a² + b² = c²

I think there's somebody in this room. We realize the Lord loves us, but do we realize that he fights our battles? If you just release it to him, God, you're my champion. You are my champion. Giants fall when you stand undefeated. Every battle you won. I am who you say I am. You crown me with confidence. I am seated in the heavenly place undefeated with the one who has conquered all. Come on. Can we lift him up? Thank you, Jesus. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. Jesus.

Hallelujah. Y'all sing that again. Would you sing it again? Would somebody in the house believe that for just a moment? Giants fall when you stand undefeated. Come on. Every battle you won like it. I am who you say I am. Crown me with confidence. I am seated in the heavenly place. I'm defeated with the one who has conquered it all. Somebody is on the cusp of believing it today. You can't see it, but you're right there.

God, if you would just God, if you would just Somebody's on the cusp of believing that today. Somebody's right there. Wouldn't we? All right, we don't have to blow the place up for this, but but would you sing it one more time with me? Would you just humor the preacher for just a moment? Would you would you just sing it like you believe it for just a moment? God, I believe it. I am. at the top of your at the top of your lungs. Come on. One more time. You're right here.

Giants fall when you stand undefeated. Every battle you've won, I am who you say I am. You crown me with confidence. I am seated in the heavenly place undefeated with the one who has conered. Come on, somebody put your hands together. Somebody lift your voice. I can't do it. I don't have the answers for it. But I know God and I know my God has all the answers.

Thank you musicians and singers and teachers and tech nerds and the the greeters and security and and thank you for being here today. I sure am glad to see your face. I sure am glad to see you. Maybe not yours, Richard. I sure am glad that our guest, you guys, you have no idea how important you are to us, friends and family alike today. I know we've got several several friends and family, it does us good to see your face. It really does. I'm glad you're here.

God sure has been good to us, church. As you're being seated today, would you shake someone's hand? Would you hug someone's neck? Maybe you've talked to them, maybe you haven't. I uh I I brought I brought construction material today because we're in a building project, right? And we're going to be in a building project from from now till Lord the Lord comes back. Hopefully, uh you know, maybe we just keep building, right? Right. We get this one done.

Uh, but the other day, George, George and Ian, will you guys help me real quick? They're going to help me set this up. These, this is actually these are rafters from pastors. He's building a pole barn. Um, he asked me when we were starting, he's like, "You ever built a pole barn?" I said, "No, not still haven't. We haven't got it done." So, uh, so we're George and I, neither of us know what in the world a pole barn is. Hard. I mean, like, you're gonna have to spread these.

They're going to be like 20 foot apart. Like, so yeah. Yeah. You're gonna have to. And so, so we're we're there and and we're 20 No, no, we're not 20 foot in the air. We're like 14 15 foot in the air. And George is scared to death of heights. So, that's the reason it's on the ground today. We I didn't bring the the scaffolding in for this. So, we're building a pole barn, right? And and pastor's he's sitting there. He's asking me something.

He He He had a He had a question on this. Let's see if we can get this lined up. Let's see how how far how close. Lay it on that end right there. Uh flip No, flip it around. Just turn. Nope. Just turn this way. Yeah. Yeah. This is what we looked like 15 foot in the air. That's why we haven't got this. Some people build a pole barn in a day. Not George and I. Poor pastor was like, you could just tell he's like, "Gh, man. They just ain't getting it. All right. All right.

All right. Scoot yours on out there just a little bit. It's got to sit in that notch. This is a rafter. So like in a h for a house, you like that's your peak, right? This is a rafter of a house or a pole barn. Y'all got it? And the idea is that they rest on a beam going down the middle and that holds your roof up. Uh unless your walls are really weak and then it falls. Um hopefully that's not going to happen. So, we're here. Y'all got it.

I need I need someone else to help me real quick that can hold this up now. Y'all are too short. I need I need All right, Brother Richard. I picked on you already and you're so nice to help me out. Will you hold this up for just a second? You should have seen us on scaffolding 15 foot in the air, not knowing what we're doing. George is so nervous. His legs are shaking just thinking about it. So, before we got this up, pastor was trying to figure out the measurement.

