7/15/2021 | Trinity UCC Annual Revival | Rev. Dr. Howard John Wesley & Rev. Dr. Marcus D. Cosby

i will bless the lord at all times god's praise shall continually be in my mouth it's revival time here at trinity united church of christ i'm excited about it i don't know about you but we have the dynamic duo the wonder twins better known as howard john wesley and marcus cosby they will be activating their homiletical powers and they will bless us on this day so we've curated a worship experience they've sent in their messages as we prepare to celebrate 60 years of ministry here at trinity united church of christ they are also a part of that history so let's get ready and go into worship right now [Music] thanksgiving in my heart and i will enter his course with praise and i'll be thankful unto him and yes i will bless his name he's worthy of the praise clap your hands i clap your hands come on clap your hands i drop your hands everybody clap your hands i lift them up [Music] [Music] he's worth it [Music] and i will praise him [Music] somebody bless him right here come on give him glory hallelujah everybody ought to praise him come on and praise him [Music] [Music] i just put those [Music] everybody everybody just puts those [Music] now come on and give him glory and praise him have gotten good to you then you are the praise and praise i didn't really really make a wave and you honor praise them come on put your hands together and praise him pray for his mighty accent and this tendency and this brand [Music] has it been good to you have you ever made a way come on and praise the lord for his goodness praise him for his greatness praise him come on praise the lord say praise [Music] tell me who come on praise the lord come that [Music] you [Music] [Music] come on praise him all trinity is that your declaration tonight is that your testimony tonight oh i don't know about you but it's revival time do you want to be revived are you looking from something from the lord tonight oh come on and open up your mouth you ought to give god some praise tonight if your soul is longing if your spirit is yearning for god to show up tonight you ought to come on and bless the lord for i will bless the lord at all times god's praises shall continually be in my mouth my soul shall make her boast in the lord the humble shall hear and be glad all magnified all magnify the lord with me and let us exalt god's name together i don't know about you but i have a holy ghost suspicion that god's getting ready to shake tonight that somebody's getting ready to get a breakthrough that somebody is getting ready oh god to be healed somebody's gonna be delivered to somebody is going to be revived for the word of god says will thou revive us again that our souls may rejoice if you're looking for god to revive you tonight come on in clap clap clap clap come on and wave your hands come on and do a little dance let everything let everything let every man let every woman let every girl let every boy come on let everything that has breath of praise ye the lord oh hallelujah hallelujah oh glory to god hallelujah eternal god in whom our soul takes the light god and affliction we call our comfort by day and i hope by the night god you are still the god who revives you're still the god that brings dead stuff to life you're still the god who moves in the valley and you're still the god who speaks life oh god you're still alpha and omega our beginning and our end and god we acknowledge hallelujah that you're up to something god tonight we come o god thanking you oh god for your spirit thanking you in advance for what you're getting ready to do tonight oh god we are anticipating how you will use the men of god tonight oh god speak through your servants that someone may be blessed holy spirit you're welcome tonight come now permeate this live permeate this service let someone oh god get what they came for we don't want to leave this virtual space the same way we came hear our cries hear our prayers and it's in the matchless liberating powerful majestic name of jesus the christ those who are ready to be revived oh god you ought to lift your mouth and say amen hey family i've got a few quick announcements actually one announcement as you know we are preparing for our outdoor worship experience first sunday in august we will have communion and guess what we will be outside in the parking lot now in order to be a part of this worship service you have to register because we can't fit everybody into the parking lot number one number two we have to follow safety protocols so what we want you to do is make sure you are signed up for our e news letter in an e-newsletter you will receive information about clicking a link that will allow you to register for our outdoor worship experience that is the first thing i want you to be aware of the second is we are coming back to church on the last sunday in august we will have the same protocols you will register you will have a limited number of people who can be in the building and we will follow all the safety protocols you will have to wear a mask coming into the building temperature will be checked you come into the building and there'll be a little survey a health and safety protocol survey you will have to take in order to be a part of in-person worship service so we can keep you safe those are all the announcements for our revival worship experience thank you very much [Applause] [Music] [Music] you are here turning lives around i worship you i worship you you are here [Music] mending broken lies i worship you i worship you you are here [Music] healing every heart i worship you i worship you you are here [Music] rearranging destinies i worship you i worship you we call you we may miracle work promise keep light in the darkness my god that is who you are [Music] miracle work promise keep light in the darkness my god that is who you are you are here moving in this place i worship you lord i worship you [Music] you are here bringing peace to every life i worship you i worship you you are here healing broken lies [Music] you are here we arranging our destinies [Music] we worship you god we worship you we call you we keeper light in the darkness that is who you are [Music] that is who you [Music] your name is jesus you wipe away all the tears [Music] [Applause] [Music] that is [Music] is [Music] miracles miracles miracles [Music] for me for you [Music] you're my light and my darkness that is who you are oh lord my god yes we make miracle work promise keep light in the [Music] miracle work promise keep in the darkness [Music] that he's who you are all right get ready trinity again i don't really need to introduce this brother again we've got two of my friends who are coming here they come every year and bless us none other than pastor howard john wesley he is the pastor of the none other than the alfred street baptist church in alexandria virginia oh by the way he's also from chicago we want to welcome him once again we know he's going to bring an amazing word and when this dynamic duo get together you better look out because the heavens are about to come down let us welcome none other than howard john wesley to trinity united church of christ and hear the word that has been placed on his heart pastor moss and trinity grace and peace be unto you from god who loves us as father and mother and jesus christ who alone is our resurrected our risen our reigning and our returning redeemer it's kind of bittersweet to join in this summer revival i always enjoy being part of this preaching moment in partnership with pastor cosby here at trinity but i'm saddened not to be able to come to chicago as we continue to navigate safely through covet if you're like me we're praying for the lord to get us all in a place where we can get back to some normalcy get back in church and get back to chicago although it breaks from our heart to hear that the herald's chicken on 87th and state has closed a moment of silence pleased as we grieve the loss of the greatest chicken shack on the south side of chicago that being said i'm grateful to be able to share there's a word goddess place to my heart that may cause more wrestling than shouting i'm going to rely on your familiarity with the events that transpire in john chapter 11 around the raising of lazarus from the dead i encourage you to reread that entire chapter as part of your devotional reading but there is a repeated phrase that comes up in john chapter 11 we read it in verse 21 and verse 32. and the repeated phrase simply says this lord if you had been here my brother would not have died those are the words uttered by both martha and mary to jesus lord if you had been here my brother would not have died tonight as we gather in this time of revival i want to talk to you about when you're angry with god when you're angry with god let me give you some cliff no context as a way of reminding you of what's going down in john chapter 11. in the opening verses of john chapter 11 we find out that lazarus is sick a matter of fact this sickness seems to be leading to his death and his demise his family is concerned but they're not worried you know why lazarus has a bff named jesus lazarus best friend is jesus the man from nazareth the miracle worker the blinded eye opener the water walker the one who's healed all manner and kind of disease and because this sick lazarus has a best friend named jesus his family