Mediating On The Word | Pastor Michael | The Calling Church

Hi, calling family.

This is Pastor Michael, and welcome to our church podcast.

I'm so grateful for you tuning in today, and I believe today's message is gonna strengthen your faith in Jesus.

The title of my message today on this series, God's Word, is Meditating on God's Word or Meditating on the Word.

Meditating on can't say with me.

Meditating on the word.

Meditating on the word.

Now I don't know about you, but I like food.

Come on, somebody.

How many of you like food?

Come on, raise your hand.

Don't be shy, okay?

Hey, you don't have to.

Yes, amen.

How many of you like some carnesada, right?

All right.

I like some carnesada, all right.

How many like some burgers?

All right.

How many like all the bad food?

That's me, man.

I love all the bad food.

How many of you like steak?

How many of you like a good steak?

And if you get your steak well done, I'm gonna pray for you in the name of Jesus.

That's not, that's a sin, by the way.

It says this in 2 Michael.

No, it's a wrong.

A well done steak is not good, alright?

You just, and by the way, steak is expensive.

You just messed up an expensive steak, alright?

I like steak.

You know, in Pasadena, we got places like Houston's.

I've never been there, but if you've been there, God has blessed you, alright?

You got uh I heard there's some great steak there.

I forget, I'm gonna butcher this restaurant, but me and my wife, someone gifted us super generous pastors in this city, gifted us uh uh gift cards to go to my butchery parking grill.

I forget what exactly Parkway grill?

Something grill.

Barbecue?

Park View Grill.

Park View Grill.

That's an expensive one, right?

Parkway, I don't know, whatever way, alright?

It has some good steak, and I tried it.

In Pasadena, we got places like Ruth Chris.

How many like Ruth Chris, alright?

Fogo de Chow, by the way, wow, Fogo to Chow, they just don't stop there, alright?

Flemings.

It's some great steak.

A short story for you.

One year uh my brother-in-law was cooking steak, and we were at my in-laws, and we're outside one summer, and uh, you know, you could smell the steak searing and you could smell the flavor.

And by the way, a good steak has some flavor on it.

It is it's just it's moist.

I mean, it's great, and so that all the juices were flowing, and you know, the fume, so to speak.

And uh um we got, you know, some I can't remember if my father-in-law or my brother served us and we started eating our steak.

My son was about one or less years old, maybe about one year old.

And he's sitting on my lap or my wife's lap, and I cannot remember.

But you know, you gotta watch kids very closely, right?

And so I remember looking over at my son, and I could tell, I I I mean, it was very subtle.

Every now and then I would see like a little swash or a little chew from my son, okay?

He would just make a little chew every so often.

The kid had no teeth.

Let me tell you this.

He had no teeth, all right?

And I kind of look away, and you know, that's nothing.

And then again, I see a really quick, you know, chew.

And I go, open his mouth, Corrine.

This dude had a steak this big in his mouth that he swiped from mama, all right?

Or me.

I don't want to, you know, it's my I'll just say me, so I'll get in trouble.

My fault, all right?

He swiped and put it in his mouth, and he was just he was just chewing and gumming that thing and getting all the flavor out of it, and praise the Lord, nothing happened.

Amen.

Thank you, Jesus.

All right.

But the but the Bible talks about this meditate on the word.

Almost like how the uh the cow chews the cud.

In other words, what we're called to do in scripture is not only to engage in it, but apply it, but also or memorize it, but also chew on the word.

Come on, somebody.

And I want to teach us this morning how to do that because the Bible says when you meditate on the scripture, you will have blessing in your life.

Come on, some how many of you want a better sound mind in your life?

How many of you want more enjoyment in your life?

How many want just not just positivity and mind gains, but you want the presence of the Holy Spirit just on tune in your life?

Come on, somebody.

Well, the Bible says you need to chew on the word.

Chew on the word, all right?

And we're gonna be talking about that today.

Engaging with God's word, meditating on his word.

And just like steak, just like steak, you can't just, you know, poor Caleb couldn't chew that thing.

You know, he was gumming it.

You know, what just like just like steak, when it comes to the word, you know what we're meant to do?

