Summer SZN | Summer is Coming | Llewellyn Dixon

welcome to the victory broadcast if this ministry has impacted you in any way please consider supporting the spread of the gospel by visiting us online and choosing the giving option that works best for you now we pray that this message will stir your heart and build your faith get ready to receive the word of god good morning victory family good morning good morning it is such a blessing to be with you all this morning as you can tell i'm not pastor philip but i am llewellyn dixon i'm the director of discipleship here at victory church and like i said it's just a pleasure to be with you all this morning to see your your faces through the camera i can see you don't don't worry about it i can see you i know exactly where you are you in the car you're in the bed in the living room curled up doing something right on your phone whatever i peed it's okay um it's good to be with you all this morning um we are in our very first week of our summer season series um and i'm just excited to be able to share this word with you all this morning got some good stuff coming by the grace of god and you know we'll we'll we'll have some fun this morning um i do want to just thank god for our pastor uh miss lena who are obviously not here right now but we just thank god for their hard work we thank god for all the work and the dedication that they have put into this church over the years and so even over covert so just give them a shout in the chats just you know put a fist up put something up some sort of emoji just to honor our pastor and his wife in this moment um so let's go to god in prayer father thank you so much thank you so much for being faithful god thank you for your word from on the high thank you for your people god thank you for the body thank you for strength god thank you for life thank you for your spirit god i just pray that in this moment god you speak father god you speak you speak god you get all of the glory father let me get nothing but you get all glory god that you allow the ears that need to hear this word god that they would hear it that you would allow the hearts that need this word god to hear it god that you would be glorified in everything that's done and said here today we love you father we honor you and we thank you jesus you are our master you are our king you are our lord and our god and we give everything unto you so we love you in jesus name amen amen all right so when i finally say the title of this message uh my game of thrones fans are gonna are gonna laugh a little bit so just be ready summertime is normally associated with fun freedom rest and relaxation and while the inherent nature of summertime will be with us even this summer many of us are coming out of very cold and lonely or dark winters many of us have struggled during covid to maintain we've struggled to maintain our finances we've struggled to maintain our relationships we've struggled to maintain our mental emotional and physical health some of us some of us have even struggled to maintain our relationship with god like sheep many of us have gone astray we've wandered into unknown territories when isolation and social distancing got the best of us some of us even social distance away from the father our connection to god struggled because of our inability to meet and gather with the assembly of believers but may i encourage you all with this declaration summer is coming winter has passed and summer is coming so if you're taking notes and like i said if you're a game of thrones fans you might appreciate the joke summer is coming so what is summer in our natural world summer is a time for vacations it's a time of cookouts and family reunions a time for walks in the park and swimming in the pools a time for brunches and beaches laughter and travel a time to enjoy working out outside as opposed to the gym if you're like me and you like to run outside it's a time for my drake fans for wearing lesson going out more summer is a time to relax and breathe after experiencing months of cold weather which keeps you constantly running in the house to keep warm summer represents clarity summer represents peace calm celebrations new life if winter is a season of cold limited sunlight and where hardly anything can grow summer is warm bright and prosperous summer is a time of enjoyment summer is coming but to fully know and enjoy summer we must also understand what winter means winter is dark with shorter sunlight and longer nights winter hurts winter is uncomfortable things don't grow in winter time winter time might see you with restless nights sleepless nights winter time might find you in a place where you just don't know what to do where to go who to talk to or where to turn winner when it might seem like it's endless sometimes we look around and wonder when will this be done winter hurts our text today is comes from actually my favorite book in the bible the book of ecclesiastes ecclesiastes is a book that is filled with wisdom written by the man with the most wisdom in history king solomon and so i personally enjoy this book because king solomon wrote this book towards the end of his life after he had done it all seen it all he had been rich he had been poor he had done foolish things he had done wise things he had walked away from god and he had walked faithfully with god solomon had seen it all and if you're like me and you enjoy talking to your elders then you understand uh why reading this book is my favorite because i get to hear the wisdom of a man who has lived long and seen it all so we're going to go to the third chapter we're going to read the first eight verses of that chapter but we're only going to focus on one main verse but the first eight verses are important i'm going to read it from the new king james version because i like the poetry it's fun it's beautiful to everything there is a season a time for every purpose under heaven a time to be born and the time to die a time to plant and the time to pluck what is planted a time to kill and the time to heal the time to break down into time to build