SPEAKER_02: That you are here, and that this uncreated God is truly walking amongst us.
SPEAKER_02: And so we say, Holy Spirit, would you have your way this morning?
SPEAKER_02: We ask for open hearts, open eyes, and we just say, Lord, you do what you want to do in the hearts of your people.
SPEAKER_02: And everybody said, Amen.
SPEAKER_02: So honored to be here this morning.
SPEAKER_02: And I'm so excited to get to share my heart for a few minutes.
SPEAKER_02: Like Pastor David said, we were just in California this past weekend, and Garna also, Pastor Garna, I don't know if I could do it without him.
SPEAKER_02: Mario is always like, is Garna coming?
SPEAKER_02: And uh he even said it last night.
SPEAKER_02: We were prepping for some of the meetings, and Mario was like, make sure Garna's there.
SPEAKER_02: So I've been praying for you guys specifically and just asking the Lord, Lord, what do you want to say?
SPEAKER_02: I understand that it's Mother's Day, but hopefully this message resonates to everyone, but it also is a message to women, but it's also a message to men.
SPEAKER_02: And I've been praying for you guys, and I really felt like the Lord wanted me to take a few minutes today to talk about something that really all of us at some point in our lives have wrestled with, struggled with in different seasons.
SPEAKER_02: There are a lot of battles, as all of us know, that we're facing on different levels.
SPEAKER_02: There are cultural battles, political battles, financial battles, family battles, a lot of different battles.
SPEAKER_02: But I also believe that there is a quieter battle underneath all of these battles that impact the different situations and circumstances that we find ourselves in.
SPEAKER_02: And that is simply a battle for the secret place.
SPEAKER_02: A battle to pause in the midst of busyness, to pause in the midst of all of these things that life is throwing at us and say, God, I really desire connection with you.
SPEAKER_02: And I think this is an interesting topic because it can kind of cause us, at least for me anyways, to be a little uncomfortable.
SPEAKER_02: Because really all Christians understand and know and believe that the secret place matters.
SPEAKER_02: And really, I believe every Christian wants connection with God.
SPEAKER_02: But if we're not careful when it comes to connection with God, it can slowly be pushed to the edges of our lives.
SPEAKER_02: Whether we realize it or not, our lives and our rhythms often reveal what currently holds priority in this season.
SPEAKER_02: So I want to say from the very beginning of this message, this is not a message of shame, guilt, and condemnation.
SPEAKER_02: So I want all of you to take a deep breath.
SPEAKER_02: I don't want your stomach tightening, thinking, I haven't spent God or spent time with God in so long.
SPEAKER_02: And I just I don't want to hear about this.
SPEAKER_02: Hopefully, this is a message of encouragement.
SPEAKER_02: This is an invitation, and this is for you to understand in a fresh way, wherever you found yourself, whatever season of life, however busy it is, however imperfect it is, there is an uncreated God who freshly desires connection with you in this season.
SPEAKER_02: Say season.
SPEAKER_02: Say it again, season.
SPEAKER_02: God is a God of seasons.
SPEAKER_02: We know that.
SPEAKER_02: He understands seasons because he has created seasons.
SPEAKER_02: He created winter and summer, spring and fall, but he didn't just create natural seasons, he created the seasons that are involved in the human experience.
SPEAKER_02: It doesn't matter how young you are, it doesn't matter how old you are.
SPEAKER_02: There is a reality that God is looking at your life and he's moving you along season by season, chapter by chapter, milestone by milestone, and he's not surprised by the season that you found yourself in, even though you might be surprised at the season that you found yourself in.
SPEAKER_02: It is God's plan all along for you to be in a new season on a regular moving basis till we cross over into eternity.
SPEAKER_02: This is God's plan.
SPEAKER_02: My son, it's really interesting, you know.
SPEAKER_02: My son is constantly entering into new seasons.
SPEAKER_02: My generation calls them milestones.
SPEAKER_02: My mom's like a milestone.
SPEAKER_02: You guys have all these new terminology that you use with raising your kids.
SPEAKER_02: So we entered into a quote, new leap.
SPEAKER_02: Anybody heard that?
SPEAKER_02: Laura, you're gonna be all into that, like the leap calendar, the milestone calendar.
SPEAKER_02: And so he just started walking about a month ago.
SPEAKER_02: So the story of my life is that I'm following him everywhere and I love it.
SPEAKER_02: I blink and he's round in the corner at Walmart and I'm running around, and people are like, there he goes.
SPEAKER_02: But can you imagine me looking at this new season that my child has found himself in and me being mad because he's not very good at walking yet?
