Christmas Candlelight Service 2025

Oh, come on church, you can do a better job. Give it up for the worship and the production team, yeah. I don't know if you guys could think about the work and the preparation that these guys put into it. And it's just incredible what our team has come up with. So would you do me a favor real quick, turn to somebody beside you and say, hey, Merry Christmas, I'm glad you're here. Well, it's great to have all of you guys join us here at Lakewood Ranch, but you know as well, we have those watching online and at other locations as well. Can we just welcome the rest of our family? Come on, good to have you with us. Merry Christmas, everybody. So we do this all the time, but in case you're new, I wanna make sure you understand and I want to remind you guys who are watching as well, that not only do we have those online and our other locations, but we broadcast the four different county jails, Manatee County, Sarasota County, Polk County and Hardy County. And yeah, they're absolutely, I wanna welcome them. And no matter where you are and what's going on, I want you to know you're a part of this family and we love you and I'm so thankful that you're worshiping and celebrating Jesus with us. And I just love as well, when many of them get released, I get to meet them at church and hey,

you're part of the family. And so can we give it up for those guys as well? So good to have you joining us. Yeah. So I love this service and it's one of my favorite times of the year. And we started out with this song, come and behold. And as a team and myself, I've been praying this exact very thing. It comes out of this verse in Psalm chapter 46 and it says this, come behold the works of the Lord. And that word come and behold, it means to experience. And my prayer and our prayer is that you just wouldn't be a part of this service, but there would be an experience like a connection that you would have with God that would go beyond what you already know and what you've already experienced. And it says the works of the Lord, everybody say works. And that's his beauty, his majesty and his wonder. And that's what Christmas is all about is that Jesus came on this earth so that we might see and experience and understand the beauty, the wonder, the majesty, the power of God. And I think it's interesting that God chose a child to do that. At the same time, as I was thinking about the service today, I was thinking about my own experience when a child was born, especially our first child, because you don't know what to expect, right? Those of you that have kids,

think back to the first time you were having a child and those of you that hasn't had children yet, this is what's gonna happen. And you think it won't happen to you, but this is what happens, okay? Trust me, I've had an experience. I've already come and behold the wonder and the works of the Lord blessing us with a child. But you don't really know what to expect, but you're so excited. And then I'll never forget when our first child was born, Amy did all that work and then there he was. And I was like, I didn't know what to say. Because I was like, Amy, you just gave birth to an eight pound lizard. You know, because he kept changing colors and it wasn't just a regular lizard, he was smeared in Vaseline. And I was like, I don't even know what to do with this thing. And then the nurse took over, thank the Lord, cleaned him all up and gave him to Amy and said, you know, congratulations, he's beautiful. And I thought, well, you know, that's your opinion. But then I started thinking, well, I wonder, you know, I said, I bet you probably tell that to everybody, you know, because you need to be polite, you know, and she goes, no, I only tell it to the babies that are cute. I was like, well, what do you tell the other ones?

And I just handed it to them and I go, it looks just like you. So if you've had a child and you ate either one of those, now you know. I don't know if I should say you're welcome or not, I don't know. But you can't wait to behold the beauty, the power, the majesty, and then you have this child. And then another incredible difficult thing is the naming of the child. You guys, you gotta be in unity. And one time, you may have a name that you love, but the other one had a weird friend growing up. I was like, no, we're not naming our child that because it just makes me think of this goofball in the neighborhood I grew up in or whatever. And then when we had our daughter, our last child, we had her since we were living here and started this church, we had picked out a name. We were so excited and some of our best friends or our neighbors, and they got a dog just shortly before our child was born. Yeah, you know where this is going already, right? And we were gonna name our daughter Bailey. And they got a dog and named her Bailey. Well, you can't do that. Lord knows, so it ended up being Emily. And then it's the picking of the name. Like, that's a big deal, because it has to flow right, right?

First and last name, it has to all work together. You don't want to name your child Anita if your last name is man, I need a man. That's a lot of pressure, you know? Like, and what about Lois Price? Like, you don't want that either. Like, there's a pressure with all these names, right? And then I saw this one lady named Helen Carr married a guy named Alan Beck, so her name became Helen Beck. And her husband said, after 10 years, that's exactly right, Helen Beck, for sure. So you gotta be careful, right, about all these names, because names are important, right? And whether you understand it or not, names actually describe and determine purpose. So every name has a meaning. And, you know, when you speak, like Emily means industrious one, that's what we ended up naming our daughter, and my goodness, is she industrious. And as you speak things over people all the time, that name, you're saying it, you're declaring that exact property and purpose of their name. And that's exactly why Jesus came. God chose him to come here to see his wonder and the beauty and the majesty and the power of the Lord, but God even says this is what he's gonna be called. Yes, Jesus, but there are many names

