WEBVTT - Water Walking 101 0:00:02.080 --> 0:00:04.640 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation 0:00:04.880 --> 0:00:07.120 Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank 0:00:07.120 --> 0:00:10.440 you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope 0:00:10.480 --> 0:00:12.520 it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to 0:00:12.520 --> 0:00:16.880 see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message. 0:00:17.840 --> 0:00:27.200 Welcome to class. We're starting a We're starting a brand 0:00:27.200 --> 0:00:30.240 new school. I know a lot of kids aren't going 0:00:30.280 --> 0:00:33.520 back to the classroom in August here where we live. 0:00:33.880 --> 0:00:37.120 So I thought today, since I have the opportunity to 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:40.000 teach the word, go ahead and bring my materials please, 0:00:40.440 --> 0:00:42.680 I'm going to teach you a lesson today. This is 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:46.319 more than a sermon. This is a class and the 0:00:46.320 --> 0:00:50.600 title of the class. Are you ready? Are you ready? 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:58.880 Are you ready? I don't think you are. Come on 0:00:58.960 --> 0:01:03.720 in the chat ready now. I can't teach you how 0:01:03.760 --> 0:01:06.720 to cook. I can't teach you how to speak Spanish. 0:01:06.880 --> 0:01:09.199 I can't teach you any of that. I can't teach 0:01:09.200 --> 0:01:12.959 you CrossFit. I can't teach you hot yoga. I can't 0:01:13.000 --> 0:01:15.880 teach you any of that. But today I want to 0:01:15.920 --> 0:01:20.000 teach a class. I want to teach a class, and 0:01:20.080 --> 0:01:23.600 I need to know who's Who's present. Let's have a 0:01:23.680 --> 0:01:28.800 roll call. Puts your name and your city, and the 0:01:28.959 --> 0:01:37.959 chat say present, present, present, present, Get your number two pencils. 0:01:39.920 --> 0:01:50.880 Welcome to water Walking one oh what are you ready? Amen? 0:01:52.760 --> 0:01:55.880 Those of you in the room remain standing water Walking 0:01:55.960 --> 0:01:58.360 one on one. I thought we would get a jump 0:01:58.400 --> 0:02:01.880 on the school year and see what God would teach 0:02:01.920 --> 0:02:06.720 us today about the situations in our life that He 0:02:06.800 --> 0:02:10.520 has placed us over. And I just declare over your 0:02:10.560 --> 0:02:12.839 life today. Give me my camera. I'm looking at You're 0:02:12.919 --> 0:02:20.800 not going under. You're not going under. You are not 0:02:21.440 --> 0:02:39.080 going under. I declar it not going under. And so 0:02:39.840 --> 0:02:44.200 consider this your introductory class water Walking one oh one. 0:02:45.480 --> 0:02:50.280 Our syllabus is from Matthew Chapter fourteen, verses twenty two 0:02:50.320 --> 0:02:53.320 through thirty three. I want you to find that in 0:02:53.360 --> 0:02:58.720 your Bible. This scripture is the first scripture that I 0:02:58.760 --> 0:03:02.080 ever preached on Yesterday I showed some of our staff. 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:04.080 Or it was earlier this week actually that I showed 0:03:04.120 --> 0:03:08.160 some of our staff. Not yesterday, it was earlier this week. 0:03:09.200 --> 0:03:11.320 I showed some of our staff. The second sermon that 0:03:11.320 --> 0:03:16.240 I ever preached in the Woodmen of the World building Wow, Wow, 0:03:16.760 --> 0:03:20.320 walk on water. And this is the first sermon I 0:03:20.360 --> 0:03:23.960 ever preached at Monk's Corner United Methodist Church for Youth Sunday. 0:03:24.720 --> 0:03:27.640 Shout out to my mom who brought me up in church. 0:03:28.760 --> 0:03:31.720 Shout out to the poor people who endured my first sermon. Now, 0:03:31.760 --> 0:03:34.160 the beauty of the Methodist Church is the sermon is 0:03:34.200 --> 0:03:39.080 only twelve minutes, so if it sucks, it's mercifully short. 0:03:40.040 --> 0:03:41.839 It's not like it is now where I don't even 0:03:41.840 --> 0:03:46.160 have a time clock because there's nobody coming in later. 