The Warrior!- Daniel Gray

- Hello men and women, what an honor and a blessing and a privilege to be able to come and speak to you and into your life from Life Fellowship Church, right here in McKinney, Texas, onto your tablet, all across America, two million tablets, man, it's amazing, this technology that God has provided for us and it's, we're just so blessed to be able to be a part of it. With you, my name is Logan Williams. My TDC number is 1490218. I got four numbers after that. I just share that with you because I just want you to know, I've been there, I've been round and round in the system back and forth, think that I'm gonna have a good life and got it all together now and then I find myself right back in the same mess again and I know that frustration, I know that disappointment, I know that anxiety, that feeling of that many of you have had probably where you just look around and you're like, dang, is this it? Like, why can't I get this life thing figured out? Why do I keep coming back here? Man, for 20 years, man, in and out, I get that, man. But you know what, they didn't have the Pando app and they didn't have tablets when I was in there, that's why I'm so grateful for this, that we can do life with you, we can do church with you. You can truly be a part of our church family

and we don't just say that, man, to say that. We mean it, there's prayer groups here that pray for all of the prayer requests that you guys send in and you guys have just blessed us so much and we don't even know who you are. It's crazy, I was just on the Michaels unit last week and we were going around, I went into the faith-based norm and two of the brothers just recognized me from the tablet, hey, life fellowship, man, I know you guys are going through a transition, I just wanna know that we're praying for you, we're praying for your new pastor, we're praying for the staff, tell everyone there that we love them and we're praying for them and guys it just blesses us so much to see that and hear that and I know that there are just thousands of you out there that get to do that and get to truly be a part of our church family and we just wanna say thank you for your prayers and let you know that we are also praying for you, we're also praying for you. Hey, tell your friends and family they can download the same Pando app on their phone, they can watch the same teachings that you watch and the same messages, you know, maybe you've got a 12-year-old son at home and you think, man, I'm locked up, I can't lead him, I can't speak into his life, no, no, don't believe that lie, he can watch the same messages that you watch

and when you see him in visitation or you talk to him on the phone, you can say, hey, man, what did the Holy Spirit say to you during that message? Here's what he said to me during that message, you can still walk with your family because of this and so encourage them to participate with us, please. We love you, we love them and if you're anywhere near the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex on a Sunday, I don't care where you live, if you're close by on a Sunday, man, come and see us, we wanna meet you and get you a coffee and just pray with you and it blesses us so much, it seems like every week we're getting guys and girls that are coming in, man, that they saw us on the Pando app and they're out now, it's such a blessing, such a blessing. I want to, so this morning I was with some men, we were studying John chapter eight, it's the woman that got caught in adultery, but I just wanna read the scripture to you and encourage you with some thoughts that we had this morning and this is gonna be for believers. If you've called on the name of the Lord Jesus and you are a born and given believer, man, this is for you, if you haven't called upon his name, if you haven't had that moment with him, man, we just wanna encourage you, man, it's just that simple. Romans 10 says anyone who calls on the name of the Lord

can, will be saved, saved from what? All that wrath that Jesus took for us while he hung on the cross and God the Father turned his back on him and he absorbed all the wrath of all the sin, all of our sin, all wrath that I deserved, wrath that you deserved. You can call upon his name and not only will he save you but he'll give you a place at the table, we'll be a part of the family and then there's more, but wait, there's more, I'm like the guy on TV, right? That's selling flex steel for 1995. There's more, man, and the more is so much greater 'cause according to John chapter 16 and Acts chapter two, not only do we get saved, not only do we get a seat Jesus has intercepted us and brought us into glory, but we're also according to those two chapters. We're gonna get the spirit of the living God dwelling within us. This is the invitation for you, if you haven't called upon his name. But if you have, this is for you, okay. And I'm just sharing this because when I was in prison, when I was round and round and round, man, I would go to church, I would go to the events, I would go to the things and I would get baptized every time they did it, hoping this would be the time, the magic, water, you know. But I was just checking the boxes. I was just doing that in hopes that God would see me, at least making an effort and would move in my life.

