Pressure Points Part 2

so tonight is our second lesson of our series pressure points i'm going to say pressure points and this is the key text that we're focusing so if you're taking notes great job and uh the focus text we're mentioning every week is galatians 1 10 and this is the big idea behind this series when it comes to peer pressure for you as a teenager verse 10 says this obviously i am not trying to win the approval of people that is not my goal in life is to win somebody else's approval but of god if my goal if pleasing people were my goal then i simply would not be christ's servant and that's the big picture our goal no matter who you are no matter where you go and especially when it comes to peer pressure no matter who you are around your goal should be to win the approval of god last week we talked a little bit about classifying peer pressure understanding what peer pressure really is how it affects you how it affects teenagers and we talked a little bit in depth about that and we had a little bit of fun last week with this great bench vice press here and we had some of you guys have the opportunity to press and to destroy all types of random objects and this bench vice here it helped me just to illustrate something very important that pressure peer pressure in your life was going to reveal your character and your convictions peer pressure will reveal what you as a christian are really made of and finally we talked about how peer pressure will show really if you care more about what people think about you or if you care more about what god thinks about you and that is evident in those peer pressure moments if you care more about what god thinks about you and if you trust in him we closed last week talking about how god will see you through he will be with you in the most pressure filled moments second corinthians 4 8-9 i did not give this a media but we read this last week how we are pressed on every side by troubles but we're not crushed when we depend on god and we are perplexed but we are not driven into despair everybody say pressure points so before we get into this lesson because we do have this press back i think we can do a quick round two if anybody would like to so did anybody bring anything no you probably you did bring something man let's do it for [name redacted] he's locked in come on down what do we have [name redacted] what did you bring for us today oh what'd he get he brought a hot wheel car all right give it a shot all right it is all you we can have a little bit of uh crushing music a little fill the environment here all right and uh any ladies who didn't miss out last week because any ladies want to come choose you didn't get to participate last week but you want to come choose something up here tonight to crush in your ladies all right come on down what do we got it is it withstanding the pressure it's achieved all right so while he's doing that we've got several things over here um we do have this week exclusive we have a can of 100 pure pumpkin that could shower the audience we still have the birdhouse nobody chose that we do have a little pack of pineapple chucks so um dog bone whatever choose whatever you'd like what's happening over here the pressure somebody was texting and driving on 285 so set a reminder in your front if you have something that's not flammable combustible you can bring it in next week and we'll let you crush it in the vice press okay all right i think we're at the end of it let's see peer pressure it shows you what you are made of and reveals who you really are all right destroy brilliant all right let's get pressed in the hand good job bud all right you're gonna go straight up let's maybe go let's maybe go straight up because i don't know if i want to have to clean the carpet all right if you want we have safety goggles all right oh boy how many guys love pumpkin pie while we're on the topic yeah any pumpkin pie lovers pecan pie or pumpkin pie oh boy oh man pumpkin pie and is it what part of georgia are you from is it pecan oh she's been hit she's been hit [Applause] she's been hit you can stop if you're like at that point she says [Music] [Applause] [Music] your family is going to love me let's give her a hand does anybody want to use that now after all that we have pumpkin shards all the way oh sweet all right zach pick one of these young men to come on up here real fast we'll do two more we'll get through our lesson all right go grab something real fast [Music] how do you think it's the pumpkin's not bad not oh [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] all right back it out back it up back it out real fast real fast all right go do one more lady while he's finishing that have anybody else any ladies remind me [Music] [Applause] pineapple chunks all right last one yeah be careful [Music] pineapple trucks [Applause] oh [name redacted] why are you leaving [name redacted] on the count of three all right let's get up ready good job [name redacted] all right on the count of three [name redacted] back in the room one two three good job good job all right let's give them all a hand good job everybody i'm telling pressure points pressure points so tonight last week we talked about classifying understanding pressure peer pressure what it is how it affects us and a little bit about the response to that about trusting god but tonight we're going to move on we're going to focus a little bit about taking action against peer pressure when it comes to addressing the difficulties in your life like peer pressure there must come a time when you have to stop being