Bishop John Carter. No Army, No Title, Just An Oxgoad And A Whole Lot Of Faith

We trace Israel’s cycle from sin to salvation and ask what breaks it. Shamgar’s brief story anchors a clear call: start where you are, use what you have, and do what you can, pairing praise with the Word and courage with action.

• Israel’s cycle of sin, servitude, supplication, salvation
• Why praise must be paired with the Word
• Remembering God’s works to resist drift
• Stop negotiating with darkness and stand firm
• Othniel, Ehud, then Shamgar’s quiet courage
• Start where you are without waiting for perfect
• Use what you have and trust God to multiply it
• Influence comes before titles, not after
• Do what you can with faithfulness and focus

If you're looking for a church, please come and join us. It's Cawood Church of God. Service times are Sunday at 11.30 a.m. Wednesday, 6 30 p.m. Family Training Night. Hey, go check out our website for more information at HOR421 Show.buzzsprout.com. And if you'd like to support the show, you can support it at PayPal / HOR421 or go to our website at HOR421 Show.bussprout.com. For contact information, you can email HOR421 Ministries at gmail.com. Phone numbers 2398491502

Transcript

Welcome And Service Context

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Hey, you're listening to Cape Wood Church of God Sunday service on the 421 Show. Services pre-recorded live edited fit to platform. Hey, go check out our website for more content and information at HOR421 Show dot buzzprout.com.

SPEAKER_02 0:40

We're gonna we're we're getting back in these altars in just a moment.

The Cycle Of Servitude To Salvation

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Servitude, supplication, and salvation. The people of Israel would turn on God, get in trouble, turn back to God, and be saved. And then they would turn on God, get in trouble, turn back to God, and be saved. Then they would turn on God, get in trouble, turn to sin, get in trouble, turn back to God, and be saved. I could say that several more times, and you gotta read it. It gets on my nerves reading it. I'm like, why didn't God just smite them the first time they did that? I'll tell you why, it's because he loved them. And I'm glad, Sister Sherry, that he didn't do that to me. Because I've turned on God before, got in trouble, turned back to God, and was saved. I want to say, while you're finding it, while they're putting it Judges chapter 3, I want to say again to our undignified ministry. That's what they call themselves. Now I'm not as young as I used to be, but I'm not as old as I'm gonna be. Brother Jason said, he's waiting. I said, I taught them how to do that. They've been watching me for 20 years cut a shine like that. Powerful. Powerful. I don't like that. I didn't ask you. They're gonna do that here, and we're gonna worship God with them like that here. I rebuke every religious demon. So I'm thankful for that ministry. They got mad at me Wednesday because at the last minute they wanted to do that Wednesday, and I said no. You gotta give me a heads up. I think Leah Kate even slammed my door. But I'm glad they saved it for today because it absolutely blessed my heart. They're going to be ministering. Don't ever say performing, because it's not a performance. There's too much of that in the church already. They're going to be ministering on Friday night, March the 13th at the Loyal Church of God, Mark It Down. That is a regional youth rally. Our state youth director, Will Lott, will be preaching, and there'll be several young people singing and taking up the it's a youth-led service, but everybody's welcome and everybody needs to come on a Friday night, March the 13th, at the Loyal Church of God. I don't know the time, but Undignified will be ministering in that service. So make sure you make plans to come down and be with us. Pastor Kobe French, I'm sure, would love to see you. Let me say I'm thankful for our worship team. Amen. Our musicians and our singers. What we called back in the day the choir. Amen. I don't care what you call them. Amen. I'm thankful for them because I believe we've got the best in the world. And I'd put them up against anybody because they gathered here this morning and got themselves ready to lead us into worship and to lead us into battle. And I'm thankful for them. You know, when I when when Leanne and I planted the church back in 09, we were the piano player and the singer and the Sunday school teacher and the door opener and the door closer and and everything else. And we started praying that God would send people who were anointed and called. Won't He do it? Didn't He do it? Amen. And I'm so thankful. I'm thankful for you who braved the rainstorm to come to the house of God. Listen, I get it. It's it's slick in spots, and I'm not I'm not gonna mark a demerit next to anybody's name today. Today's a free pass for everybody that stayed home. So for those of you watching that are gonna go to Walmart later or work in the morning. Do me a drum. Do me a thank you.