We're not just to mindlessly read it and say, I'm done, check mark.

No, the Bible says to chew on it.

You know, you need to chew on your steak before you swallow it.

You need to break that steak down.

You need to break that down so that it can give you can get all the nutrients and the uh out of it.

The same is true with God's word.

God wants us to break it down so that it can bless our life.

You know, meditation.

My first point is this meditation involves our minds and our mouths and our hearts.

Meditation involves our minds, our mouths, and our hearts.

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, to meditate is to contemplate.

It means to engage in contemplation or reflection and to focus, a focus.

Now, this is the part two.

Focus one's thoughts.

Now, if I'm honest and we're honest with ourselves, we go on thought trains all the time.

What is a thought train?

A thought train is you let you let your thoughts control your life and take you let the devil take you wherever he wants you to go and play with your mind and play with your emotions, and it's time to sell tell the devil, uh-uh, you don't control my mind.

The word of God is in my mind.

I'm gonna follow and obey his statutes, his precepts, and the commands of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Someone said, Amen.

You guys with me?

All right, it's time to stop allowing God, uh the devil to run away with our anxiety, to run away with our insecurities, because that's the mission that he has for you in his life.

It's to destroy you from the inside out.

But God wants to bless you from the inside out.

You know, the word here for meditation is the word haggah.

Can you say it with me?

Haggah.

Come on, say it with me.

Haggah.

It has various usages in the Bible.

Number one, in the Hebrew, it's the roaring of a lion.

It is to give serious thought and consideration, like we just read.

It means, and this is the other one, watch this.

It means to utter in the Hebrew, it means to utter in low tones with repetition of the scripture.

I like that.

It means to, uh, and I'm teaching this because we need to do this.

It means to utter in low tones with the repetition of scripture.

So watch this.

Meditation both involves our mind and our mouth.

As opposed to Eastern meditations, where it that comes across as I need to empty myself and I need to silence myself.

But instead, what the Bible talks about meditation, it means that we need to fill our minds and renew our minds, not just empty our minds.

It means we need to fill it, and God wants to fill it with scripture.

You guys with me?

Look at what uh look at what Joshua chapter 1, verse 8 says, and I love this.

Joshua 1:8

It says, keep this book of the law always on your on your lips.

Meditate on it day and night.

There's that description again.

Meditate on it day and night so that what's the purpose?

You may be careful to do everything written in it.

So, what would it look like this morning to engage with the Bible through meditation?

You know, we're constantly filling our minds with endless scrolling.

What do they call it?

Doomsday, doom scrolling?

We're filling our minds with movies, we're filling our minds with subjects that honestly are poisoned to our minds and poisoned to our hearts and get underneath us and don't allow us to sleep.

We fill our minds with rumors and tabloids and the latest news and the headlines.

But what if instead we should make a habit change?

Watch this.

And we get up early in the morning, and instead of, you know, going with the enemy and the thoughts that come our way, what if we crack open the Bible and fill our minds?

And not only fill our minds, but meditate and chew on what God says throughout the day.

What if, watch this, before we go to bed, and and before, you know, we're usually scrolling away on that phone.

What if we put the phone aside and before we go to bed, we start with Psalm chapter one or John chapter one and engage with the word before we fall asleep.

Maybe we'll wake up a little bit different than when we we would have had uh scrolling on our phone.

And let me just say this for practical application.

Storms are perfect seasons for script to memorize scriptures.

Storms are perfect seasons to memorize scriptures, times of pain are perfect times to remember God's promises.

Let me say that again.

You storms are perfect seasons to memorize scriptures and to meditate on them.

Pain are perfect seasons to remember God's promises.

And I'm here to tell someone today, I know it, I know it because I've gone through it in my life, even as a pastor, and some of us are engaging and doing this right now.

Some of us we're nursing and rehearsing our problems to God all day, every day.

We're nursing and rehearsing our problems to ourselves, and we're uttering our problems out loud to ourselves and to our family.

But what God wants to do is for us, is He wants us to chew and cherish the word rather than rehearse and nurse the problems and the drama for your mama.

Come on, somebody.

That will change your life.

If you want life change, I'm speaking to someone today, might be just one person, even to myself.