I wasn't doing anything to try to come against them. I wasn't doing anything to try to live a righteous life. I wasn't doing any kind of repenting. I just kept living the same old way I wanted to live, but I would come to church and then I'd be like, "See, this doesn't work." But what it was, it was me, I hadn't gotten all the way in. He doesn't want 50% of us or 75% of us. He wants all of us. And when we can finally give our all to him, man, he moves in our life in a way that's just incredible. He gives you a purpose and a plan and a calling. Even in the places that you're at, man, there's a calling on your life. Even if you have a life sentence, we see him down at the Michael's unit, there's guys that are getting out soon, and the guys that are never getting out are pouring into the guys that are gonna get out. And then these guys get out and they go and start ministries and have an amazing calling on their life enlarging the kingdom and making much of his name, and they still connect back with those guys that brought them up while they were in there and send them gifts and still connect with them through messages like, these guys that have life sentences that are saved have found a purpose in their life. And I was talking to one of them and he actually told me this. He said, man, for the first time in my life,

my mother told me she was proud of me while he was in prison with a life sentence because of all the work that he was doing with the G4s and the G5s and all the people that were crazy because he used to be there. So God can use you. And I know you might be thinking, well, I've got a life sentence. What good, why would I want God to use me in here? 'Cause there's nothing like being used by God, man. There's nothing like being in the lane that he created you to be in. That purpose that he has on your life. When you can step into that, I'm just telling you there's not a drug you can do. There's not a pile of money or material things that can touch the feeling of actually knowing that you were used by God and being a little part of somebody else finding him. So, I've rambled too much. John chapter eight, verse one, Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the temple. A crowd soon gathered and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of the religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who'd been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. Oh man, I bet that was an awkward moment. You know, like you're just bam, you're just caught

like 30 seconds ago, you're doing this thing and now you're just thrown in front of a crowd and here's Jesus and it's pretty ruthless. Verse four, teacher, they said to Jesus, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stoner, what do you say? They were trying to trap him into saying something that they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. Any of you guys ever read this scripture here? I mean, a couple things, like I wonder what he was writing in the dust with his finger. You know, everyone speculates on it, but no one really knows. But that's gonna be one of the first questions I ask when I get there. Hey man, what were you writing in the sand when that lady was caught in adultery? And also this, I was just talking about this this morning. This is so just off the wall outlandish that if this was a made up story, if this wasn't real, like they wouldn't have just added that in there. Like that's just proved to be like you can't make that up. Like Jesus was really, this really happened in case any of you are struggling with the question of is the word of God real or not? Like you have to answer that question. Is this truth or is it not? You need to have that, make that decision in your life

and invite the Holy Spirit into that decision. Ask God, hey, can you make this real to me? Can you show me that your word is truth? 'Cause if this was just a made up thing, they're not gonna add in there that Jesus stooped down and drove in the sand. No, no, they're not gonna do that. Like that really happened. You can't make that up. All right, verse seven. So he stood up again and said, all right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone. Then he stooped down again and rode in the dust. He's taking a pause, right? He wants to throw that out there. Hey, man, have at it. He who has not sinned cast the first stone. And he's letting that sink into him. He's letting that marinate. They're thinking, right? And when their accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again, said to the woman, where your accusers didn't even one of them condemn you. No, Lord, she said, and Jesus said, neither do I. Neither do I, he said. So when I look at this, when you see this parable being preached out here in the 21st century,

we'll call it the Western World Church, a lot of times it gets watered down. A lot of times it gets-- like it'll go one or two ways. It's like, well, really this wasn't against-- he wasn't trying to really talk about sin. What he was trying to do is he was trying to just debunk this religious ideology and the law of Moses. And he was just trying to debunk that, which, yes, he was doing that, but that's not the whole story. But it would kind of end with, yeah, because the last sentence says, go and send no more. Those five words, go and send no more. But they don't really mention that too much in a watered down version because, well, we can't really go and send no more. So let's just pray and dismiss. Or you would have him-- it would be preached. Yeah, this lady was caught in sin. And Jesus met her right where she was at. And he forgave her. And he's playing in the sand with her. And everything is great. And because he didn't condemn her, then we shouldn't condemn her. So let's pray and dismiss. And not a whole lot of emphasis is given to those last five words, go and send no more. That is the heart of this message. That is the thing that no one wants to talk about