a recipient of that pressure and you have to confront that pressure everybody say confront it that's what we're going to talk about tonight to confront means to challenge somebody or something face to face how many guys have ever had a good face-to-face confrontation with somebody anybody how do you guys admit that makes you super uncomfortable confrontation right how do you guys actually enjoy it a little bit how many guys enjoy confrontation anybody like yeah bring it on but that's what that's where that leads so listen up the reason the reason why you have to confront peer pressure during your teenage years is this everybody listen up everybody say listen up we're having fun let's get locked back in the reason why you have to confront peer pressure during your teenage years is because as we mentioned last week it simply never goes away it doesn't matter if you're a middle schooler a high schooler if you're a college student a young adult there's always going to be some type of pressure from peers no matter what age group that is the environments that you're surrounding yourself in a college environment or a work environment if you don't learn to confront those pressureful moments it will eventually control you i read a quote about peer pressure and it states this that you will find peace not by trying to escape your problems but you find peace by confronting them courageously you will find peace not in denial but in victory and this idea of confronting and conquering your problems it's reinforced by the word of god of course romans 12 21 tells us don't let evil conquer you don't let peer pressure and evil pressure don't let that conquer you but you should therefore conquer evil by doing good romans 12 21 if the media has that can put those up on the screen when you're faced with the pressure to do something evil something bad something that goes against what you know is right to do you must simply combat that by doing the opposite you must go against the flow of what that pressure is to do what is right and not to cave into the pressure proverbs 1 and 10 says this my child if a sinner somebody entices you if somebody's pressuring you you should stop and you turn your back on them when people try to pressure you you've got to learn to turn them down and to turn your back on them not to conform to those who may be pulling you away from god romans 6 and 16 says this don't you realize students this is talking uh perfectly it goes in line with peer pressure says don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey whatever that you choose to obey to cave into that's what you become slave to that you can be a slave to sin which leads to death or you can confront that sin you can confront that pressure you can choose to obey god in those moments which leads to righteous living when it comes to peer pressure if you stay passive if you stay timid if you become you stay reserved you're going to become slave to it but i challenge you guys simply tonight in this lesson to make up in your mind to confront peer pressure in jesus name so you can have victory over it tonight i want to share simply three more things three things at night that you need to confront peer pressure and the first quality that you need to possess for confronting peer pressure is trust everybody say trust trust trust in god simply having trust and faith in god in those moments that hey god in this moment if i'm going to confront this peer pressure i have got to have a lot of faith i have my faith and trust in you that you're going to get my back in these moments trust is believing that when you confront that the pressure and the issues in your life that god will back you up and he will take care of you how many guys have ever read of something called the mariana trench right and the ocean on the deepest places in the world the deepest part of the world's oceans so at sea level the air pressure pressure is about 14.7 pounds per square inch you don't ever really notice that or feel that pressure your body's adapted to that but at the bottom of the mariana trench in the western pacific there's seven miles of water down and pose a pressure it's about eight tons of pressure per square inch that is an enormous amount of pressure per square inch but it wasn't enough to stop two men the pressure this man named don walks jacquez picard from confronting the pressure 1960 they're the first people to explore the challenger deep in the mariana trench it took them four hours and 47 minutes to go all the way down and all the way down the pressure from going down the bottom of the marina trench was so great that around 30 000 feet one of the outer plexiglass window panes cracked shaking the entire vessel they had a decision there do we trust what we are put ourselves into to continue on or do we abandon on the board these men they went on they only spent 20 minutes on the ocean floor and it took them about three hours to go back up but going to that depth of water and excuse me facing that unbelievable pressure it took a considerable amount of trust trust and that deep water submarine that touristic but more importantly it takes a lot of trust in the creators of that sub the designers and the engineers they have put their hands their lives in the hands of some scientists some creator that that guy knew what they're doing that this equipment when i go down with that enormous amount of pressure around me that is going to keep me safe i doubt you tried to go down to the bottom of the mariana trench at a discount sub that you bought off amazon with a two star rating