He's like, "Well, you're just going to have to go up there and hold it because I was the tallest. you're just going to have to stand on your tippy toes and then we're going to have to get our measurement. And like we're up there swaying like this, you know, it's not going to work good. It It's just not. And so we're sitting there on the ground and we're figuring out we're trying to figure out what this measurement right here is supposed to be. Would y'all believe it?

Seventh grade math came to mind. Seventh grade math. I was like, "Wait a minute. I got it." He's like, "What are you talking?" I was like, "It's the Pythagorean theorem." I was like, "It's a squ + b 2 = c^2." What? And it worked. Is it worked? All right. That's that's that's it right there. That's my That's my title today, guys. And And I had to do it. Listen, that's my title. That's it. That's the graphic. A2 plus B2= C.

Now, if y'all just hold this, the whole message I'm just kidding. Young put that up. I needed I needed to Thank you guys. Will y'all give them a hand? Don't lose those. That one's got That's the That's the pattern. I stole this off his lumber pile this morning. So, we need that back. Thank you guys. A squ plus B2 equals C2. I needed to have that object lesson or y'all all were going to turn me off really quick. Talking about seventh grade math.

or eighth, whatever it is, middle school. I was I was sitting there and and we're out there and I was like, who in the world would have thought that this would have came in handy like 15 17 years later? I mean, who would have thought this this that they gave no conceptual? They just taught a principle that Pythagorean, this Greek guy from like 571 BC, he was like, "Guys, I can find the other side. I can find the hypotenuse of a triangle." And everyone's like, "No one cares.

Why is it a hypotenuse? I don't know. Yeah, I can find the long end of this triangle." Uh, and and in in math class, that's the way it was presented to us. Um, and and so like you just don't use the Pythagorean theorem very often. Do you is anyone is anyone? No. Oh, y'all do. You do. You do. No, you don't. You just remember the president's names. We don't We don't use that very often. But it it got me to thinking, right?

You know, preachers got to come up with something to preach, right? He's got to pray real hard. But God's like, "You're going to have to come up with some sort of story with something." And and and that's the story. That's that's it. That's we we still ain't got the barn done. I'll send we we'll have a picture when the barn's done. Okay. Like maybe. But I I was thinking about how God would walk freely with man in the garden. God would just come and walk with Adam freely.

He would walk with him in the cool of day, but he could just pop in any old time. He be like, "Hey, Adam. What's up, man?" And Adam's like, "Doing great. How are you doing?" "Doing great. I'm God. If I'm not doing great, I'll just change it." You know, it's like, "Thank you." Got one out a couple out of that, you know, and and he's he's doing he's just he's just walking with God. And then Eve eats an apple or well, an apple. Eve eats a eats a fruit.

And and Adam's a romantic, so he's like, I can't bear to be without Eve, so I'm just going to have to go ahead and eat this fruit as well. That's my take on that. That is not what the Bible says. Just men, we're romantics. Let's just be honest. Couldn't live without our wives. Sorry. This trying to trying to make up for this week. So y'all y'all just bear with me. And and so God says, "I can't now. I can't freely walk with you, Adam. I can't I can't freely just come and go.

You're going to have to cover that. you're gonna have to cover that sin because I'm a holy God and I can't exist in an unholy place. I I I I'm going to walk with you, but I I still want to commune with you, but I can't. I've got to we've got to make some steps for that. Goes on and and we you know, we come across sacrifice.

Uh and then we come across the children of Israel and we get to the tabernacle to where we are we have been studying all year and God's God had always intended and he had talked with man one on-one. He'd always wanted a one-on-one relationship with them, but man just said, "I can't do that. I I I you know, like we we've we've allowed some things to come between us." And then we get to Exodus 20 and verse 18. We find it very interesting.

God is giving the Ten Commandments to Moses upon the mountain. But in verse 18, it says, "Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled and they stood a far off." That's fair. It's a volcano. It sounds like a volcano. Let's just back away. But verse 19, now Moses is on the mountain in the middle of all this.

And and and said to Moses, "You speak to us and we will listen." And the people said, "But do not let God speak to us lest we die." I It was so curious uh and that that they that God was he had ransomed Egypt for them as as Isaiah put it. He had he had ransomed the most the most prosperous longlasting uh kingdom. But for a people, he he put it this way, a people which are which were not a people, but I made a people. He just pulled some people out.

