Federation Virtual Celebration | Worship Service | Pastor Abraham Henry

[Music] just [Music] you are [Music] if [Music] you down so [Music] [Music] [Music] me [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] this [Music] [Music] [Music] we're going to begin with a word of prayer let us pray heavenly father lord we want to thank you for being better to us than we've even been to ourselves while we cannot come together and worship like we normally do father we're going to worship you in spirit and in truth and so father let us be changed by this encounter we will have with you today this we pray jesus name amen this is the day the lord has made let us rejoice and be glad in it i want to welcome you to our south florida youth federation and i have to admit this to you i have been a pastor in the church for over 20 years i've been to a number of different youth events but there is nothing like the south florida youth federation and we're going to have some a good time this weekend we have some great singing some great preaching and this week's theme is trouble don't last always and i'm so glad that no matter what we may have gone through this past year trouble does not last always you may have cried yourself to sleep at night you may have gone through the fire and through the flood but trouble does not last always and before we get into our worship service today we we have a special special video presentation uh testimony that we want to share with you uh signifying how good god has been that no matter what you go through you can praise him anyhow so we're gonna show this video now and your heart will be blessed i don't have long to be up here my father would say i have enough time to make a sandwich i wish i could speak a meal but they only gave me so many seconds but i just want to take advantage of this moment about five years ago i lost my wife to a brand aneurysm and i remember sitting in the same auditor in the auditorium just like you where we were in indianapolis and me and her were sitting here and i was watching a man come up there also and talk about how he lost his wife and as i was sitting there in the audience i was only married for 30 days at that moment and i didn't know 11 days later i would lose my wife so my job don't don't we we won't all because i realize that death is a thing that happens in life it's not a thing that happens to life so my job is to go and tell everyone that is living to make life count make it count i don't care what it is i don't care what it is and as you breathe today when was the last time you took a big deep breath as i pulled my wife's monitor off and she took her last one right now take a deep one let it out as long as you have that in your body you got the brady effect that at any moment i got time on the clock i can come back at any moment i know things happen in my life but i can make a change at any moment [Music] so i came here today to tell you to encourage all of you that's going through a difficult time that trouble don't last always that i've never seen a cloud sit over one person's house for a long time this too shall pass it has to so my job today to tell you all while you're here to endure this thing we've been made to endure the night but our joy will come in the morning thank you guys amen amen trouble don't last always and and again life sometimes is not easy sometimes god will allow us to go through certain things but at the end of the day god's goal is to get you to glory you know it's very interesting in the educational world they call it iep's individual educational plan and certain students they have ieps that they have to take certain classes they have to have certain teachers they have to have certain counselors they have to learn certain lessons before they could graduate and what we have to understand when it comes to god that's the same way that god is with us that that some of us we have our own ieps that that god allows us to go through certain things because in the end he's trying to get us to glory and that's the hardest thing sometimes to accept when it comes to god's will is that god loves you so much that he wants you to go to heaven but the hard part is he's going to do whatever it takes to get you there but we have something to praise god about and at this time we're going to transition to an open praise because god has been so good to us we can't keep it to ourselves and i know that we don't have that much people here today uh because of social distancing and because of uh covet 19 but we have some individuals here today and we're going to open up the floor that that if god has been good to you and you want to share it uh you want to to tell somebody who's watching us today uh that what god has done for you he can do for them and if it's your desire to just come to to give a testimony we're inviting you to come up even right now and take a mic and stand up in front and introduce yourself and tell how god has been good to you tell have god has been good to you and so right now we're inviting you up inviting you up all right thank you caleb amen you can take the mic and introduce yourself [Music] but i remember applying for my master's program last year and i didn't know how i was going to do it with a young child i didn't know how god was going to make provision of time for me and accommodations but he did earlier this year my car got stolen and i knew i had an internship coming up and god made it possible for my internship to be fully remote for me to be able to work at any time i wanted because i worked for an agency that's open 24 hours so i'm just so thankful that i'm getting to the tail end in december in the mighty name of jesus i'm going to be a graduate and i'm just so grateful that despite all the obstacles despite no transportation despite child care being tricky sometimes god just made a way and he made provision long before i even knew i needed it so if you know that the mighty name of jesus the beautiful the wonderful the powerful name of jesus is the only one who can make it through by and sing this song with me and i hope [Music] me [Music] what a beautiful [Music] what a night name it is [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] yes [Music] me [Music] oh [Music] we love to see [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign is [Music] [Applause] you have no risk [Music] my [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] wow [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] forever [Music] ah [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] uh [Music] is [Music] so [Music] the name of jesus christ [Music] what powerful [Music] to thank our praise team this is the south florida youth federation i really want to thank our president president vivian bryant always she does a phenomenal job with her exceptional [Music] but this is our open praise session and and what we have to understand yes life may not always be the way that you want it to be but there is something that you can praise god one of my favorite passages of scripture is found in john chapter 6 verses 16 to 68 and during your moments of intimacy with god please study that passage especially if you're going through the storm and the backdrop to that story is jesus is now preaching to the masses he just finished feeding five thousand and the bible says god jesus begins to say some tough stuff he begins to do some things that the people do not understand and what the bible says is that from that day forward that large group of people they stopped following jesus they went to follow him no more and it's very interesting that that what jesus does now he's left alone with his 12 disciples he looks the 12 disciples in the eye and he asks them are you gonna leave me as well and our favorite disciple simon peter he says something very powerful he says jesus who shall we go to if we leave uh if we leave you where will we go because you have the words of life and what you have to understand that sometimes god will do some things that you just don't understand uh sometimes god will allow some things to transpire that will hurt you that will cause you to cry but my question to you is where are you gonna go other than to jesus to find hope you can't find hope in a bottle uh you can't find peace [Applause] [Music] this is [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] boys [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] what a beautiful day [Music] god god is an awesome guy about two weeks ago i was in a car accident where i was driving and all of a sudden a bicyclist ran into my car which resulted in him going up in the sky landing on my windshield and rolling off the back i was so distraught because i didn't understand what was going on i was looking at the road i was driving i didn't realize what was happening and all the fears could come to my head i'm like lord did i kill him lord um is he badly injured what's gonna happen am i going to jail is it my fault but god is a good guy there were witnesses who were driving on that same road and all said that he literally came out of nowhere and i praised the lord that he was not badly injured to the point of death he only had a couple of bumps and bruises but he was okay amen and i thank the lord because at the end of the police report the person who was at fault that they deemed at fault wasn't me amen and i praised god because that could have gone so many different ways but god god sought fit that this was not a situation that closed me out from the rest of the world in addition to that it i i ended up finding out a lot of things i found out my license was suspended and i didn't know because of covid due to a condition i have there's some paperwork i needed to send in i did but they never submitted it but god worked it out that my license was no longer suspended and that i was able to freely live my life not in fear of being in any legal issues where this is concerned i praise god for that i praise god for that god is an on time god and he definitely looks out for his children and those who believe and worship him amen [Music] so [Music] you are my [Music] straight like no other [Music] it reaches me you are my dreams straight like no other [Music] you are my hope hope like no other [Music] reaches [Music] is [Music] me [Music] you lift me [Music] [Music] me [Music] is [Music] you lift me [Music] is [Music] thank god you lift me [Music] you lift me [Music] you lift me up you lift me you lift me up you lift me up you lift me up you lift me you lift me [Music] [Applause] you up me up [Music] you lose me [Music] oh come on praise the lord somebody oh come on praise the lord somebody praise the lord somebody he has lifted you up he was your strength he's your strength like no other he was able to keep you heal you sustain you hallelujah somebody a hallelujah a hallelujah we serve an amazing god we serve a matchless god we serve a god who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or even imagine i stand