Behold New Things

Hallelujah. The Lord is good. Dancing on the

grave that I once lived in. He'll do it again

and again and again. He'll visit the mess that

we're living in. Cause us to come out of it.

Simon said he put me upon a rock. From where?

Up out of the miry clay. And he put me upon a

rock. And he established my goings. Amen? That

may feel like you've been wallowing in the clay.

You ever feel that way? You ever feel like you're

just kind of trudging through life and you're

just in that miry clay? There's a difference

between mud and miry clay. There is a sucking

phenomenon that accompanies miring clay. Mud,

you can walk through and trudge through the mud.

Miry clay, it just clings. It holds you. You're

stuck. That's miry clay. You can't... I can remember

a few occasions in Arkansas rice fields. That's

a different kind of stuff. It's black mud. you

go to stay up and your foot don't come and you're

on your face in waist -deep water because it's

wrapped around you. That's what the psalmist

is saying. He took me up out of the miry clay,

out of the mess I was in, and he put me on a

rock. I like it. I'm not preaching that today.

That one's free. Turn with me to the book of

Isaiah. Although it could preach, we might mention

it again. You never know. Thank you for being

in the house of the Lord today. I told them Wednesday

night, that big crowd that showed up. With all

this work and stuff that was going on, the original

plan was we were just going to give you the midweek

off, even though we'd already had one or so off,

but we had all this scheduled. not been in here

with the dust and the mess and all that stuff's

going on. I was just going to kindly go around

the midweek service. And then got to thinking,

well, it is the first of the year, and we done

been out one, so let's not lose any more momentum.

And then I said to them, I said, well, it's winter.

A good bunch of them are going to stay at the

house anyway. So we can just go ahead and have

it in the fellowship hall. Well, yeah, just about

there. If everybody would have showed up, eight

or ten regulars had things to do in places we

couldn't be here for the first one thing. It

would have really been full. We still had a 51

or 52, 51, 2, something like that in the fellowship

hall for Brother Randy's class Wednesday night.

And then I told them, I said, I think I'll preach

that last week message again. That six to eight

week rotation, I got some attention. So thank

you for being in the house of the Lord this morning.

Isaiah 43. It's just 1130. So we're in plenty

good time. Amen. Still got a good hour, hour

and a half. We're good. I've got. One little

page. There's not five or six. There's one little

page. And the revelation when it came on the

back of the cook's bill envelope, pest control

bill. That sits beside my chair. And just to

let you know, that's not chat GBT or whatever

that is. That's how it comes to me from time

to time. And so we might reference the envelope.

Isaiah 43 is a very important chapter in what

some would say of the 66 chapters of Isaiah,

which is in itself sort of like a small Bible.

It kind of gets you the scope and the span. But

it's like a turning point. It's a very positive

chapter to a people who are in captivity and

the Lord's speaking to them. Look at verse 11.

I, even I, am the Lord, and beside me there is

no Savior. I have declared and have saved. and

I have showed when there was no strange God among

you. Therefore you are my witnesses, saith the

Lord, that I am God. Yea, before the day was,

I am he, and there is none that can deliver out

of my hand. I will work and who shall let it

or who shall stop me or who can hinder me? Can

anybody do anything about it? Thus saith the

Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,

for your sake I have sent to Babylon and have

brought down all their nobles and the Chaldeans

whose cry is in the ships. I am the Lord. Your

holy one, the creator of Israel, your king. Thus

saith the Lord, which maketh a way in the sea

and a path in the mighty waters, which bringeth

forth the chariot and horse, the army and the

power, they shall lie down together and they

shall not rise. They are extinct. They are quenched

as towel. Focus now. Next two. Remember ye not

the former things, neither consider the things

of old. Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it

shall spring forth. Shall you not know it? I

will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers

in the desert. Behold the new things. That's

our focus for 26. Behold new things. I want you

to look at that background because that's going

to make more sense to you here in just a little

while. I know it looks a little cute, right?

