The Author of My Story | Pastor Raymond Woodward
by Raymond Woodward
First Apostolic Church of Maryville (Maryville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Hebrews 5:9, Hebrews 12:2, Acts 3:15, 1 Corinthians 2:7-10, 2 Peter 1:21, Exodus 31:18, Daniel 5:5, John 8:6-11, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Job 23:8-10, Jeremiah 29:11, 2 Corinthians 3:3, Psalm 139:16, Philippians 1:6

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/raymond-woodward--the-author-of-my-story-2
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

------------------------------------------------------------
Praise the Lord, everybody. Praise the Lord. Isn't it a great day to be in the house of the Lord? And isn't God's presence so rich and so wonderful here today? Let me tell you why I am not here today. I am not here because you need any help in the preaching department at this church. Don't you love and esteem and appreciate the voice of your pastor and your pastoral team that stand here every week and open the word of God and preach to you. You are in such good hands and God's doing so many wonderful things here in Marville. And if you are visiting with us, oh, you just got to come back and hear these guys if you haven't already. But, uh, you got to come back and be part of this family. If I lived in Marville, Tennessee, this would be my church. That man would be my pastor. And I would think I was the luckiest, most fortunate, blessed personal life. What a wonderful, wonderful church family this is. So, I could fill up my entire time just saying thanks, but I won't do that. I'll try to do that privately. I'm still waiting for Brother Carpenter to answer my text message. I was number 482. I'm teasing. So, I'm kind of a little offended this morning, but no, no, not really. Happy birthday, Bishop. A little belated, but we love you. And happy birthday, Sister Carpenter, in advance. I always wonder what the Fourth of July was. I knew it had something to do with something, but so now I know it was Sister Carpenter. It's it's wonderful. One more order of business before we're seated and we get into the word of the Lord. Would you lift your hands? Would you lift your voice higher than your hands? Would you lift your praise highest of all? Lord Jesus, we love you. We give you honor and praise and glory. We thank you, God. only you can do. Do what only you can do in this room today. Do what only you can do, Jesus. Do what only you can do. Do what only you can do in this room today. In our lives today, do what only you can do. Heal what only you can heal. Fix what only you can fix. Deliver what only you can deliver. We pray it in the name of Jesus. We pray it in the name of Jesus. Amen. You may be seated. The year was 1961 and the space race between the Soviet Union and the United States was in full swing. Unfortunately, at that particular moment, it looked like the communists were winning. Four years earlier, Russia's Sputnik 1 satellite had become the very first man-made object to orbit the Earth. And now on April 12th, 1961, Russian cosminaut Yuri Gaggeran became the first man to travel into space aboard the Vastic One spacecraft. That put a lot of pressure on President John F. Kennedy and it led directly to his challenge to Congress. just six weeks later on May 25th, 1961 to send an American safely to the moon and back before the end of the decade. That task would require years of effort, enormous expenditure, and considerable risks. But President Kennedy considered it necessary if America was to achieve mastery of space and also win the battle between freedom and tyranny back on Earth because the Soviet Union was exploiting their temporary superiority in space every single day for political purposes. After cosminot Yuri Gaggeran returned from space, Russian Premier Nikita Kruev made an anti-religious speech before the central committee of the Soviet Communist Party. He was promoting atheism. He was attacking Christianity and he was even boasting against God himself. Here's what he said. Why are you clinging to God? Look, Gagarin flew into space and saw no god there. One of the most famous propaganda posters in Soviet history was produced shortly thereafter, and it featured a a Russian cosminaut with a mocking expression on his face. And on the poster, he was floating through space. And with that smug look on his face, there was a caption that said, "There is no God." And of course, Christians around the world, they were shocked by such blatant disrespect and unbelief. But back here in America, one New York magazine reached out to author and theologian CS Lewis and they said, "Would you please help us respond to this?" And he did so brilliantly. He wrote an essay which was published and here's what CS Lewis said. You don't relate to God the way a person in a firstf floor apartment relates to a person in the second floor apartment. That is you can't find God just by moving a little higher in our own space. CS Lewis said, "Instead, our relationship to God is more like William Shakespeare's relationship to his literary characters, Hamlet, McBth, Athell, Romeo. You can study all of Shakespeare's plays all day long and then smuggly pronounce, "I saw no Shakespeare there." But that doesn't change the fact that William Shakespeare existed. In some sense, he is on every single page of every one of his plays. Just like God is everywhere in this universe he created. But the cam the character Hamlet or Romeo, they're not aware of Shakespeare's presence just as atheists are not aware of God's existence. The fact is that Hamlet or Romeo or McBth or Athell, they can only know about William Shakespeare if the author writes himself into the story and the character gets to meet him. And in the very same way, we can only know about God if the author writes himself into our world and we get to meet him. I've got good news this morning. Thank God he has done exactly that. Woo. And he's here this morning by the power of his spirit. So we begin today with one very powerful, beautiful, meaningful English word. It's found in two verses in Hebrews. It actually comes from two Greek words, but it's translated the same way. I'm forever grateful that God created me. I'm forever grateful that he wrote himself into my world. And I'm so grateful that he entered my personal story so I could know him. So here it is. Two verses from the book of Hebrews 5:9. And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him. Somebody shout, "That's me." That's me. Hebrews 12:2. