SPEAKER_00 0:50

I think uh I totally understand what the apostle said when he said we were to gather together more and more as the day approaches because um we need each other. We need these moments, these these little moments, and I didn't ask Michelle how long I had today. So um I noticed there's a couple of restaurants close by, so uh you won't have to go too long without food. So when I was praying about what to minister, and Michelle said, just pray, you know, just teach what's in your heart out of the overflow. Well, I guess if I had one message that continually comes out of me, it's to encourage people for the long haul. You know, I think sometimes we glorify the instant, and I love the instant. Somebody comes up in the prayer line, you lay hands on them, boom, they're healed. But sometimes I think we forget to glorify God for those people who walked through the process of faith and obtained the promise. And so sometimes in life, and this is not God up there going, okay, I want that one back there to have to go through this for years. That's not, no, anything that takes time in our in our walk of faith, it's it's not God deciding he wants it to take us a long time. It's him walking us through the process of learning faith. And you look at Abram and Sarah, he promised them a child. But for 25 years, uh he taught them the process of them being able to receive what he had promised them. And I think sometimes people get discouraged. Time is a big challenge to our faith. And so, you know, when it says that that we're to imitate those, which is Hebrews 6.12, in Hebrews 6.12 he encourages us and he says, be imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. And when you look that word up, that patience is forbearance, it's fortitude. And we can't afford to be um poodles in faith. We need to be bulldogs in faith. Like when we grab hold to something, you're not taking it from us. If I look in your word and and it says by Jesus' stripes, I am healed, don't try to take that from me. Don't mm-mm. No, my my jaws are locked onto that thing and I'm not letting go. And you know, even with the process of Abraham and Sarah, or Abram and Sarah uh getting promised a son named Isaac, even in that long process, what I love about Abraham and Sarah is even though they kind of messed up in the middle, like time worked against them, they're like Sarah's like, sorry, there's a guy in the room, but cycle after cycle, I'm not pregnant. Month after month, I'm not pregnant. Okay, let's bring in the maid, let's bring in Hagar, you sleep with Hagar, you have a child with her, and and we'll fulfill God's promise. And how many times we accept Ishmaels in our life and we settle for less than what God's word says. Why? Because time. That's the only thing that happened. Time. And so it's just one of the biggest challenges. And I so I want to encourage you in that today. What if we use time instead of despising time? Because the one thing Abraham and Sarah did is they didn't quit. Even when they messed up, they created the whole Ishmael issue. Uh, they didn't ever quit. And God was able to like give him visualization. He's like, okay, go out, look at the stars. That's his, that's the number your seed's gonna be. And then, you know, he changed his name, he changed Sarah's name, so they would start saying what God said about them, gave them a new identity, if you will, let them leave that childlessness in the past, and gave them the name Abraham, which means a father of a multitude, and Sarah, the princess. So he kind of he started. This is the process of faith. God didn't quit them because they didn't quit him. So even if you've believed for anything, healing, your marriage, whatever, for your children, even if it's been years and years and years, and you think, why isn't God answering my prayer? He is answering your prayer. He's answering your prayer every time he instructs you, every time a word comes to you through a message or a song or a fellow believer, they say something that encourages you. God is walking you through the process of faith. And I'm so sorry, cameraman. I am moving. If I need to stay in a square, you're gonna have to put some tape down for me and set boundaries. I like to get up there eyeball to eyeball, you know what I'm saying? So they didn't quit. And I think that's important, and and he's and Abraham's called the father of our faith. But yet it took them over 20 years to receive what God promised. So let's be careful glorifying the instant over through faith and patience. They're both should be glorified. Because anytime someone walks walks out the promise of God, receives what God's promised him, that should that should glorify God. So I went back through. You don't have to turn there. I'm gonna I'm gonna refer to a lot of scripture. In fact, Tanya, if you don't mind, just hand them one of these because I'm gonna move fast on scriptures today. It's just one sheet, Tanya. Thank you. That's Tanya, my friend, who walks with me in faith. I went back to Hebrews 11. I started reading the Hall of Faith. I call it the Hall of Fame of Faith, where it lists by faith Abel, by faith Enoch, by faith Noah, which by the way, Enoch and Noah, it says of them they both walked with God. What does walking with somebody look like? Atini and I are walking partners. We walk every morning before work. Every day. Every day. Every day. Every day. Enoch and Noah are listed in the Hall of Fame of faith because they walked with God. Every day. By faith, Abraham. You know what it says about Abraham? He was a friend of God. What's that look like? Every day. Every day. Through faith, Sarah received strength to conceive. By faith, Isaac, by faith, Jacob, by faith, Joseph, by faith, Moses, by faith, the walls of Jericho fell. It didn't happen in a day. None of these things, the list goes on, he lists them. Faith was not for a moment. And this is what I see. And because I was raised in the charismatic movement, came through the charismatic movement. I was actually born in England, Arkansas. Yeah, just down the road. And uh my dad and Charles Caps were best friends, and they found the faith message together. And so it's it's I've watched things. And so I try to hit things that I've watched that I go, I don't want this next generation to fall in that pit. And one of the things was using faith like a parachute. I need healing. I need I need a parachute. Well, parachute's great, but I don't want to be free-falling and have to and have to be pulling for the cord. So this walk daily by faith, and I know a good book about everyday faith by Philip Steele, I highly recommend it. Um it's important, and what you're doing today and what you're doing on the daily, walking with God, and I'm not talking about such a checklist, I'm talking about a relationship. Because if you really want to enjoy faith and it not be you working faith, it's gonna be born out of trust. And trust is a huge part of faith, and it's not something we talk about very often. But if I'm gonna use my faith, I've never met you before. But if you tell me that you're gonna do something for me, it I would probably trust you because Michelle's got you here. But if I did if I just met you on the street, it would be a little iffy for me. You told me you were gonna do something, but it might be a little if what would build that trust now. If Tadia tells me she's gonna do something, I'll bet the family farm on it. Why? Because we've walked together every day for over 25 years. Physically, we've walked together, been walking partners for over 25 years. That relationship puts a different spin on faith and trust. And that's what you're doing when you worship. That's what you're doing when you sit down and read his word. You're building a trust that will get you through long haul situations. It's not my notes, but still good. Hebrews 10 38 tells us that the just shall live by faith. Not the just shall use faith. The just shall live by faith. What does it look like to live faith? It's a daily. It's a daily. And you know, I was so blessed to grow up under some of the most amazing ministries of faith and integrity for the last 50 years. Um I know that my dad and Charles Caps, I know that they worked very hard at getting the message out that faith was not a formula. It was not an ABC 123, but it was a relationship and it and that there's so many things that that we can receive from God that have already been given and and they're already promised to us. God's not having to do anything else. It's a matter of our receiver, us, our hearts being, us being receivers. And so when you feel tired, and we're talking about this longevity, this in faith for the for the long haul. In fact, I called it don't tap out, tap in. Because you know, when you're in a wrestling match, I don't know, my grandson went through this phase of liking wrestling. And I'm talking about the fake kind that just you just, you know, he was about eight at the time. And and, you know, if you get a if you get somebody down, you're in this tussle, you're in this wrestling match with this situation, with this person, they can tap out. They call the fight. It's over. I'm done. I quit. God did not call us to tap out. He called us to tap in. And if you need to study tapping in, go to John 15. Not today, but do a study on John 15. That we are in Christ.