up a time to weep and a time to laugh a time to mourn in the time to dance a time to cast away stones and the time to gather stones a time to embrace and the time to refrain from embracing a time to gain in the time to lose a time to keep and the time to throw away a time to tear and a time to sow a time to keep silence and a time to speak a time to love and a time to hate a time of war and a time of peace now in reading this there are various verses that we could take for our times especially the year that many of us have just come out of a time to embrace and the time to refrain from embracing we could go to that verse because many of us have not been able to hold our loved ones in hard times or crisis many of us have not been able to even see our loved ones and and so there have there's many verses here that we could focus on but i want to focus on the first one to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven and so if there's one word that i want you to take from this message one word for my believers and those who are struggling to believe in you don't really know if this is for you i want you to remember this one word put it bold and underlined in your notes it's simple enjoy enjoy enjoy i mentioned summertime and the beauty of summertime and i mentored and i mentioned winter time and the struggles and the harshness that comes with the winter time but i've come to notice that too often we allow winter to last longer than it needs to in our lives too often we allow the pain to have too much of a say in how we move and what we do too often we don't recognize this is a time to celebrate too often we don't recognize that god has been good that god has now moved us out of one place of struggle and we're so used to being in work mode struggle mode survival mode that we don't recognize when we're now living in a different season in a different time so family enjoy enjoy don't dwell on the long winters or the hard seasons recognize when the seasons are changing may i remind you that even though a farmer plants the crops during the time the farmer cannot insist on working on the crops all year round forever and ever and ever why because there's a short window of time when the crop is at its perfect timing that he must pluck a time to pluck up in a time to and a time to pluck up in a time to plant there's a there's a point in time where the farmer must pluck that plant so that he can receive the greatest version of it it's at its ripest point because if he chooses to continue to work on the soil he'll miss it and the crop will rot enjoy pluck the fruit while you still have time pluck the fruit while it's sweet get the crop while it's the best that it can be enjoy so three things a very simple message number one family enjoy yourself enjoy yourself enjoy yourself laugh take vacations enjoy the fruits of your labor so many of us work if you're like me and a lot of my other friends we work we work we work some of us have been in struggle mode for so long we don't even know what it's like to take a day off stop and enjoy yourself reconnect with the person that that that likes hobbies re go go out and do something fun scripture again ecclesiastes is very clear i want to let it be known that god is not intending for us to be on earth and be workhorses all of our lives he gave us this beautiful earth to enjoy so enjoy yourself ecclesiastes 5 and 18. here is what i've seen it is good and fitting for one to eat and drink and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which god gives him for it is his heritage it is good and fitting for one to eat and drink and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which god gives him for it is his heritage enjoy yourself it is his heritage also can be translated as it is his portion which means that you deserve it enjoy yourself it's okay to have fun close the laptop put the book down if you're in school take a break a stud use your summer break to actually have a summer break internships are cool and all of that but enjoy yourself summer is coming don't miss out on all this beautiful weather figuratively and literally don't miss out on all this beautiful weather because you want to work and work and work you will miss out on the sweetness of life enjoy yourself remember who you are remember that god did not put you on this earth to just work all day long and even if if if all you've known this struggle if all you've known is struggle if all you've known is is trying to budget if all you've known is living hand to mouth i understand i get it but take a moment and enjoy yourself take a moment and enjoy the things that god has put around you go for a walk in the park go and see a friend we'll talk about that a little bit later but enjoy your self number two enjoy god embrace the fact that god embraces you i'll say it again embrace the fact that god embraces you don't let your relationship with god be hindered or dictated by others expectations embrace the fact that god embraces you don't let your relationship with god be hindered or dictated by others expectations now this is not scripture but it's it's some it summarizes scripture a lot of scriptures in one and we hear it all the time come as you are we as a church have done an excellent job of running people away with expectations that are not godly we expect for people to be perfect or to fit in a box that god did not set or design you have tattoos you don't fit in here you have weird piercings you don't fit in here you don't dress like this you don't you don't you you move like this your life doesn't look like this so you don't fit in here enjoy god family may i let you know that god may i let you know that our christianity our faith was never always meant to be a a a black and white situation it was never always meant to be a black and white there are very few times and this is for the people who are struggling to say i don't fit in with them i don't match what a christian looks like the fact of the matter is no one matches what we're told a christian looks like the christian version of the american dream where you have