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. So, here it is. Jesus is the author of all of history. He's the author of everything you can touch or see or know. And the word author that's used here in the Holy Bible, it means he's the underlying cause. He is the primary source. He is the essential origin. You see, the God that we've been worshiping in this sanctuary today, he is the architect of creation. He is the maker of man. He is the engineer of redemption. He is the composer of salvation. He is the founder of forgiveness, the designer of the church. He's the wordssmith of revelation. He's the poet of prophecy. He's the genius of grace. And he is the builder of every blessing that's ever entered your life. But more than any of that, I'm not only thankful he's the author of history, I'm thankful that he's the author of my story. He is the biographer of my life. And our creator has left clues to his existence everywhere in his creation. And he's also left love notes everywhere in my life and your life. on your birthday. That was the day he started your story. And that was also the day that he wrote you into his story. And as he penned the account of your life, he lovingly and tenderly crafted your character to feel alone and empty and unfulfilled. He created you to always be searching, never quite content until you finally get to know the author of your story. And that's why you need to study his book. Because if you read the words that he left for us with an open heart, here's what you're going to find. His presence is on every page of the scripture. If you want to know the author, you've got to know the book. Now, in every great story, every great story has some tension in the plot. That's what keeps you reading that book that you're in the middle of. It has some tension in the plot. Every great novel, every memorable story, it isn't fully resolved to the last chapter. And authors do that by using two devices. We didn't invent these devices. We just kind of discovered them from ancient documents like the the Bible. And the tension is created by the author using a protagonist. That's the main character of the story and an antagonist. And the antagonist is simply the adversary of the main character. And of course, we know that Satan is the enemy of God and his people. That's from the prologue of the scripture all the way to the epilogue in the book of Revelation. He is called a liar, an accuser and a tempter. He's called a deceiver and a slanderer and a murderer. He's an evil adversary. He tries to pounce on you like a roaring lion. He's seeking to devour your faith. But I have news for you this morning. The devil isn't the author. He's just the antagonist. The author writes the story. The antagonist is merely in the story. And the devil is totally blinded to the fact that the eternal author is only using him through the chapters of time to accomplish the author's eternal purpose. The devil isn't right in your story. The devil isn't right in history. The author is writing your story. The devil's just the adversary. The great reformer Martin Luther, he even said one time, he said, "Even the devil is God's devil." God has the devil like a puppet master has a little puppet on the string. The devil thinks he's large and in charge, but he's not. Look at this. Acts 3:15. You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. And we are witnesses of this. They thought they had Jesus silenced forever when he breathed his last on the cross. What they didn't know, that was just one page in one chapter of God's eternal story. They killed the author and they just kind of walked away. But God had a purpose. He's still here this morning. And Paul picks up on this and Paul amplifies it. He writes profoundly in 1 Corinthians 2. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory. Watch this. Which none of the princes of this world knew. For had they known it, if they had suspected, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory, the devil would have stayed away from Calvary with all of his power. But see, he was blinded because the devil isn't the author. He's just the antagonist. He tries to pretend he's big and bad and bold, but at the end of the day, the devil doesn't get the final say in my life. He's not the Lord of me. He's not the boss of me. He doesn't control my life. The author of salvation is writing my story. Paul said, "If they'd known the wisdom of God, they wouldn't have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, I hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." Now, you like me have probably heard that verse quoted at a whole bunch of funerals. And that's okay because I know there are things in heaven that we've never even dreamed of. But it's not talking about heaven right there. Look at the next verse. But God hath