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Speaker 1: Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick.

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Speaker 2: I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast.

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Speaker 2: Be sure to subscribe so we can get you these

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Speaker 2: new sermons every week.

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Speaker 1: I hope you're blessed today. How many are ready for

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Speaker 1: the Word of God today?

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Speaker 3: Hey? Hey, we got two thousand people in Houston, Texas.

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Speaker 1: Let's love of them.

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Speaker 3: How many in housday are ready for the Word of

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Speaker 3: God today? Yes, Lord, it's gonna be a good day.

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Speaker 3: And you know how you can know that. Look who

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Speaker 3: you're sitting next to. Why would God sit you next

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Speaker 3: to somebody that good looking if it wasn't gonna.

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Speaker 1: Be a good day. Praise the Lord.

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Speaker 3: I am going to be sharing today from Exodus chapter four.

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Speaker 3: Please remain standing for the word of God. The grass withers,

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Speaker 3: the flower fades, but the word of the Lord stands forever.

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Speaker 3: Y'all need to learn the Bible better so you can

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Speaker 3: quote it when I quote it. The grass withers, the

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Speaker 3: flower fades, but the word of the Lord stands forever.

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Speaker 1: Amen. The word of the Lord in Exodus chapter.

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Speaker 4: Four may be a familiar scripture, but there is one

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Speaker 4: thing I want.

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Speaker 1: To highlight for your life today. By the way.

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Speaker 3: If you're watching online, just put in the comments I'm here,

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Speaker 3: let us know that you're joining too. And if you're

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Speaker 3: here in person, just go ahead and shout it at

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Speaker 3: me to say I'm here.

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Speaker 4: I'm awake, I had my coffee, and I want to

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Speaker 4: break through.

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Speaker 1: All right.

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Speaker 3: When we see this meeting in Exodus chapter four, we

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Speaker 3: are walking in to the middle.

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Speaker 1: Of a mess. That's where God likes to.

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Speaker 4: Work the most.

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Speaker 1: Chapter four, Verse.

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Speaker 3: One, Moses answered, what if they do not believe me

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Speaker 3: or listen to me and say the Lord did not

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Speaker 3: appear to you.

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Speaker 1: Then the Lord said to him.

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Speaker 4: What is that in your hand?

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Speaker 5: A staff, he replied. The Lord said, throw it on

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Speaker 5: the ground. I feel like he probably hollered at him

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Speaker 5: because pretty pretty weird thing he's asking him to do here.

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Speaker 5: So the Lord said it with confidence, throw it on

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Speaker 5: the ground.

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Speaker 3: Moses threw it on the ground, and it became a snake.

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Speaker 1: Oh, this is getting worse, not better.

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Speaker 3: When your staff becomes a snake, it looks like you're

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Speaker 3: going backwards when you need God to comfort you.

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Speaker 1: A staff, he replied, And.

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Speaker 4: The Lord said, throw it on the ground.

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Speaker 3: And Moses threw it on the ground and it became

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Speaker 3: a snake, and he ran from it.

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Speaker 1: Well, that makes sense, I would do that too.

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Speaker 3: But then the Lord said, reach out your hand and

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Speaker 3: take it by the tail. So Moses reached out and

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Speaker 3: took hold of the snake, and it turned back into

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Speaker 3: a staff in his hand. This said the Lord, is

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Speaker 3: so that they may believe that the Lord, the God

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Speaker 3: of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,

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Speaker 3: and the God of Jacob. Is so that they may

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Speaker 3: believe that that God has appeared to you. Now drop down,

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Speaker 3: please to verse number seventeen. Because God gives him two

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Speaker 3: more signs to show him that he's with him, that

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Speaker 3: he's to perform in the palace before Pharaoh and in

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Speaker 3: the desert before the Israelites. But Moses argues with God.

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Speaker 3: He even tries to say, I'm not a very good speaker.

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Speaker 4: How can I.

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Speaker 3: Tell Pharaoh to let your people go when I'm not

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Speaker 3: even eloquent? Well, the Lord said, I'm not asking you

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Speaker 3: to take a speech clash.

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Speaker 1: I'm asking you to take a faith step.

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Speaker 3: Because I don't need your ability, I need your availability.

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Speaker 1: Who is that for today? Right? Right? Right, right?

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Speaker 3: But let me show you one more thing. When God

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Speaker 3: tells Moses, well, I'm gonna give your brother Aaron. He's

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Speaker 3: gonna help you. Since you can do it alone.

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Speaker 4: I've already got your partner lined up.

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Speaker 1: But watch this.

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Speaker 3: In verse seventeen, he says, but take this staff in

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Speaker 3: your hand so you can perform the signs with it.

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Speaker 3: So you can perform the signs with it, and then

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Speaker 3: go to verse nineteen. Now the Lord had said to

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Speaker 3: Moses and Midian, and go back to Egypt, for all

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Speaker 3: those who wanted.

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Speaker 4: To kill you are dead.

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Speaker 3: So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on

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Speaker 3: a donkey, and started back to Egypt, and he took

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Speaker 3: the staff of God in his hand.

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Speaker 1: I love that.

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Speaker 4: Today.

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Speaker 3: The Lord told me to give you a word, and

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Speaker 3: the word is this. It still works. It's still worse. Hallelujah.

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Speaker 1: God woke me up this morning at four in the morning.

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Speaker 3: And said, just get ready to tell somebody it still works.

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Speaker 1: So I got good news for you today.

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Speaker 3: In spite of what it is that has been reverberating

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Speaker 3: in your ear causing you to fear, the Lord said,

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Speaker 3: it still works.

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Speaker 1: Touch all seven people you can reach and say it

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Speaker 1: still works. It still works. It still works, and you

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Speaker 1: may be seated on your way to your seat. Shout

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Speaker 1: it still works, It still works. Let's talk about this

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Speaker 1: for a moment. What a job? What a job?

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Speaker 3: Right? We understand Moses's hesitation because we understand that.

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Speaker 1: He's over his head.

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Speaker 3: You mean you want me to go to the most

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Speaker 3: powerful man in the world and tell him to let

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Speaker 3: your people go, who have been in Egypt for four

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Speaker 3: hundred and thirty years.

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Speaker 4: Wow, we understand his hesitation.

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Speaker 3: We have grace for Moses's need for clarification when he says,

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Speaker 3: what if they don't believe in me?

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Speaker 4: I mean, of.

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Speaker 3: Course you would wonder that if they had rejected you

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Speaker 3: forty years earlier. Do you remember how the story of

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Speaker 3: Moses begins. He's put in a basket and he is

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Speaker 3: discovered by Pharaoh's daughter, But he is raised as an Egyptian,

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Speaker 3: So he is Egyptian by background, but he's Hebrew by birth.

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Speaker 3: And this presents a conflict because to be an Egyptian

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Speaker 3: is one thing, to be a Hebrew is another.

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Speaker 4: But Moses is both.

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Speaker 3: And because Moses is both, he is uniquely positioned to

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Speaker 3: do this job. But Moses, like many of us, has

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Speaker 3: been spending years of his life paying the price of

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Speaker 3: regret for a misias that he made earlier with the

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Speaker 3: passion that he did not know how to manage, because

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Speaker 3: God had put it in his heart for a long

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Speaker 3: time to help his people. But one day, when he

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Speaker 3: saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave, he killed the

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Speaker 3: Egyptian hit him in the sand. The next day, two

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Speaker 3: Hebrews were fighting, and he said, why are y'all fighting?

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Speaker 4: Y'all are supposed to be on the same side.

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Speaker 3: I wish we could preach some of that in politics today,

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Speaker 3: like I wish we could preach some of that in

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Speaker 3: the church today. We're supposed to be on the same side. Really,

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Speaker 3: y'all are fighting. And one of them turned to him

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Speaker 3: with an attitude and said, you're going to kill me

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Speaker 3: like you did the Egyptian. And Moses random Midian because

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Speaker 3: he said what I did must have become known.

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Speaker 4: And he ran and he ran, and he ran and

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Speaker 4: he ran.

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Speaker 1: Until a well appeared.

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Speaker 3: And Moses's name means drawn out of water. And isn't

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Speaker 3: it interesting that he met his wife drawing water for

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Speaker 3: her from a well. He finds out that her father's

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Speaker 3: name is Jethro, and he settles in tending.

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Speaker 1: Sheep for Jethro. But now God has a job for.

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Speaker 3: Moses that is bigger than Jethro. And God says, I

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Speaker 3: need you to go, And Moses.

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Speaker 1: Said, I don't know if they'll believe this.

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Speaker 3: First of all, who am I to go to Pharaoh?

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Speaker 3: And secondly, who are you? What do I tell them

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Speaker 3: about all of this? So as we settle into the text,

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Speaker 3: we understand that it's a mess because Moses is a

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Speaker 3: murderer who's being turned into a messenger. And that's always

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Speaker 3: messy when God gives you an assignment that contradicts your

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Speaker 3: current understanding of your identity, because whenever God gives you

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Speaker 3: something to do, you will try to overlay who you

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Speaker 3: think you are onto what he's called you to do.