before you looking back at all the things that god has done for me his unmerited favor over my life 10 years ago to this day 10 years ago to this day i was in aventura hospital doctors coming in and out wondering and baffled at how my heart could be dying off troponin levels elevated and they came in and out scratching their head doing test after test after test but somebody prayed for me oh come on i wish that even if you're in your virtual space that you would get excited but somebody prayed for me and they declared that trouble won't last all the way and that i can say hallelujah 10 years i've been here because he was my strength he was my healer he was my deliverer but here's the part that i love and the part that scared me and and a part of why i can say that god is a great god because one of the things that the doctor had shared after we had made it through there was nothing that they could give me there is no medicine that they can give to solve the issue that i had where i had an issue called myocarditis and what they said about this issue is they said there's not a lot of information about it because three out of five people aren't around for us to continue to study them i was part of the two but god and and one of the things that the doctor said is it is that the infection that got inside of the heart muscle itself he's just like if you're going to be more susceptible to other infections so you can't get sick got to be careful i got a text message about two months ago asking hey can you be a part of this amazing celebration this weekend not knowing that as that text message came in i was downstairs struggling to breathe coughing fever [Music] doctor said i couldn't get sick nine years and just about 10 months or 12 months right like i i was able to to to not but covet let me tell you about god i got down but trouble don't last always oh come on somebody trouble don't last always so when i sing hallelujah and i give highest praise i know that trouble don't last all ways you can't make it through amen god can deliver you and when god delivers you got to get excited about it right like when god does something you just can't keep it to yourself so even in this virtual space in which we are in you can share of god's goodness you could write in a chat you can send a text message you can get on facebook and ig and snapchat and share of how god has been good to you but another thing that you can do is you can reach into your wallet and you can give to a ministry that is able to encourage others a ministry that is able to help others a ministry that is able to bring the body of christ together and worship this true and living king and this is what i love in this virtual space that we're in it doesn't always have to be your wallet it can be your virtual wallet amen amen amen you can go into your virtual wallet and and and you can be in the comfort of your own home sitting on your comfy couch and you can pull up and swipe amen and and you're able to give via zelle and i'm going to say this i know that's going to come up on the screen but you can give via zelle at s f a y f at s e c s d a dot org you could also cash out amendment people everybody amen you can give the cash app at the uh dollar sign s f a y f and you can support this amazing ministry you could be able to pledge and and i don't know if god has given you just a ten dollar blessing that you want to share with somebody but give that ten dollars but if god has been good to you you can go ahead and take that 10 and add 20 to it and you can give 30 amen and and if god's been a great god an amazing god you could take that and add some 20 to that and you can give 50 you can give a hundred dollars and if god has so blessed you don't you dare hold back if he is impressed upon your heart to give 200 300 500 i don't know god is a great god i don't know right but wherever he is and whatever he is impressing upon you at this time give and god will take it bless it multiply it and allow for his children to be able to be recipients of this amazing blessing from this great god that we have may god continue to bless you and keep you we're going to pray over this thing before we leave we're praying father god we're just so thankful and grateful for you being such an awesome god an amazing god a god who sits high but looks slow a god who is able to say that trouble don't last always so father i am asking that you will take this blessing that people are swiping and and people are typing in numbers father god i pray that you will take it multiply it and bless it god so that others may be drawn closer to your side we pray that we may be all be able to assemble on that sea of glass and sing hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah in jesus name amen amen [Music] [Music] it could have been [Music] it could be [Music] me another chance [Music] thank you [Music] go away [Music] so [Music] is oh [Music] [Music] [Music] but i know he's on time [Music] i found him to be a friend of mine [Music] you'll be there [Music] [Music] [Music] you may not come when you want him but i know [Music] i found him to be a friend of mine [Music] rise in your life [Music] [Music] hey [Music] he's [Music] [Music] oh [Music] don't last away [Music] always [Music] no no no trouble [Music] [Music] [Music] my [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] hello church family and welcome to the south florida federation today the call of worship is going to be taken from isaiah chapter 40 verse 27 to 31. oh jacob how can you say the lord does not see your troubles oh israel how can you say god ignores your rights have you never heard have you never understood the lord is the everlasting god the creator of all the earth he never goes weak or weary no one can measure the depths of his understanding he gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless even youths will become weak and tired and young men will fall in exhaustion but those who trust in the lord will find new strength they will soar high on wings like eagles they will run and not grow weary they will walk and not faint now let's have a word of prayer dear heavenly gracious father thank you for this day thank you for bringing us all together thank you for making us come into your crown of worship thank you for letting us gather in this special day to celebrate all of church please let us be faithful and thankful towards you please let us have an amazing day and please let us celebrate in your righteousness in jesus name i pray amen on behalf of the south florida federation team we would like to welcome all our viewers to our 2021 virtual federation celebration we are so glad that you get to experience a special occasion with us our theme for this weekend is hallelujah trouble don't last always our guest speaker is abram henry youth director of the lake region conference so we invite you to sit back clap sing and shout while enjoying the program that has been planned especially for you please like us share and subscribe as we get ready to experience god's greatness we invite you back this afternoon at 3 45 pm as our praise team opens up with a song just before our let's talk more moving onward and revealing excellence presentation at 4 pm our host elder jason tracy and our co-host pastor lindsay psy will engage in a discussion with a few of our stars who will be sharing their business ideas and how it will and can impact the church and community don't move or go far because right after let's talk at 5 45 pm with our host melody brown walker the praise team will bless us with another song our hosts will be interviewing and presenting our almost their talent reveal participants we would be remiss not to say a big thank you to marvin g clark senior and the salem members for allowing the team into their sanctuary so that each one of you would have the opportunity to witness what god can and will do when we trust him god is so faithful we cannot forget our awesome southeastern conference president pastor michael k owusu our amazing and supportive youth director pastor prince lewis and the rest of the southeastern conference officials and staff also we would like to say a big thank you to our churches and the federation team for their commitment in helping to make this federation about our stars youth and young adults kudos to our music department praise team members and band led by sister tangela smith on behalf of the south florida adventist youth federation our thoughts and prayers go out to the people and country of haiti and to our haitian families and communities here in the united states let us not forget that trouble don't last always lastly please consider supporting the ministry by making your pledge for fed today every dollar helps us to continue ministering and to make an impact in the community within our districts you can do so through zell or cash app this has been carla morrison let nothing separate you from the love of god good morning southeastern conference good morning south florida federation good morning to everyone that can celebrate the goodness of our lord and savior if you're alive well with blood flowing through your veins that's a reason to give god a praise in the house he's worthy this morning from the rising of the sun tell the going down of the shank he's worthy he is worthy this morning what a delight to be in the house of the lord from last night we had an exciting time in the lord and this morning [Music] we are now higher than yesterday we bless the lord for this gathering some thought we would pack up and wait until next year the devil is a liar we dare not give him that type of credit that he can disturb the people of god can alter the plan of god so this morning is a testimony of when you stand on the foundation of jesus all things are possible this morning it's my joy it's my pride to be back here in the place the place sell them seven day adventist church where praise is contagious and it's awesome to have the best federation in all of america no no no no no the best federation in all of the world no no no no no no the best federation in all of the universe i truly believe that this federation by far has made the greatest impact on our young people here in south florida and in the conference under the leadership of our gifted beautiful only one-of-a-kind sister brian who has given herself fully to this federation where are you sister brian who are you god bless you we appreciate what you do somebody put that hand on her and just put it together let's give god a praise for who she is and for what she has done over the years of this federation so this morning i bring greetings on behalf of the youth department of this great conference we're so excited that we once again can be here once again in this place for an exciting time in jesus as we continue on with our worship we want to give time to our administrators our president dr michael who will bring greetings on behalf of the conference and i know he has something special to share