How to survive & thrive in times like these 2 interior by GLMO LLC

How To

S URVIVE & T HRIVE in Times Like These

How To

S URVIVE & T HRIVE in Times Like These VOLUME 2

A W ORD OF E NCOURAGEMENT FROM O NE A MERICA ' S L EADING P ASTORS

DR. KEVIN D. BARNES, SR.

How to Survive and Thrive in Times Like These: (Volume 2) A Word of Encouragement from One of America’s Leading Pastors by Dr. Kevin D. Barnes, Sr. Cover Design by Atinad Designs. © Copyright 2014 TORCH LEGACY PUBLICATIONS, DALLAS, TEXAS First Printing, 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner, except for brief quotations included in a review of the book. ________________________________________________________________________ The name TORCH LEGACY PUBLICATIONS and its logo are registered as a trademark in the U.S. patent office. ISBN-13: ISBN-10: Printed in the U.S.A.

Contents Preface ......................................................... 11 1. You Can Make It .......................................... 15 2. What You Hear Does Make a Difference ............ 25 3. What To Do While You Are In Your Storm .......... 35 4. Victory Is Mine ............................................ 43 5. Thriving, Not Just Surviving ........................... 55 6. The Pursuit of Happiness ............................... 63 7. The Choice Is Yours....................................... 71 8. The Benefits of Serving God ........................... 81 9. Putting God First ......................................... 89 10. Pray Until Something Happens ...................... 99 11. Praise Is What I Do ................................... 109 12. Praise Your Way Through (Part 1) ................ 119 13. Praise Your Way Through (Part 2) ................ 131

Acknowledgments

First and foremost, I want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I am most grateful to my publisher, Torch Legacy Publications, to Daniel Whyte III and his editorial staff for their sharp eyes; thank you to Daniella Whyte for her efficiency; and thank you to the entire Torch Legacy staff for their top rate work. I want to also acknowledge my lovely wife, Brenda Barnes, who makes sure that I am able to dedicate time to reading, writing, and preparing sermons; to my sons: Kevin Jr., Keith, and Kenneth; to my grandchildren: Alejah, Kevin III, Kamani, Kyndal, and Keith Jr.; and to my Abyssinian Baptist Church family, one church in two locations: Oakland and Vallejo.

Preface As I began compiling sermons to include in How to Survive and Thrive in Times Like These, I reflected on what God had done in my life and in my years of ministry, and I wanted to share the impact of a pivotal experience during the last year. I was invited to preach and teach at a conference outside of Sacramento, California, incorporating some notes from my first book, Successfully Raising Young Black Men. As I stood before eighty-six men, fathers who were hungry for information that could facilitate healing of their relationships with their sons or promote even greater success in those relationships, God showed me something about the work that He was doing in my life. As an African-American male who was first called to preach in Oakland, California, I have always understood that each day is woven together by the miracles of God, yet, my focus has never been in the arena of healing racial tensions. That day and at a 11

subsequent conference in San Francisco, California, as Caucasian, Latino, and Asian men greeted me and welcomed me as a true brother in Christ, I saw how powerfully God was moving to tear down the barriers that have stood between men of God, even in the church. I had an epiphany as God supernaturally removed the sting and the memory of childhood experiences of racism and showed me the faces of transparent brotherhood in His Kingdom. Even as I taught others, I was learning in the midst of the experience. The principles of Successfully Raising Young Black Men are for successfully raising all young men and women who are facing universal challenges. We must implement the spiritual strategies that propel them toward their God-ordained destiny and help them avoid the pitfalls and snares set in their paths. Simultaneously, we must allow God to completely clear away the weight of experiences that have impacted our ability to trust and bond with others who are also dedicated to living their lives in the fullness of Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s will for them. I share this because my prayer is that this book, How to Survive and Thrive in Times Like These, will bless your life and will open the eyes of your understanding to the urgency of clearing all barriers that prevent us from working together to execute Kingdom principles in every area of our lives, with our neighbors, brothers, and sisters of every race. I believe the Lord

wants us united as we wrestle with principalities in high places for the glory of God. Freedom in Christ brings liberation from the worldly divisions that interrupt our effectiveness. I pray the messages shared in this book will bless you richly, in the name of Christ Jesus. To God be the glory. Pastor Kevin D. Barnes, Sr. Oakland, CA

-1You Can Make It

Psalm 23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. We are living in a day and time when people have lost hope and believe they canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make it. Some people believe that life has too many ups and downs so they give up on their dreams, give up on their families, give up on their friends, and even worse than that, many give up on their first love. However, I have some good news for you, and that is this: the One who holds my future also holds my hand. Whose hand are you holding on to? I want you to know that you can make it. Psalm 23:5 states, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thou preparest a table before

me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” Allow me to give you three reasons you can make it. No matter what is going on around you, you can make it. No matter what is going on inside of you, you can make it. No matter what is going on in the lives of others, you can make it. You can make it because (1) the Lord is the one who feeds you, (2) the Lord is the one who frees you, and (3) the Lord is the one who fills you.

THE LORD FEEDS YOU In verse 5 we read, “Thou preparest a table before me.” Allow me to share with you who the ‘thou’ is; from verse one we read “the Lord.” When we get to verse 5, we see David sharing his experiences as a shepherd. As a shepherd, he would go before the sheep and make a clear path for them to follow. While the shepherd is out checking the poisonous weeds along the path, he takes salt and minerals with him to place on any scratches or bruises the sheep may get along the way. The shepherd also seeks out a comfortable spot for the sheep to have a good place to sleep, rest, and graze in the summer. The shepherd does this because he knows that the sheep will eat anything without checking it out first. The loving shepherd goes before his sheep to remove from their path all obstacles and anything that may harm them.

The same thing goes for Christians. Too often, as Christians we will eat anything that comes our way. We believe everything we hear. We run after every religious leader we encounter. Thank God, we have a Shepherd who knows all things. Thank God, we have a Shepherd who sees what is happening on our pathway before we even get there, and who loves us so much that He is willing to risk going before us to remove all obstacles and anything that may harm us or hurt us. Our Shepherd’s name is Jesus. We can trust Him because He’s been there and done that. Because Jesus has been there and done that, He understands and He can identify with us. We see the ‘thou’ is our Shepherd, Jesus Christ, who “preparest a table.” The text says, “he preparest.” The prefix pre- comes from a Latin word which means beforehand. “Pre-paid legal”—before you need legal work; it has already been paid. “Predetermined” means already determined. “Prejudged” means already judged. The Lord prepares beforehand. The psalmist tells us what the Lord prepares beforehand: “a table.” A table means to spread out a meal. David is saying to us that we can make it because our Lord has arranged a meal for us beforehand; it is spread out because He intends on feeding us. Have you ever gone to church empty and left feeling full? He feeds us. Have you ever come to church feeling

down and left feeling uplifted? He feeds us. Have you ever come to church about to give up—not going to sing anymore, not going to pray anymore, not going to love anymore, and the Word of God told you to keep on going on in spite of? He feeds us. Do you remember when Jesus warned Peter? He said, “Peter, Satan desires to sift you like wheat, but do not worry because I have prayed for you that your faith fail not during this difficult time.” Jesus is doing the same thing today. He is going to attend to us in every situation knowing the danger we may encounter. Right now, He is in Heaven seated at the right hand of the Father interceding for us. He feeds us with His Word. You may be going through a rough time and you do not think you can make it. Your job is playing out, your friends are faking out, your family is stricken, your money is running out, help is not coming quickly enough, and you do not think you are going to make it. But the Lord is saying to you, hold on, do not give up for I have prepared a table beforehand. The table is prepared, you just have to wait to be served. It is not your turn to feast at the table just yet. Just hold on a bit longer. I had the opportunity to go to the National Baptist Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where my good friend, Edward Douglas, lives. As soon as I got off the plane, Edward asked me if I was hungry. I said, “yes,” so he took me to a very nice restaurant. When we got

there, there was a long line. The food was that good. Anyway, we gave the maître d’ our name and waited to be called to our table. After a short while, we were called to our table, which was already set. It had a beautiful table cloth. The cloth napkins were neatly folded in a unique design and placed inside the drinking glass. The forks, spoons, and knives were all in place. There was already a small crystal glass containing butter with a little butter knife. There were some dinner rolls in a fancy basket in the middle of the table. The table was prepared and all we had to do was read the menu and place our order. Jesus has already prepared our table. All we have to do is keep reading the Manual, His Word, and ask for what we want. His Manual is filled with promises waiting to be claimed. His Word is sweeter than honey waiting for us to taste it. “O taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who puts his trust in Him.” Our problem is, we do not read His Menu. We do not feast on His Word, and we refuse to stay long enough to eat the meal He has prepared for us.

THE LORD FREES US The verse continues: “in the presence of mine enemies.” The Lord frees us so that we can eat “in the presence of mine enemies.” David shares with us that

the Lord would go before the sheep and prepare the table for them. While he is preparing the table, and as the sheep come to feast at the table, there will be some predators watching—watching to see if they can still get to the sheep. You do know that sometimes you have predators in the church. The predators are our enemies. The text says “in the presence of mine enemies.” ‘Presence’ comes from the root word present, which means to manifest or to show more. Our God is so good and He is so awesome, He sets the table while our enemies are looking. Your enemies are watching you intently, and they have questions in their minds because they cannot believe what God is doing for you. Why are you so blessed? How did you get that job? How did your credit pass? How are you able to do all that you do with so little? Your enemies are watching. When the Lord has set your table that frees you up, because many of us allow our enemies to stop us from being all that God wants us to be. If you do not yet realize it, all of us have some enemies. I do not care how nice you think you are, or how good you think you are, you still have some enemies. Your enemies are not your friends, and the reason you can make it is because the Lord blesses you right in the presence of those who are not your friends. The Lord does this to free us from having to worry about what somebody else thinks. Some of us can’t praise God because of our enemies, some of us cannot go further because of our enemies; we spend 20

needless time worrying about what our enemies think. It is only because of Jesus that you become free because your blessings are enemy-free. Every now and then I will read the comics. One day, I read about Pogo the possum. One day, Pogo discovered the tracks of the enemy. After gathering his friends together, they tracked all over the swamp trying to find out who the enemy was. Finally, Pogo stopped long enough to make an important discovery. He noticed the tracks of the enemy were identical to their own footprints. The truth dawned on him and he announced to his friends, “We have met the enemy and it is us.” Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy and most of that comes from having a crab attitude; that is, not wanting to see others succeed. Every step they take forward, we pull them back two steps. Remember, the Lord our Shepherd frees us even while our enemies are watching.

THE LORD FILLS US Third, not only does the Lord feed us and not only does the Lord free us, but the Lord also fills us. Notice the text says, “thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” Notice if you will, the Lord starts the anointing at our head. That is where our mind is. If you have ever heard someone say, ‘My head is bad,’

they are saying, ‘My mind is bad.’ That is why Jesus says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Sheep are troubled by nasal flies. They buzz around the head and deposit their eggs on the sheep’s faces, on the sheep’s back, up in their noses, and under their wool. For release, the sheep butt their heads against a tree or rub down in the dirt. This sometimes causes irritation to the sheep’s head and body. But then the shepherd applies an antidote to the sheep’s head. That antidote is oil. That antidote, that oil, immediately changes the sheep’s behavior as it soothes the discomfort and brings relief. It is the same way with the Christian. Life is full of irritation in the head, but the Lord, our Shepherd, will anoint those irritations with soothing oil. Just like the flies keep coming back to the sheep and the shepherd has to keep applying the anointing oil, likewise, the irritations of life keep coming back to the believer and we have to keep going to our Shepherd for relief. Isn’t it good to know our Lord will anoint us with oil? The word ‘anoint’ comes from a word that means to be fat, to be well fed, to be rich, to be mighty. When you are anointed your cup runs over. God will pour out His blessings upon us in abundance to overflowing. He wants you to ask. Whenever I am low or feel lonely, I just say, “Lord, fill my cup.” The Lord will give you what you need as well

as what you desire. It is all through His blood. Ephesians 1:7 – We have redemption through His blood. Romans 5:9 – We are justified through His blood. Ephesians 2:13 – We are made nigh by His blood. Colossians 1:20 – We have peace with God through His blood. Hebrews 9:14 – Our conscience is purged from dead works to serve God. Hebrews 9:22 – We have remission of our sins through His blood. Hebrews 13:12 – We are sanctified through His blood. Hebrews 13:20-21 – We are made perfect to do His will. 1 Peter 1:2 – We are chosen of God. 1 Peter 1:18-19 – We are redeemed through the precious blood of Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:7 – We are made clean by the blood. Revelation 1:5 – We are washed from our sins. Revelation 5:9 – We are purchased by God. Revelation 12:11 – We are made overcomers. Jesus did not just come with salvation. He is salvation. He is love. He is assurance. He is truth. You can make it as long as you have Jesus.

