Too Close To Quit I Bianca Juarez Olthoff I Social Dallas

you're going to hear from what I believe honestly this is not a Pulpit platitude probably one of the greatest voices that God has raised of for this generation for this time she comes all the way from Orange County California come on which I have publicly said is the only city outside of Dallas that I would move to because the weather over there I just it speaks to me her and her husband Pastor a phenomenal church called The Father's house and OC she is a phenomenal biblical teacher a preacher she's an author she's going to tell you more about her latest book her name is Bianca oltoff she is in the house y'all this is her first time here at Social Dallas it will not be her last she wrecked the building first service so get ready I told her this is the turnip service so come on social Dallas family would you help me give a warm social Dallas welcome to Bianca good morning social darling I need everyone still to remain standing because we're going to give honor where honor is due as always we are honoring the name above every other name which is the mighty name of Jesus but under the leadership and authority of the pastors that are here pastors Robert and Taylor can we give them a great Round of Applause for taking care of the their soul taking care of their soul because the church is only as healthy as the pastors and not to be outshined but the amazing volunteers and the staff that has held it down for the last four weeks can we thank them oh come on search we can do better than that they've been serving you taking care of your kids parking your cars amazing amazing well good morning welcome to church y'all could be seated oh you know what I love I love that your pastors care about the condition of their hearts they care about tending to the soil of their soul because like I mentioned a church is only as healthy as the church leadership now I don't say this because I am a pastor I say this because I was raised in a pastor's home okay so I saw it firsthand and I love that they have actually set the bar for me and taking multiple weeks off just to to get right with God to get tight with God to get a download but I was raised in a Christian household my daddy's a pastor he's actually still preaching right now in East L.A listen I might live in OC but I was raised in La okay in fact it's not the bougie like no we're from the west side no I'm from east L.A all right where we love Jesus but we will cut somebody real quick all right and then pray for God to heal you later anybody feel me any relatives yeah all the Mexican cholas are like that's right girl I know I I know I'm with you I get you but I will say this about our house although we didn't have what we would deem like a Sabbath every week we would have Friday family fun night and on family Friday fun night we were promised a couple of things we were promised that it was payday hello praise the Lord because Pizza always equal payday we were promised fun and we were promised time with our family well this was always such a highlight for us and so uh every Friday fun night it came with pizza now before you bougie Dallas people think like Artisan dough and Vine ripened tomatoes with fresh pulled mozzarella is better does anybody know Little Caesar's pizza that's right that's right for our Global family it's basically the McDonald's for pizza and it's everywhere and it's cheap and for our family that we were you know on a budget that buy one get one free pizza deal Works within our family budget so on Fridays my mom would let us cycle me and my twin sister Jasmine on our bikes to a little Caesar pizza now this is a big deal because it wasn't safe in our neighborhood maybe you guys rode your bikes everywhere in Suburbia but but where we are from we lived in Hood burbia so it wasn't safe and if you ever forgot who really ran the street street the graffiti um the walls let you know who really around the street so it was a little little dangerous but it was like four o'clock the sun's still out my mom trusted us gave us money we went to Little Caesars we gave the guy uh behind the counter unenthusiastic is all get out definitely needed Jesus but we smiled gave him ten dollars and walked out with our pizza now before we had gotten on our bikes to go home we noticed that there was a group of of young kids on their bikes that made a semi-circle around us now I was a little terrified see these were the gang bangers that maybe we saw growing up running the streets but definitely were like their baby cousins okay it was like the junior varsity version they sit on their bikes and one of the leaders said give us your pizza well I was terrified and I couldn't even get words out of me all I could do was just shake my head like this but Jasmine had a resolve and she let out a defiant no well her courage gave me confidence and I felt like I was bad I said let's get out of here like I wasn't even afraid so um with one look because that unspoken twin language is really a thing she looks at me I look at her bombastic side eye we get on our bikes and we zoomed past them and I made a barricade so she had the pizza I was in front of her and we zoomed to our house and boom before you knew it we were at our family dining room table for family Friday fun night with pizza praising the Lord okay praising the Lord now before we we talk about well why does this matter is because the promise of what we knew and what we were carrying the pizza was a promise that we were prop that we were good have fun that night this food might not seem like a big deal to you but to us living in not abject poverty but working poor poverty it was like with the children of Israel would refer to as manna I wasn't going to give up