because it's uncomfortable. People might not come back to church. But this is the heart. A lot of times people make it about sexual sin. And I don't struggle with sexual sin. So it's not even about that. It's so much bigger. Go and send no more. Go and send no more. You see, if you're a born-again believer, the Bible says that we're being sanctified into his image. One degree of glory to another. Sanctified into the image of Christ. So if you've been sitting on a unit for 10 years, eight years, however long, and you're the same selfish, judgmental person that you were eight years ago, like that should bother you. That should worry you. We're supposed to be one degree of glory to the next. He's sanctifying us. Now, the degrees may be small. They may be-- you may have a big breakthrough as well, but we need to be moving forward in our faith. And so I'm just encouraging you all. Examine yourselves. Am I the same God that I was when I got here or when I gave my life to Christ? Galatians 2.20 says that we've been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. In the life I live, I don't live according to the flesh,

but according to him, I'm butchering it. But what he's saying is, man, I've been crucified with him. That guy's dead. So I shouldn't be acting like I did back then. And I'm not saying we're going to be perfect, but I'm just saying in this quest to find purpose, in this quest to-- in the position that you're at, the facilities that you're in. I know it's hard in there, man. And I'll say this all the time. If you can find a way to practice this in there, you're going to be miles ahead when you get out here, because it's a little easier. You can just get away from people that are bad influences. You can just get away from people that get on your nerves. You can find good, godly people easy out here. Just come to a church to do this walk with. And do James 516 with confessing your sins to one another. You can find people easily to pray without here, without the rest of the norm condemning you, without the rest of the norm coming against you, and talking smack about you, and he's just hiding behind his Bible, because he didn't really want to get all the things that you guys go through. So man, I just want to encourage you. Look at yourself. Go and send no more. Is that a part of your-- Is that a part of how you're living or where you like me, when I was in there, well, man, everybody sins.

I guess it's gonna happen. Like Jesus died, he forgave us for that. No, because he died, because he took that wrath that I was just talking about. Man, that should produce something in us to want to not sin. Why? Because it grieves the heart of God. It grieves his heart, man. And so I encourage you, let's look at our lives. Are you the same person you were? We need to be moving forward in our faith, moving forward with this go and sin no more. Are we going to be perfect? No, we're not gonna be perfect. But how do you respond to your sin? Does your sin bother you? And how do you respond to that? So just a word of encouragement this morning, we've got an awesome message for you coming up. I hope you guys enjoy it. Let me pray for you, Father. I thank you for all the men and women that are watching. I thank you that your word says that no one comes to the Father unless they are drawn to them. And I just want to encourage them by just the idea that just because they're watching this video right now, of all the videos that they can be watching on there, that that's just confirmation that you are drawing them. You are after them.

You have a left 99 to go and get them. And God, I just lift them up to you. I just pray that if anyone is not saved, man, that they would be saved today, that your Holy Spirit would fall on them, that they would call upon your name and that you would give them a place at the table. God, I pray that those that are the saints, man, the ones that are saved, that they would continue to examine their lives, man, examine their hearts, that they wouldn't just want to be comfortable because they're in prison, but I'll start walking this one, I get out, 'cause I know what to do when I get out, but while I'm here, I'm just gonna do whatever I want to do to be comfortable. God, I pray against that. I know from experience that that doesn't work. And so God, I ask that you would just give them revelations, God, that you would bring people around, the people that are lonely, the people that are in a crazy place and there's no believers. God, would you protect them? Would you guard them? Would you bring like-minded people around them? And God, I just ask that you would bless their families while they're gone, that you would be a provider to their wives and to their children. God, that you would be a healer to their mothers and grandmothers and that you would give them