revealed them unto us by his spirit because his spirit searches all things. Yay, the deep things of God. What Paul is talking about is this eternal author. He writes the story and the devil and all the hordes of hell and enemies of truth, they try to attack the story. They even tried to kill the author. But here's what happens when you know him. His spirit reveals to you that there are greater things coming in your life. There's another page. There's another day. There's another chapter in your life. And God's spirit reveals that to us. So, if you want to know what the author is doing with history or prophecy or even your own destiny, you've got to understand the book. That's one of the many reasons, and there are many. It's one of the many reasons that you need to receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. What is that? That is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is the earnest of our inheritance. It is power from on high. You need the baptism of the Holy Ghost because you've had this experience. You know, it hits different. Uh when when you read a book and you know the author of the book personally on my shelves in my library at home, I've got many books from missionaries who've written stories. And when you know them, it just lands differently when you read what they've written. If you are filled with his spirit, when you know the author personally, you pick up this book and it just reads differently. Now, this idea that God is the author, that's not just something I came up with for a sermon. It's not just a casual little metaphor to give you some comfort when you're having a bad day. We believe that the Bible is literally God breathed. When Paul writes to Timothy and he said all scripture is given by inspiration of God. The word inspiration means God breathed. And so we believe that the scripture is foundational truth. While many men held the pen, God wrote the Bible. That's how it works. It's not just a sacred book. This is a supernatural book. Other books can inform you. This book can transform you. It's entirely different. Second Peter chapter 1. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. So they may have held the quill. They may have written with the pen, but it was God that was speaking through them. That's why your pastor can stand here and preach from the scripture and lives can be changed and families can be reunited and broken bodies can be healed because it's not just a sacred book. It's a supernatural book. And this idea that God is the author, it's not just some imaginary notion. There are three times in the pages of scripture that we literally see the eternal God of glory writing with his own finger. The first time is on Mount Si when Moses receives the law of God that initiates the covenant of the Old Testament. Exodus 31-18. And he gave unto Moses when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount si he gave him two tables of testimony tables of stone. Look written with the finger of God. That law is old testament but that law was powerful. The Bible describes the law and says the law is holy. The law is good. The law is perfect. The law is spiritual because there it's it's a powerful thing. There's a lot of people today that are taking pot shots at the law of God. They don't like the commandments of God. They don't like the rules that are in the Bible for our lives. Let me tell you, if God ever gives you a rule, it's the same reason you give your children rules. You're protecting them. You're growing them. You're helping them. And so the Bible says that it's this law that will bring us the knowledge of sin. We will understand what kind of trouble we're in and what we need to do about it because of the law. But the Bible also says that the law will be our school master to bring us to Christ. Rightly so. Let me tell you why the law of God has power. Because God wrote it with his own finger. That's why it has power. The second time we see God right is in a pagan palace in Babylon where King Belt Shazar has invited a thousand of his lords to a great feast. And on that day, this pagan king has dared to desecrate the holy vessels of the temple taken from the temple when Jerusalem fell. And he's using those holy vessels to drink his wine and worship his idols. And he's so smug. And he's so proud. And he thinks he's running the world. He rules an empire. And he's the one, his empire conquered the Jews. And so he thinks he's invincible. But the God who brought his people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, he's not going to allow Beltus Shazar's arrogant defiance to stand unchallenged. But this time, God's not going to use his hand. God's not going to use his outstretched arm. Belt of Shazar is way too little for that. God's going to use his finger. Daniel 5 and5. In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace. And the king saw the part of the hand that wrote and with one finger God wrote judgment on that pagan empire of Babylon. I know we woke up this morning to some news that there's a lot going on in our world. Let me tell you, the author of history, the author of my story, he's in control of everything that's going on. It doesn't take God a workout to get up enough strength to deal with something with his finger. God can say, "Not that over here. Not that way, this way." God is all powerful. And the greatest news I know is that he is among us today by the power of his spirit. If God can knock down empires with a finger, what do you think he can do about your trouble, about your problem, about your family situation? He can heal it. He can turn it. He can change it. Oh my. Now, you might miss the third time that