SPEAKER_02: I just can't believe it, Hayden.
SPEAKER_02: How dare you have to learn how to walk in this season that you found yourself in.
SPEAKER_02: And we love to view ourselves often as put together people, but God views us as children.
SPEAKER_02: God, I gotta say it again, God is not mad at you because you woke up one morning and your season of life looked different than it used to.
SPEAKER_02: This is his plan all along.
SPEAKER_02: So I want you to take a deep breath because when we talk about connection with God and intimacy with God and the battle for the secret place, if you view the secret place as a formula for condemnation rather than connection, God is asking in this season that you be washed by the water of his word and you take a step back because you were made for connection in every season of life, and it is going to look different than your past season.
SPEAKER_02: But this is God's plan, and he's cheering you on, and he's desiring connection, and he has a plan and a purpose for you to find him in this in this season, to hear his voice in the secret place, to know his presence, to get strength from him.
SPEAKER_02: You were created to know him in this season of life, but connection will look different.
SPEAKER_02: Say amen.
SPEAKER_02: I love the life of Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: It just I love the fact that we can look at the life of Jesus in the New Testament, and just by looking at his life, we can learn so much, and he answers so many questions.
SPEAKER_02: And so we're looking at this man named Jesus who didn't just come to save us, but he came to show us how to live.
SPEAKER_02: And I believe it's actually, let me get the verse.
SPEAKER_02: It's in Luke chapter 5, verse 16.
SPEAKER_02: It's a very simple verse.
SPEAKER_02: It says, But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.
SPEAKER_02: Catherine paraphrased, he withdrew to a quiet place to pray.
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, clearly, Jesus was never a mother.
SPEAKER_02: But he withdrew from all the noise, all of the stimulation, and in the midst of his busy life, he made it a priority to connect with God.
SPEAKER_02: And when we look at the gospels in his life, there are at least eight different times, different scenarios, where Jesus makes an intentional decision to pull away from his responsibility and intentionally connect with his father.
SPEAKER_02: But what boggles my mind, and I didn't realize this, maybe you guys already knew this, but what boggles my mind, I noticed this a couple months ago, is that five out of those eight different encounters with the Lord, the demands of life interrupts his quiet time and he's pulled back into the chaos.
SPEAKER_02: So you mean to tell me that even Jesus, who lived a spotless life, a blameless life, he still had to live out this tension of fighting for the secret place and connection with God in the middle of chaos.
SPEAKER_02: And I guarantee you that Jesus was way busier than our soccer games will ever make us.
SPEAKER_02: He's way busier, he was way busier than our Netflix binges will ever make us.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus healed the sick, he cast out demons, he carried enormous leadership responsibility, he discipled people, confronted religious mindsets, experienced relational tension with his family, friends, and nation, experienced abandonment, crowds constantly needing something from him.
SPEAKER_02: And yet he said, There is a priority while I am on the earth, and that priority is connection with the Father.
SPEAKER_02: And if Jesus understood his need to live out his purpose through connection with the Father, how much more is God looking for a generation who says, My priority is going to be in the midst of my responsibility, I am going to make connection with God a priority in this season.
SPEAKER_02: It's a big, big deal, but it's something that we don't talk about.
SPEAKER_02: And if I'm honest, I think it's one of the biggest battles the church is facing.
SPEAKER_02: When I look at the American church, and I don't mean to be mean to them, but I will be honest, it's not that we've neglected the secret place, it's that we've abandoned the secret place.
SPEAKER_02: It's like, you know, it's culturally acceptable to be so busy that the sacred is pushed to the edges of our lives.
SPEAKER_02: When did that become acceptable?
SPEAKER_02: Well, I'm just an American and that's just how I need to raise my children.
SPEAKER_02: I'm an American and I just have to work really hard to make a lot of money.
SPEAKER_02: There is a reality that I believe God is coming in kindly to correct.
SPEAKER_02: That ultimately you and I were made for connection with the presence of God.
SPEAKER_02: And as we begin to make connection with the presence of God, we're gonna find strength again, we're gonna find peace again, we're gonna find hope again, we're gonna find joy again, we're gonna find the stamina needed to be the people of God in this season to raise our families in holiness and purity and in the fear of the Lord.
SPEAKER_02: But we need connection with God.
SPEAKER_02: We need it, it's a big deal.
SPEAKER_02: Luke chapter 10.
SPEAKER_02: We've all heard this story.
SPEAKER_02: Now, as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house.
SPEAKER_02: And she had a sister named Mary who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching.
SPEAKER_02: But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she went up to him and said, Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?
