Stand for the Lord | Moxy

When pressure turns up, most of us don’t fail in one dramatic moment, we drift through a hundred small compromises. We wanted to talk about the kind of courage that doesn’t drift. We call it moxy: grit, determination, and the willingness to stand for the Lord when standing costs you something. 

We open in Daniel with four young men taken from Jerusalem into Babylon, renamed, retrained, and expected to become “more Babylonian” than faithful. That’s not just ancient history, it’s a spiritual pattern we still live in: identity gets rewritten before worship gets redirected. We unpack how fear often ties to the unknown and our need to control outcomes, and why surrendering control to God is not weakness but wisdom. 

From the first quiet test at the king’s table to the public command to bow before a golden idol, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego show what faith under pressure actually looks like. Their words still sting in the best way: God is able to deliver us, but even if he doesn’t, we will not bow. Then comes the furnace, the heat, and the surprise that changes the whole story: the fourth man in the fire. We talk about Jesus’ presence in suffering, modern idolatry, and how spiritual resilience forms when you choose worship over fear. 

If you’re ready to grow in Christian courage, stand strong in a hostile culture, and trust God in your own “furnace” season, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs moxy, and leave a review with the line that hit you hardest.

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Transcript

Defining Moxie And Courage

Jason Brown 0:00

Today we're continuing our theme moxie, and moxie means this: it's courage, it's nerve, it's determination, it's grit, it's that stick toitiveness of not giving up whenever things aren't easy. And so we're called to be those as Christ's followers that we're called to have that kind of moxie, that kind of courage, that kind of strength. Today we're gonna talk about this idea of what it means to stand for the Lord. As we look at this idea, we're picking up in the Bible today in Daniel, and the story is actually in Babylon, where it picks up where they actually, Nebuchadnezzar has come in and taken all of these people out of the Holy Land, out of Jerusalem, out of the promised land, and taken them back to Babylon as he is the power of the day. And we know this. I mean, you see, there's uh there's all sorts of stone ephesus across Persia and other places that you can see these. I've seen some of them in person uh in Europe and some museums and other places where you're like, wow, these guys were really substantial. I mean, you know, they they they had these big pieces set up, just let everybody know who was in charge. You know what I mean? And so they were everywhere, and you have these depictions of of Nebuchadnezzar going and fighting and taking over people. Here's a here's a painting that was kind of depicting that idea of their power and how they would come and take over different places. And it picks up in this story, kind of highlighting four characters for us today that we want to take a look at. If you have your Bible, your tablet, or phone, we're moving today to Daniel 1 in verse 6. And it picks up and says, and among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Michel, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. And so it picks up with these four guys. They're young guys. It says they're handsome, they're strong, they're smart, they're like the cream of the crop of the people he stole from that area. Now, this wasn't a unique thing. He went and took over everybody and took the top people from every culture that he had taken and he stole them away. So you have to think about it from their perspective. They feel the way you might want to feel, was that they're now imprisoned, they're now a slave of sorts, they're stolen away from the promised land that we talked about last week that Joshua fought so hard to get. And so it's interesting because as the children of God moved away from God and worshipped other things, then the Lord took his hand off of them and eventually brought punishment against them for them standing against him. And we see this process happen, and these guys are living in the aftermath of those in front of them that made bad decisions. You ever lived in the aftermath of other bad decisions made by your family? Don't raise your hand, they're here. You guys are like, yes, I got a good response. Everybody's like, Yes! Like, don't do that. They're in the room. Don't put your hand down. But here's the thing if we think about it from that perspective, then we too better watch our choices for the generations that follow us. Knowing that we set the stage for the things that they will live out. And that our bad decisions aren't just affecting us, they're affecting other people. And so we need to be those that walk in line with God. But that's another sermon. So we're going today, looking back to this scripture. It talks about how they're taken out of the promised land, and it picks up here in Daniel 1, 7. The chief of the eunuchs, which is the person who was overseeing these guys being trained up, he gave them names. Now, they're not going to go around with their Hebrew names, they gotta have Persian names, Babylonian names. Daniel, he called Belte Jezar, Hananiah, he called Shadrach, Meshael, he called Meshach, and Azariah, he called Abednego. Now it's interesting because