Stick to the Plan | Joshua 4:10-24 | Pastor Fuego Padilla

On our pastoral staff so grateful. Well, hey, listen, they

don't let your crazy Puerto Rican family member here. But hey,

my name is Pastor Fuego and it's an honor and

the privilege. I have the privilege of being the campus

Pastor Alameda, alongside my gorgeous wife Tiffany, and we're so

grateful to be here. Hey, so, wont you look at

your neighbor right now and tell them, hey, come on,

that was kind of weak. Look at another neighbors say

nigh but you're blessed and tell them why cause you're

sitting next to all this. Come on, let's say the

devil the Lord said it was good.

When he made me. That's why.

What Hey, if you're visiting for the first time, I

love telling people you could belong before you believe you

could belong before you behave, You can even come as

you are.

But you best believe our God.

He loves you and I way too much not to

keep us.

The way we are. Amen.

I believe this that Christianity is not about perfection, It's

about progression. You don't have to be the best today,

but you do need to get better today. Won't you

touch about two three neighbors to say, get better, get better,

get better, that's right, especially if you're married, Hold that

knee and be like, that's why you're here.

Get better. You gotta get better. See, I don't know

if you.

Know the difference between a believer and a disciple. Listen,

we want to make sure that you understand a believer.

That's just the starting line, right, But even demons believe

in they tremble. I fear at the name of the

Lord Jesus. But I want to let you know that

us here at Patriot, we believe that this is a

home for the hungry, and we want to make disciples.

That's right. A disciple means that we are devoted to developing.

We really are. And so what I love to tell

people is this. You see, if you're not sweating in

your preparation, then you're gonna bleed in battle.

And what is the battle? I'm glad that you asked.

The battle is life. That's what it is. You see,

because in this room right now, there's three types of people.

There are those who are.

Headed towards a storm, those who are in a storm,

and those who.

Are coming out of a storm.

And I want to let you know Just because you

came out of the storm doesn't mean that you didn't

get anything taken from you. Because the enemy, he loves

to steal kid and destroy it. And maybe he stole

your hope, Maybe he stole some of your faith, maybe

he stole some of your joy.

Because the time to build a house is not when

the storm is coming.

We don't run the home depot then, No, we want

to build a house now.

We want to make sure that we are building.

Our house on a solid ground, so we want to

be paid. We want to be prepared ahead of time,

so we're ready.

When it's time. You know what I mean. So listen.

I know some of y'all looking at me twisted like.

This brother does. Said his name is fuego. What does

that even mean? Well, listen if you don't speak, Fantash says.

Okay, listen, neither do I Right. But maybe you watch

Dorothy's Flora, Maybe.

You eight talkies, right, maybe you watch Louder or Telemundo.

I don't know, but listen, Fuego means fire. Is fantas

everybody a fire?

Yeah?

And it don't mean I think I'm behind a handsome dude.

Even though my wife she tell me all the time,

y'all through solid. But it does come from Jeremiah twenty

or nine. If I said I would never mention God

or speaking his name, his word burns like a fire.

A fuego shut up in my bones. I'm growing, We're

trying to hold it in. I can't do it. I

gotta tell people about Jesus and what he is doing

it through my life. Now, I gotta ask just to

show in hands man, where my nosy people at. Go

ahead and raise your hand. Come on, come on, yeah,

there we go. Let's shame the devil because we're ready.

Know who the real nosy people are are the ones

who had.

Their hand down looking around, y'all, the real nosy ones.

You feel me, you really are.

But listen, I gotta burst your bubble because being nosy

is not a spiritual gift.

It's not.

I know you're like man passafuago. That was the only

one I got. No, that's not a spiritual gift. But

we are going to redeem it. Everybody say redeem it.

And the way that we redeem it is you know,

when your nosy, you lean.

In like this, ooh ooh what they say? Right? Well,

what I want you to do.

Is lean in, because I believe that whatever you tune into,

you turn into. And I believe that for us, we

want to tune in to the word of God, so

that you and I will turn into many women of God,

men of valor, women of virtue.

