Well, welcome to week
three of Fight to Flourish. It's going to be an
amazing day together. I just want to invite
you to come back next week for the
grand finale, and I'm so excited for next
week's message. But today, we are talking
through some things that I really feel
like God is speaking to each and every one
of us in our journey and what we're going through. And I want to talk
today about when life feels more than we can bear. I want to talk today about
not giving up on what God has called you to do. I don't know where you're
at right now at this moment right now in your life. Maybe your losing heart. Maybe you've already lost heart. Maybe you don't
have the courage-- any courage. Maybe you're feeling like
you're running empty. Maybe you don't
even see the reason for showing up or fighting. Maybe you think, I'm
not even in a fight. What do I have to contribute? I'm not fighting. I'm just trying to survive. I'm just trying to live
my nominal, normal life. Well, there comes a
point in our journey where we've cried all
our tears, and then we're literally left with
asking the question, what am I going to do now? Am I going to keep going? Am I going to keep
showing up, or am I going to throw in the towel? Am I going to give up? In the book The Silver Chair
by C.S. Lewis, he wrote, crying is all right in
its way while it lasts, but you have to stop
sooner or later. And then you will have
to decide what to do. And emotions are good. We know, emotions are good. What you feel, what you're
going through is real, and it's good to cry. It's normal and it's
natural to feel and to hurt and to be in pain. But then there's
a point where we have to choose what we're going
to do with what we experienced, how we're going to move forward,
if we're going to move forward. And we have to ask
the question, what are we going to do about it? There is an option to quit. There is an option to opt out. There is the option to give
up to throw in the towel. But I want to talk
today about how it's possible to
not give up, how it's possible to not just
get back in the fight, to not just get
back in the ring, so to speak, but
to keep showing up and to keep fighting forward. My message today, as
you're taking notes, and I'm believing that
you're taking notes whether on your phone or you
have your little journal. But my message today
is don't quit now. Don't quit now. And to be perfectly
honest, this message has been a heavy one this week. It's been one that I really
believe and feel that God has for each and every one of us. I have felt the weight of this. I have felt like giving up this
week, to be perfectly honest, and just cutting the
series short because it was a really hard week. I literally sprained my ankle. I have just been
having a hard time. I've felt the weight
of this message, to be perfectly honest with you. But I believe that
there are some of you who are really struggling with
wanting to give up right now. I really believe that
there are some of you who are wanting to give up and
not follow Jesus anymore because this is really hard. Or maybe you're
wanting to give up because God's call on
your life is difficult and you didn't actually
sign up for this and you didn't
ask for it and you don't want it, to be honest. So let's talk about this. You can fight through
this because there's more around the corner. I believe that a reason
for us to keep showing up, to keep fighting is because
there is more for us, that God has more for you. A while back, Levi and I were
invited to a friend's birthday party. And part of this included
driving really fast cars, like legit race cars. And when I heard this, I
was like, OK, that's great. Levi is going to be
in the driver's seat. I'm going to be in the backseat. I am not driving a car. In all the video games,
race car video games, I never stay on the track. And so I just pictured
myself crashing on the side and bumping into the
side of the track. And so I was like, I'm
not going to do this. I decided in my heart,
I'm not going to do this. This is scaring me to death. I can't do this. I'm not going to be
in the driver's seat. But then I found myself in
the driver's seat somehow, and I think it's because
everyone is doing it. And then all of a
sudden, I'm in there. And I have this helmet
on, and I honestly did not want to be there. I had this very
kind British man who was my co-pilot, who
was a professional, and he was leading me through. But I just wanted to
give you a glimpse and then talk a little bit
after this into my experience. There's one very slow car. Let's see what these are doing. That's going to be me. No, you're going to be fine. We're going to look after you. We'll let one vehicle pass,
but just keep it going, Jennie. All right, you're good to go
now so a little bit more power. Just pretend you're
late for work or you're missing an
important function. You're going to
keep to the right. You got another car
coming up, so I'm going to hold onto the wheel. All right, Jennie, you're good. Just keep it going. Come off the brake now. You've got loads of grip on
