The Value Of A Habit | Senior Pastor Kenneth Carpenter

grab your bibles and would stand with me tonight and i want to begin our 41st year in the book of acts that's a pretty good book to start the 41st year isn't it the book of acts chapter number 16 the book of acts chapter number 16 and we're going to begin reading at verse number 12 acts chapter 16 and verse number 12. my the presence of the lord is good tonight look at this crowd here wow look at this crowd here tonight wonderful i'm just so thankful to see everyone everyone here god is so good god is so good verse number 12 acts chapter 16 and from fence to philippi which is the chief city of that part of macedonia and a colony we were in that city abiding certain days and on the sabbath day and on the sabbath we went out of the city by a riverside where prayer was want to be made and we sat down and spake unto the women which resorted thither and a certain woman named lydia a seller of purple of the city of thyrotyra which worshipped god heard us whose heart the lord opened that she attended and to the things which were spoken of paul i'm going to take my text from verse number 13 where prayer was want to be made put your bibles down right now with me if you could father i love you we stand here oh god on the first midweek service of our 41st year lord jesus tonight i pray for all the people that are gathered here this evening lord they're here because they want to be here god they're here because they love you they are your people and god i ask you tonight to allow me anoint me touch me o god that i would feed these people lord you told us in the word that the way that we can show you that we love you is to feed your sheep lord help me to feed your sheep tonight help me to nourish them help me to bind up the broken help me to heal the brokenhearted through the word help me to show the way of repentance to those that have went astray lord for the next few moments god keep your hand upon this place and upon our hearts in jesus wonderful name i do pray amen and amen you may be seated if you would like to write down a subject title the value of a habit the value of a habit we all understand i've changed it just just a tad i was going to say i was going to say that there are good habits and there are bad habits but in reference to living for god i would say that there are good habits and there are evil habits i believe that we're interested tonight in good habits i believe that we're concerned tonight about good habits we know that the book of acts was written by a man by the name of luke it was luke that wrote the gospel of luke and then it was luke that wrote the book of acts it was luke that was a traveling companion of the apostle paul a historian a man that would write and record history and luke tells us in paul's travels that paul had a vision paul had a vision of a man praying him beseeching him to come over into macedonia and help us now of course you understand that paul was going into macedonia to preach the gospel paul was going into macedonia to set people free and so luke records their early days there he records it they came to a city of macedonia philippi and uh he records that on the sabbath day they went out of the city by the river's side for worship now the reason that on the sabbath they did not go into the synagogue a synagogue was because that philippi didn't have enough men to merit building a synagogue there are some writers of history bible history that state that in order for a synagogue a place of worship to be built that you had to have at least 10 men that would stand behind this we understand that being correct that not having enough men the women went out by a riverside where the simple phrase was used where prayer was want one w-o-n-t where prayer verse 13 where prayer was want to be made now that word want there means customed or it can mean a habit and a habit is a repeated act that turns into a habit you take a small act and you just keep repeating and repeating and repeating this small act until this act becomes a habit so we understand from this that these women not having a place to worship god that they chose a place by the riverside and there there was the repeated every sabbath of prayer these women gathered and they prayed you know the habit of prayer the habit of prayer is a good thing it's a good thing it is a it is a good thing good things have come out of the habit of praying good things have come out of the habit now please don't fall prey to looking for that one super duper expialid that that that one prayer that you're going to pray the fireworks are going to go off that one prayer you're going to pray and all your worries are going to cease to be can i tell you that prayer does not exist good things come out of when we are want to pray when we get in the habit we get in the habit of prayer i don't know church church family tonight i don't know how long these women were there i don't know how many days there was one particular woman that's named her name is lydia she's a businesswoman she's a seller of purple that was a very expensive cloth in those days kings and and and dignitaries wore purple she's a businesswoman but she's also a worshiper of god i don't know we could just choose we do know that it was want to be made was it the first day they had started praying we don't know it was a year two years three years we don't even know if it was 10 years but every how long it was luke would simply record they went out of the city by riverside where prayer was want accustomed and habit to pray but on this day when they gathered for prayer on this day on this day when they gathered for prayer they noticed that a couple of men had joined them one's