does what any good family does they call on jesus they send word to jesus jesus lazarus the one you love is sick they call on jesus and they sit back and they wait for the miracle to happen because surely this jesus who's healed all manner of disease for others will come and see about lazarus to everyone's shock and surprise jesus does not drop everything he's doing jesus doesn't even speak healing into the atmosphere the bible declares that when this jesus learns that lazarus his best friend is dying he decides to stay where he is two more days and by the time he gets to bethany lazarus has been dead four days in jewish tradition that's critical because their belief was that when someone died the spirit of the dead person would hover around the dead body for three days so by the time jesus gets there four days later everyone has already given up the body has been buried the tomb has been sealed jesus has taken his sweet time to get to bethany and while he does that lazarus dies and when jesus finally shows up in bethany he's met by a mary and martha who run out to him and they've got their finger pointed in his face and martha says unto him lord if you had been here my brother would not have died if you had just come when we called you if you had just answered our prayer if you would have just done what we know you're able to do god if you just would have showed up this never would have happened hear the anger in martha and mary's voice lord if you would have just done what we know you could do we wouldn't have had to go through this how could you let this happen beloved i came by tonight to ask you a question have you ever been in martha and mary's shoes have you ever had a if moment with god if god loved me so much why did god let this happen if god is all-powerful and omnipotent like the preacher said why didn't god stop this thing from happening if god knew this was going to go down why didn't god intervene if prayer really changes everything why come my prayer didn't work have you ever had an angry moment with god has god ever disappointed you after your prayer has god ever allowed you to navigate through a situation and circumstance you just believed god should have kept you from have you ever been angry with god listen listen i know i know this sermon isn't resonating with everyone because somebody you're watching and you've got a phd in god and and a minor in bible and you understand everything about god and nothing god does ever bothers you i'm not preaching to you somebody you're listening and you've got a little john calvin in your theology you believe that everything that happens is preordained by god and so whatever you go through good or bad you just accept it with a coke and a smile i'm not preaching to you somebody today you're listening and you've been raised in a tradition that's taught you you don't question god you don't wonder why god allows certain things that that god would never put more on you than you can bear and so you've never been angry with god i'm not preaching to you god bless y'all but i'm preaching on behalf of myself and some people who know that i've had some moments in my life when i was not well with what god was or was not doing in my world i've had some moments when i've been angry with how god chose to answer my prayer i've had some moments when i was frustrated in my faith angry in my anointing disappointed with his divinity troubled by his theology i've seen god move in ways that did not leave a good taste in my mouth and in my spirit and in my heart have you ever been there have you ever been angry with god have you ever wondered why god let this happen to you have you ever seen god seemingly just sit back and not put his omnipotent hand in the middle of a situation that you thought god should have been in control of have you ever been angry with god and what pushed mary and martha to being angry with god is the death of their brother because the one thing that will make you angry with god is when god allows a loved one to die listen i ain't talking about grandmama passing away in her sleep after her 127th birthday i'm talking about watching a child die of an infancy disease i'm talking about watching a young person be killed in gun violence or by a drunk driver i'm talking about watching cancer take your faithful mother or father and cause them to lose half their bodily weight and die a slow and agonizing death i'm talking about watching someone who's righteous and full of life and faithful die before their retirement i'm talking about watching a caregiver die before the one they're taking care of i'm talking about having to go to a funeral that don't make no sense to you i'm not about being in a place where god allowed someone you love to die and if you've not been there i pray you won't get there soon but there's some of us that have been at that funeral where we were angry with god lord if you had been here this wouldn't have happened if you would have just answered our prayer if you'd have just done what we know you can do god how in the world did you let this happen mary and martha angry and watch what happens when jesus gets to bethany he he deals first of all with an angry martha martha runs out to him and her her finger is pointed at jesus and and she says to jesus how could you let this happen how did you not get here she's so mad she meets jesus on the road to show her anger with jesus and notice jesus doesn't chastise her jesus doesn't say martha calm down he doesn't say you shouldn't be angry because maybe jesus understands that it's inevitable that at some moment you will be angry with god and beloved there's nothing blasphemous about being angry with god being angry with god does not mean you failed in faith being angry with god does not mean you've been kicked out of the disciple group being angry with god does not mean that god is broken up with you that it's okay to be angry with god and somebody god's got you listening to this sermon tonight because that's the word that you needed to hear stop letting people who pretend to be righteous all the time make you feel like something is broken in your faith because you're angry with god and questioning god and disappointed with god there's nothing out of order we're being angry with the lord martha is angry but the bible says this that that martha runs out to show her anger but mary when she realizes jesus is there she stays in the house she doesn't get up and run there's no excitement there's no joy there's no shouting there's no praising mary literally says i ain't messing with jesus right now i ain't feeling him today i don't want to shout now remember who this mary is because in the beginning of john chapter 11 she's identified as the one who poured perfume on jesus feet and wiped his feet with her hair this woman who will worship and adore and praise the lord has come to a point where she says i ain't feeling that right now and notice jesus doesn't chastise her either because you know what every day with god is not always hallelujah and thank you jesus every moment with the lord is not amen and praise and shout and lift up hands there's some moments when i don't want to praise there's some moments when i'm frustrated and trying to work this thing out and hallelujah ain't at the top of my list and thanksgiving is not in my heart right now and shouting is not on my agenda because i'm trying to work this thing out with god beloved i come by to tell you that i just believe god prefers authentic anger over pretended praise let me say that again god prefers authentic anger over pretended praise beloved i believe that every now and then we've got to change that culture in church that makes us feel like something is wrong with him or wrong with her if they're not standing and shouting sometimes i'm in my merry place i don't feel like shouting i i don't want to praise i don't want to give thanks i need god to help me get through this thing that i'm working on and so if you want to shout that's fine but but don't judge me if i sit quiet don't judge me if i'm crying don't judge me if i don't run around the church like you do i may be in my merry moment and the lord says it's all right it's okay to be angry it's okay not to shout all the time because when i'm angry with god i don't feel like praising i need the lord to work this thing out jesus deals with an angry martha and a quiet mary and he says it's okay he understands their anger their anger you all comes from three sources and i want to drop them on you real quick so we can we can get on with pastor cosby preaching listen at the three sources of martha and mary's anger can i give them to you because they may be affecting us tonight one of the reasons mary and martha are angry is because they've reached out to jesus from a privileged position they've reached out to jesus from a position of privilege they send word to jesus and listen to what they say lazarus the one you love is sick lazarus the one you love is sick jesus know who this is that's reaching out to you and we expect you to come because of who we are this is mary martha and lazarus jesus this ain't pookie in them this ain't rodney and ray ray from over on 112th this ain't shaquita from down the block this is mary and martha and lazarus lord do you know who we are to you and because of who we are we expect you to respond in a certain way i'm martha the one that opened up my house cleaned