these tires, all clear behind. Keep it going, Jennie. You can come off that brake. You're fine. All right, it's all clear now. I love the brake. You're so patient. No, that's OK. So you're like the school now. You've got to get the
kids to school real quick. OK, OK. All right, keep to the right. So a little bit more power now,
so you're on the freeway now. No cops around, so you
can't get a ticket. Keep it going. There you go, Jennie, that's it. Just keep it going. Now you're good. There you go. You're fine now,
nothing behind you. Off the brake, you're fine. All right, a little
bit more for me. Keep it going. All right, so a little bit
more power, once he's passed. There you go, Jennie. Follow that car. You're clear behind. Yeah, OK. Well, at least you're doing it. That's the main thing. There they go. So you're clear for the hundred. That's good. There you go, Jennie. All right, follow
that white car now. You're good to go again. OK, so that was just a
glimpse into my mind, a glimpse into who I am, my
life, being extra cautious. OK, so there's a lot
of things about that, but I want to focus on
the fact that OK, yes, I was passed 11, 12 times. I think Levi probably passed
me like four times, maybe more. But I was reluctant. I was scared. I didn't want to do
this, but I did it. And it was a scary thing for me. And yes, I did it,
but here's the thing. There was so much
more potential for me. The highest I went was like
a little more than 60 miles per hour. I won't say how
fast I go normally, but the potential
for me was to go 180. That's three times
what I had done. I could have gone further. I could have pushed it
a little bit harder, but I stayed insanely
in the safe route. And my point is, we may not even
want to do what we're doing. We may be in a season where we
don't want to be where we are, we don't want to do
what we're doing. But it's possible to
not just get in the car, but to push and drive and
experience God's highest potential for you. Now, I am not an
adrenaline junkie, so I wasn't super
important for me to get in and to go 180 miles
an hour, but I could have climbed a little faster. And today, in this message, I
want to give you some handles. I want to give you some
phrases from the Bible, some truth that you
can speak over yourself when you feel like giving up,
when you feel like driving off the track and just
quitting, when you feel like you can't go anymore. And the first one is when
I am weak, He is strong. When I am weak, He-- our God-- is strong. This is something
you can tell yourself when you feel like giving up. In the Bible, Paul
in 2 Corinthians talks about an illness
or something in his life. And we don't know
exactly what it was. We know that it was a
physical setback that was keeping him from really
doing what he wanted to do. And it even says that he
begged God to take it away. He said three times, I begged
that God would take this away. Some people think
it was an eye issue. I don't know what it was. But I love here
what he talks about. 2 Corinthians 12 verse 8, he
says, in the Amplified version, concerning this, I pleaded with
the Lord three times that it-- this physical ailment-- might leave me. But He-- God-- said to me, my grace
is sufficient for you. My loving kindness and my mercy
are more than enough, always available, regardless of
the situation for my power is being perfected
and is completed and shows itself most
effectively in your weakness. Therefore, I will all the more
gladly boast in my weaknesses so that the power of Christ
may completely enfold me and may dwell in me. So I am well pleased with
weaknesses, with insults, with distresses,
with persecutions, and with difficulties
for the sake of Christ. When I am weak in
human strength, then I am strong, truly
able, truly powerful, truly drawing from
God's strength. This is so beautiful
and should be a verse that we memorized and we stick
on our mirror or in our car. But Paul knew the
secret to strength. He knew that God's grace
was sufficient for him. He knew that God's power was
made perfect in his weakness. And I don't understand
how this works. I don't understand this. I don't understand how our
weakness shows God's strength. But Paul's conclusion, he
says, that I will gladly boast in my weakness so
that the power of Christ may enfold me and dwell in me. And he said, I am
well-pleased with weaknesses, with insults,
distresses, persecutions, with difficulties. And this is so beautiful
to me because he starts with this physical
illness, this physical setback, but he pivots to all
these other things-- insults, distresses,
persecutions, difficulties. He started off saying,
God, I wish this was gone, but I believe that you are most
glorified in this weakness. And if you allow this to
stay, then I'm glad in it. And I'll actually boast
in it because it's going to show your strength. It's going to show your power. It's going to show your glory. And so what a beautiful
perspective for us to have that whether it's a
physical situation that we're in, I don't know what you're
struggling with today. Maybe it is a physical sickness
or an illness or something with your eyesight. But we're all in a
