Rev. Noah Phillips- “Don’t let the darkness disturb you!”

"Don't let the darkness disturb you." These powerful words launch us into a riveting exploration of faith amidst life's fiercest storms. Drawing from Paul's harrowing sea journey in Acts 27, we discover how to navigate our personal tempests with unwavering trust.

Have you ever felt completely surrounded by darkness, unable to see even a glimmer of hope? Through vivid storytelling and passionate delivery, Pastor Griffiths reveals three critical elements we encounter in every storm: the violence that threatens to overwhelm us, the voices that attempt to destroy our faith, and the divine visitor who never abandons us in our darkest hour.

The sermon builds to a profound revelation: "God never intended for the storm to rob you, but to mold you." This perspective-shifting truth helps us understand that our storms aren't just chaotic events to be endured, but transformative experiences designed to reshape us. As the passionate message unfolds, we learn that while "the boat's in the storm," we don't have to let the storm get inside us.

Perhaps most moving is the closing illustration of a dying woman who requested to be buried with a fork in her hand—a powerful reminder that "the best is yet to come." Just as dining guests hear "keep your fork" when the main course ends and dessert approaches, we too can hold onto hope knowing something sweeter awaits beyond our present suffering.

Ready to transform how you view your personal storms? Listen now and discover how to find God's light in your darkest moments. Remember, your storm isn't the end—it's taking you to a brand new beginning.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction and Opening Theme
• 6:50 Don't Let Darkness Disturb You
• 15:52 The Violence of the Storm
• 23:45 Hearing God's Voice Amid Chaos
• 31:50 The Voices in the Storm
• 40:36 The Visitor in the Storm
• 50:30 Hope in the Darkness
• 58:20 Closing: The Best Is Yet to Come

Transcript

Speaker 2: 1:20

Hello, this is Austin Griffiths, the pastor of Open Praise Fellowship Holiness Church in Easley, South Carolina. Thank you for listening to Holiness Preaching Online. Let's take these truths of God's Word with us and apply these biblical doctrines to our lives. I know you'll enjoy this sermon from a holiness preacher.

Speaker 3: 1:52

I'm not a sinner. I'm going to tell you I'm not a sinner. I'm going to tell you I'm not a sinner. I've been to Calvary. I don't sin every day because I got saved from sin. Amen. I feel the Holy Ghost in here tonight. I'm generally have a little more singing, but I feel like preaching. Got your Bibles. Go with me to an old, familiar story in the book of Acts, chapter 27. And I pray God to help me to preach to you. You should be good and rested up this afternoon, amen, amen. And you should be ready to church.

Speaker 3: 2:46

Acts, chapter number 27. Very familiar text. I'm not going to read the entire part of the text because you already know it, but I want to pull something from this text. I'm not going to read the entire part of the text because you already know it, but I want to pull something from this text that I've been wanting to preach for almost two weeks and I shoved it back a few times in a few services and I thought I'd let some of the younger preachers preach tonight.

Speaker 3: 3:13

Service rocks on God begin to deal with me. So here we go, acts, chapter 27, verse number 18. And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship, and the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship. And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship and when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, no small tempest lay on us. All hope that we should be saved was then taken away. We'll read you one passage of scripture. Word of God said I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go, and I will guide thee with my eye. Hallelujah, I'm gonna preach tonight If the Lord will help me. Don't let the darkness disturb you. Don't let the darkness disturb you. Would you lift your hands? Ask the Lord to help us here. Amen.

Speaker 3: 4:58

It is a very familiar story to all of us. If you've been in church at any length of time, you have heard the story of Paul's journey and the Heraclodon that confronted his life. It is so moving at so many times in our lives that when we were at our breaking point we turned to this text and we have wept and cried and said repeatedly God, you brought them through that storm, you can bring me through mine. Amen. It is so familiar until the generation that you and I live in has lost the impact of what that situation was like and how it applies unto our generation. It may not be wind and rain that you're facing, but it feels like wind and rain. It may not be an earthquake that you're facing, but it feels like wind and rain. It may not be an earthquake that you're facing, but it feels just like you're up against something and you don't know how to come out of it. Amen, but can I tell you that there is a God that understands storms? I don't know if you're going to preach with me or not. Amen.