If you want peace in your mind, stop nursing, nursing and rehearsing.

Who hurt you?

Who said that about you?

You know, there's a scripture for everything that you're feeling today, everything that you have you're going through today.

There was a sea there's been a a lot, especially now in my life, season it there's a uh sometimes, sometimes I get home and it just feels like chaos.

It just feels like this chaos, noise, I can't hear my own thoughts, um, you know, toys everywhere, work going on, meetings, and there's just so much busyness.

Sometimes I get overwhelmed.

I don't know about you, all right, but uh you just get overwhelmed with life.

You know, you're raising your kids, you're trying to perform at work, you're trying to pay the bills, and you just feel chaos in your life, and you're trying to find peace and stability, all right?

But there's one scripture that has always sustained me in times of overwhelm and chaos, and that's Psalm 46, 10.

Be still and know that he is God.

Be still and you know what I do, and so when I feel times of chaos, I start chewing and cherishing the word.

I start repeating out loud, on uh a low tone in my breath.

Be still, Michael.

You know, Michael, you're having a hard time hearing from the Lord at this season, or you're having a hard time just trying to be on the same frequency of the Lord, maybe at a certain time.

You're having a hard time hearing from God.

You're you're having a hard time.

God, what do you want me to do?

Watch this.

It's because you're you're feeling there's a lot of chaos going on in your life.

But if you watch this, meditate and show on, be still.

Isn't it funny and ironic that God has to say, just sit still for a second so you can understand who I am?

And right now you are just so distracted in your life by everything that's going on out there on the social media, and just pay attention, watch this, just pay attention.

And one hour of your day, how much distraction you go through.

From your kid who's trying to swallow steak to uh to the social media, you know, one social media scroll, you'll you'll feel sad, you'll feel mad, you'll feel hurt, you'll feel happy.

It is a lot of chaos at times, but watch this.

The irony is because we're doing so much, we can't connect with God.

And so to hear from God, he says, be still and know.

For some of us, we need to be still, and we need to memorize that and meditate on that.

How about Joshua chapter 1, verse 9?

Joshua 1:9

There was a season in my life where I went through a lot of fear.

My dad died really young.

I contemplated a lot of of his death growing up, and and is that gonna happen to me?

Am I gonna go through that?

Some of us, you know, our families pass on early, you know.

You know, is that is that something that's gonna happen to me?

Whatever the case is, it's insecurity.

And this verse that I would meditate on all day, that would strengthen me, is Joshua chapter 1, verse 9.

Joshua 1:9

Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

There's been seasons in my life, not only of fear, but of discouragement.

Where I face something or I talk to someone, or there's a season where it's just so discouraging.

And what do I do?

I rehear, I rehearse, I chew and cherish this word right here.

The Bible says, Michael, be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.

And by the way, none of these are suggestions, these are all command statements, they're imperative.

It means do this and you will.

Oh, I love this.

Watch this.

The Bible, if you want blessing in your life, the Bible says, do this and you will get this.

I like that.

Do this and you will get this, or don't do this and you won't get that.

All right.

So be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.

I wonder what verse you need to go home today and meditate on and reflect on and chew on and cherish.

Because a lot of us we nurse and rehearse, and we can bring it up to God.

And I'll be honest, sometimes God is like, when are you ready to step into what I have for us?

Amen.

God has blessing for us in our lives.

Number two is this talking about meditating on God's word.

Is this we have time for God's word.

We have time.

You say, Pastor Michael, are you crazy?

I have no time.

You know, church, if I'm honest, we all don't have time problems.

We have priority problems.

Can I say it like that?

We don't have time issues, we have priority issues.

And I prom you know the average, I looked it up.

The average time that a person scrolls on social media, you know how many?

Just say, what do you think it is?

How much time does this person every single day a person scroll how how many?

Eight or nine hours?

Oh Lord, you need deliverance.

If that's how many, how what else?

Three.

Someone said three, the four.

The average time someone scrolls is anywhere from it's mostly two hours, but I it could be one to two hours.

Now you're I would say, hey, you know what?

We have time, we're just not using the time the right way.

Amen.

Watch this.