we don't really think of these guys as Hananiah, Meshal, and Azariah, though that are is their Hebrew names. And if we think about it, that's what we should call them. After all, we call Daniel Daniel throughout the story. But Daniel doesn't call them that. He calls them by their other names. So tough luck, guys. Now you're Shadrach, Meshach, Abindigo. That's what we know from the story. That's what we know from when we're little kids, when we were in Bible school when we were in kids' church or in Bible school, and so that's the idea that we're learning today. And so you gotta think about it as they're now renamed to become more Babylonian, that this is now the identity that's being placed on top of them. Now I thought this was interesting because Daniel obviously is the writer of this book. He refers to Daniel as Daniel, which is probably a good move. You know what I'm saying? We have a lot of good friends named Daniel here in the crowd. And you know, Daniel, it's a good one. I love that name. I think it's strong. You know, we have nicknames and stuff that come off of Daniel, you know, Dan, Danny, you know. No one calls him Neil, right? That's not that's weird. But could you imagine if it wasn't in the popular name today was Beltashazzar? Wouldn't that be cooler? You know, you could have like cool nicknames like Beltie or Shazzy or Tsar. You guys know what I'm talking about? All right, young families, I'm gonna do a challenge for you. We have several expecting in the crowd. I'm just gonna throw it out there. Beltashazzar. Think about it. Be the only one at graduation with that name, I'm pretty sure. Beltashazzar. But what I love about these guys is that they don't, they don't just take on the identity of Babylon and just become Babylonian. They stand for the Lord. So despite where they are in culture, they accept where they are in culture. They accept that this is their life, they accept that where I am, I'm going to thrive, I'm gonna give my best to God, but they decide to stand for the Lord despite their circumstances. That's a word for someone today. That you need to stand for the Lord despite your circumstances. That you're not in the circumstances you want to be in. You didn't you maybe even choose to put yourself there, but you find yourself in the circumstances. But in the midst of your circumstances, even though they're not what you want them to be, you can stand for the Lord and see the Lord be on your side. And so today, as we look to the cross, today as we look in our own circumstances about what that means, and we face those situations that are impossible, as we've been talking about, like Moses before the Red Sea, Joshua before Jericho, in your own life, in your own circumstances, as you stand before the impossible, only the creator God is the one that can overcome the impossible. And so we're the ones that need to align with him and walk with him and worship him, do not apart from him. We talked about how so often our fear is tied directly to the unknown because we can't control it. And we're gonna walk through those seasons of the unknown where we're out of control. And so as we try to fight for control, I'm one of those people I fluctuate between like a C and an A type personality, and you put me in a work situation, I'm like, here's what we're gonna do. You know, you just shift into A gear, like, let's go, let's do it. Try to control the situation. And God is saying to us, listen, you can't control everything. You are out of control. So you better as well give over the control to me because I can. I can be the one that guides you through it. I can be the one that helps you shut your mouth, I can be the one that gives you the right words to say, I can be the one that helps you to forgive because you've been forgiven much when it's not easy. And once you've forgiven, not pick it back up. Lord help us that we would stand for the Lord, that we would stand for him. See, Jesus, he has already done all these things on our behalf, he has already made a way for us, he is already the answer for us. And so as we align with him, we are already victorious in him. We are already a new creation, we're not chained to our past, we're not chained to our old addiction. Friends, we are free in Jesus, so we should live free in Jesus. And as we do so, then we're not gonna be shackled by anything else in our culture, in the political realm, in any other fear that's gonna come and get us. No, we're not gonna do that. We're gonna stand for the Lord in what he has said to us. And so we're gonna have that kind of moxie to meet the fear that would otherwise try to cripple us and chain us down. That in the middle of our circumstance, we're saying, No, I'm gonna stand for the Lord. If we haven't met, my name is Jay. It's a blessing to be with you here today at Cornerstone. We're so thankful that we get to walk this path together. We see ourselves very much as people in need of a savior. None of us is perfect. All of us are following Jesus. And so we use this image of Christ with his disciples because that's how we see ourselves. That none of us have arrived anywhere, that we're still walking after him where he's leading us to go. And since that's true, then we have an ambition personally to be more like Jesus. Say it with me: be more like Jesus. It's why we love God, it's why we make disciples, it's why we reach the world. And so as we look at Moxie, we've been talking about this idea starting with Moses. We talked about his potential