Speaker 3: 6:22

There's nothing no worse than to know where you are today and tomorrow. I can't tell what the day's going to be. Like you ever been in that spot? Let me ease into this. And today you're standing here with your hands raised, your heart pumping with joy, your spirit, and you're crying out I love God.

Speaker 3: 6:46

But then, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, there comes a Heraclidon in your life, comes a Heraclidon in your life, and then you begin to wonder how is this going to happen? How's the end of this matter going to turn out? Can I drop into your ear and let you know the end belongs to God. It doesn't belong to you. It's not meant for you to decide how the end is. It is meant for you to be willing to trust God all the way to the end of it, hallelujah. The devil is not only a deceiver of mankind, but the devil is a master at sudden storms. But can I tell you again, he may be a master at sudden storms, but I know a God who is the master of all sudden storms. It ain't never took God by surprise that you're in the chaos that you're in. It's never took God by surprise that there is a wind blowing in your world. But can I tell you in this house, he's so big, he's so mighty, he walks on the wings of the wind. He knows how to handle the wind.

Speaker 3: 8:30

Hallelujah, oh, help me. Tonight. I am comforted with the fact. Hallelujah, oh, help me tonight. I am comforted with the fact that, out of all storms and chaoses, that there is a passage of scripture. I quoted it this morning. He said I'll never leave you nor forsake you, but I will go with you always. But I will go with you always. Even somebody say amen, even to the end of it, lift your hands. I want you to help me, but. I want you to help me, but I want you to listen to me.

Speaker 3: 9:18

You're in this storm. You're in this place in your life where you wonder if God is going to show up. God, it's not a God that will walk off and leave you because your storm has come to crowd your life. I generally don't do this. They'll get it fixed in a minute and I'll be happy and it will make us all happy. But can I tell you in this house, nobody in this building is above storm life Nobody. I don't care how long you've been saved, I don't care how long you've been in it, I don't care how much experience that you feel like you have, you're still not the master of the wind or of the rain. But there is a God in heaven who says I'm not afraid of the rain. But there is a God in heaven who says I'm not afraid of the wind, I'm not afraid of the storm.

Speaker 3: 10:21

I feel like preaching to somebody. You may say this is the worst, but God says it can be turned into the best. Lift your hands, love God. Lift your hands, love God. It's dark where you're at and voices of discouragement speak so loudly. There's voices in that darkness that screams at you. You'll never see the end of this. You'll never come out of this.

Speaker 3: 11:00

I want to tell you something in this house. It's only by the power and the spirit of God that we are able to hear him. Even in the storm there's voices. I feel like God dealt with me with this two weeks ago. There's voices in that storm. There's voices in the darkness. There's voices to be heard, and that's the sad part about it it's the fact that I can hear it, but I can't see it. I can hear the voices, but I sure can't see it. That is where torment sets in. That's where the chaos starts riding high. Can I tell you in this house that there needs to be a generation that has an experience with God, that says I hear voices, but I hear the voice. Amen, man, I wish I could preach how I feel. I hear the thunder, but I hear a thunder above the thunder. Hey, hallelujah, I feel like preaching to us that God's voice is higher than the voice of hell. It's more mightier than all the voices of the enemy. Come on, get it right, hallelujah. There's voices of defeat. There's voices of defeat, there's voices of discouragement, there's a voice of discontent, there's voices of dissatisfaction, there's voices of disbelief, there's voices of despondency and there's voices. I just want you dead. All of these forces I feel like preaching here All of these forces come only with the impact to make you doubt God, hallelujah. It's amazing to me and I'm going to hurt your feelings.

Speaker 3: 13:40

It's kind of like that one little woman, woo. She went to the doctor and she said I got physical problems, brother Billy, and the doctor said we'll run tests to find out what your problem is. They put her in the hospital and they ran every test that they could run on her and they all came back negative. All came back negative. And the doctor looked at her and said ma'am, I'm very sorry, I wished I had something to tell you, but what I do have to tell you you're not dying. Hey, I wish I could preach. I come to tell somebody.