He said, "I'm I'm ransoming you for my name's sake. I I'm I'm so that you can be close to me and I can be close to you." And they said, "Wait a minute. We can't handle that. We can't be that close to you. We're scared. We're going to die. Put a mediator there. put put let let there be something and and I I think about this and I look at this uh and and God God was very kind and very gracious to them. And he so he set up the tent of meeting.

He set up the holy place, the holy of holies. He said, "And I and I'll reside here." But the thing was it was not to contain God. It was to protect the it was to protect the people from God because the people would not live in a way that God could freely walk with them. They they said, "We can't be exposed to that holiness all the time. We're going we're going to God, we're going to put you in a box." Sounds ridiculous.

It sounds very ridiculous because uh they they could not stay consecrated, right? Because before they could go and and worship God, they had to consecrate themselves. and and and this wasn't God's desire to be separated. He wanted to be in them and he wanted to be with them, but they said, "We cannot do this. We have to we have to have a buffer because we're not prepared. God was ready. They weren't." We look at that.

We look at them and and I know I know you you you think, "Well, I know where the preacher's going with this, but I wonder where we build and the walls we build that keep God out. I mean really and truly where is God not welcome in your life? Because the truth be we'll say God's welcome anywhere but we'll we'll say I I I I want the blessings of God here but I don't want the instruction of God here. You see that came after that right as he was giving the ten commandments.

So it wasn't they said you know what it's good to have God with us. It's good to have the cloud and the pillar of fire guiding us and leading us out of our bondage. But when it comes to us changing God, we're going to put you in this box. All right. Well, as is what it is, you know, I I look at that and I think, what does that do? How do we do that? Because that's human nature. How do we go about this? Well, is it the church? No. No. Right. What was Taco Bell a long time ago?

It was like think outside the bun. I wonder how many preachers preach messages called think outside the bun. Sure there was a bunch. Brother Rob, you you look like a think outside the bun type guy. The the uh the the I got myself taped now. The the the preaching of the word they're the going forth. We're fine.

We're we're in this we're in this building and and and we think about it and we're like, "Okay, well, this is where the word of God is." And if I may, we're as apostolic, we are awesome at opening up our heart to God. I mean, we can cry like nobody's business and we're good at it. And I don't And there's no shame in that. We can worship with the best of them and there's no shame in that.

But I'm afraid because I'm talk I'm preaching to apostolics that there is a connection that's missing between the heart and the head. We're okay opening up our heart to God, but then we leave it here because we want to keep that protected. And we're like, you know, this is the place where I can feel vulnerable, and that's fine. That's good. It should be. But what am I supposed to do with that?

If I was preaching to Presbyterians, God love them, I would be preaching the opposite, at least from my observation, right? That that that particular denomination knows how to study the word, but it's about as dry as a dead bone. Ezekiel couldn't even raise them up, you know, like and no, no. Once again, that's just the dichotomy of of types of people and and and types of followers of Christ.

I'm preaching to apostolics though and I'm afraid that we get into the to the habit and and and and to the ritual and to the movements and to the rhythm and God I I worship you and I I pour out and I leave my problems here with you and then I just leave it. I just leave it. Here's here is what here's here's and I'm going to leave that thought there for just a minute because I think that it's hard for us to conceptualize. It was hard for me.

you know, like where where are my examples for this? Where am I seeing this? Where have I seen this? And sometimes it looks like in our job, we're good being a Christian until we get to work. I mean, we we've got we're we're good at being godly until well, that person like, well, did I just say God's welcome anywhere in my life? But would God be with you on the job? It's like, I don't know. For me, I went to public school and I'll just tell you this. I just I was just a kid.

How about that? Not a good one. I I I I I realized that because I was in a small community, my dad was a pastor, I was a preachers's kid. Can I say that my peers had a higher expectation for my behavior than I did? much to my shame looking back on it. But just understand that God was I needed God when I was sitting down to take a test. Like God, I really I did not study for this at all. I really need your help. You know, you said don't prepare.