0:03:46.200 --> 0:03:48.760 I'm just recording the message with a few staff in 0:03:48.800 --> 0:03:55.520 the room who are socially distanced. But the horrible thing 0:03:55.800 --> 0:03:59.240 was I did not know the basics of preaching. Maybe 0:03:59.280 --> 0:04:02.800 you'd say, well that hasn't changed. Well, you may be 0:04:02.920 --> 0:04:06.120 right about that, but back then I didn't even know 0:04:06.360 --> 0:04:09.760 that you should practice or sermon before you preach it. 0:04:10.120 --> 0:04:12.800 And I got up there with like twelve note cards 0:04:12.800 --> 0:04:14.640 and I thought each note card would take a minute. 0:04:14.760 --> 0:04:18.320 My whole sermon was done in two minutes. And I 0:04:18.320 --> 0:04:20.919 cycled back through the cards and said the same stuff again, 0:04:23.680 --> 0:04:27.680 and that that polite home crowd love got me through it. 0:04:27.680 --> 0:04:29.320 It's a wonder I ever did it again. But this 0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:31.400 is the passage that I preached my first sermon from. 0:04:32.200 --> 0:04:35.720 And so sometimes it's good to go back to basics. Okay, 0:04:35.920 --> 0:04:39.240 everybody wants to use basic as a slang term these days, 0:04:39.480 --> 0:04:42.159 you know, and she's basic. It's basic. Well, what's so 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:47.200 bad about basic? Sometimes I need to go back to 0:04:47.240 --> 0:04:51.120 the basics of faith, and this passage really helps me 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:55.039 do that for all those who are needing God to 0:04:55.240 --> 0:04:58.280 get you over a situation that you feel like has 0:04:58.279 --> 0:05:02.320 overwhelmed you. The Bible says, immediately Jesus made the disciples 0:05:02.360 --> 0:05:04.560 get into the boat and go on ahead of him 0:05:04.560 --> 0:05:08.200 to the other side while he dismissed the crowd. After 0:05:08.240 --> 0:05:10.200 he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountain 0:05:10.320 --> 0:05:14.240 side by himself to pray, and later that night he 0:05:14.360 --> 0:05:17.839 was there alone. We talked about that a few weeks ago, 0:05:17.880 --> 0:05:22.039 didn't we We talked about lonely places, and Jesus chose 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:25.880 the lonely place so that you and I could experience 0:05:25.960 --> 0:05:30.160 him in the loneliest seasons of our life. Now, Jesus 0:05:30.160 --> 0:05:34.160 sent the disciples out into the boat. The Bible says 0:05:34.200 --> 0:05:38.120 it was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by 0:05:38.160 --> 0:05:41.920 the waves because the wind was against it, and shortly 0:05:41.960 --> 0:05:46.840 before dawn, Jesus went out to them walking on the lake. 0:05:48.520 --> 0:05:52.119 So here's our instructor for the class. Here comes walking 0:05:52.200 --> 0:05:56.080 on water, just right into your situation. The Bible says 0:05:56.080 --> 0:05:58.360 when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they 0:05:58.400 --> 0:06:02.559 were terrified. Ghosts, they said, and cried out in fear. 0:06:02.800 --> 0:06:07.520 But Jesus immediately said to them, take courage it is I. 0:06:08.920 --> 0:06:20.920 Don't be afraid. And then Teeter, Jesus star pupil, that 0:06:20.960 --> 0:06:23.600 one kid in the class who always wants to ask 0:06:23.640 --> 0:06:28.880 another question, says Lord, if it's you, Peter replied, tell 0:06:28.960 --> 0:06:32.359 me to come to you on the water. Come, he said, 0:06:33.360 --> 0:06:35.320 And Peter got down out of the boat walked on 0:06:35.400 --> 0:06:40.320 the water. Wow. Everybody say wow in the chat. Wow. Wow. 0:06:40.560 --> 0:06:44.760 He walked on water and came toward Jesus. But when 0:06:44.800 --> 0:06:47.400 he saw the wind, he was afraid and beginning to sink. 0:06:47.880 --> 0:06:52.240 He cried out, Lord, save me. Immediately Jesus reached out 0:06:52.279 --> 0:06:55.520 his hand and caught him, You of little faith, He said, 0:06:55.960 --> 0:06:58.920 why did you doubt? And they climbed into the boat. 0:06:58.920 --> 0:07:02.719 The wind died down, and then those who were in 0:07:02.760 --> 0:07:07.479 the boat worshiped him, saying, truly you are the son 0:07:07.520 --> 0:07:09.600 of God. Lord. We thank you for your word today, 0:07:09.640 --> 0:07:13.400 and we thank you that it transcends time, space and geography. 