up for you and supported the ministry of the disciples i'm mary the one who opened up my perfume and and wiped your feet with my hair i'm lazarus your best friend the one that you love and because of who we are we expect you to respond a certain way after everything we've done as loyal as we've been as much as we've given as much as we've served it's our expectation that because of who we are you will not let lazarus die beloved that is a privileged place that many of us can easily land in when we're righteous and religious we can reach a place where we believe that because of our righteousness and our religiosity that some of the things we see happen to others should never happen to us that struggle shouldn't happen to me that sickness shouldn't land on my door those problems they went through i should not have to go through i prayed and like mary and martha we can reach a place where we reach out to god from a privileged position with elevated expectation of how the lord ought to respond only to have to deal with disappointment let me run that again we can reach out to god from a privileged position thinking that because of our religion and our righteousness that we have an elevated expectation of how god ought to respond and when god doesn't respond the way we think we deserve we are not wrestling with anger and disappointment god i deserve better than that somebody the lord sent me by tonight to speak this word to you it's going to be hard to share but i want you to hear me righteousness does not grant you immunity from trouble prayer will not keep everything out of your life reading your bible does not mean you won't go through a tragedy coming to church will not keep you from getting cancer no matter how religious you are and how righteous you think you are and how holy you want to be i need you to know that righteousness is not a quid pro quo righteousness is not what i do that then forces god to do something on my behalf holiness is not what i offer to god so that god does what i want god to do prayer does not guarantee that i'm going to get what i want we have a distorted understanding of righteousness can i teach for a moment can i take you into a seminary second let me give you a lesson from seminary when john the writer of this text shares with us the credentials of mary and martha in the opening of chapter 11 verse 2 he says that mary is the one who anoints jesus feet with perfume and then wipes it with her hair when john does that stay with me it is a literary tool called prolepsis i'm going to teach it prolepsis p-r-o l-e-p-s-i-s say it with me prolepsis prolepsis is when a writer takes a future event describes it in the present as if it already happened in the past don't miss this prolepsis is taking something that hasn't happened sharing it right now as if it's already transpired prolepsis is reaching into the future putting it in the present but talking about it in the past okay let me give you an example of an example so in the gospels when jesus chooses his disciples and you see the listing of their names whenever you see the name judas there's always a comma and it says the one who betrayed him so don't miss us in the opening of the gospels we're introduced to judas as the one who betrayed jesus but when judas is chosen he's not yet betrayed jesus that happens in the future so the gospel writers have reached into what they know happens in the future they put it in the present and they talk about it as if it's already happened as if judas has already betrayed jesus when he hasn't yet okay if i haven't lost you let me show you prolepsis in john 11 mary is described as the one who spilled out the oil and wiped jesus feet with her hair in chapter 11. the problem is that that doesn't happen to chapter 12. go ahead i'll give you a minute open up your bible go to chapter 12 because in the opening of chapter 12 is when that event happens so it happens in chapter 12 but john writes about it in chapter 11 as if it already had happened in the past mary's act of righteousness comes after jesus has resurrected lazarus from the dead she does her act of righteousness in response to what the lord has done not as a way of getting the lord to raise lazarus from the dead don't you miss this her righteousness is not a tool to make god act her righteousness is in response to what the lord has already done righteousness and holiness is not an investment in the future work of god it's a response to what the lord has already done the reason i'm righteous is not because i'm trying to get god to do something you ought to be righteous because god has already done enough to earn your holiness unto him that i give to god not to get god to do but to thank god for what the lord has already done why do you read your bible and thanksgiving for what god has already done why do you try to live right in thanksgiving for what god has already done why do you come to church because he's already done enough for me to render my worship unto him when i think of what the lord has already done what shall i render to the lord for all of his benefits unto me righteousness is not trying to get god to do righteousness is thanking god for what god has already done now i want to push this a little bit they call on jesus jesus doesn't come and lazarus dies so i want to ask you a disturbing question and before you shout out the answer think for just a moment what is the real purpose of prayer why do we pray if you believe that everything is ordained by god and will happen according to his will what is the purpose of your prayer if it's going to happen anyway if i have a loved one dying is god sitting in heaven waiting for me to pray to decide whether they live or die what is the purpose of our prayer come here come here before you label me a heretic and i get uninvited from trinity let me say this to you i believe prayer changes everything and i've been in some places where prayer didn't change anything i believe that we serve a god who hears and answers our prayer and i've been in a place where i prayed and what i prayed not to happen is exactly what happened i believe prayer affects our circumstances and i've also been in a place where i prayed and it seemed like nothing changed beloved there's a whole lot about god i don't understand but let me tell you what i do believe that prayer is not a tool that manipulates and maneuvers god to do what we want prayer does not always get us what we want my dad used to put it like this the purpose of prayer is not for god to will what you want but to make you learn to want what god wills that if prayer doesn't change the circumstance prayer is changing me don't miss this that when i pray and what i pray not to happen still happens the purpose of the prayer was not to change what was happening the purpose of the prayer was to change me that when i pray prayer is not changing what god does prayer allows me to see fuller what god is doing don't don't miss this my prayer may not change what god is doing but my prayer may help me to see what god is doing okay i need to explain this a different way i love taking my sons to the movies and i'm glad that movie theaters are opening back up that's one of my greatest joys one thing however i don't like typically are 3d movies for two reasons i don't like wearing the glasses and most 3d movies really aren't that good all they are just throwing images at you to try to scare you and that that doesn't do anything for me i don't like 3d movies but there's one exception of a 3d movie i love it came out in 2009 it's called avatar avatar was made for 3d if you didn't see avatar in 3d you didn't see it well i remember i took my sons to see avatar and they gave us the glasses and we sat down getting ready for the movie to come on and when avatar began i looked over and my oldest son did not have his glasses on he decided he wanted to watch the movie without his glasses midway through it i said list son you got to put your glasses on he said why i said because if you don't put these glasses on there's some beauty of the movie you won't see if you don't put on your glasses there's some effects you won't feel if you don't put on your glasses there's something glorious about this that you won't observe that you need your glasses to see how beautiful it is so come on back to john 11. when lazarus dies jesus says listen this has happened for you to see the glory of god that sometimes the thing that's going down is meant to show you the glory of god but if you don't have your prayer lens on if you are not on your knees if you are not calling on the lord there's some glory you won't see there's some beauty you won't experience there's some power you won't feel i know it hurts i know it's not happening the way you want but when you stay on your knees you can see the glory in a way you would miss without your prayer this is happening for the glory of god to be revealed that's why it's going down this way that's what you're missing being angry that's why you need to be in prayer so prayer will open your eyes to the glory of god in the midst of this situation they're angry because they're praying from a privileged position can i give you another reason i believe they're angry and i know this one affects us they're angry because they're operating from a context of comparison they're comparing their situation to someone else's watch this watch this they send word to jesus and they