-2What You Hear Does Make a Difference Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Have you ever been in a conversation with someone who looked like they were listening to you? They were looking you in the eyes; they were nodding their head every now and then; they were answering you with “Mmm,” “Okay,” “I see,” and may even be smiling or have a serious look on their face depending on the content of the conversation, but when you asked them a question, their answer gave them away? They were hearing you, but they were not listening to you. We live in such a fast-paced society that it is easy for us not to pay attention to what is going on around us; it is easy for us not to pay attention to what is being said, not knowing that what we hear can make a difference in our lives. 25

Some of the things we hear can weaken us. When we choose to listen to things that do not uplift us; when we choose to listen to things that tear us down; when we choose to listen to things that do not add to our spirituality, then we are stunting our spiritual, social, emotional, and mental growth. We have to learn to stop listening to what you can’t do and what does not lift you up, and start listening to and hearing those words that encourage you to do what you can do. What you hear can also cause you unnecessary worry, anxiety, and doubt. That is why when others start telling you those things that cause you unnecessary worry, anxiety, and doubt, you ought to tell them right away, “I don’t even want to hear it; I’m not going to let you stress me out with your words.” On the other hand, what you hear can also wake you up, meaning, the words will shake you into action; the words will nudge you into doing the right thing; the words will bring life into you. I don’t know about you, but that’s what I want to hear in my life—something that will nudge me, something that will bring life into me, something that will lead me into doing what is right. Those words can sometimes be harsh, but as the Bible says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” What you hear does make a difference, and it makes a difference in three ways:

1. What you hear can strengthen you. 2. What you hear can separate you from others. 3. What you hear can save you. This epistle of Romans was written by our brother Paul. In Latin, Paul means “humble, little, or small.” The very first chapter and first verse tells us who Paul is. Paul identifies himself to the Romans as a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ, for he was a willing servant. The theme of Romans is found in Romans 1:16 and 17, which states: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”

WHAT YOU HEAR CAN STRENGTHEN YOU Our brother Paul comes to us and tells us that what we hear does make a difference because what we hear can strengthen us. Here in verse 17 of chapter 10, our text says, “So then faith cometh by hearing.” Verse 17 is connected to verses 14-16: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of 27

peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?” And then we come to verse 17: “So then.” ‘So then’ simply tells us we are drawing a conclusion. So he is saying that the conclusion is “faith cometh by hearing.” Therefore, what you hear can strengthen your faith because our faith gets stronger when we hear the right stuff. ‘Faith’ means to be persuaded; it is the belief that you are confident in certain divine truths. So then my certainty of divine truth comes from what I hear, for when I hear divine truth it strengthens my faith. I begin to believe it’s going to happen even if I don’t have the facts. That’s why we can’t get caught up with just facts, for you see, facts are necessary, but oftentimes facts do not show the whole picture. Facts are necessary, but oftentimes facts do not show you the real possibilities because there are times when facts will say you shouldn’t, but faith says you should. Facts say: to quit Faith says: keep on trying Facts say: too late Faith says: you are on time Facts say: refrain Faith says: be courageous Facts say: it’s foolish

Faith says: it makes sense Facts say: be sensible Faith says: trust God anyway Facts say: you can’t win Faith says: you can’t lose What you hear can strengthen you and strengthen means to intensify, to add to, to invigorate, to increase, and that is why you should be careful about what you hear because what you hear does make a difference.

WHAT YOU HEAR CAN SEPARATE YOU FROM OTHERS Second, what you hear can separate you from others. Notice in the text it says, “So then faith cometh by hearing.” That is the first hearing in the text. He goes on to say, “and hearing by the word of God.” That is the second time we read the word hearing. What you hear ought to be clear enough so that you can grasp and comprehend it. The problem is, because of our sinful nature, we tend to gravitate to those sounds that do not enhance us spiritually or otherwise. Those are “just sounds.” Let me show you: Have you ever had somebody to try and tell you how to get yourself together and their life is all messed up? Just sounds.

Have you ever had somebody to try and tell you how to get rich and they are broke? Just sounds. Have you ever had somebody to try and tell you what’s good for you and things are all bad for them? Just sounds. Have you ever had somebody to try and give you directions and they are lost themselves? Just sounds. Have you ever had somebody to try and tell you how to get a job and they are unemployed? Just sounds. Sisters, has anybody ever tried to tell you how to keep your man and they don’t have a man? Just sounds. Brothers, has anybody every tried to tell you how to treat your lady and their lady just walked out on them? Just sounds. You’ve got to be careful of what you hear because some of it is just sounds. You see, what you hear separates you from others. It separates those who have faith from those who do not have faith. Our faith is not in ourselves; our faith is in God because we know that God can. God can because there is nothing impossible with God. That’s why what we hear does make a difference; what we hear separates us from others, for it can get us to our destination. My sons, Kenny, Kevin, and Keith, have a good habit and that is, whenever something is going wrong they tell their father, but when things go right they tell their mother. Well, this time it wasn’t Kevin or Keith. It was

Kenny. One Sunday after the morning service, after I drove my car into the garage, Kenny went outside to put his car in the garage. Soon Kenny came back and said, “Dad, my car won’t start.” Now, I am not a mechanic at all, but my son needed my help, and I did my best to help him. I asked Kenny, “What kind of sound did you hear when you tried to start your car? Was it a clicking sound, because if it is, it might be your battery?” Kenny said, “Nope, that’s not it. It just wouldn’t turn over.” My son had called his father for help, so I tried my best to help him. I tried turning the car on myself. “Son, what I hear is telling me you don’t have any gas. You need gas if you want to get to your destination.” The next morning we got up, went and got some gas and put it in the tank; the car started. We were able to get his car running again, not because I am a mechanic, but because I heard the right stuff. If you want to get to your destination you have to hear the right stuff, because what you hear does make a difference.

WHAT YOU HEAR CAN SAVE YOU Verse 17 of our text says, “So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God.” It is only by the hearing of the Word of God that one can be saved. When God speaks, things happen. In Genesis 1, when God spoke things happened—creation came into being.

Today, when God speaks to us through the preaching of His Word, people get saved. God’s Word tells us in the book of Romans: Romans 1:14 – I am a debtor Romans 1:15 – I am ready Romans 1:16 – I am not ashamed Romans 5:1 – I am justified Romans 8:16 – I am a child of God Romans 8:17 – I am an heir of God Romans 8:37 – I am more than a conqueror But most of all... Romans 10:9 – I am saved if I believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. I got saved by hearing the Word of God and by faith asking Him to be my Savior. Oh, yes, what you hear does make a difference because what you hear can save you. I shall never forget my middle son, Keith, when he was younger, had a bad habit of playing in the middle of the street. One day when we lived on 63rd and California in Berkeley, Keith ran out in the middle of the street. A white Camaro was coming down the street at a rapid speed. I saw the car coming and I didn’t have time to grab Keith, so I just yelled, “Keith, come here! Keith, look out! The car is coming!” Keith heard me and came

running to me. I thought the car was going to hit him, but Keith was saved by what he heard—his father’s voice. Jesus is talking to you. He is saying, “Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Won’t you listen to Him? You can be saved by what you hear, for what you hear does make a difference.

-3What To Do While You Are In Your Storm Matthew 14:24-27 But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. Storms such as hurricanes and snow blizzards occur in the natural realm. Some of you may be thinking that you are in a terrible storm in life right now. Solomon

said there is nothing new under the sun, so rest assured that whatever storm you are going through, someone has already been through it. There is nothing we can do to avoid a natural storm, but there is something we can do to avoid a spiritual storm or to at least lessen its effect as oftentimes we bring storms upon ourselves. When we stop praying and exercising faith in God as we should, when we stop reading and obeying the Word of God as we should, when we quit tithing as we should, when we quit attending church, and when we allow our ego to get in the way and refuse to take advantage of God’s mercy and grace toward us, we invite a spiritual storm in our lives. There is only one refuge during a spiritual storm, and that refuge is Jesus Christ. Here in our text, the disciples are in a storm, and we can learn three things from their storm experience: 1. The trial in the storm. 2. The trying in the storm. 3. The tranquility in the storm.

THE TRIAL IN THE STORM “But the ship was now in the midst of the seas, tossed with the waves: for the wind was contrary” (verse 24). The disciples had entered the boat and were headed for the other side of the Sea of Galilee. As soon

as they left, a violent wind erupted. This verse begins with the word ‘But.’ ‘But’ is a conjunction meaning it goes with the previous verses (verses 22-23). The Lord told the disciples to get in the ship and to meet Him on the other side of the sea. The disciples obeyed our Lord. That tells us that obedience to the Lord does not make us immune from the storms of life. There are many Christians who believe that if they obey the Lord they won’t encounter the storms of this life. We must understand that although Jesus could eliminate the storms of this life, He doesn’t; but He does give you the grace to withstand those storms. Although Jesus could divert the storms from coming your way, He doesn’t; but He will hold your hand and protect you through them. Although Jesus could weaken the storms so they wouldn’t be so severe, He doesn’t; but He will give you the needed strength to overcome them. Although Jesus could simply remove the storms, He doesn’t; but He will give you peace in the midst of your storm. Although Jesus could prevent the storms from coming, He doesn’t; but He will prepare you for them. Notice the text says in verse 24, “But the ship was now in the midst of the sea.” That word ‘midst’ comes from a Greek word meaning middle. Many of us experience many problems because we are in the middle of making up our minds to follow Christ. We have not

quite decided whether or not we will serve Him fully; we are just hanging out on the periphery. God has a problem with people who hang out on the periphery; He has a problem with those who are lukewarm. Notice His words to the Laodiceans in Revelation 3:15-16, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Make up your mind who you will serve. Notice that the ship wasn’t experiencing problems until it was in the middle of the sea. Have you ever noticed how Satan always wants to get in the middle of our relationships? The relationship is going fine then all of a sudden Satan comes in the middle and tries to tear it up. Notice how Satan gets in the middle of our families: The family is going great. At least everybody is talking, and then Satan comes and gets in the middle. Notice how he even gets in the middle of our finances. We have money coming in; we’re tithing and giving; we’re spending the right amount at the right time, then all of a sudden, Satan gets in the middle. A normal boat trip across the Sea of Galilee would not have extended more than a mile from shore to any point directly across, but it seems as though the storm obviously carried the boat several miles south, to the middle of the sea. It is dangerous being caught in the

middle. Look at what happened in the middle. The text says, the boat was tossed with waves for the wind was contrary; it was hostile; it was antagonistic. When I was a freshman at Donaldsonville High School, I played for the junior varsity football team. The coach was Mr. C.J. Alexander. I shall never forget there were several football drills including sprinting that we had to do each time we practiced. There was one drill in particular that I just didn’t like, and that was the one Coach Alexander called the bull ring. A player would stand in the middle with ten other players surrounding him. While the coach would call a number and the fellow with that number would hit the guy in the middle. Now the problem was, the guy in the middle didn’t know who was going to hit him, so he just had to be alert at all times. Sometimes in life, we are caught in the middle and we don’t know which direction we will be attacked from. Therefore, it is important for us to watch.

THE TRYING IN THE STORM Not only is there the trial in the storm, but there is also the trying in the storm. Verse 25 of our text says, “and in the fourth watch of the night.” According to verse 23, the disciples started out in the early evening, but here they are in the fourth watch of the night. Now, the night was divided into four watches or shifts. The

first was from six to nine, the second was from nine to twelve, the third was from twelve to three, and the fourth was from three a.m. to six a.m. ‘Watch’ comes from a Greek word meaning to keep. That tells us that the disciples had been at sea for at least nine hours. It also states to us that even though it was a tough storm, these fellows were dedicated to doing the will of God. It was a trying time, yet they kept on rowing. These disciples did not allow the storm that arose in their lives to stop them. The problem with many of us is, it does not take a storm to stop us; if it’s a little cloudy many of us will stop doing the will of God. Yes, we all have storms, but storms are just like anything else. If you hang in there it will all blow over. Some of you may be thinking, I’m in a storm right now, what should I do? Keep doing the will of God; keep rowing. But I’m beat up in every area— keep rowing. But it’s getting tough—keep rowing. I’m tired—keep rowing, and the reason we ought to keep rowing is because God has been good to us. There was a man who had nothing for his family to eat. He had an old shotgun and three bullets, so he decided that he would go out and kill something for dinner. As he went down the road he saw a rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it. He went further and he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it. Then he saw a wild turkey in a tree and he had only

one bullet left, but a voice came to him that said, “Pray first, aim high, and stay focused.” However, at the same time he saw a deer which was a better kill. He brought the gun down and aimed at the deer, but then he saw a rattlesnake between his legs about to bite him, so naturally he brought the gun down to shoot the rattlesnake. Still the voice said again to him, “I said, pray first, aim high, and stay focused.” The man listened. He prayed, then aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey. The bullet bounced off the turkey and hit the deer. The handle fell off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it, and when the gun went off, it knocked the man into a lake. When he stood to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead deer and a dead turkey to eat. And the snake which was Satan was dead simply because the man listened to God. What I’m saying is, pray first before you do anything, aim and shoot high, stay focused on God and you’ll be able to stand during trying times.