Speaker 3: 14:34

You may have heard a voice that said you're going under, but can I tell you that there is a voice in the middle of a storm that says you can't go under. I'm riding on a boat with you. I dare somebody to shout hallelujah, I'm going somewhere. Where's Canaan? Listen to me, don't you listen to me? A doctor walked in that room, brother Rob and man I don't mean listen to me. A doctor walked in that room, brother, rob and man, I don't mean to be critical, I don't mean to be hard. I had family members just like this. They wanted something to be wrong and I mean they spent thousands of dollars just to hear what their fear was telling them. I said they'll spend thousands of dollars to just hear what their fear is saying. I feel like Paul's in a prison right there. If you ride the voice of fear, you're going to ride in chaos. But can I tell you you may not shout with me. The waves of conflict and the waves of chaos has never wet the feet of the master hallelujah. I wouldn't serve a God who was fighting the same wave I am. I want to serve a God that knows how to get up and walk on the water. I want to get past it. Would you listen to me?

Speaker 3: 16:57

When he walked into that room and he told her? He said, ma'am, all I want to tell you, every test we ran is totally negative, mister. That's when negative sounds good, and they, some of you, mister. That's when negative sounds good, and there's some of you. I said there's some of you.

Speaker 3: 17:24

You hate it when a doctor looks at you and says there's nothing there, it ain't even existing. And then you ask yourself how is it? I want to tell you something. I felt the Lord a couple of weeks ago. Deal with me. It's a dark line, julian, but I'm the light of the world. It's never diminished him, it's never made him less light. Hallelujah, look at this little fat place of mine. The darker it is, the brighter the light shines. Hallabos shandarabokor rabasande, you've got to understand. It's midnight, but it's daylight. In my boat, when he walked into that room, they scared to crank me up. When they walked into that room While she anticipated defeat and there's some of you live With that agnostic attitude while she anticipated defeat and there's some of you live with that agnostic attitude I told you so.

Speaker 3: 18:45

You hate it when it ain't so. Hallelujah, you ain't saying amen. Now are you mama? I want to tell you, if fear runs the rudder of your life, it's going to drive you into the rocks. It's going to dash your boat. I feel like saying it Pray for me, honey.

Speaker 3: 19:16

Just because it happened before, it doesn't mean it's going to happen again. I'm not being vicious. I'm not being vicious at all. But I want to tell you something. I'm not trying to be mean. I know what it's like to lay on the ground in the country of Haiti with my skull wide open I didn't know if my eye was in my head, my arm broken, my teeth knocked out and a gash across my forehead. I just looked over and I looked straight up in the sky and I told the Lord, with blood running down my face while it was raining, and I said I still love you. Ah, you ain't helping me preach. You gotta love in spite of you gotta be committed in spite of. If you're ever gonna come out of that storm, you gotta know how to wash up in a storm. Three things, and I hurry.

Speaker 3: 20:40

God spoke to me. I pulled down commentaries and read commentaries. I preached this scripture off and on for 42 years. There's something God gave me a couple of weeks ago with this text that I feel like preaching tonight. When I pulled down commentaries, they couldn't feed the theme that God was putting in me. They wrote the history of it, but they couldn't read the theme and I had trouble trying to track with them. But when I touched him I got past their theme of what they were thinking and I got into the main vein.

Speaker 3: 21:23

God spoke these three words to me. He said the violence of the storm, the voices in the storm and the visitor in the storm. He said that's what I want you to preach. I want you to know that there must be a trusting in the storm of our lives if there ever is to be a coming out of the storm. I'm telling you, it doesn't matter how you feel about it, money can't buy peace, money can't buy joy.

Speaker 3: 21:55

Success is not born on the power of good looks and fame and fortune, but it is found in the power of surrender. It is found while being exceedingly tossed. There is a calmer who lives inside of me, the text said, and being exceedingly tossed, exceedingly. You understand that it can't get no worse than this. It can't get no worse than this. Right here, boy, I feel like preaching. You gotta understand. This ain't no bass boat. This is a boat that housed 276 prisoners, besides the staff and the captain.