don't say lazarus is dying they say lazarus the one you love now hold on we haven't met any other lazarus in the bible jesus knows what lazarus is why do they put the comma the one you love they want to put lazarus in comparison to the other people jesus has dealt with jesus this is lazarus you love him jairus was a stranger and you healed his daughter the syrophoenician woman at the well was an outsider and you blessed her you didn't even know nobody at the wedding in cana and you gave them some good liquor god that that you did all of that for some strangers now what are you going to do for the one you love they compare themselves with the strangers god has blessed and they expect that god will do more beloved if i can be honest with you sometimes our anger your anger my anger with god really wasn't about what god didn't do for me my anger came when i compared myself to what i saw god do for somebody else can we be honest god that ain't fair that's not fair look at how righteous i've tried to be look at how many times i came to church look at all the mess in the choir i dealt with lord i stop slapping folk on general christian principle and i don't even cuss half as much as i used to cuss i'm trying to do right and look what you're doing for somebody's have you ever been there where you know you're trying to do right by god you got a neighbor that lives down the street you got a neighbor never goes to church doesn't even own the bible can't even spell jesus you got a neighbor that doesn't even love the lord and every time you look up they got a new car in the driveway got another check in the mail got a new blue in the bed and here you are struggling trying to live right and it seems like god is doing more for them than god is doing for you and that will make you angry matter of fact that's what the jews say when jesus shows up keep reading in chapter 11 when he shows up verse 37 they look at him and say couldn't this man who did all of that for them have done more for lazarus the jews make mary and martha compare what jesus did for others with what jesus did for them but i can't tell you that one of the worst mistakes you can ever make in life is to compare your life with a snapshot of someone else's let me say that again one of the worst things you can do is compare your life with the snapshot of someone else's that's why paul tells us in second corinthians chapter 10 and verse 12 it is not wise to compare yourself with others you can't take the totality of your whole life and compare it to a snapshot of someone else's blood i don't know who this is for but the holy spirit told me to drop on someone you need to get off instagram every now and then you need to stop looking at filtered angled snapshots of other people's lives and comparing it to your life oh her waist ain't that small he doesn't drive that car that ain't her real hair they ain't staying at that hotel stop comparing your life to a filtered snapshot of someone else's and learn to be grateful for what god is gonna do for you so jesus shows up and he realizes that y'all are comparing these other folk with what's going down now so he says don't worry i'm still able don't worry about what i did for jairus don't compare yourself to the syrophoenician woman stay right here and watch what god can do for you stop comparing your life to someone else's they're angry because they're comparing they're angry because they have a privileged position but can i give you the last reason they're angry they're angry because they're struggling with the sovereignty of god they send word to jesus lazarus is dying and the bible says jesus decides to stay for two more days no explanation no reasoning he just decides i'm not going right now it makes no sense jesus why would you do that and even more why would you do it and not explain it so i need you to know scholars in bible have spent years coming up with hypothesis as to why jesus stayed for two days everybody has a theory everybody has an opinion but my favorite author gerald sloyan says this that no matter what answer others came up with it would never make sense to mary and martha that what the lord does others may have cliche answers but those cliches never made sense to mary and martha have you ever been in a place where you struggle with why god did something and all you got from religious folk were cliche answers he'll never put more on you than you can bear trust god god knows what god is doing you must have done something but beloved i come by to tell you that you will experience a god whose sovereignty and sometimes leaves you with questions that have no answer and this is what we don't preach a lot in church because in church we want to peddle that we have answers for god and we understand things about god and here's why god does what why god does but i come by to tell you that if god is sovereign that means that at some moment god will be more of a mystery than a certainty there will be moments in your life where you don't understand why god let it happen there are going to be some struggles and situations where there is no answer in scripture or from the pulpit there are going to be some things you go through that never makes sense to you and you don't understand how and why god will let it go down like that have you ever been in a place where god left you scratching your head where god did not give you an answer where god did not perform the way you thought god could perform that the what god did did not resonate with what the preacher was saying in the pulpit there are moments when god is more of a mystery than a certainty his ways are not our ways and you're gonna have to learn to live with a god you don't always understand a god who operates outside of your knowledge and your thinking and your understanding and your mind god is bigger than what you can understand god moves in mysterious ways so when jesus shows up he knows mary and martha are angry because they don't understand why he's done what he's done and here's what i love about my jesus he doesn't even tell him why look at the audacity here you come four days late lazarus already dead and you don't even tell us why sometimes we don't get the benefit of why jesus shows up he doesn't answer why because for jesus what's most important is not being understood what's most important is being believed ah i feel like shouting right there marcus d cosby what jesus cares about is not what you understand what jesus cares about is what do you believe when you don't understand do you still believe so he looks at mary and martha do you believe i can do this i know you don't understand why i know it makes no sense to you but what do you believe do you believe i'm still able do you believe i still love you do you believe i can make a way do you believe i can open the door do you believe i'm not done with you yet do you believe i've got better in store do you believe that it's not ended yet what do you believe i gotta go trinity okay anybody tell you don't let what you cannot understand cause you to doubt what you do believe oh i feel my shout right there don't let what your mind can't understand cause you to doubt what your heart believes i've often said at alfred street that every problem of life no matter what it is boils down to one question no matter how bad your circumstance is there's one question you've got to answer no matter how long it's been happening there's one question you have to answer no matter how difficult it may be one question do you trust god when the bottom of your life drops out do you trust god when the doctor says stage four do you trust god when the one that said i do says i don't do you trust god when you don't know how the next bill is going to be paid do you trust god and i'm so glad that this upset martha who runs to jesus in her anger when jesus asked her martha what do you believe this is what she says she says but even now i know you're able goodbye trinity may the lord bless you real good but the lord says i'm looking for some marthas in life who can declare i may not understand god but even now i know you're able i may not like what went down but even now i know you care i may not understand why it all went down the way it went down but i know that you love me is there anybody watching who still believes that god is able when you're angry with god remember that the power of your prayer may not be to change what's happening but to get you to see the glory of god when you're angry with god stop comparing your life to someone else's life and when you're angry with god know that you may not always understand why but don't let that cause you to doubt what you believe and what you know about god i know god is able i know god cares and i know god will make a way when i'm angry with god given a shall be given unto you good measure pressed down and running over shall the lord give into your lap we the village of trinity are committed to lifting up christ engaging our community and celebrating our culture today your gifts of tides and offering will allow the work of trinity to continue as we seek to provide ministry and resources to those who are incarcerated ill hungry hurting and whose backs are against the walls there are multiple ways for you to support the ministry of trinity with your tithes and offerings you may give to our secure give application you may also text a gift by dialing 855 7 you can also use our cash app dollar