name was paul and the other's name was luke and as they joined into the prayer oh i love this verse number 13 on the sabbath we went out of the city by the riverside where prayer was want to be made and we sat down and spake unto the women which resorted thither and a certain woman named lydia seller a purple of the city of thyrotyra which worshiped god heard us oh now you see when we begin to couple some things together we begin to couple together we begin to couple together the habit of prayer along with the worship of god they not only had the habit of requesting god to do things but in the midst of giving our petitions there was some oh god i love you oh god i thank you for keeping your hand on me god you're faithful lord i worship you god i'll magnify your name but on this day as they prayed and they worshiped it says this whose heart the lord opened whose heart the lord opened that she attended unto the things which were spoken of paul you see one way for god to leave you leads you is to have an open heart you got to have an open heart and the only way you can get an open heart is to have a habit of prayer and to have a habit of worship god cannot feed a closed mouth he cannot bless a clenched fist and he cannot lead a closed heart so if we want god to lead us we have got to get in the habit of prayer everybody can do it everybody can do it no one is excluded i'm so thankful that when it come to communicating with god he didn't give some kind of talent deal that we had to sing on key if he could give that i'd have been left out for sure he he didn't give some kind of oratory skills aren't you thankful that everybody can pray everybody can pray everyone can get in the habit of prayer and then worship and then the opening of the heart and the next thing we know brother nolan verse 15 and when she was baptized oh look at verse 15 close now and when she was baptized acts chapter 16 verse 15 please and it came to pass 15 and when she was baptized acts 16 15 and when she was baptized and her house and her household and when she was baptized look at that in your bible and when she was now on the screen and when she was baptized and when she was baptized look at this look at these next three words say it with me and her oh friend you see when i get in the habit of prayer and i get in the habit of worship and i listen to the word of god and god opens my heart guess who else he's going to bless my household my household is going to be blessed and when she was baptized and her household she besought us saying if you have judged me to be faithful to the lord come into my house and abide there and she constrained us now i like that kind of conversion i i i'm really not keen on on on people that get baptized and get the holy ghost and you don't see them again that that's why we really need to talk to people about getting baptized we really need to let them understand because true conversion is not getting baptized and running on here's a true conversion and true conversions are built on the habit of prayer true conversions are built on the habit of the small habit of prayer she not only had the habit of prayer she had ability to worship god and she not only had the ability to worship god but god opened her heart i guess that's the first case of open heart surgery all right he opened her heart and she listened to what paul was saying and paul preached to her the death burial and resurrection of this one jesus christ of whom we love and whom we worship and when she heard of what jesus christ god and flesh the god of israel that she was worshiping had become flesh and died for our sins she repented she was water baptized in jesus name and filled with the holy ghost but she goes home she takes i guess maybe that's the first home bible study she takes paul home with her and paul preaches to those in her household and they're baptized but they're not going to wave by to the apostle paul now they begin to constrain him they begin to ask him oh please don't leave oh please don't leave us oh we want you to stay right here we want you to stay in the bible the bible look at that with me again look at that with me the last few words of verse number 15 of acts 16 the last few words and she constrained us she constrained us as if to say paul she you know like like uh like please stay and oh we've got to go no no no you got to please stay and she can strain them i'm going to tell you something what we've got in the way of salvation is not a christmas and easter religion matter of fact what we've got in the way of salvation is not a sunday and a wednesday religion what we've got in the way of salvation i want it in my house every day i want it in my house i don't just want it in my house on sunday and wednesday or christmas and easter i want it in my house i want it in my house every day i want it in my house oh hallelujah oh hallelujah i want it in my house every day if you read through the chapter 16 if you read through chapter 16 you'll find as a matter of fact acts chapter 16 verse 16 is interesting because it says in verse 16 and it came to pass as we went to prayer well verse number 13 and i'm going to i'm going to bounce you all over in in the verses tonight but verse number 13 go there just go back just a few verses with me for a moment and on this on the sabbath we went out of the city by riverside where prayer was want to be made i call this getting started prayer all right getting started you know when's the best time to start a good habit right now the best time to start a good habit is right now and i call this brother thompson i'll call this my getting started prayer all right gotta get started you gotta get started somewhere am i getting started prayer