0:07:14.000 --> 0:07:16.600 We ask you, now, Lord, that in this moment in 0:07:16.640 --> 0:07:21.040 our life, that our hearts would be still in your 0:07:21.080 --> 0:07:24.400 presence so that we can hear your word and move 0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:27.240 toward your purpose. I thank you for each person that 0:07:27.280 --> 0:07:29.840 you brought to this sermon today. I believe they're here 0:07:29.880 --> 0:07:33.480 for a reason. I believe you're calling and drawing. I 0:07:33.520 --> 0:07:36.240 thank you that you are on the scene and help 0:07:36.280 --> 0:07:39.640 us on the way. Bring forth your word in our hearts. 0:07:40.360 --> 0:07:42.560 May it bud and flourish, prosper and do what you 0:07:42.640 --> 0:07:46.800 sent it to do in Jesus' name. Hey man, come on, 0:07:46.880 --> 0:07:48.960 let's clap our hands and thank God for his word. 0:07:50.800 --> 0:07:54.960 Those of you in the room be seated. I worked 0:07:55.040 --> 0:08:08.720 up a thirst. Can you thank you? Holli holiferdic everybody, Chris. 0:08:08.840 --> 0:08:10.040 But this is about the only way I know how 0:08:10.080 --> 0:08:18.760 to walk on water that works. The simple stuff works. 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:24.600 Simple stuff works in my life. I've read this text 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:30.640 so many times, but I fear that sometimes we skim 0:08:31.200 --> 0:08:35.440 what God wants us to plunge into. And in our 0:08:35.480 --> 0:08:38.880 syllabus today there are a few details, you're not going 0:08:38.920 --> 0:08:43.120 to believe this. I actually have real points to dis sermon. 0:08:45.640 --> 0:08:48.959 So every note taker who has ever been frustrated by 0:08:48.960 --> 0:08:52.080 my abstract mode of teaching is going to be in 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:57.160 heaven today because I at least have six thoughts from 0:08:57.200 --> 0:09:03.920 this passage water walk one oh one, and I might 0:09:03.960 --> 0:09:06.800 put in a seventh for extra credit if God blesses 0:09:06.920 --> 0:09:10.360 us with the time. But I noticed that a lot 0:09:10.400 --> 0:09:12.480 of times, when we get in a situation like these 0:09:12.520 --> 0:09:16.480 disciples were in, and maybe like you're in right now 0:09:16.480 --> 0:09:19.199 with your job, or maybe like you're in right now 0:09:19.360 --> 0:09:21.680 trying to figure out what to do with your family, 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:26.080 those kids, your quiver is full right now, how many 0:09:26.080 --> 0:09:28.400 of y'all? Your quiver is full, and your quiver is 0:09:28.440 --> 0:09:34.400 of to be quite honest, your quiver is quivering, little 0:09:34.440 --> 0:09:39.840 Bible humor there quivering. And when we find ourselves in 0:09:39.880 --> 0:09:42.680 these situations, there is a tendency to blame. You know. 0:09:42.720 --> 0:09:46.760 The disciples like to fight and like to argue with 0:09:46.800 --> 0:09:50.320 one another any chance they got. But yet the storm 0:09:50.360 --> 0:09:53.360 brought them together in a unique way. In Matthew chapter fourteen, 0:09:55.440 --> 0:09:59.880 trials sometimes tighten our focus, and so one thing we 0:10:00.000 --> 0:10:03.000 I don't see in this storm is Peter and John 0:10:03.160 --> 0:10:07.040 going back and forth, or Andrew and Bartholomew talking about 0:10:07.080 --> 0:10:10.600 who's rowing the hardest. They just need to make it 0:10:10.640 --> 0:10:14.880 through the storm. But what really got my attention was 0:10:14.920 --> 0:10:17.880 a detail that I must have skimmed over. Like I mentioned, 0:10:17.920 --> 0:10:20.160 and today since we're in