place where we're struggling with some
kind of difficulty, some kind of sprained
ankle or something that is feeling like holding
it's holding us back. But here's the thing, when
you are weak, He is strong. His grace is sufficient for you. When I first met
Levi, I found out before he would preach that
every time he would preach, he would pray this prayer,
he would speak this over him. And when he first
started preaching, he would sometimes throw
up behind the stage. He would get so nervous. And now it's just
so amazing to see that strength and that meekness,
that strength under control. But he literally will
pray this and speak this before every time he preaches. He says, God's grace
is sufficient for me, and His strength is made
perfect in weakness. And in Jeremiah 31:25,
He says, this is God, I will refresh the weary soul
and replenish all who are weak. God is strong for us. And it's actually
a beautiful thing to see our weakness
glorifying God and pointing all glory, all power,
all honor, all attention, all spotlight on Jesus. Number two, when you
feel like giving up, you can speak this
over yourself. It's OK to fight and cry. It's OK to fight and cry. I recently heard about this
woman named Ronda Rousey, and she's the only woman to win
the championship for both UFC and WWE. And I was watching with part
of this documentary of her life and how she fights,
and she is amazing. She is a beast. But it was of her coaches and
some of her friends talking about her, how she fought. And it was so interesting
to me because they would say she would be in the ring. She'd be fighting. She'd be getting
punched in the face. It would be a really hard fight,
and she would step out and cry. And then they'd say, OK,
you got to get back in. She'd go back in and
fight, fight, fight, fight, and then she would
step out and cry. Literally, they
said this about her. She would fight and cry, cry
and fight, fight and cry. But she kept going. And what a beautiful example
of doing a hard thing. I mean, I can't imagine
getting punched in the face. Lennox the other day kicked
me with his heel in my eye. And I was like, buddy, you're
going to give me a black eye, and I'm going to be
preaching with a black eye. And I don't think I do,
but that hurt so bad. I can't imagine getting punched
in the face, but I love this. She fought and she cried. She did the hard thing, and
she took a moment and just like, man, this is really hard. And then she went back in and
went back in and went back in. And I believe that
that is meant for us. We are meant to fight
hard and to cry. We're meant to run to God,
the God who created us, the God who loves us. We're meant to run to
Him and cry out to Him. Psalm 61 verse 2 says,
hear my cry, oh God. Attend to my prayer. From the end of the
earth, I will cry to you. That's a long way, from
the end of the earth. When my heart is overwhelmed-- I don't know if you've felt
that recently or in your life-- when my heart is
overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that
is higher than I. What a beautiful thing,
to be crying out to God, to be hurting and in so
much anguish and pain. And you just say, God, when
my heart is overwhelmed and I don't know what
to do, I run to you. Lord, lead me to the rock
that's higher than me. Lead me to the place that
I can't go on my own. God calls us to do what's hard. God calls us, the Bible
says, to the narrow road. When we follow Jesus, we're
called to this narrow road, and it's a hard one. It's not easy. You imagine the broad road
where there's music and flowers and you can walk anywhere. It's such a broad road. And then here's Jesus saying,
well, this is a narrow road. And this is hard, but it's worth
it and I'm walking it with you. But the point is here
is that we fight forward and we cry out to God. We fight and we cry. We engage in the struggle. We run to God. We fight and we flourish. The goal is that we
keep running to God. He wants that
relationship with us, and we should be hungry and
thirsty for that relationship as well. We fight and we cry. Psalm 126 verse
5 says, those who sow their tears as seeds
will reap a harvest with joyful shouts of glee. They may weep as they go out,
carrying their seed to sow. But they will return
with joyful laughter and shouting with gladness
as they bring back armloads of blessing and
harvest, harvests overflowing, it says. Gosh, that's so beautiful. It's OK to fight and to cry
because God can handle it. He can handle us running to Him. He can handle us telling
to Him what's hard, telling Him what's hurting. We need it. We need to do that. Psalm 18 verse 6 says,
I cried out to you in my distress,
the delivering God. And from your temple throne,
you heard my troubled cry. My sobs came right
into your heart, and you turned your
face to rescue me. Thank you, God. Well, the third
statement I want you to write down so that you
can speak this over yourself, speak this over a friend in a
moment of wanting to give up is as I wait on the Lord,
He will renew my strength. As I wait on the Lord, He
