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Speaker 1: Hey, this is Stephen Fernick.

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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. I hope you're blessed today.

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Speaker 1: It's good to be in church on a Sunday. Are

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Speaker 1: you glad to be in the house of God Elevation

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Speaker 1: Amen across every location, even at home. I know you

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Speaker 1: just tore up your bathroom, your living room, praise and

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Speaker 1: you can sit down. I am elated and excited to

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Speaker 1: be back at Elevation Church. My name is Robert Madou

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Speaker 1: and I am not a guest here. I am for

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Speaker 1: real a part of the fam. I hope you know

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Speaker 1: that I have the privilege with my wife, a pastor

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Speaker 1: and a church in the great country of Texas called

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Speaker 1: Social Dallas. And I love my I love my church.

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Speaker 1: But if they ever start tripping, they have a get

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Speaker 1: sick of me. I know why I'm moving. I'm coming

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Speaker 1: straight to Charlotte and I'm just gonna get on staff

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Speaker 1: here at Elevation So Social Tallas fam, Y'll better treat

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Speaker 1: me right, treat my wife Taylor right. But it is

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Speaker 1: such an honor to be here. I love this house.

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Speaker 1: And I love your pastors. I love Pastor Stephen, I

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Speaker 1: love Pastor Holly. They are dear friends to my wife.

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Speaker 1: And I a you know, I said that about my

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Speaker 1: church treating me right. I hope y'all treat your pastors right.

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Speaker 1: So I mean, they're filling up arenas, and there's a

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Speaker 1: lot of cities, a lot of countries that would love

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Speaker 1: to have them. And I'm just in this season, especially now,

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Speaker 1: where I don't want familiarity to rob me of appreciation.

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Speaker 1: Sometimes often the greater the gift God has given you,

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Speaker 1: it's easy to take it for granted. And I pray

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Speaker 1: that is not the story of this church. I pray

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Speaker 1: you always honor, salute, and celebrate and church the gift

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Speaker 1: God has given you in the life of Pastor Stephen.

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Speaker 1: And how so can we just give them just some honor?

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Speaker 1: Come on, let them know we're covering you, We're playing

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Speaker 1: for you. Elevation nights, come on on, packing out of

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Speaker 1: readers all over the nation, and we got your coming

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Speaker 1: here at home. And it's good to have an elevation morning.

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Speaker 1: I'm excited to preach the word of God. I hope

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Speaker 1: you're ready to hear it. Are you ready to hear it.

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Speaker 1: I want to jump straight into it today. I want

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Speaker 1: you to go with me to the Gospel of John today,

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Speaker 1: the Gospel of John. If you don't mind, can we

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Speaker 1: stand to honor the reading of God's word? Is this cool?

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Speaker 3: I don't know.

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Speaker 1: You just sat down and got comfortable, But come on,

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Speaker 1: you war those shoes trying to be cute should put

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Speaker 1: some comfortable shoes on the elevation church. I want you

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Speaker 1: to go with me to the Gospel of John chapter

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Speaker 1: number five, and I want to look at verses one

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Speaker 1: through fifteen. John chapter five start at verse number one,

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Speaker 1: and we'll land at verse number fifteen. When you're ready

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Speaker 1: to read it, say yeah. If you need some time

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Speaker 1: to find John, say hold up. I heard one hold

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Speaker 1: up right here in this section, and I'm gonna wait

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Speaker 1: for you. I'mna wait for you across every location. E

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Speaker 1: family love you. John Chapter five will start at verse

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Speaker 1: number one and it declares afterward, Jesus returned to Jerusalem

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Speaker 1: for one of the Jewish holy Days, and inside the city,

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Speaker 1: near the sheep Gate was the pull of Bethesda with

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Speaker 1: five covered porches, crowds of sick people, blind, lame, or paralyzed,

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Speaker 1: lay on the porches and one of the men lying

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Speaker 1: there had been sick for thirty eight years. When Jesus

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Speaker 1: saw him and knew he had been ill for a

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Speaker 1: long time, he asked him who the answer is? Asking

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Speaker 1: a question. I want to fall before I even ask

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Speaker 1: where Jesus asked. And this is what I wish the

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Speaker 1: Bible could give us, facial expression and vocal intonation. Don't

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Speaker 1: you just we're just like just on the Bible app

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Speaker 1: If you could just pop up, we could actually see Jesus'

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Speaker 1: face and maybe hear his vocal intonation how he asked this,

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Speaker 1: Because there's really two different ways to ask this question.

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Speaker 1: You know, you could he could have said, do you

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Speaker 1: want to get well? That's an option. That's an option.

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Speaker 1: And I don't know if you ever felt like that,

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Speaker 1: he ever felt like God, he just just annoyed with you,

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Speaker 1: just a little bit, like how long is it going

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Speaker 1: to take you to get yourself together? So do you

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Speaker 1: want to get well? That's an option. Then again, I

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Speaker 1: can't imagine the creator of the universe being annoyed with

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Speaker 1: what he created. So maybe he had a different facial expression,

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Speaker 1: a different vocal intonation. Maybe the facial expression of a

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Speaker 1: chick fil a worker, just like, do you want to

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Speaker 1: get well? Because you know I can do that, right

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Speaker 1: my pleasure, I can do it. I can do it.

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Speaker 1: Maybe that's the way he asked it. But look at

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Speaker 1: this man's reply. I can't, sir, I can, for I

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Speaker 1: have no one to put me in the pool. When

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Speaker 1: the water bubbles up, someone else always gets there ahead

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Speaker 1: of me. Jesus told him, stand up, pick up your man,

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Speaker 1: and walk. Instantly, the man was healed, rolled up his

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Speaker 1: sleeping mat and began walking. This miracle happened on the Sabbath.

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Speaker 1: So the Jewish leaders objected. Of course they did, and

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Speaker 1: they said to the man who was cured, you can't

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Speaker 1: work on the sabbath. The law doesn't allow you to

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Speaker 1: carry that sleeping mat. But he replied, the man who

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Speaker 1: healed me told me pick up your man.

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Speaker 3: And all.

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Speaker 1: Who said such a thing as that they demanded the

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Speaker 1: man didn't know. In the funny, you can be shouting

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Speaker 1: about stuff you don't even know. But Jesus disappeared into

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Speaker 1: the crowd. But afterward Jesus found him at the temple

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Speaker 1: and told him, now you are well, so stop sinning,

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Speaker 1: or something even worse may happen to you. Then the

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Speaker 1: man went and told the Jewish leaders that it was

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Speaker 1: Jesus who had healed him. Can you say, amen, oh

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Speaker 1: that's good stuff. Elevation fam. I want to appreciate to

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Speaker 1: you today as always, not long, probably about four and

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Speaker 1: a half hours just using this as a title today.

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Speaker 1: Lame excuses, lame excuses. Look at your neighbor for the

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Speaker 1: last time, right in their face, and say, neighbor, it's

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Speaker 1: time for you to stop with the lame excuses. Come

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Speaker 1: on across every location. If you believe God's gonna speak,

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Speaker 1: would you give him some praise and advance. Come on,

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Speaker 1: I meet him for real. Get up and take your

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Speaker 1: mat and walk. Praise Father, have your way, speak to

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Speaker 1: our hearts today in Jesus' name. Amen, you may be

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Speaker 1: seated in the presence of the Lord. Lame excuses, elevation Fam.

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Speaker 1: It's crazy how much I can personally relate to this

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Speaker 1: man who is in our techs today. Not because I've

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Speaker 1: been lame for thirty eight years, but I have been

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Speaker 1: alive for thirty eight years. Matter of fact, this June

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Speaker 1: I turned thirty nine. Turn thirty nine. Oh yes, forty

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Speaker 1: is coming, y'all. Forty, it is coming on you board.

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Speaker 1: You know they say that in your twenties you are

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Speaker 1: obsessed with what other people think about you. In your forties,

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Speaker 1: you stop caring what other people think about you, and

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Speaker 1: then in your sixties you realize wasn't nobody thinking about

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Speaker 1: you anyway. So so I'm about to enter the stage

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Speaker 1: of my forties world. I just I don't care what

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Speaker 1: you think about me. That's what I'm entered in. And

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Speaker 1: don't don't get me wrong. I want to grow. I

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Speaker 1: don't want to be rude. I want to get better.

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Speaker 1: But I'm just in the season of life where I

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Speaker 1: know my strengths, I know my weaknesses, I know what

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Speaker 1: I'm good at, I know my deficiencies, I know my idiosyncrasies.