the comfort of knowing that you've got them in the palm of your hand and that any anxiety or any worry that comes, let them know that that's not from you, God, but that's from the enemy. And God, we just bind that in Jesus' name. I just bind the enemy there, that have any assignments on anyone that's watching today, God, in Jesus' name. And your word says it's what's bound on earth, it's bound in heaven. And so God, I pray, man, that this message you're about to watch and that those seeds that they land on fertile soil, God, and that you would just have your way in their hearts. And we love you and we thank you and we bless you. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen, enjoy the message, guys. You know, I just got one more question. Who's house? God's house, let's give him some praise. (gentle music) (gentle music) - Good morning, Life Fellowship Church family. Today we are so excited 'cause it is baptism Sunday. Come on, let's give it up for everyone being baptized today. We are so excited 'cause they are celebrating today. They're making the mark that they're gonna live for the Lord. So let's celebrate our brothers and sisters as they get baptized.

If you wanna get baptized, we're gonna do this every single month. Next month, it'll be October 18th. So make sure to sign up, even if you don't sign up, show up and be ready to be baptized 'cause we love baptizing people. Let's extend our hands and pray for them. God, I thank you for this opportunity to be a witness for what you're doing in their lives. God, we pray for blessing and favor over their lives and over their families. God, would you protect them, Holy Spirit, would you fill them and would you lead them into the life you've called them to live? And Jesus' name, we pray, amen. ♪ Amen, amen, come on, can we all stand up on our feet and celebrate with the people that are getting baptized this morning? Come on, God is so faithful and He's so good and we have a reason to praise Him this morning. [MUSIC PLAYING] ♪ There's the sound I love to hear ♪ ♪ It's the sound of the Savior's role ♪ ♪ As He walks into the room ♪ ♪ Where people pray ♪ ♪ Where we hear praises ♪ ♪ He hears the sound fade ♪ ♪ Oh, they'll pick the rise in the room this morning ♪ ♪ And it's ♪ ♪ There's the sound I love to hear ♪

♪ It's the sound of the Savior's role ♪ ♪ As He walks into the room ♪ ♪ Where people pray ♪ ♪ Where we hear worship ♪ ♪ He hears the praise ♪ ♪ Come on, can we enthrone ♪ ♪ And we're gonna praise in the room this morning ♪ ♪ Come on, clap your hands ♪ ♪ They just release the sound of worship into Jesus ♪ ♪ Oh, we sing ♪ ♪ Oh, wake my soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Oh, wake my soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ We are reasons to bless you, Jesus ♪ ♪ You can show you ♪ ♪ We sing ♪ ♪ There's a sound that changes things ♪ ♪ It's the sound of His people on this ♪ ♪ Oh, wake up, you slobbering ♪ ♪ It's time to worship him ♪ ♪ Oh, wake my soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ We awake our soul ♪ ♪ We awake our soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪

♪ We awake our soul ♪ ♪ We awake our soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Wake up, your soul and sing ♪ ♪ We awake our soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing His praise aloud ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Come on, will you just begin to release ♪ ♪ Our own worship to Jesus this way ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Something happens when we praise you ♪ ♪ You respond when we let your name align ♪ ♪ You respond when we praise you, Jesus ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, Jesus ♪ ♪ Come on, this is what happens when we praise you ♪ ♪ It says, hey, when He moves ♪ ♪ Heavens we pray ♪ ♪ What's the reward ♪ ♪ We must make it a way ♪ ♪ Every promise is a way ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ Make no mistake ♪ ♪ The vowels of hell ♪ ♪ We'll get over the world ♪

♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ Heavens we pray ♪ ♪ We must make it a way ♪ ♪ Every promise is a way ♪ ♪ Just to make it a way ♪ ♪ Just to make it all ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ Make no mistake ♪ ♪ The vowels of hell ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ We say ♪ ♪ Hey, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ Of glory and truth ♪ ♪ Hey, oh, hell's the world ♪ ♪ And when He moves ♪ ♪ We say hey, oh ♪ ♪ Let's praise ourselves ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ Oh, hell's the dream ♪ ♪ Wake my soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Just sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Mm, the wake my soul and sing ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪

♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Come on church, can we sing that one more time ♪ ♪ We sing away my soul ♪ ♪ Come on tell your soul this morning ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ One less time we sing away my soul ♪ ♪ So you gotta sing ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Sing his praise aloud ♪ ♪ Oh, can we give Jesus a praise in the week this morning ♪ ♪ Come on can we just release the sound of worship ♪ ♪ And praise to Jesus this morning ♪ ♪ Thank you Lord ♪ ♪ The name that we serve is the name that is above every other name ♪ ♪ And the name of our Lord will confess that he is the Lord ♪ ♪ That name is Jesus ♪ ♪ There is power in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ We find everything that we need in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ What a sweetly ♪ ♪ I could sing ♪ ♪ He'll mend for all my life ♪ ♪ And still find more to love each time ♪ ♪ Jesus be the name of our own lives ♪ ♪ It's sweeter every time that I call on ♪ ♪ 'Cause there's just something but love ♪ ♪ There's just something but love ♪ ♪ There's just something but love ♪ ♪ That makes me cry for all ♪ ♪ There is no other ♪

♪ There is no other ♪ ♪ There is no other ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're one of me ♪ ♪ You have been the friend who never left ♪ ♪ You are one, forget your faithful lives ♪ ♪ Jesus be the name of our own lives ♪ ♪ Sweetly ♪ ♪ It's sweeter every time that I call on ♪ ♪ Come on, come on, there's a something about your name ♪ ♪ There's a something about your name ♪ ♪ There's a something about your name that makes me cry ♪ ♪ Oh, please, there is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're worthy to get up ♪ ♪ There's a something about your name ♪ ♪ There's a something about your name ♪ ♪ There's a something about your name that makes me cry ♪ ♪ Oh, there is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There's no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're worthy ♪ ♪ Come on, if you know that He is worthy to be praised ♪ ♪ Why don't you ask him please ♪ ♪ And tell him Jesus, you are worthy ♪ ♪ You are worthy of all our praise ♪ ♪ All of our worship belongs to you, Jesus ♪ ♪ There is nobody like you, nobody above you, nobody beside you ♪ ♪ There is only you, only you are seated on your throne ♪ ♪ And worthy to be praised ♪

♪ This is why we can sing this to Jesus ♪ ♪ Join me in the spot of glory of Christ ♪ ♪ The one the darkness can't deny ♪ ♪ The resurrection and the light ♪ Bye. You never fail, then you never will. Jesus, Jesus the bread of life, broken, for us, the rules didn't end, the worthy one. The first to last, the two to come, Jesus, Jesus the King, who overwhelmed the great, the Lord who wails forever with the name of all of the men. Jesus, oh Jesus we the name, Jesus we the name, Jesus we the name. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, Jesus we the name. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, Jesus we the name. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory.

Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. Jesus, Jesus we the name, can save the storm of glory. And I was born to lift your name above us You hear the melody of all creation But there's a song of praise that holds the eye Who else is worthy, who else is worthy There's no one in Jesus Who else is worthy Who else is worthy There's no one in Jesus You are worthy You are one of the agents

And yet you chose to make my heart a dream You healed my brokenness You should be your glory So I have songs of saints not even angels Who else is worthy, who else is worthy There is no one in Jesus Who else is worthy Who else is worthy Who else is worthy Who else is worthy Who else is worthy There is no one in Jesus Who else is worthy Who else is worthy There is no one in Jesus There's no one in Jesus There's no one in Jesus You are one in Jesus You are one in Jesus We give you all of the glory Yes So we sing the alma mater What it is and it's time to see it on the throne above Yeah, we're right from the shins The throne to us from God of love Jesus Christ, we lift it up soon We're worthy There is no one in Christ We're worthy There is no one in Jesus

We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus Jesus Christ, we lift it up soon We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy There is no one in Jesus We're worthy

There is no one in Jesus ♪ It's the way to ride just one ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