God wrote unless you understand a beautiful doctrine called the incarnation. Because the great king of eternity emptied himself of his glory and he took upon himself the likeness of men. The word that had spoken our world into existence. He became flesh so he could enter our existence. And the Bible tells us that he did not come to condemn us but to save us. He did not come to judge us but to love us. Because when he came, truth and mercy had finally reconciled. Righteousness and peace had finally embraced. So on the day when a mob of self-righteous men tossed a mess of an unrighteous woman at the feet of an altogether righteous savior, God pointed his finger one more time. But he didn't point his finger at that woman taken in the very act of adultery. He pointed his finger at them. John 8:6. This they said, tempting Jesus that they might have to accuse him. See Jesus, they think they've got him in a no-win scenario. If he says, "Oh, it's no problem. You're forgiven." They think he's broken the law and they will condemn him. But if he judges her, then all the rest of the people who are her friends and who feel sympathy, they'll condemn Jesus because he's too harsh and he's judgmental just like them. So they think they've got Jesus boxed in. They think they've put him in a no-win scenario. Here's what Jesus did. But Jesus stooped down and with his finger, that wasn't just the finger of a prophet or a rabbi or a teacher. That was God robed in flesh. with his finger he wrote on the ground as though he heard them not. He just kept writing while they're talking. While the when the scribes and the Pharisees demand that Jesus make a choice between law and forgiveness, here's what Jesus did. He chose both. That's what he did. Yeah, you can cast your stones. That's the law. But only if you are without sin. That's brilliant. You go ahead and cast all the stones you want. I'm not telling you you disobey the law. The law, it it pronounces judgment. But let's add some forgiveness and some grace to it. If you're without sin, you go ahead and criticize. If you're without sin, you go ahead and judge. If you're without sin, you go ahead and you cast the stones at this woman. And then the author, he continues doing what authors do. He continues writing on the ground until finally that mob of angry men one by one they dropped their stones and they walked away because they were convicted by their own consciousness. Now the Bible does not tell us what he wrote. Many great sermons have been preached about what Jesus wrote on the ground. And uh I thank God for all those sermons, but none of those preachers knew what he wrote. Cuz the Bible doesn't tell us what he wrote. Some people think he wrote the sins of all those men. Some people think he wrote the names of the men who'd actually committed sin with her, but they were hiding. Some people think he wrote a verse from Jeremiah in chapter 17 that says, uh, "They shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me will be written in the earth." So they think he might have written that verse to remind them that God's keeping a record of your sins. He may have just written the word adultery because that's what she was accused of. And of all the theories, I like that one just as good as any. The Bible doesn't tell us what he wrote, but we know why any author writes. An author writes to tell a story. And Jesus illustrated something that day. Whatever he wrote on the ground was temporary. You go to the beach, you write your name and your beloved's name, and you put a little plus sign and you draw a heart around it. Let me tell you what's going to happen to that. The tide's going to come in because anything written in sand, anything written in the dust on the ground, it's temporary. So, I don't know what Jesus wrote. I'd almost like to think he wrote her sin on the ground. Adultery in great big letters. That's what she was accused of. But here's what Jesus was saying. If it's written on the ground, it's going to be changed. If it's written in the dirt, it can be wiped away. So maybe the author of the ages is saying in that moment, her sin may be bad, but it's temporary because I can rewrite her story. I can turn the page and it's going to be a brand new chapter. I pause to preach to somebody in this room today. and you've hung your head in shame and you're so scared that somebody is going to find out about that sorted chapter in your past. Let me tell you, when you come to the author of eternal redemption, he can flip the page. He can flip the script. He can write redeemed where it used to say rejected. I don't care how bad chapter five was. When you get to chapter six or seven or eight, it can say this. And on such and such a Sunday, they became a child of God. Sins remitted. Oh my. And Jesus said to that woman, "Neither do I condemn thee. Go and sin no more. What beautiful, powerful words he was saying to that lady. It's a new day. It's a new start. It's a new page. It's a new life. It's a new chapter. It's a new story. Is there anybody in this great congregation this morning? Who remembers the day when Jesus spoke those words over you? I don't condemn you. Just go and sin no more. All of which is to say, aren't you thankful for the author of your story? There are many people, theologians, preachers and pastors, conference speakers, they they come at this subject from different directions and sometimes they disagree with each other and they talk about something that's kind of become a buzzword. generational curses. And they talk about how like if your great-grpa did something and it kind of comes down through the family tree and if if if if if your grandmother did something and and they talk about generational curses and there are differences of opinion among good men and good preachers and good theologians. But here's where they all join together. 