you wanna read your bible through y'all start somewhere that's right you don't turn your life around a thousand mile journey begins with the first step you gotta get started somewhere so i called verse number 13 my am i getting started can you say getting no you don't say it like i said i say it like a true southerner getting getting it's my my getting started prayers what i call my getting started then drop on down to verse number 16. they got started now verse number 16 says and it came to pass as we went to prayer you know what i call that i keep a going prayer because it's not just good enough that i get started i got to keep it going and i'm going to tell you something the devil raises his eyebrow when you get started but he stands up when you keep going he's not so much concerned about your first sunday of a habit to come to church as he is the fourth or fifth sunday because you know what old sleuth knows he knows the power of a habit he knows the value of a habit he knows if he he knows if you keep on going to prayer unhindered you're going to turn into a mighty powerful woman or man of god if you keep going so guess what he does guess what he does verse 16. and it came to pass as we went to prayer a certain damsel possessed with the spirit of divination met us that's a devil which brought her masters much gain my sooth saved means the devil got after him the same followed paul and us and cried saying these men are the servants of the most high god but showing to us the way of salvation this did she many days and i'm going to tell you what i'll tell you what the devil's trying to do the devil was trying to associate his works with paul paul and luke's works he was trying to say that this woman had the devil in her and she was saying the devils were saying through her hey everybody these are the servants of the most high god which show unto us the way of salvation but you see paul knew that that would hinder the power of the gospel if those people thought that they were connected with with that fortune teller so the bible says in verse 18 this did she many days now if when they went to prayer this devil got after them this did she many days which meant there were many times they were going to prayer and the adversary was withstanding them this did she many days but paul being grieved turned and said to the spirit i command thee in the name of jesus christ to come out of her and he came out of her that same hour i heard a i heard a a a preacher get in a big way one time he was preaching real fast and and he the little fellow was anointed and he he kind of got turned around he didn't know he didn't know why the audience laughed but he got so excited he said you you woman come out of that devil i won't tell you who who the evangelist was but i command thee in the name of jesus christ to come out of her and he came out of out the same hour and when her master saw that the hope of their gains were gone they caught paul and silas and drew them into the marketplace and to the rulers and brought them to the magistrate saying these men being jews do exceedingly trouble our city so they brought them they arrested them they beat them and they put them in the inner prison and chained their hands and their feet to the floor and to the wall now let me see if we're let's see what we got remember in acts 16 13 brother nolan we had a what was it called a getting getting started right and then in uh acts 16 16 what kind of prayer did we have what well i kept on going guess where i landed some folks say you'll just pray it'll get better sometimes it don't i guess that's why our great forefathers preached and prayed through pray through yea though i walk through the valley of the shadow don't stop praying when times get hard and harder keep on praying keep on praying and then the bible says verse 25 and at midnight paul and silas prayed and sang praises unto god and the prisoners heard them and suddenly there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were open and everyone's bands were loose now wait a minute acts 16 13 getting started acts 16 16 keep it going acts 16 25 is a breaking out it's a breaking out prayer you keep on praying you're gonna break out not maybe not mike you keep on praying and you will break through the situation that you're in don't give up if you stop you're sure not gonna make it but if you keep on praying now now stay with me now keep keep keep verse 26 on the screen and suddenly there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were open and everyone's bands were loosed the keeper of the prison awakening out of the sleep now let me stop right there god shook that jailhouse he shook it with such force that it knocked the doors off the hinges it shook it with such focus pressure and power that everyone's bands were loosed and everyone's bands fell off it was an earthquake it was an earthquake now i got some time ago i got to reading this because in the book of acts is this is not the first place that god delivered his people from prisons there was another place that god delivered one of his messengers from prison was the apostle peter the apostle peter and i really want you to follow this now the apostle peter was put in prison but god sent an angel god sent an angel and put all the guards to sleep in a deep sleep and uh delivered peter from that prison well i was reading this some time ago and and i remembered stopping and i thought to myself well god why didn't you just send that angel i mean why didn't you just go ahead i mean he did a pretty good job with the apostle peter why didn't you just send that angel down to that philippian jail and deliver paul uh out of prison and the lord kind of caught my eyes on that