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Speaker 3: But Moses is about to find out that God works

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Speaker 3: in crazy ways. Now, as much as I respect Moses's

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Speaker 3: decision to do what God called him to do, we

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Speaker 3: need to be direct about the fact that he doubted God.

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Speaker 3: He doubted God so much that God became angry with him.

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Speaker 4: But God's anger did not cancel the assignment.

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Speaker 3: God simply sent him forward in power as he leaned

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Speaker 3: on his staff. I'm going to talk about the staff

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Speaker 3: in a moment, But I want to make this personal.

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Speaker 3: First of all. A few years ago, I had something

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Speaker 3: that God had called me to do, and I became

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Speaker 3: very intimidated about it, and I had a bad attitude

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Speaker 3: about it, but I did it anyway. After I did it,

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Speaker 3: I was driving home and God had so handled all

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Speaker 3: the things that I was worried about.

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Speaker 4: That I didn't even have to deal with them when

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Speaker 4: I got there.

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Speaker 3: So I felt grateful, but I also felt guilty because I.

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Speaker 4: Had made it to be this huge thing in my mind.

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Speaker 4: I mean, how many of you have done this before?

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Speaker 3: I made it to be this huge thing in my mind, like, oh,

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Speaker 3: I got to call my coach and tell him I'm

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Speaker 3: not coming back next year, and my coach is going

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Speaker 3: to kill me.

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Speaker 4: Your coaches ain't going.

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Speaker 1: To kill you. Your coach is just.

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Speaker 4: Going to say thank you. But you make it out

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Speaker 4: to be this.

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Speaker 3: Huge thing in your mind. You make it out to

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Speaker 3: be something so much bigger than it is. And then

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Speaker 3: a lot of times God just deals with Jezebela and

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Speaker 3: you never even have to.

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Speaker 4: And it almost made.

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Speaker 3: Me feel so guilty about my attitude that I couldn't

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Speaker 3: even enjoy the achievement of doing the thing God had

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Speaker 3: called me to do. It's like when you take your

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Speaker 3: kids on a vacation, but now you're going to have

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Speaker 3: to send them to therapy.

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Speaker 1: To deal with the way that you acted on vacation.

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Speaker 1: Come on, talk to me, Talk to me, or I'll prophesie.

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Speaker 1: It's the feeling of like, God, I'm so sorry. So

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Speaker 1: I was coming home in.

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Speaker 3: My car and it just went so beautifully, but I

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Speaker 3: had been so burdened about it, and I just felt

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Speaker 3: bad about it, and I couldn't even enjoy how good

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Speaker 3: it went because I felt so guilty. I was like,

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Speaker 3: I had such a bad attitude.

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Speaker 1: And the Lord showed me something.

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Speaker 3: Sometimes great faith is taking the right action with a

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Speaker 3: bad attitude. I'm gonna say it again for the note takers.

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Speaker 3: Sometimes great faith is taking the right action with a

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Speaker 3: bad attitude. And as I was praying to the Lord,

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Speaker 3: I was like, I'm so sorry I had such a

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Speaker 3: bad attitude.

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Speaker 1: You took care of it.

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Speaker 3: You handled it. I didn't even have to worry about it. God,

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Speaker 3: I was so worried, I was so stressed. I complained

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Speaker 3: so much, and then you just did it. And I'm

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Speaker 3: so sorry God that I doubted you. And it was

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Speaker 3: like the Lord spoke to me. He said, you're embarrassed

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Speaker 3: because you doubted. I'm proud because you did it. I

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Speaker 3: don't know who is for, but the heart of the

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Speaker 3: Father wanted to say that to you today, that you

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Speaker 3: have been beating yourself up so much about your doubts

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Speaker 3: that you are not even celebrating how much you have

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Speaker 3: done and how far you have come and how many

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Speaker 3: ways you have changed, because all you keep focusing on

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Speaker 3: is God. I'm so sorry that I had such a

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Speaker 3: bad attitude God. I'm so sorry that I blew up

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Speaker 3: at the kids like that. Well, at least you didn't

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Speaker 3: kill them. I mean, at least they're still here. And

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Speaker 3: the Bible says if you train up a child and

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Speaker 3: the way that they should go when they're old, they

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Speaker 3: won't depart from it. That means all you got to

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Speaker 3: do is not kill them, and God will fix it.

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Speaker 3: In the meantime. Just let them live. Somebody shall let

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Speaker 3: them live. And some days that's all you can do

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Speaker 3: is just to say, hey, I didn't do that perfectly,

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Speaker 3: but I did it. The first point of my message

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Speaker 3: is sometimes you've got to do it doubting. Sometimes you've

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Speaker 3: got to do it. Doubting notice in the text that

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Speaker 3: Moses's first response to the assignment is not gratitude. Moses's

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Speaker 3: first response to the assignment is not to receive it,

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Speaker 3: but to run. And just in case, you're dealing with

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Speaker 3: something in your life right now and you're looking at

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Speaker 3: it like a snake on the ground that God has

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Speaker 3: told you to grab by the.

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Speaker 1: Tail, that's okay. It is natural to.

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Speaker 3: Run from something that you have never seen in this

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Speaker 3: form before. And I am concerned that you are beating

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Speaker 3: yourself so much up about your fear that you have

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Speaker 3: not properly contextualized the magnitude of the.

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Speaker 1: Faith that it took for you to be where you are.

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Speaker 4: I don't to tell me one time.

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Speaker 3: I don't like when I go to church when the

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Speaker 3: preacher just tells me I'm doing good. It makes me

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Speaker 3: feel good. I just need the preacher to step on

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Speaker 3: my toes, you know. Man, just slap me in the face. Man,

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Speaker 3: just spank me a little bit. I'm like, dude, I

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Speaker 3: don't that's not my gig. I don't know what you

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Speaker 3: need to call somebody else for all that you just mentioned.

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Speaker 3: And Mae, may maybe it's because everything I ever did

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Speaker 3: for God.

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Speaker 1: I did it doubting. Every sermon I ever preached to you.

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Speaker 4: My hands were shaken while I held my pen. And

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Speaker 4: I'll show you my handwriting and you'll believe me.

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Speaker 3: Then you'll say, Pastor Stephen would have been a serial

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Speaker 3: killer in another life. Look at that handwriting. You'd be

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Speaker 3: psychoanalyzing me. No, it's because I had to do it doubting. Yeah,

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Speaker 3: you know, Graham, I think Exodus for to one is

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Speaker 3: my whole preaching life verse, because this is the verse

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Speaker 3: that I felt the most preaching up here.

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Speaker 4: What if they don't believe me or listen to me?

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Speaker 3: I wish my biggest preaching verse was Isaiah six, Ay

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Speaker 3: here am I send me? But really my preaching verse

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Speaker 3: how I feel is what if they don't believe me

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Speaker 3: or listen to me?

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Speaker 4: Now?

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Speaker 3: I want to start this sermon this way because I'm

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Speaker 3: going to encourage you in a moment about the things

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Speaker 3: in your life that look impossible to you right now.

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Speaker 3: Let me be less vague than that, the current thing

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Speaker 3: in your life that you are doubting about. I don't

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Speaker 3: even necessarily mean you're doubting God. You might just be

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Speaker 3: doubting you. I don't even mean that you doubt that

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Speaker 3: God is good. I just mean that you feel like

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Speaker 3: you are not good enough. And everything that I have

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Speaker 3: ever done for God, I have never.

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Speaker 1: Felt good enough to do. So do with that way.

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Speaker 1: You will judge me if you.

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Speaker 3: Want to make fun of me, if you want tell

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Speaker 3: me that I should have more confidence in Christ, if

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Speaker 3: you must.

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Speaker 1: But everything I ever.

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Speaker 4: Did for God, I did it doubting.

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Speaker 3: Every song I ever wrote from the Lord I did

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Speaker 3: feeling like a bad singer. Every chord I ever strummed

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Speaker 3: to write a hymn for our church to sing, I

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Speaker 3: did it wishing that I knew more music theory. You

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Speaker 3: don't understand what I'm saying. Everything I ever did for God.

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Speaker 3: Every time I ever played back one of my preaching

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Speaker 3: clips and listen to it, I had to cringe to

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Speaker 3: find the clip because I didn't even like the way

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Speaker 3: I sounded.

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Speaker 1: Everything I ever did for God, I did it doubting,

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Speaker 1: but I did it. But I did it.

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Speaker 3: And sometimes great faith is not eliminating doubt. It is

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Speaker 3: looking at doubt right in them face and telling doubt.

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Speaker 1: You can sit in the passenger.

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Speaker 3: Seat, but you can't drive because we're doing this high five.

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Speaker 3: Somebody say, I'm doing this. There's a whole word in

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Speaker 3: this right now. Do it doubting, but do it. Do

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Speaker 3: it afraid, but do it. Do it with suicidal thoughts,

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Speaker 3: but do it.

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Speaker 1: Live another day, thinking you don't deserve to be on

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Speaker 1: the earth. But live another day. Take another breath. Feeling anxious,

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Speaker 1: but take another breath.