SPEAKER_02: Some of you have felt really lonely in this season with the responsibilities that you carry.
SPEAKER_02: And I want you to know God sees that.
SPEAKER_02: And he has, I believe, a moment of refreshing coming to you in this season.
SPEAKER_02: Tell her to help me, Lord.
SPEAKER_02: But the Lord answered her, Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary.
SPEAKER_02: Say necessary.
SPEAKER_02: Mary has chosen the good portion which will not be taken away from her.
SPEAKER_02: So to set the context here, the scenario, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus.
SPEAKER_02: Scholars say that they're related.
SPEAKER_02: They're probably brothers and sisters.
SPEAKER_02: They all live together a few miles outside of Jerusalem.
SPEAKER_02: And it looks like that Martha is the head of the household, so she's probably the oldest sibling.
SPEAKER_02: So she invites Jesus, a rabbi, a teacher, into the house.
SPEAKER_02: And we know that back then it was socially acceptable and it was expected to cook a meal for your guests for this rabbi.
SPEAKER_02: So she's doing what is culturally accepted, uh culturally expected of her.
SPEAKER_02: She's taking care of her responsibility.
SPEAKER_02: What I love about this is she's not actually doing anything bad.
SPEAKER_02: Sometimes we look at this and it's like, Martha, how dare you be so busy?
SPEAKER_02: How dare you, you know, cook this big meal instead of sitting at the feet of Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: That's not the point of this.
SPEAKER_02: She's doing what she is called to do, and that's a really, really good thing.
SPEAKER_02: She's handling her responsibilities seriously.
SPEAKER_02: But there is a correction moment here.
SPEAKER_02: And I want to say this.
SPEAKER_02: I think sometimes when when we're corrected, we think people are angry at us.
SPEAKER_02: The most loving thing, and my dad just said that, the most loving thing that can happen to us is correction.
SPEAKER_02: And there's this thing that charismatics call it, it's an orphan spirit.
SPEAKER_02: Orphan spirit technically is not mentioned in the Bible, but the concept is.
SPEAKER_02: And it's people who view correction as rejection.
SPEAKER_02: It's when someone comes into your life and they're just trying to be loving, they're trying to be kind, and all you can hear is, I'm not perfect, and you're rejecting me.
SPEAKER_02: And I want you to understand that we're adopted in a fresh way.
SPEAKER_02: We're adopted as sons and daughters of God.
SPEAKER_02: And according to Hebrews, God disciplines those he loves.
SPEAKER_02: There are areas of our life, especially concerning connection with God, that we kind of just need an adjustment.
SPEAKER_02: And it's not that God's mad at us, it's that he loves us enough to tell us the truth.
SPEAKER_02: So he deeply loves Martha in this moment.
SPEAKER_02: These are some of his closest friends.
SPEAKER_02: So he's not correcting the fact that she's serving.
SPEAKER_02: That's not it at all.
SPEAKER_02: He's not saying, hey, you need to stop doing what you're doing.
SPEAKER_02: You need to stop taking responsibility.
SPEAKER_02: You need to lay down what I actually called you in life to do.
SPEAKER_02: No, that's not it.
SPEAKER_02: He's correcting her because she has allowed anxiety and distraction into her posture of purpose.
SPEAKER_02: I just want you to think about this.
SPEAKER_02: He is correcting her for how she is choosing to carry her responsibility.
SPEAKER_02: Rather than making connection a priority, she has allowed her life to be dictated by anxiety and distraction.
SPEAKER_02: She has said, Man, you know, I'm called to this, I'm called to all of these things, but I just can't handle it.
SPEAKER_02: I'm too stressed out.
SPEAKER_02: And when we get to a place of anxiety and distraction, what happens is we begin to lean on ourselves rather than leaning into connection with the Lord, and then we wonder why we are exhausted in the midst of serving.
SPEAKER_02: God has a plan for each person in this room to fulfill a specific purpose, to raise your children with joy and love and hope and holiness.
SPEAKER_02: But if we get so consumed with fear about the future, anxiety, and distraction with all of these things going on in life, we're gonna miss the source of strength and hope and peace that we need in our lives to do what we're called to do.
SPEAKER_02: Connection with God matters.
SPEAKER_02: You know, last week, so obviously we were at this event, and I was not at church the week before because David got us all sick.
SPEAKER_02: The nerve of him.
SPEAKER_02: He makes me preach.
SPEAKER_02: I'm trying to be kind, and he gets me sick, and then he gets Hayden sick.
SPEAKER_02: So we were we were just trying to survive, to be honest.