SPEAKER_01 6:44

Yes, ma'am, go right on. Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Amen. Yes, yes, yes, yes. Amen. That's right. Yes, amen. Amen. Yeah. That's right. Come on. Yeah. Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes. Amen. Amen. Yes, yes. Oh, thank you, Jesus. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. Hallelujah. Amen. Amen.

SPEAKER_02 8:33

Praise God. Give him praise.

Praise Leads, Word Sustains

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This vicious cycle in Judges chapter three. I'm going to read today from verse 31 of Judges three. Let me give you a rundown, a small, very skimming the surface summary of chapter three. Chapter one, I'm going to say it again. Chapter one, Judah invaded the promised land. Judah means praise. So praise invaded enemy territory. When you enter enemy territory, you need to take with you a praise. But there was a problem in chapter one. The enemy had chariots of iron that rose up against Judah, which tells us that although praise leads you in, praise alone can't get the job done. Amen. So I love to praise God. And we're Pentecostals and unashamedly are we Church of God, Pentecostal holiness people. And one of our distinctives is the fact that we are worshipers and we love to praise God. And I'll praise God with anybody at any time. But praise and worship alone doesn't get the job done. We gotta know the word of God. We've got to eat the word of God. We've got to digest the word of God. We've got to know the word of God in order to win the battles. So in chapter two, we find around in verse 10 that there arose another generation who knew not God or the things that he did in and for Israel. Amen. There was a generation that didn't know about the mighty, mighty, miraculous works that God had done for the Israelites. That's why it is so important, amen, that I rehearsed into your ears, especially at year 100, the mighty, wonderful works God has done on this plot of land and on this piece of property. Amen. I've been here for 47 of them. Amen. But there were 53 of them and I wasn't here. But I've heard about the wonderful works that God has done on this piece of land. I've heard how the cancer has been healed on this piece of land. I've heard how drug addiction has been loosed. I've heard how the devils have been pissed out on this piece of land. I've heard how the people came to the altar and got saved on this piece of land. I've got good news for you. Greater words, showing to a mispeace of land. Hallelujah. Praise God. So in chapter three, Israel's recurring cycle of sin, servitude, supplication, and salvation, highlighting the first two judges, Afniel and Ehud. Just briefly let me get through those.

Remembering God’s Works In This House

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God left some Canaanite nations to test Israel's obedience. But the Israelites settled among them, tried to coexist with them, and adopted their, and they adopted eventually their idolatrous worship. Let me say that again. God left some Canaanite nations, left some Canaanite nations to test Israel's obedience. Have you ever experienced a spirit that tests the Jesus that's in you? Anybody? You ever had spirits come against you that tested the very Jesus that lived in you? So there were just a few Canaanites that stayed. Just a few, just enough to get on their nerves. Just enough to cause problems. Just enough to cause issues. So the Israelites tried to coexist with these people. And eventually negotiation took place. This is how it's to be done. There's no middle ground. There's no gray area. You do it God's way, or it's the highway. So there were enough Canaanites left that caused the Israelites to start trying to negotiate or counsel with these false gods instead of running them out and casting them out. There's some of you here today. You try to counsel these spirits to play pretty. Just leave me alone. I'll do this if you'll just leave me alone. And we negotiate with the devil. If you'll leave me. No, we might not say these words, but a lot of times the way we live our lives, now, devil, if you'll just leave me alone, I'll do such and such. No, no, no, no. No. It's time. It's time for God's people to look the devil square in the eye again and say, this is not a debate. This is not a negotiation. I'm not sitting at the table meandering with you. This is how it is. You get out of my life. I rebuke you and then get behind me, Satan. I'm not going to negotiate with you. Run him out. Why do you let him in? Why do we let the enemy in? Knowing good and well it's the enemy, we should still let him in. The