He'll give you the words, right? Like not what he's talking about. But and he would help me. But I wanted to keep the blessings of God contained to the test and not to my interactions. I wanted could I wanted to keep the I wanted to keep the blessings of God contained to where I wanted to control it, but I didn't want to live in a way that he could move freely in my life. I built a wall. I built a wall. Can I Can I say online?

I I listen in pray and in and working on this, I I really got to I got to thinking about this and we got a lot of homeschoolers. So, y'all like this. He ain't talking to me. I actually went and called all your mothers this week and you were wrong. Can I say moms? Can I say I know I know and families I know you're homeschooling or you're going to public school. I know you're teaching and and and trying to train your children as best you know how.

But can I say you have it is more than to protect them. It's to prepare them. All right? It it is that you're not raising up a generation that's going to be isolated from the world. It's just not going to happen. It It cannot happen. It will not happen. They will find it one way or the other. Your job is so important. You have such a responsibility, parents, upon your life to prepare them for the world. I I I know that's not that's not completely where I'm going today.

But I want to tell you, it's more than just a lesson in math. It's more than just a lesson in geometry. It's more than just a reading lesson. It's more than just a history lesson. It's more than just about science. Do you realize all of those things will go into apologetics and defending the gospel and defending the word and establishing this is the right path because they're going to have to make it up in their mind.

And they're going to be confronted with all the wisdom of the world. And we've got to be there and past it. Our challenge is so much harder. Can I tell you? You are your demographic. But conservative Christians are the only ones in the world having children. At least in this part of the world. You know what that means? The devil's coming for your children. Because the next generation ain't going to be a bunch of saints. It's going to be a bunch of heathens.

And they're coming for them. You better prepare. It matters. Your online world and online interaction, they matter. If Hey guys, you listen to me. Girls, you listen to me. If God can't be in the game chat that you're on, whatever games you're playing, I have no idea. If God can't be in that, you're building a wall to keep God out. I I want God to bless me and I want him to anoint me to sing. I want to I want to be I want to be used by God.

I want to be I want to be right before God, but I built a wall to keep him out. All right. That's fine. I I'll just I got some notes. I'll stick to them. Do you know that we're all well and good with that until it comes to picking our friends, young and old? If Is God welcome in in in the decisions we make about our friends? All right. Is God welcome in how we represent in public? Somebody cuts us off. Don't drive around Seth on the highway, guys.

I picked on him last week, but I've been around him driving on the interstate. And let me just tell you, we do not want him to have a CAC logo on the back of his car. Is is God is God welcome in the vehicle with you? Is God welcome in your family? I kept I kept wrestling with this idea that God God, we want the blessings of God. And we're like, God, I need I need you to bless my family. He's like, "I'm trying to God." Can I Can I Can I get real Can I get real specific here?

How do we talk to our spouse? Would we do that if God was sitting there? Would we talk to our kids the way we do if God was sitting there? Kids, would we talk to our parents? Can I Can I In Genesis chapter nine, he says something. your image bearsers of God. Would we in ourselves in our in the conversation with us? Would we talk about us to ourselves? Oh, that's silly. Would we if if we knew that God was just sitting right there? Would we talk I know that seems silly.

I know that seems a little but but but would we beat ourselves up the way we beat ourselves up if we realized that God was sitting right there with us? He's like, "Man, I really want to bless you, but you you're not hearing my word my word in this. You're not hearing my voice. I can't I can't hear the blessings of God.

I can't hear the voice of God based on all the things that I built up around." I see there's there's a there's a part of this that that we start we we we see that Jesus said he said, "Pray like this." He said in Matthew 6:10, he said, "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." But what that means is as it is in heaven. What that means is on my job as it is in heaven. What that means in my home as it is in heaven. And we want the blessings.

But we need the voice. We want the we want the benefits but we need the correction. We need the direction. God, I want to tear down every wall. Everything that I've stopped from your word moving in. I don't know where it's at for you, but I'm telling you, I'm looking at a people that that have the blessings of God written all over them. You want to Hey, you want to hear some prosperity gospel? You tear down those walls and God will change every facet of your life.