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Speaker 1: I mean, I know what I can do and I

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Speaker 1: know what I can't do. Like I can't do math,

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Speaker 1: I don't do numbers. My eight year old daughar, beautiful

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Speaker 1: baby girl, Evy, she asked me to help me with

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Speaker 1: her basic math homework the other day. I said no.

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Speaker 1: I said no, said, sweetheart, Daddy is a communicator, not

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Speaker 1: a calculator. You're gonna have to do this through this

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Speaker 1: on your own. I don't do math. I don't do numbers.

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Speaker 3: Yo.

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Speaker 1: I don't cook. I don't cook. I cannot cook anything.

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Speaker 1: You know how some men think that, like masculinity is

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Speaker 1: synonymous with grilling. I am not that dude. Okay, I

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Speaker 1: don't cook. I don't grill. Okay, I make reservations. That's

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Speaker 1: what I do, and I'm cool with that. It is

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Speaker 1: what it is. I know my strains, and he says, yo,

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Speaker 1: I also know that I'm not good at texting people back.

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Speaker 1: I know, I know. I know that's the cardinal unforgivable

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Speaker 1: sin in this day and age in which we live.

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Speaker 1: I am so sorry. I have a phone full of

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Speaker 1: text messages that I have responded to in my head,

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Speaker 1: but it just hadn't got to my fingertips yet. Okay,

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Speaker 1: give me some grace. Okay, don't even ask me, I

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Speaker 1: did you get the text? Of course I got it,

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Speaker 1: you know I got it. Just give me some time

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Speaker 1: to respond. Okay. I got a wife, I got three kids,

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Speaker 1: I got a church. We got a pet dog in

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Speaker 1: these delivering a squirrel, and give me pis. I got

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Speaker 1: stuff going on. I get to it when I get

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Speaker 1: to it. It's just hard. And I'm telling I've learned

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Speaker 1: that people don't like it when you don't respond to

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Speaker 1: they tecks. They don't care what excuse you have. Matter

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Speaker 1: of fact, you ever tax somebody, If you ever tax somebody,

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Speaker 1: and all of a sudden you saw them start to reply,

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Speaker 1: and you see the little bubbles and then it just disappears. Oh,

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Speaker 1: your mind just starts jumping to all these stories about

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Speaker 1: what they could have done, what they could have said. Oh,

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Speaker 1: I'm telling you, I have all kinds of excuses for

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Speaker 1: why I didn't get back to your text message. But

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Speaker 1: no matter what I give, it always feels like a

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Speaker 1: lame excuse. You ever given a lame excuse? Lame excuse?

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Speaker 1: Why you were late for work? Really is traffic every day?

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Speaker 1: You ever given just a lame excuse? Lame excuses are

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Speaker 1: interesting because lame excuses, we think, exonerate us from our responsibility.

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Speaker 1: If we didn't, we wouldn't give the lame excuse. We

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Speaker 1: in our minds think that that lame excuse actually exonerates

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Speaker 1: us from the responsibility or the thing that we were

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Speaker 1: supposed to do. And I came to tell you that

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Speaker 1: it doesn't. You still have a responsibility. As a matter

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Speaker 1: of fact, I think the greatest gift God has ever

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Speaker 1: given humanity is responsibility. Response, response ability, the ability to

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Speaker 1: respond that God is looking for your ability to respond

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Speaker 1: to the call to the purpose, to the mandate he

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Speaker 1: is put on your life, and He is not interested

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Speaker 1: in your lame excuse. But isn't it crazy the lame

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Speaker 1: excuses that we give God. As a matter of fact,

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Speaker 1: your Bible is full. It is a repleat of examples

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Speaker 1: of people giving lame excuses, especially when God tells them

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Speaker 1: their purpose. Moses, go tell Pharoh, let my people go.

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Speaker 3: God.

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Speaker 1: You know what, I can't talk. Lame excuse, Kitty, You

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Speaker 1: are a mighty voy you no, you understand God. I'm

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Speaker 1: the least in my family. I can't really those things

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Speaker 1: like that. Lame excuse. Mary, the Holy Spirit's gonna overshadow you.

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Speaker 1: You're gonna give birth to the son of the Living

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Speaker 1: God where I don't even know, Joseph like that, how

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Speaker 1: is that going? Lame? Lame excuse? You laughing? But I'm wondering,

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Speaker 1: what lame excuse are you giving God, God right now

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Speaker 1: for why you haven't stepped into the fullness of your purpose?

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Speaker 1: What lame excuse are you telling him? Thinking that that

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Speaker 1: excuse exonerates you from the responsibility. In my text today,

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Speaker 1: we don't just run into a lame man. We run

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Speaker 1: into a man who has a lame excuse. And for

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Speaker 1: thirty eight years, y'all, thirty eight years, as long as

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Speaker 1: your boy has been living, this man has been lame.

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Speaker 1: Before you start judging people's lame excuse, maybe check the

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Speaker 1: environment from which the excuse came, because I think lame

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Speaker 1: excuses are birth from lame environments. Think about this man

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Speaker 1: for thirty eight years. We don't even know when this

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Speaker 1: lameness occurred, whether he's just been by the pool for

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Speaker 1: thirty eight years, but either way you put it, for

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Speaker 1: a long time, this man has been stuck in one position,

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Speaker 1: not being able to move. You understand, during this time period,

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Speaker 1: there are no home rounds, there are no wheelchairs. You

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Speaker 1: would stay in one position. Anytime you wanted to move somewhere,

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Speaker 1: you had to do it yourself. And if you didn't

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Speaker 1: do it yourself, you were dependent on other people around

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Speaker 1: you to say, hey, could you help me? Hey, I

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Speaker 1: actually want to move over there, could you help me

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Speaker 1: get up? No wonder When he responds to Jesus, the

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Speaker 1: first words out of his mouth were I can't. I

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Speaker 1: don't have anybody to help me. There's nobody that can

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Speaker 1: put me in. It's easy to judge people's excuses if

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Speaker 1: you don't know their environment. What else does he have

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Speaker 1: to rely on? There's nobody else to pick him up

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Speaker 1: because his entire life he's learned to be dependent upon

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Speaker 1: other people. And how sometimes even your physicality will affect

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Speaker 1: your psychology. When you're lame, all you have to talk

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Speaker 1: to is other lame people. What you're gonna do today?

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Speaker 1: Man probably lay here. I'll stake of the same thought.

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Speaker 1: It affects your conversations, or you have his lame conversations.

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Speaker 1: You don't talk to people who are up, you talk

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Speaker 1: to people who are down. This is the challenge of

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Speaker 1: being lame. It affects your ability to work. This man

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Speaker 1: couldn't find a job. What do you do? What a

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Speaker 1: job do you apply for? He's even having to beg

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Speaker 1: probably just to get something, and he's laying there. And

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Speaker 1: I think so often we judge people's lameness, and we

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Speaker 1: judge their excuses without even taking the time to at

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Speaker 1: least see the environment from which the lame excuse came.

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Speaker 1: At least check the environment. This man was lame for

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Speaker 1: thirty eight years. Not only is he in his environment,

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Speaker 1: but let's look at the environment and which he is surrounding.

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Speaker 1: The Bible says that there was a pool. There was

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Speaker 1: a pool that the bethesda means house of mercy, but

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Speaker 1: it may as well be a house of misery, because

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Speaker 1: if you see this scene, there are broken people everywhere.

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Speaker 1: In fact, the Bible says a crowd. Another version of

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Speaker 1: says a multitude. The only place we see multitude and

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Speaker 1: others in the Gospels is really the feeding of the

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Speaker 1: fish in the Five blows. This is not a few people.

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Speaker 1: There's a lot of people. This is a multitude of

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Speaker 1: sick people. And some are blind, and some are lame,

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Speaker 1: and some are missing arms, and some are missing eyes.

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Speaker 1: Here's one thing about this whole environment of the people

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Speaker 1: a by the pool. They're all broken. It's not a

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Speaker 1: single person by the pool that has it going on.

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Speaker 1: It's not a single person by the pool that has

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Speaker 1: it all put together. Everybody at the pool is broken

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Speaker 1: in some area. There's some people that had some legs,

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Speaker 1: and some people that didn't have arms, and some people

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Speaker 1: that had eyes, people that could hear. But no matter

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Speaker 1: where they were, everybody had some area of brokenness by

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Speaker 1: the pool. I'm going the paus right here since we

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Speaker 1: had the pool, and let you know that every single

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Speaker 1: person has some area of brokenness. I know you can't

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Speaker 1: see it because it's Sunday and they got their good

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Speaker 1: shirt on and all that Mary Kay and Mac makeup.