Israel’s Tests And Failed Negotiations

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devil doesn't even hide anymore. He's blatantly doing things in this world. He's not even trying to hide behind anything anymore. He's being very bold and very brazen, and we're falling for it. Hook, line, and sinker. So then you had Othniel's deliverance. Israel served Kushan Reathim, the king of Mesopotamia, for eight years. God raised up a judge in Othniel who delivered Israel, bringing 40 years of peace. After 40 years of peace, Israel again sinned, serving the king of Eglon of Moab for 18 years. Then the judge Ehud, the left-handed man, amen. He rose, he assassinated the king, he liberated Israel, securing their peace for 80 years. After 80 years, guess what happened next? Back to sin. It's like God has to keep doing things for us over and over and over and over and over again to keep us in his will. How about this? In March of this year, actually the night they're doing the youth rally at Lowell on the 13th, we'll make 30 years ago that I knelt in that altar, and if he never did another thing for me, but save my soul, he did enough. I need to know are there anybody in it, are there any people in this room if he never answers another prayer, if he never moves another mountain, if he never heals another sickness, the fact that he saved you, pulled you out of the fire, estabbed your feet, established your feet on the sun. If he never does anything else, he's done enough. He saved me. But no, we have to always have our spiritual man stroked, manipulated. Amen. The next best fad, the next knew this, or the next knew that. No, this is a relationship that you've got to take care of and hold on to, cultivate, and nurture. And if he never does another thing for you, you've got to be okay with that. Verse 31. And after him was Shemgar, the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines 600 men with an ox goad, and he also delivered Israel. This does not say, and after him was Shamgar and his people. It does not say, and after him was Shemgar and his army. It does not say, and after him was Shamgar and his family. No. There was Shamgar. You're only going to hear about him one more time in the entire Bible. Amen. But one verse, two at the most, was enough to show me that there was a man ready to step up to the plate and do the will and the work of God, no matter how difficult it was. And I shared a little bit with you of it with you last week. So you're going to bear with me for just a minute. Amen. Shemgar was not a man who was trained. Shemgar did not have popularity. He becomes the leader of Israel, but he didn't start as the leader of Israel. Let me preach and make somebody mad right here. Everybody wants to start, not everybody, a lot of people, let me rephrase that. A lot of people want to start where they're not.

SPEAKER_03 20:51

I went to Lee yesterday.