But there's emphasis here. An emphasis that I

did not share, nor did I tell, for the creating

of that background. I didn't do that. I ain't

got enough sense to do that. But I got folks

that can and do. And they sent that for my approval,

and I said, yeah, yeah, that'll work. And you'll

know why shortly. Behold new things. I'll pray

for you if you pray for me. Let's see what the

Spirit says to the church today. Father, I do

love you. So grateful. I am churning on the inside.

Lord, I feel your holy anointing in this house

today. Now, I ask God that you continue to touch

in hearts and minds. Those that are here, we're

not here by accident. We are actually in this

house because of choice. We chose to get up and

to be in your house today. And so here we are.

I pray every heart be open, every ear be tuned

to the voice of the Lord. As your word is already

anointed and been broken for the nourishment

of our bodies and soul and spirit, fill us this

day. Help us this day. In Jesus' name. That's

your sin. Amen. Tell your neighbor it's something

new. Something new. Thus the reason for the transformation

before your eyes. All of this has purpose. It

has meaning. It has emphasis. It challenges us

not to remain in the status quo. It moves us

forward. And for those of you, and I already

heard one testimony, until it was pointed out,

didn't even see it. Need to be a little bit more

aware of our surroundings. Oh, boy, that'll segue

right in. If I wanted to jump like 30 minutes

in, where the Lord said in our text, I do this

new thing, shall you not know it? There's emphasis,

there's motive behind. Some of you have already

known, some of you will be figuring it out, but

I don't even have a pot moved or something shifted

without there's a purpose behind it. There's

purpose, there's reasoning. Amen? It's not all

about that it just looks better, but I think

it does. For me... It just looks like that's

the way it's always supposed to have been. Like

that's part of the puzzle that's been missing.

But when we stop to think about what great things

the Lord has done, that statement in itself is

wonderful, it's powerful, and for those who truly

know God's been good to them, There's a ready

praise that comes up just when you hear that.

What great things he has done. And my mind just

begins to whoo, whoo, whoo. Hallelujah. He has

done great things. Amen? But it's more than a

cliche. That statement for those who understand

that God is on their side, it stirs a very deep

resonance to glorify him. Because he's not just

done great things, he is a great God. We find

ourselves, if we're not very careful, focusing

on what God has done more so than what God is

trying to do in our personal lives, in our familial

lives, on our jobs, in our church. And if we're

so focused on what God has done, There is a danger

of forfeiting all that God is desiring to do

in our life. It is a reminder that God is fully

aware of what's concerning you. See, there's

segue, there's tie to what the Lord shared with

us, had us preach last week. What's concerning

you? He is fully aware, and we, us, you and I,

We must refuse to die in the memory of what was

and focus on what is and what God desires to

be in and through and for our lives. Amen? Say,

well, that's what my testimony is. Yes, but you

don't go back and relive the testimony. You proclaim

the testimony from where you were to where you

are. Because God didn't stop touching you when

he pulled you out of the miry clay. He hasn't

stopped blessing us since he transformed and

turned our lives around. Matter of fact, it's

just got gooder and gooder and gooder and gooder.

Salvation is the basic. Come on now. God doesn't

complete in salvation. He begins. What did the

apostle Paul write? He that hath begun a good

work in you is also able to complete it and to

keep you against the end and all the way to that

day. It was the beginning. It's not the ending.

So many folks are focused on what God has done.