We waste a lot of time doing things that are not good for us.

How about this?

We spend time arguing with people online on the message, on the message chat or the um the uh the uh the feeds on Instagram, and we don't know them.

And what why are we wasting our time on that?

We overthink things.

How about this one?

This is a big one.

We overthink things we cannot control.

Mindless growing.

How about uh uh comparing ourselves to other people?

All right, taking too much time stressing, all right.

Another one, another one was disorganization.

Some of us we're so disorganized, we're having sometimes that's me, you have a hard time finding something, you take so much time to find something, because you just if you were just a little bit more organized.

Or procrastination, all right.

So watch this.

We don't have a time problem, we have a priority problem.

And watch this.

If you really want God's blessing in your life, make time for God's word.

Make time for God's word.

It will touch your life, it will revolutionize your life, and watch this.

The things that are destroying you in your mind, like you are not good enough, maybe like you're not you're gonna pass away early on in your life, you're not gonna amount to anything, or watch this, you're gonna fail in your business, or you know, your family's not gonna succeed, or your marriage is not gonna succeed.

How about this?

All of those lies can be defeated all by meditating and reading God's word.

Somebody say amen.

Because there's a truth in God's scriptures for every lie that the enemy tries to deceive us with.

Point number three.

I love what Psalm chapter one says, and we're almost done.

All right, thank you for hanging in there.

Psalm chapter one goes on to say this but whose delight is in the law of the Lord and meditates on his law day and night.

That person is like a tree planted by the streams of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither.

I heard a story about a farmer who had two trees.

There's a farmer who had two trees growing on his property.

They were planted in the same soil, experienced the same heat, endured the same seasons.

One summer uh it got it just got dry and arid.

Weeks passed, the ground became hard and dry, the first tree began to lose its leaves, its branches became brittle, and eventually it stopped producing fruit.

But the second tree remained green.

The farmer's neighbor asked, Who is it, who who is, or why is that tree still alive and when everything around it is drying up?

The farmer's neighbor asked and explained, Well, you cannot see, what you cannot see is keeping this tree alive.

Its roots have gone grown deep enough to reach an underground stream.

From the surface, both trees look like they were facing the same circumstances, but underneath they had different sources.

Say sources.

The Bible never says that the tree will never face arid, dry, desert-like challenges or seasons.

It says that when it when we do face seasons of of uh dryness, it says that the the people who meditate on God's word will be like a tree that does not wither.

Now I want to share with you, it is possible for you to come out of depression.

It is possible that if you're facing a health crisis, you can come out on top and you're you can have a steady mind and a sound mind.

It is possible that if you have marriage problems and you're going through it, that you can be strong.

Why?

Because your source is God's word.

So I want to invite you in this season over this series that if you if you are going through struggles, this is the source.

God's word will help you be green and healthy and produce fruit.

And I love that the scripture says that in each season, oh, I love this.

This is deep.

In each season, the tree will produce fruit.

Why?

Because they're engaging with the word, and not only are they engaging with the word, but they are meditating.

Say meditating, they are meditating on the word.

There's something that happens when you meditate, even in low tones, and you say, Michael, do not be uh discouraged.

Uh the Bible says, be strong and courageous, do not fear, do not be.

Be discouraged for the Lord your God goes with you wherever you go.

Michael, the Bible says, uh, be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God goes with you wherever you go.

Michael, do not be do not be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.

When you start repeating that over and over, and you're meditating on that in the morning and the evening before you go to bed, you know what happens?

That isn't just go through your mind, that goes straight to your heart, and that changes you.

Someone say, Amen.

That changes you.

I am worthy, I am the apple of God's eye.

The Bible says, I am worthy of his love.

He did die for me.

Michael, the Bible says, be still and know that he is God.

Be still and know that he is God.

Some of us need to memorize scripture more deeply.

It will transform your life.

And watch this.

This season right now is a season for you to let your roots go deep into God's word.

Because when it does, it's going to hold you down and you're going to have a blessed life.

Amen.

Someone say amen.

And by the way, this is not just for when storms happen.

This is for all seasons of our lives.

Not just bad times, not just in rough times, but even in good times.