Speaker 3: 23:04

Hallelujah, I want to tell you something. This was the village, this was the main ship, but I want to tell you it ain't the size of the boat that matters. It's the God that's watching the boat. Hallelujah, listen to it. The violence that's in the storm. Notice.

Speaker 3: 23:29

Paul said the ship had suffered much damage from the storm. Have you ever been in a storm where you felt like I'm standing in the middle of this and I'm watching it all fall to pieces. I feel like I'm preaching to somebody. It ain't coming apart. The boat around you may shake to pieces, but the ship that the captain's in it ain't coming apart may shake to pieces, but the ship that the captain's in it ain't coming apart. Notice what he said.

Speaker 3: 24:13

He said after being exceedingly tossed with the tempest, the storm that was chaotic, after being exceedingly tossed with the tempest, the storm that was chaotic, the wind that was out of control and the uncontrollable forces that I can't do nothing about. And I'm going to preach something that's going to make some of you mad. It's going to make some of you glad. You better shout happy that you can't get involved in it. Hallelujah. Only those that understand are going to say amen to that. What do you mean? I can't get involved in it. There's some storms God doesn't want you to control. God doesn't need your navigation ability. Hallelujah. Somebody ought to say amen. It doesn't matter what the name of your real octodon is. It's not important that you name it. It's important that you surrender in it.

Speaker 3: 25:23

The Bible says I love the word of God, I'm trying to hurry. Nahum said. Chapter 1, verse 3, the Lord it's slow to anger, great in power, and he will not acquit the wicked Sinner. You ain't getting by, cold heart. You ain't getting by. Your Heraclidon hasn't hit yet. Hey, I got something to preach right here. The Bible said that Paul got in that boat and when he got in there he said they obtained that, we had smooth sailing. But then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, there came a storm by the name of. Let me preach to a backslider, let me preach to a sinner of the path to hell. It's going to be smooth as glass, but somewhere before you get to hell, there's going to be a rock of dawn that's going to come up in your world. You better have Jesus on the board of your life, the consolation that's in the text the Lord is slow to anger and great in power and will not acquit the wicked. Just in our land. Sorry to bore you, but just in our land.

Speaker 3: 27:11

I ain't got no proof, just my own feelings. Is that alright? I believe OJ did it, I believe KarenJ did it, I believe Karen Reed did it. I believe there's a lot of junk. That goes on. They did it, and I read the headlines where it said she's acquitted. That means there's no charges. Sinner, backslider, don't read hell's paper. It's full of lies.

Speaker 3: 27:50

Somebody say amen. I said when he tells you it's smooth sailing, you better listen to the preacher that's standing and saying hey, it may look good, it may feel good, but there's a storm out on the ocean. And he said he shall not acquit the wicked. That means you ain't getting by. The Lord has his way in the whirlwind I love this. And in the storm, the clouds are the dust of his feet. You ain't gonna preach with me right here. If God creates the storm, he masters the storm. He in turn looks believe it or not, I love the Bible. He not only proves himself to be strong in the chaotic moments of my life, but he proves himself to be strong in the chaotic moments of my life, but he proves himself to be personal in the trouble. You ain't going to get it just yet. God knows what to do with the world. Let me drop this in. You can fake it until you make it, but if you don't have it, the wind's going to reveal it. Somebody ought to say amen, hallelujah, hallelujah when God tears down your little playhouse because you wanted to have something. Now you realize you can't have it. You better be happy that you know who he is, who knows how to make you happy, who knows how to keep happy, who now has to keep joy. Hallelujah, hallelujah. I want to tell you the joy that I have. The world didn't give it to me and the world can't take it away. I want to tell you I feel like preaching, you're afraid to say it, but let me say it. I may face you, rock of Dawn, you may face it, but the joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me and the world can't take it away. Come with me quickly.