probably not the best idea there's probably not a lot of trust in that piece of equipment but the point is students when it comes to confronting peer pressure you can and you absolutely must put your trust in god almighty he is your creator he is your designer and your life can be trusted when placed in his hands his name the bible says is a strong tower that the righteous can run to and you can be safe in those most difficult times when you call the name of the lord it is like a strong tower of protection and help to keep you from those attacks he's our savior our deliverer so we have to trust him proverbs 3 5-6 says this trust in the lord with all of your heart and don't depend on your own understanding but you simply seek his will on all you do and he will show you which path to take i want you guys to understand that your own understanding your own emotions will tell you that in a peer pressure moment confronting is not a great idea right that's typically in your flesh that is not your first reaction and a super uncomfortable moment of pressure is to make a scene to stand up and just confront the pressure that's usually the last thing that comes to mind like okay how can i just avoid and get out of this situation without causing a scene and being too uncomfortable that's a very difficult time but your own understanding that's that's not going to to get you through that your flesh will tell you to do what you want to pursue you know the safest way out it will tell you to take the easy route to avoid confrontation it will tell you that the risk of rejection or being isolated from somebody you care about or a group of friends is not worth it but understand tonight you need to confront your own will your own desires with complete obedience and trust in god proverbs excuse me psalms 9-10 says this those who know your name lord they trust in you for you o lord do not abandon those who search for you soon as god simply put he will not abandon those who trust in him you gotta trust god the second quality for overcoming peer pressure is tenacity everybody say tenacity tenacity is important qualities of christians being very determined to stand for what is wrong to truly trust god to truly have courage it's got to be some tenacity in you as a christian there must be a little bit of a passion a lot of passion a holy ghost fire in your life there has to be great resolve and determination that you want to please god more than anything else you can't be passive you know passivity you have to have tenacity first corinthians two and two says this for i decided that while i was with you i would forget everything else except jesus christ the one who was crucified that's the kind of mindset said i've forgotten everything else in that peer pressure moment i forget about my friends i forget about the confrontation i forget about all those things and i'm instantly i'm focused and there's this understanding about jesus christ the one who died for me the savior the creator of the world and my mind is made up you've got to have that kind of determination and not be affected by peer pressure to not be pulled or swayed or affected by those closest to you if you do god will be there for you psalm 16 8 says this i know the lord is always with me i will not be shaken for he is right beside you when it comes to peer pressure so the spiritual tenacity is needed a strong desire a great determination to make a stand for what is right so the next thing the third and final quality for facing peer pressure tonight is toughness if i say toughness spiritual toughness having the strength having the courage to face peer pressure and the scripture god's people were placed in many many hostile high pressure situations you read through all the miraculous moments that happened in the bible most of them were in high pressure situation and moments but in these high pressure situations we see that god's people they were reminded and challenged to trust in god and have some spiritual toughness to them deuteronomy 31 6 i recently preached this to our church family on a sunday says this so be strong and be courageous do not be afraid and do not panic before them for the lord your god will personally go ahead of you he will neither fail you nor abandon you he says hey you need to toughen up as christians you need to be strong you need to be courageous you need to have some tenacity in your life to encourage it's facing difficulty danger pain and other pressures without fear it's being brave and having strength in the face of pain or grief as paralyzing as the fear of standing up to peer pressure may be the bible says that god can help free yourself of that fear while you truly have confidence that god is going to be there for you you can develop toughness in times of immense pressure there's an old saying that a dog is a man's best friend right man or woman how many guys have a precious little dog yeah all right there's another saying that goes like this that a diamond is a girl's best friend diamonds are amazing they are beautiful they are expensive brothers zach could probably attest to that engagement in marriage diamonds are also supposed to be the hardest natural occurring substance on earth there's others that are non-natural that are harder than a diamond but a diamond is the hardest natural substance on earth a diamond doesn't become a diamond very easily it's a long process of carbon-bearing materials enduring immense pressure most diamonds are formed by extreme temperature of 2700 degrees and great pressure that's compared to 4 000 grown men standing on your