SPEAKER_02 20:53

Because the pastors in the state are reading the book Circle Maker. And I don't know, I've not read the book. Very, very short synopsis of the book. Yesterday, God just showed me Brother Charlie. I got on eBay and I ordered it for four bucks. It might have a page for it, I don't know. But God reminded me. I lost a hundred pounds in college. Don't ask. Don't know. I had to lose a hundred pounds for Leanne to even look at me. It's very true. You saw me coming out of the steakhouse when you was in Pizza Hut, and you said, Dear God, is that John Carter? The rest is history. Praise God. I don't regret a mile. Anyway. Because my friend and I on the hill, like we were like brothers since birth. His mother was our principal up at the school. She's the reason I wanted to even do what I do. And uh we we we spent all the time in the summers in the school aggravating the janitors. Matter of fact, we helped build that building up there because we were in the way of the contractors every day. Girls that go to school up there, I could take you right now where my name is carved in the concrete of the floors, walking into the little building under the tile. If they ripped it up, it'd be there, I promise. I made the first basket on the far end basket in that gym. I was the first one to make a basket on that goal on the far end of that gym. We aggravated the people to death. We got to where we would run because we both thought, you know, we're 21, we're getting old. We better get fit. So we started running. And we would start at my house on the hill. The back road was like my driveway from the post office up. It bled right into my driveway. And we would start there, we would run down the hill, get to the bottom, cut back, run down the back road where uh Brother Jerry's church is here, Sister Ruby's house is here. We'd run behind the church, right down here, all the way down to the bootlegger. She got saved before she died. Praise God. Did you hear me? I said the bootlegger got saved before she left here. Matter of fact, I think she got saved here. Anyway, then we'd go around the front and then we'd run across the front of this place, down to the post office, back up the hill, yada, yada, yada, yada. Did it for years. As a young Christian, I just wanted to please God more than I wanted to do anything else in this world. I went to Sunday school at 10 o'clock, church at 11, back to church at 6 in the spring, 7, I'm sorry, 6 in the fall, 7 in the spring, because Brother Overton would change the time when it got dark and when it got light. So it was either 6 p.m. or 7 p.m. Monday night, amen. I'd find me a place to go to church. Don't remember where. It might come to me in a minute. If it does, I'll tell you. Tuesday night, went to youth at the Mountain Assembly Church. Wednesday night, come to YPE. Here. We are the young people's endeavor. We will fight, fight, fight forever. Anyway, Thursday night, I'd go over to Nellie Pace and Ray Bryan at Craig's Creek. Man, I'd go over there on I think it was Thursday night. Go Thursday night. Friday night. Oh yeah. Went to the back road. Went to church down there on the back road on Friday night. Saturday night, I found myself back at the Mountain Assembly church. I just wanted to be in the house of God. Amen. Little did I know God had a plan. I'm talking to somebody today that God has a plan and God has a purpose. I never knew. Amen. I wasn't doing it trying to gain anything, Brother Jason. I wasn't doing to try to climb a ladder. But the Lord spoke to me yesterday and said, You ran circles around this place for years, and I placed you and I planted you. You didn't even know it, but you ran circles around this place. Because God always had a plan. I never thought it would work out, but God always works things out. I came to tell somebody today. Start where you are. Shamgar didn't go to basic training. Shamgar did not go to war college. Shamgar did not have somebody teach him how to drive a tank, a helicopter, throw a grenade, or shoot a machine gun. He was not trained. He was not taught. He didn't say, well, when things get better, I'll do this. Or when I get here, I'll do that. Or when I grow to this, or when I make this kind of money, or when I get this kind of job, or when I get this kind of age, then I'll no. I came to tell somebody, you start where you are. Listen to me, 13-year-old young man, 13-year-old young lady. Listen to me right now. Those of you in your 70s and 80s, you start where you are. You start where you are. God's got a plan and God's got a purpose. Start where you are. Quit trying to stop, start where you're not. I've had people in ministry that wanted to start in a big church. I'm gonna prove you can handle a couple people before God gives you several people.

SPEAKER_01 27:15

Amen.

SPEAKER_02 27:18

God spoke to my heart again. I got a prayer list with all your names on it. And you know what he told me? Until you can effectively pray for who you have, why on earth would I send you more? Why would he bring more when I can't even effectively pray for you?

Othniel, Ehud, And Back To Sin

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We gotta pray for one another. We gotta start where we are, not where we're not. Shemgar was not on the battlefield. Shamgar was on a farm, his farm. And you know where he started? A place of familiarity. God will call you and start you where you are because it's a place you're familiar with. Amen? Okay, I got through that. So after you start where you are, when I get older, when I get more stable financially, when I get married, when I get a better job, when I do this, when I do that, when I get a bigger house, when I when I get, when I get, when I get, and before long, you're 80-year-old saying, when I get, start where you are. Shamgar believed that things don't have to stay the way they are. He had a dream, but he started where he was. What's your dream? Have you started? You say, but I don't have much. Well, I'm glad that I'm glad you did. I'm glad you said that. Because the second thing you did after he started where he was, the second thing he did is he used what he had. What'd he have? An oxcode. He didn't have a tank. How many did he take out with one oxcode? 600. Philistines. Big guys. Did you know Goliath was a Philistine? Nine foot nine inches tall, and if that's any indication of the 600, that's 600 big guys. Now I know, I know some of you guys, and I know some of y'all think you could take 600 people at once. Brock.