and the miracle that God did to save his life when he was young and how he was grown up and how he messed up. But even in the midst of all those things, he was called back into his plan and his purpose because God was not done with him. God is not done with you. And so we need to be those that face the fear in our lives so that we can accomplish what God has called us to accomplish. We talk about this in scripture. We see as it speaks to us here, as in Exodus 3.14, and God says to Moses, Who should I say that sins me? And Moses, and God says to him, I am who I am. The I am is the one that we worship, friends, the creator God. There is none like him, none that stand before him. Joshua, in the same way, he takes the mantle from Moses, and he's commanded to go and take the promised land. He knows it's going to be a battle. The scripture says in Joshua 6, 16, and at the seventh time the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, Shout, for the Lord has given you the city. And we talked about last week how we are called to, in every circumstance, praise the Lord. Say it with me, praise the Lord. Today, as we look at Shadrach, Meshach, Abendigo, as we look to the scripture, Daniel 3, 16 and 17 is a great piece. I want you to highlight this in your Bible, in your tablet, in your phone. It says, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If it be so, our God from whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace. And he will not deliver us out of your hand, O King. But if not, it be known to you, O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. Friends, we're called to stand for the Lord. Lord, we pray over your word today, Holy Spirit, that you would breathe upon it, make it Rhema alive, and challenge us. Lord, move by your spirit in each one of us, we pray. Call us to yourself. In Jesus' name. Amen. I have had a few friends named Shadrach. I've even had a friend named Abednego. We called him Abedi. I haven't had a Meshach yet, but if you're a friend in the crowd named Meshach, I'm willing to meet you. So let's be friends. Need to complete the set. But you think about it, Shadrach, Meshach, Abendigo, these guys are special. There are something about them that's amazing because they're the cream of the crop. They're smart, they're good looking, they're strong, and they're dedicated to God. In the beginning of Daniel, there's a challenge that's put out. Whenever they're supposed to be given this food that's the king's food, which is a really great thing in that day because most people didn't have food. For them to be given the king's food, I mean it's the best, fattiest food of the day. But the problem was they're in Babylon. So they're eating Babylonian food, which is not food that was what they're supposed to be eating. So they made a challenge back to the head eunuch and said, Hey, is it possible that you would just give us fruit and vegetables, that we would be those that eat this instead? And so they instead eat this other food and not the king's food. And they do so because they want to stay dedicated to God and not eat this food that many scholars believe was sacrificed to other idols and was not kosher. And so they do this as unto the Lord because it's something inside of who they are. This is a big deal. Whenever the king gives you a plate and you're like, no, thank you. How do you think that's gonna go? But they have the moxie, the guts to do it. They stand for the Lord. And it says the Lord was with them, and they they were actually, they it showed that they were better after the end of that time period than the others who had the king's food. They had the guts to stand for the Lord, and because of it, people took notice of who they were. That's what it means to have the moxie to stand for God is to be able to be those that say, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I, as for me, I'm gonna stand for the Lord. Whatever it continues, there was a series of things that happened, a dream that was given, no one could answer it. So Daniel, he comes to his friends here and he says, Hey, pray with me that the Lord would give us the answer. Because if not, every wise person, every person that it's an advisor in the country, which is Daniel and these three guys, they're all gonna die. So he says, Hey, we need an answer from the Lord. So they seek the Lord, they find an answer. Daniel gets the answer to the dream that's given to him, and he tells the king. The king says, No one could answer it. I'm gonna give you reward beyond what you think. What do you want? He's like, Hey, that's great. I appreciate you, but it's unto the Lord, the Lord did this, not me. And he says, But if you want to do something, why don't you give my friends a great position? And so Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they get upgraded, my friends, and they go to first class. They get to be leaders in Babylon. They went from slaves to leaders. And now they're they're empowered by the Lord with his wisdom, which goes beyond themselves, giving glory to God. They're living in the blessing of the Almighty God, walking in step where he's leading them to go. It picks up in Daniel 3:1. King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold whose height was 60 cubits and a breadth sixth cubits. And he made it, he set it up on the plain of Dura in the providence of Babylon. Now he does this as a way to honor himself, to make something that they could worship that was symbolic of him, and he makes this