foot is the comparison of pressure but this takes place at a great depth of around 100 miles below the earth's surface and the mantle the layer between the crust and the superheated core the high pressure it changes a molecular structure of carbon by crushing its atoms together and forcing it into a new structure science finally diamonds are brought to the surface as a result of volcanic eruptions or earthquakes other weakened materials in the earth that sustain the amount of time or pressure they simply decay they simply decompose they're destroyed under the pressure but a diamond is created because of its internal components because of what it's made of the diamond survives and it thrives first corinthians 10 13 says this the temptation students that are in your life right now the pressures that are in your life they're no different from what others experience that's a reminder that no matter what you're going through right now no matter the pressure that you're dealing with and sometimes you don't understand it you feel like you're isolated in that the bible kind of reminds us hey what you're going through right now the temptations in your life that peer pressure that's no different from what others experience you're not alone in this but god is faithful and he will not allow the temptation the pressure to be more than you can stand when you are tempted he will show you a way out so that you can endure so please know that if you are filled with god's spirit if you are filled with this power and strength you have the ability to stand against any pressure in this life you have the ability to have strength tenacity and toughness that may be difficult facing the pressure but i want you guys to understand it will not destroy you it may be uncomfortable you may feel that pressure god didn't promise christians a pressure free life right more than anything he told us there's going to be pressure more than anything else he told us in his life there is going to be persecution today that's okay you are going to go through that but it's not going to destroy you rather it is going to strengthen you it's going to strengthen your faith in god romans 5 3-4 says this we can rejoice too for when we run into problems and trials for we know that those moments the trials the problems the peer pressure we're talking about tonight they help us develop endurance and endurance develops strength and it develops character in our lives and character it strengthens our confident hope of salvation so students be tough trust in god stay filled with this powerful spirit and don't give up don't give in so turn to somebody next you say hey tough enough it's tough enough as our worship team comes back makes their way back in this time if you guys do any reading in the old testament at some point you're going to come across a group of people called the philistines some say the philistines philistines how many of you have heard of the philistines philistines right they were strong they were a warring people one of israel's fiercest rivals from the first hebrew abraham until the deportation of judah to babylon the philistines were a constant enemy of israel you read about many different battles and run-ins between the two nations like samson and gideon and david and goliath and many more all throughout the old testament one of my favorite that relates perfectly to my message tonight about having being able to confront is what we're talking about tonight the pressures in your life is the story of king saul's son jonathan king saul was gathered with about 600 men trying to figure out what to do about the immense pressure from the philistines but nearby up on a hill there was a fortified outpost on this rocky cliff with 20 or more philistine warriors and something that rose up into jonathan and instead of being crippled by the pressure and conforming to it he decided to simply confront it he said to his armored baron first samuel 14-6 he said let's go across to the outpost of these pagans perhaps the lord will help us for nothing can hinder the lord he can win a battle whether he has many warriors or only a few what an incredible amount of faith that he had when the philistines saw them coming they tried to intimidate them that's what they specialized in that's what goliath did to pressure jonathan they mocked them said hey look the hebrews are crawling out of their halls come on up here and say we'll teach you a lesson is what the bible says 20 plus philistine warriors trying to pressure them trying to intimidate them just two men everybody say pressure but jonathan decided to confront that pressure with the help of the lord he told his armor bear come on climb right behind me the lord he's going to help us defeat this pressure they climbed up the cliff to confront the outpost bible says they're standing back to back surrounded by the philistines that they began to fight before long some 20 philistines were killed their bodies scattered the bible says over a half an acre not only did they confront students and conquered the pressure from the philistines but it set off a chain reaction that unleashed faith to the other people of israel the bible says panic broke out and the army and the philistines were terrified and they were the ones feeling the pressure now all because jonathan and his honor bear confronted the philistine pressure israel conquered the philistines that and all this all to stand together students that's what god can do for you if you learn not to cave into the peer pressure moments in your life but rather partner with god and simply confront