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Speaker 3: Give God a praise, not feeling a goose moump. But

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Speaker 3: lift your hands. Lift your hands with your shoulder hurting,

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Speaker 3: but lift your hands. Lift your hands with a back back,

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Speaker 3: but lift your hands. Do it. And I'll tell you something.

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Speaker 3: Worship will work whether you feel it or not. I said,

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Speaker 3: worship will work, whether you feel it or not. Tell

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Speaker 3: somebody it'll work. It'll work. Worship still works. Worship still

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Speaker 3: works when it's the middle of the night and there's

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Speaker 3: nobody around to listen to you cry, and you cry

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Speaker 3: out to God saying, when my heart is overwhelmed, lead

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Speaker 3: me to the rock that is higher than I It'll work.

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Speaker 3: It'll work, yeah, And I know it will work because

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Speaker 3: the people of God in Exodus chapter four had been

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Speaker 3: enslaved for four centuries, and Moses has been in exile

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Speaker 3: for four decades. But this text pops up into the

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Speaker 3: transitional moment to remind us that it still works.

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Speaker 1: Because God said to Moses, watched this. The cries of

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Speaker 1: my people have reached heaven. Was He's saying, I heard.

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Speaker 1: I heard.

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Speaker 3: And even as the burdens of the people grew heavier,

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Speaker 3: God says, I heard. See you think when it doesn't happen.

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Speaker 1: God didn't hear.

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Speaker 3: So for all of those years that Moses tended sheep,

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Speaker 3: been thought it's over, I blew it. For all those

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Speaker 3: years that you thought, if I could just go back

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Speaker 3: and do it different, I would.

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Speaker 1: For all those years that you have thought it was over.

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Speaker 3: For all those years that they prayed, the people pray,

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Speaker 3: God send us a deliverer. God send us asign. God

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Speaker 3: set us free. God came down to Moses to say

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Speaker 3: it worked. So I want to remind you today that

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Speaker 3: your prayers aren't pointless, even if you don't have proof

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Speaker 3: that they're heard. Please write that down and put it

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Speaker 3: somewhere you can see it when the enemy tries to

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Speaker 3: tell you it's not working this week. My prayers are

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Speaker 3: not pointless, even if I have no proof they have

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Speaker 3: been heard.

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Speaker 4: God might be multitasking some things in your life right now.

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Speaker 1: God might be setting some things.

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Speaker 3: Up for a generation from now that you don't know about.

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Speaker 4: God might need you to help somebody in the.

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Speaker 3: Future, So you gotta go through hell right now so

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Speaker 3: you can help them later.

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Speaker 1: God heards you. Oh, I feel annoying today, and I'm not.

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Speaker 3: I'm not even saying I'm not even saying.

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Speaker 1: I'm annoying for everybody in the room.

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Speaker 3: Maybe just for three people, maybe for three hundred, maybe

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Speaker 3: for somebody in the back, maybe for somebody in overflow.

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Speaker 3: But the Lord said, it's not pointless. My prayers are

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Speaker 3: not pointless because my God has a plan. Keep praying

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Speaker 3: for your babies, Keep praying about what's going on that

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Speaker 3: the doctors can't figure out. Keep praying about it. It's

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Speaker 3: not pointless. This is what Exodus for teaches me is

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Speaker 3: that God's lack of activity does not mean God's absence.

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Speaker 3: And just because He is not active in the way

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Speaker 3: that I have prescribed for him to be.

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Speaker 4: Does not mean his purpose isn't working. It still works.

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Speaker 4: Say it again.

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Speaker 1: It still works.

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Speaker 4: This sermon has three points, but it's really only one point.

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Speaker 4: It still works. And even if you do it doubting,

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Speaker 4: it works.

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Speaker 3: Isn't it just amazing that if you go in the

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Speaker 3: weight room and lift weights, and you lift them hard enough,

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Speaker 3: you'll get stronger whether you wanted to go in the

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Speaker 3: weight room or not, because it still works if you

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Speaker 3: didn't want to.

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Speaker 4: Isn't that the case? Is that true?

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Speaker 3: If I put my body under the right amount of stress,

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Speaker 3: with the right form, for the right amount of time

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Speaker 3: under tension, my body will respond to that, whether or

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Speaker 3: not I had the feeling and the motivation that I

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Speaker 3: wanted to do it.

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Speaker 4: Bodily exercised, profited little.

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Speaker 3: But godliness has great value and it means that it

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Speaker 3: still works. Come to church, listen, go, I didn't get

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Speaker 3: anything out of that. Well, first of all, that's your

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Speaker 3: fault because I study.

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Speaker 1: But secondly, you don't even know that yet. What if

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Speaker 1: it worked?

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Speaker 4: What if it went in like.

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Speaker 3: A seed and it's going to come up like an

401
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Speaker 3: oak at a later season in your life?

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Speaker 1: It still works. It still works.

403
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Speaker 3: Now you may go through er, but every winter yields

404
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Speaker 3: to spring.

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Speaker 4: It still works.

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Speaker 3: I can't hardly get off a point number one, and

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Speaker 3: I don't know why. There must be somebody in here

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Speaker 3: who needed to be reminded that you can do it

409
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Speaker 3: doubting that you can pray with chains still on your feet,

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Speaker 3: you can praise with shackles still on your hands. Ask

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Speaker 3: Paul and Silas, I said, Ask Paul and Silas. They

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Speaker 3: were fastened in the inner cell. That's the hardest place

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Speaker 3: to get out of. But ask Paul and Silas. If

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Speaker 3: you sing it midnight, even when you don't see anything happening,

415
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Speaker 3: even when you have no proof that the chains are

416
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Speaker 3: starting to weaken, if you will worship in this situation, and.

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Speaker 1: I'm saying in this moment right now.

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Speaker 3: I double dog dare you to throw up your hands

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Speaker 3: and open.

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Speaker 1: Your mouth and say, do it. God. I praise you God,

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Speaker 1: because you're good God, and you're worthy God, and you're mighty.

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Speaker 3: God, and your Holy God had it works if you

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Speaker 3: worked it. So sometimes you have to do it doubting.

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Speaker 3: And number two, sometimes you have to do it delayed.

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Speaker 1: Delayed. Do you know what I mean by delayed?

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Speaker 3: God asks you to do something on this Tuesday that

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Speaker 3: is only going to make sense in two years. Or

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Speaker 3: maybe I could say, like this, God tells you to

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Speaker 3: pick up a snake.

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Speaker 1: By the tail.

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Speaker 3: That is the exact wrong way, not that I've ever

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Speaker 3: picked up snakes, although there is probably some account that

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Speaker 3: says we do it every Sunday in our church along

434
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Speaker 3: with our baptism water slide that we have that I've

435
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Speaker 3: never seen before except photoshop. But I never did it.

436
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Speaker 3: But I know if I did it, I wouldn't do

437
00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:02,440
Speaker 3: it like that. I wouldn't do it like that. But see,

438
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Speaker 3: this is the pattern. Let me appreciate. This is what

439
00:23:04,920 --> 00:23:08,320
Speaker 3: God is trying to show Moses. Is that like I

440
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Speaker 3: grab you the way I want to, I grab you

441
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Speaker 3: in a way that doesn't make sense. I use things

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Speaker 3: that don't make sense to get your attention. Please write

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Speaker 3: this down. God's sovereign plan does not always make practical sense.

444
00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:29,280
Speaker 1: God's sovereign plan.

445
00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:33,560
Speaker 3: The plan that he has marked out before time began. Remember,

446
00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:37,920
Speaker 3: God was working this deliverance narrative in his people's life

447
00:23:38,320 --> 00:23:41,159
Speaker 3: to foreshadow the work that Jesus Christ would do on

448
00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:45,000
Speaker 3: the cross, so that when Jesus would show up, he

449
00:23:45,040 --> 00:23:49,800
Speaker 3: would lead not only through the cross that he died on,

450
00:23:50,160 --> 00:23:52,520
Speaker 3: but through the life that he lived. He would lead

451
00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:56,199
Speaker 3: us to freedom as our true Moses. Knowing that we

452
00:23:56,320 --> 00:24:00,000
Speaker 3: understand that God is working things out in a way

453
00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:05,480
Speaker 3: seem weird to us, and I'm at the point in

454
00:24:05,520 --> 00:24:13,879
Speaker 3: my life where I'm willing to be weird if it works.

455
00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:17,760
Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying.

456
00:24:19,320 --> 00:24:22,800
Speaker 3: Now, in order to grab this snake by the tail,

457
00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:25,800
Speaker 3: Because just imagine this, Moses is like.

458
00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:28,159
Speaker 4: All right, you want me to do what?

459
00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:29,240
Speaker 1: Okay?

460
00:24:29,640 --> 00:24:31,960
Speaker 4: No, and he runs and.

461
00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:33,840
Speaker 1: He resists for a little while.

462
00:24:33,840 --> 00:24:38,200
Speaker 3: But remember great faith sometimes is doing it delayed.

463
00:24:39,760 --> 00:24:40,119
Speaker 1: Okay.

464
00:24:40,600 --> 00:24:44,040
Speaker 3: So he wastes some time not only running from the snake,

465
00:24:44,240 --> 00:24:48,520
Speaker 3: but he's been forty years running from his assignment forty years.