THE TRANQUILITY

IN THE

STORM

Notice the tranquility in the storm (Verse 25). “Jesus went unto them walking on the water.” The disciples obeyed, and sometimes obedience may be rough, but it will not lack the help of Christ. In the midst of your storm remember that Jesus is the one who can

bring real tranquility. I don’t know about you, but when I look at some of the storms that I have faced, I know it had to be the Lord who brought me through. Not only me, but it had to be the Lord who:

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

divided the Red Sea for Moses shook down the walls of Jericho rained down fire from Heaven for Elijah caused the ax head to swim for Elisha helped Noah survive the flood helped Joseph survive the Egyptian prison helped Daniel survive the lions’ den helped Jeremiah survive the miry pit helped John survive the Isle of Patmos caused the fish to spew out Jonah caused the bush to burn for Moses caused the water to turn to wine caused the grave to surrender Lazarus caused the eyes of the blind to open caused the ears of the deaf to hear

Not only them, but how many know it had to be God who helped us pay our bills, who opened up doors of opportunity for us, who transformed our tragedy into triumph, who gave us peace in the midst of the storm? Allow me to tell you what to do in the midst of your storm: just keep obeying the Lord and He will see you through.

-4Victory Is Mine Daniel 3 “Looks like I can’t win for losing” is a very common phrase. It means that as soon as it seems you are getting your act together, as soon as it seems things are finally beginning to work out, as soon as it seems you are finally getting a firm footing on whatever your situation may be, someone pulls the rug out from under your feet and you come tumbling down again. Things begin to fall apart again. Our children, wanting to experience victory, seemingly are experiencing defeat. Our communities are experiencing defeat. As we look around, we see strong young men hanging out on the street corners desiring to work, yet unable to find a job. Even Christians are experiencing defeat. They are living without hope. We can live without a lot of things, but we cannot live without hope. There is always hope in Jesus. We don’t have to live a defeated life; we can live a victorious life each day. 43

You can shout, “Victory is mine!” each day. If victory is yours, there are three things you must understand: (1) You can’t worry about what people are saying; (2) You have to make sure you stand for something; and (3) You have to remember that God is still working miracles.

DON’T WORRY ABOUT WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING The book of Daniel was written by the prophet Daniel whose name means “God is my judge.” This book has a lot to do with holy living. Daniel stands firm in his faithfulness in serving God by refusing to partake of an unholy diet and refusing to stop praying even when commanded by his human authority to do so. Our story really begins in Daniel chapter two, where King Nebuchadnezzar dreamed a dream which left his spirit troubled because he could not remember the dream itself and was therefore unable to interpret it. He called together the musicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and Chaldeans to show him his dream and to tell him what his dream meant. The Chaldeans said to the king, “Tell us your dream.” The king responded, “It’s gone from me.” Then the king said, “If you show me what the dream means I’ll give you gifts and rewards.”

The Chaldeans answered again, “King, tell us the dream.” The king answered, “It’s gone from me.” So the Chaldeans answered and said, “There is not a man on earth that can show you, so we can’t do it.” The king got upset and he commanded all the wise men of Babylon to be destroyed. Daniel, hearing the fate of the king’s wise men, asked to speak with the king. The king told him what the problem was and Daniel said to the king, “If you give me time, I’ll interpret your dream. My God will reveal it to me.” Daniel returned to the presence of the king with the interpretation of the dream. King Nebuchadnezzar rewarded Daniel with great gifts and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon as well as chief of the governors over the wise men. Daniel did not get the big head after he scored this victory. He remained humble so much so that he remembered his friends, and he spoke favorably of them before the king. In verse 49 of chapter 2, Daniel requested of the king to set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. In chapter 3:1-15, Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold. This image of gold was ninety feet tall and nine feet wide. The reason the king made it so tall was because he wanted it to be seen from as far away as possible. There were no mountains in Babylon

so it was not impossible for this image to be seen. Then the Bible says king Nebuchadnezzar planned a special dedication service to worship the gold image. He invited all the dignitaries of the land: princes, governors, captains, judges, counselors, treasurers, sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces. Not only did he invite them to this important dedication of his gold image, but he also invited them to worship the gold image. The Bible says the herald cried out saying, “O people, nations, and languages. When you hear the sound of all the musical instruments fall down and worship the golden image, and whoever doesn’t fall down and worship in the same hour would be thrown into the furnace.” In other words, bow or burn. The text goes on to say that at the sound of the musical instruments, all the people bowed down and worshiped the gold image set up by king Nebuchadnezzar. Now there was a group, the Chaldeans, who were also watchers and haters. They watched to see who did not bow down to the image. These Chaldeans were among those, in chapter two, who were saved from death and who were able to keep their jobs because Daniel revealed the king’s dream along with the interpretation. But how soon we forget. The Chaldeans forgot what Daniel did for them. They were not grateful. In chapter three they brought accusations against Daniel’s three friends who refused to bow down before the image.

These Chaldeans were just haters. They took great pleasure in reporting to the king that there were three young men who refused to obey his commandment. The first people to talk against you and to stab you in the back are the people you have helped the most. That’s why if you are going to have victory, you can’t worry about what the haters are saying. You can’t worry about what ‘they’ are saying. If you listen to and worry about what ‘they’ are saying you will never move forward; you will never achieve anything in life. Many have helped family members countless times only to be stabbed in the back. Many have helped friends only to be stabbed in the back. Many have helped those close to them only to be stabbed in the back. The Chaldeans were haters. They were jealous of the influence and power the three Hebrew boys had. You must understand that everybody is not going to be excited about your success. Everybody is not going to be excited about how God keeps blessing you. Everybody is not going to be excited about how God is blessing you on your job, about the home that God has blessed you with, about how well your children are doing and how well-mannered they are, about how successful your business is, or about your relationship with God. Why? Because you have some haters. These haters are, more often than not, jealous of what God has done for you. They are normally those who have failed at what

you are attempting to do. They are those who hate to see you go up at a time when they seem to be going no where with their life. Verse 12 says, “There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” Notice these haters were naming names: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you cannot worry about what haters are saying. You have to do what you have to do. You have to follow your own convictions. Haters are those who don’t like you because of your success. Haters are those who don’t like you because they think it should be them. Haters are those who don’t like you because of what you have or what they think you have. But if victory will be yours, you can’t worry about what haters are saying. If you keep worrying about what haters say, if you are not careful, you’ll become a hater yourself. You’ll find yourself not liking somebody because somebody else doesn’t like them, or because you keep dwelling on the hateful things they say and do about you or about somebody else. I’ll never forget when I was attending Donaldsonville Junior High School, I used to hang with some friends, Rick and Alvin. They used to call us the Three

Musketeers because if you saw one of us you saw all three. There was a group of fellows that Rick and Alvin didn’t like. I didn’t have a problem with them, but Rick and Alvin talked so badly about those guys that after a while I started not liking these guys. There is a saying that goes like this: Bad company corrupts good manners. Paul puts it this way: ‘When I was a child, I spoke as a child, but now that I am a man, I speak as a man.’ In other words, we must grow up. Don’t become a hater because of someone else. No one can make you dislike someone else, but they can influence your thinking and your actions.

MAKE SURE YOU STAND FOR SOMETHING If you want to shout, “Victory is mine!” you have to make sure you stand for something. A person who stands for nothing will be swayed with every wind of doctrine that blows their way. One of the biggest problems we have in the world today is many people don’t stand for anything, and thus they are falling for everything. In verse 13, King Nebuchadnezzar is upset and he commanded that they bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to him. He then asked them, “Is it true you won’t serve my god, and you won’t worship my golden image?” Then the king said, “I tell you what, I’ll give you a second chance. When you hear the music, fall down

and worship the golden image, and if you do I’ll make sure everything will be okay. I’ll forgive you if you agree to fall down and worship, but if you don’t, you are going to be thrown into the burning fiery furnace. Then,” the king said, “Who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?” But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego took a stand. The text says that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego spoke as one. Verse 16 says they said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.” In other words, there is no use talking about it anymore. We have made up our minds. Verse 17 continues, “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.” Here in verse 18 we see where they boldly take a stand: “But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” The Hebrew boys were taking a stand. They didn’t speak out of both sides of their mouths. They were not double minded. They said what they meant, and they meant what they said. Oh, saints, sometimes you may have to suffer when you take a stand. Sometimes you will get knocked down when you take a stand, but that’s okay because “victory is mine.” I don’t care what I have to go through as long as I got the victory.

Now, the kid in me loves cartoons. I love to watch Popeye. There is this character named Bluto who was always fighting against Popeye. Bluto would always beat Popeye down and take Olive Oyl who was Popeye’s girlfriend. (Now, if you are going to beat me down, please don’t take my girl.) Anyway, Bluto would beat him with everything he could find. After Popeye had taken all the beating he could take, he would wise up, get the right stuff in him and take a stand. With the right stuff in him he would turn the tables and whip Bluto and take Olive Oyl back. Saints, that’s why victory is yours—not the knocks, bruises, and being talked about, but because you have the right stuff on the inside, which is the Word of God and the Holy Spirit of God. You can take a stand; then you can shout, “Victory is Mine!”

REMEMBER GOD IS STILL WORKING MIRACLES In order to shout, “Victory is mine!” you have to remember God is still in the miracle-working business. A miracle is an act of supernatural power. In verses 1920, after king Nebuchadnezzar gave Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego a second chance, they took a stand, and after they took a stand the king was upset. “Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage

was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated. And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.” If you have ever been through a fire, you know that nothing is preserved; but these boys were preserved. The king said unto his counselors, “Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Notice the king says, they were loose and walking in the fire, and they were not hurt. Let me tell you something: the same thing that Jesus did for the Hebrew boys, He’ll do for you. If it’s too hot for you, Jesus will step in. Jesus will keep you cool during the heat. Jesus will bring you through the fire. Those Hebrew boys were shouting, “Victory is mine,” because not only had God saved them, but the king got saved as well. Saints, you can shout, ‘victory is mine,’ because God is still working miracles. The other day, I was watching a commercial for the USA Olympics, and it showed a runner running and all of a sudden he falls. He was in first place, but his fall placed him last as all the other runners ran on ahead of

him. His father was in the stands and his father came and picked him up and carried him across the finish line. Now the runner didn’t finish first or second or third, but thanks to his father’s help, he still made it to the finish line. Saints, that’s just like us. We are running in this race called life. We begin in first place. After a while, obstacles come our way, or we partake of some sin, and we fall; but our heavenly Father picks us up, and even though we may not come in first, our Father helps us to the finish line. For the race is not given to the swift or to the strong, but to the one who endures to the end. That’s victory! That’s victory! God is still working miracles. Don’t give up. You’ve come this far, you’ve prayed too hard, you’ve sung too much, you’ve been through a lot. Don’t give up now. Jesus didn’t give up. He was laughed at, mocked, ridiculed, despised, and rejected, but He did not give up. He went on to the finish line. And once he crossed the finish line, He said, “It is finished!” He had completed the job He came to earth to do. He had completed the task the Father entrusted Him with. “It is finished!” He may have died, but He rose with power. You, too, can shout, “It is finished!” when you shout, “Victory is mine!”

-5Thriving, Not Just Surviving Psalm 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. Have you ever asked someone what’s going on and they respond by saying, “I’m just surviving”? Do you know that God does not want you to just survive, but He wants you to thrive? God wants you as His child to live the abundant life. He wants you to enjoy His blessings, and He is waiting to pour out His blessings on you. God wants you to flourish, to prosper, to blossom, to increase. The problem is, many want to live a mediocre life and just survive. Some are surviving for various reasons. It could be because of a lack of education or a lack of employment or simply not pursuing their goals. In other words, they 55

are barely surviving because they do not have that ‘can do’ mentality. We label these people the ‘have nots.’ Then we have those who have the degrees and are employed. They were given an opportunity and they went after it. It has been rough for them, but these are still saying, “I’m just trying to survive.” We label these the ‘haves.’ Then we have a third group we call the ‘haven’t got it yet’ group. These are those who believe that their blessing is coming; they believe that the door of opportunity is on its way; they believe that things will be brighter in the future, but they will not go out of their way to get things going. They would rather just sit and wait for things to fall into their lap, or wait for someone to come and push them along. The problem is, everyone else is busy trying to make it and so no one is really paying them any attention. But we do commend the ‘haven’t got it yet’ group for their optimistic outlook on life. Whether you are a part of the ‘have nots,’ the ‘haves,’ or the ‘haven’t got it yet’ group, let me encourage you because the Word of God says, “My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Remember that every perfect gift comes from above, and you, too, can reap if you faint not. Remember, God wants you to thrive and not just survive. Below are three reasons we should have a thriving mentality and

not just a surviving mentality: 1. God will never leave us. 2. We belong to God. 3. We know we can ask and receive. This Psalm is a Psalm of David. It is an experience of David. In this Psalm, David shares with us how we can thrive and not just survive. We know he is speaking out of his own experience, for in verse 25 he says, “I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.” David is now in his old age. His turbulent days are over. Twice he had been a fugitive and he might have said at that time that he had been forsaken and was begging bread, but David had come to a point in his life where he had gotten things into the proper perspective. He now had a more mature outlook on life. He now had a closer walk with God. He knew from a young age, but even more so now in his old age, that God would never leave him.