class, I want to study 0:10:20.160 --> 0:10:23.120 it a little more deeply, is that blame doesn't get 0:10:23.160 --> 0:10:30.480 you through a storm. And the detail I noticed in 0:10:30.559 --> 0:10:33.320 verse twenty two presented on the screen for me again, 0:10:33.640 --> 0:10:37.720 it said that Jesus made the disciples get into the boat. 0:10:39.200 --> 0:10:45.120 Jesus made the disciples get into the boat. You know 0:10:45.160 --> 0:10:48.840 how people say the devil made me do it. Jesus 0:10:48.920 --> 0:10:52.800 made the disciples get into the boat. He didn't ask them, 0:10:53.320 --> 0:10:57.280 he didn't recommend, he didn't suggest, And now it would 0:10:57.320 --> 0:11:00.280 be one thing if he didn't know. But he's of 0:11:00.280 --> 0:11:03.760 God with all wisdom. So how did the one with 0:11:03.880 --> 0:11:07.880 all wisdom send them into something that threatened their life? 0:11:08.720 --> 0:11:10.439 I want you to write down point number one in 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:13.280 the class and put it in the chat. Certain storms 0:11:13.320 --> 0:11:19.240 are unavoidable. I just need you to know that certain storms. 0:11:19.280 --> 0:11:21.720 You know what I mean by storm, right, It's not 0:11:21.800 --> 0:11:27.040 always physical. Sometimes there can be an emotional storm. Sometimes 0:11:27.080 --> 0:11:30.960 there can be a psychological storm. Sometimes there can be 0:11:31.000 --> 0:11:35.079 a relational storm. You know, these storms we get into 0:11:35.760 --> 0:11:39.199 sometimes we are so busy trying to figure out how 0:11:39.240 --> 0:11:44.120 to get out of them that we expend all the 0:11:44.360 --> 0:11:47.600 energy that we could have spent trying to learn what 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:54.480 God wants us to learn through the storm. There's two 0:11:54.520 --> 0:11:56.760 ways to get through the storm, and one is as 0:11:56.800 --> 0:12:00.440 a survivor. And how many know iss good? Just to 0:12:00.480 --> 0:12:04.160 celebrate that you're still here in case you had a 0:12:04.200 --> 0:12:08.760 bad week, I'm gonna give you fifteen unscripted seconds to 0:12:08.880 --> 0:12:14.600 praise God for the storms that you have survived. And 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:18.040 you can sit there cute if it's been sunny in 0:12:18.080 --> 0:12:24.000 your neighborhood. But if you survived some depression, and if 0:12:24.040 --> 0:12:27.320 you thought you were going down but you made it, 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:35.679 say given praise. To survive the storm is a miracle. 0:12:36.160 --> 0:12:40.599 To survive abuse is a miracle. To survive an economy 0:12:40.640 --> 0:12:43.840 that is falling apart, but God provided is a miracle. 0:12:45.880 --> 0:12:49.360 But then God God says you can be a survivor. 0:12:49.600 --> 0:12:52.120 But then if you want to, there are certain people 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:54.640 that they decide I'm not just gonna be a survivor. 0:12:54.760 --> 0:13:00.400 I'm gonna be a student of the storm. I am 0:13:00.559 --> 0:13:06.080 learning to learn from the storm. I am learning to 0:13:06.240 --> 0:13:10.000 learn from the storm. The thing about it is there 0:13:10.000 --> 0:13:14.040 are certain things that I can only learn in storms. 0:13:14.080 --> 0:13:16.439 And the second thing that I want to point out 0:13:16.480 --> 0:13:20.800 to you in the text is that God's timing is 0:13:20.920 --> 0:13:31.960 designed to teach you to trust. When Jesus, who made 0:13:32.000 --> 0:13:35.760 the disciples, get into the boat, the Bible says that 0:13:35.920 --> 0:13:39.640 when he decided to reveal himself to them was just 0:13:39.679 --> 0:13:44.960 before dawn. If the goal that God has is to 0:13:45.040 --> 0:13:51.880 comfort us, then this is a late appearance. But if 0:13:51.920 --> 0:13:55.720 God's goal is sometimes to change us, then it makes 0:13:55.760 --> 0:14:00.880 sense that he would show up late. Once one a time, 0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:04.320 