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." I don't care what your great grandpa did. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. When God gets a hold of your story, it doesn't matter how bad it was a couple of chapters ago. The author can go to work and he can make everything new. He can turn a trial into a testimony. He can turn a mess into a miracle. He can turn a dark night into a bright morning. He can do it all because he's the author of my story. Christianity isn't just the decision of one moment. It's the dedication of your life to God. And so what we call the new birth, being born again, that's a wonderful page in your story, but it's not the whole book. The same God who led the Israelites, he wants to lead you. And as he leads you through your journey, let me talk to you saints of God. There will be some puzzling paragraphs. There will be some confusing chapters along the way in your story. There will be pages that make you cry. And there will be pages that make you pray. There will be days you want to feel like giving up, but then you flip the page and you walk straight into deliverance. There will be moments that make you think that your story must be over, but then you run headlong into a miracle and God does something great. There will be seasons when you don't see God's hand at work. But it's in those seasons and on those pages that you learn to trust his heart. And there will be times, saints of God, when you don't feel his presence, but you can stand on his promise. I will never leave you nor forsake you. In the middle of his story, which by the way is the oldest book in your Bible, Job said these words. Job 23. Behold, I go forward. He's not there. I look backward. I can't perceive him. On the left hand, they tell me he's working over here, but I can't behold him. and he seems to be hiding himself on the right hand and I can't see him over there. Job said, "I've got to a place in my story where I feel like all the props have been knocked out from under me. I've lost my possessions. I've lost my my herds. I've lost my crops. I've lost my properties. I've lost all my beloved children. In one day, I'm sick in my body. I'm in agony from this pain. My wife even told me, "Job, why don't you just give up and curse God and die and get it over with? I can't sense God anywhere on this page of my story." And that might not just be Job. That might be somebody in this building. That might be somebody watching online right now. I can't determine that God is anywhere on this page of my story. Here's what Job said on one of the worst days of his life. He said, "But he knoweth the way that I take. When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." Here's what Job said to us. I don't know where God is, but I believe that God knows exactly where I am. So, I don't know when he's going to finally conclude this awful chapter. I am waiting with baited breath for God to turn the page, but he hasn't yet. I don't know how long I'm going to be in this chapter, but let me tell you something. I don't know when I'm coming out, but I can tell you how I'm coming out. I shall come forth as gold. Can some saint say, "Yeah, I've been through the sickness. I've been through the flood and the fire. I've been through the trial and the pain. I've been through the confusion. I've been through the seasons when my mind was attacked by hell. But let me tell you something, devil. Let me tell you something, church family. I don't know when I'm getting out of this, but I can show you how I'm coming out of this. When I come out, I'm going to come to church the same way I'm here today. I'm going to lift up my hands. I'm going to worship God. and I'm going to thank you. Your chapter isn't the last chapter. Your chapter isn't the final page of the story. Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." Let me tell you how this works. I know the creator of this world. I trust the captain of my vessel. I trust the savior of my soul. I trust the Lord of my life. And I trust the author of my story. That's right. When you give your life to God, he takes you at your word. You give your life to God. You're his workmanship. You're his building. The Bible says you become the book that the author is writing. 2 Corinthians 3 and3. For as much as you are manifestly declared, watch this, to be the epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but written with the spirit of the living God. Not written in tables of stone like the law. No, written in fleshly tables of the heart. You are God's book. Your life is his book. He is the author of your story. I preach to somebody that's walking through a terrible trial and it's very painful and it's very confusing. But let me tell you, you can trust the author of your story. I preached to someone who is in agony from sickness. Let me tell you, you can trust the author of your story because he's writing his story on the pages of your heart for your good and for his glory. Psalm 139. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. That's my God. I know it surprised you. It did not surprise him. I know it just about knocked a breath out of you. It did not scare him because he knows the end from the beginning. And he is a faithful savior and he is writing your story. Aren't you glad that you are not the author of your story? You would have messed it up a thousand times by now because you would have written a chapter filled with hate and vengeance and revenge against some of your perceived enemies and you didn't even know that God was using them to bring a blessing into your life. You might have written a a page or a chapter where you lashed out. You took matters in your own hands and you decided you were going to fix it. Well, us trying to fix our lives is like most of you amateur repairmen trying to fix something for your wife at your house. It usually ends up a whole lot worse and you need to call the plumber anyway. Oh, there was a witness in the Holy Ghost right there. Do you hear that? I'm glad I'm not the author of my story. My story is not an autobiography. I'm not holding the pen. It is a biography and it is filled with grace written by the author who loves me. So here's what I can trust today. Every turn of the narrative is filled with his mercies because they are new every morning. Every sudden twist of the plot I can trust that God is working all things together for my good. Every unexpected trial becomes a tool that conforms me into his image. Every new chapter advances his eternal purpose. Every page unfolds a brand new day that he has made. And so I'm going to spend today looking for ways to rejoice in the day that he has made. You say, "Don't you ever have any problems?" Oh my goodness. I can name them for you. I got problems. I've even got enemies. But even the enemies that appear in your story when you're trusting the author, they are for your good and they are for his glory. Joseph said it best. Oh, you meant it for evil, but my God meant it for good. Let me tell you, you thought that when that character came onto that page in that chapter of your story, it was going to be all over. But they meant it for evil, but the author meant it for good. They're just going to last for a few pages and then you're going to flip to the next chapter and you're going to see that God was in charge the entire time. I I need to plagiarize the words of Paul. And what shall we then say to these things? If the author of my story is for me, then who can be against me? If he holds the pen, that's right in my entire story. Who can be against me? He can turn the evil for good. He can turn the sickness into health. He can turn the setback into a setup for victory. Oh my. I wish you'd clap your hands and shout to the Lord with a voice of triumph. This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. I've got faith not in me. I've got faith in him. I'm not big enough. I'm not strong enough. I'm not smart enough. But he holds the universe in the palm of his hand. And he is writing your story. In closing, there's another great word in Hebrews chapter 12 and verse two. He is the author, but he is also the finisher. That word only appears that one time in all of holy scripture. He's the finisher. You see, when Jesus cried out on the cross, "It is finished." He meant exactly what he said. He is not going to pick you up for a while and then drop you along the side of the road. He is not going to walk with you for a season and then abandon you just cuz your feelings turned upside down and you're emotionally a drift right now. That doesn't mean he's left you. He is not just the author of your faith. He is the finisher. He is the perfector. He is the completer. He meant what he said. He is going to finish the story because he is the author. He's the author and he's the finisher of your faith. Paul said it in Philippians 1. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you, he will perform it. He will perfect it. He will complete it. He will finish it until the day of Jesus Christ. So, I came to this pulpit today to tell you, it doesn't matter what you're facing today or what you're dealing with today. It certainly doesn't matter. And I want to be respectful of you because I've been there. But it certainly doesn't matter how your emotions are perceiving it. And I'm compassionate toward you. I've had days when my emotions were upside down and twisted into a pretzel and I wept and I cried and I was depressed and I struggled. So, I'm sympathetic to you, but the end of my story is not dictated by the emotions on page 392. The end of my story is not dictated by the clouds on the horizon in chapter 15. Because the author, he's not just started my story, he's going to finish my story. My story got started when I was 12 years old and I repented of my sins. I was baptized in the only saving name of Jesus for the remission of my sins. And I was filled with the glorious power of the Holy Ghost. That's been more than 50 years ago. And here's what I can tell you. There were days I was up and down. There were days that I was flat on my face crying my eyes out. But I can tell you this, every day of my life, the author has been faithful. Every time I thought it was over, he just wrote a new page. Every time I thought I needed to give up, he just wrote another paragraph. Every time I thought I've really done it this time, the author stepped in and said, "No, all things work together for good." Stand right now in the building. Let your hands keep on going. I wish there could be a choir. We heard from a powerful choir. I'd like to conscript everybody to be a choir of worshippers. Would you lift up your voice like a roar of praise? You're in his hand. You're in his hand. You are not in the hands of the world. You are not in the hands of the devil. You are not even in your own hands. Your life is in his hands. He's the author of your story. in your story. There's a page June 22nd, 2025. There's a page in your story for this morning. You have no idea before you pillar your head tonight. We say it all the time. We don't know what could happen in the next day. We don't know what could happen over the next few hours. But