SPEAKER_02: I was doing all the natural remedies like raw garlic.
SPEAKER_02: It was just a disgusting week, and we made it.
SPEAKER_02: So, and then I was hoping, I was like, I don't hope I don't smell like garlic on the airplane because that's like the worst.
SPEAKER_02: If you, you know, but I didn't, I didn't.
SPEAKER_02: I asked Elizabeth, and she she's honest enough to tell me I smelled fine, a lot of perfume.
SPEAKER_02: But I get to California, and if I can be honest with you, I was very anxious and distracted.
SPEAKER_02: We we we started traveling at, I think we got to the airport at 7 a.m.
SPEAKER_02: and it's just a long day because we go straight to soundcheck.
SPEAKER_02: Elizabeth's setting up the baby bed, the rooms aren't ready.
SPEAKER_02: It was just it was crazy.
SPEAKER_02: It was just a lot of chaos.
SPEAKER_02: So we get there, and I'm just distracted.
SPEAKER_02: And I remember talking to the Lord, and I was anxious, and I was just like, I could hardly concentrate on anything.
SPEAKER_02: And I was scared that I was gonna lose my voice, because I've that's happened before, and when you have a cold, that tends to happen.
SPEAKER_02: You know, you all of a sudden sound like a dude.
SPEAKER_02: Singers were like, Yes, it's the worst.
SPEAKER_02: Everyone's like, it's just a cold.
SPEAKER_02: We're like, it's not just a cold, it's a sentence.
SPEAKER_02: So I finally had this pause moment, and the Lord, it was like this Martha Martha moment for me.
SPEAKER_02: And he just said, Hey, you're anxious and distracted.
SPEAKER_02: You're anxious and worried about many things.
SPEAKER_02: And I think sometimes we can get so caught up in the need to do things well and to do things right and to get things done and to be responsible that we miss out on connection with the Lord, which is what it's all about.
SPEAKER_02: And that's the place in which we're meant to live out life.
SPEAKER_02: Does that make sense?
SPEAKER_02: And so finally the next day we had gotten everything done.
SPEAKER_02: We had done one session, I had three more to go, and I just sat there in the presence of the Lord because I was even distracted.
SPEAKER_02: I couldn't connect with Hayden that well because I mean he couldn't tell that.
SPEAKER_02: But I was I was distracted in my head, and he's running all over the place, and I'm just thinking, I don't have a voice in a few hours.
SPEAKER_02: And finally, I paused and I said, Okay, Lord, you know the end of the story.
SPEAKER_02: Whether I have a voice or not, I'm going to trust you, but I'm going to carry the weight of this responsibility from a place of connection and peace.
SPEAKER_02: And so the invitation a little bit this morning is just to ask the question, what weight are you carrying and how are you carrying it?
SPEAKER_02: Because what I see a lot of times happening is we have a heart to do the right thing.
SPEAKER_02: We have a heart to take care of our responsibilities, but we constantly allow anxiety and distraction to dictate how we carry the responsibility that God has given us.
SPEAKER_02: And I believe there is a grace in the room this morning to take a fresh breath and say, I'm going to acknowledge that according to the scriptures, connection with Jesus matters, and I'm going to make that a priority in my life and trust him that he's going to take care of the rest.
SPEAKER_02: And so I love this verse again.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus doesn't say what she's dealing with are not things that she has to deal with.
SPEAKER_02: What she says is only one thing is necessary.
SPEAKER_02: Say necessary.
SPEAKER_02: The definition of necessary is something absolutely needed for something to happen or function properly.
SPEAKER_02: I want you to think about that.
SPEAKER_02: It's something that's not optional, it's not secondary, but without it, the desired outcome cannot happen.
SPEAKER_02: It can't happen.
SPEAKER_02: God has such a beautiful plan for our lives, and I think we've stressed ourselves out.
SPEAKER_02: I think we've tried to make way more happen rather than depending on Him.
SPEAKER_02: I think we've tried in our own strength to create the Pinterest perfect life, and God is just saying, lean on me.
SPEAKER_02: I believe that in many ways we have prioritized riches.
SPEAKER_02: It might even be in the form of poverty.
SPEAKER_02: But we've prioritized riches and wealth and getting things more than saying, okay, God, I trust you to meet my every need.
SPEAKER_02: I'm not talking about laziness.
SPEAKER_02: I'm not talking about dropping responsibilities, and I can even just hear some of the voices.
SPEAKER_02: Catherine, you don't understand all of the responsibility that I'm carrying, and I just want to be honest with you, everyone is carrying a lot of responsibilities.
SPEAKER_02: That's life, that's reality.