You tear down those walls and you allow the blessing. You allow the word of God to seep into every crevice and every issue and every problem. the things that you hold close closest and nearest and dearest unto you and God will start to bless them. We pray on earth as it is in heaven. But do we mean it? You see, God did not design the tabernacle to be the end product. It was the it was the form and the shadow of the things of of the heavenly so that we could understand those.

It was, as Paul put it, it was the milk, not the meat. The law of the thou shalt and thou shalt not is a lot easier to follow than I don't know, pray about it. And if you don't think so, just go ask pastor something. It's a lot easier to be like, "Well, should I do this?" I don't know. Should you? Well, I don't know. Have you prayed about? Well, yeah, but should you? It's a lot easier to get the yes or the no than it is the discernment. That's the meat.

That's The law, the law is is great and it's wonderful and and and it was great, but it was to teach us. It was to drive us until we get to we get to the understanding that that when he tore the veil, it was a symbolicness of him being everywhere, of him being communing with man. So, can I tell you something?

All the scenarios that I work through on your job, on your home, on your school, in your school, in your relationships, in your thoughts, and your emotions, in your hobbies, all of those things have the potential to have the blessings of God upon them. All of those things have the potential to be the greatest thing that's ever touched this world.

Can I tell you I believe that the that that Christians I believe that this church is on the cusp of revival if we will figure out where we have put the walls up that we will not allow the voice of God to get into. And we are we're right on the cusp of some blessings like we cannot even imagine. We're right on the we're right on the cusp of some things and some some levels in walking in God and relationships with God like we cannot even imagine.

But God's like, I can't speak into it. I can't work in it. I can't do it. You've locked me out. I'm trying. I'm trying. I'm going to get there. I'm going to get there today, guys. You see, David said it like this. He said, "Your word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you." And duter in Deuteronomy 6 and4 says here O Israel the Lord our God is one Lord.

Verse five says you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and all your soul and with all your might. Can I say it's with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Your might. That means body mind and soul. That means not only do I just feel God in the church house. I've got to think about him when I go home. That means not only do I just feel God in when I'm praying and when I'm driving down the road listening to good Christian music.

No, it's when I'm on the job and I and I start to say something, but I allow the spirit of God to to settle upon me. I allow the anointing of God to give me a word of wisdom. I allow the voice of God to speak past my anger and my frustrations. And I and I start to operate in the spirit in school. I start to operate in the spirit in public. Oh, I'm not talking. I'm No, no, I'm not talking about us all being street preachers.

I'm not talking about us all just laying hands on everyone all the time. That's if that's what God's called you to do, great. More power to you. But I'm talking about walking in the spirit. I'm talking about saying, you know what, God, my actions, my myself, my mind, my Jesus said it like this. He said what he when he was asked what the greatest commandment was. He was to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.

This is the greatest commandment. It was not to be constrained to just our worship. It was not to be constrained to just our study. I love study. It wasn't just to be constrained to our heart and our mind. But we've got to connect our heart, our mind, and our body. And we've got to say, "Here I am. Send me. Here I am. send me. And it may not look what we It may not look like going out into a foreign country, but it's to our community right here.

You see, when we start looking at the problems that we come across, you'll be on a job and somebody will ask you a question and you have never had that before. You will not have the answer. you will not have the solution. But when you walk in the blessings of God and you've allowed God to be on your job, you can say the question can be how do I get from point A to point B? And you say, well, we just go from point A to point B to point C.

But in reality, he'll bring he'll give you a word of wisdom and a word of knowledge that will surpass anything that you actually will know. No one will know it but yourself because you'll be walking with God. Can I can I can I can I tell you that a lot of times we look at we look at the world and we look at all the things and say they're wicked and that's bad and it is. Luke chapter 16 there's a parable verses 1-9.

There's a parable here and I I'm not going to pretend to understand the fullness of this parable, okay? You'll understand as we read it. Luke chapter 16:es 1-9. He said, "Also to the disciples, there was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him and said to him, "What is it that I hear about you? Turn into the turn in the account of your management, for you are no longer to be a manager.

And the manager said to him, this is verse three, what shall I do since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. He said, I'm out of a job. I have decided what to do so that when I am removed from management, people will receive me into their houses. They're going to owe me a favor. That's that's what he's saying. So summoning the his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, "How much do I owe?