466
00:24:49,840 --> 00:24:52,600
Speaker 3: And God shows up to say, I'm gonna do it

467
00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:56,720
Speaker 3: through you anyway. I break the spirit of activation over

468
00:24:56,760 --> 00:24:59,000
Speaker 3: your life that has told you it's too late. I

469
00:24:59,040 --> 00:25:01,640
Speaker 3: break the spirit of actization over your life that says

470
00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:03,960
Speaker 3: you can't get it back. I break the spirit of

471
00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:07,120
Speaker 3: condemnation over your life that says that you cannot become.

472
00:25:07,119 --> 00:25:08,399
Speaker 1: What God has called you to be.

473
00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:12,119
Speaker 3: I break the spirit of condemnation that tries to stamp

474
00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:15,800
Speaker 3: you with your worst mistake. Because the life of Moses

475
00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:19,680
Speaker 3: tells me that my past mistake is not.

476
00:25:19,800 --> 00:25:23,960
Speaker 1: My permanent verdict. That's what it shows me.

477
00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:27,359
Speaker 3: And when I say past mistake, I mean it could

478
00:25:27,359 --> 00:25:30,400
Speaker 3: be five years ago, it could be five minutes ago,

479
00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:33,800
Speaker 3: but that will not define me because God has a

480
00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:36,600
Speaker 3: plan for me. God has a plan for the things

481
00:25:36,640 --> 00:25:39,160
Speaker 3: I did right. God has a plan for the things

482
00:25:39,200 --> 00:25:42,200
Speaker 3: I did wrong. God has a plan for my doubts,

483
00:25:42,280 --> 00:25:44,199
Speaker 3: just as much as God has a plan for my

484
00:25:44,480 --> 00:25:48,280
Speaker 3: bold declarations of faith. And Moses picks up the snake

485
00:25:48,400 --> 00:25:49,680
Speaker 3: by the tail, but.

486
00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:51,840
Speaker 1: Not at first.

487
00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:55,720
Speaker 3: And Moses is used as a messenger, but before he's

488
00:25:55,760 --> 00:25:57,040
Speaker 3: a messenger.

489
00:25:56,760 --> 00:25:57,680
Speaker 1: He's a murderer.

490
00:25:57,840 --> 00:26:00,240
Speaker 3: And I just want to remind you that God makes

491
00:26:00,320 --> 00:26:06,840
Speaker 3: all things beautiful in his time, and sometimes you've got

492
00:26:06,840 --> 00:26:09,959
Speaker 3: to do it on a delay and just pray stuff

493
00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:12,480
Speaker 3: like God, I pray that you would make up for

494
00:26:12,520 --> 00:26:15,720
Speaker 3: the time that I wasted. God, I pray that you

495
00:26:15,760 --> 00:26:19,160
Speaker 3: would put me on an accelerated course. God, I pray

496
00:26:19,160 --> 00:26:20,480
Speaker 3: that you will put me in summer school so I

497
00:26:20,520 --> 00:26:21,960
Speaker 3: can graduate with all my friends.

498
00:26:22,359 --> 00:26:24,199
Speaker 1: God, I pray that you will just give me the

499
00:26:24,240 --> 00:26:26,080
Speaker 1: grace God. And God says, okay.

500
00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:30,159
Speaker 3: Because once Moses got on the same page with God,

501
00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:33,639
Speaker 3: it only took ten plagues for God to do what

502
00:26:33,760 --> 00:26:36,280
Speaker 3: he was going to do. It's not going to take

503
00:26:36,320 --> 00:26:39,080
Speaker 3: as long as you think it's going to take. It's

504
00:26:39,119 --> 00:26:41,840
Speaker 3: not going to take everything you think is going to take,

505
00:26:42,160 --> 00:26:46,080
Speaker 3: because sometimes God does it on a delay, and that

506
00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:48,880
Speaker 3: means you've got to praise him in advance in case

507
00:26:48,920 --> 00:26:49,640
Speaker 3: he does it on.

508
00:26:49,560 --> 00:26:53,560
Speaker 1: Delay, because you don't know, you don't know.

509
00:26:55,400 --> 00:27:00,199
Speaker 3: The Lord annointed me to preach today that sometimes do

510
00:27:00,240 --> 00:27:02,320
Speaker 3: it on a delay.

511
00:27:03,119 --> 00:27:07,640
Speaker 1: Do it on a delay. I mean, we all get

512
00:27:07,640 --> 00:27:08,480
Speaker 1: stuck in the past.

513
00:27:08,600 --> 00:27:12,159
Speaker 4: Sometimes I've been stuck in the past.

514
00:27:11,920 --> 00:27:16,800
Speaker 3: A lot lately, just in a fun way. Actually, I've

515
00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:26,199
Speaker 3: been going around buying records, records, albums, LPs, vinyl.

516
00:27:27,920 --> 00:27:28,760
Speaker 1: I probably bought.

517
00:27:28,560 --> 00:27:31,320
Speaker 4: About three hundred in the last year.

518
00:27:32,440 --> 00:27:33,640
Speaker 1: Is getting ridiculous.

519
00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:36,880
Speaker 3: Now, I'm gonna tell you why it's getting ridiculous because

520
00:27:36,920 --> 00:27:40,879
Speaker 3: I already had all that stuff on my phone and

521
00:27:40,920 --> 00:27:43,960
Speaker 3: now I'm spending money on what I already subscribed to.

522
00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:44,840
Speaker 4: Spotify to hear.

523
00:27:45,760 --> 00:27:49,760
Speaker 3: But it's something comforting about it. So you know, I've

524
00:27:49,800 --> 00:27:51,640
Speaker 3: been buying records. Now, I want you to think I'm

525
00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:54,760
Speaker 3: older than I am. When I grew up, records were

526
00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:57,440
Speaker 3: on the way out. We had to set tapes and

527
00:27:57,480 --> 00:28:02,840
Speaker 3: then get ready to shout. Every boomer in the house,

528
00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:07,120
Speaker 3: just shout right now, jen X, just shout right now.

529
00:28:07,760 --> 00:28:11,760
Speaker 1: Everybody makes annoyed because your hands up. If you knowable

530
00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:12,520
Speaker 1: a hands a.

531
00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:15,800
Speaker 3: Now you may say to me, like the Lord said

532
00:28:15,800 --> 00:28:18,119
Speaker 3: to Moses, what is that in your hand?

533
00:28:20,080 --> 00:28:21,640
Speaker 4: Come here, Graham, come here, Come, come, come and cover?

534
00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:28,399
Speaker 1: All right, this is a boom box. And not only that,

535
00:28:30,080 --> 00:28:37,520
Speaker 1: but this is a signo boom box with a cassette deck.

536
00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:44,280
Speaker 3: And everybody say, and because Moses was a Hebrew and

537
00:28:44,480 --> 00:28:52,280
Speaker 3: an Egyptian, this is a cassette and CD player. This

538
00:28:52,480 --> 00:28:57,640
Speaker 3: is the first CD player that I ever own. But

539
00:28:57,760 --> 00:29:00,840
Speaker 3: this is not the original because I got rid of

540
00:29:00,880 --> 00:29:04,720
Speaker 3: mine because I thought it was obsolete. Sometimes you need

541
00:29:04,760 --> 00:29:09,720
Speaker 3: to hang around with your old stuff, and sometimes you

542
00:29:09,720 --> 00:29:12,520
Speaker 3: need to be careful not selling something that you might

543
00:29:12,560 --> 00:29:13,600
Speaker 3: want to buy back later.

544
00:29:14,640 --> 00:29:15,440
Speaker 1: Because I went on.

545
00:29:15,440 --> 00:29:21,080
Speaker 3: eBay and I found this exact model of the boom box,

546
00:29:21,800 --> 00:29:24,440
Speaker 3: and I plugged it in and the lights came on,

547
00:29:25,360 --> 00:29:27,920
Speaker 3: and I got excited, and I put.

548
00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:29,440
Speaker 4: The CD in because I've been buying those two.

549
00:29:30,120 --> 00:29:31,840
Speaker 3: I only bought about one hundred of those in the

550
00:29:31,880 --> 00:29:34,200
Speaker 3: last year, but I've been buying those two. I don't

551
00:29:34,200 --> 00:29:36,080
Speaker 3: know if midlife is just stressing me out to the

552
00:29:36,120 --> 00:29:38,440
Speaker 3: point that I just need ever escape about Hey, there

553
00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:42,280
Speaker 3: are worse midlife crisises than CDs and wreckers.

554
00:29:42,600 --> 00:29:45,360
Speaker 1: So if I keep it the vinyl, I'm doing very good.

555
00:29:46,080 --> 00:29:51,920
Speaker 1: I'm doing Tell somebody he's doing very good. I'm doing

556
00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:52,480
Speaker 1: really good.

557
00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:56,080
Speaker 3: And I turned it on and I put the CD

558
00:29:56,120 --> 00:30:04,600
Speaker 3: in and it didn't work. It didn't work, But I mean,

559
00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:08,040
Speaker 3: what else would you expect. It's been around since nineteen

560
00:30:08,160 --> 00:30:11,240
Speaker 3: ninety four. Who knows what kind of devil music has

561
00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:12,840
Speaker 3: been played in this machine?