just as well doc come on and join us this morning good morning saudi cinco friends south florida youth federation happy sabbath i'm glad that i can be with you today and pastor prince i want to thank you again for for your leadership sister bryant for your leadership here in the south florida area and although today i had other engagements i made it a point that i had to stop by today just to bring greetings on behalf of the administration of the southeastern conference i believe as i look in the audience i'll see our cfo and our treasurer miss sherry brown here with us miss ralph you'll probably wave they'll see she's here with us this morning uh our associate executive secretary pastor ware is not here but we bring greetings on his behalf as well i just want to say this morning as you continue to worship i tuned in last night just to watch what was happening but as you continue to worship during this weekend this federation weekend there's something this is the bride that that sticks out to me that i need to commend you and your your team for and that is a theme that you have trouble don't last always i i don't know what went behind the theme but but i can imagine the theme speaks the times in which we are living these have been some very difficult times these have been trying times for us these have been painful times for some of us over the last two years we've added new vocabulary to our language log down social distance quarantined isolation virtual services like what we are having today in the last few months we've experienced a great deal of pain as we've lost several of our members here at southeastern conference so i missed all the trouble the trials the challenges that we are facing sometimes we are tempted to wonder why is god in all of this and i think the theme answers that question trouble don't last always because you see god will have the final word i believe that this pandemic what we are going through is intended you see by the devil for evil but but a 70 adventist christians is something that we do know we are people of prophecy and we believe that everything that happens in this world is part of a greater narrative that is going on behind the scenes the battle between good and evil but we know how the story ends the story ends with jesus christ coming out victorious so in spite of what the enemy is doing in spite of the challenges the adversity the pain that we feel now we can truly say with your theme trouble don't last always because ultimately god would have his final say so and we are praying we are hoping that he will take us through these difficult times so on behalf of the southeastern conference administration we just want to say thank you for what you do for our young people and we want to encourage our young people to keep your faith in god and keep hope alive for soon jesus would come again to put an end to all the troubles that we experienced in this world now before i leave i think it is customary i was told the lewis made sure that before this day he had a meeting with me and he reminded me in case you don't know you know you're president for the first time but there's a tradition that every federation the president is supposed to make sure that the administration brings something tangible with them when they come to bring greetings so this is the right i'm going to give it to him but he needs to pass it on to you we have on behalf of the southeastern conference administration a little a little envelope here that we're just going to give to you director to make sure that it gets to the south east south florida youth federation so elder you may have this thank you elder let's see my president hand clap we appreciate your contribution to this great federation thank you so much and thank you for the good work that you do as well thank you we are not going to be able to stay with you through the end of the service we'll be sneaking out to catch another service before it ends but it's a pleasure being here with you today god bless you once again this is your day young people enjoy take in this moment allow the transformation of the gospel to take root in your life and trust me whatever trouble you may be facing right now in the name of jesus it will be dismissed because trouble don't last always be strong be strong our god [Music] for [Music] all right so um we're about to go out to the field one thing i usually do is i usually focus on the people that i go and meet on the field i stay in constant prayer because i know a lot of people are out here we're all hurting and stuff like that so i'm just preparing my mind for god to use me to meet people's needs um and also just you know concentrate my mindset as well so i can be mentally prepared on the field [Music] so something i like to do on the field that just gives me hope and keeps me energized i like to keep a song in my heart um i would sometimes sing as i'm going doors to doors obviously not too loud so people don't hear me but i like to sing my favorite gospel songs just remember the reason why i'm doing this who i'm doing it for and how amazing god is and also like especially like you know when i get a good donation i like to thank god through song and just thank you so much so that just keeps me you know energized let me know that god loves me and that he's always gonna keep me safe throughout the words of the songs [Music] all right so this is a testimony from when i first started canvassing so um something that our leaders would tell us before we go door-to-doors they'll tell us to make sure that we're praying before we go to each house and so uh at first i didn't really understand like how powerful prayer was so i didn't do it like i didn't pray before every house um but that day it wasn't going very well people weren't really being nice to me nobody was answering the door it was just it was just not a good day so i was like all right let me try that's one thing that i'm not doing so i prayed and literally the next house that i went to i got a book out there the next house that i went through two after that i got another book out there and they were very in need of that book and so it was like a whole cul-de-sac of books that just went out and people that were very grateful and in need of those books and so from that experience it taught me how important prayer is and how powerful prayer is [Music] is [Music] me [Music] is [Music] a moment one of the things that i do that keep me motivated while canvassing is asking the person if they'd like me to pray for them at the end sometimes well personally i've noticed that a lot of people they're not just interested in the books or the books are also helpful but sometimes they also want a prayer so what i do at the end is like would you allow me to have a prayer with you and they'd be like oh yeah sure and they'll tell me a prayer request they have and that just makes the experience much more like ten times better just because not only did i leave them with the blessing but at the moment i also asked god you know for just a prayer request and you know that that's just something i find very motivating while canvassing that i've noticed that people also enjoy as well [Music] [Music] hi tm tim what happened what happened man um it was actually really really cool like at the first like first strip of houses i got like a lot of no's but i bumped into this lady she was really really nice and she got an fdf for me for 50 which is a blessing a fighting disease with food i mean during the pandemic you know a lot of people are realizing that uh fighting disease with food is a book that they need because they're learning how to in boot to boost their immune system you know spirit of prophecy lets us know that you know the health message is the right arm of the gospel so because of the pandemic so many people want to learn about their health i mean that's so amazing man here here's your book you know we're here in oviedo florida right outside of orlando sharing the gospel here in the neighboring community and we're just so excited to let people know that although there's so much discouragement there's so much depression so many things that happen financially you know death tragedy there is still a future of hope this book is the last 13 chapters of the great controversy and we're just letting people know that they can have hope there is a future jeremiah 29 11 says i know my plans for you plans to prosper you and to give you a future and a hope here at the publishing department family health education services in southeastern florida we are excited to give you an invitation to join our literature ministry program the youth excel scholarship program is a vehicle that allows young people to participate in literature evangelism and old alike why don't you join us because there's someone who is needing hope and you can be that light in a dark corner join us today [Music] praise the lord everybody praise the lord everybody how many of you know that god is amazing i don't know about you and i can contest that he's amazing and every now and then we have to get into our prayer closets right and we turn to the left turn to the right and we think about the things that that's happening within us if anybody out there can contest to that and we get in our prayer closets and we just [Music] amazing amazing god you are amazing anybody ever just chant a little bit yeah anybody oh lord you are amazing amazing god you are amazing amazing amazing god you are amazing amazing amazing lord you are amazing amazing amazing god you are amazing alpha omega oh he is amazing alpha omega god you are amazing anybody got a prayer closet amazing god you amazing amazing amazing god you are amazing amazing amazing [Music] amazing amazing amazing amazing god you are amazing lord we come to you just here to chant your name because only you are worthy to be praised god you are amazing you are a healer you are our present help and lord as we offer this sacrifice of praise to you i pray that you will accept it we will be humble to give you the praise the glory and the honor and jesus name amen [Music] you're amazed you're amazing [Music] you caused the sun sun the moon to shine i'm so glad you're alive [Music] so amazing [Music] lord i am [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] here thank you for being amazing [Music] we searched [Music] no one compares [Music] we thank you [Music] oh [Music] like you and me [Music] [Music] oh [Music] thank you for being an amazing lover you took the sun and told it to shine you lord of all you great i am [Music] so amazing you're amazing so amazing you're amazing so amazing you're amazing anybody believe that so amazing has he proved that to you you're amazed so amazing can we sing that together you're amazed so remained yeah you're a man i'm so glad you're mine i'm so glad to see your mind [Music] people so [Music] tragedies are commonplace all kinds of diseases people are slipping away economies down people can't get enough pay