Stand And Fight
by Drew Galloway
March 9, 2023 · The Sanctuary, Hazelwood, Missouri
Kind: sermon
Scripture: James 4:7, Ephesians 6:10-13, Genesis 3:14-15, 1 Samuel 17:31, 2 Samuel 11:1-2, 1 Peter 5:8, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, 2 Samuel 23:11

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/drew-galloway--stand-and-fight
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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I appreciate the hard work that goes into making nights like this possible I give honor to everybody who has played a hand I know that this kind of night this kind of week doesn't just happen but it's a lot of hard work it's a lot of planning and so kudos to everybody that is making it happen both the people that you see and the people that you don't see all of the people behind the scenes all of the people serving I honor everybody who makes this happen hey man on May the 1st I will have been a youth pastor for 10 years and I can tell you I know firsthand that events like this they don't just happen just simply from the youth pastor and his wife but there's a lot of hands that go into making a week like this successful so I honor this church for doing a first class job in believing in the next generation of students to make

an event like this possible I give honor to your pastor all the executive pastor administrative pastor all of the leaders I give honors all of the parents and also I want to say a special honor to brother Brennan and sister Veronica I appreciate them I got to spend a little time with him and he's the kind of person that you the more you're around him the more you like him you know not everybody's like that I wouldn't be like that but I know that not everybody's like that but he is like that he's a Christian and I appreciate his leadership his spirit and I am honored to be here I am missing my family I give honor to my wife and our son Oliver and I know that I mentioned last night that he's kind of battling some sickness it hasn't gotten worse but it hasn't gotten better but on my way to church and I said you know what I'm going to

be preaching to an army of praying young people and here's what I believe right now I believe we can pray together that God will touch him and I believe by the time service is over I can get a text message or a phone call that God is taking care of it anybody believe that would you help me pray for him his name is Oliver I believe your prayers can make a difference does anybody believe that your prayers can make a difference would you help me pray for him right now Jesus I'm asking you and I speak to the sickness that is playing in Oliver's body and I command it to subside now in the name of Jesus you said wherever two or three can agree touching any one thing that it would be established God I'm agreeing with these students tonight that you're going to heal my baby God I'm believing right now that it's done that you're going to the city of

Bogalusia you're taking away the fever any infection that may be present and I believe God by the time service is over I will get a report saying that all is well that God you had done it again I've seen you do it before and I believe you're going to do it again tonight and somebody say in Jesus name in Jesus name if you have your bibles and anybody bring your bibles to church if you did raise your hand if anybody's if anybody was this person they're gonna put on the screen would you raise your hand let's be honest if you thought man you know what they're gonna look at that beautiful screen I don't need if you're that person just raise your hand James chapter four and verse number seven thank God for the screen give honor to my pastor so thankful for his leadership and voice trusting me to be here James chapter four I want to honor you for your response

last night I know sometimes the first night can be unique you don't know the speaker they don't know you it's kind of like the stranger wall but I I want to honor you for the way that you responded and I want you to take something away from each night and last night I want you to know where you should run when it seems like life has fallen apart and you've made a mess of it you don't have to run to anything else if you can run to Jesus Christ how you respond to failure is going to determine what kind of future you have because failure visits all of us we're all products of people who just simply don't quit so night number one remember let your failures your mistakes your weaknesses your struggles let it lead you to Jesus because he's the only one that can truly help us but tonight I feel a burden to share something with you that I believe

if you could apply it to your life 10 years from now you're still going to be living for God you're still going to be strong in your faith and I believe that's the will of God for everybody in this room that you do not have to backslide I don't believe you have to leave the church I don't I don't care what the statistics are I believe we serve a God who can override them and I'm telling you one thing if you want to live for God you can do it it doesn't matter what your parents do or don't do if you want to live for God you can do it it doesn't matter what everybody at school is doing if you want to live for God you can do it it doesn't matter what anybody else is the youth group is doing if you want to live for God you just got to make up your mind I'm doing this I'm going to