unknown 12:51

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 12:51

That we are in him. And and just because you're tired, and the Lord said this to me, I even put it in quotations because it is a quote from what he said to me in the office. Just because you feel tired in your body or in your mind does not mean you're weak.

SPEAKER_01 13:09

Glory to God. Glory to God.

SPEAKER_00 13:12

It doesn't mean you're weak. And that just really went all over me because we we uh our son was killed in uh 2013 out at Arkansas Nuclear One. And it was a long haul, okay? It was a long haul, even though I knew he was born again, knew he was in heaven, you know, all the things. It's still a long haul because you miss them, right? And then we were in a legal fight for almost 11 years uh with Arkansas Nuclear One. And it was it was a faith fight. You were with me through a lot of that. Uh Tanya walked in the daily with me. It was a lot of stuff, just a lot of stuff. And what I what I learned in that time period is there was a lot of times I was tired of it. My body was tired, my mind was tired. I had to watch everything I said because of the lawsuit. I had to plan vacations around the law, it was just a lot, and I was tired, and I kept asking myself, why are you tired? You, you know, you're you're a you're a faith woman. Dun-da-da. You know, you're faith woman. And and when God said this to me for y'all, I was like, man, I wish you'd have said that to me, you know. And I'm sure he probably tried. But just because you feel tired in body or mind does not mean you are weak. And I thought about the days when my son Wade used to run cross country. And and they would run miles and miles and miles through all kinds of the woods and all kinds of stuff, cross-country running. And when you get close to the finish line, everybody would start yelling, finish strong! I'm talking about these kids. It was kind of gross. You didn't want to be near the finish line because they'd be throwing up. They were, I mean, they were exhausted, they were worn out mentally and physically, but were they weak?

unknown 15:10

No.