562
00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:16,280
Speaker 1: The Lord shut it down. It didn't work.

563
00:30:19,320 --> 00:30:21,200
Speaker 3: And just as I was about to put it up

564
00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:25,280
Speaker 3: because it was no refunds, the seller told me that upfront.

565
00:30:26,680 --> 00:30:28,040
Speaker 1: Forty bucks is gone.

566
00:30:28,160 --> 00:30:33,680
Speaker 3: I remember that just because one thing doesn't work, hold it.

567
00:30:33,680 --> 00:30:38,920
Speaker 4: Up doesn't mean it's worthless. So I went and found

568
00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:40,280
Speaker 4: a cassette.

569
00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:42,320
Speaker 1: I've been collecting those too lately.

570
00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:43,600
Speaker 3: Huh.

571
00:30:44,480 --> 00:30:48,000
Speaker 1: Sometimes you got to reach back to where God brought

572
00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:52,280
Speaker 1: you from. And I found a cassette.

573
00:30:51,840 --> 00:31:01,000
Speaker 3: Tape from Jackson Memorial Baptist Church eight nine son, my

574
00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:02,000
Speaker 3: eyes are messing up.

575
00:31:02,000 --> 00:31:02,680
Speaker 4: Read that for me.

576
00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:08,040
Speaker 3: Three eight nine three one Highway eleven, Campa Bello, South Carolina,

577
00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:14,720
Speaker 3: two nine three two two, And it says Stephen October

578
00:31:14,760 --> 00:31:18,880
Speaker 3: twenty ninth, the year two thousand I'll tell you about

579
00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:21,200
Speaker 3: y two k later, we almost lost everything.

580
00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:25,840
Speaker 1: You think the Red Sea was a miracle, the wait

581
00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:27,560
Speaker 1: until I tell you about why two k?

582
00:31:27,760 --> 00:31:31,160
Speaker 3: Boy, when I tell you what the Lord did for

583
00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:34,600
Speaker 3: us in y two K and I put it in

584
00:31:36,040 --> 00:31:39,000
Speaker 3: and at first I started to cringe because listen, listen

585
00:31:39,040 --> 00:31:42,560
Speaker 3: to me preaching in the year two thousand in Campa Beello,

586
00:31:42,760 --> 00:31:46,280
Speaker 3: South Carolina. You've heard me preaching California, but you never

587
00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:49,640
Speaker 3: heard my annoying work in Campabello. But I want you

588
00:31:49,680 --> 00:31:54,280
Speaker 3: to understand that the same anointing that works in California

589
00:31:54,880 --> 00:31:58,480
Speaker 3: was work, was work, Oh, was working in Campabello.

590
00:31:58,800 --> 00:32:00,520
Speaker 1: Listen to this with mine.

591
00:32:01,920 --> 00:32:03,000
Speaker 3: I'm just seeing.

592
00:32:04,000 --> 00:32:05,160
Speaker 4: Can y'all hear that about?

593
00:32:05,800 --> 00:32:06,680
Speaker 1: I mean, it's good.

594
00:32:06,560 --> 00:32:09,240
Speaker 2: Enough, That's that's my mentality nowadays.

595
00:32:09,320 --> 00:32:11,480
Speaker 1: It's good enough. Hey, it might not be the way

596
00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:11,960
Speaker 1: I like you.

597
00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:14,520
Speaker 3: It might not be my personal preference, the preacher might

598
00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:15,440
Speaker 3: not be making a fit.

599
00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:17,600
Speaker 1: Of sense to be, but it's good enough. And I'm

600
00:32:17,640 --> 00:32:18,440
Speaker 1: gonna take some notes and.

601
00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:19,760
Speaker 3: I'm gonna learn what I can from it.

602
00:32:19,800 --> 00:32:22,120
Speaker 1: Because praise is a privilege. It's a privilege to be

603
00:32:22,160 --> 00:32:24,560
Speaker 1: a church. Yes, it is a privilege.

604
00:32:25,720 --> 00:32:26,440
Speaker 2: To be in this church.

605
00:32:26,480 --> 00:32:27,320
Speaker 4: With you guys this morning.

606
00:32:27,760 --> 00:32:32,560
Speaker 1: Yeah, now the single amen. But I was preaching.

607
00:32:34,440 --> 00:32:38,240
Speaker 3: About fifteen people in the church, but I was preaching.

608
00:32:39,680 --> 00:32:43,480
Speaker 3: I didn't know anything I was talking about, but I

609
00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:47,640
Speaker 3: was preaching. We were all stucking up on bottled water

610
00:32:47,960 --> 00:32:52,040
Speaker 3: and Ramen noodles for the apocalypse to come. But I

611
00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:55,920
Speaker 3: was preaching, and I wonder, did the Lord want to

612
00:32:55,960 --> 00:32:59,960
Speaker 3: give us a message today from this cassette tape from

613
00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:04,680
Speaker 3: a boombox? That didn't work, But it did work with

614
00:33:04,760 --> 00:33:07,520
Speaker 3: a word that I have been preaching because I realized

615
00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:12,160
Speaker 3: listen to myself preaching with a country accent in Campobello,

616
00:33:12,320 --> 00:33:15,920
Speaker 3: South Carolina, in twenty twenty six, that I have been

617
00:33:15,960 --> 00:33:20,560
Speaker 3: preaching the same book for thirty years, and I preached

618
00:33:20,600 --> 00:33:23,960
Speaker 3: it with twang, and I've preached it in small spaces,

619
00:33:24,160 --> 00:33:26,720
Speaker 3: and I preached it on tapes, and I preached it

620
00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:30,240
Speaker 3: on CDs, and I preached it on podcasts, and i

621
00:33:30,360 --> 00:33:33,440
Speaker 3: preached it on YouTube, and I've preached it on Roku,

622
00:33:33,760 --> 00:33:36,480
Speaker 3: and I've preached it on Apple TV. And I've been

623
00:33:36,520 --> 00:33:38,040
Speaker 3: preaching one book and.

624
00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:41,400
Speaker 1: Believe in one book for thirty years. And I came

625
00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:42,480
Speaker 1: to an ounce.

626
00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:48,040
Speaker 3: It's still worse. I said it still worse. I said,

627
00:33:48,080 --> 00:33:54,760
Speaker 3: it still worse. Fakes still worse. Fake still works, Grace

628
00:33:54,960 --> 00:34:01,840
Speaker 3: still works, Gratitude still works, Hallylujas still worse. Thank you

629
00:34:02,080 --> 00:34:08,080
Speaker 3: Jesus still works. It still works. If you know what

630
00:34:08,120 --> 00:34:11,960
Speaker 3: I'm talking about, wave your hand and say it works

631
00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:18,319
Speaker 3: for me. It's been working for me a long time, and.

632
00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:21,600
Speaker 1: It's still worse. Is still worse.

633
00:34:22,440 --> 00:34:25,000
Speaker 3: I got some doubts I didn't have then, but it

634
00:34:25,200 --> 00:34:28,879
Speaker 3: still works. I got some unanswered questions, but.

635
00:34:28,920 --> 00:34:32,400
Speaker 1: It still worse. My faith is not having the answer.

636
00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:35,160
Speaker 3: My faith is putting my hand in the hand of

637
00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:38,200
Speaker 3: a man who does is still worse.

638
00:34:41,760 --> 00:34:42,560
Speaker 1: Y'all, don't get it.

639
00:34:43,400 --> 00:34:47,560
Speaker 3: I'm trying to say that the method has changed, but

640
00:34:47,680 --> 00:34:55,319
Speaker 3: the message is the same, is still worse. And I'm

641
00:34:55,360 --> 00:34:58,719
Speaker 3: trying to say, don't let what doesn't work in your

642
00:34:58,800 --> 00:35:05,600
Speaker 3: life keep you from using what does. And I'm trying

643
00:35:05,760 --> 00:35:11,839
Speaker 3: to say that what God gave you then is good

644
00:35:11,960 --> 00:35:14,160
Speaker 3: enough to get you through.

645
00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:17,280
Speaker 1: Where's my bad? What's that going through now?

646
00:35:18,840 --> 00:35:26,680
Speaker 3: So tell somebody it'll work, It'll work, It'll work, it'll work.

647
00:35:30,520 --> 00:35:33,040
Speaker 3: Won't it work?

648
00:35:34,280 --> 00:35:37,799
Speaker 1: I said, won't it work? Not if you don't work it.

649
00:35:41,239 --> 00:35:42,839
Speaker 1: If you're like this is weird.

650
00:35:45,280 --> 00:35:47,120
Speaker 4: Thank you. Sit down and take the boom box with you.

651
00:35:49,560 --> 00:35:53,080
Speaker 3: Take that staff with you, so when you get to Egypt,

652
00:35:53,880 --> 00:35:56,600
Speaker 3: you can throw it on the ground and watch what

653
00:35:56,719 --> 00:35:59,600
Speaker 3: it'll become. Throw it on the ground. See, now, give

654
00:35:59,600 --> 00:36:01,160
Speaker 3: me the kick set tape back. I want to show

655
00:36:01,200 --> 00:36:04,479
Speaker 3: this all the way. I heard a testimony the other day,

656
00:36:05,239 --> 00:36:13,360
Speaker 3: and we always say, we always say God, helthous Jesus.