my Manna I wasn't going to let go of what God had promised us and had given us and let me tell you this is what I want to talk about tonight friends because if you never envisioned the end you'll give up in the middle don't let nobody take your pizza because let me tell you something and hear me ever so clearly you're too close to quit that's in fact the title of the today's message you post your notes your notebooks your highlighters and your pins and turn with me to Joshua chapter six because you are too close to quit now as you turn in your Bibles let me give you a little appetizer before we dive into the main course this is a little bit of Hebrew history the children of God were enslaved for over 400 years under the oppressive hand of pharaoh and the Lord heard the cries of the people he said I have heard the cries I have seen their tears and under the leadership of a man named Moses they left slavery they crossed over on dry ground on the Red Sea and now after 40 years of being in the desert they're under the authority of a new man by the name of Joshua and as they're about to head into the promised land more on that in a second as we're about to head into the promised land they encountered a challenge and this is where we pick it up in the text Joshua chapter 6 verse 1. now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites if you brought your Bible I want you to Circle that in your Bible if you didn't bring your Bible but you sat next to someone who did Circle it for them it's called biblical graffiti I'm about it East Los represent all right some of y'all didn't bring their Bibles and I'm like Dallas this is the Bible Belt y'all need a Bible and if you don't have one I'm gonna put pastor Taylor and Robert on the spot guess what you go to the the the Welcome Center and the free gift that they're going to give you isn't going to include a Bible if you don't have one all right all right we ready it says that the city was securely barred because of the Israelites no one went out no one came in then the Lord said to Joshua see I have delivered Jericho into your hands along with its king and it's fighting men March around the city once with all the armed men do this for how many days six have seven priests carry trumpets of Ram's horns on the front of the Ark on the seventh day March around the city how many times good job church this side is the holy side let me ask that again how many times Church [Applause] um [Music] with the priest blowing trumpets when you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets have the whole Army the whole Army give a loud shout then the wall of the city will collapse and the Army will go up everyone straight in what is that that's a promise God made a promise to Joshua and all across this room in an online Global family there's promises not yet possessed by the people of God and you could be sitting here today and be like well that's for the Hebrews God gave a specific word for them thank you YouTube Theologian you're right but I also believe that God gives his people promises for today in fact there are General promises that God promises us that God gives us a future and a hope God does have plans for good and evil God says that he will never leave you he'll never forsake you he will never abandon you those are promises for us to hold and the Bible is full of promises for us to hold on to and not give up in the waiting but I'm grieved I'm grieved because I see so many people who profess Christ and yet walk away from the promise I see people leaving churches because someone offended them I see people walk away on marriages just because you're tired of trying I see people who are quitting jobs because your boss expects you to show up on time and not come in with a Starbucks cup in your hand and then you give attitude as to why they're of course correcting you the audacity no get your life show up on time come with a smile like that's not spiritual warfare that's being an adult can I get an amen to the house of God okay don't let somebody steal your pizza because just as Friday night fun night pizza was a promise to us the children of God were promised something does anyone know any word nerd and Bible scholar put in the chat box or shout it out what were the children of God promised land that's right see on the first row that's right get your 500 extra bonus points sis yes you single somebody better snatch her up that's right there a Boaz in the house grow up better prophesy oh you look cute too mm-hmm man please come serve at that social girl all right there you go but the Lord promised them lands he promised them a letter he said this land will be yours that's a promise so you know what the children of God needed in this moment spiritual resiliency you know what we need in this moment in this cultural mores of what we are going through Society you know what we need to as children of God spiritual resiliency now I've studied the topic of great and resiliency for two years it started just as as an inquiry what is it who has it how do you build it and it has turned into this Obsession that I cannot help but put over a lens and filter a grid if you will when I read scripture this is fascinating because I am seeing so many Christians give up when they're so close to winning the battle and we quit because we don't have Grit and maybe that's you today you're so tired of trying to do everything right and everything is still so wrong you're you're frustrated because you believe God you come to church you're sowing you're tithing you're giving but your life hasn't changed you're disappointed of doing all the right things and yet all the wrong things are constantly happening now their scientific study and so much data I mean coming out from some