sign trinity ucc or use our website with a few easy clicks you will be well on your way to support this ministry also our first fruits direct draft program allows you to make your church a priority and if you prefer to mail your gift simply send your tithe or donation to 400 west 95th street thank you for supporting trinity united church of christ the greatest church this side of the jordan all right family i really don't need to give a major introduction to this preacher every year he comes through and tears up the church along with his brother i want to welcome to the pulpit once again none other than reverend dr marcus hot sauce cosby to trinity united church of christ he is the pastor of the wheeler avenue baptist church in houston texas one of the fastest growing churches in all of houston let us welcome our brother as he comes to bring a word that i know will bless your spirit what a joy it is for me to greet you trinity united church of christ as we share together this annual summertime revival i'm excited to be a part of this experience again this year i'm so grateful to you dr moss for the wonderful privilege that you've afforded me to be a part of the experience of revival this year to god be the glory for the great things god continues to do in each one of our lives i'm so grateful to you sir for friendship that we share shared across these years and i'm certainly delighted that even though we have to have revival virtually i'm grateful that i am continually a part of this experience staying connected to the trinity church in chicago even all the way from the wheeler avenue church in houston texas god bless you dr otis b moss the third and i'm so grateful that you've given me the privilege again this year to share this revival with my preaching partner my beloved brother of many many years reverend dr howard john wesley he is a preacher of no average ability but i'm certainly grateful that he and i are able to be a part of revival with you again this year and i pray god's choice as blessings upon you as you continue to press your way through this pandemic time and i pray that our sharing with you in this experience will in some way assist in the process of perseverance uh during this pandemic season it's been a rough time for most of us if not all of us we've had to deal with sickness even death but even more we've had to deal with isolation and that isolation that that apart-ness just totally disrupts our communal reality so i miss being with you i know you miss being with one another but i thank god that we're staying safe during this season and we look forward to another opportunity where we all can get together and share as the body of christ there's a word from the lord tonight and i hope you have your bible if not you don't even need it because i know you know this passage of scripture already just one little verse that is found at the conclusion of the 40th chapter of the book of isaiah isaiah chapter 40 and i just want to read verse 31. isaiah chapter 40 and i want to read verse 31 very familiar passage of scripture to most bible readers if you don't know isaiah chapter 40 you probably just got into the church yesterday and that's okay you'll know isaiah chapter 40 verse 31 before this night is over let's look at the word of god and i want to read it from the king james version it's the most familiar translation to most of us i want to read this verse of scripture from isaiah chapter 40 and verse 31 and it reads like this but they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as eagles they shall run and not be weary and they shall walk and not faint as enough amen praise god for his holy word but they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as eagles they shall run and not be weary and they shall walk and not faint well the time that is out to share together on this night i want to talk from the subject's strength to keep going strength to keep going weary weak worn these are words that could aptly describe the people to whom isaiah speaks in this 40th chapter of this book weary weak warn these are they who are exhausted exasperated expended of all the energy necessary to persevere here they are the chosen ones of god the children of israel those whom are called the apple of god's eye the ones that god has laid his hands upon and has chosen them to represent him in the world when we come in contact with them they are weary weak worn they are exhausted exasperated expended of all necessary energy to keep on persevering moving forward i don't know if you've ever been in that situation in life i don't know if that reality has ever befallen you but there's someone who is listening to my voice who can testify that's been my reality a time or two or three or even more i've been weary weak and won't worn out by my life's circumstance exasperated exhausted expended of all energy drained depleted feeling as if i could no longer move forward couldn't go on could not continue along the journey that was charted out for me all of us if we'll be honest about it have had some moment like that some experience like that and if not before the pandemic surely by now some of us can testify as a consequence of these many months being separated being quarantined being isolated from friends and family from loved ones after not being at the lord's house for all of these many months i'm i'm i'm over it i'm ready to get back to some semblance of normalcy or whatever will be my new norm i'm ready to experience life again with vitality and vigor and vim i want to know the abundant life that has come to me because of my relationship with jesus christ but right now i'm weary weak worn exasperated expended of all of my energy drained depleted exhausted with this reality some of us who will be honest with others of us can testify this season has been doing the most this is more than i ever anticipated or expected most pastors will tell you we thought it was just going to be a few weeks maybe a month or two no one expected 15 16 into 17 months of not being one with another that's not the way god intended it we're called to be community we're called to be brothers and sisters in christ we are called to be together in this relationship and now as a consequence of this pandemic we have been stripped ripped robbed of that communal reality we've been pulled away from everything near and dear to us especially the lord's house and that's precisely what's going on with the children of israel to whom isaiah is called to speak they will be now removed from everything near and dear to them they are going to be detached disconnected from everything that they love so much it is as a consequence of the cruel hand of nebuchadnezzar and the babylonians that will take them into captivity and not just for a few weeks or months but for 70 years they will be in captivity they will be in bondage they will be removed from everything near and dear to them especially the house of the lord that place where they can experience the warmth warmth and fellowship with god and with one another that place where they expected to receive from god what only god could provide they wanted to be at that place where they could bask in the presence of the lord they could enter into the lord's gates with thanksgiving into his courts with praise they could be thankful unto him and bless his name but no longer shall be that shall that be their reality because of captivity yeah because of the babylonians who have their cruel foot on the necks of god's people they have been carried away displaced from everything near and dear to them and that's the condition into which isaiah is called to speak you must now feel the challenges with which these people are plagued you must feel the burden that is on their shoulders the weight that is pressing so heavily upon them they are no longer able to be who they've always been they cannot do what they've always done this is a rough reality for them they are in an isolated space they are away from their homeland everything near and dear to them disconnected detached displaced and into that situation in life into that circumstance that sits in laban as they call it into that situation in life god raises up a prophet oh my brothers and sisters i'm so grateful that god knows how to speak to his people just when we need it most just the way we need it to become to come to us and that's what the lord does through the prophet isaiah he raises up isaiah to speak to god's people who are now going to enter into the roughest of realities the toughest of circumstances isaiah speaks to them listen before they go into the isolation before they go into the captivity unlike jeremiah who speaks to the same people but he speaks to them while they're in it it is while they're in captivity that god raises up jeremiah and he says tell my people listen here i know the plans i have for you and those plans are to prosper you not to harm you to give you hope and a future he says that to them while they're in it but even before they get into it god raises up isaiah to speak to his people as if they've already gone through it and they're on the other side of it oh i love it god says to them listen i'm going to speak to you in such a way so that you will know that even before you have to deal with the rough reality i have a word for you to let you know that this too shall pass oh brothers and sisters i've come to encourage you in your