word and suddenly there was a great earthquake a great earthquake then i begin to study earthquakes in what causes an earthquake brother thorpe you know this you're a schoolteacher a simple definition of an earthquake is simply this when the pressure within becomes greater than the pressure without you see there's pressure holding the earth together but what causes an earthquake on the surface is when there's pressure underneath that becomes greater than the pressure above and when the pressure underneath becomes greater than the pressure above you have an earthquake so what are you trying to say well i guess i'm trying to say this greater is he that is within you than he that is in the world when the pressure within becomes greater than the pressure without you are going to have a spiritual earthquake how bad do you want it how bad do you want a change in your family how bad do you want to change in your life how bad do you want to change in your surrounding i tell you you've got to want it so bad that the pressure within becomes greater than the pressure without and you have an explosion could we just love him for a moment should we just love him for a moment oh i will not i will not live without my joy i will not live without my peace i will not live without my wholeness in my mind i will not live without the things god that you've given me lord the enemy might have taken my joy and he might have taken my peace of mind but i want my joy back i want my family back i want the things god that you've given me back god i want to be delivered lord i want to be delivered and i want to be set free god please don't answer this please don't answer this well god gave an earthquake and set them free from prison not necessarily so not necessarily so you know why if you read the whole story you'll find that the earthquake not only hit the jailhouse but the earthquake hit the whole city to where the city officials got together and tried to figure out which god they had made mad and finally they said you know what we beat those two preachers and one of the city mayors said go down and tell them they're free to go and so the little city lawyer came down and he came to paul and silas's jail cell of which the door was knocked off the hinges and they're just sitting in there and the city officials said you're free to go and paul said not so quick you think you're going to beat us openly and then come release us out the back door of the jail not so you tell the officials to come through here and march us out of this jail so in reference yes it delivered them but no it didn't it was actually setting the stage for the birth of a church the philippian church watch this please go all the way down go all the way down verse 39 of the same chapter and they came and besought them and brought them out and desired them to depart out of the city and they went out of the prison and entered into the house of lydia and when they had seen the brethren they comforted them and departed and ladies and gentlemen i have just preached to you that the habit the small habit of prayer by riverside gave birth to a church of which there would be an entire book in the epistles dedicated to this church the book of philippians it is a book that tells us when you want to think think on things that are lovely think on things of good report amen matter of fact it's a little book that we all can quote this i can do all things through christ that strengtheneth me where did this all come from somebody just said we need to establish the habit of prayer oh it's going to amaze us in our 41st year how god is going to burst some magnificent things because somebody's just coming and praying to a school student to an aca student that comes and bows their head for a few moments before school starts don't you let the enemy tell you that don't you let the enemy tell you that it's not doing any good god just may be sizing you up to a calling god just maybe you you know david we think that god noticed him sister burnett we think that god noticed david when he killed goliath that's not where god first noticed david you know where god first noticed david when he was down there tending to his father's sheep making sure that the yous that were pregnant weren't laying on one side he was he he was a little old guy down there he had the the lowest job on the toe he was the lowest on the totem pole he was just the guy that had to sit up all night with the pregnant sheep and make sure they they turned in the night so that they they they wouldn't they wouldn't hurt the young that they were carrying it and it was there the bible says it was there that god looked down in that old stinky sheep gate and god saw that little old ruddy-faced boy turning sheep to one side to another and god said i believe i'll call him to be my king i believe i'll call him it was there in that little old sheep pen that david started saying the lord is my shepherd i should he had a little flute that would pray and he would sing songs about god and it was there that god said that'll be my let me tell you to some aca students that come in here for a few moments of the morning let me tell you god is looking down and god just may be saying i've got something i'm going to have him do i've got something i look at them they're coming they don't have to come by here they could go on to their classroom but look at them they're coming down here i i just wonder i i just wonder if there's not a middle-aged person i just wonder if there's not a busy construction worker or a busy a businessman or a woman that drive by the church for a few moments of prayer and god's looking down and saying i'm going to give them wisdom and knowledge i'm going to bless them