Amen.

So, as we're getting started, won't we do this, won't

we put.

Our hands over our heart like this?

And I don't know if you notice this, Why is

your heart on your left Because.

It just ain't right. It just ain't right.

So now I want you to know that it's not

my job to get your heart right.

It really ain't. It really isn't.

According to Mark Chaptain, numb before that's the parable of

the sower who is farmer, who.

Is throwing seed on ground.

And one of it was a footpath, another one was

thorns and thistles, another one was underlying rock, and another

one was good soil that beared fruit right that was

thirty sixty, even one hundred times more than.

What was planted. And so it's up to you to

try to do a proper.

Assessment of your heart and say, I got a roller

till in my heart so I'll be able to receive

the word of God today tonight.

You know what I mean. That's the way we gotta be.

Because the seed is potent, The seed is the Gospel,

the seed is the Word of God. And when it

is planted on good ground, everybody say good ground. When

it's planted on good ground, that's when we'll be able

to bear a lot of fruit. Now, now my assignment

today is gonna be Joshua chaptain them before verses ten

to twenty four. Verses ten to twenty four. Now I

felt like Pastor Gabriel. He did a phenomenal job. He

was unpacking Chapter number four, verses one to nine. He

talked about God using signs. He said that you and

I are signs. Amen to that, that you and I

are signs that would point to the glory and goodness

of God and what He has done in it through

our lives.

And I believe that wholeheartedly.

I love how even my brother, my bodiqu my brother,

was so beautifully articulated, how kiasms, the chiasms they show

in the beginning of a passage, in the end of

the passage, when you read them towards each other, they

mirror each other. So focus you on the middle, so

that you can focus on what the author wants you

to focus on, which is Christ, Jesus, It's God and

God all alone. Now I like this because we see

that these chiasms are all out throughout the Bible. Now,

if you like reading the Bible, which I hope that

you do, now we have the Old Testament. The Old

Testament has five books. The first five books of the

Bible are known as the Torah. The Torah these first

five books. In the middle of the Torah is Leviticus.

Now that is a kiasm with those five books, Leviticus.

In the middle of Leviticus is Leviticus sixteen. Leviticus sixteen

talks about atonement, and it talks about the atoning for

our sin. Isn't that amazing? That's why we see Jesus

in John chapter number five. He sees these religious leaders

gathering around him, and Jesus says, you know what, religious leaders,

let me tell you this.

You read the.

Scriptures because you think the scriptures give.

You eternal life. But the scriptures they point to me

I am the sign.

So now that's not my assignment tonight, but but I

felt like that was just beautiful. I want to talk

about Joshua and Joshua. Now, Joshua, if you're here for

the first time, haven't been tracking with us, please look

at the Joshua series that we're in and you'll be blessed.

But Joshua is the successor to Moses. He's the successor

to Moses. And now as Joshua is the successor of Moses,

Joshua is getting ready to do a really big thing, y'all.

A fulfillment of a pro But it wasn't a fulfillment

that was a promise that was just given to Moses.

It was actually given to Abram. It was given to Abram.

In Genesis chapter twelve, we see that Abram is given

some marching orders. Everybody say marching orders. He was given

some marching orders for him to go to a land

that God would show him. He said, as numerous as

the stars are in the sky, so you'll descend it

shall be. And he starts on his little He starts

on his journey towards where God is gonna show him.

Now, Abram, it was always.

God's intention to take a family and make this family

a nation that would have a land. Why because this

land would be an example to other nations. So now

we don't see at all that Moses he didn't get

into land. But what's happening now Joshua is about to

bring us into the land. And Joshua is bringing So

this is a big fulfillment that is happening.

So I just don't want us to overlook it.

Because this is beautiful on how tactful God is and

fulfilling his promise. Hopefully that will bring you some hope

to evening. Now, if you have your Bibles, please take

it out to Joshua chapter number four.

We're gonna start at verse ten.

And if you don't mind, do you mind standing so

that we could read the word of God. Now, if

you heard a neighbor complain about their feet hurting, can

you tell them you chose to wear them shoes. Now,

this is how we're reads. For the priests bearing the

ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything

was finished, that the Lord had commanded Joshua.