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Speaker 1: But I'm telling you they are not showing it well.

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Speaker 1: They are hiding their brokenness. All of us have some

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Speaker 1: area of brokenness. And I wish, just for once, if

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Speaker 1: we could have some people that would put away the

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Speaker 1: pretense and be honest and say, I don't have it

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Speaker 1: all together. I'm not really living how I'm posting. There

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Speaker 1: are still some areas of brokenness in my life. As

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Speaker 1: a matter of fact, you ought to thank God for

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Speaker 1: some of those areas of brokenness, because some of us

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Speaker 1: wouldn't pray if we didn't have brokenness. Some of us

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Speaker 1: wouldn't cry out to God if we didn't have brokenness.

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Speaker 1: But there's something about being broken. There's something that knowing

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Speaker 1: that you're afrail that actually makes you cry out to God.

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Speaker 1: I need you in this area. Everybody at the pool,

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Speaker 1: who ever, the whole spot full of broken people. I

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Speaker 1: wish I could see their Instagram and they TikTok because

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00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:15,240
Speaker 1: you know, they didn't post what was broken, they posted

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Speaker 1: what was whole. The lame person just posting his arms

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Speaker 1: like yeah, I do up a body, no lower body, man,

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Speaker 1: just up a body. Person that's blind, got sunglasses on

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Speaker 1: so you don't see it. They just yeah, man, I'm cold.

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Speaker 1: Can't see the comments of the likes, but they just posted.

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Speaker 1: Isn't it funny how we like to show the good

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Speaker 1: parts we hide our brokenness. But everybody at the pool

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Speaker 1: was broken, and everybody at the pool had a belief system,

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Speaker 1: and the belief system was that whenever the water would bubble,

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Speaker 1: they believed that an angel would stir the waters, that

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Speaker 1: every time the water would bubble, the first person to

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Speaker 1: get in would get the healing. This is the belief

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Speaker 1: system of the broken people that you gotta be first,

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Speaker 1: that the first person is the one that's going to

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Speaker 1: get the blessing. And so I gotta fight and I

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Speaker 1: gotta do whatever I can to be first. This is

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Speaker 1: our generation. No wonder. All of us are fighting for attention,

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Speaker 1: No wonder. All of us are fighting for people to

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Speaker 1: validate us and look at us. Because we all think

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Speaker 1: if I could just be the first one to get in.

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Speaker 1: Now'll be the one that gets the breakthrough. I'll be

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Speaker 1: the one that gets the blessing. It's a generation of lame.

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Speaker 1: As a matter of fact, to me, that's what lame

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Speaker 1: stands for. Lame la m e who look at me? Everybody.

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Speaker 1: You want to see a lame life. Look at a

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Speaker 1: person who has put themselves in the center of their world,

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Speaker 1: and they're saying, look at me, everybody, as long as

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Speaker 1: I can be first to get in. And I can

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Speaker 1: see this man. I don't know who dropped him off

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Speaker 1: at the pool that day, but I wholeheartedly and earnestly

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Speaker 1: believe that the day he was first dropped at the pool,

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Speaker 1: he actually had excitement that he was gonna get healed.

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Speaker 1: Oh I can see him. I can see the first

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Speaker 1: day he was dropped by the pool. He's like, Oh,

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna get my breakthrough today. I'll see you over there.

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Speaker 1: Don't think you're gonna beat me. As soon as that

328
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Speaker 1: water bubbles up, I'm gonna be the first one in there.

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Speaker 1: And he was going with all the night and the

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Speaker 1: tenacity he could find. Come on. You know how it

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Speaker 1: is when you first start coming to church and you

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Speaker 1: start praising you how it used to be when you

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Speaker 1: first came to elevation. So you'd be like, oh, when

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Speaker 1: they're gonna start, man, I tell you what, go out,

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Speaker 1: Thank God, let's go. You don't see them people, It's like,

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Speaker 1: oh heaven, you can tell you just started coming, didn't you?

337
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Speaker 1: You knew you knew to this set? Howe right? You

338
00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:34,280
Speaker 1: need to get it together and don't take all that Oh.

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Speaker 1: I think when he first got to the pool, he

340
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Speaker 1: was excited. He couldn't wait. He's like, I'm gonna be

341
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Speaker 1: I'm gonna be the first one in that water. I'm

342
00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:42,200
Speaker 1: gonna get my heel and I'm gonna get my breakthrough

343
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Speaker 1: im and get everything I need. But year after year

344
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Speaker 1: of disappointment, year after year of not getting to the water,

345
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Speaker 1: year after year of people stepping over you and getting

346
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Speaker 1: in front of you. How mean you know, after a while,

347
00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:07,880
Speaker 1: thirty eight years, you start saying, maybe I'll never get

348
00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:13,560
Speaker 1: the healing. Maybe maybe I'll stop trying to even go

349
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Speaker 1: to the water. I think after thirty eight years, you

350
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Speaker 1: stop chasing to the pool and you just start relaxing

351
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Speaker 1: on the porch. You ever been on the porch? The

352
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Speaker 1: porch is when you have gotten to the place where

353
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Speaker 1: you say it hurts to hope again, it hurts to

354
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Speaker 1: believe it. It is what it is. I guess I'll

355
00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:44,679
Speaker 1: never have a good marriage. It is what it is.

356
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Speaker 1: I guess I'll never get out of dead. It is

357
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Speaker 1: what it is. I guess my kids will never never

358
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Speaker 1: be set free. It is what it is. After a while,

359
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Speaker 1: when you've been hoping and believing for so long and

360
00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:05,160
Speaker 1: you've had so many disappointments, it is easy to relax

361
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Speaker 1: on the porch and not even fight to get in

362
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Speaker 1: the stirring of the water again. It is easy to

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Speaker 1: chill on the porch because at least the porch has

364
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Speaker 1: shade and I'm covered. You haven't seen people just sitting

365
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Speaker 1: on the porch and some houses they giving up on

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Speaker 1: life and they just sitting on the porch. Just watch

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Speaker 1: knock her down, Miss Johnson. Get some new grass. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: they s some new ground. Okay, just watching everybody else.

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Speaker 1: Guess how some people come to church. They're in the room,

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Speaker 1: they're just on the porch. We look at him, Yeah

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Speaker 1: he'll learn.

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Speaker 4: Yeah he's shouting the past the thieves message.

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Speaker 1: Yeah.

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Speaker 4: I used to shout like that too, But now my

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Speaker 4: right toe hurts. Now I just sit down. Now they

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Speaker 4: know my heart, they know my heart. I just say

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Speaker 4: a man on my heart. I just that this is

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Speaker 4: what it is. This says what it is.

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Speaker 1: And he resolves to the porch, and he's given up,

380
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Speaker 1: and he probably stopped looking at the pool, and he

381
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Speaker 1: probably just kept looking up in the air, not even

382
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Speaker 1: looking for a miracle anymore. But here's what I love

383
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Speaker 1: about the story of this man. This man has proved

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Speaker 1: positive that even in life, when you've gotten to the

385
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Speaker 1: porch and you don't even want to fight for the pool,

386
00:22:25,480 --> 00:22:27,680
Speaker 1: and you feel like giving up and thrown in the towel,

387
00:22:27,840 --> 00:22:30,160
Speaker 1: and you can't even believe again, and you can't even

388
00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:33,120
Speaker 1: hope again, even when you're not even looking for a miracle,

389
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Speaker 1: I'm so glad that a miracle will look for you.

390
00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:40,160
Speaker 1: I'm so glad that even when we have laid on

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Speaker 1: the porch of life and we don't have any more

392
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Speaker 1: fight in us and we don't want to hope again,

393
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Speaker 1: I'm so thankful for a savior that will come after us,

394
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Speaker 1: that will seek after us. Look at Jesus coming after

395
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Speaker 1: this man. He didn't even know he was on the radar.