along the way i wonder if there's not a trendsetter a white-headed man or a white-headed woman that's got grandchildren that are far off from god and god looks down in the morning and sees your white head between that pew and god says today i'm going to go and touch them the value of a habit we have the philippian church i'm so thankful for the house of god it must become our habit to come here it must become our habit to be in the house of god you know why good things start here good things happen here good things continue to happen here the house of god the house of god see um give me psalms chapter 68 24 and let me say to the precious people running the screen tonight um because of going to the funeral i i didn't have the time to send them my notes and my scripture so it might be taking them just a little bit to bring these scriptures to bring these scriptures up um psalm 68 verse 24 and uh it's talking about god here something about god and it says they have seen thy goings o god even the goings of my god my uh give me the rest of it king now i seen the goings how god moves brother hammond how god moves well i want to know how god moves i want to know how god moves you wanna know how god moves be in the sanctuary you say well i i kind of get peace when i go to the mountains and look at the cage cove that's what god has done but if you want to know what god is doing come on to the sanctuary look around the sanctuary uh psalms 77 verse 13 somebody say praise the lord thank god psalm 77 verse number 13. his goings his goings are in the sanctuary thy way o god is in where in the sanctuary thy way o god is in the sanctuary who is so great a god as our god where's his way what happens when people stop coming to church they lose their astounding isn't it you want to lose your way get out of the habit of coming to church you want to lose sight of god and what god is able to do get out of the habit get out of the habit of coming to the house of god just get out of the habit it's the vest coming to the house of god is the best investment of your time that you'll ever have blesses everybody now psalms chapter 73 psalms chapter 73. a habit a habit the value of a habit let me say this i'm not going to read these verses of scripture but let me give you just a little bit of homework don't don't read them now but isaiah 56 isaiah chapter 56 verse 1 through 5 1-7 talks about the value of the house of god it talks about people with impossible situations that god turns around talks about talks about people with impossible situations that god turns it around and it has to do with the house of god because he says in isaiah 56 1-7 that my house shall be called the house of prayer is it any wonder to us that when jesus came to this earth when god came in flesh and went to the house of god where did the devil set up shop where'd he set up shop in the house of god jesus came to his father's house and they had tables exchanging currency they were exchanging currency like the airport you can exchange american currency and all all these different things they had a table set up and they were exchanging currency and over here were boxes of turtle doves that you could sail and you didn't have to bring a turtle dove a hundred miles well you could just walk right into the temple and buy a turtle dove and if you didn't have the currency of the day you could exchange the currency and then over here over here with some more people selling things and and then not only that but historians have told us that it was a shortcut if you wanted to go through jerusalem the greatest shortcut was going right through the temple you could you could actually have a shortcut so there were people walking through the sanctuary they weren't there to worship god they were there to get somewhere in a hurry they were just coming through they were just taking a shortcut and when jesus christ walked into that place i'm talking about the man that held little babies in his hands and said suffer these little children are coming to me i'm talking about a man that presented himself as a gentle shepherd with a white word sheep across his shoulder i'm talking about one a man that would teach beatitudes and teach love when he walked into the house of god and saw what the devil had done to the house of god he went and got him a whip and when he came in there buddy he i mean i mean to tell you he was going chuck norris on him i mean he was kicking over tables and and he was driving out the money changers and throwing tables over and then wait a minute he you're totally out of care what in the world has happened to jesus what in the world has happened to the baby toten rabbi what is what in the world has happened to him and somebody says oh i know what had happened to him the bible says the zeal of his father's house has eaten him up can i tell you something let me help you let me help you understand a pastor if you want to really get on a true pastor's nerve neglect the house of god if you really want to if you if you really want to push a lot of buttons disrespect this place if if you really want to push a lot of button because this is no ordinary house tonight church this is the house of god this is a place where good things begin in the house of god okay can't you turn your cell phone off long enough to be in the house of god oh can you just sit you can set four hours on a concrete bench to watch a football game can't you set just an hour or so in the house of god good things happen in the house of god so the next time you may be seated so the next time you see me acting out of character i mean tell you you know why he did it he said my house shall be called the house of prayer for all people psalm 73 and