To tell the people.

According to all Moses had commanded Joshua the people, they

passed over in haste. And when all the people had

finished passing over the ark of the Lord and the

priests passed over before the people, the sons of Reuben,

and the sons of God, and the half tribe of Manessa.

They passed over the armed before the people of Israel,

as Moses had told them about forty thousand ready for war,

passed over before the.

Lord for battle, to the plains of Jericho.

On that day, the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight

of all of Israel, and they stood in awe of him,

just as had they had stood in awe of Moses

on the day of his all the days of his life.

The Lord said to Joshua, command the priest bearing the

ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan.

So Joshua commanded the priest come up out of the Jordans. Listen,

I feel like that was somebody who robbed me back

in the day. They said, come about those Jordans. I'm sorry.

Let's stick to the text. Passor listeny, Father, let's stick

to the text.

Here we go.

So Joshua commanded the priest come up out of the Jordan.

And when the priest bearing the ark of the Covenant

of the Lord came up from the midst of the Jordan,

and the souls of the priest's feet were lifted up

on dry ground. The waters of the Jordan returned to

their place and overflowed all its banks as before the people.

They came up out of the Jordan on the tenth

day of the first month, and they encamped at Guilgal

on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones

which they took out of the Jordan. Joshua set up at.

Gilgal, and he said.

To the people of Israel, when your children ask their

fathers in times to come, what do these stones mean,

then you shall let your children know. Israel passed over

this Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God

dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until

you passed over, as the Lord your God did to

the Red Sea or the sea of reeds, which he

dried up for us until we passed over.

So that all the peoples of.

The earth may know that the hand of the Lord

is mighty, and that you may fear the Lord your

God forever. Let us pray, Spirit of the Living of God,

have your way, hide the preacher behind the cross in

Jesus' name, Amen, as a being seated to tell your neighbor,

are you ready?

Are you ready? Now? Now?

I really just want us to take a look at

this scripture, and I'm hoping to articulate it in a

way that it will present itself like a pop up book.

Now I see that the children of Israel they are

at the Jordan, and a is that they're at the Jordan.

I started to think about this when I first started

reading the Bible, that if they're at the Jordan, why

do you have to party?

Lord?

Why couldn't if they just backed up and then ran

and said Jordan, they jumped over and they made it

to the other side, that would have been cooper. Then

I started thinking, oh, you know what, they didn't have.

No air Jordan's.

They had the air Jerusalums, they didn't have no Jordan's.

They had the Chankla two thousands on. They couldn't make it.

They couldn't make it. And so they're standing there. See

that Joshua and them are getting ready to get into

the water. The priests that are carrying the Ark of

the Covenant, what do they do? And they walk into

the water and the water starts parting, and I want

as it starts parting, I'm picturing that the children of

Israel are back and they're waiting like Joshua, Joshua, hey,

could we go could.

We go in there?

Like he says yes, and they start going in haste.

They start moving in haste.

Oh, they start going in haste. Listen, y'all, and the

children of Israel as they are going across the men

who are holding they're just holding the ark of the Covenant.

And I'm thinking as they're passing, these men of God

were first to go in, and they're also gonna be

the last ones to come out.

They're gonna be the last ones to come out.

Could you imagine these priests that are holding the ark

of the company. They're standing in the middle, and they're

standing in the middle of what was and what is

about to be.

And not only are they standing in the middle.

Of what was what's about to be, they're also holding

signs like my brother was talking about last week, signs

of what God had did in.

The past, Signs of God bringing manner.

And bringing provision, Signs that God had given them through

the that we see the Ten Commandments and we see the.

Rod of erin.

So they're holding it and they know in the middle

that's where God.

Is with them.

And so people are passing them. People are just passing

them by, and they're staying there, and I started to

think about this scripture. I was like, man, Lord, they're

staying there. They're staying there, and they're they're really just

obeying some orders that they were given. See, because Joshua

gets his orders from Moses, and Moses got his orders

from the Lord and he passes it down.