do this and I believe God has shared something with me that I want to share with you that will help you make that a reality James chapter 4 and verse number seven and now I'm going to read Ephesians 6 10 through 13 really quick the Bible says in James chapter 4 and verse number seven submit yourselves therefore to God resist the devil and he will flee from you now this word resist is it like how we would use it today like when you're on the diet you want to resist the desserts you know you just you want to resist that temptation this is kind of a different word this word is antihistamine where we get our English word for medicine antihistamine from it literally means to set oneself against or to oppose and so what James is saying is submit to God number one but number two when it comes to the devil oppose him resist him let him know you're not going

anywhere a lot of people talk about rebuke in the devil but 12 times in the new testament the word rebuke is mentioned and it's never mentioned to rebuke the devil but the Bible does say to resist the devil and he will flee he's going to flee because when he comes up against you and you make the decision to stand he's going to realize that he's got more on his plate than he bargained for and so he's going to move on to somebody else you have to resist you have to stand Ephesians chapter 6 verse and retain I'm going to read quickly finally my brethren be strong in the Lord and then the power of his might put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wilds or the strategies of the devil for we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities against powers against the rulers of darkness of this world against spiritual wickedness

in high places this is telling us who our enemies are verse number 13 wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand same Greek word as in James 4 resist that you may be able to oppose or to stand against in the evil day and then he wraps it all up and says having done all to stand so for the next few moments I want to preach to you from this thought stand and fight stand and fight one more time before you see that if you can just lift up your hands and I know that you know how to pray would you just simply pray that God would speak to us tonight come on I want every student to lift up your voice right now don't be timid God speak to us come on I believe tonight's going to be a marquee night for storm youth God is going to deposit something into this youth group

and you're going to become an army like never before and you're going to make a difference in this city every school that you populate God is going to use you Lord Jesus I thank you for this opportunity to be in your presence God to share your word with your people God I'm asking you right now to let there be clarity let there be boldness God let the anointing of God destroy every yoke God we come not with enticing words of men's wisdom God but let there be a power and let there be a demonstration God I pray that before we leave tonight every chain would be broken every feather would be shattered and there would be freedom in this room God and I pray that there would be a mindset that would baptize this youth group God that I am not going anywhere God I pray you give them boldness let there be an aggression tonight I pray God that you would raise

up an army in the name of Jesus Christ and somebody shout in Jesus name I want you to turn to three people and say I'm so glad you're here tonight and you may be seated when we begin to read the Bible has anybody ever read the book of Genesis has anybody read the book of Genesis like 500 times because you said you were going to read through the Bible this year and you got like on January 12th and were like I just got a behind I'm gonna catch up next year who would be honest say you've done that before who would be real honest that you did that this year I'm kidding but when you get to reading through the book of Genesis you're going to realize that you only get three chapters into the Bible before the serpent shows up and when he enters into the scene his goal is very simple he wants to disrupt the relationship that Adam and Eve

have with God his original tactic was deception but the end goal nonetheless was he wants to disrupt the relationship between God and his people it's imperative that you understand the enemy will always target the thing that God loves the most and there is nothing in this world that Jesus Christ loves more than souls the Bible says in Genesis chapter 3 when this is where we find the serpent showing up the Bible says in Genesis 3 14 after the serpent has convinced Eve to partake of the forbidden fruit the Bible says that the Lord God said to the serpent because you have done this you are going to be cursed above all cattle and above every beast of the field and on your belly you're going to go and does shall you eat all the days of your life and he says I will put enmity between you and the woman and between thy seed and her seed and it shall bruise thy head

and thou shall bruise his heel now we know in hindsight what happened that Calvary this came to fruition but there was a promise that day that there's always going to be enmity between the enemy and God's people but God established it in the very beginning the position both of the enemy and of you and that is that yes we may get a bruised heel but he is going to get a bruised head showing us where he is and that is under our feet it's important that you understand that no matter how scary he tries to make himself appear the enemy is still under your feet I want you to know you don't have to be afraid of him greater is he that's in you than he that's in the world I don't care how scary people try to pain him he is no match for a child of God he is under your feet but that doesn't mean he isn't going to stop