but as for me all i can say is thank you lord for all you've got for me for me thank you lord [Music] folks without homes living out in the streets and the drug habits some say they just can't be muggers and robbers no places to be safe but with you is my protection every step of the way and i want to say [Music] again [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] none of these things [Music] thank you [Music] the bible tells us that all have sinned everybody has sinned and fallen short of the glory of god and and religion would make you feel that's why y'all i told my story so that you don't have to feel no type of way about being clean i'm the pastor of the church and i just told you how deep i was in sin god can free you because what sin comes to do when god makes us we come here into this fallen world and we got a pre-vision and we watch a little porn and we're going through and we were molested and we were hurt and we messed up and it happened and we were drunk in college and i had somebody give me some pills and i watched this stuff and it's just my life is stained and god says he wants me to leave pure and be holy but how can i do that and then i get in relationship with somebody and i call it my relationship goal but all that happens is those soul ties [Music] and us connecting and all the one night stands it doesn't end up they're clean does it make me clean my filth makes them filthy and then jesus comes and he saw that everybody he loved would be steeped in sin and god in him made a plan that said you're gonna have to go down because nobody on that earth knows how to be pure anymore and i need you to take all of the punishment and the pain that they should experience for their sin because the wages of sin leads to death but he says i don't want to give them that penalty so i need you to take it and all they have to do is receive what you did for them and then i'll allow them to pour everything that they did that sin into you and when it comes into you i take what the world said was supposed to take you out and i turn it white as snow and i feel prophetically that this is what god is doing as you surrender to him [Applause] but god i'm still filthy he says surrender would you please submerge your life the lies the perversion the pornography the jacked up the molestation would you please submerge it in me and if you would put it in me i'll overflow you i'll allow that thing to wash you i feel the presence of god right here that everything that abuse everything that the lives of the world did everything that the enemy tried to create in you i'll make you white as snow i'll take it off and i'll make it into something clean [Music] hallelujah thank you god today god is saying i'll take your filthy rags and if you submit them and surrender them to me i'll make you white as snow [Music] happy sabbath everyone we have now entered our time of intercessory prayer and as we consider the theme that trouble doesn't last always i don't know what you've been going through or what you are going through but now is the time that we can come before the throne of god and cast all of our burdens and all of our cares upon him so as much as you're able to you can feel free to kneel down or if not just bow your heads and close your eyes as you're about to enter the season of intercessory prayer our father in heaven we are so thankful lord that in times like these we have a friend in jesus we're so thankful dear god that in times like these that we have an anchor of the soul that we can hold on to we are so thankful dear god that in times like these we have one who sits above on his throne who is sovereign lord dear god speaking of in times like these we're in a pandemic lord and as a result of this pandemic lord we have entered into more funerals than before we have heard more bad news than good news we have encountered more troubles than any times that we have in the past before and as a result lord our personal lives we have been struggling we have been struggling with our marriages we've been struggling with our grades we have been struggling lord with our parenting lord we have been struggling with ministry and unfortunately lord on a more solder note we have been struggling with our pure we know lord that since the pandemic more young people lord have engaged in unforbidden sites than ever before and heavenly father it seems that as the world is coming to a halt that the enemy is crashing down upon our youth and our young people but lord we are reminded by the video that you are a god who is able to turn water into wine and lord if you're able to turn water into wine then surely you are able to turn the wine back into water surely you are able to turn the wine of our fortifications into the purity of holiness surely you are able to turn the wine of our adultery into purity of righteousness and surely you are able to turn the wine dear lord of all immorality into the purity of godliness but heavenly father before you can do that you want us to bring you the water pots you want us to bring you the water parts of our phones of our devices of our hearts and of our minds and lord if we would just surrender it to you oh heavenly father you will be able to work a miracle o lord and lord we are thankful that no matter how filthy the rag may be you won't throw it away you'll wash it away you'll cleanse us from all the righteousness you'll cleanse us from all of our sins and you will make us whole and you will make us new and we are so thankful that we have a god who watches over us because through you o lord we know that trouble does not last always depression does not last all fear does not last always death does not last always sicknesses does not last always but lord we know what does is your grace your mercy kingdom and your word and lord even these dry bones you are able to make and raise an army of youth oh lord an army of youth that are filled with your spirit an army of youth the purity of righteousness of holiness of godliness that you can raise that can strike a final blow into the enemy's kingdom and heavenly father we want to be a part of that army no matter what we have done in our lives no matter where we are oh heavenly father whether we are online or in person lord you can turn any one of us or heavenly father into a used and able vessel to bring glory into your name and so heavenly father i pray that you would be with the youth federation i pray that you will be with the young people i pray that you will be with all the families that are represented here so much is going on oh heavenly father but dear god we know that you are able to do something exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can ask or think so we are thankful that we're even able to have this celebration lord because even this proves oh god that you are greater than all of our troubles you are greater than all of our trials and you are greater than all of our pain and all you acts o lord is that we would surrender it all to you because if we can surrender it all then we can conquer it all and through you oh heavenly father we are more than conquerors and we are thankful o father because we know oh lord that once we give it all to you we know that in the end all will work for the good to those who love you so keep us father strengthen us oh god draw us nearer unto you as we see that so many things are happening and i pray lord that in the end may we be sealed o lord in your word sealed in your righteousness and prepared for your kingdom that is soon to come bless us and may your spirit orchestrate the rest of this service we're thankful that trouble does not last always but your kingdom and your grace does and because of this we can say hallelujah thank you lord may we all have a blessed happy sabbath [Music] [Music] do you believe that our god is good amen that we serve a good good god i want to let somebody know for those that probably joined late came in later whatever it is of the theme we're going to say it over and over and over again but i want to remind somebody that troubles sometimes are here okay that's the reality but trouble don't last always and the reason is because we serve a good god we serve a just god we serve a faithful god we serve a loving god amen can somebody testify to that [Music] lord you are good you've been so good lord you are good you've been better than good i can't praise you enough i owe you my life i can't praise you enough even if i tried cause i've been so good come on if [Music] you've been so good to me lord your god [Music] not even if i try [Music] come on and say even if i try [Music] you've been so good jesus [Music] [Music] oh say you've been [Music] come on let's testify [Music] so many ways you'll be made so many times [Music] you've been better [Music] and so many times [Music] you've been better [Music] oh [Music] good to to me somebody [Music] is [Music] and there's another simple song that we know that comes to mind when we think about how good god is your god is so good if you know that just sing with me god is so good yes yes god is so good he is so good [Music] there's another part of that song that says he answers prayers i know we're going through trouble sometimes but [Music] his prayers trouble don't last always [Music] god is so good god is so good [Music] he is so good can we just repeat that line and say he is so good come on whatever you're going to just say whatever the devil tries to throw your way just remember that [Music] our god is so faithful till the end because all to you jesus we give it all because [Music] he is [Music] [Music] me oh yes [Music] hallelujah [Music] i want to tell y'all a story before i wrap this up it's a story about a father and a daughter they were coming home from a revival one night and the father let the daughter drive home she was his assistant if you will and while she was driving home a bad storm broke out and the daughter being a new driver she got a little bit scared she looked over at her father and she said daddy you think i should pull over and the father said no no baby just keep on driving so she kept on driving but then the storm it got worse she looked over at her father she was scared she said daddy are you sure you sure you don't want me to pull over but daddy said no no baby just keep on driving [Music] but the storm it got so bad that the daughter could barely see an inch in front of her face other cars started pulling over in the storm even 18 wheelers started pulling over in the storm she looked over at her dad and she was in fear and the dad said just keep on driving and then eventually they made it through the storm and the daddy said okay baby now pull over so she pulls over the car she has a grin on her face and she looks at her dad and says okay daddy i know why you wanted me to pull over now he said why is that baby she said you want me to thank god for bringing us through the storm he smiled back and said yeah baby that's it but there's another lesson that you