To Joshua, and Joshua just obeys the orders.

Now Moses is dead, he didn't have to.

Obey them no more.

He could have just been like, hey, you know what,

he's dead, brot, let's think.

Of a different one. Let's let's hudle up. Let's think

of a new idea. But he didn't.

And he gives them some orders, and they're there in

the middle and they're ten toes down believing and knowing

and remembering the things that God had done before and

what God is getting ready to do. So the people

are walking by, and I started to think about this

because they were really they were really ten toes down

on being God's word. They were okay with authority, kind

of like what we see with the centurion when he says,

Jesus come to my house.

And heal my servant. Jesus says, all right, let's go.

He's like, no, don't come to my house. Matter of fact,

just send word from where you are.

Because I am a man under authority and I'm Muscle

a man in authority. He knew how there was power

in authority. He knew it, and I saw it. As

I was thinking about this, I was like, man, thinking

about how we as people have authority issues.

We have authority issues. We got authority is.

Now I'm full blooded Puerto Rican originally from New York,

born in Manhattan, raised in the Bronx. Now, I remember

when I was about five years old, right, I got

crazy with my mama. Now let me give you some

context though. Now, Puerto Ricans, there's three things that were

solidified that you apported recon and now, first you have

to cook with sofrito. The second is you must drink

Bustello coffee. And the third is that you have to

this is without you. Oh, this is a non negotiable.

You have to have attitude problem. You gotta have attitude problem.

And so me, at five years old, I was practicing that,

and I remember my mom she was telling me something

and I was like, Mom, you don't know nothing.

You're stupid.

You see see that some of y'all don't even speak

fantis And I heard ain your smell, and that's what happened.

That's what my mom, That's what happened. And all I

know is I woke up ten days later and don't

we see that that's what happened. That's what I believe

happened with Jesus. Jesus was twelve years old in the

temple and he was lost on the parents are looking

for him, and he's like, did you know why be

in my father's house? And what happened? We didn't see

him ever again until he was thirty till he's thirty

years old.

Come on, right, sis, you better read your bible. Mary

became Madia, Mary became Audia.

But authority issues, you know. I always crack up because

my sons there. When he was young, we would go

to the park and we were walking around and it

we'll see a kid. He'll be cussing out his mom

at four to five, and listen, I just got a

problem with that. I'm looking at this kid like and

the mom said, come here, Timmy, you're gonna be on

time out, Timmy. I loved the laughter because the only

time my mama ever got was when she needed to

rest her arm because she was already getting me.

And she's like, hold.

On, time out, halftime, halftime. But we see the authority.

Now.

I know we're fun and games with that authority, But

what about us when we.

Are on our day to day? Are you that type

of Christian.

To Actually, you go to work and you got all

the Christian paraphernalia, you come up bumping worship music, and

when you come up bumping, you steal thirty minutes late

and the boss, and the boss is like, come on,

you be like.

Man, God is good. Man. He's like, how is God good?

You ain't never your time? You ain't never here time?

And yet you're there at the job.

You're supposed to be bringing the gospel, but you're bringing

the gossip.

You talking about the boss. You're like, hold on, hold

on the boss.

No he didn't, And you're saying all these things about

the boss. But can I just ask, Can I just

tell you something? The way you treat people who are

in authority is the way you will be treated when

you're in authority. Married couples out there, listen, men, I

gotta just speak to us.

One thanks, one thanks.

I sounded like Tony Montano right there, just one time,

just gotta speak to us.

I gotta help us.

Because we often say, man, we want our wives to submit,

But I'm asking you, look, our.

Wives are a mirror image of us. Do you submit?

Do you get words.

From your pastor do you even submit to your pastor?

What is sub submission? Sub to the mission? That means

you were under the mission. But are you submitting when

you speaking with the pastor having the counselor it says,

are you actually taking his advice and being able to

apply it to your life? Because information with our application

will not bring transformation. You need it all in your life.