SPEAKER_00 15:12

Quit thinking you're weak. Quit thinking you're weak. Faith is not denial. Faith is not denial, it's direction. When we know where God's word is directing us, I'm telling you, it is victory every single time if we will stay the course. It's like when you're walking or you're running a 5K, or if your imagination can go bigger, a marathon. Mine stops at 5K. Um and you say, you know, you're you're you're on your third mile or whatever, and you're like, what was I thinking, even starting this? Why did I think God would heal me? Why did I think God would even what did I what I expect God to do in this situation with my kids? I wasn't the perfect mom. I oh, wait a minute. We got to do something with that thinking. We've got to do something with that. Faith is directional. And it's like when you're on that 5K and you've been running and you've been running, and then there's an arrow. Like they'll have arrows either painted on the pavement or signs up showing you the direction to go. Even though you still got two more miles to go, when you see the directional arrow, it puts something in you. I'm still in course. Girls, that's why we got to feed on the word. There's so many arrows in here, and they're directional. And faith will give you a direction. Maybe it's something you need to change that you're saying. Maybe it's something that you need to start meditating on, a scripture. When a scripture pings you, you know what I mean? Like you're reading it, or somebody reads it and they go, oh, that's good. Don't stop it. Oh, that's good. That's a directional arrow for you, and you need to follow it. And in long hauls, marathons, 5K's, life, life situations that are long, we've got to be looking for the arrows. Because they will embolden you, they will give you a fresh strength, a fresh breath air. And you know what? One day, there's an arrow, and you take that direction and you see the finish line. You're not at the finish line, but you see it. My dad used to call it a faith image. When you see it in the word, you've studied it, you've studied it, you studied healing, you've studied healing, you studied healing, but one day you see it. Like you can see it. You're not at the finish line yet. You might not feel it in your body, but you can see it. That's when you're in faith. And that's when things are about to change. But have you ever have you ever walked a race or ran a race? And and when you see the finish line, it's just like you don't even think about how tired you are. That's where he wants you to be. That's where he wants me to be. No matter how tired you feel in body or mind, somehow those directional arrows just fuel you. And I want today, and I believe the Lord wants today to be a directional arrow, that you're on the right path. When he gives you a word, when he gives you a thought, when you come across that book that just lights something up on the inside of you, don't walk away from that. Follow that arrow. And and you feel seen, you feel directed, and there's something about when you feel seen and directed, you're not a lost ship at sea. You're not out here just meandering around, just life just happening around you, and just whatever happens, happens. That is not the life God has planned for you. God sees you, and there is really a finish line for this situation that you're looking at. And faith is directional. It God will direct you. Go with me if you will. Let's get some word in here. Isaiah chapter 40. And man, I was just gonna go down to verse 29, but when I got to reading, I was like, okay, we got to start at 25. Isaiah 40. I'm reading out of the English Standard Version, but it's really close to the King James. So if you got King James, I don't know what Pastor Michelle teaches out of, so I should have asked. I do too. Whatever hits me, pings me. Yeah. Isaiah 40, starting in verse 25. To whom then will you compare me that I should be like him? says the Holy One. So it's a God talking. And he said, To whom will you compare me that I should be like him? Lift up your eyes on high and see who created these? He who brings out their host by number, the stars, calling them all by name, by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power, not one is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, saying, My way is hidden from the Lord. You know what he's saying? I see you. I see you. You know what sometimes we fall into, girls, is is we we know maybe God sees us in big situations, but that little thing, that little thing, I don't think that he doesn't see the little thing. Why do we think we're gonna wear God out? Who are we comparing him to? Us. We just answered verse 25. We're comparing him to us. He doesn't get tired. So in everything, in everything, anything that's troubling you, God has a word for it. He has a promise for it, he has a provision for it. It's just like in the Garden of Eden, everything they have need of was placed there. Well, the new covenant is the new garden of Eden. Everything we have need of is here. We are to cultivate it just as they were to cultivate the garden, but it's already there. Praise God. Don't think he's tired and don't dismiss small things. Why do you say, My way is hidden from the Lord and my right is disregarded by my God? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the The everlasting. He's the everlasting God. Everlasting. We are tapped into the everlasting God. That tells me I can everlast. That tells me I can outlast grief. I can outlast ten firms of attorneys from all over the world, Germany, all over the United States. Walking into those places should not be intimidating to me when I am tapped into the okay, ten years, eleven years? How did you do it? I have no idea, other than the daily. Tapped into the everlasting. Everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth, who does not faint or grow weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint. Okay, what if we can train our brains? And I have to work on this one. Because I have to fight not saying that I'm tired. I'm not saying that I'm not tired. That is true. I get tired. I get faint sometimes. Sometimes I want to quit things. But when I'm tapped into the everlasting God, I can say, He does not faint or grow weary. And I am tapped into him. He gives power to me when I'm faint. That's not saying, that's not denying. See, faith doesn't deny. It supersedes. I may be tired, but if I keep saying I'm tired, I'm identifying with tired. And you know what? Our bodies were made to listen to us. They are. So what if when we feel that in the long haul situations, especially or even in the daily, if we can train ourselves to say, huh? I was I woke up tired today. My dog, God love her, I'm speaking the word over. And get and giving her melatonin. She hears the coyotes. We live in the country. And she just wants in and out. And last night was like, okay, Satan, I see you for what you are right here. You know, but you know what I'm teaching on, right? He gives power to the faint. If you say, Well, I'm faint, I'm tired. Perfect. Perfect. Because that's who he gives power to. That makes you a power receiver. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no bite, he increases your strength. Oh, to be young again. Oh, great. Verse 30. Even youth shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall and exhausted. But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength. Anyone need renewed strength? I got seven grandkids out of two girls. I need renewed strength. Renewed strength. Oh, this is why you have kids while you're young. But he told me, I have renewed. Am I hitting some sayings around here? Shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. Y'all, how many times have we read this passage? But how many times have we spoke this passage when we're tired? That's the question. How many times have we applied it? Don't tap out. Tap in. Brother Hagin said, if you are ready to stand forever, it won't take very long. That's probably one of his most famous. I don't know. He's got a bunch. I think we should have a whole book of just sayings. Oh my gosh, these are so cute. If you're ready to stand forever, it won't take long. Now here's the tricky part. This is not in your notes, but uh whip over to Mark 11. I didn't notice what time I started, so if I go too long, sound man, just wave your arms. I came up during the you know the charismatic years of if you didn't fill a 90-minute tape, we had these things called tapes, they were called cassette tapes. And if you didn't fill up a 90-minute tape, my dad thought you had wasted good tape. So back then I was about a 30-minute speaker, so let's see, what first do I go to? Verse 24. Therefore I say unto you, this is Jesus speaking, what things soever you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them. Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them. When are we supposed to receive them? When we pray. So when we pray, we receive it, which means we're prepared to stand forever until we see it. If we've already received it, then what if it takes 20 years? If we've received it in here, we've conceived it in here. You know, I I conceived two children. But I didn't hold my hold them in my arms that day, but I knew they were real. I knew they were mine. When you conceive the word of God, when you take it and you say, This is mine, God promised it to me. I'm not letting go of this. Then you receive it when you pray. Then what if it takes a year? I'm not saying to expect it to. What I'm saying is, in your mind, you have your soul prepared. I am going to stand on this forever because it's mine. And I love something Nancy Dufrane said. She said, it doesn't matter how long you've been standing if what you're standing on is sure. And I thought that's so good because it doesn't matter how long you've been standing if what you're standing on is sure. But if you're unsure in what you're standing on, you will move. You will move off of it. And we don't want to have wishy-washy faith. Jesus called it no faith, little faith, a great faith. I want in the great faith category, don't you? Where we take God at His Word. The word that you have been standing on is forever settled in heaven. God's word is it didn't change by your circumstance. Scripture says his word is forever settled in heaven. And he does not change. There is no shadow of turning in him. And so one of the things that God taught me through the 13 years, it's been 13 years since Wade went to heaven. And one of the first revelations that God gave me, I mean, I was raised right, okay? I knew he was in heaven. I know John 10:10. I preached it at his funeral. I knew God didn't do it. Okay, so that's the foundation that I had, praise God. But the Lord told me one day, he said, Look, my husband was questioning me a little bit. He he was newer to the faith than I was. And he said, How can this happen? And and you know, John 10 10, John 10 10, babe. I said, either we believe this or we don't. And if we don't, let's go do something else on Sundays, which he would want to fish. You know, either we believe this or we don't. And the Lord said to me, You cannot judge the word by your circumstances. You have to judge your circumstances by the word. And the day we start saying, Well, I don't know about healing because Sister So-and-so was such a saint, and everybody, I mean, a hundred and ten thousand people were praying for her. Every prayer chain across Arkansas. Now what are you doing? You're judging the word by the circumstance. This is a tough, this is a tough revelation. You cannot judge the word by your circumstance. I don't understand why this happened to me. Every time, go back to John 10 10. If it's stealing, if it's killing, if it's destroying, it's the enemy. If it's life and life more abundantly, it's my Jesus. And so quit putting your life as Lord. Quit putting your circumstance as Lord and put the word over it. This is just how it is. My son's in heaven. Hallelujah. Praise his holy name. He left early, that stinks, it hurts. I deal with it on the daily, but this is what I know. I have a promise from my Savior. Eternal