ascribed to who Jesus is, and God was declaring this is his purpose, and this is what I want you to behold and experience with him. And it actually says through the prophet Isaiah, for to us a child is born and a son is given, and the government is gonna be on his shoulders. Look at this, and he'll be called, here's the names of Jesus, right? Here's some of them, this is not exhaustive, but he'll be wonderful counselor. He'll be mighty God, everlasting father, and prince of peace. And that word, when it says there a son is given, the Old Testament, the Hebrew language, that word given, it means declared or ordained. Like Jesus is declared to be these exact things right here, determines what his purpose and plan is, and he'll be called this. In other words, this is actually what's gonna happen. God described the purpose based on the names of what Jesus is called. And today, I want to pull away from these four names, things that I want you and I to experience. Yes, even here today and throughout this Christmas season, I pray that it wouldn't be just a worship service you came to, some singing of some carols and some exchanging of some gifts, but actually you would understand the works, the majesty, the power of who Jesus really is.

So the first one that is declared, and that is he came to be our wonderful counselor. He came to give us wisdom. And I'm sure in this room, those of you that are perhaps either in another location or watching online, that there are at least some of you here that you're facing some crossroads in life. There are decisions that you have to make. There are some directions that you're not sure which way to go when you're trying to figure out what exactly do I do here? What decision do I make? What's the right direction to take? What's the right path to go on here? And I want you to understand that God fully and personally knows your life. And he knows the best path for your life. I submit to you, there's probably many different ways you could solve a problem or a decision in your life that you need to make, probably many different options. But isn't it true, or I want you to see that it's true, that God knows the best path for your life. It says this, the psalmist, he says, the Lord says this, that I will guide you along the best, everybody say best. In other words, the best pathway of your life. You could choose many things, but he knows the best. And he says, I will advise you and watch over you. And I was just thinking of an experience I just recently had, because we went with some

of our friends to the Bucs game on Thursday night, a week and a half ago. And hey, go Bucs. If they could finish like they started, they just might be worth cheering for. I went to the Thursday night game, which was a complete disaster the way it ended. And so anyway, we won't get into that. But we get into the car and look, I know my way to Ray J, okay. We've been to the stadium, we lived here a long time now. I know how to get there. And they have season tickets, they know how to get there. But we all six of us, we pile in Amy's car and we're gonna head up there. And even though I know my way around town, I use the Waze app. because there could be obstacles and traffic and things that you don't know about. And so it's just better to use Waze. So I put it in there and it's on my screen and we're gonna drive that direction. And as we go, the people that have the season tickets, they're like, nah, don't go that way, keep going. It's like, well, Waze said I should go this way. That's not the right way. So I had a decision to make. Follow Waze, the truth and the life. Listen to the people that was paying for everything. I checked my wallet and I followed them instead of Waze.

So that happened several times. Like, no, no, no, we know this is the best way to go. I'm like, but Waze sees things that we don't see. It factors in all of these other situations to know where traffic is that we can't see. And they go, well, I know the best way, go ahead. And every time I didn't follow Waze and I went the way they told me, it just added time to our arrival. I was like, I just smiled. And every time it did that. Now, ultimately, we made it to the game, but we didn't make it on time. And I just want you to get this picture in your mind. That there are many ways that you could solve situations or handle relational issues or financial issues or marital issues or spiritual issues. There are probably many different ways that you could come up in your own mind, but it could be that God can see things that you don't see. And he knows obstacles that you don't see. And you can do it your own way. And perhaps you would end up at the same place, but you'll run into more obstacles and more difficulties by not tuning into what he says. So in other words, Jesus shouldn't be a consultant that you kind of check in with and decide, well, do I want to follow that or not? Actually following Jesus, because he really is the ways, the truth, and the life.

And so realizing that you have an app as well, and it's called the Word of God, and it provides wisdom and direction for our lives. And so when we realize that's really why Jesus came is so that he could show us the wisdom and the power and the majesty of God. If we just check in with him, he'll get us there. He knows the best path. Okay, so Jesus came to be our wonderful counselor. He also came to be our mighty God, and that is to show us the power of God. And that word mighty, it means a warrior or a champion. He's never lost a battle. He's not Jake Paul, who got popped pretty good just the other night. Hurts my jaw thinking about it, right? I mean, I like the money he got. However, that hurt, right? He lost a battle. Would it be awesome if you and I were part of relationship with a God who's never lost a battle? The scripture says in Jeremiah, "'O sovereign Lord, you made the heavens and the earth by your strong hand and powerful arm.'" Nothing, everybody say nothing. I went to Louisiana and even I know what that means. Okay, nothing is too hard for you. In other words, God breaks what you and I can't break through. And I don't know what is in front of you.