You need all of it in your life. You can't

just take what we want. We take little bits and

pieces of what we want. Let me give you the Bible,

because y'all getting a little cross sided, like, hold on

where the Bible at? Well, here goes the Bible right here?

Romans thirteen one. Y'all got your Bible? Romans thirteen one.

Romans thirteen one. Look what it says. Everyone must submit

to the governing authorities, for all authority comes from who

thank you and those in position of authority have been

placed there by who. So anyone who rebels against authority

is rebelling against what God has instituted. So what is

that saying? Pasa fuego. I'm so glad that you asked.

You know what it's saying. It's saying, you can't even

spell authority without the author.

He is the author of it. He's the one that

established it. And see that'sh I love how the men

of God they're standing in the middle holding the ark

of the covenant given orders and they're like, yo, we're

not leaving here until we get some new orders.

But many of us here tonight we already know.

That God has given us a word for us to stay.

Ten toes down and saying I'm gonna stay committed to this.

But we only committed for one way, for one week,

one month, a couple of days.

And God is like, and then you want another word? No, no, no,

no no, God is like, hold on, See, I haven't

given you another word.

Because I want you to stay being a faithful father

to your children. I want you to stay being a

faithful husband.

I want you to stay being a learner of my

word so.

That it will be so embedded in you, so ingrained

in you that it becomes a part of your.

Nature, a part of your character.

See, because you can teach what you know, but you

reproduce who you are, the type of fruit that you're

seeing in your house.

You are the product of that.

So to make sure that that is what we're doing,

we got to make sure we are saying, Lord, I

trust your word and I submit.

To it, but pass the I really don't be feeling

like it though.

Uh let me tell you this, stick to the plan,

not your mood.

Stick to the plan, not your mood.

You know, we gotta have this mindset to follow God.

If you're taking notes, write this down, you need to

have your mind set to follow God. Your mind has

to be set to follow God. That means you have

to have your mind made up. If I was to

name this sermon tonight, I would name it don't do

Heaven's work without Heaven's resources.

That means that when you walk into situations, you know

who you with, You know who's with you. You See,

this is.

The way Joshua's mentality was. He was like, I know

who is with me? Joshua when he he had a

mentor named Moses, and Moses was a man that in

Exodus chapter.

Thirty three, Verse fifteen.

Moses is speaking to God and he says, God, I'm

not going unless you come with us. He's saying, I'm

not going personally. If you don't personally come with us,

I'm not going to leave this place. I'm not going

to leave. And this is what Joshua is listening to. Remember,

Joshua was the man who was at war in Exodus seventeen.

Where we see Moses.

He has his hands lifted up towards heaven and he's

read and they're winning the battle.

He's getting tired, erin and her.

They pull up alongside of them, start lifting his hands,

give them a place where he can sit. And as

he has his hands lifted, Joshua is witnessing this. We're

winning the battle. When we have the presence of God,

we witness He's witnessing this. And God often shows us

a physical thing to reveal a spiritual thing. In that moment,

we're seeing that we are better together, and we're also

seeing that we will win when we partner with God.

God is showing us these two things. He's revealing it

to us. He's revealing it to us. But I gotta

ask you this question. How about you? How about you?

When your partner read with God? Do you believe that

your partnering with God? Do you really believe it? Do

you believe that when you walk in through these doors

you're becoming everything that God.

Says you have become?

Do you believe the promises and the faithfulness of God

and what he has done? Do you believe that when

your prayers are being heard, that your prayers are being heard,

and that they're not falling on deaf ears? You said,

because I believe that I'm a product of God's grace.

I'm a product of having a mother who had a

pagan son running the streets, robbing people, jumping into how

the houses and doing people dirty, and did not believe

in God. And yet she prayed for me from a sanctuary,

and prayers grabbed my heart and brought me into the

house of God, brought me.

Into the House of God. But do you.

Believe that that when you have hands lifted and you're

speaking in your heavenly language and you don't know what

you're saying, that prayers are going to grab children, save

a gun from going through somebody's head, A bullet from

going through somebody's head.

Do you believe it that your prayers.