will renew my strength-- waiting on the Lord. Rest is important. And it's so interesting to
me because in boxing, rest is actually built into the fight. Whether it's UFC or boxing
or whatever the fight is, there's a certain
amount of rounds. But between each round, there's
a break, and there's a rest and there's a moment. And these moments are for the
fighter to sit in the corner and for the coach to come
out and put whatever they put on those cuts and to
give them some water and to pour water on their
head and to get bandaged or I don't know,
however that works, to get the coaching they
need to just shake it off and to focus up and to keep
fighting and to keep going. Psalm 38 says, I am feeble
and utterly crushed. I groan in anguish of heart. All my longings lie
open before you, Lord. My sighing is not
hidden from you. And if you've had
that deep anguish of soul, that
grief upon you, you know that sigh, that deep sigh. My heart pounds. My strength fails me. Even the light has
gone from my eyes. Lord, I wait for you. You will answer, Lord my God. If we can say, God, I'm hurting,
I'm in pain, I look to you. Or maybe I feel nothing. I feel numb. I know that I
should be fighting, but I feel like I don't
have any will to fight and I don't know what I
would even be fighting for, but I look to you. I wait on you. And the these versus I'm
going to share right now are some of my most favorite. Isaiah 40:29-31 says,
have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God,
the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth
neither faints nor is weary. His understanding
is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak. And to those who have no
might, He increases strength. Even the youth shall
faint and be weary, and the young men
shall utterly fall. But those who wait on the Lord
shall renew their strength. They shall mount up
with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. He gives power to the weak. If you're weak, you're
in the perfect place because God will
give power to you. Look up. Run to Him. Cry out to Him. He will give you what you need. He will be what you need. Look up, and remember
who's got you. He gives power to the weak. And to those who have no
might, He increases strength. We can grow in strength
as we run to Him. Wait on the Lord. With Him, you'll be
able to keep going, and you'll be able to not give
up and not throw in the towel. This fourth statement,
write this down, I won't give up now
because God has more for me that I can't see. I won't give up now
because God has more for me that I can't see. There is power as
you keep showing up. Keep showing up with God. Keep running to Him. First thing in the morning,
let that be the first thing you say, God, I love you. I need you. Keep showing up at church, no
matter what that looks like. Show up with the people of God. We need to hear from God's
word together as a group. Keep showing up in
your small group. Don't miss out on that. We need each other. We need the accountability. Keep showing up in your
family and in the lives of the people around you, the
people who need you the most. Keep showing up. And if you're tired-- and believe me, it's
so easy to be tired-- if you're tired of doing
what God has called you to do, if you're
tired of showing up, if you're tired of trying
to make the right decision, trying to live this
life before God, if you're tired of trying to
live purely, don't quit now. Don't quit now. Don't give up because
it's easy to get tired. The Bible says this. Galatians 6:9, let us not
become tired of doing good. I think Paul said this because
the church was getting tired. Don't get tired of doing good. At the right time,
we will gather a crop if we do not give up. Why not give up? Because it would be so easy
to do that, why not give up? Because God has
a harvest for us. God has more strength for us. God has more strength
for others through us. He has more for us to grow in. We're not going to get
saved and just stay there. We're going to get saved, and
we're going to call on Jesus. And we're going to call
on Jesus the next day, and we're going to call
on Jesus the next day. And we're going to keep growing. And we're going to
keep giving even when it's hard even when we
don't feel like it because that is how we will grow. We will see the strength
that is around the corner that maybe we can't see
from this vantage point. But God can see, and
He has it for us. Just keep going. Maybe around the corner is the
breakthrough that you need. Maybe around the corner is
the joy, the love, the grace, the peace. Just keep going even
if you can't see. It's like what Rocky said,
going in one more round when you don't think you can, that's
what makes all the difference in your life, when you just keep
going even when you feel like you can't. And like we learned
last week in James, which honestly these verses
have just been a rumbling around in my soul as I've been walking
through hard stuff this week, which I know you have
too, in James 1:2-5, in a different translation
than we read last week-- I like shaking it
up a little bit-- my brothers and sisters, you