got to learn here she said i don't understand he said get out of the car i'll show you so they get out of the car she says turn around and look back tell me what you see she said i see the storm he said no no no no baby that's not all you see tell me what else you see she said i don't get it daddy he said baby where are all of the cars that pulled over in the storm where's the 18-wheeler that pulled over in the storm she said they're still in the storm he said that's it baby that's the lesson that i want you to learn you see when you pull over you make the storm last longer but if you just keep on going and keep moving ahead and keep believing that it's possible to keep your hope and keep your faith then you will make it in your story thank you that's my time [Applause] [Music] pastor abram henry is a native of brooklyn new york he is an ordained pastor in the seventh-day adventist church and has previously served as an educator and a chaplain he is currently the youth ministry director for the lake region conference of seventh-day adventists prior to accepting the call to lake region conference he served as a senior pastor for two districts in the central states conference and illinois conference he founded oakwood university's master's guide program and most recently founded lake union club ministry academy serving over twenty thousand pathfinders and adventurers during covet 19. [Music] his undergraduate studies were conducted at oakwood university where he studied theology and at the city college of new york where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in communications in addition he earned a master's of divinity degree from andrews university and most recently received his doctorate of ministry degree in strategic leadership from claremont school of theology he has a very strong passion for youth evangelism and ministering to youths in relevant ways training them to lead in their local churches and challenging them to impact their communities he credits his ability to stay in the church during his youth to exceptional youth ministry leaders that were present in his life he is married to his loving and supportive wife rebecca and they both are passionate about serving god together in this great work after the praise and worship team please listen to our 2021 youth federation speaker pastor abram henry [Music] [Music] through the valley of the shadow of death i will fear no evil for the lord is my right and my staff [Music] but the lord is [Music] [Music] [Music] though i was [Music] but the lord is [Music] raise up your voice [Music] he's a strong town he's a mighty fortress [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] he's a mighty fortune [Music] goodness [Music] mercy dwell in your heart [Music] with you lord [Music] and i will dwell [Music] [Music] [Music] all in your house and i will dwell in your house dwell in your house dwell in your house and i will dwell in your house dwell in your house dwell in your house [Music] with you lord [Music] dwell in your house [Music] with you lord [Music] happy sabbath happy sabbath happy sabbath i am so honored and privileged and excited to be with you guys on this federation youth sabbath there is no better place that i would want to be than right here with you guys and with the south florida youth federation and so i want to take a moment to just say a very special thank you to your federation president and your youth ministry team that works with the federation and your many a y leaders in your area but let me tell you something your federation would not be your federation with amazing young youth and young adults who are watching from all over florida south florida and also all across our country and so i want to say a very special thank you for giving me the invitation i want to take a quick moment to shout out man let me say let me say allow me to say to this inaudible incredible and outstanding conference youth director that you have i want to take a moment to let you guys know what you already know which is that you have one of the most amazing resilient creative and hard-working youth directors all across this country and in the adventist work and i want to take a moment to thank god for my friend and my big brother pastor prince louis as you guys know he is revered and respected all over he's known for the standard of excellence that he's placed in youth ministries and you guys continue to be one of the leading conference youth departments in this work and so let's take a moment can we put our hands together and thank god for your conference youth director a special thank you to him and your team for inviting me and i was just so honored and privileged to see the support of your conference administration uh so that it was overwhelming and so a special shout out to your conference leadership now i know a whole lot of pastors in florida and i know if i start naming a few and giving shadows i'm gonna get myself in trouble and so i'm going to do what i came to do and that's to preach the word and so to our youth and young adults i want to give an extra special thank you to you and man that praise team this morning was awesome if you were blessed by the praise team the singers and the musicians man i felt like i was in the building and if you were touched and blessed by our praise and worship team and the musicians would you go ahead and take a moment and say amen actually i'm gonna invite you to type amen in the chat section i mean they were off the chain they were awesome and so thank you guys for doing what you do and listen man i'm gonna steal y'all i'm gonna steal y'all so we gonna talk we gonna talk we gonna talk if you came to hear a word i wanna invite you to turn in your bibles to the book of genesis that is the first book of the bible that is genesis chapter 22 and we're gonna read from verse three to verse seven once again that's genesis chapter 22 and we're gonna read from verse three to verse seven the lord has a word for all of our youth and young adults so let's go there once again genesis 22 verse three to verse seven now here's what the bible says check this check this this is what the bible says the bible says so abraham got up early in the morning and saddled his donkey and took two of the young men with him and his son isaac and he split wood for burnt offering and set out to the place of which god told him and the bible goes on to say on the third day abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance then abraham said to his young men stay here stay here with the donkey and i and the lad will go over there and we will worship and return to you and the bible says and abraham took the word for birth offering and laid it on his son isaac and he took the hands he took in his hand the fire and the knife and so the bible says that two of them walked together verse seven echoes isaac spoke to his father abraham and said my father and he said here i am my son and he said look the fire and the wood but where is the lamb for birth offering and the bible says in this last verse abraham said god will provide himself a lamp for birth offering my son and so the two of them so the two of them walk together can we take a moment and pray father heaven god we thank you so much we thank you god for this awesome moment that you've destined from the beginning of time god you destined to be with us on this sabbath you destined that on this south eastern conference youth federation day that god this will be a day that young people will make decisions for you and so father as you radically reach across homes and computer screens and living rooms and church buildings i pray that this will be a life-changing federation day because you were in it and father i pray one more time god that you would think through my mind speak through my mouth and stand in my body in christ jesus then we pray let everyone say the words amen amen amen y'all we are dealing with the situation where there is a man named abraham you guys know abraham he's a patriarch in scripture he's someone who is well known as as the father of many nations we grew up singing the songs father abraham i found that song annoying because my name is abraham and let me tell you guys something we know that abraham in the bible is known as a man of faith but allow me to share one of his trials in faith understand that the truth be told abraham is married to a woman named sarah y'all still with me abraham is married to a woman named sarah and they are struggling to have children for years upon years for years upon years uh they're trying their best they're praying they're seeking counsel and it just seems that maybe sarah is barren and is not going to have kids and let me tell you why this situation is much more intense than the average person views it it's simply because god has promised abraham that he's going to be the father of many nations but the truth is is the brother can't even get the position to be the father of his household because the brother can't even have children how in the world can abraham be the father of many nations if he can't even be the father of his house i've got to stop and i've got to pause and i've got to talk to some parents for a quick moment because we have some people uh i run into parents all the time and leaders sometimes who oftentimes want to be the father in church and the father of the community and the father of many nations they want to be an impactful leader and that's all right they want to be someone who souls and pours into people but let me tell you something it means nothing to be a father to your community and a father to your church and the father to your world if you can't be a father in your house our hallelujah i gotta talk to somebody today understand there are young people who need the attention of their parents there are young people who need the attention of their mothers and their fathers and so let me go back to the text and share with you that abraham can't even be the father of his house because abraham can't have children with sarah for years they are praying for years they're sitting in pastor's office and pastors praying for years the elders are anointing them for years they're seeing doctors and family doctors and they're even seeing specialists for years they're looking at other options and trying to figure out what to do and let me tell you something finally god shows up let me tell somebody something when god says he's gonna do something young people y'all gotta hear me but god says that he's gonna get you the job you best to know that god is gonna get you the job let me tell you like this when god says uh that despite your grades he's gonna get you into the college of your choice let me tell you so that god is gonna get you into the college of your choice are you listening to me understand when you stayed up night after night and you studied for the exams and the finals that you're worried and your stomach is hurting and you're sweating and you're going over the