657
00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:18,120
Speaker 1: I never said I was a good dad.

658
00:36:18,200 --> 00:36:21,719
Speaker 4: I never said I taught my kids important things. You

659
00:36:21,840 --> 00:36:23,719
Speaker 4: can't open the cassette tape.

660
00:36:24,040 --> 00:36:26,680
Speaker 1: How you gonna run a revival? How you gonna be

661
00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:31,719
Speaker 1: anointed by God? And you can't play a tape? Love

662
00:36:31,800 --> 00:36:33,720
Speaker 1: that boy?

663
00:36:34,400 --> 00:36:40,480
Speaker 3: I bleached my hair too. My hair ain't black anymore.

664
00:36:40,920 --> 00:36:47,640
Speaker 3: But my annoying still works. Okay, I'm gonna tell you

665
00:36:47,719 --> 00:36:51,520
Speaker 3: this and I'll start thinking about finishing my sermon. Tell

666
00:36:51,560 --> 00:36:54,839
Speaker 3: somebody it still works. I was amazed at the moon

667
00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:58,359
Speaker 3: box still worked. I was amazed that there was part

668
00:36:58,360 --> 00:36:59,640
Speaker 3: of it that did work and part of it that

669
00:36:59,680 --> 00:37:02,920
Speaker 3: didn't working, choosing to say, I'm gonna use what. I

670
00:37:02,960 --> 00:37:04,600
Speaker 3: was amazed when I put the tape in and I

671
00:37:04,680 --> 00:37:06,680
Speaker 3: was like, yo, listen to that kid.

672
00:37:06,719 --> 00:37:09,400
Speaker 4: Twenty years old hollering at.

673
00:37:09,239 --> 00:37:12,160
Speaker 1: Those people, tell them it's the privilege to be here

674
00:37:13,040 --> 00:37:16,920
Speaker 1: the church, privilege to price God. Amen.

675
00:37:17,960 --> 00:37:19,360
Speaker 4: I need to bring some of that back.

676
00:37:19,880 --> 00:37:21,799
Speaker 3: I need to bring some of that country preaching back

677
00:37:21,800 --> 00:37:22,400
Speaker 3: in this church.

678
00:37:22,760 --> 00:37:26,360
Speaker 1: It still works.

679
00:37:28,160 --> 00:37:28,319
Speaker 4: Well.

680
00:37:28,320 --> 00:37:31,280
Speaker 3: I got testimony that confirmed this message because I'm always

681
00:37:31,280 --> 00:37:32,719
Speaker 3: trying to make sure that I have the word that

682
00:37:32,760 --> 00:37:34,000
Speaker 3: the Lord wants me to deliver.

683
00:37:34,280 --> 00:37:35,319
Speaker 4: Now, back in.

684
00:37:35,280 --> 00:37:37,040
Speaker 3: The day, you had to wait six weeks before you

685
00:37:37,080 --> 00:37:38,560
Speaker 3: could get a sermon. They had to mail it to

686
00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:41,400
Speaker 3: you on tape. Now people can just watch online and

687
00:37:41,480 --> 00:37:42,919
Speaker 3: sometimes it still takes a.

688
00:37:42,840 --> 00:37:45,040
Speaker 1: Delay before I know how God uses a word.

689
00:37:45,239 --> 00:37:47,480
Speaker 3: There was a word that I preached from Exodus chapter

690
00:37:47,520 --> 00:37:49,680
Speaker 3: four ten years ago called handle it.

691
00:37:52,760 --> 00:37:55,520
Speaker 4: Real tight, skinny jeans, running around.

692
00:37:55,239 --> 00:37:58,000
Speaker 3: The stage, preaching on pick up the snake by the tail,

693
00:37:58,080 --> 00:38:00,279
Speaker 3: because that's weird. And I was trying to say, is

694
00:38:00,320 --> 00:38:03,759
Speaker 3: only weird till it works? You know, trust in God.

695
00:38:03,760 --> 00:38:06,400
Speaker 3: Hold now you're a virgin. That's weird. No, it works

696
00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:09,880
Speaker 3: because I'm protecting myself because I know the value that

697
00:38:09,920 --> 00:38:10,440
Speaker 3: God has.

698
00:38:10,280 --> 00:38:11,840
Speaker 1: Put on my life. So it works.

699
00:38:13,440 --> 00:38:17,120
Speaker 3: Look, some of the things that work in God's Kingdom

700
00:38:17,200 --> 00:38:23,239
Speaker 3: look completely weird to the world, but forgiveness still works.

701
00:38:23,880 --> 00:38:28,080
Speaker 3: Even if it doesn't fix them, it will free you.

702
00:38:30,560 --> 00:38:34,680
Speaker 1: You see what I mean. That's weird, but it works.

703
00:38:34,719 --> 00:38:37,520
Speaker 4: It's weird to grab a snake by the tail, but

704
00:38:37,600 --> 00:38:38,080
Speaker 4: it works.

705
00:38:39,239 --> 00:38:42,200
Speaker 1: It is weird. I was thinking about another one.

706
00:38:43,320 --> 00:38:47,480
Speaker 3: It's weird for us to give to God so that

707
00:38:47,520 --> 00:38:49,880
Speaker 3: our church can do outreaches, so that our church can

708
00:38:49,920 --> 00:38:50,839
Speaker 3: reach the world, so that.

709
00:38:50,800 --> 00:38:52,240
Speaker 4: Our church can preach the gospel.

710
00:38:52,800 --> 00:38:56,520
Speaker 3: That is weird, but you find out that God doesn't

711
00:38:56,560 --> 00:38:58,520
Speaker 3: need what you have. You need what he has when

712
00:38:58,560 --> 00:39:03,800
Speaker 3: you give, and it allows you to access your faith.

713
00:39:03,960 --> 00:39:06,640
Speaker 4: So people are like, you give your money to that church. No,

714
00:39:06,760 --> 00:39:10,240
Speaker 4: I give it to God through a church. You understand.

715
00:39:10,239 --> 00:39:11,959
Speaker 4: I'm giving this to God, and that.

716
00:39:12,040 --> 00:39:14,839
Speaker 3: Works for me because it keeps me free from being

717
00:39:14,880 --> 00:39:15,960
Speaker 3: mastered by money.

718
00:39:16,200 --> 00:39:18,280
Speaker 1: So that's weird, but it works.

719
00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:21,680
Speaker 3: I honestly always thought it was weird to put our

720
00:39:21,719 --> 00:39:25,239
Speaker 3: sermons online. When we first started doing that, I thought

721
00:39:25,280 --> 00:39:27,000
Speaker 3: that was weird and I thought it wouldn't work.

722
00:39:27,960 --> 00:39:30,600
Speaker 4: I even made that argument. I told a.

723
00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:32,600
Speaker 3: Brother one time, I don't have that gift to look

724
00:39:32,600 --> 00:39:36,080
Speaker 3: into a camera and preach. You know, man, I came

725
00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:39,839
Speaker 3: from Campobello only reason I remembered I listened to the tape.

726
00:39:39,840 --> 00:39:40,600
Speaker 4: The only reason I preached to.

727
00:39:40,600 --> 00:39:42,440
Speaker 3: Campabella because the maintenance man at the college I was

728
00:39:42,440 --> 00:39:44,480
Speaker 3: attending at the time had fixed my shower for me,

729
00:39:44,520 --> 00:39:45,759
Speaker 3: and he said, now that I fixed your shower, you

730
00:39:45,800 --> 00:39:46,759
Speaker 3: gotta come preaching my church.

731
00:39:46,800 --> 00:39:47,279
Speaker 4: I said, deal.

732
00:39:51,239 --> 00:39:54,239
Speaker 3: So when you come from Campobello preaching, you know like that,

733
00:39:55,560 --> 00:39:57,279
Speaker 3: it's hard to get our mind around the fact that

734
00:39:57,719 --> 00:39:59,080
Speaker 3: so many people are logged on right now, and I

735
00:39:59,120 --> 00:40:01,600
Speaker 3: want you to put where You're wife on YouTube right now,

736
00:40:02,600 --> 00:40:06,160
Speaker 3: and I want to do this illustration because see, the

737
00:40:06,239 --> 00:40:09,880
Speaker 3: methods have changed, but the methods have I messed that up,

738
00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:16,520
Speaker 3: didn't not. The methods have changed, the message has not, amen.

739
00:40:16,680 --> 00:40:21,640
Speaker 4: And if you go on right now, people are watching.

740
00:40:21,320 --> 00:40:24,440
Speaker 1: From I mean all over the world.

741
00:40:26,239 --> 00:40:30,760
Speaker 3: But sometimes I get a testimony from Alabama, from Michigan,

742
00:40:30,880 --> 00:40:32,880
Speaker 3: from Denver, from San Diego.

743
00:40:32,440 --> 00:40:38,040
Speaker 4: From Utah, for Missouri, that's wild Man, Orlando, Connecticut, Texas.