Speaker 3: 30:38

The voices that are in the storm, the violence of the storm and the voices of the storm. Have you ever been in the middle of the wind? I have. I've been there when the wind whistled so strong until it sounded like it had a voice in it. Physically, physically, I've heard the wind whistle Until I thought I heard something and I looked around and said it's just wind. Boy, howdy. I wish some of you would look at the devil and say my feet are planted on solid ground. Amen, our planet, on solid ground.

Speaker 3: 31:26

You ever heard the wind and the voices of the storm and lost direction, and the only thing you see is the howling of the storm and the voices that are screaming from the storm. The devil wants you. I jotted this down when it came to me. The devil wants you to hear the wind so he can drown out the voice of hope inside of you. He wants you to hear the voice that speaks out of the whirling wind and says chaos is your plot. Hallelujah, brother.

Speaker 3: 32:09

Mickey, I want to quote what you said this morning, if it's all right. My wife told me about it, so I think it's legal for me to quote it. Ld Moore was the first one that said it. It's one thing to be in a storm and it's another thing to have a nagger in the storm with you. Come on, say amen.

Speaker 3: 32:35

She said why don't you curse God and die? Ld Moore said it many years ago. He said why don't you curse God and die? Elie Moore said many years ago. He said why don't you go first?

Speaker 3: 32:44

I wish that some of you would look at the devil. When he says why don't you quit? Why don't you say you try first? You ain't saying nothing when the devil says it ain't never gonna work out If you keep going. Why don't you tell him Go ahead and see, go ahead and try it. I'm gonna tell you why I'm going on, because from this book I have seen the end of it.

Speaker 3: 33:18

I may not see it tonight, I may not feel it like I want to feel it, but I have been prophesied by this blessed book. The saints shall win, they shall overcome, they shall triumph, and they that wait upon the Lord shall man up with wings, as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not die. Hey, do the waiting. Hey Do the waiting. Let God handle the win. You'll never see God Staring at your toes, toes, but I heard him when he said I'll never leave you nor forsake me. Sir ma'am, that's enough to tread water. That's enough to hold on in the wind. That's enough to tell the rain the sun is coming up in the morning.

Speaker 3: 35:00

You know, there's some, as my old pastor says, they gripe that their ice cream was cold. There's just some folks you can't make happy. It don't matter what you give them, no matter what you tell them, happiness is just not in there. You put a little green back in their hand, they get a little happy, but it's like a drug addict it's only for a little while and they're back to grumpy. This joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me. This joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me. This joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me. This joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me and the world can't take it away. This joy that I have, my lost children didn't give it to me. This joy that I have, the backslider didn't give it to me. This joy that I have, the worldly church didn't give it to me and the worldly church can't give it to me, and the wily church can't take it away.

Speaker 3: 36:33

Hallelujah, if you got the Holy Ghost, you ought to have a shed in your feet. You ought to have a leap in your heart and say I got to hurry. Don't you listen to me? Don't you hear me? Well, I've got pages of notes and I ain't got time to go in them. I'm going to hit the highlight and roll up past it. I want to hit the third thing. I want to deal with the visitor in the storm, because this is where what makes preaching good? Not because I'm preaching, but because he gave me something to preach the violence of the wind, the voices in the storm, but then, last but not least, the visitor In that storm you going to focus with me. God never intended for the storm to rob you, but the storm to mold you.

Speaker 3: 38:21

Somebody I don't know who it was altogether sat in my office today, said the worst thing in the world that happened to Albany, georgia, was the 1994 flood. I'm sorry, whoever that was that sat at my ear called it. I disagree 100% with you. The best thing that ever happened to Albany was the flood. You know why. I ain't prejudiced. If you are, you need to get saved. But let me tell you what happened After the flood. I saw flowers that I never saw. I saw greener trees that I never saw, hallelujah. I saw grass that looked almost like the book of Psalms in the green pastures. Man, oh man. Sometimes a storm is the only thing that'll bring the beauty out of your life. I'm sorry I'm gonna make three quarters of you mad at me. I wish I could crawl into this piano and say it.