SPEAKER_03 29:38

Brock's like David, you know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_02 29:44

Ready. Isn't that what the Bible said? Had an oxcode. Here I go looking for my stick again. I can't find one. Somebody find me a stick of some sort somewhere. Huh? Is there one in my Jimmy? You got your walking stick with you today? Can I borrow it? Can't promise it won't turn into a serpent. Then we got a whole nother sermon. Amen. All he had was an oxcode. I'm gonna use it this way because an ox goad was a stick with a hook at the end that had a tiny little sharp little doodad on the end. That when the ox got out of line, you'd prod them in the side, poke them in the side, get them back in line. That's all he had. Brother Rome preached a message two Wednesdays ago about a woman who all she had, I think it was 2 Kings chapter 4, and all she had was a little bit of oil, but she had a whole lot of debt. Let me say that again. She had a little bit of oil, but she owed a whole lot of money. And if she couldn't produce something valuable, her sons were going to be taken away. Let me say that one, I need you to get that. If she didn't produce something valuable, her sons were going to be taken away. So she started looking through her house, and even when she found the crews of oil in the cupboard, she said, All I got is a little. And God said, All you need is a little. I came to tell somebody, stop trying to use what you don't have and use what you got.

Shamgar Steps Up With An Oxgoad

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Come get your guitar. I'm just going randomly.

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Winnica, you got your Bible? Stand up because you got a testimony. I knew God already told me this morning somebody's got a testimony.

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He does that.

SPEAKER_03 33:00

Amen. Just use what you got.

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This might look insignificant, but it's a powerful praise. This might look insignificant, but 20 years from now I'm going to look back and witness a move of God. He may say, All I got is a word, but all you need is a word. Because the word puts devils on the run. All I do is beat a drum, all I do is strum a guitar. All I do is stand behind the keyboard. All I do is sit in a pew. All I do is come through the door. But you got something in your hand that is valuable, that the devil is afraid of. You gotta use what? Six hundred Philistines were killed. The enemy was annihilated when he used what he had. I don't care if it's your testimony, I don't care if it's your ability, you use what you have. When you people gather up here on Friday nights, and you did you know Danny sang?

SPEAKER_03 34:36

Me either.

SPEAKER_02 34:54

Tell him where God brought you. You know what you got in your hand? A testimony. All he had was an oxcode, but he knew how to use it. It's when you know how to use it. It's when you know how to use it. It's when you know how to use it. It's when you know how to use it, and you use it for the glory of God. I'd love to know how many demons have been defeated because of that drumstick. I'd love to know how many devils have gone down because of that. I'd love to know how many devils you've stirred because you're captured. I'd love to know how many devils tried to come in the door, but they heard you dance. Jesus said it! Jesus, the word of God! You should have been there when I came through. Amen. The devil had to run because of what you. She has a clothing line, television appearances, advertisements, and all this money. What do you mean? Yeah, you're right, she does. But she wouldn't have any of that if it didn't start with what was in her hand. Michael Jordan, LeBron James. I'm trying to get modern here. Man. Now he's old. I told JC yesterday, I said, dear God, he's bald. It's like her trying to play ball. Amen. Oh, but he's got a clothing line, Gatorade, Nike, the jump man logo. He's got all these appearances and all this, that you're right, he does. But it's all because he used what was in his hand. When he used what was in his hand, it opened doors for. Because he used what he had. All I do is teach Sunday school, Tabitha Bolton. I'd love to know the people, the kids, down through the years over the last 30 years, that has walked in your room and walked out of your room while you have told them about the love of God and the love of Jesus. And you've not only told it, you've lived it, and they've walked it, and they've talked, and now your baby boy was filled in the Holy Ghost, and I'm declaring the other one shh. The other one's getting ready to be shout all credit for what God's gonna do. Because your Sunday school quarterly was in your hand. He used an oxcode.