i'm going to bring this to a close psalm 73 oh god i love your house psalm 73 and verse one oh god i love your house god oh god i love your hat i not only love your house god i i love you i love you and what we do here i love the music we play here i love the i love the vocals i love the i love the lyrics i am that i am i i i love he's a chain breaker i love to tell about our god and because of that order i love the people that worship here look at verse 1. truly god is good to israel even to such as or of a clean heart but as for me my feet were almost gone steps had well not slipped for i was envious at the foolish when i saw the prosperity of the wicked for there is no bans in their death but their strength is firm they are not in trouble as other men neither are they plagued like other men therefore pride can passive them about as a chain and violence covert them as a garment their eyes stand out with fatness they have more than heart can wish they are corrupt and speak wickedly concerning oppression they speak loftily they set their mouth against the heavens and their tongue walketh through the earth therefore his people return hither and waters of a full cup are rung out to them and they say how does god know is there knowledge in the most high behold these are the ungodly who prosper in the world they increase in riches verily i have cleansed my heart in vain and washed my hands in innocency for all the day long i have been plagued and chastened every morning if i say i will speak thus behold i should offend against the generation of my children when i thought to know this it was too painful for me now stop right there don't read another verse stop right there david says i almost backslid i almost lost out with god why how when i got to looking to the wicked now in order to look to the wicked i have to take my eyes off of god in order to look to the world i have to take my eyes off the church when we begin to look at the world the hollywood movies and things they present a world that knows no trouble that we we present a world that yeah i mean they've got it all together they're happy they're i mean they're just as happy as can be and they don't go to church and they don't go to prayer meetings and they don't tithe and they don't give offerings and they don't have to do it and look at how happy they are and david said when i got my eyes off god and i got it on the on the world he said i almost slipped i come nigh to slipping i come i come night of backsliding and he said these words it just got too painful for me but then something happened to david this is the readjustment that we need to do right now you hear me this is our readjustment that we need to do right now he said it was too painful for me verse 17. now let's read verse 17. until i went into the sanctuary of god then understood i therein can i tell you something friend this world is not happy they can show you billboards of jet planes and liquor and they can show you all kinds of billboards of lewdness and all kinds of magazines of men dressing like women and all of that stuff going on two men being together and two women being together and all that stuff going on but you listen to me tonight don't you for one moment think that lifestyle is happy it is not a happy lifestyle there's a lot going on under the scene that you have no idea about there's depression there is suicide there's all kinds of drug addiction that's going on get your eyes off the glamour of the world and get it back in the sanctuary oh it's the sanctuary that gives me peace it's the sanctuary that gives me joy it's the sanctuary that's taking the fear out of my daughter's life it's the sanctuary that's put the peace back into our marriage it's the sanctuary that's put the wholeness back in me i'm going to close with this i'm going to close with this real quickly the book of philemon chapter 1 and verse 24. the book of philemon chapter 1 and verse number 24. can i tell you that the man named demas the man named demas is mentioned three times in scripture there's a man named demas that's mentioned three times in scripture i guess sister carpenter that what we all can quote is the verse where paul said demas if you know it say it with me demons hath forsaken me having loved this present world you know how you fall in love with this world you get your eyes off of god demons have forsaken me having loved this present he got his eyes he got his eyes off but now here in philemon 1 and 24 if you'd put that verse up for me the philemon chapter 1 and verse number 24. now watch this this is another time that demas is used mark aristarchus demas luke my fellow laborers demas at one time had his eyes on what he should have it on they're my fellow laborers and i want you to leave that verse up there please because i i did a words i did a study on the names of these four the name marcus means a defense if i say that a defense marcus means a defense aristarchus means the best ruler measurement lucas means light giver demas means governor or controller of the people now paul didn't say marcus aristarchus lucas and demast have forsaken me he only mentioned demas which would lead me to believe that in order for demas to get his mind off of god he had to lose sight of his marcus his defense it would amaze you tonight and you need to take notice of this god is your shield and god is your defense there's a lot of things you are covered with tonight that you need to understand you're only covered because you've got your mind on god you've got to understand there's some spirits that would love to tear your children to pieces but they cannot work their perversion because you are in the sanctuary and there is a defense in the sanctuary