GOD WILL NEVER LEAVE US “I have not seen the righteous forsaken.” David is saying, “Listen, I was young, now I am old. I’ve been there and done that, but let me tell you why you should thrive and not just survive. There are some things I have

not seen, and one of those things is that I have never seen God forsake the righteous. Now the righteous are the just. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour, the cloak of righteousness is placed on you. After that is done, when God looks upon us, He does not see us covered in our sins; He now sees the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, who has no sin, but was made sin for us. So we are the righteous. The text says, “I have not seen the righteous forsaken.” Forsaken means to abandon or to leave. David tells you and me that that is why we should thrive, and not just survive—because God will never leave you; He will never abandon you. The problem is, some of us feel that God has already abandoned us. When life seems dull, some feel God has abandoned them, but the Lord hasn’t abandoned you. He is the joy and the strength of your life. When family disappears, when your money or your honey disappears, when what you used to have you don’t have, when what you used to do you can’t do, God has not abandoned you. God is just setting you up to let you know that with Him you can thrive and not just survive. Let me tell you about a guy named Freddie. Freddie was alone on his boat when a big storm came. His boat flipped over and he swam to shore and found himself alone on a deserted island. As the weeks went by, Freddie became so miserable and so distraught, he

lost all hope and didn’t think he would ever be found. He prayed and prayed, but Heaven seemed silent. Just when he thought it couldn’t get any worse, the hut that he made from tree leaves caught on fire. Freddie sat there crying as his shelter went up in flames. It was like pouring salt on his wounds. Freddie said, “God, I give up. I asked You to help me, but one bad thing after another happens.” Freddie was discouraged. About an hour later, a coast guard and rescue boat pulled up to the beach. Freddie couldn’t believe it. He was thrilled. He asked them, “How in the world did you find me?” The coast guard said, “We saw the smoke coming from the signal fire you built.” Saints, sometimes what looks like abandonment is really God getting us in a position to have us rescued. That’s why you can thrive and not just survive, because God is getting you in position for a rescue.

WE BELONG TO GOD We can thrive and not just survive because we belong to God. David says, “I have not seen the righteous forsaken.” He also says something else: “nor his seed begging bread.” ‘His’ denotes ownership—who we belong to. ‘His’ tells us we are not our own, we are bought with a price. We are His. ‘His’ means a person and that person is the Lord God. Some call our God, El

Shaddai—God Almighty. Some call our God, Jehovah Jireh—my provider. Some call our God, Jehovah Rapha— God that heals. Others call our God, Jehovah Nissi—the Lord is my banner. Still others call our God, Jehovah Shalome—God of Peace. The text says, “his seed.” In this verse, ‘seed’ means a child. Saints of God, because we don’t belong to ourselves, because we have been bought with a price, we belong to Almighty God. We should thrive and not just survive. When you are God’s child, He places His Spirit in you, not only so that you can last, but so that you can outlast. You were built to outlast some stuff. I saw a commercial on television about a Ford truck. They showed a picture of this Ford truck going up a hill carrying a lot of stuff, and going fast. It showed how strong the truck was. Their premise was that you would not be disappointed if you were to purchase one of these trucks because they were built to last. A Ford truck was built to last, but because we are His seed, we are not built like the Ford truck; we are built to outlast. We are built to outlast trials, to outlast tribulations, to outlast trouble, to outlast tough times, to outlast hardships, to outlast heartache, to outlast poverty, to outlast setbacks, to outlast unemployment, to outlast a ‘just-make-it’ mentality, to outlast being set up, to outlast being put down, to outlast being thrown down, and to outlast being last. You should be shouting, “I’m

thriving and not just surviving because I belong to God.”

WE KNOW WE CAN ASK AND RECEIVE We should thrive and not just survive because we know we can ask things of God and receive without a problem. Our focus verse says, “I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.” Because we are God’s seed, we do not have to beg; we simply have to ask. The Scripture says, “Ask and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be open unto you; for everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” Whatever you need, if you want to thrive and not just survive, just ask, seek, and knock, because the owner is our Father. Our problem is oftentimes we ask for too little when our God who owns everything wants to give us the world. There is a story I heard once about a little girl who came to her father and asked him for a nickel. The father reached in his pocket, but he didn’t have any change; all he had was a twenty dollar bill. He knew that was a lot of money, but he figured that his daughter had been a good girl so why not give her the twenty. But the little girl said, “Oh, no Daddy! You don’t understand, I want a nickel.” The father said, “No, baby. You don’t understand. This is a twenty dollar bill.” But the little

girl, not fully understanding, kept insisting, “Daddy, why won’t you give me a nickel?” The father tried to explain. He tried to tell her how many nickels were in a dollar and how many dollars were in a twenty dollar bill. The little girl wasn’t getting it, so she started crying and having a fit, and she said, “Daddy, you said you were going to give me a nickel. Why won’t you give me a nickel?” When I heard that story, I got to thinking that that is exactly what we do: we demand a nickel when God offers us twenties. We settle for surviving when we were made to thrive. As a child of God, remember that you were made to thrive.

-6The Pursuit of Happiness Psalm 30:5 Weeping may endure for a night; but joy comes in the morning. I watched a movie not too long ago called The Pursuit of Happyness. It was based on a true story about a brother by the name of Christopher Gardner and his son. In the movie, Christopher Gardner is played by Will Smith and his son is played by Smithâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s son, Jaden. Will Smith is a salesman. He sells medical devices. He needs to sell two per month to survive. However, sales donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go well, his wife leaves him, he loses his apartment, and he ends up homeless. So, he sells his blood to survive. He has nowhere to go and no one to lean on for help. A lady tells him about this church that could help him. He and his son eat at the church, live at the church, worship at the church, and I believe become successful because 63

of the church. The main thrust of the story is about what this man had to go through in order to get to where he wanted to be. Sometimes, you have to go through things in order to get to where you want to be. Do you want to be happy? There are three things you must understand in your pursuit of happiness. Those things are: 1. You are going to have to cry sometimes. 2. Sometimes it’s going to get dark. 3. Always remember, morning is on the way. Before we look at our text in Psalm 30, let’s take a quick look at the preceding Psalm, Psalm 29, and at the Psalm that follows our text, Psalm 31. Psalm 29 is about God’s powerful voice. Psalm 31 is about being courageous. This particular Psalm, Psalm 30, is about praising God for deliverance. It was written by our brother David. In verse 1, David says, “I will extol thee, O Lord.” ‘Extol’ means to raise up or to exalt. He goes on to say, “for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.” You must understand that David had some enemies, and David knew that his enemies would jump for joy if he fell. We don’t call them enemies; we call them haters. David knew the haters would rejoice, but the Lord had lifted up David and David in turn would lift up the Lord.

Then in verses 2-3, David began to thank God for healing him. God kept David from dying. In verse 2, David is praising God for healing his body, and in verse 3, David is praising God for healing his soul. Then when we come to verse 4, we see David is singing. David says, “Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.” We tend to give thanks to God for His love, His compassion, and His grace. But David gives thanks because “He is holy.” Then we come to our text in verse 5: “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

YOU ARE GOING TO CRY SOMETIMES Behind God’s holiness is His compassion for us. In His favor is life. God’s favour is shown in His delight, in His goodwill, in His pleasure, and in His kindness toward us. The psalmist says, “Weeping may endure.” This tells us that in our pursuit of happiness, sometimes, we are going to cry. Weeping will come. In your race for happiness, there will be some situations that are going to make you cry—situations that leave you thinking, “How did I get into this mess?” You will find some situations hard to get out of. Not only will you encounter hard situations, but you will also encounter difficult people. Some people you want to get away from because

they do things and say things that will cause you to cry. I am talking about relatives: husband, wife, father, mother, daughter, son, and other loved ones who will make you cry. But know that sometimes you have to cry as part of the course you have to take to get to where you are going. “Weeping may endure.” ‘Endure’ means to tarry and ‘tarry’ means to delay, and you must understand that delay doesn’t mean denial. One day my son, Kenny, got me upset. I got his report card, and I didn’t like it. I told him I didn’t like it and that he was going to have to tighten up on some things, and that I would be tightening up on some things as well. No more PlayStation for sure. I had ordered Kenny a number 25, Reggie Bush of the New Orleans Saints jersey. The jersey came in between that time, and I told him, “You can’t wear it. Go put it in your dresser until next month when you improve your grades.” I didn’t tell him he wasn’t going to get the jersey; his jersey would just be delayed, not denied, because delay does not mean denial. In your pursuit of happiness, you’ve had to cry and it looked like your happiness was delayed, but thanks be to God, it doesn’t mean your happiness was denied. You have to go through to get to where you want to be.

SOMETIMES IT IS GOING TO GET DARK It’s going to get dark, bleak, and even scary at times. 66

Verse 5 says, “For a night.” Night-time brings darkness. Sometimes it gets so dark we can’t see our way. Some of you may be thinking: I can’t see how I’m going to make it. I’ve got more month than I have money. I can’t see it. My family and I are not seeing eye to eye. I’ve been looking for a job, and they won’t ever call me back. It’s dark and I can’t see. The first is right around the corner and I don’t have my rent. It’s dark and I can’t see. I’m behind on my car note and I need to be able to get around. It’s dark and I can’t see. I’ve been dating this guy and now he’s marrying someone else. It’s dark and I can’t see. My children want stuff that other kids have. It’s dark and I can’t see. I want to be in a relationship, but I’m scared. I can’t see. I’m doing the best I can with what I have. It’s dark and I can’t see. I don’t know who or what to call on anymore. It’s dark and I can’t see. I don’t even have gas in my car. It’s dark and I can’t see. Sometimes, it’s good that you can’t see, because we serve a God who has a way of working out of sight. The Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace could not see their way out, but they got out by the provision of God. Daniel was in the lions’ den; he couldn’t see his way out, but God did. The 5000 had no food, then they had enough; they couldn’t see their way out, but God did. When the wedding party in Cana ran out of wine, they didn’t see how they would get any more wine, but God

did. Peter walked on water; he couldn’t see it, but God did. That’s why in your pursuit of happiness you can’t give up. You have prayed too many prayers to stop now. You have sung too many songs to stop singing now. You have given too many offerings to stop giving now. You have done too many good deeds to stop now. You have shared too many testimonies to stop now. You have come too many miles to stop now. You have crossed too many mountains to stop now. You have paid too many bills to stop now. You have witnessed too many miracles to stop now. Keep pursuing happiness with Jesus. Don’t stop. It might be dark, but it won’t be dark long. The text says, “Weeping may endure for a night.”

MORNING IS ALWAYS ON

THE

WAY

Always remember that morning is on the way. The text says, “but joy cometh in the morning.” Morning is day time, the break of day. We have it mixed up. When pursuing happiness, we don’t want any night times, we just want day times. In the book of Genesis, you find that God’s day begins with an evening and ends with a morning. In fact, all the way through creation God’s day begins with an evening and ends in the morning. In Genesis 1:5: “God called the light day, and the darkness he called night, and the evening and the morning were

the first day.” Then in Genesis 1:8: “And God called the firmament Heaven, and the evening and the morning were the second day.” Then in Genesis 1:13: “And the evening and the morning were the third day.” Then in Genesis 1:19: “And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.” Then in Genesis 1:23: “And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.” And in Genesis 1:31: “And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” Now what is significant is that before morning came, it was night time. You must understand that before morning it’s night-time, and whenever there is nighttime, morning time is on the way. Jesus died on a dark Friday, but it was early Sunday morning when He rose. You can always expect something in the morning. I remember every year on December 24th, my kids, Kevin, Keith, and Ken, and even myself, wouldn’t go to sleep the night before Christmas because we knew that when morning came, we would get our gifts. Sometimes we were anxious because we didn’t know what gifts we would get. We just knew we would get them in the morning. For some of you, it is dark right now, and it has been dark for a while. But you are still holding on because you know even though it’s been dark, in the morning you get your gifts. “Weeping may endure for a night; but joy comes in the morning.”

-7The Choice Is Yours 1 Kings 18:20-21 and 37-39 So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel. And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. ... Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed 71

the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God. Choice is a powerful thing. We can choose to do good or we can choose to do evil. Whatever choice we make, we will experience its consequencesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;good or bad. We have all made some bad choices at one point or another that have led to hurt, pain, or heartbreak. On the other hand, at one point or another, we have all made good choices that have led to joy, relief, or rewards. Every day we are faced with choices: should I get up this morning so I can make it to work on time? Or should I sleep in late and risk losing my job? Whatever the situation, remember, the choice is yours. Notice these three things from our text in 1 Kings: 1. You have to make up your mind who you are going to follow. 2. You need to know that God can still hear His children. 3. You need to know that God will even allow you to see what He can do if you let Him.