Are actually impacting the heart of a man who wants

to walk away from his family, but yet he's gonna

be brought back to home, Brock.

To this house. Do you believe it? See?

Because we have these we have these yes and amen moments.

But I'm telling you you'll only know what you believe

in in the seasons that you go through. I'm telling

you I've had these job type of moments where I

get hit from the north, southeast, and the west of

my life and I had to stay ten toes down

like I'm holding the ark of the coveny and I'm saying, Lord,

I remember what you did then, and you're still gonna

be faithful. Now, You're still gonna be faithful. You still

will be faithful. You're still gonna be faithful. No matter what, Lord,

You're still gonna be faithful. We gotta have a better mindset.

Our mindset has to be stayed on God. Our mindset

has to believe that our prayers are being heard. That

anytime I walk into the room, Lord, you're with me,

you go before me, you're behind me. You're living on

the in side of me. Greater is he that's in me,

the heat that is in this world?

Do we believe that church?

Do we really want to walk these things out? Do

we want to be living epistles amongst men and women?

Do we really believe that there's a dying generation that

is out there? Because Joshua he believed it. He was like, Lord,

ask for me and my house. We gonna serve the Lord.

We rocking with you. Lord, were staying with you no

matter what. Now, if you're taking notes, write this one down.

A bad mindset is like a flat tire. You ain't

going nowhere until you change it. It is up to

you to be able to change the way that you

see these things. Now, I'm Joshua. Chapter four, verse twenty.

That's how it reads. It was there at Gilgal that

Joshua he piled up twelve stones taken from the Jordan River.

Then Joshua said to the Israelites.

In the future, your children will ask what do these

stones mean? Then you will tell them this is where

the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.

I got this question for you. If someone was to

ask what do these stones mean? In your life?

Then you would tell them what what would you tell them?

I'm gonna leave that blank's face for you. What would

you tell them? Would you tell them that God is good?

Would you tell them that He's faithful? Would you be

able to walk them through your life?

Because I talked about those seasons that we have in

our life, and.

You know, it's a difference between seasons and cycles. You know,

seasons they have a beginning and an end.

Cycles can be never ending.

You know, seasons they change with time, but cycles only

change when you do. That's the only time that cycles

will change. We're constantly, oh, we're going to church when

things are bad, but we out of church.

When things is good.

That's a cycle. That's not a season, that's a cycle.

We want to make sure or that we are being

steadfast and rooted in God. No matter what comes our way.

We want to be rooted in God. We will bend

but not break. Do you know that the tallest trees

they endure the harshest winds. So if you are standing

tall for God, you best believe that there's gonna be

some wind coming your way. But you will not be uprooted.

You will not be uprooted. You will not be uprooted.

If you're right taking notes, write this down. When we

honor God, his presence is known, and we can tell

of the goodness of God. We could tell of the

goodness of God man. When I think about the authority,

when I think about these seasons, the seasons and cycles

that we go through, it just brings to my attention

the story.

It's a true story of this woman.

Who worked at the high school that her son attended.

And she was working at this high school that her

son attended, and he was a senior, and she was

off that day, and he comes running down the stairs

and he goes and he dashes out the door.

He's like, all right, mom, and he leaves.

His mom comes down and sees that he's left his

lunch that she made him right there on top.

Of the table.

And so she's like, oh, oh, my baby left his lunch.

So I'll take it to him at his lunch after

I run my errands. She takes this lunch, she runs

her errands, she pulls up at the school, walks inside

of the cafeteria. When she walks in the cafeteria, everybody is.

Laughing at her.

Oh wow, oh this is your mom. They're making fun

of her. Oh, I forgot to tell you that this

woman she only has one eye, and they're laughing at.

Her throwing food the kid.

Her son was so embarrassed he puts his head down

and dashes outside of the cafeteria, leaving his mother there

by herself. She goes home and she's sitting on the couch.

She's quietly waiting for her son to come home, anticipating

that door knobed.

To jiggle, and she gets up when she sees.