quiz no cards on your iphone let me tell you something when god says you're gonna pass the test you best to believe that you're going to pass the test when god says he's going to find the right bull and the right bait for you let me tell you something it means that god has set aside somebody who is going to blow your mind are you with me what i am telling you is is that god cannot break his promise when god tells you something you can take that check to the back and cash it because god is faithful i wish i had a witness in there is there anybody in the building is there anybody in this church building in florida is there anybody watching in front of their television screen who can account and testify that god kept his promise you got the job uh you found the right person uh you're hanging out with the right friends you're living in the house that god promised you're going to the job that god had set up for you let me tell you that god is an awesome god because god gives abraham and sarah a son named isaac just as he promised when people wrote them off when people said it was impossible when people said it's never going to happen you're too old it's impossible you are beyond childbearing age let me tell you something they may have looked crazy but they just showed how crazy their faith was and trusting that god was going to do what he said but the situation begins to turn around and listen let me tell you why situation turns around because god does a 360 on them or let me say in better dimensional terms he does a 180 on them and the reason why god does a 180 on them is because god tells abraham the very son i promised you the very son you've waited for the very son you've prayed for the very son you brought to the seventh adventist church and offered up in front of the church on the sabbath morning and dedicated him the very child that you sent to a crater rose sabbath school and primary sabbath school and and you put him in a y and you set him to go to federation days and he went to junior camp and southeastern conference the very child who was in the adventurers who went through busy bee and sunbeam and builder the very uh a son who you sent the path on his friends companion explorer ranger voyager guide the very son who attended escape nights and and special days at theme parks in florida i went to sea world with with with youth ministry groups this same son who you love and sent to advent adventist school i want you to take your son and god is even more specific he says i want you to take your son your only son and i want you to sacrifice him listen to what he says i want you to sacrifice him at the place of which i tell you for three days there is some reality within the text for three days abraham is struggling to figure out if he's losing his mind for three days he's wondering if he's hearing voices for three days he's wondering if he made this thing up in his head for three days he's trying to figure out how am i gonna tell my wife that god told me that i've gotta sacrifice our son i'm so glad i was in the abraham in this text because this story would have been very different but the bible says after three days that abraham takes the donkey he takes the wood he takes the knife he takes the two servants and he takes his son and he begins to make the journey to the place of which god told him and the bible says they worked their way up the mountain uh some versions of scripture say it was mount moriah and allow me to share with you something for three days they traveled up this mountain until they got to a certain point and something happens but before we get there can i tell you something for a second allow me to tell you a quick story and i got to share this in a hurry because we don't have too much time i understand when i was leaving for oakwood college i had the privilege of attending oakland college where i studied theology and minored in biblical languages and i remember when i was leaving for college one year i think it was my second year or my second semester all i know is is i was getting ready to drive up with a whole bunch of stuff but i was driving up with a group of friends and so i'm from brooklyn new york are you guys hearing me i'm from brooklyn new york and and i've met my friends in new jersey and we got into my friend's car i put my luggage in and my friend drove about three or four hours we made it through pennsylvania and we made it into west virginia and i remember my friend started yawning and getting tired you went through the routine of playing music loud and lowering the windows so you get the air hitting you to keep you awake and finally my friend gave out and my friend said listen let's pull over and let's sleep but i was full of energy and this is about three o'clock in the morning so i told my friend i said listen give me the keys i'm gonna take over driving and and don't worry i'm gonna go ahead and stay awake by the time you wake up you can take over and so my friend said okay back then we didn't have um gps's or we didn't have waze y'all know how y'all be avoiding the cops we didn't have weights on our phone and google maps all we had was mapquest printed directions and so i hopped onto the highway and i stayed awake i drove a three hours i drove four hours are y'all listening to me and understand uh all i know is is my friend started to wake up my friend is in the back seat uh my friend starts to wake up and when my friend begins to wake up my friend says to me man you're still driving i said yeah i'm wide awake i'm driving and my friend begins to say to me if y'all are still with me my friend begins to say to me real quick uh where are we where are what state are we in what state are we in uh uh where are we and i turned back to my friend and i said well i'm not sure and my friend said well you weren't paying attention to to signs and i said no i wasn't my friend said that's all right we're gonna see a state sign i'm sure in a few minutes but we made some good distance we've been driving for about eight hours and all i know is within a few moments i saw a state sign from a distance started smiling but then realized that the sign said welcome to new jersey in essence the very place i started from i have wind up driving right back in the direction we came from because we were headed i think we were headed uh south and i accidentally went north on the highway when i took over as the driver in essence i had made a whole lot of movement that's why i have mercy i see y'all in the chat section that's right i have made a whole lot of movement but i didn't make any progress and i'm talking to some youth and young adults today don't be like me don't just get involved in making movement but we need young people who are not just making movement but we need youth and young adults who are about making progress what does that mean that means that we are not just satisfied with doing stuff because anybody can do stuff i'm talking to somebody who's in college anybody can go to college but we need people who are going to college with a purpose because they plan to fulfill the will of god over their lives let me tell you something anybody can work a job but we need people who are working the job that god has called them to work and are not trying to walk in other people's shoes let me tell you something or you can date anybody are y'all listening to me but let me tell you something god has someone special for you y'all that's right i i don't care if they're pretty or if they're handsome if if they look like beyonce or or or if they dress like jay and they're swagged out let me tell you something listen it's not just about looks and the job they're gonna have how much money they make man we gotta not just be satisfied with movement we've gotta be satisfied with progress and that means when we date i'm gonna pause i'm gonna put qui put a quick commercial here that means that when we date we are dating with intention to make sure that we are getting with the person that god has destined for us are y'all with me and i gotta pause because i'm talking to youth and young adults can i talk to y'all for a second come here let me talk to y'all for a second let me tell you guys something when the bible speaks i'm speaking and this is a dating plug here because i'm about to bless somebody right now when the bible speaks about being equally yolked do y'all know what that means all right when i heard that phrase when i was younger i always thought it just was referring to denominational brands but let me tell you being spiritually yolked actually means back in the day when oxens used to plow the fields that means when oxens used to cut grass and and collect crop check this out there were two oxens who would pull something on their back and the two oxens would be side by side and they would put something over the two oxens and when they would put something over the shoulders of the two oxens if the two oxens weren't the same size y'all listen to what i'm saying if the two oxens weren't the same size instead of moving in the right direction and staying straight because one is smaller than the other as they are plowing the fields eventually one moves quicker because he's bigger and eventually they start going in circles oh i'm about to bless somebody right now what i am sharing with you is is when you are spiritually unequally yoked with someone you wind up running in circles in essence you want to go through cycles and routines and cycles and cycles and cycles that are hard to break and so i'm telling someone man we got to make sure we get with people who are equally yolked a spiritually equally oaked and that's not just for relationships that's also with friendships so what i'm not saying is is that you gotta cut off everybody who's not your size what i am saying is is when you are choosing a life partner you gotta make sure that you guys have the same spiritual goals you guys are looking to grow in the same spiritual way you guys are in sync and in harmony are y'all listening to what i'm saying to y'all that's right so what i'm saying is is don't be stuck making movement but make sure you're making movement that is progressional you are making progress i hope i bless somebody's soul just now y'all y'all got me shouting in my living room man my neighbors probably think i'm crazy let me tell you guys something abraham is making not just movement but he's making progress because he goes to the place of which god tells him that ought to be our goal not just to do what god tells us but to end up where god wants us let me tell you something about success young people we have in the 21st century the wrong idea of what success is and let me talk to some folks who know what it's like to live in miami who knows it's like to live in brooklyn who know what it's like to live in chicago let me tell you some living the fast-paced life i remember thinking when i used to hear the word success that success was simply based on the car you drove the house you lived in the area