, God had provided him with the people, God had provided him with a vision, God had provided him with a strategy, God had given him everything that he needed to accomplish the thing that God was calling him to do.

And what I want to encourage every one of us is that as we take inventory of things that are shifting, that if God has guided you to it, he will provide you with everything you need to get through it.

This is how we protect the house.

This is how you protect what God has given you is by trusting and knowing that God is with us.

You know, I recognize that it's in moments like this that some of us may find that there's some space in our life where we we need to lean on God a little bit more.

What it says here in the book is it says that that Nehemiah continued to build the wall and there were no gaps in the wall.

There were no more breaches, there were no more vulnerabilities.

And I suspect that when we think about some of the resistance, when we think about some of the things, maybe some aspects of our of our battle playlist, that if we can think about it, we know that there's some gaps in our hedge of protection.

And what I want to do is I want to pray for some folks.

So if you're in here, I want you to humbly take a self-inventory and say, Keith, you know what, I do have some gaps on my walls.

I I have some areas, some discrepancies, some things where I feel as if what God is calling me to, I don't I don't see that gap closed just yet.

The beautiful thing is that Jesus closes those gaps.

But I believe that we want to pray for you.

So if that's you, you're in this room, maybe you're watching from on on online, you could even be listening to this six fronts for now, but I want you to still have a response.

If you're in here with us and you know that there's some gaps in your life that you want Jesus to fill, I want you to boldly lift your hand up on a count of three.

One, two, three.

You can go ahead and put those hands up.

God bless you.

Amen.

Hands up everywhere.

I'm going to pray for every one of us in in just a moment.

Here's what I also know is that it's times like this, and we're in a uh a smaller room and in a tight-knit community, but I also know that for some of us, the gap that we're experiencing is the gap of salvation.

That we know that we're away from God right now, that we know that all the stuff we've talked about, it doesn't make any difference if we haven't given our life to Jesus.

We know that when the Bible says that God loved the world, so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that that that is the variable that every single one of us needs to receive to fill the biggest void that we can never do in our own strength.

So maybe you're watching from online, maybe you're here with us in our community right now.

But if you know, your next step is to accept the finished work of Christ, to breach, to fill that gap that the enemy has been trying to fill with more emptiness, that void that we know that only God can fill.

You know, the Bible makes it really clear that when we confess with our mouth and blue with our heart that Jesus is Lord, that he died and he rose from the grave, that we're saved, and now we're entering into a family, a community where we can begin to advance the kingdom of God.

But we also know the other side is very true as well.

There's an enemy that's mocking, that's trying to tell us that we don't need Jesus, that you're fine just where you are, that your your level of spirituality is good enough, but you know that God is calling you to come closer.

So if you want to commit or recommit your life to Christ to draw closer to Him, I just want to I want to include you in this prayer.

So on account of three, I want you to boldly lift your hand up here.

If you're here with us at home, I want you to put your hand up as well.

Let's respond in this moment.

But if that's you, I want you to boldly lift your hand up on a count of three.

One, two, three.

Amen.

Amen.

Church, can we put our hands together for everyone that is that is responding in this moment?

I want to ask us all to stand on our feet.

We're gonna go back into a moment of worship.

I want to pray for some folks as we prepare to do that, with a true, firm belief in knowing that God is with us and we are going to protect the house that He's given us.

So I want us all to lift our hands up as a sign of surrender and receive, as I believe, God is gonna begin to strengthen some of the gaps.

Father, you see, you know the condition of every one of your people's hearts.

And Father, I just pray in the name of Jesus that we are not able to bridge these gaps in our own strength.

So, Lord, I'm praying in Jesus' name that you begin to build those walls in our lives, God.

I pray that you begin to strengthen every one of us, God, that wherever the gaps are, God, that you show up and that you provide as only you can, God.

We know that we can have a heart for the house because this house has a heart for us, God.

We know that you have a heart for us, that you've seen us.

And our broken condition.

You stepped down off of the throne of glory.

You stepped in, you lived a life we could never live, and died a death that we can never live and die, God.

And I pray in the name of Jesus that we can receive it.

So, Father, I pray for the person that's dealing with anxiety, the person that's dealing with stress, the person that's dealing with fear, the person that's dealing with condemnation, marital issues, God.

I pray that you strengthen our house.

It is in Jesus' name that we pray.

Amen and amen.

Come on, church, let's worship together.

Thanks again for listening.

We hope you enjoyed today's message.

We'd love for you to subscribe to our podcast and review and share what you've heard today.

If you'd like more content like this, or you'd like to connect with us, go to celebrationorl.org.

We hope you join us next time.