They have failed to remember that that was only

the beginning. It gets better from the moment

of that wonderful transformation. It gets gooder.

and gooder, and gooder, and gooder. Every day

that comes and every day that goes by, the blessings

of the Lord, the redeeming of my lost soul, and

the cleansing and purging of my wretched sin

is the start to everything. We think that's the

fullness of it. No, that's just the beginning

of it. God has so many other new things that

he wants to bring into our life, but you and

I must refuse. To focus on that what was. As

we begin this new year, we do so with this emphasis,

behold new things. And like last week, the first

step toward those new things is that we must

break unbeneficial cycles which hinder our progress

in our faith and the blessings of God upon our

life. And those cycles are broken when faith

stops rehearsing what has been, what God has

done, and begins recognizing what God is doing

in the now, in the moment that he's preparing

for you. your blessed hope, and your blessed

future, understanding that cycles thrive on memory

without revelation. Cycles thrive on memory without

revelation. But I'm here to declare to you today

that God still reveals his will, his way, and

his word to his people. There is a reason that

the Bible says blessed are those who do hunger

and thirst after righteousness for they shall

shall be filled. You must move beyond the memories

of broken cycles and allow the grace of God to

get you to propel forward in your faith and trust

God because God has something new for you. It's

not a rearward faith. It's a forward faith. We

must concentrate on what God is endeavoring to

do in our lives now. Grateful for what he has

done, but what he is desiring to do now. Now

faith, now faith is the substance of things hoped

for, not already come through. Now faith, my

forward faith, begins to break the cycles of

unbeneficial things in my life. When I begin

to see God before me, not just God behind me.

What did the psalmist say? There's nowhere that

I can go. I can descend into the lowest parts

and thou art there. I can ascend to the highest

of the heavens and thou art there. I can look

to the right and thou art there. I can look to

the left and thou art there. I can look forward

and thou art there. I can look in the rear and

thou art there. There's no place that I can.

go and you won't be but glory to God his desire

is to take you from point A to point heaven and

everywhere in between is the goodness and the

manifest grace of God upon your everyday life

and the very moment that we refuse to focus on

the cycles of the past and begin to break them

with forward faith we usher ourselves and position

ourselves to a place where God can open up the

windows of heaven like I talked to you last week

about your giving if you I want God to keep blessing

you. Just keep on giving. Give more. Trust God.

Try God. He said, put me to the test and see

if I won't open up windows in heaven and pour

you out blessings that you cannot contain. And

this is another word. I didn't get on it. I should

have. And he declared that I will rebuke the

devourer for your sake. My God, for some of us,

it's not about getting more. It's about getting

the devourer, that which consumes my resource.

Rebuke. Just think about how much better we would

do with what God's given us if the devil wasn't

eating half of it. Devouring. Well, hallelujah.

I just preached myself happy right there. Forward

faith. God is reminding his people that he understands

he has history with them. And they can testify

about what he has done for them. However, God

instructs them, remember not the former things.

Refuse to allow yesterday to become the ceiling

of your today or your tomorrow. God said, remember

not the former thing. And if you go back from

verse 1 of this 43rd chapter, it's God declaring

himself. I am, I am, I am. I did this for you.

I've done that for you. But he's telling them,

I do not want you to reside in the former. Don't

stay in what I have done for you. I know you're

in captivity, but there's something that's about

to transpire in your captivity, and things are

about to change. And I want you to know I'm the

change agent. I want you to know that I still

understand where you are. I want you to know

that I understand because I have sent to Babylon.

Oh, come on now. He said, I've already sent dispatches.

They have fallen and don't even know it. Hallelujah.

Remember not the former things. Point number

one. Do not step in the trap of what used to

be. Do not step in the trap of what used to be.

Remember not the former things. The problem with

Israel and Judah, it wasn't a bad memory. It

wasn't that they had forgotten God. It's that

they remembered too well. And they wanted to

restrain God to what he had done. They remembered

the Red Sea. God's reminded them of all this.

They remember the Red Sea. That's where they

want to stay. Amen. They remember the manna falling

from heaven. They remember the quail fluttering

around their feet. They remembered a rock following

them through the wilderness and water coming

up out of the rock. It wasn't that they didn't

remember that. It's that that's all they wanted

to know and all that they understood God to be.