396
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Speaker 1: He didn't even know he was on the schedule of

397
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Speaker 1: the Kingdom, Kings and the Lord, the Lord. I don't

398
00:23:00,880 --> 00:23:03,480
Speaker 1: know who this message is for. Maybe you're at home,

399
00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:05,800
Speaker 1: but I came to tell you. Even when you've given

400
00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:08,359
Speaker 1: up and you've lost a hope, God has not given

401
00:23:08,440 --> 00:23:11,600
Speaker 1: up on you. God will find a way to get

402
00:23:11,720 --> 00:23:14,760
Speaker 1: to you. God will do whatever it takes to make

403
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Speaker 1: sure you don't just relinquish to the porch when you've

404
00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:25,600
Speaker 1: got so much purpose on your life. Look at Jesus

405
00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:30,000
Speaker 1: coming straight for this man who's been laying by the

406
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Speaker 1: pool for thirty eight years. Oh, y'all, this message of

407
00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:39,160
Speaker 1: my theology or my christology. Because understand, there's probably thousands

408
00:23:39,200 --> 00:23:43,080
Speaker 1: of people at this porch. This is a festival. There's

409
00:23:43,160 --> 00:23:47,440
Speaker 1: a whole lot of sick people. And Jesus who steps

410
00:23:47,640 --> 00:23:54,679
Speaker 1: over all these people and come straight to him. Are

411
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Speaker 1: you sure you want to clap at that? Can you

412
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Speaker 1: imagine being one of the ones who was laying on

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Speaker 1: the and to watch the King of Kings and the

414
00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:05,600
Speaker 1: Lord of Lord he steps over him. Still, excuse me,

415
00:24:05,840 --> 00:24:08,320
Speaker 1: don't watchy'a. Excuse me, no, no, no, no, I came straight

416
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Speaker 1: for you. He came straight for this man so away

417
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Speaker 1: with this notion. I only give my healing if I

418
00:24:17,560 --> 00:24:20,119
Speaker 1: got faith. I'll only get the break through if I

419
00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:22,479
Speaker 1: got enough faith to believe for it. You know when

420
00:24:22,520 --> 00:24:24,120
Speaker 1: we feel sometimes like I gotta be like the woman

421
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Speaker 1: with the issue of blood and press my weight through

422
00:24:26,040 --> 00:24:27,800
Speaker 1: the prow See you, that's why he didn't get a breakthrough.

423
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Speaker 1: You didn't have enough faith. Explain homeboy, right here, what

424
00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:36,600
Speaker 1: faith does this man? He not even expecting it, as

425
00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:38,639
Speaker 1: he just laying there. All of a sudden he sees

426
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Speaker 1: the King of Glory going what somebody looking straight at him.

427
00:24:43,119 --> 00:24:46,080
Speaker 3: This is the beauty of grace, This is the beauty.

428
00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:48,280
Speaker 1: Of coming to Jesus. You don't even know to know

429
00:24:48,320 --> 00:24:51,199
Speaker 1: that you need him. It's not for the work of grace,

430
00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:54,800
Speaker 1: every healing, every miracle. It is not your merit. It

431
00:24:54,880 --> 00:24:57,359
Speaker 1: is not your rupture, it is not your good behavior.

432
00:24:57,520 --> 00:25:00,639
Speaker 1: It is nothing but the grace and the goodness of God.

433
00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:07,199
Speaker 1: He is the great initiator. Look at Jesus, you tell

434
00:25:07,320 --> 00:25:09,520
Speaker 1: my God his appointment. Excuse me, not today, not you,

435
00:25:10,119 --> 00:25:14,720
Speaker 1: not to you, excuse me, excuse me? Coming straight for

436
00:25:14,800 --> 00:25:18,520
Speaker 1: this man. And he looks at him, and he asked

437
00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:24,199
Speaker 1: him a question. The answer ask a question. Excuse me,

438
00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:30,800
Speaker 1: do you want to get well? Before I deal with

439
00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:35,200
Speaker 1: that question, let me just talk about the questions of Jesus.

440
00:25:36,119 --> 00:25:38,119
Speaker 1: I know I said he's the answer, asked him the question,

441
00:25:38,160 --> 00:25:41,919
Speaker 1: and that's what we think. Jesus is the answer. But

442
00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,359
Speaker 1: almost I'm starting to think that Jesus is the question,

443
00:25:47,240 --> 00:25:50,560
Speaker 1: because Jesus will ask you the question that you don't

444
00:25:50,600 --> 00:25:52,240
Speaker 1: even know to ask, so he can show you he's

445
00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:56,400
Speaker 1: the answer. When I studied the Gospels, I'm blown away

446
00:25:56,440 --> 00:26:01,400
Speaker 1: by how many questions Jesus asked. Your gospels, Jesus asked

447
00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:06,520
Speaker 1: approximately three hundred and seven questions, three hundred and seven questions.

448
00:26:06,840 --> 00:26:10,520
Speaker 1: Who he is asked in the Gospels one hundred and

449
00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:14,440
Speaker 1: eighty three questions. Of those hundred and eighty three, he

450
00:26:14,480 --> 00:26:19,639
Speaker 1: really only directly answers about eight of them. That's how

451
00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:22,000
Speaker 1: your God rolls. You come to him with a question,

452
00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:24,440
Speaker 1: who He'll hit you with a question and two stories

453
00:26:25,680 --> 00:26:27,120
Speaker 1: you'd been like, wait a minute, what did I ask

454
00:26:27,160 --> 00:26:31,200
Speaker 1: he told about? Mustard said, I'm confused. What. Oh, I'll

455
00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:33,320
Speaker 1: tell you. We think he's the answered, but I'm telling

456
00:26:33,320 --> 00:26:36,080
Speaker 1: you he is the question. Your God was always asking

457
00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:38,720
Speaker 1: questions and matter of fact, the first words that emanate

458
00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:41,040
Speaker 1: from the mouth of Jesus as a teenager and the

459
00:26:41,080 --> 00:26:44,760
Speaker 1: temple was a question. Remember, Mary and Joseph lost them.

460
00:26:44,880 --> 00:26:47,320
Speaker 1: They lost Jesus. Remember they couldn't find him and they

461
00:26:47,359 --> 00:26:49,840
Speaker 1: lost them, and they said, hey, were you? We were

462
00:26:49,840 --> 00:26:52,600
Speaker 1: looking alone for you? Boy? What's wrong with you? It's like,

463
00:26:53,280 --> 00:26:57,840
Speaker 1: why were you looking for me? Didn't you know? I

464
00:26:57,920 --> 00:27:01,120
Speaker 1: must be about my father's business. Jesus was always asking questions.

465
00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:06,480
Speaker 1: He died on the cross with a question, My God,

466
00:27:06,640 --> 00:27:11,000
Speaker 1: my God, why have you forsaken me? He got up

467
00:27:11,040 --> 00:27:13,960
Speaker 1: from the grave with a question. Remember how he messed

468
00:27:14,040 --> 00:27:16,800
Speaker 1: up Mary? She was at the tomb and here's Jesus resurrected,

469
00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:19,520
Speaker 1: new body, new wardrobe. He's like, excuse me, who are

470
00:27:19,520 --> 00:27:24,879
Speaker 1: you looking for? He's always asking question, where is your faith?

471
00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:30,440
Speaker 1: Who do men say that I am? Who told you?

472
00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:30,840
Speaker 3: That?

473
00:27:31,200 --> 00:27:36,159
Speaker 1: God is asking questions all the time? Why does he

474
00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:40,480
Speaker 1: ask questions? Because he wants to send you on a quest.

475
00:27:42,119 --> 00:27:44,439
Speaker 1: Answers have a finality to it, and we live in

476
00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:46,760
Speaker 1: a culture that just wants an answer. But you have

477
00:27:46,840 --> 00:27:49,320
Speaker 1: a God that will give you a question to take

478
00:27:49,359 --> 00:27:52,320
Speaker 1: you on a journey. Because he's trying to draw you

479
00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,960
Speaker 1: into himself. He's trying to show you who he is,

480
00:27:56,160 --> 00:27:58,600
Speaker 1: and you can't find that out in a moment. I'm

481
00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:02,679
Speaker 1: telling you, questions are powerful. Questions will not allow you

482
00:28:02,760 --> 00:28:05,960
Speaker 1: the luxury of staying on the surface. Questions always force

483
00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:08,520
Speaker 1: you to go deeper into the deep things. I don't

484
00:28:08,560 --> 00:28:10,400
Speaker 1: know who this is for, but this is your last

485
00:28:10,440 --> 00:28:12,800
Speaker 1: year to lift shallow. God said he wants to take

486
00:28:12,840 --> 00:28:17,199
Speaker 1: you deeper, and sometimes he's going to ask you the

487
00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:21,359
Speaker 1: tough questions, the questions that you don't want to ask yourself.