code you went back to the cell phone you holes the clothes that you wear the alphabet soup letters you have behind your name but can i tell you that success is not based on those things but success is based on living out the will of god in your life what am i telling you i'm about to bless them i'm telling someone that you could be someone who has metro pcs and still be successful because you are living the will of god in your life what am i telling you you could be someone i know payless doesn't exist anymore but we had painless back in my day let me say something you could be someone who's not rocking the cleanest shoes who doesn't have the cleanest pair of jays who isn't wearing the most expensive suit who maybe doesn't shop at banana republic or or j crew or the gap but let me tell you something it is possible for you to still be in the will of god excuse me and have success in god it is possible for you to not have the highest degrees and not have graduated from an ivy league and still be successful because you are living in the will of god nothing is wrong with having nice stuff nothing is wrong with having degrees nothing is wrong with having education and living in a nice area code but what i want to make sure is that we are not chasing that stuff for success but we are chasing the will of god that will get us the places that we did not imagine but that's the focus it's pursuing not stuff but pursuing god and his plan y'all are y'all with me y'all so here we are y'all here is abraham he is doing what god asked him to do and he is going to the place of which god told him to go and hear abraham he gets to a certain point in the mountain and he does something the bible says that he says three things he turns to his servants and he says the words stay here did y'all hear me i i need us to park it for a quick moment he says the words stay here to his servants in essence abraham knows his age and realizes he's older in age and if he takes the servants up the mountain to where god told him he realizes they're going to stop him from sacrificing isaac in essence abraham understands that everybody who is your friend everyone who hangs out with you is not meant to go where you are going but there are some people who are not meant to go where you are going there are some friends who will go where you're going but there are some people if we're not careful they may have helped us in one season and can hinder us in another season abraham understands that there are some people if you're not careful they will get in the way of where god is taking you and will prevent you from doing what god is asking you and so he turns to his servants and he says the words stay here i want to set someone free this morning because there is somebody who knows that there are some people in your life who are getting in the way of you fulfilling god's plan of obedience god's plan of mission god's plan of purpose in your life and if you're not careful they're going to keep you back from doing what god asked and being who god made you to be and there are some people who today before the service ends you need to text someone you need to you need to text someone you need to call someone you need to hit somebody up and you need to tell them the words stay here that's right i said it there is someone in the sound of my voice who needs to be set free there is someone who is not about god's business there is somebody who is distracting you there is someone who is setting you in the wrong direction there is someone who is getting in your way there is someone who is not helping you they are not propelling you they are not progressing you they are not pouring into you they are not praying with you they are getting in the way they're not taking you forward they're taking you backwards and you need to make up in your mind that before today's sermon ends you're going to be giving notice to the enemy and to those people and to those habits and to those things and to those ways and to those mentalities and to those traditions you're gonna say stay here there are some people who think that when they look in the mirror you are not the greatest and let me tell you something you need to leave that mentality and tell that mentality to stay here there is someone who looks at their skin and maybe you feel like you're too dark or you're too light or your hair is not long enough and maybe you're not pretty enough or maybe your body size or shape is not the way that you want let me tell you something man man when you live in god you don't need a whole bunch of surgeries to make you attractive for people what i am telling somebody today y'all what i am telling you man is that at the end of the day at the end of the day we need to make sure we have mentalities that tell ourselves when we face the mirror that we are god's finest and that we are the image of god and we are going to be satisfied with the way god made us and we're not gonna try to reshape and remold ourselves to be the image of someone in a magazine or someone on tv or someone in a netflix show episode six uh episode six season seven uh you're not trying to size up yourself with love and hip hop but you understand that you are living out god's purpose and you want to be who god wants you to be y'all and so here we are man here we are abraham says to the servants stay here so you're leaving some stuff behind he says the word stay here he says we're going to worship but then he says the words that blew my mind y'all ready for this he says the words we'll be back for we are going to worship let me tell you guys something that blew my mind are y'all so weird i'm landing this thing i'm landing this thing he said to the servants not only stay here he tells them we'll be back for we are going to worship now i thought we're going to shout just now i thought when reading this text that maybe abraham was lying to his servants so that they don't get in the way but i realized that abraham had such radical faith that abraham knew if he was going up the mountain to sacrifice his son isaac that if god asked him to lay isaac down and give up his life that god had the power to raise him back up from the death did y'all hear me abraham said we'll be back for we are going to worship in essence if god puts him to die god has the strength to raise him back up what am i telling our young people today what am i telling youth and young adults y'all listen to me what i'm telling you is is any time god asks us to give up something it's because god has got something better for us did you hear me if god asks you to give up something it's because god has better for you and what i am telling you today if god asks you to let something go or to let someone go it's because god has got better for you he says we'll be back for we are going to worship let me tell you something what's interesting about this text two things are interesting about this text is this is the first time that god is asking abraham to do something without giving him a promise are we willing to do what god asked even if god doesn't promise us another thing are we willing to do what god asked even when the rubber doesn't meet the road are we willing to do what god asked even if we don't know if god has us covered tomorrow can we be faithful to god not because god's going to give us stuff not because god's going to provide material possessions but because we simply love god and want to be obedient to him are we willing to this is the first time in the bible that the word worship is ever mentioned did y'all hear me the word worship is never mentioned in the bible before genesis chapter 22. and for the first time the word worship is mentioned and what blew my mind is in the first scene of worship which happened on this mountain with abraham and isaac regretfully sadly there are no drums there is no piano there are no pews there are there is no bulletin there are no deacons or no elders there is no doxology there is no standing and sitting there are no hands being raised there are no hymnals there's no praise or worship team there is no federation what's present to make this scene of worship what it is is one thing it's something called sacrifice the only element that was present in the first worship scene in the bible was one thing it was sacrificed what i realized is is it's very possible to come to church to come to federation day very possible to come to these events lift hands sing and shout see your friends hear the sermon preached put a gift in the offering upload your tithe to e-adventist through the app and the truth is is you did all these things you suited up you came on time you read the sabbath school lesson you greeted the ushers you high-five your neighbors and never really worshiped why because sometimes we can do all those things and if we've never given of ourselves and sacrificed that we've never truly worshipped and what i'm saying today is is don't leave this federation day without having worshiped don't leave this federation day without having so with being with it being said that you sang you heard the preaching you gave an offering you participated you engaged but you never really sacrificed what i'm saying is is that as isaac is laying down on this mountain i thought for years that the mvp was abraham because it took a whole lot of faith to simply sacrifice your son but i realize that mvp in this text is not abraham but the mvp in this text is isaac because while it takes a whole lot of faith to be the one holding the knife it takes a whole lot of faith to be the one laying down and the bible says that isaac was laying down and when abraham was getting ready to sacrifice him he stops abraham and says don't sacrifice isaac he says there is a ram in the thicket and i'm saying this as i'm closing as i'm closing what i'm telling you is that god was on their side what i'm telling you is that god was testing not just abraham but i believe god was also testing isaac you see there's something amazing about this text i didn't realize at first glance whenever people read this text and you read about isaac when we hear about isaac being the son of abraham we begin to think that isaac is a small helpless little child who couldn't help but to follow his dad's orders when you read the word son in hebrew in the original language we come to know this that there are two words to describe child there's one word to describe child as a pre-adolescent kid who is he's a kid he has no control he's playing with his with his blocks and he plays video games and he sits in in second grade and he's helpless are you guys hearing me let me tell you something that's the word ye led the word ye led stands for a pre-adolescent child but the word ya led is not the word that's used here the word that's used here in this text is the word nar which does not represent a little helpless child but it's the word that specifies the relationship the word child means the relationship between father and son and the word they are usually