Speaker 3: 39:44

Some of you love darkness better than light. Some of you would rather be sick than whole. Some of you would rather believe a doctor than the Bible. Some of you would rather take a pill. I'm not against you taking medicine, but, man, I know somebody better than medicine. Go to that window. I went into the hospital one day. When I went to the hospital I went to see a lady that went to our church and when I got there I knocked on the door. The lights were on in the hallway, the sun was shining outside. I was feeling pretty good. They want no rain and they want no clouds. They want no wind. They want no storm. Hey, some of you are scared to worship without a storm. Y'all gonna help me, or? Get mad Pick and choose right quick like.

Speaker 3: 41:10

I knocked on the door and I heard a weak voice on the other side. Come, in Come in.

Speaker 3: 41:21

I pushed the door open. I said I pushed the door open and it was high noon outside. It was midnight in the room. I went in there and I said how you doing? She said not too good, I just can't hardly. She's the same one that got mad at me, like some of you do. Come on, help me, jesus, be real sweet right here.

Speaker 3: 41:57

She missed church a few times. Am I telling it right? Finally, I called and told her. I said hey, what's the matter? Where you been? She said I've been sick. I said you're sick more ways than one and I said well, I didn't know it. She said God tells you everything else. I thought he'd tell you I was sick. I said apparently I didn't know it. She said God tells you everything else. I thought he'd tell you I was sick. I said apparently you must not be sick. Huh, she was in the hospital and I walked into that room and she was weak and feeble. I mean the devil could tell you you're going to die tomorrow, been reading the bible all your life and not even pay attention that he owns the keys to death. Hell and the grave. Come on, perk up, you can wake up in a minute. To death, hell and the grave. Come on, perk up. You can wake up in a minute. I walked straight over to the window where she was at laying in that bed and I grabbed the old blind. You know why we got them in this church just like right now some

Speaker 3: 43:22

of y'all didn't like the sunshine. Huh, you know what she did, just like you just did. That's bright. I said that'll make you feel better if you get out of the darkness of your mind, the darkness of your emotions and the darkness of your fears. I said you ain't got it. But listen to me Before I left that hospital room. She wasn't weak voice, she was talking loud. I feel like telling somebody you can live in the Arachidon and pay attention to the darkness. Or you can say I got a light on the inside.

Speaker 3: 44:37

Hallelujah, hallelujah. I want to talk to you before we sing the visitor in the storm. Here is the consolation that gives us all the assurance From here on out, here on out, it may be tough, but I'm not going under. They didn't say I wasn't going to fight it, but it ain't going to defeat me. Anybody got another chair? Hallelujah, come on, set it down right down there in the middle of the floor. I'm trying to hurry and close, hallelujah, you know what makes shouting really good? It's what you got to want to to shout when you're in it. You don't shout because you're out of it. You're shouting because you're out of it. You're shouting because he kept me through it. I could just about see it. Stay with me, the visitor in the storm. And I'm going to close. Listen to what he said, verse 23. For there, stood by me In the storm and I'm going to close. Listen to what he said, verse 23. For there stood by me this night An angel of God, whom I am, whose I belong to, whom I serve, saying Fear Not Paul. My shirt saying fear not Paul. I'm telling you, the angel knows your name. So how does that angel know my name? Because I got a father who cares. I was standing up in the porch of glory and he looked at me and he said go tell Paul, don't be afraid. It may be what the text said. We didn't see no sun or stars. It was midnight where we were at, but the angel knew my name and he knew where I was. I could just see it.

Speaker 3: 47:19

If you know anything about the Roman ships, they were in stops in the bottom of that ship and they were chained to the oars and they had to row for that ship to move. Man, I'd rather be a prisoner on a boat with a promise than to stand on the land with a devil lying to me. Ben, I need you to help me, because I'm about to close this down in a second. I need you to act like you're out there on that boat. I need you to follow me. Being're out there on that boat, I need you to follow me being exceedingly tossed with the tempest. When you're tossed, you ain't sitting still, but he said somewhere in the middle of that storm. It didn't say it touched him, he just told him. He said Paul, I come to tell you, don't be afraid, the boat's rocking. But you ain't. The boat's in the storm, but you ain't Paul. Thank God, anyhow. He said for an angel of God. Thank God, anyhow. He said for an angel of God stood by me, whose I am and whom I serve. When I say this part and I call Paul, I want you to scream your name as loud as you can. Saying Fear not Paul. Say it again. That was weak as water. Saying fear not Noah, noah. I got a promise and a storm. Listen to me, I gotta drop this in before I close.