massive statue of gold. A cubit is essentially the space between your elbow and your hand. So somewhere between 18 and 24 inches. So you can imagine a 60-cubit high statue, what that might look like. If you've ever been to Luxor or across Egypt, you might have been in Heliopolis and seen massive statues that look like this. Actually, at the new uh the new Kyrie Museum, they have one of these in the entryway, which is pretty amazing. But I've got a chance to be here and stand at the foot block and look up at these things. They're massive. It's pretty, it's pretty empowering to think about how small you feel when by by the the mass of this thing that's standing in front of you. And you're like, whoo, the person that made this had some serious power. And they could have done a lot of things. Well, what if they made that not of stone, but they made it of gold? And you go around the world, even today, there are people that go and worship golden idols, big, massive golden idols that are set up to worship gods, even today. You know, even here in the United States, there are people that go and they they go away to hidden groves and worship different things like Moloch and all sorts of other stuff. We even today in modern culture, we worship the arts and the people that are there, and we set up stages and big golden statues and worship that too. I'm not talking about giving honor to good work. What I'm talking about is worshiping the art itself instead of the creator who is the initiator behind it. And so as we look to the scripture, it starts to speak to us about in their days, the same as our day, they were worshiping other things, and these guys had to make a decision. And so it picks up here, continuing in the story in Daniel 3, verse 4, and the herald proclaimed aloud, You were commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the hornpipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, that you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning, fiery furnace. And so there's a decision. There's a decision on what they're going to do. Now, here it says that Daniel was in a different section of Babylon, but these guys are here where this was taking place. And so they're forced with this decision, and so the music plays in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abidago, they stay standing. Everyone else bows and they stand up. They stand for the Lord. And at the first pass they get away for it because they have this moxie, but people are shocked that anybody would stay standing. And it gets brought up to the king in Daniel 3 12. It says, There are certain Jews who you have appointed over the affairs of the Providence of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendigo. And these men, O king, pay no attention to you. They do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. They're in this trial of decision because they could go along with the culture, but it would deny their faith in God. So they know that it's going to cost them something to stand strong for God. What did God say to Moses? What did God say to Joshua? He said, Be strong and courageous. Be strong and courageous. And these guys are living that out to be strong and courageous. Full of the power of God, full of a tenacity to stay after him, Moxie to stay after the things of God. It picks up here in Daniel 3, verse 16, we read it. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand. But if not, be it known to you, O King, we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. Friends, stand for the Lord. Say it with me. Stand for the Lord. As you might imagine, a man who has the power to set up a massive golden statue, he's gonna let it slide, right? He's totally fine with this. He's like, Oh, you're talking back to me, the guy who literally stole you from somewhere else. And then I set up this massive thing, and I even promoted you, and you're gonna talk back to me? Is that what you're gonna do? Every parent in the room is like, someone's gonna smack right now. You know what I mean? I mean, a timeout. What did you say? What did you say? You can imagine. It responds and continues here in the scripture. Daniel 3.19. It says, And Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression on his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And he ordered the fiery furnace heated seven times more than it was originally heated or usually heated. He ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind them and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. And it says that in the story, as you read the behind the scenes, as they go and took them and brought them near the fire, it was so hot that the people that brought them near the fire, they died. It was so hot. And it says they threw them, these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the fiery furnace. Now, friends, many of us, we're maybe in a season where we feel the heat of the furnace. It feels like the fire is burning around us. You can imagine what that would feel like to be in the midst of a situation that's on fire. They are literally on fire. They're in the midst of the heat because they would not give up on God. They stood their ground, they stood for the Lord. Now they find themselves in the fire. And I think you've been in a season, or maybe you're in a season right now where you feel like you're in the fire. Know this that you are not alone, that the Lord is with you in every circumstance. He does not leave you, he does not