So that when the bad times come, we're tapped into a source that sustains us spiritually and emotionally.

I want to challenge us this morning to find a time, to make the time.

Because watch this.

When you get into God's word, and by the way, we have amazing groups.

When you get into God's word, not only is it going to bless you, but it's going to bless everyone around you.

It's going to bless everyone around you.

Because they see how you're sustained, they see how you're handling things.

They see how your your relationship with God is going.

And that is going to be an inspiration to everyone around you.

And here's the thing, I love what it says.

It says, in every season, say season, every season, they will produce fruit.

What this means, I believe, is that God wants to produce.

I'm going to have the worship team come on up.

What this means is that there is a fruit in your life to produce in each season of your life.

There is a fruit of peace to be born.

There is a fruit of joy to be born.

There is a fruit of self-control.

There is a fruit of gentleness.

Now the question to God is, Lord, I'm in a season.

I may not know what season it is, but what fruit are you bearing in me in this season?

And Lord, help me to bear the fruit by being connected to your source.

Come on, someone say amen.

God wants you to bear fruit.

And the only way that fruit is born is being sustained by the scriptures.

As I work my clothes, the Bible uh heard a story about Queen Victoria in the 1800s.

As Queen Victoria was crowned in Westminster Abbey, three presents were made to her.

First was the sword of the state, second was the imperial robe.

And lastly was the Bible.

These words accompanying the gift that she received that day.

Our gracious queen, we present you this book, the most valuable thing the world affords.

Here is wisdom.

This is the royal law.

These are the timely oracles of God.

Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this book, that keep and do the things contained in it.

For these are the words of eternal life, able to make you wise and happy in the world, wise unto salvation, and so happy forevermore through faith which is in Christ Jesus, to whom be glory forever.

Amen.

What beautiful words to give a very prominent person.

I love John chapter 6, verse 68.

John 6:68

We don't have this one for the screen.

But Peter says of Jesus, Lord, to whom where we go, you have the words of eternal life.

So if you want blessing in your life and you want peace and you want fruit, the blessing is in the book.

And watch this.

Last but not least, worship team, you can come on up here.

Last but not least is this let's not nurse and rehearse the problems.

Watch this.

This is what this looks like.

Lord, I didn't have good parents.

So this is why this is hard for me in my life.

Lord, I don't have a good job.

So this is why this is hard for me.

Well, Lord, I didn't have a good start in life.

Well, Lord, I went bankrupt.

Well, Lord, this person did this to me.

Well, Lord, this is what the doctor said.

Those are nursing and rehearsing.

But God wants you to chew and cherish this morning.

Come on, someone say amen.

Well, Lord, you know what?

I'm not smart enough.

I didn't go to college.

Well, Lord, no.

Open up the scriptures and let the Lord tell you who you are and what you can do and who you belong to in the name of Jesus.

Someone say amen.

No, we need to not nurse and rehearse.

We need to cherish and chew.

And watch that.

Watch this.

When you get it on your mouth, through your mouth, to your mind, it's gonna change your heart.

You're gonna walk different.

And most importantly, you're gonna feel different and you're gonna think different.

Growing up, I had a lot of uh, I was told who I was not gonna be.

I was told I was gonna be a drug addict.

I was told I wasn't gonna amount to anything, and I will never forget.

My aunt gave me a Bible at the age of 16 years old.

It was a student study Bible.

And every morning I got up, you're not gonna be this, you're gonna be like your father, you're gonna do drugs, you're gonna be addicted to drugs.

I'll never forget that Bible.

I opened the scriptures in John chapter one, and I was stunned about what God had to say about me.

He said that he loves me.

The Bible says that he gave his life for me.

The Bible says that he's given me a free gift that I don't have to perform and be a perfect person, but God saves me even in my unrighteousness, even while I was still a sinner.

The Bible says that he's given me eternal life, gifts for me, and a destiny for me.

And let me tell you, every morning I was called this, every morning I was called that.

All of a sudden, that voice started to take a back seat in my life because you know what voice started to take a front seat?

It was the voice of the Lord through his scriptures.

I started to realize who I am.

I'm good enough, I'm strong enough, and God, I was born for such a time as this.