And if it wasn't coming out of a rock, it wasn't

God. God wasn't here and manna wasn't falling.

It wasn't remember not the former things is what

God said. God said, yes, I did that, but you

need to put that beside and don't just corner

me in the box of provision because I'm a. A whole

lot more than simply provision. Somebody needs

to understand today I know what God has done.

And it's not that we don't have a memory, but

that we step in the trap. Can I tell you the

devil wants you to be caught in the trap of yesterday's

blessings. He don't want you to understand to

the fullness of the capacity of God's promise

that everything he's declared is for you today.

It's not just he saved you and he's done with

you. No, he saved you and he walks with you.

and he leads you and he guides you. And if he

provided at a Red Sea crossing, if he provided

manna from heaven in the midst of a wilderness,

he wants you to know that he can do even better

than manna. So don't constrain him to the box

of yesteryear. See, let vision, let revelation,

the revealing actions of God be turned loose

into your faith. This is going to be a challenge

to your faith. Because when you get caught in

the trap of yesterday, it's comfortable. Once

you start or stop squiggling trying to get out

of it, the chafe heals and you're comfortable.

But I'm here to tell you the comfort zone is

a dangerous place. You cannot grow comfortable.

Do you realize in some churches, doing what I

did without telling you or asking you, there

would have been mutiny on the bounty? But what

a lot of them don't know is I'm catting blood.

I'll take the bounty. Raise up another flag.

For it's for the goodness and the glory of God.

It's to the edification of the kingdom and the

edification of the body of Christ. I've never

took anything that wasn't desired for me or to

me from a church ever. And I'm not starting now.

Amen. Everything that I do, my modus operandi

is for the glory of God and the edification of

the people in whom he's given me charge over

to serve. I want you to have beautiful things.

Why? Because you are giving and your faithfulness

is before you. And I want you to see it. I want

you to know. I want you to understand. And when

you tell people you need to come to see our church,

look what the Lord is doing at Hopewell. I want

you to see the blessings of God both tangibly

and the unseen. as he pours out from heaven when

the windows open in your life and upon this church.

And it is our challenge to even do more for the

kingdom of God in 26 than we did in 25. We're

going to build more churches. We're going to

allow the ministry of the gospel. It's not for

us to allow. What we are going to do is to help

facilitate the gospel to go around this world.

We're going to give to those who are going and

building. Build where other structures need to

be built. I know there are charlatans in the

church. I know that. I know there's thieves in

shepherd's robes. better sense than to know that

I know that's true but what you need to know

is I'm not one of them hello rest assured of

that I'm not saying and I tell young ministers

that I have to instruct from time to time I say

I do not recognize or recommend for you to apply

my style of leadership A hit may not work for

you. You know. You actually have to have the

backbone to go with it. Which the Lord has happened

to instill me with. Ain't nobody hates the devil

more than your shepherd. I better move on. I

felt that mad thing come up I was talking about

last week. Let's get on point number. We have

to take great care and not only shout about how

he has healed and how he has delivered and how

he has done this or he's done that. God says,

if you can celebrate in what I was, and if that

is all you can celebrate in is what I was, then

you're going to miss what I am. The danger of

nostalgia is that it forfeits the blessings of

today. Nobody loves nostalgia more than I do.

I love the nostalgia feel. I love it. I thrive

on it in my own personal devotions, amen, and

in my own personal worship. But there is a balance

and a blend that must go forward because God

is always. God says this, I am not going to change

my nature, but I am going to change my strategy

for you. I'll always be faithful. I'll always

be loving. I'll always be all that I am. That

will never change. But the strategy that I have

for your life within my. nature and character.

I'm going to reveal myself to you in different

ways. Hallelujah. And my strategy for your faith

is going to be different than it's ever been

before because I've got some new things for you.