several spaces right now that no matter what you're dealing with no matter what you're going through if it is a pandemic problem or something beyond the pandemic reality the good news is that god has chosen me on this night to speak into your life from the words of isaiah to let you know that no matter how weary weak and worn you may be no matter how exhausted exasperated or expended of all energy you may be no matter how depleted and drained you may feel no matter whether you're over it or not god has a word for you to give you strength to keep on going that's my assignment on this revival night to give you a word to encourage you to energize you to empower you to keep you moving forward it makes no sense to come this far with god and then throw in the towel it makes no sense to love god the way you do but act as if god is not still in love with you oh no my brother and sister i came to encourage you tonight to keep on moving forward that god the loving god that we serve god the faithful god whom we revere god the one who is still in complete control knows how to give you strength to keep on moving to keep on going to keep on pressing to keep moving forward let's look at isaiah's missive if you please because it seems to me that the entirety of chapter 40 in isaiah is calling us to be encouraged calling us to be energized causing us never to lose hope or throw in the towel listen to the way isaiah begins to speak as god gives him the words god says listen man my people are in a rough spot they're going to be going through the roughest of realities they've never seen it on this order before so this is what i want you to do i want you to give to them a word of guaranteed comfort i want you to give to them a word of guaranteed comfort it's right there starting at chapter 40 verse one comfort ye comfort ye my people says the lord i want you to speak comfortably to my people let them know that even before they go through it that their warfare is accomplished let them know that this is going to work out for their good they don't see it now they can't feel it now they're not experiencing it now but i want you to talk them down off the ledge i want you to make sure that they make that they put away that white flag of surrender make sure that you speak to them in a way that they know they need not throw in the towel speak comfortably to my people i'm grateful on this night that the god we serve loves us so much that when he knows we're stressed out beyond belief when he knows that we've been stretched beyond the point of return when he knows we need a word to encourage us he knows how to speak into our ears just what we need just when we need it most speak comfortably to my people this is what they need to know every valley shall be exalted every hill and mountain shall be made low the rough places are going to be made plain the crooked places shall be made straight and the glory of the lord shall be revealed rewind press play you just missed an opportunity to look a man even if you didn't say it he says every valley shall be exalted every hill and mountain shall be made low the rough places are going to be made plain the crooked places are going to be made straight and the glory of the lord shall be revealed he says it's rough right now you don't like what you're going through right now it's a difficult scene and situation the saga you're in right now is not what you signed up for you did not anticipate this when you said i'll serve the lord until i die no you didn't see this coming however god says i'm going to reverse all that has gone wrong i'm going to make right all of those things that have been wrong in your life and every valley is going to be exalted i'm going to lift up the low places and every mountain shall be made low i'm going to bring down the high places the rough places will be made smooth and the crooked places will be made straight god says everything that's been out of order i'm going to put it back in order is there anybody who is grateful that god knows how to bring order to the chaos of your life has anyone ever experienced god shifting things and working things out and making sure that trouble did not last always in your situation somebody tonight can testify i'm so glad i serve a god who knows how to make right that which has been wrong who knows how to bring order to that which has been disorderly or out of order that this god of mine knows how to take that which is unjust and bring justice to it he knows how to take that which is unrighteous and make righteousness run down like waters and like a mighty stream i'm grateful on this night that we serve a god who knows how to flip the script and bring peace and then your bible says when god does this the glory of the lord shall be revealed and everybody's gonna see it okay i'm sorry that's not what king james version says he says all flesh shall see it together god says when i fix this for you i'm going to fix this so tough that everybody is going to be able to view it i'm going to make sure that nobody misses how i make a way in the wilderness nobody's gonna miss how i bring order into your disorder how i bring peace in the midst of the tumult of your life somebody tonight ought be grateful that if god makes the promise you can trust god to keep the promise the bible says that god is not a man that he should lie nor the son of man that he should repent if he said it he will bring it to pass and everybody is going to see the glory of the lord all flesh shall see it together i don't know about you but in times like these i need to have the glory of the lord revealed in my life in times like these where this delta variant is wreaking even more havoc than had other variants reek i need the glory of the lord to be revealed in times like these were right here in my state of texas and other states across this country voter suppression is trying to pull down all the work that was wrought especially in my county called harris county in the last election cycle when you saw more black and brown people making their way to the voters boxes than ever before an all-time record and now there are republicans sitting in austin texas who are doing the best that they can to remove all the rights of those people who tried to vote because they understood it was their right to do so and i'm so grateful that i'm serving a god tonight who still knows how to right the wrongs that others would try to enact upon us god i don't know how you're gonna do it i don't know when you're gonna do it i don't know through which means you're going to do it but i trust your word i'm comforted by your word that the glory of the lord shall be revealed if there's anybody who still believes that god knows how to reveal his glory in the midst of the gloom of your circumstance will you please give god glory even while you're in your home while you're in that space that you occupy just tell the lord thank you for a word of guaranteed comfort yeah he comforts them he says don't worry about it i got you as a matter of fact i'm gonna flee feed my flock like a shepherd and i'm gonna carry the young ones in my bosom god says i'm going to comfort you i'm a shepherd for you when you get down to verses 10 11 god shows himself to be both the strong god and the shepherding god i love it god shows differing aspects of god's self he says i am not just your strong god i can make sure that i work some things out fix some things flip some scripts but i'm also the shepherding god i'm the one who can hold you lovingly to me and make sure i rock you to sleep at night and make sure that when you wake up in the morning you wake up refreshed with the joy of the lord on your lips is there anybody who's experienced god in god's strongness in his strength in his might when he had to move some stuff when he had to move some furniture to make sure your his child was taken care of when he had to move some people out of the way to make sure that all would be well when he had to make sure that he showed himself to be a healer a battle fighter when he showed himself to be the one for whom nothing was impossible but then there were those times when god spoke sweet nothings in your ear and showed himself to be a shepherd in your situations of life i'm so glad i serve a god who becomes for me everything that i need him to be just when i need it most and the bible says that this shepherd is going to feed his flock and carry his young lambs in his bosom and tonight my brothers and sisters whomever you need god to be whatever you need god to be in your situation of life this preacher is in houston talking to you in chicago to let you know that this god of hours brings comfort into your uncomfortable circumstances he brings comfort into the discomfort of your life he brings comfort to let you know that he is still in complete control and everything is going to work for your good it doesn't look good right now circumstances are unfavorable right now situations do not seemingly go your way at times when you felt for sure with all of your preparation and training with all of your education and acumen you thought you knew how to make the situation work the way it needed to work and it all fell apart but we serve a god who says don't get stressed out don't you dare jump out the window don't you dare act as if i don't have you in the hollow of my hand hear me when the bible says all things work together for the good of them that love