MAKE UP YOUR MIND WHOM YOU WILL FOLLOW The books of First and Second Kings relate the history of the Jewish people from the death of David to the captivity of Judah. In our text, we meet the prophet Elijah. Elijah means God is the Lord. Elijah was the one who raised a widow’s son from the dead and who rose up to Heaven on a whirlwind. Elijah was also the one who God sent to win back the hearts of the Jewish nation because the people had forgotten their history and were worshiping other gods. In 1 Kings 18, he comes and lets us know that the choice is ours. He lets us know that we have to make up our minds who we are going to follow. It was a battle of the gods. In verses 17-18, Elijah went to see King Ahab. Ahab said, “So it’s you the Israelite trouble maker.” Elijah said to King Ahab, “I’ve made no trouble for Israel. You and your family are the trouble makers.” Then Elijah told him why. ‘You have refused to obey the commands of the Lord and have worshiped Baal, the rain god, instead.’ Yet Israel was experiencing a drought. In verse 19, Elijah said to Ahab to send to him all Israel on Mt. Carmel including the 450 prophets of Baal, and the 400 prophets of the grove, which was at Jezebel’s Tower. Next we come to our text. In verse 20, Ahab sent the children of Israel and the prophets to Mt. Carmel. Now,

Mt. Carmel was a symbol of beauty and fertility. In fact, Mt. Carmel means vineyard of God or garden land. It was on Mt. Carmel that Elijah made his stand against the false prophets of Baal. Notice in verse 21, Elijah says to everybody, “How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him.” Elijah is saying, “Listen, people of God, you must come to a point in your life where you must make up your mind who you will serve—God or Baal.” Notice he says, “How long halt ye?” Now ‘halt’ does not mean to stop and think things over. Halt means to weigh two opinions. Some people are divided. They can never make up their minds as to what they stand for. One day they lean to the world and the next day they lean to the Word. One day it’s what the world says and the next it’s what the Word says. When are you going to make up your mind? Don’t be double minded. James 1:8 talks about that. He says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” That’s what the children of Israel were doing— wavering; so Elisha comes and says to them and to us, ‘Make up your mind who you are going to follow. If it’s the Lord, thy God, then follow Him. If Baal, then follow him. The choice is yours.’ Elijah did not sugar coat his message. He said what he meant and meant what he said. It was either, yes or no. True or false. Good or bad. For or against. God or Baal. No middle ground.

Isn’t that the way with God? He demands a decision. It is your choice. There are other places presented to us in the Word of God where we are faced with making a choice. Matthew 6:24: “No man can serve two masters.” The choice is yours. Proverbs 14:12: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” The choice is yours. Romans 10:9: “If thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the death thou shall be saved.” The choice is yours. Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life.” The choice is yours. II Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if any man be in Christ he is a new creature; old things are passed away, behold all things are become new.” The choice is yours. 1 John 1:8: “If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The choice is yours. Again in I Kings 18:21: “If the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him.” Make up your mind. The choice is yours. Notice in verse 21, “The people answered him not a word.”

GOD STILL HEARS HIS CHILDREN In verse 37, Elijah says, “Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their hearts back again.” Elijah calls on the Lord. There was a confrontation on Mt. Carmel. After the people didn’t say a word, Elijah said to the people, I’m the only remaining prophet of the Lord, but Baal has 450 here for this contest. Elijah says let them give us two bullocks. You take one bullock and cut it into pieces, lay it on the wood, but do not put any fire under it. I will do the same with the other bullock after you get done. Call on the name of your gods and I will call on the name of my God, and the God that answers by fire let him be the true God. The people all agreed. The prophets of Baal took the bullock, dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning till noon, but received no answer. Elijah mocked them, saying, ‘He is a god; either he is talking, or busy, or perhaps he is asleep. Call him louder.’ The prophets of Baal cut themselves with knives till blood gushed out, then they prophesied, but still received no answer. They called on Baal from morning till evening. After they got done, Elijah called everybody together. He took twelve stones, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. He then built an altar in the name of the Lord. He made a trench, put

the wood in order, cut the bullock, laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood. Do it again,” he said a second and a third time. Elijah knew that the Lord would hear him even though the odds were stacked against him. I know it’s hard to find a job, but keep calling on the Lord. I know it’s hard to make ends meet, but keep calling on the Lord. I know it’s hard to survive, but keep calling on the Lord. It doesn’t matter how much the odds are stacked against you when you know the Lord. The Lord and you are a majority. You must understand that the God we serve can still hear His children, but you must choose Him and not Baal. You must choose the Lord because He is eternal and will never fail you. Every now and then, I watch the Game Show Network where they have the old Newlywed Game, Match Game, and Password. I was watching television one night and an old peanut butter commercial came on. It described a mother who was choosy, and the caption of the commercial said, “Choosy mothers choose JIF.” They were talking about Jiffy Peanut Butter. When I saw that commercial, I said not only ought a mother to be choosy, but all Christians need to be choosy. Choosy Christians choose JIF—Jesus Is Forever.

GOD WILL ALLOW YOU TO SEE WHAT HE CAN DO IF YOU LET HIM Know that God will even allow His children to see what He can do if they let Him. Verses 38-39 of our text tell us, “Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.” God allowed His children to see that miracle. The text says, “And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces.” They started to worship the Lord. They started to say, “The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God.” The choice is yours. One night, my wife and I were driving to Los Angeles to my wife’s grandmother’s home. We were on the interstate and the gas light came on. Now I had just bought the car, so you can imagine I was wondering what was going on. Brenda was in the passenger seat; Kevin Jr. was in the back. A sign on the road said ‘Gas Station, 25 miles.’ Brenda went in the glove box, took out the manual, read it, and put it back. She said to me, “It’s okay. We’ll make it.” I said, “What? The light is on and all you can say is ‘we‘ll make it’?” She said, “Yes. I said we will make it.” I said, “How do you know?” She said, “I read the book and the book says when the gas light is on, don’t panic, you still have fifty miles to go.” You see, I panicked because, even though I had the book, I didn’t

read the book. It may look like you can’t go any farther. It may look like your life is running out of gas, but let me encourage you to just read the Book. The Book says, “The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want,” or as one preacher used to say, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I have everything I need.” The Book says, “The Lord is the giver of my life.” The Book says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear?” The Book says, “Wait on the Lord.” The Book says, “You are more than a conqueror.” The Book says, “He’ll strengthen you.” The Book says, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Read the Book! It is all in the Book. The Book also tells us that Jesus Christ died for our sins, was buried, and He rose from the dead giving us the victory over sin and giving us eternal life. Why don’t you accept Him? The choice is yours.

-8The Benefits of Serving God Psalm 23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. One of the things that many people look at throughout their lives are benefits. Benefits are of much value. That is why people ask the question, What benefits will I receive? What benefits will I receive if I purchase this equipment? What benefits will I receive if I get this education? What are my benefits in working this job? In our text, we see three benefits of serving God: 1. The God who we serve will put us back together again. 2. The God who we serve will direct us in the right way. 3. The God who we serve will put His name on the line for us. 81

GOD WILL PUT US BACK TOGETHER AGAIN Psalm 23 was written by David whose name means beloved. David was the one who said, “Lord, create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me.” This David comes to you and me sharing with us some of the benefits of serving God. He says, “He restoreth my soul.” David is saying, God will put you back together again. And he says, “Lord”: this is the same Lord who he calls his shepherd in verse one. The text says, “He restoreth.” The word ‘restoreth’ comes from the root word restore, which means to turn back, to return, to revive, to reestablish, to recover, to renew, and it also means to put back. A sheep will run to the edge of a cliff and if nobody says anything, the sheep will just keep going. So the Psalmist David says, the Lord can put us back together again. The Lord is not just interested in our well-being, but the Lord is also interested in our soul. That is why the text says, one of the benefits we have in serving God is He restoreth my soul. Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 4:16 that even though our outward man is perishing, our inward man is being renewed day by day. God is renewing your soul; He is restoring your soul each day. David knew God loved Him, yet, he still knew what it was like to be down and out. In Psalm 42:11, David

said, “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” ‘Cast down’ when talking about a sheep means that a sheep has turned over on its back and cannot get up. It is sort of like the commercial when the lady falls and says, “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.” In this case, the sheep is on its back with its legs in the air, helpless, struggling, trying to get back on its feet because the sheep knows that if he stays on his back too long, he will die. That’s just like many of our brothers and sisters. They find themselves helpless, struggling, trying to get back on their feet. They find themselves saying, “If I could just get back on my feet I will make it.” But let me share with you, sometimes we are on our backs because of our own doing; then sometimes we are on our backs because it’s our turn. Just because everything is going well today does not mean things will go well tomorrow. Now when a sheep is on its back, the shepherd, who counts the sheep to see if one is missing, will search for that one lost sheep until he finds it, and puts the sheep back on its feet. That is one of the benefits of serving God. He can put you back on your feet. There are some things that cause a sheep to get on his back. Some sheep only look for soft spots. You see, sheep always want to be in the comfort zone, and sometimes, they may turn, flip over, and find themselves on their backs in order to get into a comfort zone. That’s just

like many of us. All we want are soft spots. We want to stay in our comfort zone. We don’t want any hardship, hang-ups, hurt, or hold-ups. We just want things easy. In this life, however, sometimes we have to climb up the rough side of the mountain, and you know that when you climb up the rough side you’ll appreciate it when you get to the top. If you are going through some difficulties, congratulations, because that puts you on target to get some things. I love the sitcom The Jeffersons with cool George, Weezie, and their son, Lionel; their maid, Florence; and their next door neighbor, Mr. Bentley. Then they have other neighbors, Helen and Tom. Now Helen and Tom had a daughter named Jenny. Jenny was Lionel’s girlfriend. What I loved most about the Jeffersons was they rose from the bottom to the top. Their theme song was “We’re Moving on Up To the East Side”; but the part I liked was when they said, “It took us a whole lot of climbing just to get up that hill.” That’s just like us. In order to get up the hill, it will take a whole lot of climbing on the rough side, but know that the God who we serve will put us back together again. The next reason sheep fall on their backs is because they are covered with too much wool. Too much wool will weigh a sheep down. On top of that, when the dust arrives and mixes with the rain, it turns into mud, and the mud gets stuck in the wool weighing the sheep down

even more. This causes the sheep to be cast down on its back with its feet in the air. That’s like many of us. We have so much wool it begins to weigh us down. Wool in Scripture denotes man’s old life. Many of us are holding on to old things that we need to let go of. Your past hurt, let it go. Your past pain, let it go. Your past habit, let it go. Your past relationship, let it go. Stop comparing Bill to Bob and let it go. Your past life, let it go if you have accepted Jesus, and if not, you ought to accept Jesus because the Bible says, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold all things are become new.” Let it go. What is it you need to let go of? The old sinful habits that are not profitable. The old way of doing things. Anything that is not pleasing to the Lord. Who is it you need to let go of? Old friends who mean you no good. Those friends who are not saved because now you are going in opposite directions. Let go of the things that are weighing you down.

GOD

WILL

DIRECT

US IN THE

RIGHT WAY

Second, the God we serve will direct us in the right way. The text says, “He leadeth me in the path of righteousness.” ‘Leadeth’ means He is out front guiding us. Sometimes we run into things that try to take us off our path, but we do not have to worry because we know

that the Lord is guiding us, and whenever someone is guiding you, he has already been where you are going. That’s why if you want to know how to live a Christian life, you talk to a Christian. If you want to know how to get off alcohol, you do not talk to an alcoholic, you talk to someone who has recovered from alcohol. If you want to know how to get off drugs, you don’t ask a drug addict, you ask someone who has conquered drugs. If you want to know how to get a good man, you don’t ask somebody who doesn’t have a man, you talk to somebody who has a man. If you want to know how to get a good woman, you don’t ask a man who has one less bell to answer, one less egg to fry, you ask somebody who has a good woman. If you want to know how to stay married, you don’t ask somebody who has been married ten times or someone who has never been married, you ask somebody who has been married for a long time because they have already been where you are going. That’s the same thing in our text: only God can direct us in the right way because He has already been there. The text says, “In the paths of righteousness.” ‘Path’ means a track or a way, and ‘righteousness’ means the right way. Therefore, the text is saying that the God who we serve will direct us in the right way. Many of our problems come because we want to direct ourselves. In other words, most sheep want a Burger King life—

”have it your way.” But, saints of God, we need our heavenly Father to guide us. He will guide us in the right way because He knows the way. There was a story told about a little boy who was on an airplane that was experiencing violent turbulence. The plane was going up and down. The lady sitting next to the little boy was terrified. She couldn’t understand why the little boy was happy and having fun. After a few minutes observing him, the lady just couldn’t stand it any longer, so she said to the little boy, “Son, please stop it! Stop it. You’re having so much fun. How can you have fun when the plane is going through this?” The little boy put his hand on the lady’s hand and said, “Lady, the reason why I can have so much fun is simple. My daddy is the pilot and he has seen us through many ups and downs before.” When you know your Daddy is the pilot you can handle the ups and downs of life because He has seen you through it before.

GOD WILL PUT HIS NAME ON THE LINE FOR US Third, the God who we serve will put His name on the line for us. The text says, “He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness.” Then the text tells us why: “For his name’s sake.” Many times we don’t want to do what God says, but God still blesses us,

and the reason God still blesses us is because of His name’s sake. You may be thinking, “What is His name’s sake? Well, that depends on what His child needs at the time. He is bread when you are hungry. He is water when you are thirsty. He is a bridge over troubled waters. He is strength in the times of weakness. He is joy in the midst of sorrow. He is hope for the hopeless. He is a lawyer in the courtroom. And yes, He is a doctor in a sick room. He is always available for His children. That is why you need to serve God. When you call Him He will answer. There are so many benefits to serving God. Serve God, and receive those benefits today.