life. So you just supersede. You supersede the stupid thoughts that come to your head that try to get you to not be on a sure thing. I don't know. I don't know about that healing stuff. I don't know about that Holy Spirit stuff. I don't know about that prosperity stuff. I don't know about that provision. You know what? He's trying to make because you'll move off of it. And then you just take whatever life throws at you. I don't want that life. Time does not move God's promises. It does not move God's promises. This is another revelation the Lord gave to me about year, I would say about year eight, nine, ten of the lawsuit portion of this that we went through. He told me to throw away the calendar. Throw away the calendar. Because I kept saying, okay, if the lawsuit's over by, if the lawsuit's over by, if we're through with this, if we can close this chapter by, and then I would set times. Yes, set a time to receive, but the time you receive is when you pray. Reception's not out here. That's manifestation. Reception's now. As soon as you can grip, grip a hold of faith, if you could grip a halt of the of the promise, that's when you receive it. And then you watch it manifest. And there's a whole different attitude in us when we do that, because it'll be a place of surety, of rest, of peace. I can sleep at night. And when God gave me the simple arrow, because I had been running a very long race, a very hard race. And about year eight or nine, I needed a directional arrow. I needed to know he still saw me, he was still in this thing with me, and that we were still going to cross this finish line and we were going to win. And so when that directional arrow came, it was as simple as throw away the calendar. Now I knew that was odd because that was not my thought. Because I could probably have told you how many days we had been in suit. Now I'm just using my example because you don't want me to use yours, okay? So throw away the calendar. Stand, stand, stand, and stand. Stand. How long? Stand? Stand. What is what is the option of not standing? Tapping out. This is what I've seen. People get excited, and we go to the parable of the sower in Mark 4 and read it. This is what I've seen when people get excited about the faith message, about the the truth of God's already done this. I just receive it. Speak it. Believe it. Is that if if time goes past, people tap out because they're not rooted in themselves. Time is beautiful if you're growing. It's taking you somewhere. God is willing to walk through this process of faith with you. He's willing, just like he did Abraham and Sarah. I mean, sometimes I think, God, what was that like for you? I mean, you promised them this child. And then they're bringing in the maid. Well, we've all done it. We've all brought in our own Ishmaels and tried to help God out. But the truth is, God never gave up on them. He continued to teach them because they were willing to be taught. They didn't fail. They won. We're an inheritance of that. We are a star in Abraham's sky. When God looked up and said, Do you see those stars? That's your descendants. I'm going to name that star Susan. I know. We've got to get to that attitude of not tapping out. Okay, let's go to Psalm 119. I used this. I said it, but let's read it. Psalm 119, verse 86. All your commandments are sure. Well, there you go. I think he's trying to make a point. His word is sure. He said, they persecute me. He's talking about people. They persecute me with falsehood. Help me. There's times I've gone to God and I said, okay, my body's tired, my mind's tired. Help me. I'm going to draw from your strength. God is not scared when you're tired. He's ready. All we got to do is call upon him, and he will infuse us with his strength. Verse 87. They have almost made an end of me on earth, but I have not forsaken your precepts. I have not tapped out. In your steadfast love, give me life. Steadfast. In your steadfast love, give me life that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth. Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens. Your faithfulness, it endures to all generations. You have established the earth and it stands fast. Look, the very fact that we're on here and not spinning off of this thing is proof that God is still God and that He stands fast. By your appointment they stand this day, for all things are your servants. If your law had not been my delight, here's where we're going. If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. Is his law, is his word, is life with him your delight? Because if it's not, affliction will make you quit. If your law, I'm telling you, if your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. And I'll never forget your precepts, verse 93. For by them you have given me life. Look, hard things, tough things, aggravating things, frustrating things. We have to turn to these passages and we have to build ourselves back up. We have to control this mind. We have to stop looking for a place to quit. You know, if you're walking on a balanced beam, have you ever walked on a balance beam? It looks so easy when you're watching gymnast. But if you they are not looking at the ground. I can even just me up here in wedges. If I look to this side or that side, trying to walk this balanced beam, I'm looking for a place to land. Guess where I'm going? Where I'm looking. Tanya and I have found this even when we're walking. If we're walking down the road and we're looking at a house, we're going to the ditch. Because we're made to go where we're looking. What are we looking at? You don't ride a bronch. I'm sorry, my dad was a cowboy, he was a roper, but you don't ride a bronch looking for a safe place to land. We're staying on until we hear the buzzer. Because if you're looking for a soft place to land, you're going off. So we have to finish strong. And just because we feel tired doesn't mean we're weak. It just means we need to tap in. And there's just many days that you're not going to feel strong. But we don't live by how we feel. It's real how you feel, but it can change. It