SPEAKER_02: But maturity says I'm going to ask God for wisdom on what I need to carry, what I don't need to carry, and how I need to carry it in this season.
SPEAKER_02: And so it's this fresh correction.
SPEAKER_02: It's just like, ugh, how are we prioritizing the secret place?
SPEAKER_02: And I want to say this, I probably should have said this earlier.
SPEAKER_02: This is not a message about spiritual discipline concerning the secret place.
SPEAKER_02: I understand, I think it's a very, that's a whole different message.
SPEAKER_02: This is about the heart posture of connection with God.
SPEAKER_02: Honestly, when I look at the scriptures with Jesus, he made connection a priority, but his connection was all over the place.
SPEAKER_02: Sometimes it was in the morning, sometimes it was in the afternoon, sometimes it was in the evening, sometimes it was with people, sometimes it was out without people.
SPEAKER_02: The truth is, God is not looking for your perfection.
SPEAKER_02: He's looking for a heart connection.
SPEAKER_02: He's looking for a heart that is turned towards him in this season.
SPEAKER_02: He understands the tension of you figuring out how to live your life in this season.
SPEAKER_02: But he's saying, Will you make connection with me a priority in this season?
SPEAKER_02: Will you just will you just take 10 minutes in the morning and connect your heart with me?
SPEAKER_02: Will you take 15 minutes in the morning?
SPEAKER_02: And I'm just gonna say this, husbands and wives, we need to support each other in this.
SPEAKER_02: One of the best things you can do for your spouse is just to say, hey, take 20, 30 minutes and go be with the Lord.
SPEAKER_02: I've got the kids, and just do that for each other daily.
SPEAKER_02: Just say, hey, take some time or do it together with the kids.
SPEAKER_02: Let them see you loving Jesus together.
SPEAKER_02: But whatever it is, God is calling, and He's not going to allow a generation to do it a different way.
SPEAKER_02: Way.
SPEAKER_02: God has always desired connection from the very beginning.
SPEAKER_02: Adam and Eve in the garden, the thing that was cut off was connection.
SPEAKER_02: And then Jesus came back to restore it.
SPEAKER_02: But in the American culture, we have soccer games, and I'm not opposed to soccer games.
SPEAKER_02: Hayden's probably gonna be in them.
SPEAKER_02: I'm not opposed to ballet, I'm not opposed to dance, I'm not opposed to all those extracurricular activities.
SPEAKER_02: We grew up doing those, but there is a reality that the house of God, connection with God, the presence of God, community with godly believers matters to the health of your children and to you as well.
SPEAKER_02: And we've got to say, Lord, in the midst of options, you are going to be the one that I choose.
SPEAKER_02: It changes everything.
SPEAKER_02: The amount of people that I've talked to, and this is not everybody, so I'm not gonna say a blanket statement.
SPEAKER_02: I understand that there are some exceptions.
SPEAKER_02: I understand that some people need medicine to deal with some emotions concerning depression and different things like that.
SPEAKER_02: But overarchingly, statistically, people come to me and they say I'm depressed, and they tell me all of their issues, and the first thing I ask them is, How is your quiet time?
SPEAKER_02: I ask them a hundred percent of the time, it's non-existent.
SPEAKER_02: And I don't I don't want to be mean about this, but I want to be honest.
SPEAKER_02: God's ways work, but man's ways don't.
SPEAKER_02: And when we look at people's lives, and this is the thing that gets me about social media, you look, you look at these people, I even follow them, and their lives look perfect, but they're devoid of Christ.
SPEAKER_02: And then suddenly one day, these people will say, I'm gonna be honest with you, and we're like, Okay, thank you.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_02: And they say, I've been struggling with depression.
SPEAKER_02: You mean you have the perfect husband, you have the perfect children, you have the Pinterest perfect house, and yet you're not happy?
SPEAKER_02: Why?
SPEAKER_02: Because God designed the human experience that in every season of life we need connection with him, and yet connection with him is usually the thing that is neglected when we get busy.
SPEAKER_02: I don't think people abandon the secret place because they're rebellious.
SPEAKER_02: I think they abandon the secret place because they're busy.
SPEAKER_02: That's it.
SPEAKER_02: We live in a culture that is extremely loud.
SPEAKER_02: And I'm gonna pick on women again because it's Mother's Day, but hopefully it'll be encouraging too.
SPEAKER_02: You know, women, you know, we have all these things that we want to fix our lives.
SPEAKER_02: And Instagram ads will get me sometimes.
SPEAKER_02: They will.