-9Putting God First Matthew 6:25-33 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil 89

not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Many of us toss and turn at night because we worry about things connected to our past. It is hard for believers to sleep at night when sins are not confessed. There is an alarm that will sound at different times in the hearts of men when we do things that go against the will of God. Sometimes the alarm will sound to remind 90

us of an evil deed done in the past. Sometimes it will sound when you hear the name of a person who has the same first name as the one you sinned against. That alarm will sound while you are on the job. It will sound while you are sitting in church listening to the sermon or even to a deacon praying or the choir singing. The conscience of man is a good thing, for the conscience has a way of causing us to seek God, and not only to seek Him, but to seek Him first. From our text, we want to discuss what happens when you put God first. We already know some people who were the first in some cause. We know that Richard Allen compiled the first black hymnal. Hazel Dorothy Scott was the first black performer to have her own network television program. Happy Pappy was the first black varsity talent show with an all black cast. Harry Belafonte Jr. was the first black to have an hour-long special on television. Cicely Tyson was the first black to appear in a key part on television. Bill Cosby was the first black actor to win an Emmy award. And Diahann Carroll was the first black woman to have her own television series called Julia. And yes, all of those firsts are fine, but as we talk about putting God first, there are three things we want to consider in this text: 1) the Information 2) the Illustration 3) the Invitation 91

THE INFORMATION Let’s look at the information in verse 25. He says, “Therefore.” ‘Therefore’ is a bridge tying this verse with the verse above. Verse 24 reads, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” It says that God is a Christian’s only master. Over in the San Francisco Bay Area, every now and then, there is some dense fog. One July 4th, people were concerned because they thought the fireworks display would not be great because of the fog. The fog didn’t come in so everything worked out well. Every now and then, dense fog comes and makes driving difficult; it makes flying a plane difficult. It has been reported that a dense fog extending over a city block a hundred feet deep is composed of less than one glass of water. Now divide that into sixty thousand million droplets. That tells us that in the right form, a few gallons of water can cripple a large city. Well, that’s the same thing with worry. It is always small compared to the size it forms in our minds, and the damage it does in our lives. I once heard someone say that worry is a thin stream of fear that trickles through the mind, and if left unchecked, will cut a channel so wide that all other thoughts will be drained out.

Jesus tells us not to worry about what we shall eat, what we shall drink, or what we shall put on. Jesus knows we need food, drink, and clothes, and because we exist in bodies, we need these things to maintain our biological life. The problem is too many of us see life as only biological, so therefore life becomes no more than a struggle to gain material things. A fellow had a bumper sticker that said, “The one with the most toys when he dies wins.” That’s not life. Life is not just playing a game and then dying with nothing to show for the years you have lived on this earth. Jesus reminds us that we have a share in the image of God, and the spiritual life has more ultimate meaning than the material life.

THE ILLUSTRATION Second, we see the illustration in verses 26-30. The Bible says, “the fowls of the air” do not worry about how they are going to be taken care of. In Northern Galilee there were many birds, and I can see Jesus looking up as some birds flew overhead, and saying, “Look at those birds. They do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns.” Notice, God does not say to them, ‘I’ve done my part and from now on you’re on your own.’ No, the Lord has provided them with an abundance of food and other resources and the instinct to fend for themselves and their offspring.

Jesus does not suggest that the birds do not do anything to feed themselves. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. Anyone who has watched the birds for a little while should be impressed with their diligence and persistence in getting their food. A study says that many birds spend most of their time and energy finding food for themselves, their mates, and their young. The key is they don’t worry about where their next meal is going to come from. They gather food until they have enough, then they go on about their business. The only time birds sit a lot is when we put them in cages. Every now and then I go to Lake Merritt to relax, and as I relax I watch all kinds of people feeding the ducks. On one occasion the ducks left the pond, and they began walking across the streets. I saw them, and even though I was driving at 1 mph, I ended up stopping so the ducks could continue to cross the road. I blew my horn, I yelled and I screamed and I even revved the engine, but the ducks just kept waddling across the road. Here they were facing danger and they just kept on walking across the street with not a care in the world. (It seems to me that if you are a duck and you are facing danger, why walk when you have wings?) Isaiah 40:31 says, “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Our problem is, we won’t use

our wings. Christians, we should rise above lust, gossip, hatred, envy, carnality, bitterness, greed, jealousy, pride, depression, rudeness, self righteousness, fault-finding, arrogance, resentment, stubbornness, and self-pity. We must rise above it all. We must use our wings. Jesus says, “Are ye not much better than they?” In the other illustrated verses, verses 28-30, Jesus brings up the issue of one’s clothing. He says the lilies of the field, those brightly colored wild flowers that bloom after the early spring rains and cover the plains of Israel, flowers so beautiful that even Solomon in all his extravagant robes could not equal them, these flowers do not toil, nor spin, yet they are more beautiful than Solomon. Now, since God is so concerned with the beauty of these simple flowers, don’t you know He’ll put clothes on your back? You see, God provides and many times not just the basics, but the abundance. Yet one must not forget that Christ was warning His disciples about being concerned with such things, for if you put God first, God will take care of those things for you. The Gentiles were considered cut off from God. Those who trust God should not live a worried existence as many unbelievers are living. As a Christian, you ought to have more confidence in God; but, you can’t have that confidence unless you put God first.

THE INVITATION Third, we see the invitation. Christ says to us to make God’s kingdom and righteousness first—not second or third, but first. ‘Seek’ is in the present imperative, meaning continue seeking. When pressures have done their best to crush you, seek God first. When temptation has done it’s best to ensnare you, seek God first. When circumstances have done their best to frustrate you, seek God first. When adversaries have done their best to overthrow you, seek God first. When fears have done their best to get possession of you, seek God first. When disappointments have done their best to discourage you, seek God first. When the devil has done his best to destroy you, seek God first. When critics have done their best to condemn you, seek God first. When backsliders have done their best to upset you, seek God first. When gossipers have done their best to ruin you, seek God first. When skeptics have done their best to hassle you, seek God first. When burdens seem too heavy to bear, seek God first. When problems seem too hard to solve, seek God first. When our enemies seem too big to face, seek God first. When responsibilities seem too demanding, seek God first. When hardships seem too great to overcome, seek God first. The reason you should seek God first is because He sought you even when He didn’t have to. God so loved

the world that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus, to die for us. That alone ought to move us to put God first.

- 10 Pray Until Something Happens Luke 18:1-8 1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; 2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: 3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. 4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; 5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will

avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. 6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. 7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? 8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? When was the last time you had a serious prayer meeting? When was the last time you got down on your knees and just had a little talk with Jesus? When was the last time you poured out your heart to God? When was the last time you just went into the presence of the Lord, not wanting anything but to bathe yourself in His presence? In this parable, we see how that when we persist in prayer, God will answer our prayers. We do not know how He will answer our prayers, but rest assured, He will answer our prayers. Sometimes God may say, yes. Sometimes God may say, no. Other times God may say, not yet. Whatever the answer, we must continue to pray

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until something happens. We must pray ourselves through all the time, for even though Jesus may not give us what we ask for at the time we ask, we should pray until something happens. Below are three things to keep in mind if we are going to pray until something happens: 1. The exhortation to prayer 2. The example of prayer 3. The encouragement of prayer

THE EXHORTATION TO PRAYER 1. The duty of praying. There are a lot of things we ought not to do, but here is one thing we ought to do. The text says, “Men ought always to pray, and not faint.” Prayer is not an option. Prayer is a duty. The word ‘ought’ in our text means it is necessary; it is right and proper. Prayer must be prominent in our life or we are being disobedient to God. Even though in our text it says “men,” it really means “them,” and “them” includes men and women, boys and girls, black and white, rich and poor. 2. The dedication of prayer. Verse 1 says, “Always.” “Always” speaks of the type of dedication we need in our praying. Now always does not mean 24/7, every minute of the day as that would hinder our other duties.

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What it means is that we must be faithful to our regular times of prayer. And we do need to establish regular times of prayer each day. Most of us go to bed at the same time every night. Most of us get up at the same time every day with the help of our alarm clocks. Most of us have lunch at the same time every day. Most of us watch a television program at the same time every day. If we can do all of that at a certain time, why do we find it so difficult to pray at a certain time? You see, we must cultivate good habits of prayer if we are to have a healthy prayer life. And if we are going to be a success for God, we must pray until something happens. 3. The occasion of prayer. “Always” means in the good times as well as in the bad times. We should pray during times of prosperity and during times of pain. It is sad, but some of us only pray when trouble has knocked or trouble is knocking on our door. One brother asked another brother, “Brother, how do you know when it’s time to pray? Our stomachs growl when it’s time to eat. Our eyes start closing when it’s time to sleep. When our feelings get hurt, it’s time for tears. Then people will tell you when it’s time to go, but how do you know when it’s time to pray? Does an alarm go off next to your bed or is there clanging inside your head? Do your eyes start blinking, or does a horn start blowing? Or do you listen for a rooster crowing? Sir, what is your way of knowing when it is time to pray?”

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The young man said, “Well, with me, I find it is time to pray at the beginning and ending of each day, and when I am sick and feeling bad, scared, lonely, lost, or sad. When the monthly bills blow in like sand, I seek a touch of the Master’s hand. When I need patience, hope, grace, and abiding love that will not cease, then I am thankful. To make a long story short, I pray whenever my heart has something to say.” That is how I know when it’s time to pray, and not just when trouble comes or when God has delivered us from our troubles. We ought to pray until something happens. 4. The discontinuation of prayer: Verse 1 of our text says, “and not to faint.” Fainting means to grow weary. You may be growing weary or fainting in your prayers because you’ve asked God for help and it seems as though God is not listening, or it seems as though God is not answering soon enough. Fainting will cause our prayer life to be unfruitful. What causes one to faint in prayer? 1. Defilement: sin defiles and defilement kills interest in spiritual exercise. Sin will make you lose interest in prayer. How do we get back into the business of prayer? By confessing our sins and turning away from our sins. 2. Doubt. We must pray in faith believing that God will answer our prayers, for too many times we doubt the Word of God. We doubt the power of God. We doubt that we can get a prayer through. Always remember

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that faith and prayer go hand and hand. Stop doubting and start believing. Learn how to turn your prison into a palace. You do know that not all prisons have steel bars for windows and doors? Some prisons are merely adverse circumstances in oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life that can cause a person to feel as though he is in a prison. A mother may feel like she is in prison because of her small children. An employee may feel like he is in prison because of limited solutions. A wife or husband may feel like he or she is in prison because of abuse. An individual may feel like he is in prison because of some negative childhood experience. Some may feel like they are in prison because of limited finances. Others may feel like they are in prison because of sickness. But I am a living witness that God can turn your prison into a palace. There are some who are happy, not because of their circumstances, but in spite of their circumstances. Paul and Silas may have been hurting, but they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t allow that to stop them. They may have been bleeding; they may have been disappointed; they may have been frustrated; they may have been laughed at; they may have been criticized; they may have been threatened; but they did not allow that to stop them. Why? Because they knew the benefits of praying until something happened. And we have to do likewiseâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;pray until something happens. 3. Distractions: The devil and his spies are masters

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at producing distractions during our prayer time. Can you testify that sometimes shortly after you start to pray your mind starts to wander in different directions thinking about everything but what you should be praying about? Those things are distractions. Have you ever started to pray and the phone starts ringing? Distraction. Have you ever started praying and out of the blue your spouse wants to talk? Distraction. The devil knows that if he can distract you, then maybe he can stop you from praying. 4. Delay: Delay also causes us to grow weary or to faint in prayer. Parents, it’s like when we ask our children to do something and they just take their time in doing it. Now, you know they can do it, you just don’t like that it is taking them so long to do it. Simple things like taking the trash out. You know they can do it, but if your children are like my children, they take a long time to take the trash out, or they wait until they see the trash truck coming, or they wait until the trash truck is already in the drive way, then they make a mad dash. Isn’t that just like us and God? We ask and we know He can do it, but sometimes He delays. In other words, He may not come when we want Him to, but He’s right on time. That’s why we’ve got to pray until something happens.

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THE EXAMPLE OF PRAYER Second, we see the example of prayer. In verses 2 and 3 of this parable there were two main characters. We have a wicked judge and a wronged widow. A wicked judge: This judge had two character deficiencies. He had some serious problems. He did not fear God, nor did he have any regard for man. When a person has the wrong attitude toward God, that same person will have a wrong attitude towards man. If a person does not love God, there is a good chance that person does not love you. Why? Because God is love. The Bible says in 1 John 4:20, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” A wronged widow: This widow came to the judge saying, “Avenge me of mine adversary.” Now, no detail is given as to what injustice the widow was suffering, but we do know she suffered from some injustice. Widows, today, can have a good life with insurance and social security, but widows in Bible days often became destitute after their husbands died. If they had any possessions there were those who would swindle them out of everything they had.