god and other called according to his purpose and i just want to know i need to pull the virtual house is there anybody at the trinity united church of christ who can testify i sure do love the lord and if you love the lord the lord is working all things together for your good comfort my people yes it's a word of guaranteed comfort but keep on reading through isaiah's missing because if you keep on reading this 40th chapter you'll find out that not only do we receive a word of guaranteed comfort but secondarily child of god we receive a word about our great creator yeah i just told you he's the strong god and he's the shepherding god he's the strong shepherd that we need but when the when you start reading down between verses 12 and 27 the longest part of the passage the longest section in the pericope you will find out that isaiah just decides he needs to talk on god's behalf to let everybody know there is nothing too hard for our god did you hear me child of god he says don't you trip don't you flip out i know you're sick and tired of being sick and tired however i need to give you a word not just about comfort but i need to give you a word about our great creator do you know who your god is have you have you have you yet forgotten who your god is and what your god is able to do i need to remind you and for these next several verses beginning at verse 12 all the way to verse 27 isaiah takes great pain great great regard to ensure that everybody knows who this god is now he does it in a unique way it doesn't need dr moss he begins to ask some rhetorical questions they all know the answer to the question because all the answers are absolutely obvious but these rhetorical questions are necessary to remind them of just how great their god is it is theocentric in nature these questions are god-centered and i submit on this evening that all of us need to get back to a theocentric perspective i submit that too much of our preaching and singing in church has gone far beyond theocentric or crystal centric in nature we don't like talking about god as much as we once did we don't talk about jesus as much as we once did we are now in an egocentric kind of season i don't know if this pandemic has washed some of it out of us but if i'm not mistaken before we got into this season we were doing a whole lot about my deliverance and my breakthrough and everything was about me myself and i and i'm so grateful that when isaiah asks these questions he goes back to a theocentric perspective listen to what he asks in verse 12 who measured out the waters in the hollow of his hand who marked off the heavens with the breath of his hand who gathered up the dust of the earth who knows the weight of the mountain and healed who can understand the mind of god who can instruct him i love the way he begins to ask these questions because these folk had the propensity to be tripping because they didn't like the circumstance of life in which they found themselves they were flipping out because circumstances were not going their way but oh isaiah says whom did god consult to help him and who taught him the right way he's literally saying god has not ever needed the assistance of any other human being of any other deity god is god and he's in a class all by himself there is none who can compare to him none who is stronger none who is more fierce than our god he is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think and so round verse 18 he says to whom will you compare him to what image will you liken him i love the way isaiah asks these questions because now they have to lean in they have to straighten up and they have to testify that there is nobody like our god when he gets down to verse 21 he says don't you know haven't you heard haven't you been instructed he sits enthroned above the circle of the earth heaven is his throne that's the way old saints said it heaven is his throne and earth is his footstool he still sits high and he looks down low i'm so grateful that i serve a god who is in a class all by himself is there anybody who still likes to hear about the greatness of our god anybody who still likes to be informed about the goodness of our god the bible says god is our refuge and strength and he's a very present help in the time of trouble the bible says the lord is my light and my salvation whom shall i feel the lord is the strength of my life of whom shall i be afraid the bible says the lord is my shepherd and i shall not be in want and so oh isaiah gets down to verse 23 and when he does he says political leaders better watch out you better tell my legislators in austin texas you better be careful of those who enact laws in the land that do not look out for the least the last the left out and the looked over you got to be real careful that you don't look look well for those who are disenfranchised dispossessed and simply dissed in this life because verse 23 he says he brings down princes and reduces rulers to nothing i like that brothers and sisters as if you and if you've been watching the political landscape you know this god we serve is well able to do that i'm so grateful that i learned over these last several months that trouble doesn't last always and trump don't last always that god is still about the business of working things out for the good of his people oh yes you got to be careful how you treat people you got to be careful how you trump over trump will trample over people thinking that you can get the better of them because you have more power than they the bible says he brings down princes and reduces rulers to nothing and so by the time you get down to verse 25 and 26 god said isaiah thank you for speaking for me but i know how to speak for myself and so god says in verses 25 and 26 to whom will you compare me and who is my equal lift up your eyes to the heavens who created all these you need to understand that i am still the maker and the creator of the entirety of the universe and if you know all of this verse 27 stop complaining stop murder murmuring murder muttering and making all these kinds of excuses as to how you don't know how things are going to work out if god before you who can be against you and so he says if you know all this just stop complaining there is no need to complain because god is still god god is still the great god of the universe there is still nothing too hard for our great god i don't know if you're old school or new school but if you're old school you might like a song that goes a little something like this oh lord my god when i in awesome wonder consider all the worlds thy hands have made i see the stars i hear the rolling thunder thy power throughout the universe displayed then sings my soul my savior god to thee how great thou art how great thou art if your little newer school you came in a little while ago you know it goes something like this how great is our god sing with me how great is our god oh we'll see how great how great is our god i need you to know we serve a great god name above all names you are worthy of all praise and my heart will sing how great is our god now will you give your great god great praise right there in your house right there on your job right there in that hospital give him the praise that he deserves that's what that's what isaiah wants us to know he wants us to know we serve a great god and every now and then we ought to pull aside and begin to reflect on the greatness of our god i tried to give you a word of guaranteed comfort i tried to give you a word about our great creator but let me close a little message when i give you a word of genuine contradistinction yeah a word of genuine contra distinction because three dollar word meaning he's gonna juxtapose he's gonna compare and contrast two differing realities he's he's going to make sure you understand by the time he's done with this lesson that you know there's nobody like our god and you can have strength to keep on going keep on moving keep on pressing keep persevering it's a word of genuine contradistinction by the time we get to verses 28 to 31 these are the verses that make us rejoice in who our god is he uses those words again i'm going to go old-school king james i grew up there on the south side of chicago and when i grew up i didn't grow up reading the new international version i didn't grow up reading the new revised standard version you got to forgive me every now and then i got to go back to 8301 south damon avenue chicago illinois 60620 at the emanuel baptist church whatever dr l k curry was my pastor because when we read isaiah chapter 40 beginning at verse 28 it goes like this from the king james version hast thou not known he hast thou not heard that the everlasting god the lord the creator of the ends of the earth fainteth not neither is he weary there is no searching of his understanding he giveth power to the faint and to them that have no might he increases strength even the youth shall faint and be weary and the young people shall utterly fall but they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up on wings as eagles they shall run and not be weary and they shall walk and not faint let me give it to you again it's a word of genuine contradistinction hast thou not heard hast thou not known didn't you know didn't you hear that the lord the everlasting god the lord the creator of the ends of the earth fainteth not neither is he weary i know you may get weary weak