488
00:28:21,800 --> 00:28:23,679
Speaker 1: That's why if you got a good counselor after you

489
00:28:23,720 --> 00:28:26,280
Speaker 1: sat on the couch and got a good deal at

490
00:28:26,280 --> 00:28:28,480
Speaker 1: the right moment, they want to hit you with And

491
00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:30,720
Speaker 1: how does that make you?

492
00:28:30,800 --> 00:28:31,119
Speaker 3: See?

493
00:28:33,520 --> 00:28:37,879
Speaker 1: Because there's something about the question that proves deeper beyond

494
00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:42,480
Speaker 1: the surface. So he's asking this man, do you want

495
00:28:43,320 --> 00:28:47,880
Speaker 1: to get well? Do you really want to get well?

496
00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:52,080
Speaker 1: What is Jesus probing at this question? He wants to

497
00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:56,720
Speaker 1: know what do you really want? What do you really desire?

498
00:28:57,520 --> 00:29:00,280
Speaker 1: Because it's obvious to me that you have been at

499
00:29:00,280 --> 00:29:03,480
Speaker 1: this pool for so long that you started to lose

500
00:29:03,760 --> 00:29:08,120
Speaker 1: your desire to walk again, You started to lose your

501
00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:12,320
Speaker 1: hope to walk again. And I'm wondering if there's somebody

502
00:29:12,360 --> 00:29:17,560
Speaker 1: in here today that you've lost your desire. You stop dreaming,

503
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:21,880
Speaker 1: you stop believing, and you've made the final words of

504
00:29:21,920 --> 00:29:24,360
Speaker 1: somebody who's truly giving up. It is what it is.

505
00:29:25,960 --> 00:29:28,760
Speaker 1: And God sent me on assignment to tell you to

506
00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:34,000
Speaker 1: dream again, to believe again, to hope again, to let

507
00:29:34,040 --> 00:29:36,640
Speaker 1: you know that where you are is not again, that

508
00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:40,800
Speaker 1: he can still do exceedingly abundantly above all you could ask, think,

509
00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:48,160
Speaker 1: are imagine you want to get? Well, he's going after

510
00:29:48,880 --> 00:29:54,960
Speaker 1: his desire. It's interesting the word desire has the word

511
00:29:55,120 --> 00:29:58,720
Speaker 1: desire in it, and you've studied the etymology, it literally

512
00:29:58,760 --> 00:30:03,200
Speaker 1: means of the vo of the Father, that desire is

513
00:30:03,280 --> 00:30:06,440
Speaker 1: of the Father, subliminally suggesting to us that our desires

514
00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:10,840
Speaker 1: should actually come from our father. This is why the

515
00:30:10,840 --> 00:30:13,560
Speaker 1: Bible says, delight in the Lord and all your waste,

516
00:30:13,600 --> 00:30:17,200
Speaker 1: and he will give you the desires of your heart.

517
00:30:17,600 --> 00:30:19,120
Speaker 1: That's not a verse to just say, oh, he gonna

518
00:30:19,120 --> 00:30:21,280
Speaker 1: give me whatever I want. Oh yeah, you'll give me

519
00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:22,800
Speaker 1: the desires of my heart. Come on, y'all have the tesla.

520
00:30:22,840 --> 00:30:26,520
Speaker 1: Let's come and let's go. No, it's as I delight

521
00:30:26,640 --> 00:30:30,120
Speaker 1: myself in him. All of a sudden, his heart becomes

522
00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:32,480
Speaker 1: my heart, and I start to see things the way

523
00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:35,520
Speaker 1: he sees things, and I'll start wanting what he wants

524
00:30:35,560 --> 00:30:41,080
Speaker 1: from me. And guess what. He doesn't just want you

525
00:30:41,120 --> 00:30:46,400
Speaker 1: to walk. He wants you to walk home. He doesn't

526
00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:48,480
Speaker 1: just want you up on your feet. He wants you

527
00:30:48,640 --> 00:30:52,120
Speaker 1: up on your feet walking in the fullness of what

528
00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:55,400
Speaker 1: he has for you. He wants your legs to be

529
00:30:55,440 --> 00:30:58,800
Speaker 1: an outward sign of the inner wholeness that's on the

530
00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:01,360
Speaker 1: inside of you. Because what good is it to have

531
00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:07,480
Speaker 1: your legs restored if your heart is still far from him?

532
00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:09,760
Speaker 1: What good is it for him to bless the business

533
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:12,280
Speaker 1: if you're not going to live a life of generosity

534
00:31:12,600 --> 00:31:15,720
Speaker 1: and allow your life to be a conduit of generosity

535
00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:21,320
Speaker 1: to help somebody else. What good is it for him

536
00:31:21,360 --> 00:31:23,160
Speaker 1: to give you the house if you ain't gonna have

537
00:31:23,280 --> 00:31:27,640
Speaker 1: nobody over the house and actually shed a gowns with him.

538
00:31:27,720 --> 00:31:30,120
Speaker 1: You don't invite nobody to your apartment and you want

539
00:31:30,120 --> 00:31:33,800
Speaker 1: a bigger house. Now, I'm just good by myself. I

540
00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:41,920
Speaker 1: don't really do people. Okay, he wants he wants you whole.

541
00:31:43,240 --> 00:31:48,640
Speaker 1: So he says, do you want to get well. He's

542
00:31:48,680 --> 00:31:51,560
Speaker 1: also trying to get him to understand that when I

543
00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:54,640
Speaker 1: heal you, you are now going to have to do the

544
00:31:54,800 --> 00:32:01,040
Speaker 1: work of walking and wholeness. I think we come to

545
00:32:01,160 --> 00:32:04,800
Speaker 1: church and we shout about the idea of being whole,

546
00:32:06,160 --> 00:32:11,560
Speaker 1: but the actual work it takes we don't want. Do

547
00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:14,080
Speaker 1: you want to get well? Because I'm about to hear

548
00:32:14,080 --> 00:32:16,240
Speaker 1: you and guess what, You're gonna have to walk right

549
00:32:16,320 --> 00:32:23,320
Speaker 1: into a job because you will have no more excuses

550
00:32:23,320 --> 00:32:27,480
Speaker 1: once your legs have been here. Who later he will

551
00:32:27,480 --> 00:32:29,240
Speaker 1: find this man in the temple and he had no

552
00:32:29,280 --> 00:32:31,080
Speaker 1: clue who it was who healed him, and he actually

553
00:32:31,080 --> 00:32:33,360
Speaker 1: tells him to stop sinning, and I'm curious what was

554
00:32:33,400 --> 00:32:36,239
Speaker 1: he doing. I got the strange suspicion that homeboy might

555
00:32:36,280 --> 00:32:39,360
Speaker 1: have went back to the same environment. Again. That's the

556
00:32:39,520 --> 00:32:43,040
Speaker 1: challenge of actually getting up and getting whole, because once

557
00:32:43,120 --> 00:32:47,320
Speaker 1: I get up, I have no more excuses. I have

558
00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:52,760
Speaker 1: no more trushes. Actually I have no more friends. Who

559
00:32:52,840 --> 00:32:55,240
Speaker 1: do you hang out with when you've been laying around

560
00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:59,040
Speaker 1: with the same people for thirty eight years? See? Sometimes

561
00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:01,080
Speaker 1: God on heal you you to a place where he

562
00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:03,560
Speaker 1: wants to know are you okay with being whole, but

563
00:33:03,680 --> 00:33:06,160
Speaker 1: still being by yourself. And as long as you know

564
00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:08,720
Speaker 1: that I'm your child, as long as you know that

565
00:33:08,840 --> 00:33:11,160
Speaker 1: I am the one that cares about you. Are you

566
00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:13,719
Speaker 1: cool with that? Or do you need the camaraderie of

567
00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:18,040
Speaker 1: other people to validate you? Sometimes you gotta walk by yourself.

568
00:33:20,760 --> 00:33:25,160
Speaker 1: Say I would rather be by myself at home than

569
00:33:25,200 --> 00:33:28,080
Speaker 1: to have some people that are benefiting from my brokenness.

570
00:33:31,080 --> 00:33:34,400
Speaker 1: Who does he hang out with? Who does he talk to?

571
00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:37,080
Speaker 1: Can you see him going back to the dudes by

572
00:33:37,120 --> 00:33:38,560
Speaker 1: the port saying, oh, well, look at you.

573
00:33:40,120 --> 00:33:42,000
Speaker 4: I don't know why he walked past me and then

574
00:33:42,040 --> 00:33:42,600
Speaker 4: it healed you.