of the top universities of our nation and the globe about what is grit and resilience now we don't really see those words in the Bible but we do have a theological understanding of grit and resilience and that is perseverance and endurance the Lord speaks to us and I want to speak through his word because there are gritty and resilient people that are in this community that will change not just their Community but have potential to change the country and the globe we pray for things like God we want to see Revival God use me God bless me but then we don't want anything in our life to change and we don't definitely want to work hard it doesn't work like that do you know and I've discovered in over two and a half years of research that resilient and gritty people possess three similar characteristics these three similar characteristics do not depend on gender social economic status ethnicity or social connectedness AKA clout no the things that I'm about to share with you if you use as a lens and filter over the grid of scripture you will see that every biblical character was a gritty gangster I don't know if the Lord will call them that but I'ma call them I'm gonna call them imma look at you and I'm gonna ask and declare the same things over you so I want to lead with the end in mind I want to tell you what these three characteristics are because you're going to know what we're gonna go the first characteristic that we see of all gritty and resilient people is a perspective they have a healthy perspective then they have an inordinate ability to Pivot well and then lastly they understand the purpose they might be in pain but what is the purpose of the pain and I chose this passage out of Joshua to dive into the word because we're actually going to see these three points played out so if we know that those are the characteristics thank you science thank you scripture what are the things that stop us from from chasing after our calling and pursuing our purpose number one for the note takers we lose perspective we lose perspective what is perspective perspective is an honest assessment of our reality with hope basically it's like oh this situation sucks but we're gonna make it it's an honest assessment it's not putting your head in the sand and trying to pray it all away God is good all the time and all the times God is good and I'm just going to read scripture and get over it no no no no it's an honest assessment buttressed by hope for the Israelites it's the promise and the promise is that they will inherit a land that's promised to them but there's a problem now you have to know there's always a problem stand it between God's promise and our possession see we love to teach about the promises of God that God is for us that he has a plan we love that and we want to hold on to that because it's easy we love the idea of like God has a plan for me that there's a purpose for my life that he could take my pain and my shame and use it for his glory and for his good amen hallelujah we love to speak with Christian platitudes and speak this language you guys are fluent in the South I don't know if you all know this it's called christianese do you know what Christian ease is it's the language that we as Christians use as Insider language let's try it God is good all the time and you're fluent amen we walk in and say hallelujah he's risen indeed glory to God you almost beat your children on the way to church but then you take them over to kids church and you're like here's my cherubim and my seraphim I feed them Nana this morning they're gonna be so good we love coming to church with our plastic faces I'm from Orange County what I like to say is that the botox that is in our face has crept its way into our hearts so that nothing moves we love coming with our Christian platitudes but God has always been about meeting people in real pain and Whispering truths over their life and I believe he wants to do the same for us in here today now there's always a problem look at the from this passage what's the problem the problem is the city called Jericho look at verse one again now the gates of Jericho were secured uh were securely barred because of the Israelites so scripture says that the reason that Jericho was locked up was because the children of God will pause for the cause why are they worried oh because they heard they heard about this people that said that they were the children of Yahweh the one true God and their God part of the Red Sea their God Freedom out of slavery their God dried up the Jordan River so that they can walk over in to Jericho now the walls were locked the city was impossible to get into we don't have time but I'm a word nerd and a walled city was actually a two world city you had one wall that came roughly around a 70 uh 70 degree angle but then on top of that there was a wall that was 90 degrees so if you were able to scale one wall you definitely were not able to scale the one that was a 90 degree angle straight up it was impossible but you know what scripture says what is impossible for man is possible for God and maybe maybe the thing that in your life that feels barricaded and tightly shut up isn't because you're not supposed to have it maybe the reason why you feel like your promise is barricaded and shut up is because the enemy knows if you get it you will have so much confidence in the sovereignty the goodness of God that it will not ever stop you from pursuing his promise and then something comical happens I I love um a Bible is full of irony and people who say like oh the Bible's boring no boo you boring you're boring that's why you think the Bible's boring see I read my Bible like it's a novella I'm Mexican so I read this I know you guys watch like Days of Our Lives