Remember not the former things. Don't get stuck

back there. I want to do something great for

you today. I want to do something great for you

tomorrow. I want to usher you into my goodness

and grace every day of your life. Do not pigeonhole

me in the box of yesterday and nostalgia. God

proclaims blessing in your future. Behold. Stop.

Pay attention. Look. Don't just see. I want you

to look. Behold. I will. Not maybe. Not potentially.

Potentially, not possibly. I will do a new thing.

Not a refurbishing. Not a recycling. Not a sequel.

A new thing. Red Sea faith won't get you far

in a wilderness wandering. You've got to have

a faith for the wilderness. A man of faith won't

supply in Canaan. Because when they went in,

the manna stopped. Did it not? They ate the last

of the parched corn. And the manna stopped. And

the quail stopped. And they were flat -footed

in the promise of a land that's flowing with

milk and honey. A new thing. It's a new thing.

God desires to bring it about. And we must allow

our faith. And you've got to know this. The Lord,

Jeremiah 29, 11. For I know the thoughts concerning

you toward you. you, saith the Lord, thoughts

of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected

end. that, God knows already what he's got in

store for you. And he just wants you to get to

a place where you can believe him, follow him,

obey him, and trust him so that he can dispatch

it into your life. He won't do it without your

forward faith. He won't do it without your total

100 % obedience and trust in him. This thing

isn't half -hearted and that's what the problem

with much of the religious world today. There

are very few who are totally sold out and committed

to God and loved God above and beyond any and

every other thing in this world. You must understand

the depth of your being when Jesus answered the

accusatory question of the Pharisees, which is

the greatest of the law? They were trying to

really get him where they could crucify him and

put him to death, but he really turned it on

them. He said, this is the crux of the law, that

you should love the Lord your God. God with all

your heart, with all your soul, with all your

mind. You've got to love him with everything

that's in you. And second unto this is you've

got to love your neighbor as you love yourself.

I'm telling you, we don't love ourselves enough

because if we did, we would truly understand

that we must love God. You've got to love him

more than you love your spouse. You've got to

love him more than you love your children. You've

got to love him more than you love your grandchildren.

You've got to love him more than you love a little

ship that's at your feet or in your lap. You've

got to love him more than Fluffy the feline.

You've got to love him more than the hobby that

brings you the greatest stress relief and pleasure

of your life. You've got to love him more. You've

got to love him more than you love you. And the

only way to do that is to fully understand the

God of the yesterday is declaring in your now

and present that he desires you. You read that

whole 43rd chapter, you'll see that's what God's

telling them about their sin, their iniquity,

and everything that he's done for them. And you

didn't really love me like I loved you. If you

want the new things in your life for 26, you've

got to stop loving some of the stuff you love.

More than you loving him. I'll digress from the

Bed Springs Church of God. I could preach on

Bed Springs Church of God. Or Lazy Boy Bible

Study on Sundays. I could talk about those things,

but... I really want to, but the Lord ain't gonna

let me. Any given Sunday. We should be over 200

people. Over. Over. And that's subtracting those

who are sick and unable or out of town or visiting

to watch a grandchild be baptized. See, I'm good

with that. We should be there. That's not what

I'm talking about. I'm talking about them unexcused

absences. And I only, look, it's not the number.

Are you hearing me? I always want to know the

number. Numbers represent. If God wasn't concerned

about it, there wouldn't be a whole book called

Numbers. He knew how many was in every tribe.

The number represents how many heard and sat

under where the Holy Ghost could move upon their

lives. I am somewhat fully convinced that a lot

of what happens in our lives, we wouldn't be

so dramatic about it if we were in getting filled

up consistently. We would know that it is an

attack from hell and that the devil is a lie

and greater is he that's actually in us. prophesy

in your future. I'm going to do a new thing.

Third, we got one more after this. Don't dismiss

small beginnings. Behold, I will do a new thing.

Now, we've talked about now a little bit already.

It shall spring forth. Now, you and I, when you

think of spring, you think of boing. The word

is chodesh in Hebrew. It doesn't mean boing.