messing with you when you read through the Old Testament it seems as if the children of Israel were always in a battle it seems like they were always fighting someone the Hittites the Amorites the Amlicites the Parizzites the Moabites anybody else named they fought them then you find them fighting the Philistines one of the most notable battles of the enemy was with the Philistines and the reason in the Old Testament that there were so many physical battles so many wars is because in the Old Testament God's people were in a physical covenant and so because they were in a physical covenant they fought physical battles and so the enemy would use people to oppose the plan of God perhaps the most famous of the battles in the Old Testament is David and Goliath David was a young person he was just on the backside of a desert the backside of a hill tending to sheep he was just serving God writing Psalms living

his life just chilling not bothering anybody but one day his dad sends him on a mission and said I want you to bring some cheese and bread to your brothers they are in a battle with the Philistines and so David grabs the food and now David has become the Uber Eats guy and so he shows up to the battle and David hears something as he gets closer to the battlefield he hears an unfamiliar voice from a man by the name of Goliath who is defying the people of God and he is defying the God of Israel and as David shows up to the battle he asks this question is there not a cause David wanted somebody to answer him why is nobody responding to the voice of the giant David gets closer and he hears a girl in louder and then he finds out that Goliath has done this 80 times 40 times a day twice a day 40 times 40 days in

a row excuse me twice a day he was mocking God and here was his plea send me a man that we may fight and he said this is our deal if you defeat us then we will serve you but if we defeat you then you have to serve us but nobody would stand up to the giant so David this ready teenager shows up and he gets a revelation that giants don't just go away they have to be dealt with as long as you allow a giant to mock you he's going to keep mocking you giants don't just get tired of being giants what they have to have is somebody that says enough is enough this is plagued our youth group long enough this is plagued my family long enough this has been a generational curse long enough and somebody's got to stand up and say today is the day that the giant dies because as long as you give him the liberty to

mock you he's going to mock you so David shows up is there not a cause and so David shows up he says you know what he said i'm going to do something about it saw you maybe had shoulders over everybody you may be the closest to the stature of Goliath but Saul was the coward he didn't want to do anything about it so david says you go tell Saul I'll fight him so when the words get to Saul and throw him your 17 and 31 the bible says and when the words which were heard which david spake they rehearsed him before Saul and he sent for him and david said to Saul he said i don't want your heart to fail you he said i'm gonna go out and i'm gonna fight this philistine and i want you to watch what Saul said to david Saul said to david you are not able to go against this philistine to fight with him for

thou are but a youth he said but he's been a man of war since his youth here's what Saul was saying david the very thing that disqualifies you is the very thing that qualifies Goliath but here would be my question to Saul if Goliath could start when he was a youth then why can david start when he was a youth i want you to hear me storm you if you're old enough to be attacked by the enemy then you're old enough to be anointed by god if you're old enough to be tempted you're old enough to be trusted if you have received the gift of the holy ghost and you have been baptized in jesus name i don't read an age requirement for the anointing of god you just gotta make up your mind enough is enough i'm gonna defeat this giant if nobody else to fight i'll fight if nobody else to pray i'll pray if nobody else to fast i'll fast

the spirit of soul would tell you you're too young but i would tell the spirit of soul if pornography doesn't wait on you to grow up if depression doesn't wait on you to grow up if anxiety and fear doesn't wait on you to grow up if the world doesn't wait on you to grow up then god doesn't have to wait on you to grow up god is ready to use you now you just gotta make up your mind i am willing to fight i search the scripture high and low i don't read that there's age requirements for the anointing when you get the holy ghost you get the same holy ghost that's your favorite preacher god you just gotta utilize it and realize that i have everything in me i have everything in my disposal to defeat the giant but you gotta make up your decision i'll stand and i'll fight you have to get sick and tired and you have to say