can change. Because there's many days I have felt, I haven't felt strong, but yet I've found strength. And there's a big difference. It might not sound like a big revelation, but it really is. If you want strength for the long haul, train today. You know, the daily can seem kind of mundane. But I want to encourage you, if you have trouble, if you have trouble disciplining yourself to read the word, to study the word, get a devotional. Well, I don't read a devotional. I just, you know, I if you have trouble training yourself, then get a devotional and let it start you. Oh, that then there will be all kinds of arrows telling you to go to this passage and this passage and this passage. Things will start coming to your mind. And God's going to take you where he needs you to be, even if that day's devotional doesn't have anything to do with your dealing with. It opens you up to hear him. You're there, you're putting yourself at his feet, and you've got to put yourself at his feet in order to hear what he's saying. And so if you need discipline to train yourself, do something to train yourself. Make up your mind. I'm going to listen to something for 30 minutes a day. When I'm in my car, well, I don't have time. I'm in the bathtub for 30 minutes. I am a bather. I'm professional. I got the scents, I've got the oils, I've got the whole thing going on in there. And that is my time with the Lord. It's my undisturbed, nobody bothers me when those doors shut. You know what? I do have time. I just have to, I just have to find it. When you're driving, you have time. What do you, what do we think about when we're driving? Have you ever caught yourself and think, I could be praying in the spirit right now. And what am I even thinking about? What's going in next door to watch them, you know? We have time, ladies. We've got to discipline ourselves for the daily. Because when it comes to the long haul, you want to have already walked with him. So what you're doing today is important. What Michelle, Pastor Michelle, what the church offers you here. I thank God that you're here because it tells me you're training, that you're doing the daily, and that you're becoming skillful and you're practicing the disciplines of daily victory. If you don't overcome your flesh by getting it out of bed and getting here, good luck. Overcoming your flesh when you've got the flu. That's good. You're welcome. This is tapping in. This is tapping in. It's not some glorious moment. It's this daily discipline. And for you don't have to turn there, but in 1 Samuel 16, the prophet Samuel anointed David to be king. He didn't look like it, he didn't wear the cross. He didn't fight Goliath that day. Nope, you know what he did? He served the king. He wrote songs. He worshipped. He walked in submission. He took care of his father's sheep. He killed a lion. He killed a bear. He ran errands for his dad. He dealt with family issues. He lived in covenant understanding. Oh, David killed Goliath. Yes, he did. But he killed Goliath after he served the king. He wrote the songs. He worshipped. He walked in submission. He took care of his father's sheep. He killed the lion. He killed the bear. He ran errands for his dad. He dealt with the family issues. He lived in covenant understanding. See, people may look strong and it may look like an extraordinary act. When most of the time it was actually the result of daily discipline. And David even made it plain. He said, I killed the lion and I killed the bear. And this uncircumcised Philistine will be as one of them. So it's you look at people, you say, Oh, Pastor Michelle, she's so strong. I mean, look at her background, look what she came out of. That didn't happen in a day. That was daily discipline. Probably some things where you probably thought, can I do this? Is this real? But working through those moments and keeping that daily discipline is what's going to bring you to what other people will think is an extraordinary act. Because people would look at me during this process with Wade, and they would say, You're so strong. And I wanted to look at them and go, I am Mush. I was strictly running on faith adrenaline. Because there was nothing, there was, there was nothing there for me. And my first words to Tanya when when we left after finding out Wade was gone, she was waiting for me at the house. And when I walked in the door, I looked at her and I said, I will not let this kill me. First words matter. Yes. Praise God. Praise God. Start doing that. Where you need to speak, start speaking. David was not wearing the crown when he got anointed. You're anointed, it may not look like it. But you are. So do the daily that's in front of you. Be obedient, walk in submission, serve the king, write the songs, worship, run his, run the father's errands, deal with the family issues and live in covenant understanding. And then if an extraordinary moment comes and you have to overcome what some would call a giant, you've disciplined yourself and you'll be ready for it. And you'll walk out the victor. See the things that no one sees matter. Alright, let's talk quickly about staying tapped in. How, what does that look like? Because if I can get up here and you know, sounds great, but what about tomorrow morning? What do you do? I'm just gonna give, throw some things out to you. My friend Tanya taught me this one in the last couple of weeks, refreshed it for me. If you want to stay tapped into his strength, have a thankful heart. So easy to look at the negatives. The social world, the culture of our of our world right now is negative. And we can go read it. He wrote it to Timothy. Unthankfulness is one of the signs of the end days. And I'm talking about unthankfulness on steroids. Like, it's crazy. You can't even find anything positive, hardly. So you're gonna have to generate that with keeping a thankful heart. Psalm 69, 30, these are all in your notes. I will praise the name of God with a song, and I will magnify him with thanksgiving. So when you're thankful, you're magnifying God, where God looks bigger, because