will face all kinds of trouble. When you do-- when you do-- think of it as pure joy. Your faith will be tested. You know that when
this happens, it will produce in you the
strength to continue. And you must allow this
strength to finish its work then you will be
all you should be. You will have
everything you need. If any of you needs wisdom,
you should ask God for it. He will give it to you. God gives freely to everyone
and doesn't find fault. Let this hard thing that
you're in right now, let this challenging moment,
let this random sprained ankle, let this stye in your
eye, let whatever this thing is that
you're in right now, the struggle that you're
in, let it do the work that it's meant to do in you. Because just like it says,
your faith will be tested. And you know that
when this happens, it will produce in you
the strength to continue, the strength to continue, the
strength to take the next step, the strength to give,
the strength to show up. And number five, write it
down, I've got what it takes. I've got what it takes. And what does it take? Well, we just read that if
we need wisdom, we ask God. And honestly, that's what
it takes in each moment. There are so many
conversations I'm in where maybe someone's
asking for advice or we're just in a
normal conversation. And I'm literally
like, God, I have no idea what to say right now. I have no idea how
to help this person. I don't even know what to do. Lord, give me wisdom. And every time, God gives me
what I need in the moment. And I believe the same
for you, that as you just ask God for wisdom,
you say, God, I ask for your favor today. God, I ask for your
wisdom in me today. God gives freely. He's a good, good
father, and He loves you. And He's doing a work
in you that is so much deeper than what you can see. And so what does it take? Well, it takes
asking for wisdom. What else does it take? Well, it doesn't take as
much ability as availability. In the Bible, when God
called Samuel in 1 Samuel 3, it's a really sweet story. Samuel's a boy, and God
literally calls his name in the middle of the night. He says, Samuel, Samuel. And Samuel thinks
that it's his pastor, the guy who's discipling him. And finally, he's like, well,
I think God's calling you, so you should probably
say this to him. And so when he finally finds out
that it's God speaking to him, Samuel says, speak, God. I'm your servant. I'm ready to listen. When God called
Isaiah in Isaiah 6, Isaiah's response
was, here I am. Send me. And then there's Moses,
and it's a little different and found in Exodus 3. Moses, his first response
was who am I to do this? I don't think I got this. And then they have
a conversation, and then Moses is like, yeah,
but what if nobody believes me? And then they have
a conversation, and then Moses says, well,
I can't speak very well. I'm not eloquent. I bumble. I blabber. And then they have
more of a conversation. And finally, Moses
says, God, you should just send someone else. Have you ever felt this way? I know I have, when I just
feel like it's too much for me. And I literally pray, God, this
is too much for me to handle. I think you should
send someone else. I can't handle this. I don't have what it takes. I don't think I've got this one. But here's the thing, when
God calls your name, when He asks you to go for Him,
when He calls you to speak, He will also equip you and
strengthen you and use you. So you have what it takes. You do. You have what it takes. And God's not looking
for your ability. He's not asking for
your resume to see all the amazing things you've
done, all the awesome work you've done in this. He just wants you. He wants your availability. He wants your willingness. He wants your obedience
and even your weakness. You've got this
because He's got you. OK, I want to just show
you this video again. But this time, listen to
Barry, the professional. I want you to listen to
what he's saying to me. There's one very slow car. Let's see what these are doing. It's going to be me. No, you're going to be fine. We're going to look after you. We'll only let one vehicle pass. We'll just keep
it going, Jennie. All right, you're good to go
now so a little bit more power. Just pretend you're
late for work or you're missing an
important function. OK. You're going to
keep to the right. You got another car
coming up, so I'm going to hold onto the wheel. You're good. Just keep it going. Pull off the brake now. You've got loads of grip on
these tires, all clear behind. Keep it going, Jennie. OK, great. You can come off that brake. You're fine. OK. All right, it's all clear now. I love the brake. You're so patient. No, that's OK. So you're late for school now. You've got to get the
kids to school real quick. OK, OK. All right, keep
to the right side. A little bit more power now. So you're on the freeway now. No cops around so you
can't get a ticket. OK. Keep it going. There you go, Jennie. That's it. Just keep it going. Now you're good. There you go. You're fine now. Nothing behind you. Off the brake, you're fine. OK. All right, a little bit more. Keep it going for me. Keep it going. All right, so a little bit