How much do you owe my master?" And he said, "100 measures of oil." And he said to him, "Take your bill and sit down quickly and write 50." Wait, that don't sound right. Now, this is Jesus telling this parable here. All right, this ain't Samuel. This is Jesus. In verse six, he said 100 measures of oil.

He said to him, "Take your take your bill and write quickly write down 50." And then verse seven, he said to another, "How much do you owe?" He said, "100 measures of wheat." And he said, "Take your bill and write down write 80." And the master commanded the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd and dealing with their own generation than the sons of life.

And I tell you, make friends for yourself by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails, they may receive you into internal eternal dwellings. Now, what in the world did I just read? You want me to cheat people, Jesus? You want me to cheat people? No. That wasn't the point. What he's showing is that just because we're saved doesn't mean we have to just throw our hands up and say, "God, it's it's it's all it's all in your control." It is.

We've got to surrender that will, but we can't just throw our hands up. It's mind, body, and soul. He's saying when you find yourself in a tight spot, you you got some craftiness in you. Don't violate the laws of man, but you can figure a way out. There's some Can I Can I Can I just Can I get on a soap box for a minute? That's dangerous. That's dangerous for a preacher to get on a soap box. That's where they used to stand way back.

Daniel Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, Davy Crockett when he was a politician used to stand on a soap box in a crowd. That's so he could see if y'all want to know that part of history. Getting on the soap box, if I may, Christians, we're real good about turning the other cheek and saying, "Poor pitiful pearl, poor pitiful me, and I'm just lowly old me." And sure, there's there's when we're approaching God, we better have that attitude. We better be we better. He's God.

But we generalize that out to to to to dealings in in saying, "Well, I just can't do anything about it." Can I can I encourage you today? You can. There's some craftiness in you. There's there's some fiber in you. There's some steel running through your bones that that you you you know the answer. And you you you may not you just got to dig a little deeper. Now, God's right there with you. I'm not telling you depend upon just just yourself.

But but but but God, I I I give it to you, but I got to do some work. God, I I I lay it in your hands, but I've got to I've got to put my hand to the plow. I'm going to pray for the increase, but I'm going to do the work. I I I am sorry, but this is not a generation of Christians that's just going to sit back and say, you know, the world's going to go to hell in a hand basket.

We're not just going to say, "Well, the Lord will save him if he wants." He will, but he's put us here to do the work. He's put us here to to put in the time. He's put He's put us here to do our part. What is it? Paul Paul planted, Apollos watered, and God gave the increase. It's on us, church. It's on us to dig out a revival in Chattanooga. It's on us to dig a well. It's on us to It's on us to feed the hungry. It's on us to pull it. It's on us.

Now, what's this have to do because it's mind, body, and soul. It's mind, body, and soul. As we go about our way, God's moving on us, he's given us opportunities. I don't for one minute think that it's God's will for churches to be a little behind the times. Can I be honest with you? I believe we ought to be on the cutting edge of every technology and every every piece of instrument of reaching people that there is.

I believe I believe we ought to be on the very forefront of innovation in every in every manner in every form. Do you know do you know this the a church historically a church and you guys you guys probably know this better than I do but but some of the best entertainers and singers in the world they started in a church. I mean, everybody knows who Elvis is, you know?

You know, Katie Perry, you know, Lord Jesus, I don't even know who I don't even know who this generation Morgan Whan. Yeah. Wallen. Morgan Wallen. Sorry, I got shot there. Took took the country. Took his name in vain. Sorry. Sorry, guys. Do you know the kings of Leon? whoever that was. All these there. The reason is that in a church, a church is always in need of, if I may, a church will give opportunity where no one else will. I'll just be honest.

It's going to be real hard for me to pay and go listen to some of y'all sing. Wow. And I'll just be real honest. It's going to be really hard for for us to pay for a live stream that that some of y'all are running the camera on. because I've seen some of your camera work and that's pretty shoddy. It's going to be real hard for some of us to sit through a to pay to sit through a lecture that you're that you're just learning how to lecture. But you know what a church will do?