I taught a sermon called Trusting God's Timing, and the 0:14:04.400 --> 0:14:08.440 idea behind it is that when we're experiencing something and 0:14:08.480 --> 0:14:13.560 it's very intense, we just want relief. And I get that. 0:14:14.520 --> 0:14:16.640 I mean, I'd be lying if I didn't tell you 0:14:17.120 --> 0:14:18.960 that there were times that I just wanted God to 0:14:19.000 --> 0:14:22.560 make stuff stop. And I just want to check with 0:14:22.600 --> 0:14:25.040 you real quick. Have you ever just wanted God to 0:14:25.080 --> 0:14:31.320 make it stop? Just make it stop. Just make it stop, God. 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:36.280 I'll do anything, Just make it stop. God, I'm sorry 0:14:36.280 --> 0:14:38.240 about that thing I did when I was in seventh grade. 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:40.920 Just make it stop. And I mean, it can be 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:44.040 a heartbreak, it can be a lot of times a 0:14:44.080 --> 0:14:46.280 loss in your life and you just feel like you're 0:14:46.320 --> 0:14:50.760 hemorrhaging and hurting God. Just make it stop. In the 0:14:50.840 --> 0:14:53.760 King James version of Matthew chapter fourteen, it says that 0:14:53.840 --> 0:14:56.400 it was the fourth watch of the night when Jesus 0:14:56.480 --> 0:15:00.520 came to them. That's the very last one. That's three 0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:04.720 am to six am, the fourth watch. And yet, interestingly enough, 0:15:04.760 --> 0:15:07.280 the Bible says he went on a mountain to pray. 0:15:08.440 --> 0:15:12.160 I've actually been to this site. And when our guide 0:15:12.160 --> 0:15:14.400 took us to show us the mountain that Jesus might 0:15:14.440 --> 0:15:17.080 have prayed on, do you remember how he left us 0:15:17.160 --> 0:15:20.280 up there for a moment. And he really tricked us 0:15:20.280 --> 0:15:22.840 because when he left us up there, he was designing 0:15:22.880 --> 0:15:26.000 to show us that the seed that the disciples were 0:15:26.000 --> 0:15:29.520 straining in was visible to Jesus from his prayer station 0:15:29.640 --> 0:15:33.640 the whole time. And he said, just because they didn't 0:15:33.640 --> 0:15:45.160 see Jesus didn't mean Jesus didn't see them. Zero point two, 0:15:45.200 --> 0:15:49.080 Part B. This won't be on the test just because 0:15:49.080 --> 0:15:51.240 I don't see him doesn't mean he's not watching me. 0:15:54.400 --> 0:15:56.960 And he left us up there on the mountain. He 0:15:57.040 --> 0:16:00.120 left us up there for an hour. The guy we 0:16:00.200 --> 0:16:04.360 went to Israel, and I cried about the times of 0:16:04.400 --> 0:16:08.480 my life where I thought he had left me. The 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:14.520 Fourth Watch, the fourth Watch. The first Watch isn't so bad, 0:16:15.800 --> 0:16:18.560 Second Watch, third Watch. I feel like we're in a 0:16:18.600 --> 0:16:21.040 moment right now, at least in our nation. I don't 0:16:21.040 --> 0:16:24.080 know exactly what it's like in your country. It feels 0:16:24.160 --> 0:16:27.160 kind of like the Fourth Watch right now for a 0:16:27.160 --> 0:16:30.320 lot of us, not for all of us. The novelty 0:16:30.680 --> 0:16:36.400 has worn off of everything. Oh when we first started 0:16:36.400 --> 0:16:38.400 going into quarantine, I was like, well, this is kind 0:16:38.400 --> 0:16:41.480 of cool. You know, life's slowing down a little bit. 0:16:42.440 --> 0:16:49.600 We have a little more family time. Yeah, my quiver 0:16:49.760 --> 0:16:56.400 is full now. I've had enough family time to last 0:16:56.480 --> 0:17:00.520 me till my daughter is forty and she's nine right now, 0:17:01.800 --> 0:17:10.359 and I love my kids. Well, how about fourth watch? Faith? See, 0:17:10.359 --> 0:17:12.840 I've seen a lot of people with first Watch faith, 0:17:13.640 --> 0:17:19.000 second Watch faith, Third Watch faith. But God's timing is 0:17:19.080 --> 0:17:24.639 not designed to give us relief. So if it's