SPEAKER_03 38:57

All Moses had was a staff. Didn't he? Hitting the waters parked. All he had.

SPEAKER_02 39:10

He left it again. The waters caved. All he had was a staff. Brother, William, all you got's a drumstick, but it can part waters. Leah Kate, that camera, is gonna part waters. Sister Wenda, your testimony, part and waters. All Moses had was a stick and the waters parted. All David had was a sling. But the giants fell. Use what's in your hand and the waters part. Use what's in your hand and the giants fall. He had unlimited resources. Amen. But what he realized was that as limited as it was, it was just as lethal. It might just be a stick, it might be limited, but in the hands of God, it's lethal. Use what you've got.

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All the little boy had was a brown paper bag. And it fed twenty-five thousand. All the lady had was a little bit of oil.

SPEAKER_02 40:39

Rome preached a phenomenal message. But here's what I think she did. Will you hold that my oxcode? Here's what I think she did. When God told her what he was gonna do, they went out to borrow vessels, not a few. I believe they just started grabbing stuff. This will hold it. That'll hold a little bit. That'll hold a little bit. Amen. This right here, this'll hold some. This'll hold some. We'll put it over here. It'll hold a little bit. My God, I gotta hurry. He said, I gotta look here, look here, look here. Go in the baby's room. That'll hold some. Amen. We'll hold that'll hold it. I don't think they were clean. I don't think they were nice. I don't think they were well put together. I think if it would hold it, they're gonna take it. Will you give me your Bible? Bible cover, we'll zip it up. Look, there's a pocket on the side. We'll put just a little bit down in right there. It'll hold it. It'll hold it right in there. There's holes at the top, but there's not holes at the bottom. It'll hold it right in there. We gotta find you got anything? You got anything? You got a pocket? Get over here with your pocket. Amen. We'll pour it in your pocket. He is just finding stuff. Finding stuff. Here's looking here.

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Look here. Look at here.

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Look here. There's a shoe. We'll pour it in that. We'll pour it in that. There it is. There it is.

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It's a vessel. Where brandly? Oh yeah. How old are you? 13. Look here. Look here.

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He's gonna pour it into 13-year-old vessels. Where's my boy? See here? Send me one of the girls. Come on. Oh, I know. How old are you? Seven. Come right here. He'll pour it in seven years. Amen. He's just looking for somewhere to pour it. How much is he gonna pour?

SPEAKER_03 42:53

So that means the more you bring, we'll never run out.

SPEAKER_02 42:58

Hold on. That means, Brother Danny, we got to pour it out for it to be poured back in. God help me, Jesus. He's just looking for vessels to fill. He's just looking for people. He's just looking for people that'll say, fill my cup, fill it up, fill this vessel, fill this vessel. I don't care if you're seven, I don't care if you're 13. How old are you? 75. He'll fill a vessel that shows up ready to be filled.

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Not anything?

SPEAKER_03 43:37

Look here. Pour it down in there, Lord.

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There's a vessel. She was just looking, hold on. She was just looking for things to pour it in that would hold it. You know why? You know why she was desperately looking for things to be filled? Because she had look here. Oh Lord. All David had a sling. All Moses had was a sling. All the little boy had was a brown paper bag. With a sandwich. And it said twenty five thousand. At least. The Bible says five thousand men, not including the women and children. Will you do the math? And all the woman had was just a little bit of all. You gotta use what you got. But you can't use what you got until you start where you're at.