I don't know what problem you're facing and maybe it seems too difficult to you, but you and I can tap into that power. So the question would be, and I hope you would ask, okay, so if he is almighty God, if he's never lost a battle, if he is all powerful then, how can I tap into that power? Well, it actually is kind of simple. It's just not easy. I love that about God. He doesn't make things complicated, but it is not always the easy thing to do. The scripture says in 2 Corinthians that God's power is made perfect in our weakness. So what that means is you and I have to get to the place where we could try things in and of ourselves and we say, okay, God, I'm gonna surrender and submit to you. Why is it that God waits to the 11th hour? How many of you are gonna ask him that when you get to heaven? Yeah, raise your hand. You all, I've seen your Facebook and your Instagram posts and I know that's what you wanna ask him. No, but really, we do, we think, well, God, you wait to the last minute to show up. I don't think God waits to the last minute to show up. I think you and I exhaust all of our own resources and our own intellectual abilities and our own strength and prowess to solve problems.

And finally, when we're at the end of ourselves, we go, okay, all right. So we wait to the 11th hour. So in other words, when we run out of ourselves, that's usually where God begins. And where you and I have limited power, God is limitless. He never runs out of power. We just have to get to the place where we tap into that. And there's only one. way that I know to do that. And I learned this the hard way. And this is the paradigm shift that we need to understand when it comes to the kingdom of God and it's this, that being successful in life and your relationship with God or marriage or finances, it isn't always trying harder, it's surrendering more. Have you ever like gritted your teeth before and you said, I'm never gonna do that again and then did it again? Raise your hand if that's you, have you ever done that? Okay, not everybody raised their hand, Lakewood Ranch. Probably other campuses are super holy, probably everybody raised their hand, but here, you got some people deceived, here we'll prove it. How many of you sit next to someone and they tried something and failed miserably? Go ahead, raise your hand. Look, all the hands went up.

For clarity's sake, all the hands, every one of them. In other words, especially with January coming up, you're gonna make resolutions and I'm gonna do this different. And you have to say, God, I've tried this before and I know I'm really not that capable and I'm probably gonna mess it up again. So you know what I choose to do, God? I choose to surrender to you and say, God, if you would give me the strength, I'm pretty weak right now, but God, I'm gonna let your power be made perfect, complete in my weakness. So really, that's why Jesus came is to demonstrate and to show us that we can tap into the power through surrendering, just as Jesus did. Not my will, but your will. And it is because of that that he was raised to life again. He is the king of all kings. He is the power over all powers. He is the greatest of all times. And you gotta tap into that power. Also, Jesus, he came to be the everlasting father, or I would say this, he came to show us that God was relational. And that everlasting father, it's an interesting two words that are put together. He's everlasting, meaning he's eternal. I mean, God was already here when we got here, and when we're gone, he's still gonna be here.

He created time. I mean, he is eternal. But then he's also personable. He's a father. He wants relationship with us. The Bible would describe it this way. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who honor him. Now, I couldn't help but when I was prepping for this part of the message, that some serious heavy thing came on me for you. And for you, I don't know if it's one you or multiple yous. If I had to guess, it'd be multiple yous. And that is this whole idea that many of you have been rejected in life by people who would be role models or father figures or leaders in your life, coaches, teachers, bosses, fathers, mothers, spouses, friends. And as a result of that, you find yourself in some way in here, not sure if you belong or really even where you belong. And this is the word, the challenge, the encouragement that God wanted me to give to you. It's time for you to stop living like God is disappointed in you. In fact, he came to adopt you, not to accuse you. Because Galatians says, at the right time, God sent his son to buy freedom for us so that we could be adopted as his very own children. God is a compassionate father.

He has everlasting love. He wants us to be adopted. He wants us to be accepted. He wants us to know that we're loved and that he wants relationship with us. And too many times because of things that have happened to us in life, we live with what I would call an orphan mentality. And can I just tell you from my own experience, I know this too well. You see, I never forget when I was early in my walk with God, I mean, I felt like I would get to heaven, right? It wasn't a matter of heaven and hell, but I felt like I needed to have this idea of I'm just lucky to be here. Like, it's good you're in the room, Randy, but if you go sit over there and we don't wanna hear from you, we don't wanna see you, you're just glad you got a ticket. And I did, I struggled with that because of the things that I had done, the things that had been done to me, the opportunities that God had blessed me with that I squandered. In essence, I was a prodigal son. I was raised in a church and then I ran away from all of that. And I was like, golly,