Him coming in, and she says, son, I'm so sorry

if I didn't mean to embarrass you, and he says

some harsh words to her. Get away from me, Mom,

I can't believe you did that. You embarrass me. I

never want to talk to you again. He says, I

can't wait till I get out of high school because

I'm gonna move far away for college. And you know

what happened. He made a vowel in his heart. He

made a vowel in his heart. And you know what

he did exactly that he graduates from high school, goes

to college, moves far away.

Not only is he living far away.

He actually graduates from college, gets his degree, gets Mary

has children and moves further away and never is contacting

his mother. And years have passed, she has grandbabies as

she's never seen, and yet this is a time where

she's looking in the mirror. She's like, you know what,

he must have gotten over this. Now, must have gotten

over this. Now I gotta go see my son. I

gotta go see my grandbaby. She puts on a nice dress,

she gets herself as best as she can, and she

drives nine and a half hours to go see your son,

worshiping and praying and wondering if I should pull over

because I don't know if he's gonna accept me. But

she makes her way there, gets out the car, fixes

her dress, and knocks on the door. As she knocks

on the door, the door opens. It's her grand baby.

But the grand baby looks at her and says, ah,

it's a monster. He closes the door, and then the

grand baby runs to the dad and says, Daddy, does

a monster at the door. He said, wait, wait, wait

a minute, there's a monster at the door.

Wait a minute, Wait a minute. So the monster at

the door, he.

Opens the door and he sees his mom and he's like, oh, yeah,

you know what you're right, he shuts the door in

her face. The mother she lowers her hand and she

makes her way into the car, crying all the way home.

As she's crying all the way to her at home.

Another year and a half passed and he gets in

the mail a letter from.

His high school because it's their high.

School reunion, and he's like, ooh, surely they got to

see what I've become now. They made fun of me then,

but watch when they see what I have become. Watch

when they see me. So he gets his best dress

up as best as he can, and he drives to

his hometown and he has this thought, Oh, my mom

lives here. I might as well stop by and see

my mom. And so he pulls up and as he

pulls up to the house, he sees a letter on

the door, and he puts it in park and he's like,

is my mom getting a victim?

How comes she didn't tell me? Hold on? He hops

out of his car, and as he's walking.

Closer to the door, he sees that the letter has

his name on it, and so he grabs the letter

and he opens it up, and he opens it up

and he sits down. The letter says, son if you're

reading this letter. I've gone home to see the Lord.

I want to tell you how much I love you.

I wish I would have been able to see you

in person. I wish I would have been able to

hug you and tell you this in person. But I

want to let you know I love you from the

moment you came into this earth. I told the Lord,

I'll do as best as I can to provide for you,

and to do all that I can to comfort you,

and to do all.

That I can to guide you in the word of God.

I felt like I wasn't really given the opportunity, but

this is my opportunity. I didn't want to tell you

like this, but I guess this is the way I

have to tell you, she says, son, when you were born,

you were born with one and I took my eye.

I had the doctor remove mine to give it to

you so that you would not have to go through

any kind of persecution or be made fun of. This

young man get to hug the very person who did the.

Sacrifice for him. He missed it.

But you're in this very room tonight, and some of

y'all came in because you think somebody invited you but

the Bible says no man or woman comes unless drawn

by the spirit of God.

So you're in here.

Because God is bringing you towards Him.

And like that, young man, I don't want you to

miss it.

I don't want you to miss the sacrifice that He's

done for you and I.

He who knew no sin, became sin, so.

That you and I become the righteousness of God. That

though yet we were sinners, Christ, he died for us.

He died for us. He died for us. He died

for us. Thousands have died for our freedom. Bony one

died from our soul. He died for us. Tonight you're here,

I'm gonna let you know. Maybe God is knocking on

the door of your heart. He's knocking on the door

of your heart. Will you open the door and be

able to recognize the sacrifice that He's done for you?

Would you be able to recognize it? I'm gonna tell

you this. I almost didn't. Nineteen years ago was when

I gave my heart to Jesus. But you know what,

I almost missed it. I almost missed it. I could

care less about God. I cursed his name. My mother

and father they honored God They wanted to do their

best to share the gospel with me, but I rejected it.