575
00:33:42,640 --> 00:33:44,360
Speaker 1: I don't know what you did that was so special.

576
00:33:44,400 --> 00:33:46,080
Speaker 1: Do you ever see those people that try to get

577
00:33:46,200 --> 00:33:47,920
Speaker 1: mad just because of the favor and the grace of

578
00:33:47,920 --> 00:33:49,800
Speaker 1: God that's on your life. And you're trying to tell

579
00:33:49,880 --> 00:33:52,040
Speaker 1: him I can't explain it. I don't know why. Don't

580
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:55,400
Speaker 1: ask me ask him?

581
00:33:55,600 --> 00:33:58,040
Speaker 4: Look at you got your little legs, got your little legs,

582
00:33:58,040 --> 00:33:58,640
Speaker 4: thank you all that?

583
00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:01,280
Speaker 1: Huh huh? Yeah, No, it's fine, it's fine. I don't

584
00:34:01,320 --> 00:34:02,800
Speaker 1: know what you're talking about. Man, I had changed all

585
00:34:02,840 --> 00:34:04,840
Speaker 1: you have changed. Look at you got your little legs,

586
00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:06,880
Speaker 1: y'all stuck up. I'm not stuck up. I'm just up.

587
00:34:07,000 --> 00:34:09,160
Speaker 1: You the one that stuck. Don't be mad just because

588
00:34:09,160 --> 00:34:11,520
Speaker 1: he healed me. Don't be mad just because he delivered me.

589
00:34:11,719 --> 00:34:13,520
Speaker 1: Don't be mad just because I'm not in that same

590
00:34:13,600 --> 00:34:23,440
Speaker 1: cycling system of this funk. Do you want to get well?

591
00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:31,560
Speaker 1: It's hard to do the work of being whole. It's

592
00:34:31,600 --> 00:34:35,920
Speaker 1: hard to do the work of not just shouting about

593
00:34:35,960 --> 00:34:40,000
Speaker 1: the idea of freedom, but saying God, I'm now going

594
00:34:40,080 --> 00:34:44,840
Speaker 1: to trust you for every single step and keep walking

595
00:34:45,920 --> 00:34:50,400
Speaker 1: and put away the excuses so I can be who

596
00:34:50,480 --> 00:34:54,279
Speaker 1: you called and created me to be. Look at the

597
00:34:54,280 --> 00:34:56,440
Speaker 1: person next to you and just just push him a

598
00:34:56,440 --> 00:35:04,120
Speaker 1: little bit and say no more excuses, lame excuses. It's

599
00:35:04,160 --> 00:35:11,399
Speaker 1: time to get up. Do you want to get well? Sir?

600
00:35:12,800 --> 00:35:19,560
Speaker 1: I can't. I don't have anybody to help me. I

601
00:35:19,600 --> 00:35:23,080
Speaker 1: don't have anybody to pick me up and put me

602
00:35:24,480 --> 00:35:26,880
Speaker 1: into the water, and somebody always gets ahead of me.

603
00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:31,680
Speaker 1: Isn't that crazy? He's looking in the face of Jesus

604
00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:40,160
Speaker 1: and he's talking about the pool. He responds to a

605
00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:44,040
Speaker 1: savior who asked a simple question, do you want to

606
00:35:44,080 --> 00:35:49,640
Speaker 1: get well? That's like a yes or no question, but

607
00:35:49,719 --> 00:35:53,160
Speaker 1: he goes into all these excuses, and in his excuses,

608
00:35:53,239 --> 00:35:56,960
Speaker 1: he's talking about the pool. When Jesus is from in

609
00:35:57,040 --> 00:36:02,680
Speaker 1: front of him. Jesus says, do you want to get well?

610
00:36:03,680 --> 00:36:08,480
Speaker 1: And he's talking about the pool. It's John another one,

611
00:36:09,600 --> 00:36:14,279
Speaker 1: the Living Water is in front of him, asking him

612
00:36:14,280 --> 00:36:16,960
Speaker 1: do you want to get well? And he's talking about

613
00:36:17,000 --> 00:36:20,520
Speaker 1: the pool. I'm wondering, are you talking about something that

614
00:36:20,680 --> 00:36:23,920
Speaker 1: is peripheral to what is really important? When Jesus is

615
00:36:24,040 --> 00:36:26,319
Speaker 1: right there in front of you, saying, now that I

616
00:36:26,360 --> 00:36:30,040
Speaker 1: am here, the pool is no longer necessary. You need

617
00:36:30,080 --> 00:36:32,960
Speaker 1: to look at me. I am the living Water. I

618
00:36:33,000 --> 00:36:35,799
Speaker 1: am every single thing that you need. What I show

619
00:36:35,880 --> 00:36:39,160
Speaker 1: up in your situation. Stop talking about the pool and

620
00:36:39,239 --> 00:36:42,839
Speaker 1: all your excuses and start running after me. You don't

621
00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:46,879
Speaker 1: need the pool anymore because I'm here. Oh I want

622
00:36:46,920 --> 00:36:49,799
Speaker 1: to talk to somebody that's got all kinds of excuses

623
00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:52,720
Speaker 1: about why you can't do something. Oh I'm too black,

624
00:36:52,920 --> 00:36:55,359
Speaker 1: Oh I'm too white. Oh I'm too old. Oh I'm

625
00:36:55,360 --> 00:36:57,200
Speaker 1: to this, Oh I'm to that. No no, no, no.

626
00:36:57,320 --> 00:37:00,600
Speaker 1: As long as Jesus is with young, as he's standing

627
00:37:00,719 --> 00:37:03,719
Speaker 1: right there in front of you, you got everything that

628
00:37:03,800 --> 00:37:10,759
Speaker 1: you need. Why are you talking about the pool when

629
00:37:10,840 --> 00:37:16,680
Speaker 1: the living water is right in front of you. So

630
00:37:16,719 --> 00:37:19,960
Speaker 1: many times we put our hopes and dreams in past

631
00:37:20,040 --> 00:37:23,960
Speaker 1: experiences and the way we thought it should go, that

632
00:37:24,080 --> 00:37:27,480
Speaker 1: we're still looking at the pool when the Savior is

633
00:37:27,560 --> 00:37:31,480
Speaker 1: right in front of us. We still coming to church

634
00:37:32,120 --> 00:37:34,759
Speaker 1: thinking it's just another service, not knowing this could be

635
00:37:35,280 --> 00:37:39,360
Speaker 1: the day where that stronghold of depression and anxiety is

636
00:37:39,440 --> 00:37:42,200
Speaker 1: broken off of your life and nobody even has to

637
00:37:42,239 --> 00:37:44,400
Speaker 1: lay a hand on you. But even as you stand

638
00:37:44,480 --> 00:37:46,960
Speaker 1: there and lift up your hands in a worship, it

639
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:49,640
Speaker 1: can fall off of your life today. Why are you

640
00:37:49,760 --> 00:37:54,759
Speaker 1: waiting for the future when he's right in front of you.

641
00:37:57,960 --> 00:38:01,080
Speaker 3: Oh, I don't want to spend my life talking about

642
00:38:01,080 --> 00:38:05,840
Speaker 3: what maybe then, or maybe later, or maybe the pool when.

643
00:38:05,680 --> 00:38:08,839
Speaker 1: He is right there in front of me, Go on,

644
00:38:08,880 --> 00:38:15,000
Speaker 1: what do you need? I love it because Jesus literally

645
00:38:15,080 --> 00:38:20,000
Speaker 1: interrupts him. The Greek is crazy, it's abrupt. He says,

646
00:38:20,080 --> 00:38:24,400
Speaker 1: get up, take up your mat, and wall I like that.

647
00:38:25,160 --> 00:38:28,000
Speaker 1: He literally interrupts him and actually suggested in real language

648
00:38:28,120 --> 00:38:30,840
Speaker 1: that if Jesus had not interrupted him, he would have

649
00:38:30,920 --> 00:38:33,719
Speaker 1: kept on talking about all the excuses. Well, I have

650
00:38:33,800 --> 00:38:35,440
Speaker 1: nobody to put me in the pulley. You don't understand

651
00:38:35,440 --> 00:38:35,880
Speaker 1: what happened to me.

652
00:38:35,920 --> 00:38:37,400
Speaker 4: When I was in Chiwn, I had this happened, and

653
00:38:37,440 --> 00:38:38,280
Speaker 4: nobody have revalidated.