Does it mean explosive action? It means a sprouting.

You see it? It means a sprouting. It means an

emerging. It means a breaking forth. The Lord

said, I'm going to do something new. It's not

going to be a Red Sea. It's not going to be a

rock following you around with millions of gallons

of water. This thing's going to ease up. But

it's working. John's Gospel, I think chapter

12, Jesus began to give them a parable about

it. Unless a corn, a kernel corn of wheat falls

into the ground and dies. I want to read it.

I don't want to miss it. I can't remember it

all. Verily, verily. That's like a behold. That's

like a Isaiah. Behold! the corn of wheat fall

into the ground and die and abideth alone but

first die it bringeth forth much fruit I don't

know what's about to spring up inside of you

because I know there's some stuff dying. There's

some stuff dying. That's the struggle you feel.

That's the wrestling that you've been going through.

God's getting ready to do some new stuff in you

and you're uncomfortable about some stuff that

you feel like dying out. There's some old interests

that don't appear to interest you as much as

they used to. Why? Because you see, when the

kernel goes in the ground, the light, sun, shine,

rays warm up the soil. And while it's warming

up, that old kernel begins to get moistened up.

My God, when the light of glory begins to shine

and illuminate, and you're dark, covered up places

of life, and you're in the miry mess, and yet

you're dying. out to what's going on around you.

God is stirring. The Holy Ghost is drawing. He's

convicting you away from sinful pleasures and

things that are not beneficial, and you're dying.

My God, 26 is the year that it's going to spring

forth. The Lord desires. It is His will to cause

it to break forth. It's got to be groundbreaking.

Where are my gardeners in the room? Where are

you at? Raise your hand. Proud of it. Doesn't

matter if it really works good or not, but you

grow it. Try to. Were you like me? I'd go. I

knew it was going to take longer than it did,

but I'd go out there every morning after I put

that in the ground. Every morning, early. I'm

looking for it. You know what I'm saying? That

one right there? No, it's just a weed. That's

got three little leaves, not two. Two's corn.

I know that much. So I go out there every morning

looking. Because I know something's going on

under the dirt. Something's going on down there.

There's a transformation going on. You know you

ain't nothing but a clump of dirt. Shall we go

back to Genesis 1? He took the dust of the earth

and he made him a good mud ball. But he didn't

just leave it dirt. He breathed into that creature's

nostrils. And according to the word of God, it

became a living soul. He ruach. He instilled

life inside it. And that dirt come up from there.

I love that illustration. The scientists are

saying they can now create life. And they approach

God and say, God, we now have the knowledge and

the understanding of how to create life. And

God says, okay, make me one. And they begin to

gather up their own dirt. God says, time out.

Get your own dirt. When you make dirt, talk to

me about making a man. Light begins to shine.

The sun rays begin to warm the moistened soil,

and that which has been put in must die even

further. The parchment's breaking out because

of the seed. Inside the seed kernel begins to

sprout forth because life is coming forth. And

when it comes forth, it'll bring much more fruit.

That breaking up, you feeling on the inside?

I hope and I'm praying that you're so uncomfortable

with yesteryear's celebrations and blessings

that there is an anguish starting inside your

soul. Your inconsistency in your worship and

with your worship and your prayer. Those inconsistencies,

I'm praying, Lord, let it die in them. Let it

die in them. because if it doesn't die alone,

it can't come forth. So some of that stuff that

you feel like is being cut away out of your life,

God's trying to kill some of that stuff so that

new things he can do for you in your heart and

in your life. What's dying in you? God says,

shall you not know it? Is this going to catch

you so by surprise that you don't even realize

what I'm trying to do in your life? I need to

clarify some things this morning. God is good.

Diablo is bad. How deep was that? I think I have

to really simplify. For those of you, that's

the devil. Diablo. Well, that was awful sarcastic,

Pastor. I meant for it to be. Because I wanted

the statement to land with the shock of a sledgehammer.