uh-uh we grew up with 10 pounds of makeup screaming somebody gets shot you find out it's the secret baby daddy and you you watch the TV like oh my gosh guess what I read the Bible the same way and when we see this when we hear this when we read this passage this is the irony here in verse two look at read verse two God says see I have delivered Jericho in your hands I'm a writer so I read this and I'm like excuse me Yahweh that is grammatically incorrect see the tenses are wrong but there's no mistake in God he is prophetically declaring the battle has already been won the problem with verse two is is verse one that the scripture that the city is tightly barred up so the question that I'm asking us this morning is what do you do when what God has said doesn't look like what you see what do you do when God is speaking things over your life that haven't yet materialized you come to church with Faith and Hope but you realize you walk out these doors and your reality Still Remains the Same how is your perspective if I'm honest with you that's where I am God has promised me things in my heart that I haven't yet seen thanks Mom appreciate that just kidding it's not my mom it's a prayer team go seek them after service I know what God has shown me in my heart and in my mind in my reality it doesn't look any further than that I have every excuse to throw in the towel and quit because sometimes what we see doesn't look like what God has said and the enemy wants to use every problem in our life to mess with our perspective because the truth is there's a City Jericho is a small City but the walls were high and this was the first city that the children of Israel were going to have to conquer in order to get to the promised land because once Jericho was conquered there was Ai and after AI there's other cities that would that would need to conquer to get into the full ownership of the promised land Joshua crosses over the Jordan and he's met with a walled City but it didn't matter what he saw because he believed in what his God said so what do you do when you only see walls so many people quit because we lose our perspective we see nothing but walls I want you to know that whatever you are staring at isn't a sign that you're not supposed to have it it's a sign that you might need to change your perspective God what are you doing here God there is a wall but God you also gave me a promise so though I can't scale the wall you're going to teach me how to walk around it and just as God promised Joshua a physical land do you know that we have promises from God Scripture says that we have every spiritual blessing but there's a problem just because God promised it doesn't mean that I possess it I don't possess it because God promised it there's some work that will take place and the enemy will erect walls in your life to keep us from inheriting the promises of God so I want us to be like the psalmist who says I look to the Heavens to see where my help comes from my help is from the Lord the maker of heaven and Earth don't look at your walls look at your maker look at your maker get your perspective right and that's my story girls like me first generation American Girls we don't go to college no we repeat the generational statistics of our family we live in the concrete jungles of urban cities living off of a government help or family assistance girls like me don't go to college girls like me don't become a Bill Gates Millennium scholar subtle Flex girls like me don't go to graduate school and graduate graduate school with the 4.0 on a full ride scholarship oh shout out Yahweh thank you but girls like me do get rejected from Seminary because I'm a woman what happens when what God has said doesn't look like what you see maybe for you it's you know I've tried being in shape I've tried getting healthy but the doctor told me that I'm pretty I'm genetically predisposed to obesity my grandma's obese my mother's obese I'm obese and this is just the life that I have to live I've got to fulfill every stereotype maybe the lies that you've been leaving is that like my marriage is going to end in divorce because my parents marriage then did a divorce and their parents marriage and divorce and you know divorce is just in our family or maybe you're sitting here today thinking like I'm always going to be single God what are you doing I don't know how to fix this I have been praying for somebody or maybe you have prayed for somebody and God gave you that prayer and now your prayer has shifted to why did you give me this person God your prayer went from God send me a man to God kill this man What walls have been erected in our lives I'm going to ask you not to lose vision what are the ways that we are tempted to quit we lose perspective we're tired and we don't see progress why are we tempted to quit we don't see progress see Newton's third law of motion says that for every action there is an equal and corresponding reaction you all didn't know you're gonna get science today I was homeschooled boom so we step on the gas the car goes we step on the break the car stops we love progress movement and knowing how to maneuver our situation now for me I love progress I am not an Enneagram three and I don't care about like conquering things but I do love a good to-do list and you want to know something I'm so neurotic I like writing things on my to-do list that I've already done just to get the satisfaction of going scratching it off and saying look at how accomplished I am today any relatives in the house yeah you're all OCD just like me you're welcome yeah yeah God is about to have a conference call with Joshua he's like hey Joshy this is the plan you're gonna put gold against these these these you're gonna go up against uh those