Thank you, Lord, for touching my life.

Can I have every head bowed and every eye closed for a moment?

I'm gonna pray two prayers real quick.

One is that we don't nurse and rehearse, but chew and cherish.

Well, Lord, we just come before you right now and we bring like a communion.

We come to the table with our frailties, our brokenness, our striving, our burnout, and we come to receive from you your wholeness, your goodness.

In fact, Lord, this morning we trade our sorrows for your joy, we trade our chaos, Lord, for your peace.

We give you, Lord, our confusion, Lord, for your clarity.

We give you our brokenness so that you give us your freedom.

Lord, for many of us, we have many reasons to complain and tell you, God, why woe is us.

People have wronged us, people have hurt us, people have let us go from work, family problems, marriage problems.

But rather than nurse and rehearse, Lord, we open the scriptures this week.

We will make time.

Father, by the way, Lord, we know you are the giver of time.

So we want to give you back time to spend with you so that we can cherish and we can chew your word that we might be blessed and that we might be whole.

I want to pivot for a second.

Maybe you're here in church for the first time, it's been a long time.

Maybe um you never really come to church online in person.

Maybe you've never known Christ.

Well, every service I ask a very important question, and that question is this Do you know the Lord Jesus Christ?

And do you have a personal relationship with God?

God loves you, He has a purpose for you and a calling and a destiny for you.

You're not meant to do life alone, and the reality is there is sin in this life, and whether we like it or not, we commit sin, whether we try to or not.

And the Bible says the only way to heaven is through Jesus.

But there's a sin problem.

So Jesus died on the cross to free us and forgive us of our sin.

The Bible says in John chapter 3, verse 16, that God for so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son to die on a cross, that whoever believe on him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

Friend, you don't have to have, you don't have to wait to have to go to heaven to have true life and peace.

You can have life in Jesus' name right now.

So if that's you right now, you say, Pastor, say no more.

I know I need Christ, I know I need to reprioritize my life.

By the way, life will never make sense until we give it to the one who made us.

You say, Pastor Michael, I want to give my life to Christ.

What do I do next?

Well, the Bible says to put your trust in him by faith.

And we do that by confessing that Jesus Christ is your Lord.

And what we're gonna do is we're not gonna ask you to the front, we're not gonna put a spotlight on you, I'm not gonna put a mic in your face, I'm not gonna ask for any of your information.

We're gonna pray prayer right together where you are right now.

So here we go.

On the count of three, Pastor Michael, I want to get right with Christ.

I want to give my heart to Jesus.

I want my life back.

I want my life to make sense.

I want his freedom.

I want what God has for me.

So here we go.

On the count of three.

One, two, three.

Anyone in the house?

Amen.

I see you.

God bless you, sir.

God bless you, amen.

Anyone else?

So good, so proud of you.

Anyone I see over there.

God bless you.

So amazing.

Love you.

Love you.

God bless you.

Anyone in the house, amen.

I see you over there, you too.

God bless you.

Powerful, amazing.

God bless you.

Amen.

Awesome.

All right, hands down, lift up your heads, open up your eyes.

Come on, give those people an amazing clap.

Come on, give them an amazing clap.

So good.

Awesome, awesome.

Hey, if it would just the just a few of you that I want you to know that it was no coincidence that you gave that you raised your hand for Jesus.

Wow.

God loves you.

He has a purpose and a plan for you.

Would you guys stand up with me?

We're gonna say a prayer together and then we're gonna close out service.

All right?

Would you say this prayer prayer loud?

Alright, say it with me.

Say, dear God, thank you for sending your Son, Jesus Christ, to die for my sins.

I believe I'm a sinner.

I'm in need of a savior.

Lord, come into my heart, make me new.

I want to live for you all the days of my life.

I trust you and help me, Lord, to obey you and to follow what you say.

You, Lord, have the words of life.

I confess with my mouth, I believe with my heart that Jesus Christ is Lord over my life.

Come on, give the Lord a mighty clap.

So good.

Thank you so much for tuning in to today's message.

Our mission as a church is choosing Jesus, chasing freedom, discovering our gifts, and serving Jesus.

I have a question for you.

What is your next step with Christ?

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