the perfect life no one matches that we all need a savior none of us are perfect and so when i say enjoy god i mean enjoy the freedom that god has given you to come to him without being perfect enjoy the freedom that god has given you to come to him without being perfect while being broken while trying to get your life together while while struggling with hurts while struggling with sins embrace your enjoy your relationship with god it is not his desire to cast you away for not being perfect you don't have to look a certain way or behave a certain way or be perfect enjoy god he came here to die for us to have relationship with us so if you have gone away from the church in this time period during this during this covet season and and and during social distancing you haven't been in the body you've separated yourself from the body of christ and maybe you've fallen into things that aren't right that are sinful maybe you've fallen back into sin you've drifted away from your relationship with god come back it's okay enjoy god repentance is here enjoy god you don't have to look like any certain way to come into the presence of god his presence alone will change you when you want when you come in second corinthians now this now the spirit now the lord is the spirit and where the spirit of the lord is there is liberty now the lord is the spirit and where the spirit of the lord is there is liberty that means when you come into the presence of god when the spread when the spirit of god is with you and in you you have freedom you are free you are free what does that mean that does not mean you are free to live and move and do whatever you want to do and live in sin and just no that's not what that means but it does mean that you don't have to worry about achieving anybody's else's expectations of what you should be as a christian your relationship with god is based on what is in scripture and based on what and it is based on what is in scripture the spirit of the lord is there is liberty that is your liberty you don't have to feel like you don't fit in a certain way there are people at this church who if you saw them in the street you wouldn't think that they are christians by the way that they look but i can guarantee you some of those people have the greatest and most godly hearts you don't have to look or be a certain way john 6 37 everyone whom the father gives me will come to me and the one who comes to me i will never send away this is jesus talking everyone whom the father gives me will come to me and the one who comes to me i will never send away this is where we get come as you are from it doesn't matter so if you've drifted away during covert time come as you are enjoy god if you've been kind of wrestling and you're not sure if you'll fit in with christianity enjoy god come as you are if you're thinking oh i'm this way i've done this i be i enjoy god come as you are nobody's nobody in this studio nobody watching me is perfect we all live lives that we need god's grace we all live lives that required christ to die we all live lives where we need to ask for forgiveness and repentance every day the fact of the matter is no one fits the christian version of the american dream because no one is perfect only christ enjoy god number three enjoy others enjoy others y'all we've been socially distanced for a year some of y'all have taken it very seriously because of family situations or your own health stuff we've been so and if you're in atlanta well you know some of y'all know we never really closed down but other parts in the country enjoy others have fun go out even if you still have to be socially distanced have a small gathering of people that you know who you who you can trust to have been safe enjoy others scripture is filled with fellowships and let me tell you the hebrews they knew how to throw a party their weddings lasted a week you i'm african you think african weddings are fun no no no no no no hebrew weddings lasted a week of time why because fellowship was important enjoy the loved ones that you have around you enjoy the people you have around you embrace them a time to embrace in a time to refrain from embracing summertime is a time to embrace schedule a cookout if you're like me and your birthday's in the summertime hey july babies if you're like me if and your birthday is in the summertime have a little shindig enjoy others have a bible study go working out with your friends enjoy others put down the the the books for a moment all that stuff will be there life will be the work will never cease to exist but moments will pass you by work will never cease to exist but moments will pass you by if and if you have this if you still have the opportunity to go to a graduation this summer to go to a wedding this summer a christening or something celebratory that you initially turned down because you said i have to work i pray this message convicts you and you say you know what let me buy my ticket and go see my family and my friends parents i understand that you want to work hard to provide lives for your children that you may have never had but your kids want you there more they're not going to look back and see you working or see the money in the bank account they're not going to really care too much about the inheritance that you may leave them if they look back and say they were never there he didn't come to any of my games he didn't come to any of my plays he he never listened to any of my music she just wasn't around i i remember i know my mom but i she was always at work i didn't really she didn't raise me parents enjoy your kids go on vacation together and if vacation is not an option figure out things to do as a family children enjoy your parents and when i say children i'm talking about grown adult children like myself as well enjoy your parents i know they may be a little bit annoying sometimes you may be like i'm not trying to no no different generation gaps or whatever but the fact is enjoy your parents enjoy your family take moments every moment that you can to spend time with the ones who you love cherish those work