the people of Jericho but I'm gonna be with you and I'm gonna show you things that you've never seen before here's the game plan all right I'm thinking Joshua military I'm thinking Concord Pharaoh's uh Army I'm thinking get the swords get the Spears get the shields we're going to battle it's a scene of 300. oh it's Gladiator okay here's here's God's plan all the men in Dallas are like that's what's up look at verse three March around the city once with all the armed men do this for how many days verse 4 have the seven priests carry trumpets of rams horns and front of the Ark in the seventh day March around the city seven times with the priest blowing the trumpets when you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets have the whole Army give a loud shout then the wall of the city will collapse and the Army will go up up everyone straight in we love having plans but then God shouts pivot we love a game plan we love a game plan you want to know a Hallmark for resilient gritty people you have the ability to determine if this isn't working I have to figure out what will and maybe that's the point that you're at today God is about to send the Israelite Army to March that doesn't feel scary that doesn't feel intimidating if I'm Joshua I'm imagining okay so we're gonna March and then what think about this Joshua is a middle eastern man stereotypically probably Harry Harry chest hairy arms Harry Knuckles he's a warrior he's been trained with the best he'd gone up against some brilliant Warriors and God is asking him to March God gave him a game plan and I believe that God has given many of us and here game plans but you don't know what to do maybe you worked in Corporate America but now you find yourself changing 75 diapers because the Lord had you pivot to become a full-time parent maybe you lost your job and you have every excuse not to tithe but the Lord's asking you pivot and give in faith if you have an amazing job and it's everything to you but you can't help but sense that the Lord is calling you into full-time Ministry and you know that you have to serve at the greater capacity here at Social Dallas pivot maybe you thought that you were going to marry this person because you've been dating for three years and now you realize that God is Whispering to you this is not the person for you pivot this is how the plan is going to work God's telling Josh what is God telling you today because we as the people of God we walk by faith not by sight now if you know the story spoiler alert if you know the story we know that the walls come tumbling down and everyone high fives fist bombs chest bombs like it's a party it's a celebration but but I think what I need us not to lose is the Nuance of this scripture they do the same thing so for six days I'm a test us I'm a vacation bible school kid I'm also an awana's kid I'm also a recovering Baptist so I love the word of God right and I love legalism pray for me pray for me um for biblical numerology does anyone know what the number six represents in scripture man yes Bible scholars yes amazing this is fascinating so they watched for six days and nothing happens so when you find yourself we're going to revisit six again but when you find yourself marching six days this is what I want you to do this is what I'm doing I want you to March even though you don't think it matters I want you to March when it doesn't make sense God I don't know why you're doing this I don't know when things are going to change but I want to trust you so I will March even though it doesn't make sense this message is for someone who feels like they've lost perspective this is messages for someone who doesn't see progress and I want you to know that even though you don't see progress it doesn't mean that your faith is weak it doesn't mean that your prayers aren't perfect enough God is doing something despite what you feel and we learn to take another lap from our Hebrew family members even when nothing moves even when bricks don't fall even if there's not a Shake Rattle and Roll take another lap you know what that is it's obedience and maybe just maybe I don't know about you but I will say for me that God cares less about what is going on on my outside because he wants to transform me on the inside maybe God wants to do internal work instead of just fixing your external we see that the children of God obey so Joshua calls the people around look at verse 8 when Joshua had spoken to the people the seven priests carrying seven trumpets oh that's interesting hmm why is that included good question Bible scholars we're going to figure out in a second the Ark of the Lord's Covenant followed them you the Ark of the Covenant represents the presence of God do you know that one of the biggest values of this house is the presence of God that your pastors have cried out to the Lord and have said if your presence don't it doesn't go before us we will not go why do we linger in worship you're like oh I'm hungry it's brunch time no no we wait to usher in the presence of the Lord verse 9 the armed guard marched ahead of the priests who blew the trumpets and the rear guard followed the ark all this time the trumpets were sounding but Joshua commanded the army do not give a war crappie do not raise your voices don't say a word until the day I tell you to shout then Shout Sometimes the best strategy is to shut up and March because the more that you talk about it the more you'll talk yourself out of it now Joshua spoke to his leaders and he gave them instructions he said March but you guys notice that he didn't tell them for how long golly if I'm a soldier I'd be the worst Soldier because I have like so many why questions why how long do we have to do this are we prepared did we bring snacks