enough is enough this has been in my family line for too long this is attacked our youth group for too long this has attacked our church for too long i'm telling you one young person has the power to stand against the giants that plague our generation and say enough is enough i'm not going to sit on the sideline and do nothing god is calling for a generation to stand and to fight have to say i am going to do something about this so david begins to tell saul i know you think i'm too young he said but i believe that i can do it why he said because saul what you don't know about as i was protecting the sheet one time and a lion came and a bear came and the same god that delivered me from the paul the lion and from the paul the bear is going to deliver this uncircumsticeous philistan into my hand here's what david was saying

yes i don't have adequate training yes i'm probably not old enough yes i don't have it all together but here's what i do have i have a testimony of what i've seen god do when nobody else was around nobody knows about the time i defeated the lion nobody knows about the time i defeated the bear but when you have a private testimony it gives you that public faith to say i will fight this giant so yes you may be a little young but do you have a testimony of what you seen god do for you in your private life and so david says you know what i'm going to do this saul said here's what i want you to do if you're convinced him that you're going to go out into the battle here's what saul said at least take the armor because saul wanted to appear like he had a part in the victory but he wanted no part in the battle

but david said i can't trust this because when you're in the fight of your life that's not when it's time to look for a new way you have to stick to what you know works you have to stick to what you know has gotten you to this point so david said you know what i can't wear your armor why because the only way you're going to kill a giant is when you learn to be comfortable in who you are and you have to realize god doesn't need you to be somebody else for you to kill the giant you are the one that god wants to use and so the cry from goliath was send me a man but he was before when he looked across the field and there came a teenager running across the field and he said thou comes against me with a sword and spear but here was the revelation that david had i don't have the training i don't

have the proper armor but i have a testimony and i have a name he said you're coming to me with a shield and a spear but i'm coming against you in the name of the lord of hoes and i'm telling you when you have a testimony and you pair that with the name you have everything you need to kill the giant but you have to be willing to stand up and fight it's not that you don't have to be a pushover you don't have to be weak god's trying to raise up an army that says enough i'm not gonna be passive i'm gonna stand and i'm gonna fight i'll fight for my family i'll fight for those who don't know jesus i'll fight for the truth i'll fight for righteousness i will fight for my pastor i will fight for my church david made a decision that day that he was gonna fight and because a young person made a decision to fight

a lot a giant died god does not look for ability god is attracted to availability and if you will give god your availability you will find out about god's capability and when your availability pairs up with god's capability giants are going to start dying but you have to make up your mind i don't have to wait till i'm 20 i don't have to wait till i'm 25 i don't have to wait till i'm 30 i've got everything i need now to kill the giant but you have to be willing you have to be willing to stand and you have to be willing to fight when david decided to fight giants started dying but i want to tell you the flip side of what happens when you get comfortable and you stop fighting because the same young person who was the praise champion of israel when they said salt has killed its thousands but david has tens of thousands there's another episode in david's

life when it was time to go to battle but the bible says in second time it'll 11 and one and it came to pass after the year was expired that it was time for the kings to go forth the battle that david sent joe abin his service with him and all of israel and they destroyed their children of amin and they received rabba but david tarry at jews it was time to go to battle but david said i'm gonna sit this one out and here's what happens if you're not careful and you get comfortable the next verse says this and it came to pass at evening tide when the bible says it came to pass something's about to go down so the bible says david arose from off his bed now he's supposed to be at battle but he walks on the roof of the king's house and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself and the woman was very beautiful

to look on and what david should have done is when he saw basheba he should have said that is not my wife i need to go back inside but when you're not fighting you're comfortable and you'll look at things you know you shouldn't be looking at and i'm telling you the enemy is just waiting on an opportune time for you to lower the hedge and get comfortable and he's going to move in and david the same man that killed goliath is the same man who had an affair with basheba had her husband murdered all because he should have been on the battle how many temptations could be avoided if we'll simply be in the battle david the giant slayer turning the david the adulterer when he decided not to fight i want you to know storm mute there's too much on the line to relax now there's too many prophecies on your life to relax now the bible makes it very clear that