654
00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:44,160
Speaker 1: Man, take your mad and walk. I feel like that's

655
00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:46,680
Speaker 1: what God sent me to interrupt somebody that has all

656
00:38:46,760 --> 00:38:49,000
Speaker 1: kinds of excuses and say, this is your day, diet,

657
00:38:49,800 --> 00:38:52,279
Speaker 1: take your mad and walk. I know you got all

658
00:38:52,360 --> 00:38:54,319
Speaker 1: kinds of reasons why it can't happen to you and

659
00:38:54,360 --> 00:38:56,239
Speaker 1: why you feel like you can't do this or can't

660
00:38:56,280 --> 00:38:58,600
Speaker 1: do that. But God sent this chocolate brother from Dallas,

661
00:38:58,600 --> 00:39:00,680
Speaker 1: Texas to look you right in your face and say,

662
00:39:00,760 --> 00:39:03,560
Speaker 1: get up, take up your mat and walk. This is

663
00:39:03,600 --> 00:39:06,279
Speaker 1: your day to get up from living this level and

664
00:39:06,440 --> 00:39:08,960
Speaker 1: rise up into all that God has called you to be.

665
00:39:09,400 --> 00:39:12,320
Speaker 1: Get up, take your mat and walk out up that.

666
00:39:12,719 --> 00:39:14,680
Speaker 1: He didn't say, I'm gonna do a six week series

667
00:39:14,719 --> 00:39:16,520
Speaker 1: on how you can get up. He didn't say I'm

668
00:39:16,560 --> 00:39:18,439
Speaker 1: on lay hands on you. He said, no, I'm gonna

669
00:39:18,440 --> 00:39:21,080
Speaker 1: give you a word. And when I speak this word,

670
00:39:21,160 --> 00:39:23,720
Speaker 1: you need to respond to the word that you heard.

671
00:39:24,120 --> 00:39:27,520
Speaker 1: Oh who is this for? Somebody needs to respond to

672
00:39:27,680 --> 00:39:30,400
Speaker 1: this word that I'm creature today and say enough for

673
00:39:30,520 --> 00:39:33,799
Speaker 1: the excuses. I am who God says I am. I

674
00:39:33,880 --> 00:39:35,960
Speaker 1: can have what he says I can have. I can

675
00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:39,400
Speaker 1: step into whatever he wants me to step into. No

676
00:39:39,520 --> 00:39:46,920
Speaker 1: more lame excuses. Get up, Get up, Get up from

677
00:39:46,960 --> 00:39:49,880
Speaker 1: the pain of your past, Get up from that worry,

678
00:39:54,040 --> 00:39:57,600
Speaker 1: Get up from the guilt, get up from the shame.

679
00:39:58,680 --> 00:40:02,279
Speaker 1: I know it's been a long time. I know it's

680
00:40:02,320 --> 00:40:06,840
Speaker 1: been so long, and it hurts to hope again. But

681
00:40:06,960 --> 00:40:12,399
Speaker 1: when the Savior of the universe comes straight to you

682
00:40:13,560 --> 00:40:18,960
Speaker 1: and ask you a question, throw away all your excuses

683
00:40:20,640 --> 00:40:25,080
Speaker 1: and tell him what you want. Tell them what you need.

684
00:40:29,200 --> 00:40:40,640
Speaker 1: Get up. Look at how powerful a command of God is.

685
00:40:41,880 --> 00:40:48,960
Speaker 1: This man gets up and immediately his legs are strengthen y'all,

686
00:40:48,960 --> 00:40:54,480
Speaker 1: his muscles have tightened. He didn't have to do any

687
00:40:54,480 --> 00:41:01,920
Speaker 1: physical therapy. One word was enough for him to get

688
00:41:02,000 --> 00:41:07,480
Speaker 1: up and start walking. Yo, when I sit on a

689
00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:09,800
Speaker 1: plane too long, I need to like get a moment

690
00:41:09,880 --> 00:41:13,239
Speaker 1: to get my But the word of God is so

691
00:41:13,360 --> 00:41:18,200
Speaker 1: powerful that within the command is every single thing that

692
00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:21,040
Speaker 1: you need. He didn't tell him take a step here,

693
00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:23,280
Speaker 1: He did, just say thet's stretch. He said no, no, no,

694
00:41:23,440 --> 00:41:28,440
Speaker 1: get up. He gets up. He says, oh and take

695
00:41:28,520 --> 00:41:34,520
Speaker 1: your mad Ooh, can you see him carrying the thing

696
00:41:34,600 --> 00:41:38,399
Speaker 1: he used to be relying on. I don't know who

697
00:41:38,400 --> 00:41:41,120
Speaker 1: this is for, but there's things you've been relying on

698
00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:44,480
Speaker 1: that you're gonna be holding now. He always would tell

699
00:41:44,520 --> 00:41:46,680
Speaker 1: lame people to take their mat You know why, because

700
00:41:46,719 --> 00:41:48,920
Speaker 1: anytime somebody sees you holding what you used to be

701
00:41:49,040 --> 00:41:53,239
Speaker 1: laying on, it is a walking, living, breathing testimony. Matter

702
00:41:53,280 --> 00:41:55,040
Speaker 1: of fact, there was a set up. He did it

703
00:41:55,080 --> 00:41:57,880
Speaker 1: on the Sabbath on purpose because he wanted some people

704
00:41:58,040 --> 00:42:00,400
Speaker 1: to see that man walk here. He wanted people to

705
00:42:00,440 --> 00:42:02,880
Speaker 1: see him holding the thing that he used to be

706
00:42:02,960 --> 00:42:05,040
Speaker 1: laying off. I don't know who this is for, but

707
00:42:05,200 --> 00:42:07,640
Speaker 1: maybe there's something you're ashamed about. But this is the

708
00:42:07,680 --> 00:42:09,960
Speaker 1: beauty of the grace of God. It's the same thing

709
00:42:09,960 --> 00:42:12,399
Speaker 1: you've been ashamed about. That God can flip that thing.

710
00:42:12,640 --> 00:42:16,319
Speaker 1: It'll actually become a testimony of his goodness, my testimony

711
00:42:16,400 --> 00:42:18,680
Speaker 1: come his grace. So people will look at your life

712
00:42:18,760 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 1: and saying, God can use and heal and set free

713
00:42:22,280 --> 00:42:25,200
Speaker 1: somebody as broken as you. I know he can't do

714
00:42:25,280 --> 00:42:32,759
Speaker 1: it for me too. He says, take your man, and

715
00:42:32,880 --> 00:42:38,879
Speaker 1: he starts walking, walking right into opposition because here comes

716
00:42:38,880 --> 00:42:43,000
Speaker 1: the religious system saying you can't do that. You gotta

717
00:42:43,040 --> 00:42:45,719
Speaker 1: be ready for the opposition if you're going to get

718
00:42:45,800 --> 00:42:51,480
Speaker 1: up from the excuses. And here's the danger. He didn't

719
00:42:51,520 --> 00:42:57,799
Speaker 1: even know who it was that healed him. This is

720
00:42:57,840 --> 00:43:00,319
Speaker 1: how I know this is just a soften work of raise.

721
00:43:01,640 --> 00:43:06,160
Speaker 1: He wasn't even seeking for the healing God sought after him.

722
00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:10,160
Speaker 1: He didn't even know it was Jesus who did it.

723
00:43:11,840 --> 00:43:14,480
Speaker 1: Ooh the power of just obedience, of doing what He

724
00:43:14,600 --> 00:43:17,560
Speaker 1: told you to do. But look at this savior who

725
00:43:17,600 --> 00:43:21,000
Speaker 1: found him again and said, hey, hey, hey, I'm the

726
00:43:21,000 --> 00:43:26,319
Speaker 1: one who did it. Stop sinning. You have no more excuses.

727
00:43:26,360 --> 00:43:30,640
Speaker 1: Your legs a hole. Let those legs be an outward

728
00:43:30,920 --> 00:43:35,480
Speaker 1: sign of the inner healing that has taking place in

729
00:43:35,520 --> 00:43:39,320
Speaker 1: your life. I'm gonna ask headsby bowed and osby closed

730
00:43:39,320 --> 00:43:44,560
Speaker 1: across every location today. I don't know who I came

731
00:43:44,640 --> 00:43:50,000
Speaker 1: for today, but today's the day to put away the excuses.