will never cease to exist moments moments won't last forever enjoy others so as i start to close i told y'all this is going to be a simple message i want to remind you that summer also marks endings some of mark's endings and new beginnings in our calendar we start school at the end of summer time we finished school at the beginning of summer time and somehow every other calendar seemed to have gone around schools because parents school systems affects parents schedules and so we've kind of worked that in summer time marks endings and new beginnings when summertime season comes family recognize it recognize that winter is over enjoy yourself enjoy your summertime season enjoy it because just like winter doesn't last forever summer doesn't last forever either summer is a time for endings and new beginnings don't allow yourself to stay in winter longer than you have to one of my favorite scriptures is john 10 10 christ says i come that they may have life and have it more abundantly life more abundantly does not just mean after now life more abundantly does not just mean with our father in heaven life more abundantly does not just mean eternal life on the other side of this natural world life more abundantly means now you can have abundant life now and i'm not talking this isn't a prosperity sermon i'm not saying uh uh your abundant life means your bank account is overflowing you got all the followers on the gram and whatever no that's not what makes your life abundant your life becomes abundant when you are able to stop look around and see the blessings of god in your life enjoy them and then say god thank you and then you realize i have everything i need then you realize god is good your mood begins to shift when you stop to enjoy god your mood will shift when you enjoy summer time if you're so focused on the winter and the seasons that came before you can't fully embrace the summertime imagine me being so focused on the winter time that and and being used to that that i walk outside in atlanta heat in a pea coat [Music] in 90 degree weather and call myself going to piedmont park for a stroll i would die of heat stroke right if you're not prepared if you don't recognize that the season has changed you can't fully embrace you can't change you can't live in the moment and fully be grateful for all that god has done because when you take a moment and say you know what winter is past not only are you grateful to god for the summer time now but then you look back old people used to say my soul looks back and wonders how i got over you look back and you say man look what god has done and your mood changes so if your winner was filled with tears and now you recognize that summer is here you can look back and say wow god really has been good boom that boosts your faith so then when the next winter comes you're ready because you know summer is coming and so fam i know some of you may say well what if even during this particular summer things are a little bit hard i understand i understand however [Music] you still have to recognize when the seasons are changing be sensitive to when seasons are changing to everything there's a season in the time for every purpose under heaven to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven winter time is a time to go through some things sometimes in our world winter time is a time to be in the house nobody's outside during wintertime when a time is a time to be inside and maybe reflect and learn and pray summer time is a time to enjoy the fruits of the work that you've done so family i do want to declare to you this morning winter has passed and summer is coming in our natural world winter has passed and summer is coming and so for some of you right now winter has passed and summer is coming and i pray that this message will wake you up to the fact that your winner has passed and your summer is coming your summer is here i pray that you can embrace and enjoy what your summer looks like look at your family and realize god has given you everything you prayed for once before look at your finances and realize that god has given you everything you prayed for before look at your friendships and realize that god has given you everything you've prayed for before everything you've worked for look at your life and even if you haven't gotten everything you've prayed for still look at now take a moment and enjoy where you are and say god thank you god thank you for this summer season because summer doesn't last always and winter will soon come enjoy now enjoy where god has you enjoy yourself enjoy god and enjoy others enjoy your community family let's pray father thank you for this message thank you for being faithful father i pray that we would enjoy your presence this summer as well as in our lives god i pray that we would enjoy our families and our communities i pray god that we would learn the art of being peace at peace and embracing peace and embracing being grateful for who you are in our lives father i pray god that you would allow us to awaken to your spirit god that we you would allow us to wake into the idea that you love us unconditionally god that we would enjoy our lives and our walks with you that this life will not be a life full of burden for us that we will not look everywhere and see burden but that we will look places and see your glory that we will glorify you that we will know to glorify you and be grateful to you [Music] father we thank you and we love you and we honor you in jesus name amen [Music] family it's been a pleasure speaking with you all this morning this is week one of our summer season series please stay tuned next week for week two of our summer season series thank you for listening to the victory broadcast we pray that message was a blessing to you if you have a story or a testimony to share we want to hear all about it send us an email to share at victorychurchatl.org or visit us online under share thanks for listening go in peace you

Channel: Victory Church

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Length: 32min 58sec (1978 seconds)

Published: Mon Jun 07 2021