part of the end time is that he was going to pour out his spirit upon all flesh but there's also going to be sons and daughters that were going to prophesy the bible says in second keys that a young man even a young man went to raymouth ciliate god is looking for young people to achieve his goal in the world but you gotta be willing to say i'm not gonna get carnal i'm not gonna get comfortable i'm not gonna relax i'm gonna fight for the anointing that's all my life i want every young person lift your both of your hands right now and i want you to just tell god god i will fight for the anointing that's all my life i will fight for the ministry that's all my life come on lift up your voice come on if it means something to you i want you to let god know i will fight for it god i will fight for my

future i will fight for my future marriage i will fight for my future children i will fight for the ministry that you put on my life come on lift up your voice right now and let god know i'll fight come on i'll pray about it How fast about it? How dedicate myself to the Word of God for it? Come on lift your voice louder let God know you're gonna fight for it. I want you to know tonight That while the battle is different There is still a battle. I told you a moment ago in the Old Testament just like with David and Goliath The battles they fought were physical, but because the covenant that they had with God was physical But when Jesus enters the scene the battle shifts from physical to spiritual That's why you don't see much demon possession in the Old Testament But it was very prevalent in the New Testament is because now the battle is spiritual We are

still fighting But the enemies are not flesh and blood They are spiritual enemies We don't fight the Philistines or the Amlicites or the Amorites The Bible clearly tells us Who our enemy is Goliath is no longer a physical giant But he's a spiritual giant and the Bible makes it clear in first Peter chapter 5 and verse number 8 to be sober and To be vigilant Why why is this imperative that we are to be sober and we are to be vigilant? Everybody point it yourself And say because my adversary Come on say I say my adversary I Was reading this one day and it was like the word George is lifted from the pages and it was like for the first time I realized Satan is not God's adversary He's my adversary Because God doesn't have an adversary Because nobody's on the same plane as him Everything is subject and everything will bow to Jesus Christ, but we me and you We have

an adversary and the Bible makes it very clear that our adversary is Satan the Bible says be sober Be vigilant because everybody say my My adversary the devil he walks about as a roaring lion and Spencer, you know what he's waiting on He's waiting on the time for you to let your guard down He's waiting on the time for you to get comfortable Because I want you to notice the verbiage You have to get this The Bible says put that back up, please first Peter chapter 5 and verse number 8. I want you to watch this be sober Be vigilant Because your adversary the devil walks about has a roaring line seeking whom He may devour You have to get this in your spirit The enemy does not get to decide who he devours You decide if you get devoured or not He has to have your permission To devour you because I don't care how much you struggle If you can just

possess the mindset that I'm not throwing in the towel you will win You will never be able to convince me that the God we serve has set us up for a losing paddle I want you to know you have everything you need to make it I said you have the word of God you have the spirit of God you have the name of Jesus You have the blood of Jesus you have brothers and sisters you have everything you need to make it You just got to make up your mind. I've got to fight. I've got to fight. I've got to fight That's when the Bible says don't get weary and well-doing it for induced season You're gonna reap as long as you don't quit. I'm telling you the only way you lose Hear me. Hear me young people. The only way you lose is if you quit If somehow you can muster up the strength to say I don't care how low I

get I'm gonna get back up and I'm gonna pray again I'm gonna get back up and I'm gonna worship again. You Will Make it be seated for just a moment. You will make it I know what I'm talking about. I when I got the Holy Ghost Brother Scott. I was the only one in my family to my knowledge to be spirit field And I would go home And I would go to my bedroom and that's where I learned How to fight in the spirit Because the enemy would try to lie to me Some of my own family members turned on me, but I learned the power of praying in the spirit I learned the power of the word of God. I was only 19 years old I couldn't explain all of revelation. I didn't know too much about the Bible But I knew this one thing that the God that was in me was also the God that was for me and with

me at Him together, I knew I was gonna make it and I learned that if I'll just fight for him He'll start fighting for me and when he starts fighting for you something is going to happen People told me I was crazy That's still debatable People told me I'll never make it People told me you'll never be able to maintain this level of fanaticism But I made up my mind That even though I was the first one in my family to be spirit field I wasn't gonna be the last one and if my family was gonna go to hell The enemy was gonna have to fight do my times of prayer do my days of fasting do my consecration to the word of God Why because I'm telling you I got the revelation if I will stand and fight Chance will start dying Generational curses will start breaking chains will start loosening Addictions will start falling why because I've decided to fight I