It'll give you an opportunity to sing when no one else would. They give you an opportunity to to work in an area that you would never have an opportunity to work in to teach. It's a cycle. I I I've I've I've been around just long enough to see this because what happens is when the opportunity is given and the work is put in, God will give the increase. I these I expect these kids to be the most technologically advanced church planters in the world.

I expect it because they are getting they guys I don't know. Listen, we're we're just kind of used to it. But I'm just going to tell you our tech is about right here. Okay. I mean, it's top shelf when you go to anywhere else. Now, we're working on operating it. But the opportunity to learn it, the opportunity to grow it, it's right here. Now, I I know I know it's just work. Oh, it's just church work. We're just going to church. I got to be on the schedule.

I done got all over the kids this morning. I Somebody said something to me about them blocking out. They talk they was ragging on Dylan for a minute and I was like, "Who do you think's going to do this? We can't just walk in and expect the AC to be running. We can't just walk in and expect the music to sound good. We can't just walk in and expect to to be taught a professional level, a professional level word. We can't just expect that. Somebody's got to do it.

Somebody's got to put their hand to the plow. Somebody's got to work it. Somebody's got to grind it in. Somebody's got to make room for it. And then here's the cycle. Platform is given. God gives increase. New platform is given. And that's not all bad. God will God will make right. Right. The talent will God will make a way for that talent to be utilized. Then a decision has to be made. Is that going to be for God's glory or mine? at every step. At every step.

And here's the thing, God's going to elevate some. And that's okay. But what I am praying today is as God elevates, that we would allow him to permeate every part of our life. And that every decision we make, every decision we make, that every decision we make, that God's at the center of it. that as as God elevates that we just we just stay right there with him. We just God, you're welcome here.

I may be on a stage in front of a thousand people or 5,000 people or 10,000 people or a hundred thousand people, and that's okay. That's not ungodly, but my reaction to it could determine my fate. It will determine my fate. You You may be at the top of your career. I believe this. I I I I'm just telling you. I believe in the blessings of God.

And I believe if we'll tear down the walls that God will make way for some of you to be the best business owners and entrepreneurs this world's ever seen. And that God will I I I I believe it that God will that God will make a way for wherever you are you to be shot up the ladder and they'll be like, "Who do you know?" And you just say, "I just know God." You you'll climb the corporate ladder like nobody's been. and not for your glory, but for his.

Because you allow the blessings of God to permeate into that spot of your life. You see, the blessings of God, they know no bounds as long as God knows no bounds. And we control that. When you, as that cycle goes, when you reach that zenth or that whatever that fame is or that level of professionality, it's very easy to make the choice to say, "Well, this was all for me," or, "I got here on my own." Or those that got me here, they just don't understand how I got here.

And it's real easy to forget to complete the circle and say, "You know what? This got me here. I have to reinvest in it here. I have to reinvest. That may that may look like time, talent, and treasure, whatever that is, but I have to reinvest. Some of you are incredible at what you do. your jobs, your teaching, your your skill set, whatever that is, your trade. Some of you are incredible at it. God's blessed you and you've made it here.

And that next step is you completing the circle. God, you've got me here. Now, I've got to reinvest that in someone. God, you've got me here. Now I've got to reinvest that. Listen, a church should be at the it should be at the top of every industry. Not because the church has got this and this and this. It's because the church has got you. Because you're at the top of the industry and you're taking what you know.

Oh, guys, guys that are that are work on a line, you're like, "Well, I just work on a line." Let me tell you the engineering feet of a of a of a line. Oh my lord. The 80,000 parts that go into a vehicle. Do you know? Do you know the thought process that has to go into that and what that can look like when we work together as a church? Stand Stand with me. I I today I want to encourage you.

I want to I want I want you to dig deep within yourself and see where God has put you at and where you're not letting him be at. And then I want you to tear down that wall and say, "God, this this part of my life I' I've been a little been a little protective of. I'm I'm real good at letting you speak to me in church, but man, forget all about you when I'm about to throw down on my kids.