what does magnifying do? It shows his detail. It shows how beautiful, how gracious, how providing he is. So when you're praising God with a song and you magnify him with thanksgiving, your problem doesn't look like the giant. It's just an uncircumcised Philistine. Which means it wasn't from God. Another way to stay tapped in is, of course, reading, meditating, and doing the word. I lumped them all together because they all got to go together. Reading, meditating on the word and doing it. When you get a ping on a scripture, man, sit on that thing. Study those words, look them up, put some, put some heart into it. I put down Psalm 119, verse 10. The word is a lamp unto my feet, and it is a light to my path. This is where a lot of your directional arrows are going to come from when you're reading and meditating the word. His word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path. That's a directional arrow. My dad's favorite passage, Joshua 1, 7 and 8. Only be thou strong and very courageous, which tells me I have an option. I can be weak and scared, or I can be strong and very courageous. That thou mayest observe to do according to all the law which Moses, my servant, commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou may prop mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. Man, I put that in the King James. Whithersoever thou goest. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth. You're going to keep it in your mouth. But thou shalt meditate therein day and night. That means keep it, keep it, keep mauling it over. When circumstances arise that look negative, then you meditate back on that word. That thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do. You're not going to observe to do it if you're not meditating on it. With every good intention in the world, you're not going to observe to do it if you're not meditating on it. That you would do what's written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord thy God is with you wherever you go. That's a great promise. The next one I have down is your prayer life. And I'm putting parentheses relationship because I'm not talking about, you know, I think sometimes people think, well, I don't know how to pray. I have people say this to me, I don't know how to pray. Do you know how to talk? And if you need to grow in your praying, God will grow you. He'll walk you through that. But just start off talking to him. You're not going to scare him. If you're feeling a certain way and you need to talk to him about it and you need his help, help with it, it's just amazing. Some people think they're going to fake God out. I like how the psalmist was. My flesh feels like, you know, but God. Right? He doesn't stay wallering in the flesh and his feelings, but he's not afraid to say it to God. But then he says, But I will trust in you. Or I will yet worship you. So he says it, God's not afraid of that. And that's another thing I saw in the faith message. We're like, have to fake it till we make it. That does not work. God's not afraid to know that you need help with this. And then you look for his directional arrows, and then you start speaking in that direction. And you're going to find strength. So it's about relationship. Where there's not a love relationship, faith. Faith is just not developed outside of love. Fall in love with God. Then you'll trust Him. Psalm 27, verse 13 says, I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. So if you're not believing to see the goodness of the Lord, you're going to faint. I like to turn verses inside out. I to see the positive and the negative. Okay, if I do this, then I'm not going to faint. If I don't do this, I'm going to get weak and faint. I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of life. Do you believe to see the goodness of the Lord in the circumstance that's coming to your mind? Are you just going to live with it the way it is? It's easy to do. It's easy to get passive. Wait on the Lord. Just intertwine with him. Let his strength become one with you. Right? Wait on the Lord. Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord. Lean on him. Intertwine with him. Matthew 26, 41 says, watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. He knows. He knows your frame to dust. That's why he's giving us arrows today. So we can tap in instead of tapping out. Jude 20 says, but beloved, building up yourself on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost. Keep yourselves in the love of God. If you're in a strife, a strife-filled situation with an in-law or a kid or a mate, you can keep yourselves in the love of God, praying in the Holy Ghost, building up yourself on your most holy faith. Looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. We're expecting to see, aren't we? Another thing you can use is praise. My mother used to say, praise is a tool. It's a tool. We see it in Scripture. We see God using it, sending the praisers out first before the Ark of the Covenant. You know, there's just so many times that we see it, the praisers going out before a battle. I don't feel like praising. Praise anyway. Praising, it's a choice. He is worthy. He is worthy of our praise. Your circumstance is not above him. So Psalm 34, 1 through 4 says, I will bless the Lord. Oh. These aren't just happy songs for happy moments. You know, get Spotify or something on your phone and build you a library of happy songs. And when you're having trouble with your mind and your soul and your body, I I danced like an idiot this morning. You know, just I just have it on, had a little library on Spotify, and I'm like doing aerobics in the bathroom, you know, just and I was tired. My dog, you remember? My dog. I'm tired, and I'm thinking, okay, you know, I've got to pick up 10 y. Just just stop. Just stop and praise. I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord. The humble shall hear thereof and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord and He heard me and He delivered me from all my fears. You know what He's going to hear me doing? Praising.