SPEAKER_02: You see these people, and I'm like, I was talking about working out or something, and then all of a sudden, this ad, because you know, they hear us, and that's all I'm gonna say about that.
SPEAKER_02: So this ad gets me.
SPEAKER_02: All of a sudden, I'm talking about working out.
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, I need to be in shape after having a baby.
SPEAKER_02: And they're like, hey, do you need to be in shape after having a baby?
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, yes, and I'm I'm looking at this person, and she just looks absolutely perfect.
SPEAKER_02: And it's like, for$29.99 a month, I will give you this workout that will change your life, and you're gonna look like a supermodel by the end of it.
SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, this is what I was made for.
SPEAKER_02: And so all of a sudden, I'm like on their website, I'm clicking through it, and then I'm looking, like sanity finally like sets in, and I'm like, I don't have time to work out like this.
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, this is not for normal people.
SPEAKER_02: This person is selling something, and they probably just have a really good metabolism and don't even follow their own workout program.
SPEAKER_02: Listen, I get that there's like a couple people in the world, like Cassie, wherever she is, I think she's helping in the kids.
SPEAKER_02: She likes to work out.
SPEAKER_02: Most of the rest of us don't.
SPEAKER_02: So I'm gonna walk and I'm gonna hopefully lift weights a little bit.
SPEAKER_02: I'm working on it.
SPEAKER_02: I'm getting on a tangent.
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, where am I even going with all of this?
SPEAKER_02: Dad's like, please reel it in.
SPEAKER_02: The point of it is, we will do a lot to fix things in our life.
SPEAKER_02: We'll diet, we'll go to the dermatologist, we'll get new clothes, we'll walk, we'll do all of the different things, and we're willing to spend a lot of money to fix our lives.
SPEAKER_02: But when God tells us a simple formula, how to fix what's on the inside of us, we don't want to do it.
SPEAKER_02: And I want to end this with this the story of Naaman.
SPEAKER_02: You guys have heard him, heard of him in the Bible, it's found in 2 Kings.
SPEAKER_02: This story.
SPEAKER_02: Naaman had everything, but he didn't have health.
SPEAKER_02: He he had leprosy.
SPEAKER_02: So he had a lot of wealth, he had a lot of power, he had a lot of prestige, and he found out that this prophet Elisha could heal people.
SPEAKER_02: And so he asks the person above him, he says, Hey, can I make this pilgrimage, this journey to this prophet, so I can get healed?
SPEAKER_02: He said, Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02: So he just packs up all of his stuff, all of his, a lot of his servants, and he goes to meet with Elisha, and Elisha won't even see him, won't even open the door for him.
SPEAKER_02: And this guy is just indignant.
SPEAKER_02: He's like, How dare you?
SPEAKER_02: And all Elisha says, and this is the thing that's interesting.
SPEAKER_02: Elisha gives him a cure.
SPEAKER_02: He says, Hey, go and dip in the Jordan seven times.
SPEAKER_02: And this guy is so mad.
SPEAKER_02: He's just like, I don't want to do that.
SPEAKER_02: There are cleaner rivers, lakes, whatever, where I come from.
SPEAKER_02: And he's about to miss out on his healing.
SPEAKER_02: And the voice of reason and sanity comes to him in the form of his servant, and he says, Hey, if he asked you to do something massive and give in an extraordinary way, would you have done it?
SPEAKER_02: And he says, Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02: And he says, How much more can you just say, wash and be healed?
SPEAKER_02: And I want to say this, we look for solutions in the church to fix us on the inside.
SPEAKER_02: And women, we turn to books, we turn to inappropriate podcasts and inappropriate movies.
SPEAKER_02: We turn to these things that have become vices in our lives.
SPEAKER_02: And the Lord is just saying, Hey, if you prioritize connection, I'm gonna heal what's broken.
SPEAKER_02: If you prioritize connection, I'm gonna deal with the symptoms, but I'm really gonna deal with the root issue in order to heal the symptom.
SPEAKER_02: And so I want to say on this Mother's Day, as a friendly, kind reminder to all of us, we have the greatest gift that has ever been given.
SPEAKER_02: And that is sanity through Christ.
SPEAKER_02: We have the greatest gift that has ever been given, and that is healing for what ails us, whether that is depression, whether that is anxiety, whether that is a lack of joy, whether that is a lack of strength.
SPEAKER_02: And I understand, again, that sometimes it's like you got to you got to get your hormones balanced.
SPEAKER_02: I was sweating up on the front row and asked dad if the air was on, and he said, he said, it's your hormones.
SPEAKER_02: I was like, are we there yet?