I trust the author. You have no idea what miracle he may have written for this morning in your life on that page of your story. You don't know what he could do if you just give him a chance. Some of you are trying so hard and I love you. You're trying so hard to write a good story. You're you're carving out that education and that career path and those good financial choices and you're trying to have a nice home and some good possessions and provide a good living for your family and you're working so hard to write that story. If you would just surrender the pen today, pass the pen to the author, I promise you he'll do a better job than you could ever imagine for yourself. And he'd like to get started writing. Maybe he'll need to erase a couple of lines that you tried to write. But by the time his blood cleanses and his grace gets finished, it'll be a story that will sustain you till the last day of your life. And the last chapter of your book will not be your funeral. That's just a chapter in your book. It's not the end chapter because when you let him write your story, it goes on into eternity. Oh my goodness. In just a second, we're going to come to the front and pray together as family. God is going to touch lives. You don't know what kind of miracles he's written into your story for this morning. Um, you've been preaching about family and it's been so beautiful, so powerful. And I'd like us to come as families if you're with your family today. and we're going to pray. But just before we walk to the front, I'd like it if one more time we could do that one more time. Just lift up our hands and lift up our voices and fill this sanctuary with praise. Praise in anticipation of the mercy that's going to be written into somebody's life. Pray. Praise for the the grace that's going to give strength. Praise for the miracle that's going to be written into the page of somebody's story this morning. Oh, lift him up, church. Lift him up, church. Lift him up, church. Now, would you come with your friends and your family and as quickly as you can, would you get to the front where we're going to pray together as the family of God? He is the author of every story in this room. You've just got to meet him. You've just got to get to know him and you'll find out he can write a better story than you ever envisioned for your life. Oh, keep coming. That's beautiful. We got room right in through here. Keep coming as close as you can. Beautiful. Thank you, great church. Thank you, Miraville. We got some room right in here. Just keep coming. Now, would you reach out to a friend or a family member and would you pray for somebody besides yourself right now? Because as you pray for them and they pray for you, the spirit of God is going to go to work. He's going to write over that sin. He's going to write over that issue. He's going to write over that past. He's going to write over that problem. And when he gets done, your marriage is going to be different. Your family's going to be different. Your future is going to be different. In Jesus name. In Jesus name. In Jesus name. In Jesus name. Someone needs to hear that's struggling with fear. In Jesus name. afraid that God just won't come through. I'm here to tell you God will not fail you. He did it for me. He will do it for you. All of my story, all of his glory. Hallelujah. This is my story. The God of glory lifted me out of my grave. Oh, praise his name. I've been changed. I'll never be the same. This is my story. This is my story. I thank God for his love and his selfless mercy. Where would I be without your grace? It's our condition. He rested me when I follow his name. All my story is glory. This is my story beyond my gra. Heat. Heat. Heat. I'll never be the same. This is my story. This is my story. When I think goodness of Jesus reach down for me. When I goodness of Jesus pull me from death until I think of goodness of Jesus. When I think of your goodness, I'm set free. Washed in the blood of I'm in the blood. Oh my god. So grateful for that powerful song they're singing right now. You're blessed with such great worship culture and worship leaders in this church. But I just a push by the Holy Ghost to just take a pause for just a moment and I want you to pray for somebody. And here's what I want you to pray over them. God, rewrite the story. You may not even know all the story, but I'm I'm asking you for a moment. And so, we'll just push pause on this wonderful worship for just a moment because what we need right now is for voices to be lifted up in prayer, intercession. There are some called intercessors in this church family. And you don't have to just kind of calm down and dial it back for us. Right now is a moment when God wants to rewrite somebody's story. I know it's Sunday morning. I know you got plans, but right now this there's nothing more important than somebody's life getting rewritten by the mercy of God. So I dare you turn around, find somebody that you didn't come with. Lay your hand on them. And you don't need to know the details. Just pray, "God, rewrite the story. God, rewrite the story. God, rewrite the story." Lift up your voice and pray. Great church. Lift up your voice and pray. Great church. Rewrite the story of shame. Rewrite the story of failure. Rewrite the story of sin. Rewrite the story of anxiety. Rewrite the story of sickness. Rewrite the story of a marriage that's fractured and a family that's divided. God, right now, rewrite the story. Rewrite the story. Yes, Jesus. Yes, Jesus. Yes, Jesus. Oh, pray church. Something powerful. Pages are turning right now. Pages are turning right now. Hey, hey, hey, God. Rewrite the story. God rewrite the story.