Said you do not have to excel what the enemy has done as the final word. You can fight back I want you to be seated is there a student in this room That you're the only one in your family or one of the few in your family that lives for God I want you to lift your hands if you're one of the few members of your family if everybody in your families Live for God lift your hands if you have people that you know in your inner circle or your family That's not live for God. I want you to lift your hands. I want you to know Large parts of who they are is dependent on your willingness to fight for them Your fight can make a difference Hear me your life is not just about you It's about the people that God wants to minister through you to effect, but you've got to decide I'm gonna fight I'm gonna fight number one

for myself Bible says work out your own salvation with fear and trim You got to make up your mind now that there's nothing worth going to hell over. There's no girl pretty enough There's no guy handsome enough. I don't care how smooth he is if he doesn't want to live for God He ain't the one for me. Why because I need somebody that's gonna help me fight Come on tell our youth group I'd rather you have a broken heart than a lost whole the last thing you need to do is link I was somebody that drags you away from God. You need to say, oh, no, I got too much to fight for I got too much to fight for I gotta hurry My time's almost up. I gotta hurry the Bible makes it clear second Corinthians 10 for though. We walk in the flesh We do not war after the flesh wine because now the battle is spiritual The Bible says in

verse 4 for the weapons of our warfare. It tells us what they are not they are not carnal They are not fleshly, but here's what they are. They are mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds I want you to know the weapons you have you can cast down Imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God and you can bring in the captivity Every thought somebody get this right now every thought that tells you you're not good enough Every thought that tells you you're not gonna make it every thought that tells you you'll never be what God wants you to be You can bring that to the obedience of Christ Because though we be in the flesh The battle that we fight is not in the flesh. Our weapons now They are not shields and spears. Our weapons are spiritual now. They are prayer They are fasting. They are worship and praise Your weapon is the

word of God the Bible says in Hebrews that the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than into its sword Piercing even to the dividing of son of soul and spirit in the joints and the marrow And it is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart hear me tonight. You have everything that you need to make it You have everything at your disposal to make it You don't have to backslide You don't have to be wayward You can overcome any statistic you can overcome any generational curse You can overcome any bondage you can overcome any addiction you can overcome any struggle You just have to make up your mind that you're not gonna throw in the towel and that at all cost We're gonna stand and you're gonna fight you can fight You're gonna learn to fight in prayer You have to develop a prayer life I don't have time to go do all the principles of spiritual

discipline, but you have to fight in the word of God. I Want to ask everybody in this room mainly the students watch that close your eyes for just a few seconds I'm gonna ask you the simple question If you've read the whole Bible from Genesis the revelation raise your hand if you've read the whole Bible Put your hands in I want you to open your eyes. I've asked this question in The last two years almost everywhere that I preach And I don't say this to condemn you But it's always around three to five percent of the crowd Has read the whole Bible There's a Bible plan. I'll send it to brother Brendan Called the Bible in six months and I've challenged youth groups districts Whomever will take the challenge To go and read through the Bible. Why? Because that's our weapon now When when saint that came to Jesus and Matthew chapter 4 the Bible says he's beginning to try to tempt Jesus