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THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF PRAYER In the example, we see the plea. She came unto the judge saying, “Avenge me of my adversary.” Not only do we see the plea, but we also see the continuation of the plea. The word ‘came’ is in the imperfect tense which suggests continuous action. That is what God wants you and me to do—to keep on coming. In other words, keep praying until something happens. And this widow, she just came, and kept on coming to the judge until he heard her case and did something about it. Our problem is we only want to pray when we want something. I remember as a boy living in Los Angeles we had a neighbor by the name of Miss Mildred. Miss Mildred would always come to our house, but she came to the back door. She never wasted any time coming to the front. Her words were always the same: “I just want to borrow (something).” It may have been sugar or flour or coffee. But the problem was she never came at any other time, and my mother would always let her have whatever she wanted. Then she would be gone. I knew my mother never appreciated her doing that, but she never complained. I often think of Miss Mildred when I hear some people pray. Some people never call on God until they want something and God goes ahead and gives them what they want because He is so loving. Wouldn’t it be much better if we would call on God at

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other times as well? Well, we had another neighbor whose name was Mrs. Lou. Mrs. Lou came by often, and never asked for anything. She always started her conversations by saying, “Just stopped by for a visit.” I think God would like us to do that—to just stop by for a visit. The next time you pray, why not just stop by for a visit? Let us pray until something happens because something will happen if we persist in prayer.

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- 11 Praise Is What I Do Psalm 150:6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. We live in a day and time where one of the questions that is asked of us is: What is it that you do for a living? In fact, whenever you meet someone for the first time, it won’t be long before they ask: What do you do? Where do you work? Some even go so far as to ask, What is your educational level? I use to tell people even before I received my college degrees, that I had a BA and a Masters. Let me explain: I have a BA degree because I am Born Again. I have a Masters degree because I have met the Master. Whenever we, as believers, are asked what do we do, we ought to say, “Praise is what I do.” ‘Praise’ means to be thankful to God, to boast in God, to celebrate God, and to glorify God because of what He 109

has done. According to our text, there are three reasons why we should praise: 1. Because we are a part of ‘everything.’ 2. Because we are still breathing God’s air. 3. Because God told us to praise Him. Psalm 150 was written by our beloved David. David was the little ruddy shepherd boy. David killed a lion and a bear. David killed a giant named Goliath. David was God’s choice to become king, and he became the second king of Israel. David had his ups and his downs, but he loved God, and he was constantly praising God. Thus, David says to you and to me, praise is what I do because I’m a part of the everything.

I AM A PART OF THE EVERYTHING In Psalm 150, David starts out by saying: “Praise ye the Lord.” Then he tells us where we ought to praise Him: “in his sanctuary.” Notice, the sanctuary belongs to God. It is His sanctuary, His place of worship, His holy place, His tabernacle, and His church, which is the Ekkelesia, the place where it doesn’t matter what you have on, what you have done, or where you come from. Then David tells us where else to praise the Lord: “in

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the firmament of His power.” That’s outside. So we ought to praise the Lord inside and outside, because if we don’t praise the Lord inside, we definitely won’t praise the Lord outside. Then, in verse 2, we are told to “praise him for his mighty acts.” It was a powerful act when God took nothing and made something. He put the moon in orbit; He put the stars in their silver sockets; He scooped out the sea; He divided day and night; He made man from dust; and then He put man to sleep and made woman. But the mightiest act that God did was when He saved my soul. That’s a mighty act. Then verses 3-5 tell us how we ought to praise God: “Praise him with the sound of the trumpet, with the psaltery and harp, with the timbrel and dance, and with stringed instruments.” Just express yourself in worship. In other words, we ought to praise God with whatever we have. If you have a song, you ought to sing it. If you have a prayer, you ought to pray it. If you have a drum, you ought to beat it. Whatever you have, use it to praise the Lord. Verse 6 says, “let everything.” The word ‘let’ means to allow or to permit. So David says, ‘if praise is what I do, it is not going to just happen; I’ve got to let, or permit, or allow it to happen.’ The reason we ought to allow our praise to happen is because we are a part of the everything. The text says, “let everything.” I can give

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you the meaning of everything in Greek, Hebrew, Spanish, English, and Ebonics, but it will still mean the same: Everything means everything. It means all and there is nothing outside of all. When people say, “I surrender all,” it should mean all of my heart, all of my mind, all of my soul, all of my talent, all of my treasures, all of my time, all of me — my legs, my arms, my walk, my talk. I should surrender all because I am a part of the everything. Are you a part of the everything?

YOU ARE STILL BREATHING GOD’S AIR Second, we should praise because we are still breathing God’s air. Have you ever thought about how important God’s air is to our lives? Notice the text says: “let everything that hath breath.” ‘Breath’ means life. You see the Lord is to be praised by whatever has sound or voice or breath; by whatever has life. The psalmist tells us in Psalm 103:21:”Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.” In Psalm 103:22: “Bless the Lord, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the Lord, O my soul.” In Psalm 145:10: “All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee.” In Psalm 148:7: “Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps.”

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In Psalm 148:11: “Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth.” David is saying everything that is alive should praise the Lord. I don’t know how the animals praise the Lord, but I do know that if they have breath they ought to praise the Lord. I believe when we hear the birds chirping away, they are singing praises unto their Maker. Not only should the animals praise the Lord, but you and I ought to praise the Lord, especially those of us who are His saints. We ought to praise Him for every step we take, for every word we speak, for every place we go, for every thought we think, for everything we do, for every prayer we pray, for every song we sing, and for every day we live. Praise is what I do because I’m still breathing God’s air. When you really think about it, I am not only breathing God’s air, but I’m drinking His water, I’m eating His food, I’m living in His house, I’m wearing His clothes, I’m driving His car, I’m going to His job, I’m spending His money, so I’ve got to praise Him. Another reason we should praise the Lord is because other people are watching us and are observing our behaviour. You see nobody really cares if you are renting or if you own your own home. That’s temporary. Nobody really cares if you drink Coke or Pepsi. Nobody really cares if you eat hamburgers or hot dogs. That’s all temporary. What others want to know is, how do you

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treat the Lord you say you love, the Lord you say saved you, the Lord you say is providing for your daily needs? Do you show your appreciation for what He has done by praising Him? Do you know that praise is an act of thankfulness? Praise is saying, “Thank you, Lord, for all that You have done for me, and if You never do anything else for me, I will still continue to praise You.” We must praise our way through temptation. We must praise our way through our difficulties. We must praise our way through our burdens. We must praise our way through our problems. We must praise our way through hard times. We must praise our way through our disappointments. Others are watching to see how you treat the God you proclaim you love, and if you just praise Him the right way, that may be a testimony to draw the unsaved to Him. Praise is what I do because I’m breathing God’s air. The story is told of a man who was always complaining that God had forgotten about him. This man didn’t have a nice car. He said, “God forgot about me.” He didn’t have a big house. He said, “God forgot about me.” He didn’t have a lot of clothes. He said, “God forgot about me.” He didn’t have a lot of money. He said, “God forgot

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about me.” He didn’t have a lot of friends. He said, “God forgot about me.” The sad thing about this is that this man attended church every Sunday. He was a regular member of the Abyssinian Baptist Church. One Sunday he got to church and the pastor was preaching on let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. The fellow finally got it. He left the church that Sunday saying: Even though I don’t have a car, I’ve got legs. Praise God I can walk. Even though I don’t have a large house, I’ve got shelter over my head. Praise God I have a place to stay. Even though I don’t have a lot of clothes, I’m not naked. Praise God I have something covering my back. Even though I don’t have a lot of money, I’ve got bus fare. Praise God I can still get around. Even though I don’t have a lot of friends, what a friend I have in Jesus, all of my sins and griefs He bears.

GOD TOLD US TO PRAISE HIM Third, we should praise because God told us to praise Him. Verse 6 says, “let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.” Then our text says, “Praise ye the Lord.” Our problem is we worry about others praising the Lord when His Word says, you praise the Lord. You

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praise the Lord because nobody really knows Him like you know Him. Nobody knows what the Lord has done for you like you do. I have made up my mind that even though my next door neighbor might not be praising the Lord, I’m going to praise Him anyhow. Even if my family won’t praise Him, I’m going to praise Him. And you don’t mind praising Him when you know the Shepherd. The story is told of an old man and a young man who were performing on the same platform before an audience. A special part of the program was being presented in which each of these men was to recite from memory the 23rd Psalm. The young man trained in speech and drama gave an oratory of the psalm. When he was finished the audience clapped for more; they wanted to hear his beautiful well-modulated voice once more. Then the old man leaning on his cane stepped to the front of the platform and in a feeble, shaky voice, repeated the same words, but when he was seated no sound came from the crowd. Folks just wiped tears from their eyes. In the silence, the young man again stepped forward and made the following statement: “Friends, allow me to say something. You asked me to repeat Psalm 23 with your applause, but you remained silent when my friend was finished. The difference? I shall tell you. I know the Psalm, but the old man knows the Shepherd of the Psalm.” Do you know the Shepherd of the Psalm? Have you

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been washed in the blood of the Shepherd of the Psalm? If so, then you have a reason to praise Him. Praise is what I do!

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- 12 How to Praise Your Way Through (Part 1) Psalm 100:1-3 1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. 2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. 3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve discovered that one of the things all of us have in common is that each of us, at one point or another, go through some tough times. The sad thing is, even though we go through tough times, many of us have no idea how to handle these times. As a result, we hang our heads down and have a pity party trying to get people to feel sorry for us because of what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going through. Many 119

of us are going through some pain, some distress, some grief, or some hurt. There is one thing you can do to lift your head up. The pressures of life have overtaken some of us, but I can tell you there is one thing you can do that will bring you throughâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;you can praise the Lord through it all. Even though you feel pressured, you can praise your way through. Even though you feel some pain, distress, grief, or hurt, you can always praise your way through, because the problems or difficulties, the predicaments or obstacles will be there. Right now, you have either just come out of a problem or difficulty, you are presently going through a problem or difficulty, or you are getting ready to go through a problem or difficulty. Three things we gather from our text as we praise our way through are: 1. There are some good things you just have to do. 2. You have to do things with the right attitude. 3. Make sure you know who God is.

THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU JUST HAVE TO DO The book of Psalms is a book of Praise. It is the book of worship. One of the key words in Psalms is hallelujah, which means praise the Lord. Dr. J. Vernon

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McGee says that the Psalms are full of Christ. The Gospels tell us that Jesus went to the mountain to pray, but the Psalms give us His prayer. The Gospels tell us that Jesus was crucified, but the Psalms tell us what went on in His heart during the crucifixion. The Gospels tell us He went back to Heaven, but the Psalms show us Christ seated in Heaven. The book of Psalms is a very important book. The 100th Psalm is really an ending of a section of the Psalms from Psalm 94 to Psalm 100. In Psalm 100, our psalmist tells us how to praise our way through. You must realize, there are some things you just have to do. Verse 1 tells us we have to “Make a joyful noise.” ‘Make’ tells us that there are some things we had better do. The word ‘make’ means to do something, to construct, to set up, to form, or to shape. God is saying to us, if you are going to praise your way through, there is something you are going to have to produce, to construct, to set up, to form, or to shape. The psalmist tells us what it is we have to produce. The text says “noise,” and not just any kind of noise, because there are some noises God doesn’t like. God doesn’t like arguments; He loves peace. God doesn’t like complaints; He loves compliments. God doesn’t like murmuring; He loves thankfulness. God does love a joyful noise. Our text commands us to “Make a joyful noise.” A joyful noise is when you shout for joy. It means

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to cry out with a loud voice. After all, it’s only right when someone has done something special for you to cry out. Have you ever asked yourself what can I do for so and so to show my appreciation? That should not be a difficult question to answer. When you think about it, if it’s hard to show appreciation to another human being, how much more difficult will it be to show appreciation to God? God says to us, you can’t show Me appreciation by giving Me something, because I don’t need anything from you. I have everything. I own everything. However, there is one thing that you can do to show your appreciation: you can produce or construct a cry with a loud voice. In other words, make a joyful noise. Oftentimes the reason our problems seem overwhelming to us is because we refuse to praise the problem solver. It seems to me, if I’m going through some stuff that I can’t seem to handle, then I would want to thank the One who is able to pull me out. The Lord will pull you out any time all the time. Ask Daniel, he’ll tell you, “Yes, I was in the lions’ den, but the Lord pulled me out. Not only will the Lord pull you out, He’ll also pull you through.” Ask Moses, he’ll tell you, “Yes, I was in the Red Sea. I couldn’t go sideways or backwards, but the Lord pulled me through.” Not only will the Lord pull you out and pull you through, but the Lord will also allow you to make it

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through. Ask the five thousand He fed with the two fish and five loaves of bread and still had leftovers. They’ll tell you, “The Lord will help you to make it through.” Not only will the Lord allow you to make it through, and pull you through, but sometimes He’ll get in there with you. Ask the Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace and they’ll tell you, “Yes, He will.” The reason you ought to make a joyful noise is because you were at a standstill, you didn’t know what to do, and the Lord pulled you through. You didn’t know where your next meal was coming from, but the Lord allowed you to make it through like the five thousand He fed. You found yourself in a fiery mess, and the Lord got in there with you. When we realize all that the Lord has brought us through, we must, we have to, we can’t help but to praise our way through; for when we praise, we are thanking the Lord. I remember back at home in Donaldsonville, Louisiana, my mother, Naomi Ruth Barnes, used to always tell us children, “Whenever someone does something for you, always say ‘thank you’ real loud, so that they can understand you, and say it with a smile.” Now, I didn’t know at the time what Mama was saying, but when I became born-again, I realized that Mama was saying, “Son, God has done so much for you, and because He has, you must take the time to thank Him real loud, and thank Him with a smile.” Mama was really

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telling me to make a joyful noise unto the Lord. And you know that’s what God is saying to us: make a joyful noise all ye lands. Everybody ought to make a joyful noise unto the Lord, because no matter what you are going through, God has been good to all of us.