how could I be the son that God really loves? How could I be his child that he really loves? And so I was struggling with my identity. Do I really belong? And many of that had to do with relationships and key people in my life that had rejected or left or things that had happened to me. And I just remember feeling like, God, I was gonna go to heaven, but I just felt empty inside still. I don't know how to describe it. And I just sat on my bed one day and I was like, okay, God, I can't do this anymore. Do you really, do you love me? Are you the father that is everlasting love for me? I just need to know. And I lifted my arms like this and I'm gonna tell you guys something, besides salvation, it's the most powerful thing that I've ever experienced. I felt in that room, just me and God sitting on the edge of my bed, the presence of God came in that place and I felt God put a big hug around me and he's like, Randy, I love you. I'm proud of you. You are my son. And I don't know, man, something left me, darkness, heaviness, things just seemed different. I knew that I belonged.

Yeah. And what's heavy on my heart is there's some of you sitting here like that prior to that moment I had with God. And he doesn't want you to leave here without knowing that he has everlasting love for you. Would you do me a favor? We're gonna interrupt this service. Would you close your eyes? Would you bow your heads? Those of you online, other locations, wherever you are, if that's you, if you feel like you don't belong, if you feel like you're not good enough for God to love you the way that he should, if you feel like you've done things that have excluded you from receiving all that God has for you, it's time for you to break that spirit of rejection off of your life. And to allow Jesus to be your Lord and your Savior. If that's you, wherever you are, I'm gonna ask you to do something bold like I did that day. I lifted my hands. I'm gonna ask you to lift your hand to the count of three. And you say, if that's me, I want you to lift it proud and watch what the Lord does. One, two, three. Come on all over the place, wherever you are, lift that hand. That's me. I need to overcome that. That's right.

Incredible opportunity. All of our locations, those of you online, I love it. Okay, put your hands back down. And everybody, would you pray this in your heart as I pray it out loud? Thank you God for loving me so much. Thank you God for being a compassionate father. You love me so much that you rejected your own son so that you could have me. I don't get it. I don't understand it. But today I'm gonna choose to receive it. I pray this rejection spirit to be gone in Jesus' name. And it's because of you, Jesus. You took my place so that I might be in relationship with the Lord. Today, you are my Lord and my savior in Jesus' name. Amen. Come on, let's give God some praise for what he just did. Yeah. Amen. Okay, last thing here. Jesus, he came to be our Prince of Peace to bring us surety. Jesus didn't come just so we could have calm moments. He came here to make us whole. Look, peace is not some vibe that God puts off. It's who he is. He exudes peace. In fact, he doesn't just exude it.

The Bible says that he is the Prince, the ruler, the governing, the final authority on peace. So in other words, when his peace walks in the room, it doesn't exit when problems enter. It passes all understanding. It overcomes all obstacles. It's a peace that doesn't make sense, but it's a peace that you can have regardless of what is going on. And so what that means is how you and I can do this is we have to understand that God's word should be used as a declaration for God's provision and God's peace in our lives. My mother taught me one of the most incredible principles ever, and I wanna illustrate it to you in this verse in Psalm chapter four. It says, the Psalmist says, In peace, I will lie down and sleep. For you alone, Lord, will keep me safe. My mother taught me to take the pronouns out of the word of God and replace them with proper nouns with your own name. And as you declare those things, they're for you. It's what builds your faith and it's what creates what it is you really wanna live in. For example, the verses. Still up there. Here's what my mother taught me to do. And we would write these down

and we would put our own names in there and we would post them at places and we would read them all the time. And it's the very thing that helped me in life to become all that God has called me to be. In peace, Randy will lie down and sleep. For you alone, oh Lord, will keep Randy safe. And the more I read those and the more I declared those, they became a reality for my life. God wants to be the ruler of peace and provision in your life. You simply have to realize that it is God's word. It is not used for something on Sunday when you come to church, but it is my manual for living. It is the secret to my peace. It's the secret to my provision. It's the secret to my health. It's the secret to the power of the Holy Spirit living inside me. I'm gonna live and declare the works of the Lord for me. And as I do that, you will come and behold, you will experience all that God has for you. So would you do me a favor? Would you close your eyes? Would you bow your heads? And I wanna close this in a time of prayer. God, thank you so much for what you did in this season of what we call Christmas. It's the greatest thing you could ever do for earth. God, you chose to leave eternity, step into time,

so that you could have an encounter with us. So today I pray that we wouldn't just hear a service, hear a message, sing some carols, and go about the same things that we normally do at Christmas, but we would come and behold. We would have an experience of your works, your wonder, your majesty. Thank you for all that you've provided in Christmas. Jesus, you alone are worthy of our entire lives and all of our praise and everything that we have in Jesus' name, amen.