744
00:40:39,600 --> 00:40:42,520
Speaker 4: Y'all think I'm talking about me and preaching.

745
00:40:42,560 --> 00:40:42,799
Speaker 1: I'm not.

746
00:40:43,400 --> 00:40:47,040
Speaker 3: I'm talking about you and the challenge of your life

747
00:40:47,120 --> 00:40:49,439
Speaker 3: right now that you feel insufficient for. And I'm trying

748
00:40:49,480 --> 00:40:52,040
Speaker 3: to tell you I've always doubted what I could do,

749
00:40:53,200 --> 00:40:55,080
Speaker 3: and there have been times in my life I preached

750
00:40:55,080 --> 00:40:59,359
Speaker 3: and felt nothing worked. Do you understand me? I went

751
00:40:59,360 --> 00:41:01,560
Speaker 3: back and I prayed, God, what even was that?

752
00:41:01,600 --> 00:41:01,880
Speaker 1: Well?

753
00:41:03,000 --> 00:41:09,080
Speaker 3: Ten years ago I was preaching the same passage, and

754
00:41:09,160 --> 00:41:13,440
Speaker 3: a couple of years after that, there was a man

755
00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:16,719
Speaker 3: in Greenville, South Carolina, who related his story to me

756
00:41:19,560 --> 00:41:21,480
Speaker 3: that he was in the middle of a horrible divorce,

757
00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:29,640
Speaker 3: that he had a nine millimeter on his coffee table

758
00:41:31,880 --> 00:41:39,040
Speaker 3: and he was in his apartment alone and he didn't

759
00:41:39,120 --> 00:41:42,719
Speaker 3: know what to do. And he said, I had this

760
00:41:42,800 --> 00:41:49,120
Speaker 3: weird feeling. Something told me to plug up the Apple

761
00:41:49,160 --> 00:41:52,399
Speaker 3: TV that my mom had brought over to my house

762
00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:56,520
Speaker 3: a few days earlier, and so I did, and it

763
00:41:56,560 --> 00:42:01,239
Speaker 3: felt weird. And then he said, after I plugged it in,

764
00:42:02,640 --> 00:42:03,839
Speaker 3: trying to figure out do I.

765
00:42:03,800 --> 00:42:04,600
Speaker 4: Even want to be here?

766
00:42:06,239 --> 00:42:08,240
Speaker 3: Something came up as I logged in on the screen,

767
00:42:08,239 --> 00:42:10,520
Speaker 3: and it was a purple icon that said podcast, and

768
00:42:10,560 --> 00:42:13,959
Speaker 3: I had never listened to a podcast, and something said

769
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:19,160
Speaker 3: click it, and I clicked it. And then I clicked

770
00:42:19,160 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 3: that purple icon that said podcast, and an orange icon

771
00:42:22,200 --> 00:42:24,040
Speaker 3: came up that said elevation.

772
00:42:26,040 --> 00:42:27,480
Speaker 4: And something said click it.

773
00:42:28,840 --> 00:42:32,640
Speaker 3: Listen to me, he says, something said click it, and

774
00:42:32,719 --> 00:42:35,040
Speaker 3: he clicked it, and he.

775
00:42:35,000 --> 00:42:36,759
Speaker 4: Said it was a sermon of a preacher I had

776
00:42:36,800 --> 00:42:39,680
Speaker 4: never heard of before. Say and handle it.

777
00:42:40,440 --> 00:42:41,040
Speaker 1: Handle it.

778
00:42:41,960 --> 00:42:44,960
Speaker 4: And halfway through your sermon, you said, You're sitting on

779
00:42:44,960 --> 00:42:48,080
Speaker 4: the couch and you're wondering do I even want to

780
00:42:48,080 --> 00:42:51,920
Speaker 4: be here? And God wanted you to know it's handled.

781
00:42:52,480 --> 00:42:55,239
Speaker 3: Get up off the couch, he said. I got up

782
00:42:55,239 --> 00:42:58,840
Speaker 3: and started walking around my apartment. And I can't explain

783
00:42:58,960 --> 00:43:02,600
Speaker 3: exactly what happened that day, and I know it sounds weird,

784
00:43:03,520 --> 00:43:07,360
Speaker 3: but guess started working in my life. And it felt

785
00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:10,640
Speaker 3: weird to plug up an Apple TV with the gun

786
00:43:10,640 --> 00:43:13,319
Speaker 3: on the coffee table, but I plugged it up. And

787
00:43:13,400 --> 00:43:16,000
Speaker 3: it felt weird to reach down and grab a snake

788
00:43:16,560 --> 00:43:17,200
Speaker 3: by the tail.

789
00:43:17,360 --> 00:43:18,799
Speaker 1: And it feels weird for me.

790
00:43:18,800 --> 00:43:21,799
Speaker 3: To keep showing up even though nobody appreciates me.

791
00:43:21,840 --> 00:43:24,760
Speaker 4: And it feels weird for me to even be in church.

792
00:43:24,600 --> 00:43:28,440
Speaker 3: Today because honestly, I'm still struggling so much with my past.

793
00:43:28,560 --> 00:43:30,919
Speaker 3: I can't even really focus on what you're saying right now.

794
00:43:31,040 --> 00:43:32,919
Speaker 3: And it feels weird for me to believe that God

795
00:43:32,920 --> 00:43:34,040
Speaker 3: could use me, he said.

796
00:43:34,080 --> 00:43:35,520
Speaker 1: But I started walking.

797
00:43:35,200 --> 00:43:37,680
Speaker 3: Around, and all I can tell you is that that day,

798
00:43:38,640 --> 00:43:40,719
Speaker 3: that when I plugged in that TV and God hit

799
00:43:40,800 --> 00:43:43,440
Speaker 3: me with that podcast. And it was a word that

800
00:43:43,600 --> 00:43:47,719
Speaker 3: was preached ten years ago from the exact scripture that

801
00:43:47,800 --> 00:43:49,080
Speaker 3: I am preaching.

802
00:43:48,800 --> 00:43:49,640
Speaker 1: To you today.

803
00:43:49,920 --> 00:43:54,319
Speaker 3: All I can tell you is it still works. With

804
00:43:54,480 --> 00:43:58,080
Speaker 3: a gun on his coffee table, the word of God

805
00:43:58,239 --> 00:44:01,239
Speaker 3: was powerful enough to say, see you, I got you,

806
00:44:01,480 --> 00:44:04,120
Speaker 3: I got something for you. And the best part of

807
00:44:04,120 --> 00:44:08,480
Speaker 3: his testimony is that he told me today he is

808
00:44:08,600 --> 00:44:13,360
Speaker 3: a worship leader in a local church.

809
00:44:14,040 --> 00:44:24,640
Speaker 1: Because egg still worse. It works. Shot somebody say it works.

810
00:44:26,000 --> 00:44:30,520
Speaker 1: It's always worked, and it still works.

811
00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:35,560
Speaker 3: Come on, clap those hands and praise God like you know,

812
00:44:37,520 --> 00:44:43,400
Speaker 3: shut the kingel glory. It's working in ways you can't see.

813
00:44:43,920 --> 00:44:48,280
Speaker 3: You shall live and not die.

814
00:44:47,440 --> 00:44:51,280
Speaker 1: And still worse.

815
00:44:52,960 --> 00:44:57,840
Speaker 3: It's still worse in my darkest hour. It works in

816
00:44:57,960 --> 00:45:03,839
Speaker 3: my lowest moment. It works in my most hopeless situation.

817
00:45:05,360 --> 00:45:07,399
Speaker 4: He worked, and.

818
00:45:07,360 --> 00:45:11,000
Speaker 3: Moses took that staff, I'm almost done, and he picked

819
00:45:11,040 --> 00:45:12,280
Speaker 3: it up and it became a staff.

820
00:45:12,280 --> 00:45:14,160
Speaker 1: And when he got in front of Pharaoh, he and

821
00:45:14,200 --> 00:45:17,720
Speaker 1: Aaron said watch this boom. And it still worked.

822
00:45:18,760 --> 00:45:21,440
Speaker 3: It not only worked in private, it worked in public.

823
00:45:21,680 --> 00:45:22,600
Speaker 1: It still worked.

824
00:45:23,600 --> 00:45:26,520
Speaker 3: And when Pharaoh said, I'm not letting your people go.

825
00:45:26,880 --> 00:45:28,120
Speaker 1: Moses said, all right.

826
00:45:28,160 --> 00:45:31,320
Speaker 3: And he stuck up the staff, and hail started falling

827
00:45:31,360 --> 00:45:34,200
Speaker 3: out of the sky, because no matter how much resistance

828
00:45:34,239 --> 00:45:37,960
Speaker 3: you face, it's still worse. And when he still wouldn't

829
00:45:38,000 --> 00:45:41,800
Speaker 3: let the people go, Moses pointed it, and frogs covered

830
00:45:41,800 --> 00:45:44,640
Speaker 3: the land. And when he still wouldn't let the people go,

831
00:45:44,920 --> 00:45:45,600
Speaker 3: he pointed it.