more power, once he's passed. There you go, Jennie. Follow that car. You're clear behind. Yeah, OK. Well, at least you're doing it. That's the main thing. There they go. So you're clear for the moment. That's good. There you go, Jennie. All right, follow
that white car now. You're good to go again. My final point
here is the sixth. And yes, I know I started
with two points two weeks ago, three points last week, and
I just jumped up to six. But my final point is what
God speaks over you that I want you to take note of. This is what God
speaks over you. Number six, have courage. Take heart. I am with you. Did you hear what
Barry was saying? I'd like to think
that God speaks to me in a calming,
kind, British voice. But how encouraging was he? He wasn't saying, oh man,
wow, you're really bad. Oh, you're only going 20, and 10
people have already passed you. And you can go 180. He wasn't condemning at all. He was so encouraging. You're going to be fine, Jennie. At least you're
doing it, Jennie. You've got this, Jennie,
just a little more power. It's OK. You're fine, just a little more
power, a little more power, just a little faster. And I love his encouragement. But I think most of
all, I love that he kept saying my name because
there was a comfort in that. OK, you got this, Jennie. You got this, Jennie. And I just want to remind
you that God knows you. In a world of billions
of people, God sees you. He knows your name. He created you. He sees you, and He speaks
lovingly and kindly to you. At the same time, He's
going to challenge you, and He's going to
say hard things. And He's going to
call you up, and He's going to call out
the potential in you. He's going to bring
out the things that are going to cause you
to shine and to grow. And I just want to remind
you that if you just keep showing up when you don't
feel like it, if you don't give up now, you're going to
see God's strength in you like never before. God loves you. He speaks His name over you. In Joshua, Moses had just died. The book of Joshua,
this talks about how God calls Joshua to be the
next leader of His people. And God tells Joshua,
here's what I'm commanding you to do, be strong and brave. Do not be afraid. Do not lose hope. I am the Lord your God. I will be with you
wherever you go. And God was speaking
this to Joshua, and Moses had just died. And I just believe
that God wouldn't have said don't be afraid or
don't lose hope if Joshua was not afraid and not losing hope. I believe that God was
speaking to him in his fear. I believe that God was speaking
to him in his loss of hope and his loss of courage
and his loss of heart. But I believe also that God
is speaking this to you. God speaks to you today. Are you losing hope? God speaks to you,
don't lose hope. Are you afraid? He's speaking to
you, don't be afraid. Are you having a hard time? Are you losing heart? Take heart. He speaks to you, take heart,
have courage, be brave. Why? Because He's with you. He's with you wherever you go. And not only do I believe that
you have it in you to not quit, I also believe that
you have it in you to get back in the ring
with even more fight, with even more intensity,
with even a sweeter spirit, with even more grit. And maybe you're not where you
want to be, but just look back. Take a look back and
see how far you've come. And maybe you're growing slowly. Maybe it's a slow process,
but you're growing. You're doing it. Just a little bit more power,
just a little bit more power, you're driving and
you're fighting. You're fighting and you're
crying, just a little bit more, one more round. And like in the book The
Last Battle by C.S. Lewis-- ending where we started-- King Tyrion told
Jill, courage, child. We are all in the paws
of the true Aslan. And Father, we
look to you today. And so many of us have felt
this in our heart to give up, to quit. But I believe your
calling us to courage. I believe your calling us to
take heart, to not lose heart, to not lose hope but
to keep looking to You, to keep trusting in You. And I pray for those now who
are feeling like they just can't show up, they
just can't keep going. I pray for Your
strength in them. I pray that they would
see that they're weak, admit it, that they would call
on You, that they would run to You, and that You would
be glorified in their lives, that You would be lifted
up, that Your strength would be made perfect, would be made
complete in their weakness. And God, I also
just pray for anyone who doesn't have this sweet
relationship with You. I pray for anyone
who is far from You, who hasn't made the decision to
surrender their lives to You. If that's you, I just want
to pray or prayer with you. You're just saying,
God, I need you. God, I surrender to you. I believe in Jesus. You can pray this prayer
after me out loud. Pray, dear God, I know
that I am a sinner. I know that I need You. I believe that You sent
Jesus to live a perfect life, to die on the cross, and
to rise from the dead. I believe. I believe that I am weak. I believe that You're strong. I trust you, God. In Jesus' name, amen.