Start Where You Are

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Matter of fact, you are miserable until you operate in it. You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can't walk, you can't talk until you're doing what he called you to do. Last. Start where you are. Use what you have. And lastly, do what you can. Do what you can. I'm reading a book on leadership right now. And do you know what the number one step of being an effective leader is? The word influence. Everybody in this room, you have influence over somebody. Some of you have influence over more than one somebody's. Leanne and Tasha teach kindergarten. They're influential. With a group of kids. Some of you are supervisors on your job. You're flu influential. You can't force influence. That's where a lot of dreams die is when people try to be something they're not. You can't force influence. Titles don't bring influence, influence brings titles. That'll preach. None of us have the title we have, lest we stewarded our scope of influence. And you're ever promoted when you're seeking promotion. You're promoted when God finds you faithful on the farm. Shamgar was faithful on the farm. David was anointed king because he was faithful in a desert. Some of you feel like that where you are is too minuscule, too minor, too beneath you, and that's why you're not elevating. It's because you're not accepting and you're not grasping where you are. You young people, listen to me, middle schoolers, high schoolers, you have influence. All it takes is for somebody to see you girls up here acting a fool for Jesus. And they're gonna want to act a fool for Jesus. All it's gonna take for some of you young people to stop trying to be Joe cool and be Jesus cool. And if you I had a spirit in me as a kid, you know what I told one of my friends one time? He said, if you don't do what I want to do, I'll get mad and go home. I said, Go home. I got plenty of friends. Don't let anybody hang a relationship over your head. God will put people in your life who belong. And if they want to take their toys and go home, let them walk. Because God. We were going to do it this Sunday, but we're gonna postpone it to next Sunday because some couldn't be here. We're getting ready to take in 10 to 12 new members of this church. Because God always replenishes. I don't mean that bad. I don't mean God speak, God bless, see you in glory, but you don't have the ability to stop what God's doing. Neither do I. Somebody needs that biscuit. Ab, I hate to keep picking on you. You and Jake Hampton make bread. Where's Jake? Y'all make bread. Somebody needs the bread. You know why? Because I don't think it was casually made. I think it was made with authority. I think it was made with paper. I think it was made with a pinch of anointing and a dash of power. I believe what you do, no matter how small you think it is. Do what you can. Closing. One of my mentors and most amazing people I've ever met in my life. Matter of fact, in 2012, October of 2012, when my dad died, this man drove from

Use What You Have

SPEAKER_02 53:11

Cleveland, Tennessee. Him and his wife drove from Cleveland, Tennessee to the Kwood Presbyterian Church for a one and a half-hour funeral and got in their cars in their 80s and drove back to Cleveland, Tennessee. He's the former general assistant, general overseer of the Church of God. His name was Dr. Orville Hagen. And in 1996, I met Dr. Hagen at the Harlan County Church of God camp meeting at Sunshine. His captivating anointing was something that, Brother Jason, it just caught me as a new convert. I'd never forget. And I said, Dr. Hagan, you don't know me. My name's John Carter. I am from Kwood. He said, Oh, Kwood, Kentucky. Yes. He said, Do you know Brother Farmer? I said, actually, I do. I said, That's my grandfather. Oh, we're related. Did you know that? I felt I'd made it. I felt I'd made heaven already. Nonetheless, I asked if he would come all the way to Harlan County to preach in a former lounge to just a handful of people, and I said it might be hot, hot as blazes. He was honored, and he even reminded me that he was born in Harlan County in Coxton, and his mother was from Harlan County. He met with my grandfather and came to find out that they knew a lot of the same ministers, yada yada. But anyway, he's gone on to be with the Lord now. He amended Sister Vicky. But he he and I went to lunch one day at Racks. And we had a conversation, Brother Jason, as a as a church planter, a new church planter. That I'll never forget. He said, son, he said, transfer growth is not worth a dime. Wow. If you want to grow a church, and I assume you want to grow a church, I said, I want to grow the kingdom, and it starts with his church. Yes, sir. He said that I'm gonna give you three words, and it's gonna, it's gonna, it's gonna build a kingdom like you've never seen. I said, Yeah, what is it? I mean, I was ready. I was ready to write down. You know what he said, Brother Steve? Win the lost. Oh. Okay. I think I can remember that. He said, win the lost. He said, because if they got mad at somebody else and came to you, they're gonna get mad at you. He said, win your people that you will forever be their pastor. Then a couple years later, all the teachers and I on the upper block at Little Kwood were at break. We took our students out, and I was standing there minding my own business. And Brother Mark Speakman, who at the time was pastoring the Dressing Church of God, he now pastors in Willisburg, which is in northern Kentucky, just past just beyond Lexington, between Lexington and Frankfurt. He approached me while I was just observing my students on break, and he came up from behind me, about scared me to death. He said, Brother John, set your face like a flint. Okay. Listen, you gotta understand. I promise I'm I'm about to land this plane. You gotta understand in ministry, there's a lot of people that come to you with a lot of words. I got a word for you, Pastor. I got a word, I got a word. There's a lot of people with a lot of words. I don't think I've ever made anybody feel that their word was not significant, but there have been times I've walked away in my own spirit saying, You missed it. And it's okay. It's okay. You don't got to take everything that people speak into you. Because if you're not careful, they'll speak bad things into you. You don't got to take that. He said, face like a flint. He said, not everyone, if anyone, will be behind your efforts. Sister Sandy, when we started the lounge with 15 people, everybody loved us. Poor. Pitiful. Us. God started moving. God started saving. Revival started flowing. The fire started falling. Growth took place. And all of a sudden you went from everybody's favorite to public enemy number one. Let me tell you something. I don't care where my mother-in-law got saved eight miles down the road. And I rejoiced that God saved her soul eight miles down. I don't care where your son and where your daughter gets saved. We gotta have the mentality. It don't matter in what building, it's all the same kingdom we're trying to build.