WITH

THE

RIGHT ATTITUDE

Second, you have to do all things with the right attitude. Verse 2 says, “Serve the Lord with gladness.” If you are going to praise your way through, not only do you have to shout, but you also have to serve. You see, many people don’t mind shouting, they just don’t want to serve. Too many want to be served rather than to serve. The word ‘serve’ means to toil, to plow, to do for others, to work and even to worship. This Psalm suggests that we serve God by our worship. He says we have to do it with the right attitude. The text says “serve the Lord with gladness.” ‘Gladness’ means joy, pleasure, and glee. The right attitude encompasses joy, pleasure, and glee. In Matthew 25:37-39, the righteous said, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in? Or needing clothes and clothed you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?” Then the Lord tells us in verse 40, “I

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tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” When we serve Jesus we will meet the needs of others. When we feed the homeless with the right attitude, when we welcome strangers with the right attitude, when we clothe those who are naked with the right attitude, when we visit those in prison with the right attitude, we are doing it to the Lord. Our text says, “Come before his presence with singing.” In verse 1, He says, shout. In verse 2, he says, serve and sing, but sing with the right attitude. Worship and work go together, and the reason we worship and work is because we were lost and now we are found. We were lost in our sins, but now we have been found in Jesus Christ. There is a story told of a farmer who lost his watch. After months of toiling in the field, the farmer finally found his watch laying in the dirt. The crystal was broken, the watch was beat up and looking rough, but the farmer was excited because even though the watch was beat up and the crystal was broken, the watch had a life time guarantee. That is why we ought to praise our way through because I don’t know about you, but sometimes life beats me up, and, yes, I find myself broken, but thanks be to God, I have a life time guarantee that says no matter how beat up I get, Jesus saves. No matter how broken

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we are, Jesus saves. From the utter most to the gutter most, Jesus saves. Since Jesus saves, I ought to praise my way through.

MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHO GOD IS Third, make sure you know who God is. In verse three the text says, “Know ye.” ‘Know’ means to perceive or to understand. So he says, “You must understand the Lord he is God.” ‘Lord’ is the covenant name for God. God is Elohim. He is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We can give credit to no one but God for many of the things that happen in our lives. When Sarah gave birth to Isaac, it had to be God. When Moses went through the Red Sea, it had to be God. When the walls of Jericho fell, it had to be God. When Gideon led the three hundred to victory, it had to be God. When David slew Goliath, it had to be God. When Elijah called down fire from Heaven, it had to be God. When the water turned to wine, it had to be God. 126

When Jesus fed five thousand ith a happy meal, it had to be God. When Peter walked on the water, it had to be God. When the woman with the issue of blood was healed, it had to be God. When blind Bartimaeus began to see, it had to be God. When Jesus rose from the dead, it had to be God. But what about you? When you were healed of your sickness, it had to be God. When you had food to eat, it had to be God. When you were relieved of your loneliness, it had to be God. When you were no longer afraid, it had to be God. When you were delivered from temptation, it had to be God. When the doors of opportunity opened for you, it had to be God. When a way was made for you out of no way, it had to be God. Who picked you up when you were down? It had to be God. If you are going to praise your way through, you

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have to know who God is. The text also tells us who God is. “It is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves.” Saints, it’s God who created us. We had nothing to do with how we were made. If we had created ourselves, we would have created ourselves taller, wiser, richer, or skinnier. Someone may be lamenting, “I’ve messed up.” God still made you. The text says, “We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” ‘His’ signifies ownership. God owns us. He is our redeemer. He brought us back from sin. That is why we ought to praise our way through. Praise Him for being so good to us. Praise Him when things are bad. Praise Him in the good days. Praise Him when you are up. Praise Him when you are down. Praise Him because He bought you just like you are. A little boy went to the pet store to buy a puppy. He did not have enough money so the owner told him to come back. The little boy went to work doing odd jobs here and there until he had enough money. He went back to the pet shop, and the owner told him, “You don’t want this puppy. His leg is broken and he walks with a limp.” The little boy said, “Yes, I want him because I used to walk with a limp myself.” If it had not been for the Lord I don’t know where I would be right now. I had a limp of sin, but the Lord bought me anyhow. He bought me out of sin. Do you 128

have a limp? Bring it to Jesus. Praise is something you just have to do, and you must do it with the right attitude making sure you know God for yourself.

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- 13 Praise Your Way Through (Part Two) Psalm 100:4-5 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. In part one of this two part sermon on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Praise Your Way Through,â&#x20AC;? we shared that life is often filled with pain, pressure, and problems. Even though life is filled with pain, pressure, and problems, we must learn to praise our way through. We also shared that if you are going to praise your way through... 1. There are some things you just have to do. 2. You must do it with the right attitude. 3. You have to know who God is. 131

There are three other things you must do as you praise your way through any situation in a way that is pleasing to God. Those three things are: 1. You must come in the right way. 2. You must learn to just thank the Lord anyhow. 3. You must remember the Lord is everything you need.

YOU MUST COME IN THE RIGHT WAY Verse 4 of our text tells us the right way to come into God’s presence. It says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise.” ‘Enter’ means to go in or to come in. It gives us the understanding that there had to be a time when we were outside. Notice also that the text does not just say to enter or to just come in, the text tells us, whose place we are entering. It says “enter his gates,” and ‘His’ denotes ownership. The psalmist is really saying, you do not have to remain outside; you can come into the Lord’s house. Many of us get it twisted thinking that because we have been in the church all of our life, we have stock in the church, not realizing that the church does not belong to us; it is God’s house. In Matthew 16:18 it says, “And on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail

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against it.” Because it is His house, the psalmist is telling us that when you come into the Lord’s house, and if you are going to praise your way through, you have to come in the right way. It says to “enter into his gates.” ‘Gates’ means door or opening. Then the psalmist says “and into his courts with praise.” Enter into His courts and into His yards that are enclosed within the fence. He says when you come into my yard, you come in the right way. Have you ever had anybody to come to your house and they come in the wrong way? Instead of coming in through the front door, they go to the back door. Some people come into your house acting as though it was their house. When a person comes into my house they have to respect me inside my house. It is the same with God. When you enter into His house, you have to come in the right way. You cannot disrespect God in His house. Notice we did not say you had to be right before you could come into God’s house; you just have to come in the right way. What is the right way? With praise and thanksgiving. We ought to come in enthusiastic, eager, and stimulated. Nobody should have to pump you up to praise the Lord. We ought to come in thanking and praising the Lord. We ought to come in excited: Excited about what God has done. Excited about what God is doing.

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Excited about what God is about to do. Not only should we come in excited, but we should come in being an example. We should come in being a sample, a model, or a representative of who God is and what God can do. I know you are going through some things; I know you are having some trouble; I know you are going through some hard times; but thank God you are not stuck in it. You are going through it, which means that whatever you are going through, this too shall pass. You have been through the storm and rain, but you made it. You have been as sick as you can be, but you made it. So we ought to come into our Lord’s house as an example. Yes, it is rough and tough, but you made it. Not only are we to come into the Lord’s house excited and as an example, but we ought to come in expecting. ‘Expecting’ means to look forward to, to anticipate, or to count on. I do not know about you, but I expect a miracle every day. I am expecting a Word from the Lord. I am expecting some change in my situation. I am expecting victory over some things in my life. I am expecting God to step in and to deliver. I am expecting, but I have to come into His house with the right attitude. I will never forget growing up in the South and neither will I forget some of the things Mama said, many of which did not impact me until later in life. I remember when I was about fourteen-years-old and I was outside playing with my friends. I got upset because the other

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guys wouldn’t throw me the basketball, so I left the court. (Do you know people still get mad if you do not throw them some praise?) Anyway, I left mad and I went in the house mad. I was steaming. I was stomping my feet. I believe I closed the door a little bit too hard. My mother looked at me and said, “Kevin, I know you did not just come into my house like that. What is your problem?” I said, “Mama, they would not throw me the ball.” Mama said to me, “I do not care what happened outside of this door, but you do not come into my house the way you just did, so here is what you are going to do. You go back outside and you come into my house the right way.” Even as a child, my Mama was tough on me since it was her house. I had to come in to my mama’s house the right way. What about God’s house?

LEARN TO THANK GOD ANYHOW Second, as you praise your way through, learn to just thank the Lord anyhow. Verse 4 says, “be thankful unto him.” One of the biggest problems that we have is being thankful. We must learn to be thankful during the good times as well as during the bad times; during the happy times as well as during the sad times. We have to learn to just be thankful anyhow. If for no other reason, we should be thankful because of all that the Lord has done for us. He did not have to do any of what He has

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done for us, but because He loves us so much He has done things for us without us even asking Him. He did not have to open the roadway for Moses, but He did. He did not have to allow Noah to build an ark, but He did. He did not have to deliver Daniel from the lionsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; den, but He did. He did not have to get in the fire with the Hebrew boys, but He did. He did not have to cause the walls of Jericho to fall down for Joshua, but He did. He did not have to help David defeat Goliath, but He did. He did not have to feed the five thousand, but He did. He did not have to turn the water into wine, but He did. He did not have to heal blind Bartimaeus, but He did. He did not have to heal the woman who had the issue of blood, but He did. He did not have to raise Lazarus from the dead, but He did. He did not have to open up the jail for Paul and Silas, but He did. He did not have to make the man whole at the pool of Bethesda, but He did. He did not have to lift your burdens, but He did. He did not have to give you food to eat, but He did. 136

He did not have to give you a roof over your head, but He did. He did not have to solve your problems, but He did. He did not have to calm your fears, but He did. He did not have to supply your needs, but He did. He did not have to give you peace in the midst of your storm, but He did. He did not have to save my soul, but He did. He did not have to save your soul, but He did. And because He has done all these things, we all ought to be shouting praises and thanksgiving. I do not care how old you are. I do not care how rich you are. I do not care how poor you are. I do not care how healthy you are. I do not care how sick you are. Just be thankful. The text says that not only should we be thankful, but we ought to “bless his name.” You may be thinking, well, how can I bless His name? ‘Bless’ means to praise His name. ‘Praise’ means to exalt the Lord. If we are to praise our way through, we have to be thankful and exalt His name; we ought to be thankful and lift up His name. I do not know about you, but I have noticed when I thank Him profusely and when I exalt His name, it just looks as though the Lord gives me more stuff. That’s why people sing the song, When the praises go up, the blessings come down. I remember not long ago, my son, Keith, came over

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to our house. I had just finished my walk and I was getting ready to lift weights. Keith saw me and he said, “Dad, you are looking great. You look like you are in great shape.” Then Keith said, “Can I borrow $25?” I said, “Do you really think your Dad is in good shape?” He said, “Yes.” I gave him $50. He got more because he was giving his dad some props. It’s the same thing with our Heavenly Father. You give Him some props. In other words, you have to give Him the praise, and when you give Him the praise, He will bless you.

REMEMBER THE LORD IS EVERYTHING Third, as you praise your way through, remember the Lord is everything you need. Verse 5 says, “for the Lord is good.” The Lord is pleasant; the Lord is excellent; the Lord is good, and everything He made is good. The Gospel is the good news. Then the text says, “His mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” His mercy or His loving kindness is for ever. He never runs out of mercy. We can praise our way through because we can depend on Him. The story is told about an old man who, whenever something significant happened in his life, he would mark it on his calendar with a red highlighter. He would write

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in red the letters JP. One day a friend of his came over and he saw the old man’s calendar, so he asked, “Why do you put JP on your calendar? I see you put it on there a lot.” The old man said, “Well, that is just a reminder to me.” The fellow asked, “What reminder?” He said, “When trouble comes into my life, I write JP. When things are difficult, I write JP. When I get frustrated with my life, I write JP. When I experience failure, I write JP. When pressure comes, I write JP.” The fellow said, “Okay, you write JP, but what does JP mean?” The old man took the red highlighter and walked over to the calendar and wrote JP again. Looking at it, he said, “When you get on my nerves, I write JP and JP simply means Just Praise.” Good or bad, happy or sad, up or down, just praise the Lord!

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How to be Saved from Hell, Straight from the Bible IF YOU WERE TO DIE TODAY, WHERE WOULD YOU GO, HEAVEN OR HELL? 1. Accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 7: 20: “For there is not a just man upon earth that doeth good, and sinneth not.” Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” 2. Accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…” 3. Accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” The Bible says in Revelation 21:8: 141

“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” 4. Accept the fact that you cannot do anything to save yourself! The Bible states in Ephesians 2: 8, 9: “For by grace are ye saved through faith: and that not of yourselves: it is a gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.” 5. Accept the fact that God loves you more than you love yourself, and that He wants to save you from hell. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (Jesus Christ, John 3:16). With these facts in mind, please repent of your sins, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and pray and ask Him to come into your heart and save you this very moment. The Bible states in the book of Romans 10:9, 13: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

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If you are willing to trust Christ as your Saviour, please pray the following prayer: Heavenly Father, I realize that I am a sinner. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life. Amen.

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