Because it seems as though in Christendom we've

forgotten that. That. The devil's just simply

out to kill, steal, and destroy. So if that is

trying to be done in your life, you hear me,

child of God, that ain't God. Pardon the grammar,

but it's still true. I know the thought. Was

that Jeremiah 29, 11 we just read a while ago?

For I know the thoughts that I have towards you,

saith God. What was that next part? Good and

not evil? Look here. Look right here. If it's

evil, it ain't God. So quit blaming it on God.

Get your head up. Take the authority that has

been given unto you. Me? Yes, you. He has given

it unto you. Let me quote it one more time. Greater

is he that is in you than he that is in this

world. Start releasing some of that that's in

you and quit complaining. I saw a little meme.

I started to copy and see where we could put

it up here. It's in front of the desert, dry,

and the little sign said, there's no whining

in the wilderness. I thought, that's good right

there. You need to know that God hadn't left

you. He didn't stop at the border of the wilderness

and say, I'll pick you up on the other side.

That's not what he said. That's not what he does.

The very moment your foot hits solely in the

wilderness and the desert, he's standing right

beside you. Matter of fact, he's going before

you. He'll never, ever leave you or forsake you.

So would you please? Let's let 26 be the year

of I'm a believer. Yes, I am. That just popped

in my head. And now that rhythm of that's in

my head. I mean, wouldn't it be, wouldn't it

be a sight to see people truly know when the

devil's trying to destroy them and God's trying

to bless them and stand in the authority that's

been given to each of us. By Christ who is in

you. It's not you. It's not me. It's Christ in

us. Paul says which is the hope of glory. That's

the reason he would declare further. He's going

to do, I have not seen, ear have not heard, neither

has it entered into the heart of man what God

has in store and what he has laid up for those

who love him. Do you see the importance of you've

got to love him before you love yourself, before

you love your spouse, before you love your children?

And trust me, I've got five of them others. I

know what it means to love grandchildren. But

granny, grandpa, what greater love than you can

drag their hide into church, make them sit down,

behave the best you can, You can't. And demonstrate

for them, first of all, honey, you've got to

love God first. Shall you not know it? Is this

going to happen to you and you not even realize

it? It won't happen to me because I'm up every

morning. I'm going out looking. And I stood down

that row, and the morning when they all started

coming up, I said, there it is. Why? Because

it's weeds going like this. That was my row.

I said, there ain't no weeds can grow like that.

That's my row. Hello? It's kind of indistinguishable.

Sometimes those plants, green beans, stuff like

that, a little bit indistinguishable until they

grow up. Unless you're Brother George and you

know it on sight at 50 yards. That's okra. At

this tall. I had to go look. Was that green beans

or that grass? What is this coming up here? Then

when I could see. Brother Ron wouldn't come lay

my rose. I'd say, yeah, that's my stuff right

there. It didn't come on me by surprise. I was

out there every day looking for it. So that little

bitty plant right there means a lot to you or

should. I'd take that bulletin and put it on

my refrigerator. And every morning I'd look at

that when I opened that door and say, what's

new today, Lord? What's breaking up today? I'm

dying daily. Shall you not know it? Number four,

if all seems lost, don't give up now. Don't quit

now. God says, I will. Not maybe, not possibly,

not a suggestion, not potentially. He said, I

will. I'll make a way in the wilderness. Rivers

in the desert. You've got to know that all things

are possible to those who believe. How can you

say that, Pastor? Because with God, nothing shall

be impossible. Nothing. What's that mean? That's

like all. What does all mean? Well, all. What

does nothing mean? Well, that. Nothing. There's

no exception. No exception. What are you dying

out to today? What's going on? What wilderness

do you feel like you're wandering through? He

said, I'm going to make a highway right there.

That's not a Gavin Newsom high -speed rail. I

could not resist that. That was just too easy.