forsake you. In the valley of the shadow of death, he is with you. He will comfort you, protect you, provide for you. And I love their moxie, I love their strength and their courage. They're like, our God will save us. And if he doesn't save us, then we're gonna meet him face to face, and you don't win anyway. And I love that. I love the guts of that, I love the moxie of that. There's a tenacity, there's a little bit of a chip in that that it's like, no, guess what, Satan? Not today. Not today, Satan. It's not gonna happen. And so we continue in the scripture here. It picks up and it says in Daniel 3, verse 24, and King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, Did we not cast three men into the fire? And they answered and said, True, O king. And he said, But I see four men unbound walking around in the midst of the fire. They're not hurt. And the appearance of the fourth one is like the Son of God. Friends, the fourth man in the fire is none other than Jesus Christ our Lord. He will not forsake you. He is with us in the fire. He is for you. You could only imagine what that'd be like. They think they're going to their death. They're like, Lord, okay, we're okay to go to our death. We will not bow. We were gonna stand for the Lord. And in the midst of it, suddenly their ropes burn off and all these things, but they are un They're walking around in the heat like and then Jesus and like Jesus like you guys never had a praise break? Praise break. Come on. You guys need to lighten up, man. Have a praise break with Jesus in the fiery furnace. I love this. All of this, I believe, was a testimony to Nebuchadnezzar of really that he was not powerful like God is powerful. It says in Nebuchadnezzar came to the door of the burning fiery furnace. He declared, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, servants of the most high God. Come out and come here. And all of them came out of the fire. Friends, that's what it means to have obedience to stay connected to the Lord. That's what it means to trust God despite your circumstance that he will be with you in the fire and see it through. The scripture says here, Daniel 3 28, Nebuchadnezzar said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who have set his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him and set aside the king's command. He's talking about himself, set aside the king's command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any God except their God. Let me get it in your head today. Worship no God except your God, friends. That you let nothing else come and take away your worship from our God. Continues, and it says this, therefore I make a decree. This is the most powerful king in his day. He says, I make a decree. Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins. There is no other God who is able to rescue in this way. Praise the Lord. Now, if you were one of the haters that earlier ratted on these guys, how you feeling? You're like, wait, wait, what did he just say? It's like, well, he said if you talk smack about their God, then everything bad's gonna happen to you. I don't know if you've had a bad enough day where they tear your arm off and then beat you with it. Hasn't happened to me yet. Thanks be to God. Don't want it to happen. But friends, whenever you speak ill against God, bad things happen to you. So be in alignment with the Lord. It says here and it finishes here in this verse for us today. And the king promoted Shadrach, Neshach, and Abendigo to the providence of Babylon. So not just did they get reinstated to their position, no, he actually upgraded them again to a new position. Why? Because they were willing to stand for the Lord. Say it with me. Stand for the Lord. Friends, that's what it means to have Moxie. That's what it means to live for God. That's what it means to trust and obey him. And I know it does not easy. That's why it takes that courage. That's why it takes that tenacity. That we have to stay after him and with him in alignment with him. That we can't shrink back. We can't live in fear. We have to be those that stand for the Lord. As for me, as for my house, we will be those that praise the Lord like Joshua. We will lead with praise. We'll walk around it with praise. As for me and my house, we will face the fear like Moses and trust the God we that has made everything possible that has answered every need of ours. We will continue to trust him. We will believe that the God who has taken us out of the mess of yesterday will take us out of the mess of today. And he will provide for us for tomorrow. And until we see him face to face, then he will empower us to live for him, that we can stand for the Lord. Whenever we see the power of the cross, we understand that it's Jesus who inspires these things in us. Because he led the way, showing us what it means to live with courage, to live with tenacity, to live in a way to not give up. That we have to have moxie to live for God. Lord, today, as we come to you, we're so very thankful. And Lord, as we open up our hearts to you and we come, Lord, to make these decisions, Lord, we thank you that you're a God who speaks to us in every way. Lord, we continue to ask for your protection and your provision. Lord, for your purpose that you've given to us. We pray in Jesus' name. Today, friends, there are many of you, maybe here, maybe like those in Iceland that needed to make a decision for Jesus. Each one of us has to answer that question of have you embraced Jesus? No