represents the age group of someone who is a teenager in essence in hebrew culture usually someone who is a teenager in their mid-teens is normally considered an adult in essence what am i saying to you isaac is not a helpless little child who's laying down he is probably someone who is a youth just like a youth in this federation sitting in this federation date and he had the ability to get up and say no but he trusted his father's faith and chose to lay down let me tell you something y'all i was watching a youtube video the other day and listen to what blew my mind i was watching a story about a man who fell asleep behind the wheel on the highway and he was in danger of hitting someone and possibly killing them because he was flying at enormous speeds and the truth is they're trying to figure out what are we gonna do to slow him down so he doesn't kill someone and he doesn't kill himself and two police officers did the unthinkable these two police officers hopped onto the highway in the opposite direction and they positioned themselves in such a way on the highway that they were gonna face the car head-on simply because they were trying to get the driver to hit them so the driver wouldn't hit anyone else in essence they were willing to pay the ultimate price just to make sure that no one else did and this reminds me of who jesus is because jesus is somebody who's willing to pay the ultimate price for us not only is he willing to but he paid the ultimate price for us and i'm so glad that god paid the ultimate price for you and the ultimate price for me abraham and i want you to know that we couldn't end this federation day without allowing god who is the rhyme in our thicket to take our place if you leave this federation day being your own person and your own man and your own woman then you have to bear your own results but today we don't have to leave as our own person but we could leave as god's child and that means that we are willing to put our lives in the hand of god and allow god are y'all listening to me and allow god to forgive us for our sins clothe us in his righteousness and unfold the plan that he has for our lives can i close one last story let me tell you guys something what i'm going to share with you real quick is i specifically remember a few years ago i had a preacher come preach for me sunday morning i was getting ready to take him back to the airport we stopped off at the restaurant called cracker barrel and i told this story to a few places that if you haven't heard that i hope you hear it i want you guys know when i took my friend to crack a barrel all i know is as we were waiting in line for a long time we decided to sit on the porch in rocking chairs and we sat with a checkerboard in front of us and we began to play the game checkers and as we're playing the game checkers and his wife is standing behind him and my wife is standing behind me all i know is as we're playing the game checkers i'm talking a whole lot of smack and a whole lot of mess and i'm telling him how i'm going to beat him and i got this and he ain't got nothing on me because i'm from brooklyn bridal die and all i know is as we are playing the game checkers it gets a little bit more intense because it starts raining outside and people from outside begin to stand on the inside of the porch at cracker brow while we're sitting in the rocking chairs and playing checkers and now everybody and their mama is standing around my shoulders and now my wife is poking me in my back and she's telling me that i better win and i began to start praying in my head because we can pray about anything and i began praying and telling god that you meant you made me to be the head and not the tail above and not beneath that god you got to show up and show out in this midnight hour and all i know is as we're playing the game of checkers and and and it's intense and the truth is is i only got three pieces left he has all his pieces on the table he has most of my pieces and i'm trying to figure out what to do and i'm nervous a few moments later the buzzer goes off and tells us to go to table number seven and i go in with my head held high i go in with my head that oh hi i take my seat i take my jacket off my wife is looking at me like i'm crazy and all i know is is the preacher is speechless why because the preacher says to me how in the world did you abraham win this game of checkers that's right y'all i won the game of checkers y'all i'm telling y'all won the game of checkers he said how did you win this game of checkers he said you only had three pieces he said you had the red pieces i had the black pieces he said you were losing and i was winning you were down and i was up how did you win the game of checkers in the last few moments before you left the checkered table and i told them i said man preacher you're right i said you were up and i was down i had the red pieces you had the black pieces i said but there's something you missed he said what did i miss i said what you missed is the entire time yes i was losing yes i only had three pieces but what you missed is in the entire time in this game of checkers i had a king in my corner he said you had a what i said i had a king in my corner and i came to this federation i came to the south florida youth federation to tell you that the reason why you can walk with your head health high and you can do what god asked is simply because you've got a king in your corner and today as hands about and eyes are closed i want to give you the chance to give god the opportunity to bless your life today i want you know that god is on your side god loves the mess out of you and there's nothing you can do about it god's got your back if you don't have anybody rooting for you god is rooting for you and i want you to know for someone who feels like you have no purpose and you have no plan and you have no mission and you're trying to figure out why you keep waking up the reason why you keep waking up every morning is because god is not done with you yet and god has a plan for your life did you hear me come on y'all gonna make me speaking of some haitian crayola i know how y'all florida folks are y'all i'm about to say uh i'm man and benny swale 10 now are y'all listening to what i'm saying y'all i'm telling you that god has a plan for you and that god's not done for you and that god loves you and today if you are not a baptized member of god's church today if you've never made a decision for jesus christ let me tell you something you got to be in it to win it and if you want to make that decision on this sabbath morning i want to take this moment to appeal to you to make that decision today this may be your very first time making a decision or maybe you've made a decision before and you want to recommit and make a new renewed decision in god maybe you felt disconnected during this pandemic and things are just not going your way i want to tell you that god wants to connect with you and that god loves you and that for god forgives you and that god has a plan and a purpose for your life and god wants you to be in this thing and that guess what the church is much more than a building it's a family and god wants you in his family because you are not god's step child you are god's child you are god's bloodline god loves you and so if you want to make a decision to say hey it's me i want to make a decision to accept jesus christ and lord as lord and savior of your life if you want to say i want some bible studies passed laws i want some bible studies to the pastors in florida i want some bible studies sister vivian i want somebody i want to get into a relationship with jesus if that's your desire i want you to type in the chat section right here on youtube and facebook i want you to go to somebody who's in the church building and let a leader know that you want to make that decision if that's you would you make that decision would you say it's me in the chat section would you raise your hand in the building would you make that decision today would you make that decision i want to pray for you can i pray for you father in heaven god i thank you so much for the decisions that were made and the lives that were saved and transformed because of you preaching the word today and god i thank you so much for the honor and privilege of being able to extend the call that you made to them my father for those who made that decision i pray that you will bless and seal their decision write their name in the land book of life we thank you for these things in jesus name we pray let god's children say the words amen say amen again one more time thank you so much to the south florida youth federation for inviting me to be with you on this federation day and i look forward and i'm hoping you guys will extend the privilege for me to come and join you guys again one more time in the flesh i would love to come down and hang with you guys man i'm sending all my love all my prayers all my well wishes your way one more time i'm gonna ask you guys do me a favor and continue to take care of your your south florida youth federation leaders and your conference youth director take care my big brother god bless you guys and may the lord god be with you take care and enjoy the rest of this sabbath [Music] are [Music] oh [Music] [Music] [Applause] he makes my life [Music] is [Music] so we saw [Music] my [Music] he makes my life [Music] [Music] [Music] god [Music] god [Music] good afternoon youth federation we would like to thank our speaker for their powerful message and we have to remember that trouble does not last always let us pray dear heavenly father we would like to firstly thank our speaker for their powerful message this sabbath lord help us to remember that trouble does not last always god i pray that you will be with us this week in our daily activities lord i pray that you'll help us to understand that you are our provider and that you will grant us what we need lord protect us be with us this week as we depart from this place but never from your presence in your name i pray amen [Music] [Music] [Music] i'm so mad [Music] but i know he's on time [Music] you'll be there [Music] oh [Music] [Music] you may not come when you want him but i know he's on time [Music] i found him to be a friend of mine when storm clouds rise in your life i know you'll be there [Music] all of your burdens all he will be [Music] [Applause] is [Music] me [Music] joy comes in the morning [Music] no [Music] oh [Music] no [Applause] [Music] [Music] trouble don't laugh [Music] joy comes in the morning [Music] foreign [Music] me [Music] [Music] so [Music] you

Channel: SFA Youth Federation

Views: 747

Rating: 4.6923075 out of 5

Keywords: SFAYF, SFA Youth Federation, Florida, SECSDA, Southeastern Conference of SDA, Organization, Youth, Vivian Bryant, SFAYF 2021, Pastor Abraham Henry, Special Event, Fed Virtual Celebration

Id: LOnq48SrSUI

Length: 167min 16sec (10036 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 18 2021