not 0:17:24.680 --> 0:17:27.000 designed to give you relief, what's it designed to give you? 0:17:28.040 --> 0:17:42.600 Revelation curse. I'm a run a lad. I'll be right back. Hey, 0:17:42.640 --> 0:17:46.960 I know y'all can't see me, but if you can 0:17:47.000 --> 0:17:54.879 hear me, shout that just because you can't see him 0:17:55.119 --> 0:18:01.159 doesn't mean he left you. Come on, I what's on 0:18:01.400 --> 0:18:08.160 the book? The whole time, he's watching you. He's watching you, 0:18:09.000 --> 0:18:22.760 he's watching you, He's guiding me, he's leading me. So 0:18:24.520 --> 0:18:28.720 it's interesting that God's timing. You know, our timing is 0:18:29.320 --> 0:18:33.639 usually allocated around when we think God should do things, 0:18:36.080 --> 0:18:39.720 and then we start. The longer it goes, this is 0:18:39.800 --> 0:18:42.600 just in my life. Okay, So you know, please send 0:18:42.600 --> 0:18:44.320 me a critical email if you found God to be 0:18:44.359 --> 0:18:49.159 different in your experience contradicts what I'm saying. I found 0:18:51.600 --> 0:18:56.240 that the longer I wait, the louder my what ifs get. 0:19:02.359 --> 0:19:04.080 But the third thing I wanted to tell you in 0:19:04.119 --> 0:19:06.200 water Walking one O one? Are you enjoying the class 0:19:06.200 --> 0:19:09.040 so far? Now? This is the point in the semester 0:19:09.119 --> 0:19:11.320 where you need to cancel if you want to drop 0:19:11.320 --> 0:19:15.680 the class. This is the last point to cancel. Okay, 0:19:16.160 --> 0:19:18.199 if you're still in, say i'm in, I'm in, I'm in, 0:19:18.280 --> 0:19:21.560 I'm in. I want to teach you something very powerful. 0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:23.080 And this is what I really want to teach you about. 0:19:24.840 --> 0:19:33.320 What if works both ways. The wind was against them, 0:19:33.880 --> 0:19:39.320 the word was for them, and what if works both ways. 0:19:40.760 --> 0:19:44.399 So when we get into hypothetical situations, the longer that 0:19:44.440 --> 0:19:47.080 we wait on God to change certain situations. And once again, 0:19:47.080 --> 0:19:49.840 how many are there right now? And maybe you even 0:19:49.880 --> 0:19:53.479 feel like you're drowning in what you don't know and 0:19:53.520 --> 0:19:55.439 you've analyzed it and there's a certain element of it 0:19:55.480 --> 0:19:58.639 you can't control. Because the devil didn't start this storm. 0:19:58.760 --> 0:20:01.800 Jesus sent them directly into it. So a lot of 0:20:01.840 --> 0:20:03.760 us we would turn around at this point and say, well, 0:20:03.760 --> 0:20:06.359 maybe we didn't hear him right, But they pressed to 0:20:06.480 --> 0:20:11.520 the other side because watch this are you are you awake? 0:20:12.160 --> 0:20:15.479 What if there's something on the other side that is 0:20:15.520 --> 0:20:21.520 worth going through the storm for it? Ah, I feel 0:20:21.560 --> 0:20:28.840 the spirit of God. Is it just me? Or or 0:20:29.119 --> 0:20:32.480 or or? Or? Is it harder sometimes for us to 0:20:32.520 --> 0:20:34.879 give faith to the what if than it is to 0:20:34.920 --> 0:20:39.159 give fear to the what if? And just like the 0:20:39.200 --> 0:20:41.919 wind blows, you know, the wind can blow in either direction, 0:20:42.680 --> 0:20:46.600 so can the what ifs. And a lot of times 0:20:46.640 --> 0:20:50.600 in my life I've learned that fear is just faith 0:20:51.280 --> 0:21:02.639 in the wrong. What if so watch this? What if 0:21:02.960 --> 0:21:09.879 we fail? What if we don't. We're here with a 0:21:09.920 --> 0:21:12.040 lot of our staff. We had some training, and I 0:21:12.080 --> 0:21:14.320 asked them to stay around and help me preach to you. 0:21:15.400 --> 0:21:17.560 And we told some of the stories, but we didn't 0:21:17.560 --> 0:21:19.600 tell all the stories about when we started the church. 