unknown 56:15

Praise God.

SPEAKER_00 56:17

It's like faith is like lightning. And you are the, and I mean, God is like this, power of God is like this lightning in the atmosphere. You know when a thunderstorm's coming, Arkansas's known for it. Especially down here. I remember growing up in England. That's a tornado territory down there. And you could like feel this energy in the air. All these promises of God are in his word. And they're just looking for a place. He's looking. The scripture says his eyes are going to and fro across the earth, looking for someone to whom he could show himself strong to. And faith puts that lightning rod up, and you're like, praise. I believe in you. I'm choosing to believe in you. Guess what? He's looking for it. He's looking for you. And praise will lift that rod up. The next one, and I'll end with well, I've got one more. Guard your heart gates. Guard your heart gates. Your heart gates are your eyes, your ears, your mouth, and your feet. I've added feet. I know it's a new one. I usually say eyes, ears, and mouth. These are the gateways to your heart. What's influencing you is what you're seeing, what you're hearing, what you're saying, and where you're going. Proverbs 4.20, my son, attend to my words. That's a circumstance. Attend to my words. Incline your ear unto my sayings, not what they're saying. Incline your ear to my sayings. Let them not depart from your eyes. Keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those that find them, their health to all their flesh. Keep your heart or guard your heart with all diligence. For out of it are the issues of life. Oh, I got an issue. Let me tell you, girl, I got an issue. Well, guess where it came from?

unknown 58:18

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 58:20

Your heart. Put away from thee a forward mouth and perverse lips put far from thee. Let your eyes look right on. So we got the mouth, we got the eyes. And let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand or to the left, and remove thy foot from evil. So where we go, what we see, what we hear, what we say, did I get them all? The senses are to be used in his direction, not the direction of the flesh and the soul. He just listed them all. And the senses will try to hold you in in the uh soulish realm. They'll try to hold you in the soulish realm. Well, we don't live out of the soulish realm. We're a spirit. We have a soul and we live in a body. And our spirit, uh well, our soul and our body are our servants, not our Lord's. The last thing is have a faith community. And I'm at church, yes, definitely. Uh I don't know where I would be if my parents had not brought me up and I didn't have that community of faith that has stood with me through thick and thin, through my stupid years, through my wise years, through all the years, no matter what, stuck with me and been an encouragement to me. But also your your best, your inner circle, your besties. It's very important who they are. Colossians 3:16 says, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. You need someone who is walking with you in teaching and wisdom. We need the iron-sharpening iron. We need people that'll look at us. You know, Tanya's taught me in the last couple weeks because I know I was complaining. It was tax season and I was complaining. And she was believing God for something, and God talked to her about not complaining, and she shared that with me, which taught me to shut my mouth and quit complaining. Because you know what? You don't have to pay taxes if you're not making money. It's a great revelation. I'll send y'all a message next April see that you remember. But you know, we need those friends, we need those people, and we need to not get offended. We need to not get offended when they are when they are being used as a directional arrow, it should encourage us. Is there anybody here that needs prayer this morning? Um anybody in a situation where you need to start.