And here's how Jesus dealt with the enemy. He said it is written Three times it is written it is written it is written. Why is that so important? Because now we fight the same enemy But we all still have access to the same word And you see Jesus could handle the enemy any kind of way he was God manifested in the flesh He could have something the angels to carry him away He could snap his fingers that made him disappear But Jesus chose to deal with the enemy in a way that we can imitate Because we have the same Bible and we can look at the same enemy and we can say no, you're a liar. It is Written But I don't mean to condemn you But you don't have the power to declare it is written if you don't know what is written That's why you have to become familiar With the word of God because the word will keep you when

emotion fades when height fades When nobody else is around it's the word of God that will establish you and you will grow roots and you will be firmly planet a Challenge you get familiar With the word of God, that's how you fight learn to develop a time of prayer fight in the presence of God The musicians will come I'm gonna close I Don't have time to go through all of it, but your homework tonight. It'll take you five minutes Before you go to bed tonight. I want to challenge you to read Ephesians chapter 6 the Bible talks about the armor of God That's how we fight. It's important for you to know that why am I preaching this tonight? Because the Bible says it like this Let's say tension get advantage of us We are not ignorant of his devices I'm exposing him But also want to expose who you are and who your God is That if you will simply be willing

to fight You can make it the enemy is no match for you Everybody say I am a victor I Will be victorious stand to your feet [name redacted] is that your name? Come everybody. I met [name redacted] last night come with the steps So you try to give a fist but the person didn't see you so I got your back You're gonna you're gonna help me tonight Bible says in 2nd Samuel 23 Starts talking about David's mighty men and These men were Amazing I Mean they were built different Bible says there was one man that fell in a pit with a lion on a snowy day I Don't know probably not here, but like in Louisiana and somebody mentions the word snow school is closed The hospitals closed you don't even go to Walmart These better. Hope you make it, but this man fell down in a pit with a lion and the snowy day It with no weapons he killed him. I don't know

maybe humans is aren't built the way they used to be built Because I don't think we would make it Then the Bible gets to verse number 11 and it says that there was another mighty man named shama the son of eggy Hair right and the Bible says that That shama was standing There's a piece of ground full of lentils and Shama or [name redacted] tonight is standing there in the middle of the field and the enemy shows up and all of your friends Because you find out you're in real friends are in the battle in the valleys in the hard times Everybody was around Jesus when it was their loaves in the fish, but by the time they got to Calvary Jesus looked around There weren't many people there Because you find out who's really with you in the hard times Shama standing there in this ground full of lentils His friends are gone But he has to make a decision Do I leave

and let the enemy have this piece of land or do I fight? Now here's what we don't know How big it was How much money it was worth If it even belonged to you did your mom and dad leave you this as an inheritance did you buy this from somebody? How did you get this piece of land? What's the property value? How big is it? Why are you so passionate about it? We don't know But here's what we do know Shama standing there the enemy shows up and Everybody else leaves But shama stands up Plants his feet in the dirt and let's the enemy know if you want this piece of land You're gonna have to go through me The Bible makes it clear about his posture. He did not bow down He did not lay down. He wanted to let the enemy know I'm standing in the midst of this ground And if you want it and the Bible says now we

know we know [name redacted] you cannot defeat in a tire army by yourself But here is what I've learned about God When somebody makes a decision to stand for him That kind of God steps in and stands with them And he'll win battles you can never win But it all starts when one person says not this piece of land I'm not gonna bow down. I'm gonna stand And I'm gonna fight So here's my closing question to you [name redacted] and to everybody in this room Is there anything in your life that's worth standing and fighting for hear me for just a moment? Is your faith worth fighting for is your future worth fighting for are your friends worth fighting for? Is your family worth fighting for is your youth group worth fighting for it? Is your church worth fighting for is your pastor worth fighting for is the anointing on your life worth fighting for? Is the calling in destiny worth fighting for it? It's

your future marriage and your future ministry worth fighting for Because [name redacted] You can have it But you're gonna have to fight for David shows us thank you. David shows us how it works first time you're 16 David gets anointed the very next chapter David meets Goliath Because anointing has always come with adversaries But you can have it if you'll fight for it. I Told you a little bit about story and I'm done I'm gonna close with this like I'm for real done Like I knew but you'll say that but My time is up. I want to be done preaching before you're done listening and I know we're getting close to the threshold I was 19 I was the only one in my family, but I decided Nate I'm gonna start fighting and I'll watch slowly, but surely God Started giving me victory. I got the baptize my grandmother in Jesus name taught her a Bible study She got the Holy Ghost Two of