832
00:45:45,600 --> 00:45:47,040
Speaker 4: In the nile became blood.

833
00:45:47,040 --> 00:45:51,640
Speaker 3: But there came a moment for Moses that is like

834
00:45:51,719 --> 00:45:53,640
Speaker 3: the moment that most of us are in today.

835
00:45:55,200 --> 00:45:59,360
Speaker 4: And it goes like this, You know it. The people

836
00:45:59,360 --> 00:46:02,560
Speaker 4: of God have out of Egypt. They are moving into

837
00:46:02,600 --> 00:46:04,640
Speaker 4: their freedom of sons and daughters, but they are.

838
00:46:04,480 --> 00:46:06,239
Speaker 1: Not yet free.

839
00:46:07,200 --> 00:46:09,799
Speaker 3: They have to cross a body of water known as

840
00:46:10,160 --> 00:46:12,880
Speaker 3: the Red Sea or the Sea of Reeds. And as

841
00:46:12,920 --> 00:46:15,000
Speaker 3: they stand at that body of water, they hear the

842
00:46:15,000 --> 00:46:18,879
Speaker 3: sound of four hundred chosen chariot Sapharaoh, the hit men,

843
00:46:18,960 --> 00:46:22,919
Speaker 3: coming to bring them back. There would be no hope

844
00:46:22,920 --> 00:46:26,359
Speaker 3: in this situation, even for the most well suited army,

845
00:46:26,800 --> 00:46:30,480
Speaker 3: much less millions of slaves and runaways on foot. What

846
00:46:30,640 --> 00:46:32,680
Speaker 3: is the sound we hear behind us? We cried to

847
00:46:32,719 --> 00:46:34,960
Speaker 3: the Lord to bring us out of Egypt, and here

848
00:46:35,000 --> 00:46:38,400
Speaker 3: we are looking at a red sea Moses in an

849
00:46:38,400 --> 00:46:41,520
Speaker 3: effort to do crowd control, because this is getting out

850
00:46:41,520 --> 00:46:43,120
Speaker 3: of hand quickly as they begin to.

851
00:46:43,080 --> 00:46:46,400
Speaker 4: Say, why didn't you leave us in Egypt? Why didn't

852
00:46:46,440 --> 00:46:47,000
Speaker 4: you leave us.

853
00:46:46,960 --> 00:46:47,640
Speaker 1: Where we were?

854
00:46:47,920 --> 00:46:50,520
Speaker 3: This is worse than where we came from. And sometimes

855
00:46:50,520 --> 00:46:52,880
Speaker 3: you get there, man with God, You're like, I'm trying

856
00:46:52,920 --> 00:46:54,680
Speaker 3: to do what God called me to do, but it

857
00:46:54,760 --> 00:46:57,560
Speaker 3: actually feels more difficult to do it God's way. And

858
00:46:57,680 --> 00:47:01,560
Speaker 3: at that very moment gives speech Exodus fourteen.

859
00:47:02,840 --> 00:47:03,760
Speaker 4: Do not be afraid.

860
00:47:05,040 --> 00:47:08,880
Speaker 3: Stand firm, and you will see the deliverance the Lord

861
00:47:08,920 --> 00:47:13,640
Speaker 3: will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you

862
00:47:13,680 --> 00:47:29,919
Speaker 3: will never see again. The Lord will fight for you.

863
00:47:29,920 --> 00:47:31,840
Speaker 1: You need only to be still.

864
00:47:35,960 --> 00:47:40,960
Speaker 3: Then, the Lord said to Moses, why are you crying

865
00:47:40,960 --> 00:47:41,400
Speaker 3: out to me?

866
00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:46,720
Speaker 4: You know what to do. Tell the Israelites.

867
00:47:47,680 --> 00:47:48,959
Speaker 1: To plug in the apple TV.

868
00:47:50,280 --> 00:47:53,359
Speaker 3: Tell the Israelites to go back to quoting the word

869
00:47:53,400 --> 00:47:53,759
Speaker 3: of God.

870
00:47:54,080 --> 00:48:00,880
Speaker 1: Tell the Israelites to wash their face and move on.

871
00:48:02,960 --> 00:48:11,759
Speaker 3: Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the

872
00:48:11,840 --> 00:48:15,600
Speaker 3: sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can

873
00:48:15,680 --> 00:48:20,799
Speaker 3: go through the sea on dry ground. And what I

874
00:48:20,840 --> 00:48:22,840
Speaker 3: wanted to show you today from the Bible leave the

875
00:48:22,920 --> 00:48:29,279
Speaker 3: verse is that the same staff that was on the

876
00:48:29,360 --> 00:48:34,719
Speaker 3: ground was the staff that was going to work in

877
00:48:34,800 --> 00:48:38,439
Speaker 3: the water. And the reason I wanted you to see

878
00:48:38,440 --> 00:48:41,799
Speaker 3: that today is because the children of Israel had no

879
00:48:41,920 --> 00:48:45,359
Speaker 3: point of reference for this red sea, had no way

880
00:48:45,440 --> 00:48:47,520
Speaker 3: of knowing how God was going to do it.

881
00:48:47,760 --> 00:48:49,000
Speaker 4: And maybe you don't either.

882
00:48:49,239 --> 00:48:51,879
Speaker 1: And you're standing there saying, God, I feel like I've

883
00:48:51,920 --> 00:48:54,719
Speaker 1: lost it. God, I feel like this is too much. God.

884
00:48:54,760 --> 00:48:57,000
Speaker 1: I've never been this way before, and I don't know

885
00:48:57,040 --> 00:48:57,520
Speaker 1: what to do.

886
00:48:57,640 --> 00:49:02,080
Speaker 3: And God says, you still got that staff, you still

887
00:49:02,120 --> 00:49:06,319
Speaker 3: got that word, you still got that praise, you still

888
00:49:06,360 --> 00:49:07,160
Speaker 3: got that gift.

889
00:49:08,200 --> 00:49:09,240
Speaker 1: Then stand up.

890
00:49:09,080 --> 00:49:14,080
Speaker 3: On your feet and lift your hands and praise your God.

891
00:49:15,640 --> 00:49:19,400
Speaker 3: Because the same faith that you've got it.

892
00:49:19,480 --> 00:49:20,799
Speaker 1: The parting bush.

893
00:49:21,440 --> 00:49:25,759
Speaker 3: It's gonna get you through this, God said, it'll get

894
00:49:25,800 --> 00:49:26,480
Speaker 3: you through this.

895
00:49:27,400 --> 00:49:30,000
Speaker 1: It'll get you through it. It'll get you.

896
00:49:30,080 --> 00:49:33,920
Speaker 3: Through the dry season, It'll get you through the panic attack.

897
00:49:34,400 --> 00:49:36,000
Speaker 1: It'll get you through it.

898
00:49:39,640 --> 00:49:44,520
Speaker 3: Because it still works. It worked on the ground, it'll

899
00:49:44,520 --> 00:49:47,600
Speaker 3: work in the water. It worked when you were young,

900
00:49:47,960 --> 00:49:52,000
Speaker 3: it'll work when you're old. Somebody shall I've never seen

901
00:49:52,040 --> 00:49:54,280
Speaker 3: the righteous forsaken.

902
00:49:55,360 --> 00:49:57,600
Speaker 1: It'll work. It'll work in this season.

903
00:49:57,880 --> 00:50:00,319
Speaker 3: It'll work when they like you, it'll work when they

904
00:50:00,400 --> 00:50:03,120
Speaker 3: hate you, it'll work when they lie about you, it'll

905
00:50:03,160 --> 00:50:06,600
Speaker 3: work when they leave you. I'm a living testimony that

906
00:50:06,800 --> 00:50:08,160
Speaker 3: the Word of God.

907
00:50:11,239 --> 00:50:11,920
Speaker 1: Still works.

908
00:50:13,920 --> 00:50:16,479
Speaker 2: Hey, I hope you enjoyed the podcast, and if you did,

909
00:50:17,040 --> 00:50:19,600
Speaker 2: make sure to share it and subscribe so we can

910
00:50:19,640 --> 00:50:22,239
Speaker 2: get you all of these new messages as soon as

911
00:50:22,239 --> 00:50:25,080
Speaker 2: they're available. I also want to take a moment and

912
00:50:25,160 --> 00:50:26,920
Speaker 2: thank all of you who are a part of Elevation.

913
00:50:27,440 --> 00:50:30,759
Speaker 2: Whether you support us financially, or serve with us, or

914
00:50:31,200 --> 00:50:33,879
Speaker 2: just share these messages, it's because of you that we're

915
00:50:33,920 --> 00:50:36,839
Speaker 2: able to reach people all around the world. And if

916
00:50:36,880 --> 00:50:39,359
Speaker 2: you want more information on how to be a part

917
00:50:39,400 --> 00:50:42,280
Speaker 2: of Elevation, click the link in the description.

918
00:50:42,800 --> 00:50:43,800
Speaker 4: Thanks again for listening.

919
00:50:43,800 --> 00:50:47,200
Speaker 2: Make sure to leave a review, share the message, and subscribe.

920
00:50:47,440 --> 00:50:56,800
Speaker 1: God bless you.