That just popped right in there. Yeah, we're

not spending billions and not even have the station

built. God said, I will. Like a highway there.

How many lanes you need? Atlanta needs at least

two more and 20 more years of construction. I

need a way. Don't you? I love what the Lord said.

He didn't say, I'm going to cut you a path. He

said, I'm going to make a highway down there.

Where there are no obstructions for you as you

journey through. And when that highway's going

through the desert, don't worry about being thirsty.

I'm going to put you a river over there. You

know what the psalmist said about that tree,

don't you, that's planted by the river? We sing

it. I shall not be, oh, I shall not be moved.

Oh, I shall not be, oh, I shall not be moved.

Like a tree planted by the waters. No, I shall

not be moved. Instead of singing this verse.

Well, that preacher wore that striped shirt he

knew I did not like. I wish I had stayed at home

for gun smoke zone tonight. I'll sit right here

and tend to those around me. Oh, I shall not

be moved. Oh, I shall not be, oh, I shall not

be moved. Oh, I shall not be moved. Though the

spirit moves again. Oh, I shall not be moved.

I don't want to be that. There's a couple more

verses and I'll digress. One talks about, and

when they pass the offering plate, I'll act like

I don't see. So you say, I'm going to go on.

I won't even do that. What's dying in you so

that new things can break forth? It's going to

have to break. You hear me? got a break for it.

I looked at some of those plants as they were

trying to get some of them were still kind of

like bent over and the little leaf hadn't got

up yet and the little stem was trying to grow

up high enough to pull it free. Are you getting

this? And the little green leaves were still

kind of under and you have to resist. So you

can see your leaves. You have to resist it. You've

got to let it break forth. That's like when you

see the little moth or butterfly trying to come

out of the cocoon. Resist everything that's in

you to help tear it. Because that tearing, that

pushing away. Because it's strength. My God.

See, what's dying in you and God is trying to

spring forth new. It's pushing away the hindrance.

And you get strong because you've got a forward

faith now. I can see ahead. I can see forward.

And what I thought was trying to kill me, I was

just simply dying out to. Because I am refusing

to be held by the nostalgia of the past blessings.

Remember not the former things. Behold. Stop.

Look. Take notice. I want to do something different

in you. What's that mean, Pastor? It means the

way you've been doing it needs to be done different.

Needs to be done different. God wants to do something

else in you. Stand with me. I'm going to shut

her down right here. Faith. Overcomes the status

quo. Remember, status quo is the same old same

old. It just is. Some of you have to make a decision

to die to some of those things. Whatever it is

that's trying to hold you, you've got to let

it go. You've got to spring up past. And you'll

do that with strength in his grace. What does

the Bible say? Let the weak say, I am strong.

Let the weak say, I am strong. We used to sing,

of course, it's a new season. It's a new day.

You better play it, whatever they're going to

sing. Don't drive. Coming my way. It's a season

of power and prosperity. It's a new season coming

for me. Let's sing it. I want you to just close

your eyes and think about the Lord and what he's

trying to speak into your heart today. It's a

new day. Fresh anointing is flowing my way. Season

of power. It's a season of power and prosperity.

That one too. It's a new season coming to me.

What's dying in you? What's dying in you? If

there's an internal wrestling match that's been

going on with you and you've not understood,

we're going to get to the envelope probably next

week. The theme of new things is all in the Scripture,

and we're going to look at some of those. But

today it's important what's dying out, that old

self, some of that old nature, some unbelief.

some inconsistency in whatever way, shape, form,

or fashion. How many of you feel some of that

stuff going on inside you? Come on down here

with me. The rest of you, how many want a new

day? You want something fresh from the Lord.

You don't want to leave anything. You don't want

to forfeit any goodness that God has for you

in your life. If that's you, why don't you just

come and let's just stand in these altars today.

I don't want to lose out on anything that God

has.