unknown 59:15

Just do what you can.

SPEAKER_02 59:21

Do I believe he killed 600 of them at one time? I don't. I think he set out ambushments. Go to go go go go go to go to uh uh uh Judges five and six. Five and six. Go ahead and stand. Everybody, stand. Five and six. You got it? There it is already. This is the only other time you'll see his name. Look here. In the days of Shamgar, the son of Anath, in the days of Joel, where's Scott Johnson? Where'd you go, Brother Scott? There he is. I don't know why I think about you when I read this, but I do. Probably because you were in the military. The highways were unoccupied. I think there's another slide to this, and the travelers walked through the byways.

unknown 1:00:15

You reckon?

SPEAKER_02 1:00:18

Go back to that first one. Look here. Look here. In the days of Shamgar, the highways were empty. Hey, brother Danny, you know what that means? That means people quit traveling on the main highways. You know why? They heard there was a lunatic on the loose with an oxcoat. And the travelers traveled by the wayside. Let me break that down for you. Instead of the new road to Harlan, they came down here and went on the old one. Because they knew there was a guy up on that new road with an oxcoat. And if you defied the armies of Israel, you were going to be in the number of those who were slain and killed. So they traveled. I don't believe he killed them all at once. I believe he set ambushments out. Kind of like Rambo. Y'all remember that last week? No man, no law, nothing can stop him. That was Shamgar. That was Shamgar. But I want to know today: are there any people in this room right now you're willing to start where you are. Use what you have and do what you can. You're ready to start where you are. Use what you have and do what you can. Quit waiting to be somewhere you're not. Quit waiting to use something you don't have. And quit trying to do things you can't do. Anybody in this room need God to do something for you? Anybody? A hand wave. I need God. God, I need you. God, I need you. God, I need you. I had no idea, Brother Dave, circling this church as an 18, 19, 20-year-old boy running trying to get bodily exercise profit in the listening to Kwood Church of God Sunday morning service.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:42

Hey, if you're looking for a church, please come and join us. It's Kwood Church of God. Service times are Sunday at 11.30 a.m. Worship morning. Wednesday, 6 30 p.m. Family Training Night. Hey, go check out our website for more information at HOR421. Show dot buzzprout.com. And if you'd like to support the show, you can support it at PayPal slash HOR421 or go to our website at HOR421 Show.bussprout.com. Recorded and edited at 421 Studio. For contact information, you can email HOR421 Ministries at gmail.com. Phone numbers 2398491502