SPEAKER_02: Are we there in life?
SPEAKER_02: No, I'm not in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_02: God wants to spend time with you, and he understands the season that you found yourself in.
SPEAKER_02: One of the things I love about my mom is she's so pretty.
SPEAKER_02: But I watched her have to kind of learn how to connect with God in a different way in this season.
SPEAKER_02: She had a stroke, and so she she used to write all the time in the secret place.
SPEAKER_02: That's what I love to do.
SPEAKER_02: I love to write and journal in the secret place.
SPEAKER_02: And she's her, she's got pins and needles, for those of you who don't know, pins and needles just going down her entire right side.
SPEAKER_02: So if you touch her, it kind of hurts.
SPEAKER_02: So be careful.
SPEAKER_02: But I've learned, I've seen her fearlessly face the season that she's in, and she's made a decision that connection with God is going to be the necessary thing in her life, the most important thing with her in her life.
SPEAKER_02: And I've seen her set an example, and I pray, oh God, let the generations coming up behind her and let her generation recognize that whatever season we found ourselves in, there is an uncreated God who wants to endue us with power from the secret place so we can accomplish what we were set on the earth to do.
SPEAKER_02: But we have to make it the decision, like every generation who has ever gone before us, that the gift of the secret place matters and we're willing to fight for it.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: So let's stand up.
SPEAKER_02: Actually, no, let's not.
SPEAKER_02: You guys are very, very obedient.
SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna ask my husband to come forward, but can we just close our eyes all over this room?
SPEAKER_02: Lord, I thank you for the gift of connection with you.
SPEAKER_02: I thank you that the secret place was not meant to be a place of condemnation and guilt, but it was meant to be a place of empowerment, a place where we find mercy, a place where we find strength for the day, that it's the supernatural experience in our lives that we were meant to have on a daily basis, that we don't have to wait to get to church to experience your presence.
SPEAKER_02: And so, Lord, I thank you that you tell us, even in the Old Testament to the new, that you take a heart of stone and you give us a heart of flesh.
SPEAKER_02: You give us a heart that's able to feel again.
SPEAKER_02: And I ask you that where there have been people in this room who have felt hardened to connection with God in this secret place, that you would just give them a fresh desire for your presence, a fresh desire to pursue you, a fresh desire to love you, and a fresh desire to carry their responsibility in a different way.
SPEAKER_02: That in the midst of busyness, in the midst of all of the things that you've called us to, there's a fresh grace to say, I'm not going to carry my responsibility through the lens of anxiety and distraction, but I'm gonna joyfully carry the weight of my responsibility through connection with you, where that matters most, and then you take care of the rest.
SPEAKER_02: And so we say, Holy Spirit, give us a fresh desire for the secret place again, and to fight for it in this season.
SPEAKER_02: And even as you did with Naaman, you made it so easy.
SPEAKER_02: When we follow your ways, we find healing.
SPEAKER_02: When we follow your path, we find purpose, and your plan is presence leading us in this season from the secret place, in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: Um, Phil, I don't know if we let you know this.
SPEAKER_00: Can you bring some giving buckets, one on each side here?
SPEAKER_00: Um if you are here and you are a single mother, and what I mean by that is if you currently have a dependent living with you and you are single, you are not married, your husband or ex-husband, whatever's not in the home, um, we're going to take up a love offering for you.
SPEAKER_00: I've watched my wife taking care of our son.
SPEAKER_00: You know, I can't imagine being a single mother.
SPEAKER_00: I just can't.
SPEAKER_00: And I, you know, I knew it was like a it was a big deal, but now that I've seen it firsthand, like taking care of a child, like I'm like, oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00: We're going the church, we're going to love on you this morning.
SPEAKER_00: So what I want you to do, I'm not trying to embarrass you, but um, I would like you um to please come up here to the front and we're going to pray over you, but we're also going to shower love upon you with an offering.
SPEAKER_00: So if you have a dependent, that means 18 years or younger that is currently living with you.
SPEAKER_00: I'm not saying if you have a 25-year-old that doesn't have a job, kick their butt out, make them work.
SPEAKER_00: Come on up here to the front.
SPEAKER_00: We're gonna say come on.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: God is so faithful in this time, and God is going to be showering his love, and I want some of our spiritual mothers to surround them.
SPEAKER_00: We had now listen, if you don't come up here, you're not gonna get any of the money.
SPEAKER_00: We had people try to email last year, oh, I'm a single mother, you gotta come up here.
SPEAKER_00: Because we're gonna get y'all, we're gonna take note of who you are, and we're gonna we're gonna distribute the money.