0:21:20.520 --> 0:21:24.280 Hollywood was reminding me of one the other day where 0:21:24.320 --> 0:21:26.960 just as soon as we went to start the church, 0:21:27.800 --> 0:21:31.440 the resources that were supposed to be given for our 0:21:31.480 --> 0:21:36.800 salary were pulled back. And then somebody else was going 0:21:36.840 --> 0:21:40.640 to pay our insurance and that got pulled back. Now, 0:21:41.600 --> 0:21:45.760 if my faith in God was contingent upon the conditions, 0:21:46.240 --> 0:21:49.080 I would have taken that as a sign that God 0:21:49.080 --> 0:21:54.240 didn't speak to me to start the church. But if 0:21:54.320 --> 0:21:58.560 the wind is proof that what's on the other side 0:21:59.240 --> 0:22:04.480 is so significant that you have to push through to 0:22:04.560 --> 0:22:10.760 get there, a lot of us we interpret the wind 0:22:10.960 --> 0:22:16.280 as an indication that we should turn back around and 0:22:16.320 --> 0:22:21.159 head home. But in this particular situation, Jesus said, I 0:22:21.200 --> 0:22:23.960 want you to go to the other side. Now Here 0:22:24.000 --> 0:22:27.400 comes the wind. That represents resistance for you, That may 0:22:27.440 --> 0:22:30.960 represent depression for you, that might represent anxiety. We all 0:22:31.000 --> 0:22:33.439 go through different storms, and as I've talked from this 0:22:33.520 --> 0:22:37.560 pulpit before, comparing the size of your storm to my storm, 0:22:37.800 --> 0:22:40.639 and the significance of my storm to your storm, storm 0:22:40.840 --> 0:22:46.280 serves no purpose. The greatest thing about the passage is 0:22:46.320 --> 0:22:52.000 that Peter didn't even really express faith. He just considered possibility. 0:22:53.880 --> 0:22:59.000 And I'm going to show you this. He didn't say, Lord, 0:22:59.560 --> 0:23:04.720 I know it's you tell me to come. He said, Lord, 0:23:05.560 --> 0:23:18.240 if if, if? If? What if? What if works both ways? 0:23:21.200 --> 0:23:24.040 What if can make you give up? What if can 0:23:24.080 --> 0:23:27.240 make you freak out? Or what if can make you 0:23:27.280 --> 0:23:32.160 step forward? And yet I want you to notice something 0:23:32.240 --> 0:23:35.000 Jesus did. Are you ready? This is where it gets good. 0:23:36.080 --> 0:23:38.639 This is where it gets good. He said, if this, 0:23:38.840 --> 0:23:45.080 you give me a word. And Jesus took him really literally. 0:23:45.720 --> 0:23:55.920 He gave him one word, one word, one word, one word. 0:23:56.600 --> 0:24:02.600 Did you see it in the text? Come? Yo? I 0:24:02.600 --> 0:24:06.480 had at chihuahua. That's how we talk to the dog. 0:24:09.480 --> 0:24:13.119 Jesus talked to Peter like I talked to yo yo. 0:24:13.240 --> 0:24:18.200 That that was the dog's name, Yo Yo. This is 0:24:18.240 --> 0:24:21.080 a confession. I had a chihuahua named Yoga yo Yo 0:24:21.359 --> 0:24:26.639 Yogo yo yo Yo Yo yo we would say, come, stay, 0:24:26.800 --> 0:24:30.040 stuff like that. Jesus talked to Peter like I talked 0:24:30.040 --> 0:24:32.320 to yo yo. And here's why I think, all right, 0:24:32.400 --> 0:24:35.600 you don't know what this makes me think that sometimes 0:24:36.000 --> 0:24:39.840 the deepest things that God speaks will also be the simplest, 0:24:43.520 --> 0:24:49.080 because sometimes we can we can confuse deep with confusing. 0:24:52.280 --> 0:24:55.080 And I noticed a lot of times I would rather 0:24:55.200 --> 0:25:02.840 learn something new than practice something old. Some of the 0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:06.959 deepest things that God will speak will be so simple, 0:25:08.560 --> 0:25:13.400 like come, okay, Well, Jesus, I was expecting a little more. 0:25:14.080 --> 0:25:17.320 I never walked on water before. You're gonna give me 0:25:17.359 --> 0:25:21.400 any pointers? Yeah, anymore, like a little bit of coaching, 0:25:22.600 --> 0:25:24.760 like should I go? Should I put all my weight 0:25:24.800 --> 0:25:27.080 on one foot? And you gotta remember, we read these 0:25:27.080 --> 0:25:29.119 Bible stories and we just compare walking on water to 0:25:29.119 --> 0:25:34.240 pay in our bills. He was walking on water. We 0:25:34.359 --> 0:25:38.080 making mean whenever we want changing a tire, walking on water, right, 0:25:38.840 --> 0:25:45.680 Peter is transcending the laws of buoyancy. And yet Jesus 0:25:45.720 --> 0:25:54.320 does not give him details, just direction. So if God 0:25:54.359 --> 0:25:58.920 hasn't given you details right now, ask him for direction instead. 