I'm like not the warrior type I wear fake eyelashes and high heels when the Lord calls me to battle I am like why wouldn't it be nice if there was a game plan for life a road map to indicate when this season would be done see so they went out in the first day and Joshua knew that they would have to March for six more days but the children of Israel they didn't look at verse 11. so he had the Ark of the Lord carried around the city circling at once then the Army returned to camp and spent the night there uh this is speculation the Bible remains silent but again I can't help as a word nerd to go into the pages of scripture and find little nuances or the things that I I wonder I wonder that on the first day when they walked around the city of Jericho what did the people inside the city think maybe they thought oh they're they're getting a layout of our city they're going to know some of our weak points they're going to have a strategy on what we're supposed to do on the second day they're thinking Hmm maybe they just needed a little bit more reconnaissance before they took over the city but on the third and the fourth and the fifth day in my mind the theater of my mind I bet that they were laughing at the children of Israel like how foolish what are you doing you're walking around again maybe they're throwing rocks or hurling insults let me tell you that when you walk around your promises looking for breakthrough there will be people that will hurl insults that will laugh at you because they don't understand what God has promised you just because people don't understand it doesn't mean that you did not hear from God just keep walking just March when it doesn't make sense look at verse 12 Joshua got up early the next morning and the priest took up the Ark of the Lord the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward marching before the Ark of the Lord blowing the trumpets the armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the Ark of the Lord while the trumpets kept sounding on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to Camp they did this for six days the funny thing is life doesn't tell us when we get to stop life doesn't tell you hey you're on the last lap life doesn't tell you you just have two more rounds of chemo and then you'll be healed just keep on praying for 31 days renew your mind and your child your wayward child that strung out on drugs and not even not even like marijuana and cocaine has strung out on like Angel just and crank I know there's someone in the room who you have a loved one that is strung out on the worst stuff it's like the stuff that they make tied with somebody in here knows what I'm talking about it would be nice if we had an answer God's gonna do it now God I just need to know how long I just need to know how long I have to deal with this pain I just need to know how long I'd rather to sit in my bed my king bed alone waiting for a spouse I just have to know how long the pain of my addiction is going to cause me I just need to know how long I have to live on the Dave Ramsey envelope system because I just want to be bad and boujee and I'm just bad and broke God like how long how long so just shut up in March just shut up in March because we give up when we lose perspective we give up if we don't see progress and we give up when we don't see the point It Was a Race if you're familiar with track I ran track and there was the worst race of all track it's the 32 3200 meter race why is it the worst because it's so long there's like 92 7 and a half lapses this is ridiculous and as a runner you can forget what lap you're on and so what coaches do is they'll pull out a white flag to indicate that there's one more lap to go and this is where you go all out this is where you gas it out this is where your knees are high and you're kicking up your legs you're getting your stride in there but life doesn't give us a proverbial white flag in fact Paul the Apostle speaks about running the race and the race that Paul talks about there is no white flag so what I see in the church is people raising their proverbial White Flag which in military is a sign of surrender that give up because we don't see when God is giving us the last lap we say I'm done I give up it's gone I don't want to do it anymore the reason why you can't stop marching is that you might be on the sixth lap and not even know it wouldn't it be a shame for you to walk away today wouldn't it be a shame for you to walk away and quit when you're so close you are too close to quit you can't stop marching you can't let your emotions get the best of you and let me tell you something you can't put a a threat on God put it put trust but because God loves you because God loves you Mario you came in today and you were like if God don't give me a word I'm gonna take my life and God gave you a word when pastor Pastor Robert was talking about at the beginning of service um the fear of man and the opinion of man and before that he gave a word about taking your life and let me tell you for the man named Mario who came in and said God I just need a sign he loves you and he gave you a sign just keep marching just keep marching [Applause] the vital thing that resilient and gritty people need is a healthy perspective an honest perspective have the ability to Pivot and find the purpose God I don't know why this pain is happening but I believe that you will take my pain and turn it into purpose I may not know the why but I'm trusting the who the walls are high and it doesn't make sense now I know there's people in here that are just like well if God knows all he can just knock down the Walls I mean he promised us the city yes he could but when you get into Jericho the Lord wants you to know that it