SPEAKER_00: This is a QR code to give to the giving fund for single mothers.
SPEAKER_00: I want you, as Paul would say, I want you to pray and ask God.
SPEAKER_00: This is not an emotional decision to say, Lord, do you want me to give an offering to help support them?
SPEAKER_00: And I want you, whatever the Lord puts on your heart, I want you to be faithful and give.
SPEAKER_00: It's very simple.
SPEAKER_00: Also, if you like to give cash or check, make it out to Generations Church and just put in the memo, single mothers.
SPEAKER_00: But I want us to come and bring them to these offering buckets.
SPEAKER_00: I want you to walk up here if you want to give cash or check to these offering buckets.
SPEAKER_00: Do not put it in the back.
SPEAKER_00: Put it in these offering buckets up here, please.
SPEAKER_00: Father, I thank you that your hand is over these daughters, Lord, that you've seen their struggle, you've seen the hardship, Father.
SPEAKER_00: And I thank you, Lord, that you're watching over them, Lord, that you're providing every need, Lord, according to your riches and glory.
SPEAKER_00: I thank you that you've seen their prayers, and I thank you for the plan that you have for them, Lord.
SPEAKER_00: I thank you that you're a God of family, Lord, and I thank you, Father, that you're I I even just want to speak this over you all, that God's either gonna restore or bring something new in, but he's gonna make your life complete.
SPEAKER_00: And I just feel like the Lord's saying, take that to the bank, especially Olivia.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord says it over you.
SPEAKER_00: I am going to make it completely full and complete.
SPEAKER_00: Trust me on this, my daughter.
SPEAKER_00: And I just want to I just want to say this that there's joy.
SPEAKER_00: This is a new chapter of joy in the name of Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: This is a chapter, Lord, of restoration and breakthrough in the name of Jesus over you.
SPEAKER_00: And I just thank you for Brittany and her faithfulness, Lord.
SPEAKER_00: And I just thank you, Lord.
SPEAKER_00: Um Brittany, the Lord says there's so much more going on, my daughter.
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna take care of the needs.
SPEAKER_00: Watch what I do, but I'm doing much more in you, raising you up, and I'm pulling you in because you're a part of revival, you're a revivalist, and just trust me, this has been a training ground.
SPEAKER_00: And Father Father, I just thank you also, Lord, for this daughter right here.
SPEAKER_00: And the Lord says, Um, you have felt rejected, you felt unseen.
SPEAKER_00: But I'm changing that.
SPEAKER_00: Melanie, will you come up here?
SPEAKER_00: Just put your hand on her back.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord's gonna do something really wonderful this morning.
SPEAKER_00: Barbara, will you take her hands?
SPEAKER_00: The Lord says you have felt unseen and rejected, and that has been a plan of the enemy your entire life to make you unseen, to make you feel unsupported.
SPEAKER_00: It's not just in the good seasons, it's always been lingering.
SPEAKER_00: I'm alone in this, and the Lord says now I'm coming up and I'm carrying you in the season, and I'm going to do miracles in your life, and you're gonna realize how much I love you, and that I've been supporting you and walking with you.
SPEAKER_00: So we just break that lie of the enemy off.
SPEAKER_00: It's been an assignment.
SPEAKER_00: We all have our own assignments, by the way.
SPEAKER_00: This has been a big one over you that you're alone, that you're not gonna be okay.
SPEAKER_00: We break that off in the name of Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: And Barbara, will you continue to pray over her?
SPEAKER_00: Here, Pastor Sharon.
SPEAKER_01: Cyan, as I was standing behind you, I heard the Lord say so clearly, I am not disappointed in you.
SPEAKER_01: And so I want to break off that thing that tells you that lie that says God is disappointed in you.
SPEAKER_01: It's a lie from the pit of hell.
SPEAKER_01: I know you don't want it.
SPEAKER_01: I'm sending that lie to the pit right now, and I'm releasing you to be the woman of God that he's called you to be.
SPEAKER_01: That way you can be the mother that he's called you to be.
SPEAKER_01: And and can you receive that he's not disappointed in you?
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so so everybody just say God is not disappointed in you.
SPEAKER_01: I need to hear that.
SPEAKER_01: God is not disappointed in you.
SPEAKER_01: One more time, ladies.
SPEAKER_01: God is not disappointed in you in the name of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: That's how we need to be to one uh one another, telling the truth in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Father.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Father, thank you, Lord.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: We're just gonna take a moment.
SPEAKER_00: We're not in a hurry.
SPEAKER_00: The Spirit of the Lord is in this place.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Jesus.