732
00:43:52,320 --> 00:43:57,080
Speaker 1: Enough is enough. Maybe you had your hopes and dreams

733
00:43:57,080 --> 00:44:00,680
Speaker 1: in the pool. Maybe it was a maybe it was

734
00:44:00,719 --> 00:44:03,880
Speaker 1: a career, maybe it was life playing out a certain way.

735
00:44:04,520 --> 00:44:06,879
Speaker 1: But today, in the presence of Jesus, he is here,

736
00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:11,600
Speaker 1: and he's saying what do you need? What do you

737
00:44:11,640 --> 00:44:18,680
Speaker 1: want me to do? I'm asking you the question because

738
00:44:18,680 --> 00:44:23,200
Speaker 1: I'm no longer giving you the opportunity to live your

739
00:44:23,239 --> 00:44:26,960
Speaker 1: life shallow and on the surface. I want to go

740
00:44:27,080 --> 00:44:32,640
Speaker 1: deeper so that you can be healed, not just externally,

741
00:44:32,719 --> 00:44:39,120
Speaker 1: not just with blessing, but from the inside out. Heads

742
00:44:39,120 --> 00:44:42,120
Speaker 1: are about hours of closed across every location. But if

743
00:44:42,120 --> 00:44:43,799
Speaker 1: you're here today, and you'd be so honest to say,

744
00:44:43,800 --> 00:44:48,040
Speaker 1: Pastor Robert, I know there's some excuses I've been making,

745
00:44:50,960 --> 00:44:55,320
Speaker 1: and I think those excuses exonerate me from the purpose

746
00:44:55,400 --> 00:44:58,600
Speaker 1: and the call. But today you sense God reminding you

747
00:45:02,120 --> 00:45:07,920
Speaker 1: that I use earthen vessels, that it was never about you.

748
00:45:09,760 --> 00:45:13,960
Speaker 1: But I'm a God that seeks after you, and I

749
00:45:13,960 --> 00:45:21,359
Speaker 1: can use you quit disqualifying yourself. His strength is made

750
00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:24,800
Speaker 1: perfect in your weakness. But just as a sign across

751
00:45:24,840 --> 00:45:26,719
Speaker 1: every campus to say, hey, if I know what that

752
00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:29,960
Speaker 1: excuse is that today I'm putting the lame excuse to

753
00:45:30,040 --> 00:45:32,120
Speaker 1: the side, God, I'm gonna step into what you have

754
00:45:32,239 --> 00:45:34,120
Speaker 1: for me. Would you just lift up your hand as

755
00:45:34,120 --> 00:45:36,359
Speaker 1: a sign to say this for me, this for me? Yeah, yeah,

756
00:45:36,480 --> 00:45:38,879
Speaker 1: thank you God, you know what that thing is. Thank

757
00:45:38,920 --> 00:45:41,719
Speaker 1: you Jesus, I see those hands. Thank you God, you

758
00:45:41,760 --> 00:45:43,200
Speaker 1: can put it right back down. I want to be

759
00:45:43,239 --> 00:45:47,319
Speaker 1: real specific. If you're here watching online and you've never

760
00:45:48,040 --> 00:45:50,760
Speaker 1: taken that first step, which to say, Jesus, my life

761
00:45:51,000 --> 00:45:56,000
Speaker 1: is yours, maybe you made all the excuses. All church

762
00:45:56,040 --> 00:45:59,840
Speaker 1: people are this and that. Can I tell you there

763
00:45:59,880 --> 00:46:03,879
Speaker 1: are no perfect churches. And if you found the perfect church,

764
00:46:03,920 --> 00:46:06,560
Speaker 1: as soon as you got there, you would ruin it

765
00:46:10,080 --> 00:46:15,920
Speaker 1: because we're all broken. I'm telling you we all have areas,

766
00:46:15,960 --> 00:46:19,759
Speaker 1: some area of brokenness. This is not a community of

767
00:46:20,000 --> 00:46:25,600
Speaker 1: perfected people. It is a community of the redeemed. The redeemed.

768
00:46:28,680 --> 00:46:30,480
Speaker 1: So what heads about in ours closed? If you've never

769
00:46:30,560 --> 00:46:32,799
Speaker 1: surrendered your life to Jesus, I wouldn't love to give

770
00:46:32,840 --> 00:46:36,200
Speaker 1: you that opportunity. Across every campus, even at home. God's

771
00:46:36,239 --> 00:46:39,160
Speaker 1: presence knows no limits. If that's you today, say Pastor Robert,

772
00:46:39,200 --> 00:46:41,279
Speaker 1: would you include me in this closing prayer? I need

773
00:46:41,280 --> 00:46:45,080
Speaker 1: to give Jesus My life is so simple. Confess with

774
00:46:45,160 --> 00:46:48,080
Speaker 1: your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus Christ

775
00:46:48,200 --> 00:46:50,799
Speaker 1: is Lord, that God raised him from the dead. If

776
00:46:50,800 --> 00:46:52,719
Speaker 1: that's you, would you lift up your hand high enough

777
00:46:52,719 --> 00:46:54,600
Speaker 1: and long enough to where I could see it. Yeah,

778
00:46:54,640 --> 00:46:58,319
Speaker 1: thank you God, Thank you Lord. Anybody else thank you Lord.

779
00:46:58,680 --> 00:47:01,440
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah. You don't have to clean yourself up to

780
00:47:01,480 --> 00:47:03,840
Speaker 1: come to him. You come to him just as you

781
00:47:04,520 --> 00:47:07,759
Speaker 1: are anybody else. Thank you. Jesus. Come on, can we

782
00:47:07,800 --> 00:47:11,320
Speaker 1: pray this prayer as one big family? Come on across

783
00:47:11,320 --> 00:47:14,759
Speaker 1: every location? Can we pray this? Say Dear Jesus, I

784
00:47:14,840 --> 00:47:20,359
Speaker 1: need you. I cannot do life without you. Jesus, Thank

785
00:47:20,400 --> 00:47:24,560
Speaker 1: you so much for living the life that I was

786
00:47:24,560 --> 00:47:28,520
Speaker 1: supposed to live, for dying the death that I was

787
00:47:28,560 --> 00:47:33,719
Speaker 1: supposed to die. You took my place. So my response

788
00:47:34,840 --> 00:47:38,000
Speaker 1: is to give you everything. Forgive me of my sin,

789
00:47:39,320 --> 00:47:44,080
Speaker 1: make me brand new. From this moment forward, I'm walking

790
00:47:44,120 --> 00:47:48,799
Speaker 1: with you in Jesus' name, A man a man, A man,

791
00:47:48,960 --> 00:47:51,239
Speaker 1: a man a man. Come on, if you meant what

792
00:47:51,320 --> 00:47:54,200
Speaker 1: you prayed, Come on, can we all collectively just give

793
00:47:54,320 --> 00:47:57,360
Speaker 1: King Jesus that be'st praise, that you're God. Oh, come on,

794
00:47:57,400 --> 00:47:59,480
Speaker 1: give them some praise. I can see yourself getting up

795
00:48:00,160 --> 00:48:04,840
Speaker 1: tard you're mad. No more excuses. I'm walking into what

796
00:48:04,920 --> 00:48:06,719
Speaker 1: he has told me. God, bless you. Elevation.

797
00:48:07,880 --> 00:48:10,439
Speaker 2: Hey, I hope you enjoyed the podcast, and if you did,

798
00:48:11,000 --> 00:48:13,600
Speaker 2: make sure to share it and subscribe so we can

799
00:48:13,640 --> 00:48:16,239
Speaker 2: get you all of these new messages as soon as

800
00:48:16,239 --> 00:48:19,040
Speaker 2: they're available. I also want to take a moment and

801
00:48:19,120 --> 00:48:20,920
Speaker 2: thank all of you who are a part of Elevation.

802
00:48:21,400 --> 00:48:24,759
Speaker 2: Whether you support us financially, or serve with us, or

803
00:48:25,160 --> 00:48:27,879
Speaker 2: just share these messages, it's because of you that we're

804
00:48:27,880 --> 00:48:30,839
Speaker 2: able to reach people all around the world. And if

805
00:48:30,840 --> 00:48:33,319
Speaker 2: you want more information on how to be a part

806
00:48:33,360 --> 00:48:37,279
Speaker 2: of Elevation, click the link in the description. Thanks again

807
00:48:37,320 --> 00:48:40,280
Speaker 2: for listening. Make sure to leave a review, share the message,

808
00:48:40,320 --> 00:48:50,840
Speaker 2: and subscribe. God bless you.