my cousins got baptized in Jesus name God filled him with the Holy Ghost both of my best friends got baptized in Jesus name Received the Holy Ghost my half-sister got baptized in Jesus name received the Holy Ghost my stepdad got baptized in Jesus name Received the Holy Ghost my mother got baptized in Jesus name God healed her cancer and for the last couple of weeks We've been meeting in my house go into a Bible study. Why because I made up my mind. I'm gonna fight I'm gonna fight. I'm gonna fight. I'm gonna fight Here's how it works The person who won me to the Lord Shawn Wilson one of my best friends Two years after I was in the church he backslid Unexpectedly, I don't know what happened and for almost ten years. He was away from God We had lost contact. We didn't hardly talk But in October of last year the Lord laid him on my heart I called him I

said hey, let's get together for lunch. We need to reconnect. I was away in Boston November and I get a phone call his dad passed excuse me just two years ago. His dad passes away Unexpectedly just falls dead on the kitchen floor In his late 50s So I get home we go to the hospital. We pray for him. He ended up passing away Shortly thereafter. I was going on the trip. I invited Shawn to come it was a group of guys with us Everybody had went to bed He looked at me and he goes Again, he hasn't shed a tear in almost ten years. I Haven't seen him pray probably eight to ten years. He's just gotten so cold But he looked at me said man, you remember Those all-night prayer means we used to have You remember how we would lock ourselves away and just pray and fast together if there was a youths rally within a hundred miles Well, the DJ

we went We were just I mean we were inseparable. I Remember and I looked at him and told him this I Said Shawn the same door you walked out of I want you to know it's still open and Jesus wants you to come home a Couple of weeks later. We were in service Brothers God, I hadn't seen him cry and almost a decade. He got so cold But on one Sunday morning he came to the altar and he kneeled down He began to pray I gave him about 10 seconds and then I ran over there and pray with him I fell on my knees and I wrapped my arms around him And I felt his back begin to shake as the tears begin to flow and I heard him pray these words Lord Open my heart again And I got to pray with my friend who taught me the Bible study who brought me to church Who taught me how to pray who

drove me to church? I got to pray with him as God refilled him with the gift of the Holy Ghost And what he didn't know is for the last eight to ten years I have been praying and fasting and praying and fasting because I wanted the enemy to know if my friend's gonna go to hell He's gonna have to step over me praying step over me fasting step over me dedicating why because I decided I was going to fight It meant enough to me to fight for And I'm trying to serve something in your spirit that your soul is worth fighting for I know there's pressure right now I know it's hard right now. I know you're in battles right now, but I'm pleading with you Don't give up. Keep fighting. I Want every student to step out of your chair and I want you to join me at the altar every student Every student in this room. Come on come every hyphen

come. I want you to join me right now Hello boost. Oh, yeah, hear me. Hear me. Let me see your eyes for just a moment. I'm not telling you That it's not gonna be hard sometimes I Telling you it's gonna be it's gonna be worth it Nobody will ever walk away from God and at the end of their life on their deathbed say I was glad I did that But there are scores of people that are gonna be lost in eternity that will say I wish I would have just kept praying I wish I would have not gotten better. I wish I would have kept going to use service Stand Somebody's counting on you number one. You're counting on you because here's the reality. I can pray for you But I cannot pray for you Your parents can pray it fast for you But they really can't pray for It's your decision You have to make a decision This is my soul And

I'm gonna fight for it. I want every hand to be lifted. Come on. Let the tears flow If you're away from God tonight tonight to come home Parents leaders will you help me pray right now if you want to come and pray with them God is doing something in this youth group. I'm telling you there's a turning point happening right now in the spirit He rabbi satayadabokosata, the devil is a liar. You're gonna make it You're gonna make it come on lift up your hands and declare it. I've gotta make it. I'm not backsliding I don't care how hard it gets Come on lift up your voice and go to war right now He rabbi satayadabokosata Robbo's don't talk about come on. That's it lift up your voice