wasn't in your strength it was in his we gotta work generation we want it now with the tap a touch a swift a swipe we get on our doorstep we get in our living room we get it in our bed Galatians 6 9 says do not grow weary in doing good for in due season you will reap a harvest it's in the circling of the problem that God prepares us for the promise God is preparing us for what he has prepared for us we gotta walk we gotta March we gotta put one foot in front of the other keep marching keep marching keep marching keep marching your life matters keep marching your job matters keep marching your marriage matters keep marching your kids matter keep marching [Applause] there's a cynic in the room that's like what if this isn't our last lap what if I have to keep going act like every day is the seventh lap and one day it will be so I'm gonna wake up every day I'm awake up every day and say God today's the day today's the day you're gonna do it today's the day you're gonna do it because six is the number for man but what some nerdy Bible scholar tell me what the biblical number of seven means completion and Perfection come on Jesus I will March because on the seventh day the Lord is gonna complete it do you want to know what today is family today in the Hebrew calendar it is the sixth day so you came to church on a good day because you came to March and March and March because you act like today is the seventh and one day baby one day you will be so we gotta have faith in God hey Lord I will give you my life and I will March when it doesn't make sense there's people here in this room and you have have never heard a message of endurance and perseverance grit and resilience but maybe you feel like you want to throw in the Whitetail you want to throw in the white flag of surrender do you know that you don't have to because we have a good Savior by the name of Jesus who spread his arms not up and surrender but out on a cross an act of surrender and he told his father in Heaven in the garden Gethsemane I don't want to do this but not my will yours and a sinless man died a horrific death on a cross on Calvary he stretched his arms out and he said to tell us die it is finished and the veil separating God from man in the holies of holies tore from top to bottom because no longer no longer no longer do we need a mediator no no no in the in the great Kismet kiss between humanity and the Divine we have direct access to a good God and today I don't want you to walk in your own strength because you're exhausted and you're tired and the burden on your back feels too heavy but I have come to tell you that there is one who says come to me all who are weary and heavy-layed and I will give you rest people there are people in here who've never had a radical Encounter With Jesus and today is the day of salvation I also know there's some jokers in here maybe you went to Vacation Bible School your grandma took you to church or maybe you used to come here but you've been living a life of sin today is the day where we repent that means make a u-turn and come back to Christ if you're here today I'm going to invite you just will you do me a favor will you close your eyes when you bow your head for our online family we want you to be present we want you to pray but if you are watching online someone sent you this link it's for a reason and the reason is that your salvation matters and I'm going to encourage you and let you know that you can walk in your own strength but it'll closely kill you but you can walk in the strength of the Lord and find the joy for the joy of the Lord is our strength if you're here today you've never said yes to Jesus I'm going to count to three and you're gonna raise your hand to boldly declare that you want Jesus and maybe you're here today and you know that you've been living a life of sin now that you've said a bad word but you have been living in straight up sin and you want to come back to the Lord today is the day of salvation I'm going to count to three and you're gonna raise up your hand to declare I want Jesus here in this room and online one by raising your hand you are saying I want Jesus to be the personal Lord and savior of my life two by raising your hands you are saying that my mistakes and my failures what the Bible refers to as sinned could be forgiven because what if Jesus did on Calvary and three The Same Spirit the resurrected Jesus from the grave will live in me like Romans 10 says if that is you one two three raise your hand God bless you God bless you oh there's so many hands God bless you God bless you God bless you God bless you God bless you God bless you online online put your hand emoji in the chat box God bless you sir by the back pole God bless you woman of God God bless you in the back then the very back I can see you I have my contacts on today praise God put your hand up if you need Jesus if you're late to church just put a hand up and confess just kidding just kidding if you're here and you're saying yes to Jesus raise your hand there's hands all around this room to let you know a child of God that you're not alone in this journey we as a Community of Faith we're gonna pray with you as a church body can we surround our brothers and sisters who are confessing and will you repeat after me say Jesus forgive me of my sins today I Choose You as my Lord and Savior cleanse my head cleanse my heart cleanse my conscience fill me with your spirit to do what I cannot do and help me to March and March and March until the walls come down in Jesus name can we celebrate Church yes

Channel: Social Dallas

Views: 16,101

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Id: I4k8F38saUE

Length: 42min 20sec (2540 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 06 2023