And one night I was set up to be killed

in Anti, California, gun to my face, and as the

gun is in my face, I was cursing the God

that I did not even believe in trusting, cursing his name.

All I can hear was Proverbs fourteen twelve. There's a

path that looks right to a man, but it leads

to death. And it was that very scripture that my

mom put faithfully on my pillow.

Day and night.

It was the kindness of God that walked in that

night and stopped that man from shooting me and having

a bullet come out the back of my head. It

was the kindness of God, a God that I cursed,

a God that I did not care about, a God

that I did not believe was real, introduced himself to

me that night. I almost even have my chance, but

somebody prayed for me, somebody sent the hound of heaven

to get me. And tonight you're here, and you think

you're here by coincidence. I believe it was Albert Einstein

that said it's coincidences, that God a coincidence, or God

weighs of remaining anonymous. Coincidences are God's way of remaining anonymous.

It's just God bringing you to himself. Now with tears

is flowing down my face. I'm hoping that you would

know that tonight God is knocking on your heart. He's

knocking on the door of your heart. And as he

is knocking on the door of your heart, I prayed

that you would let him in, that you would let

him in.

Some of you, you.

Guys, have been Christians for a long time, and God

is knocking on the door of your heart, and as

you open the door, you actually recognize who he is

and would close the door because you're intimidated about the

purpose that he has for your life, because He hasn't revealed.

The whole plan to you, and you're scared.

The Bible says it is impossible to please God without faith.

It's time today to step out.

Of the boat onto the waves where your faith can grow,

knowing that no matter what comes your way, the waves

that are trying to drown you, our God walks on

that water.

And I'm hoping that today you won't reject.

Or ignore the call that He's bringing you towards the

purpose for your life, that you're not doing it alone,

that you're actually partnering with God. You're no longer gonna

do Heaven's work without Heaven's resources. And if that's you tonight,

you want to surrender your life to Jesus if you

want to, and another who wants to rededicate.

Their life to Jesus saying Lord, I'm giving.

Everything to you tonight. If that's you, I just want

you to put your hand up on the count of three.

Ready, one, two, three, go ahead and put that hand up.

There we go. There we go. Hold those hands up

for me. Family, hold them up.

Yeah, there we go, hold those hands up. This is

a posture of surrender. There's a pasture of surrender before.

We used to do it with police, or I used to.

At least some of y'all are like, oh.

I know, But this is a posture of surrender to

allow him to search your life.

Now, what we're.

Gonna do is, I'm gonna say a prayer if everybody

as a family will be able to repeat it after me.

Would you do so.

It? Would you repeat after me? Lord Jesus, I believe

you're the son of God. I believe you died on

the cross, and on the third day, God the Father

raised you from the grave. I open my heart and

I'll receive you as my Lord is Savior. I asked

that you wash me and cleanse me and make me new.

Holy Spirit, feel me from the top of my head

to the sols of my feet, Guide me and lead

me as I follow you from this day forward in

Jesus' name.

Amen. Amen.

Now, if you said that prayer for the very first time,

would you put your hand up for me? I just

want to recognize. Go ahead, put your hand up. There

we go, There we go.

That's good. Now, Now, if you set that prayer.

For the very first time, we have a resources ww

dot grow dot Faith. We'd love for you to take

this resource with you to be able to apply it

to your life. It's really important that you take these

next steps if you have not been water baptized, and

I want to challenge you to be able to take

that step towards a baptism pool and getting baptized. You know,

it's like going public. You're going public with your faith.

When I got married, I was like, yo, I want

everybody to come and see my wedding because I'm staying

committed to this one, and that's what really we're doing,

openly inviting friends and family to come and see you

dedicate your life to Jesus.

If maybe some have been here for a while.

Being baptized and you want to go step into growth track,

man I encourage you to do so because the harvest

is plentiful, but the laborer is a few. So let's

leak arms together and let's build the Kingdom of God.

If you do need prayer afterwards, we'll have a team

right here ready for you to pray for any of

you and your needs.

God bless you, Thank you, family,