and warn but the lord our god fainteth not neither is he weary there is no searching of his understanding he doesn't get confused or confused no he is always in complete lucidity he understands everything that is going down there is no searching of his understanding as a matter of fact this is what your god does he gives power to the faint and to those who have no might he increases their strength i know you're exhausted and exasperated i know you're expended of all of your energy depleted and drained however there's a god who gives power to the faint glory to his name and to those who have no might he increases their strength listen even the youths shall faint and be weary the young men and women shall utterly fall but they that wait yes lord upon the lord shall renew their strength they'll mount up with wings as eagles run and not be weary walk and not faint did you catch it did you hear it i tried to juxtapose two realities the reality of those of us who get weary weak and worn and the god of ours who never gets faint never gets weak never wears out this is the kind of god we serve that's why we come to revival even in a virtual space because we need to know that just because you flip it out does not mean that god is just because you want to throw in the towel does not mean that god is through blessing you is there anybody who is grateful on this evening that the god we serve is still in complete control and he has strength to do what nobody else can do as a matter of fact there's so much no searching of his understanding he gives power to the faint yes lord has anybody listened to me ever received that kind of power that kind of energy that infused you you thought you were going down for the count and just when you thought all hope was lost somewhere along the way god kind of energized you re-energized you and reset you and let you know that you're still in his will and that you still have some more fight left in you yes that's what i want to tell somebody tonight you still have some more fight left in you i know it's been worrying i know it's been worrisome but i came to remind you you still got some fight left in you you still have something to do with this in this thing called life and he says that he gives power to the faint to them who have no might he increases strength he says it doesn't even matter which season of life you find yourself in this is not just a message for the elders of the community this is not just a message for the middle agers who are kind of getting tired of working from home this is not just for these parents who are struggling with the children in the house all the time no he says listen even the youths shall faint and be weary and the young men and women the young folk will utterly fall he says it doesn't matter your stage of life even the young folk around have gotten tired of this pandemic even those who are the young among us have gotten weary with some of the circumstances of their lives even the young people in chicago have grown weary of the gun violence and all of the wonder the horrific workings of those who do not count human life as worthy of being lived and sometimes it can wear young folk out it can wear old folk out it can wear the middle aged poke out but don't stop there because it's not just about you and me my brothers and sisters because last time i checked by the time you get to verse 31 you can begin to put your blessed hands together and clap yourself happy by the time you get to verse 31 you can start putting some dance in your feet you can start running around your living room because the bible says that they that way tense lord upon the lord yes shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as eagles they shall run and not get weary and they shall walk and not faint did you catch the promise of the word of god he says i know you're wiped out right now i know you don't feel like going another father but don't you get discouraged don't you get distressed don't you get disengaged because we serve a god who's still in complete control and if you wait on that god here's the real meaning of the word if you trust in that god if you depend on that god if you have faith in that god he knows how to build you back up he knows how to renew your strength he knows how to give you another opportunity to showcase his splendor to showcase his wonder to showcase his might and i feel like talking to somebody tonight who understands that there have been days where i thought i couldn't go on but then the lord god showed up in the midst of my situation and let me know that everything was gonna be all right so i came to encourage the trinity community i came to encourage all our sisters and brothers who are watching don't you dare give up now don't you dare throw in the town now keep on hoping in god keep on trusting in god keep on believing in god keep on waiting on god because the god we serve will show up and prove that there is nothing that he cannot do as a matter of fact since i've been preaching the spirit of the lord told me somebody has been encouraged never to throw in the tower you've been encouraged not to give up on that marriage you've been encouraged not to give up on those children but they that way upon the lord it is not a a a a fault it is not a whim it is not a passing position but they shall renew their strength it's a promise from god they shall mount up on wings as he goes they shall not run and not get weary they shall walk and not faint i like you child of god i see that smile on your face now i see you moving from side to side because the bible says that the promises of god are yea and amen if god said it god will bring it to pass if god spoke it he will do just what he said so be not weary in well doing the bible says in due season you shall reap if you faint not the bible says weeping may endure for a night but hang on in there keep on going cause joy is coming in the morning can i have fine witnesses somewhere in the virtual space who read the word of god and you know that the bible says that those who weep in tears shall reap enjoy those who sow in tears shall reap enjoy so be not weary in your well-doing everything's going to work out all right i got to close the message i've been before you too long but be not dismayed whatever be tired god will take care of you beneath his wings of love abide god will take care of you won't he do it i asked you won't he do it i said are you doing somebody shouting [Music] oh my my my all i came to tell you child is keep on going keep on moving keep on pressing get your strength back get your win back get your fight back look toward heaven and say put me in coach i feel like it now i feel better now i'm gonna keep going and the god we serve will give us power [Music] [Music] and it does not matter which season of life you're in if you're if you're one of those soaring saints you're in that season of life where you're moving fast well then round up on wings as eagles sword child soar on in this season if you're one of those young ones who's soaring soul but if you're not soaring right now maybe you're in your middle aged years but you can run and not get weary run on child everything's gonna be all right maybe you're in your winter years maybe you can't run like you used to but just walking out walking not faint walk together children don't you get weary there's a great camp meeting whatever season you're in so run walk but by all means keep moving [Music] [Applause] and the god we serve will give you strength to keep going in jesus name amen [Applause] it don't make no sense it don't make no sense for folks to preach like this a double dose a dynamic duo ah we should call this preaching square to the second power we have been blessed again we are celebrating 60 years of ministry and to have two of the greatest preachers in this country to bless us for our revival even virtually as we're on the verge of coming back to service i want to thank howard john wesley and marcus cosby for taking time out to be for to be with us for this revival experience thank you howard thank you marcus we want to say thank you to your congregations and to your families as always on time word penetrating our hearts and expiring our spirits thank you so much and there may be someone here you heard one of these message or both of these messages and they blessed you in such a way that you want to accept christ as your lord and savior we welcome you right now to become a part of trinity united church of christ information has come up on the screen if you'd like to call or to send an email whatever it may be we welcome you to the trinity family and i want to just offer this prayer on our revival night tonight simply to say this may god's blessings be upon you may god not only open doors for you but may god close some doors may god remove some toxic people from your life and replace them with individuals who know that there is a bomb in gilead to soothe the sin sick soul may god keep you may god bless you may god hold you and expand your territory and your imagination on this revival evening we give god praise and we give god thanks may god keep you in the palm of god's hand until we meet again go in peace power and love god bless you

Channel: TRINITYCHGO

Views: 27,735

Rating: 4.8197427 out of 5

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Id: 7ZhENDmblLo

Length: 108min 19sec (6499 seconds)

Published: Thu Jul 15 2021