Forget all about you when I'm about to have a tough conversation with an employee or an employer. I I don't know where your walls are today, but can I say I am praying for the blessings of God upon your lives. I am praying that you find the fiber deep within you to get to dig out. I I'm sorry and I'm I'm going to stop this. But some of you feel so beat up and so so discouraged in yourself that I can't do it. But I'm just telling you, dig a little deeper.

Pull yourself up self up by the bootstraps. Dig a little deeper. God, if if you'll allow God in it, he's got your back. If you'll just allow God in it, he's got your back. I don't know where it's at and what it is, but can I just tell you, dig a little deeper, God? I don't have much strength, but what I've got, I'm giving to you. I don't I don't have much energy, but what I have, I'm giving to you. God, I don't have much money, but what I have, I'm giving to you.

He's got your back, church. He's going to push you further and harder and more and bless you more than you can imagine, but you've got to let him in it. So, if we can find a place to pray, we can gather around the front and pray where you're at. But, God, where's where's my where's where's the walls in my heart, in my life. Please find a place to play. Jesus. Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name. Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name.

Worthy is your name Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name. Worthy is your name Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name. Worthy is your name Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name. Be exalted now in the heavens as your glory fills this. You alone deserve our praise. You're the above name. Be exed now in the heavens. As your glory fills this place, you alone deserve our praise. You're the name of all. Jesus. You deserve the praise.

Worthy is your name. Worthy is your name, Jesus. You deserve the praise. Worthy is your name. The name of Jesus. I don't know how to make sense of it. I'm trying my best. I feel like someone's trying to figure out an incredibly complex problem. And I you're trying to go one, two, three, four. And I I can't help but believe and know that God's got the solution in his hands. And he's saying it's just as simple as finding C square.

It's just as simple as just going in that straight line. How to It's just as simple. And I'm And I don't know why, but I'm afraid some of us are are scared to let God move it. I'm afraid that somebody's scared to let God to solve it. Would you pray with me? Jesus God, I I'm just Samuel and I wished I had all the solutions in all the world, but God, I don't. You're God. I'm not. No one in here is God but you. And God, today I pray that upon every heart in every lives.

But God, I pray Lord for the for the problems in our lives, the things that we can't seem to to see past, the things we can't seem to solve, we can't seem to God, I pray, God that you that you would help us to have the strength to tear down the wall, to let you into it, and trust you, God. And trust you. I can trust you, God. I trust you, Lord. I trust you. I trust you, Jesus. We thank you, God. We praise you, Jesus. We trust you.

Would somebody just lift up your hand for a moment and just trust God? God, I trust you. I love you. God, I love you. I trust you, God. All my hope, all my all my trust is in you, Lord. Jesus, I trust you. I don't know how and I don't know I don't know how and I don't know how and I don't know how but God I trust you but I trust you. Can I can I just tell you for a moment and I I wouldn't share this normally, but I I I had a solution in mind not too long ago.

I'm I'm not going to go into the details. It's just it was personal for Lauren and I and I had a solution. I'm a processoriented guy. All right, in case y'all couldn't tell. And I had I worked it out. I was like, "This will work. It's not the way I want it to, but it'll work." And I just didn't feel right about it. And Lauren and I were talking about it. And we were we were sitting, it was a couple weeks ago on a Saturday night.

We were sitting there and all of a sudden I was like, "That's it. That's the solution." I had prayed, God, I'm I'm doing my diligence. I'm doing my due diligence. I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing. I I'm I'm trying my best, but God, I need I need to know for sure. I need your help. I need your direction. I'd been praying that. I wasn't praying it right then. I wasn't even thinking about it right then.

We were just sitting there at the table and all of a sudden, it was like out of nowhere, God just put this in my mind and he was like, "Check this." And let it God moved in a way that I could not imagine. And I did not know. I was not thinking about it. I was not searching for it. I was just trusting God with it. And God moved. It's real hard to put into words, church.

It's real hard, but I'm telling you, if you'll just trust God with it, you may think you know the end of it, but he knows the end from the beginning if you'll just trust God with it. Would you say that? Would you pray our prayer with us? Because I believe in the blessing of the Lord and I want the blessing of the Lord upon all of our lives today. The Lord bless thee and keep thee. The Lord make his face shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee.

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace, and they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them. Be blessed in the name of the Lord.