does not say marcus aristarchus and lucas and demas forsaken me it says that demons have forsaken me so demas had to leave his defense and demas had to leave his aristarcus his ruler his measurement you need to have good measurements in your life run with the right people have people that measure up morally doctrinally spiritually has some good measurements in your life come on don't run don't i have my witness to a backslider but i don't have my fellowship with a backslider i will witness to a lost world i will witness to a backslider but i will not have my fellowship because my fellowship is my measurement i wish somebody just praise him right now i wish somebody just you better keep a good measurement in your life you better run with somebody that don't listen to the same stuff you listen to you better run with somebody that don't say the same word you you better run with somebody that's a good measurement you just remain standing with me tonight remain standing with me a good measurement a good measurement a good measurement you ought to run with a good measurement if you're a woman here tonight you're a woman here tonight you ought to run with other women of good morals if there's a woman here and calls herself a sister and she's not moral get away from her the test of fellowship isn't that she comes to church the test of fellowship is that church is in her and if you keep running with people that don't have good morals you keep running with people that don't have good morals and i don't mean to be funny it is a chinese proverb but it says true man that sleeps with dogs gets up with fleas you start running with people that are not moral you look pretty good but i got news for you they're dragging you down you better keep an aristarcus in your life you you you had better you had better keep a defense around your family you better keep an erase darkest in your life they tell us when they come out and put those alarm systems in your house you know you know what they say that's one of the best things to keep a burglar away from your house is a sign in your front yard that tells them this house is covered come on it it it it tells you listen now it tells you hey ben i messed with this house look at that sign there that this house got an alarm system on it when you have the habit of coming to the house of god spirits you can't see have to drive on by your house and say i can't miss over there i can't can't man say there's something stronger in that house than us we we're going to mess around that that that that woman lie will get down on her couch and and cast us out and bind us all up we just can't work and i i just can't get my mind in that young boy's head he's starting to think he's starting to think god makes him special and he's starting to think all this stuff and all right let me let me finish this let me finish this aaron starcus was the best ruler lucas is a light giver in order for demons to forsake paul he had to lose his defense his measuring stick and his flashlight and when you lose your flashlight the world's got a big spotlight that they'll shine on it and guess what i did a feather word sir a study on this it says demas hath forsaken me and is departed unto thessalonica look it up tonight when you go home you know what that you know what thessaloniki you know what the name of you know what that name means a city of faucity a city of falsity a city that appears to be something that it is not don't know about you but i want to keep my little small habit of coming here on wednesday night spending about an hour and a half singing preaching and praying i want to get up on sunday morning and sew a small little habit and sunday night and some more so a small little habit i want to get here in the morning from may we pray and i want to sow just a small little habit because the value the value of a habit someone told me the other day and i i i slipped my mind it slips in my mind who it is but they told me they told me that years ago when they started tithing they were tithing on a little more than 55 dollars a week and i believe they were saying their tithing every week was 5.51 cents and because of that small little habit that individual and they told this to the glory of god they told it to the glory of god that individual was called by the bank one day and the banker they were putting his assets all together and he didn't even know how wealthy he was but he was a millionaire and he didn't even he didn't even know it and he said it all started with that small little dollars and 51 cents amen i'm gonna pray and i'm gonna say man and the trendsetters are gonna go to the old prayer room and get ready sunday sunday night's gonna be great if you're here and you're a trendsetter we want you here sunday night because we want to honor you because we thank god i thank god for the men and women in this church tonight that are on walkers and canes i thank god for the men and women that at one time they had strength at one time they had their eyesight they had they had all of they had all of that but they're still coming to the house of god father i love you thank you for our 41st year thank you god for a congregation that can be preached to thank you god for young people middle-aged people and older people god but god most of all i thank you for your spirit lord take us from this place god but don't take us away from your sight lord help us this week to witness to someone that's lost hurting and needing you help us god to witness to them and help them right where they're at god may we come back sunday morning bringing them with us lord we'll give you praise honor and glory in jesus name we pray amen god bless you you may be dismissed in jesus name