Speaker 3: 50:21

The Bible said hope deferred, making the heart sick. But when desire cometh, it is the tree of life. Hope drives the fishermen to fishing all day. Why? Because my next cast may be my best. Hope May be my best. Hope motivates the most athletes to push in spite of the pain and go on past the training and hope to be the champion. Hope drives the prisoner of war to dig tunnels and at risk being caught, tormented, killed. But hope, he said, will help me escape. I ain't got time to read it all. They said that this psychiatrist. I ain't got time to read it all. They said that this psychiatrist. I love this. I love this.

Speaker 3: 51:35

Cal Minglerger pointed out in his dialogue about hope. I told you this morning he said, of all the writings of the Encyclopedia Britannica, he said there is not a column on hope. He said there's one on love and there's one on faith. But, mister, you need hope to come through the storm. I'm going to lose three quarters of you right here. I got to drop this in. You say it's too much, but the statement was made, two great men that were novel writers, hg Wells and George Bernard Shaw, who were famously known for men that were able to write.

Speaker 3: 52:25

Yet they rejected the message of the Bible and they trusted in their own system of belief, which was based upon human reasoning. They could not find peace and lost confidence in what they believed in. Wells at his final end of his life, labeled a screamer of despair in 1950. Shortly before Shaw died, he penned the words I trusted in science, and science is bankrupt. Everything I ever hoped for, everything I'd ever put faith in it's gone. I love Hebrews for everything I'd ever put faith in. It's gone. I love Hebrews. Our hope is in Christ, his steadfastness and His ability to deliver me. I normally don't read a lot.

Speaker 3: 53:32

1942, in his devotional of the abundant life, e Stanley Jones, a missionary and a doctor to India, wrote these words. The early Christian did not say in dismay look what the world has come to, but in great delight they said look what has come to the world. If you'd quit griping about your storm and tell everybody on your boat we're in it, but we're coming out of it. My last statement Come help me out here. I've been holding this for weeks. This is where I feel like closing. The best is yet to come.

Speaker 3: 54:54

A woman diagnosed with a terminal illness. She called on her pastor to plan her funeral and to set her arrangements in order, had some ideas about what she would hope would happen, but she was insistent on but one thing while he come to plan and talk, songs and message. She had one goal, one purpose and one thought. She said Pastor, I want to be buried with a fork in my hand. He was startled at it. He didn't know what to say to her and demanded an explanation. And she said oh, it's quite simple.

Speaker 3: 55:47

The woman said in all my years of attending church and church socials and potlucks, I always remember that when they clear the dishes someone would say keep your fork. Someone would say keep your fork. It's my favorite part of the dinner because I know something better is coming. So I may be sick in body and I may be in trouble, but put a fork in my hand because I know the best is yet to come. And with that the pastor made a solemn vow, a promise.

Speaker 3: 56:43

I promise you, when you leave here, I'm going to place a fork in your hand. You can't see it now, but can I tell you in this house, when that angel came by, where Paul was sitting in that boat Come here, angel Hallelujah. And where Paul was sitting in that boat. I come to tell you in this house. He didn't just show up to make appearance. He looked at him and said here, paul, here's your fork. Hold on, something better's coming. Well, there's a promise coming down your dusty road From the holy hand healing virtues flow. He knows he holds the key to what you need. I feel like telling somebody the storm is not the end.

Speaker 1: 58:04

It's taking me to a brand new beginning. Would you lift your hands?

Speaker 4: 58:15

This is Pastor Philip Steele from Pentecostal Lighthouse in Pekin, illinois, and one of the contributing members of the HPO team. We're so glad that you joined us today. We pray that you've been blessed, encouraged and uplifted through this message. May you continue to walk victoriously in the hope of his calling. God bless.