one can answer it for you. It's a personal question that each one of us has to make a choice on. For us as Christ followers, we see the symbol of the cross is so powerful. Because the cross is where Jesus took all of our sh sin and all of our shame and all of our mistakes. He took all my brokenness, all my errors. He took it all upon himself, though he didn't do it. And he paid for it with his life because he loved me so much. He did the same for you. He took all of your pain, all of your shame, all of your sin. He took it upon himself. And as he died, that sin died too. That we don't have to live in it anymore. That the chains of hell and brokenness are broken off of us. That we were made into a new creation in Jesus Christ as we place our faith and trust in him. He is the only way to a holy God. He is the holy sacrifice. We can't buy our way into God's presence. We can't do enough good things, be enough of a good person. It's not possible. We need a savior who is only found in Jesus Christ. That savior is not found in a golden statue somewhere, it's not found in any power on earth, it's only found in Jesus. And so today we give the opportunity to you that you would make the same decision that many of us have made to make Jesus the Lord of our lives. The Apostle Paul writes to the church at Rome, he says, This, because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Friends, today is your day. It's your opportunity to say yes to Jesus, to invite him into your heart and life. Today is your opportunity to invite him into your heart and life to make a decision to follow Christ. Or maybe you have in the past made that decision. But you walked away from living for God. And friends, today is an opportunity to re-engage your heart in following Jesus. To recommit your heart to him and say, Lord, forgive me of my sin. I invite you into my heart and life, that you would be the Lord of my life. As heads are bowed, Christians are praying. Friends, if that's you today, you just indicate to me you just want to be included in this prayer. Say, Pastor, that's me. I want to raise my hand. If that's you, raise your hand right now. You want to make a decision to follow Jesus. Invite him into your heart and life. Maybe recommit your heart and life to Christ today. Thank you, Lord, as people making decisions, people recommitting, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, God. I'm gonna ask if you would just pray this prayer out loud after me. Lord, thank you for loving me. Thank you for sending Jesus. I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins. I believe he rose again. Forgive me of my sins. I surrender my life to you. In Christ's name I pray. Amen. Amen. Friends, we rejoice with those who made a decision to follow Christ today. Praise the Lord. Hey, that was you, and you made that decision. Take a moment, take a shot of this QR code and follow it. We want to put some resources into your hands and we want to connect with you because we don't want you to do this life alone. Today, as we come to this altar, we do so, asking the Lord for his courage, asking the Lord for his presence as we walk through our circumstances, that we would not be those that give up or tail and run or bow down, but instead we would stand for the Lord. So, in your circumstances today, that as you come and make an altar with God, ask for that empowerment from him, Lord, in everything, Lord, that you would be first and that I would live for you despite what I'm going through. Lord, we thank you for your presence. We thank you for your word as you breathe upon it today. Lord, and as we come to this altar, Lord, to make a space with you, Lord, to connect with you for more of you and more of your presence. Lord, we thank you that you are a God who pours yourself out upon us in such a dynamic way. Lord, we thank you that you are the God of provision and you are the God of wisdom. You're the God of opportunity and open doors. Lord, you're the one that closes the wrong doors. Lord, you are the God who keeps us safe and protects us. Lord, that you help us to shut our mouth or to speak truth and love. Lord, you are the God who does all these things and more. So as we come to your your altar today, Lord, we ask for an empowerment, Lord, of your spirit. Lord, for an empowerment, Lord, of your courage and tenacity to stay the way, to stay the course, to be those that stand for the Lord and bow for no other God. Lord, we come to you with all these things. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. And the church says, Amen. Hey, if you're a guest of ours and you've only been recently coming, we'd love to get to know you and to meet you. Today, we have what's called party with the pastor. It's going to be down this hallway on the east side in our conference room. So grab your kids if you have them and then meet us over there for just a few minutes. Want to meet you, say hello, and just have an opportunity for us to connect. Before we go today, I want to pray this blessing over us. The Lord bless you and keep you. Lord, make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. Lord, lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Lord, I pray a blessing upon your church, your people. Lord, you empower us by your Spirit to live your love out to those around us. Pray this in the powerful name that is Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. Know this. We love you very much here at Cornerstone. God bless you and have a great week.