0:26:00.320 --> 0:26:02.119 Some of the biggest words God ever spoke to me 0:26:02.119 --> 0:26:05.800 in my life were just directions impressions in my spirit. 0:26:05.960 --> 0:26:09.480 Can I share one with you? Here's one. Sometimes God 0:26:09.520 --> 0:26:11.320 will speak to me and they tell me go say 0:26:11.359 --> 0:26:18.000 I'm sorry, Like, well, Lord, I I would rather do 0:26:18.040 --> 0:26:23.000 a Bible study on forgiveness. You see how sometimes we 0:26:23.040 --> 0:26:25.919 want something deep so we don't have to do anything 0:26:25.920 --> 0:26:31.080 with it. I've been guilty in seasons of my life 0:26:31.640 --> 0:26:36.560 at highlighting my Bible right, But at the same time 0:26:36.560 --> 0:26:39.359 I was highlighting my Bible, I wasn't even willing to 0:26:39.400 --> 0:26:43.879 embrace the simplest habits like gratitude. I know in my 0:26:44.040 --> 0:26:48.040 life that being grateful is the greatest way for me 0:26:48.080 --> 0:26:51.120 to have joy. So why is it the hardest thing 0:26:51.160 --> 0:26:55.439 to do? Because it's so simple? See right now in 0:26:55.480 --> 0:26:58.320 this season, maybe we need to simplify what God is 0:26:58.320 --> 0:27:02.320 speaking to us to understand everything. Some of us have 0:27:02.520 --> 0:27:05.600 so complicated what we need from God to move forward 0:27:05.640 --> 0:27:10.120 in faith. But all he said was come. Sometimes all 0:27:10.160 --> 0:27:13.720 he'll say to you is is peace. Sometimes all he'll 0:27:13.760 --> 0:27:16.439 say to you is law. Sometimes all he'll say to 0:27:16.480 --> 0:27:20.320 you is forgive. And I found out that sometimes God 0:27:20.359 --> 0:27:26.840 will not give the details, He'll simply set the direction. Wow, 0:27:28.040 --> 0:27:32.359 all right, come, Wow, you really took me literally there 0:27:33.240 --> 0:27:36.960 if this youth tell me to come, come. Oh man, 0:27:37.000 --> 0:27:40.760 God was speaking to me studying this. He said, you 0:27:40.800 --> 0:27:44.960 know how you want confirmation to obey me sometimes? You know, 0:27:45.040 --> 0:27:47.119 like God, I'll do it if you give me a sign, 0:27:47.920 --> 0:27:50.120 give me a sign that I'm supposed to do it. Yeah, 0:27:50.160 --> 0:27:51.440 and you know you're supposed to do it to something 0:27:51.480 --> 0:27:53.159 you know you're supposed to do anyway, God, give me 0:27:53.200 --> 0:27:55.199 a sign and i'll tie. Give me a sign, and 0:27:55.560 --> 0:27:57.119 you know you're always supposed to do it. You know 0:27:57.119 --> 0:28:05.560 you're to do it. God said, the command is the confirmation. Well, God, 0:28:06.400 --> 0:28:09.359 I don't know if I can. I wouldn't have told 0:28:09.400 --> 0:28:13.440 you to come if you couldn't let me bring this home. 0:28:14.000 --> 0:28:18.040 I wouldn't have made you his father if I wouldn't 0:28:18.160 --> 0:28:23.440 enable you to raise him. So, when I don't feel 0:28:23.480 --> 0:28:28.000 like i'm enough, I realize if God gave it to me, 0:28:28.600 --> 0:28:31.159 he put it in me. He put it in me. 0:28:32.119 --> 0:28:36.240 So when he said come, when he gave the command, 0:28:36.840 --> 0:28:41.760 he also supplied the strength for me to step on 0:28:42.880 --> 0:28:51.120 step out. Yes, Lord, I can do it, Yes Lord, 0:28:51.720 --> 0:28:54.760 I can make it. You wouldn't have told me to 0:28:54.840 --> 0:28:58.479 preach if you wouldn't enable me to preach. You wouldn't 0:28:58.520 --> 0:29:01.000 have told me. The same voice that told him to 0:29:01.040 --> 0:29:03.880 come would be the same word that would enable him 0:29:04.040 --> 0:29:09.960 to do it. So I don't need any more confirmation 0:29:10.720 --> 0:29:17.719 but that he told me to Wow. But Lord, are 0:29:17.760 --> 0:29:22.440 there any sub points like come? Come? Is the Roman 0:29:22.520 --> 0:29:25.800