♪♪ >> As you guys were finding your seats, I just wanted to take a moment and welcome you to Life Fellowship Church. If we've never had the pleasure of meeting, my name is Matt Ferguson. I have the honor of serving as the next-gen pastor here. Today, the Spirit of God has been especially sweet in our services, but there was something just a minute ago that I was preparing to take the stage. I was just looking out and looking at all our different faces and thinking through all of the things that each of us are holding and caring and representing today. There's a lot of pressure in life, amen? Some of us feel it in different ways, but there's something about being connected together in a body of believers, as a body of believers in a room, and saying there is no other name but the name of Jesus, that we're choosing to put God first, despite what we see in front of us. We walk by faith and not by sight, and so I want to challenge us today that maybe walking by faith, putting God first, making Jesus a center in all of our lives. I was reading this week in Proverbs 3. It says, "Honor the Lord with your wealth." And I used to look at that word wealth and go, "Well, I'm not rich. I still have lots of bills, and kids are expensive and have you been to the gas station, amen?" It's rough, right? But God challenges us in every area of our life, including our finances, to put Him first. And the reality is He's entrusted us in different ways with different things, and we continue to put God first by trusting Him, by giving back a small portion of what He's given us. So it's not about equal gifts, it's about equal obedience. And so I want to challenge you today if you have not taken that step of trusting the Lord with your finances, the ways to give or on the screen. I want to challenge you to ask the Lord what it is that He would have you do in this moment, not because we're trying to get into your pocket, but because we want to be a body of people who consistently put God first in every area. So can I pray for our offering today? Yeah, we thank you. We thank you for the fact that you loved us here. to join together and to worship and to approach your throne. So God, would you take what's given today? Would you bless those who give? God, would you bless not only the gift, but would you bless the giver? God, would you expand their territories? God, would you increase your goodness and mercy in their life? Yeah, we pray this because of Jesus. Amen. Amen. Well, we are glad that you're here today. If this is your first time with us, I want to encourage you to text the word "new" to 51010 so that you can meet us and we can meet you. And then we're also today going to continue on in our series about David. In fact, today's message is all about the classic story of David versus Goliath. And we have an incredible guest speaker with us today. Pastor Dave is on a well-deserved vacation that was planned several months ago. So he asked a friend of his and our new best friend at Life Fellowship, Pastor Daniel Gray, who's the senior pastor at Stonebridge Church in Atlanta. He's got a phenomenal award. So would you guys help me give Pastor Daniel a warm welcome here to Life Fellowship? Let's go, Life Fellowship.

That was good enough for me. Can you make some noise for Jesus? Yeah. It's good to be here. I love this church already. Love this church already, man. You guys come with faith, passion, energy. And I just think you guys, sometimes when you're in an environment and in a culture like this, you don't realize how blessed you are, but this worship team, come on, put your hands together. Powerful. They just set the table for what God wants to do today. It's so good to be here. I want to welcome everybody who's also joining us online and everyone watching from the Texas Department of Corrections. Come on, let's welcome them as they're with us today. Thank you for being here. I do bring greetings from our church, Chapel Hill Church, and the Atlanta region. We are a family of churches around the Atlanta region. And I'm so glad Pastor Dave asked me to come and preach here today. Pastor Dave has been really my pastor for the last 15 years. And we served in ministry together and he's really been a mentor and a spiritual father in my life. And recently, our church went through a transition where he passed the leadership baton to me and my family. And after founding the church, planting the church, growing the church, serving the church faithfully for 25 years, he said, "Daniel, you're up." And I said, "Yes, sir." And I just love Pastor Dave. And here's what I know. I know God must really love this church that he would send Pastor Dave divine to come and serve alongside you during this season. So you're blessed. And I have a word for you today. Can you say amen?

I'm just testing the waters. I shared earlier with the earlier services that before I get into this, I just got to do a little disclaimer. And really, it's just this, that I am what you would call a holla-back preacher. All that really means is I'm about to holla at you and I give you permission. In fact, I invite you to holla-back at me. You can say things like, "Amen?" Preach that, go ahead, however you want to get down. Some churches I go to, they say, "Preach, white boy." So like, whatever you want to say, however you want to respond, let's do this together. I know you guys started a new series last week called "David." And last week, you started by looking at David the Shepherd. What a powerful message Pastor Dave brought. Looking at the overlooked son who was anointed in obscurity. He was faithful in the field. And we were looking at his, not just his outward appearance, but at the heart, the heart of humility, the heart of worship, the heart that's faithful, even if nobody's watching. And today, we get to take the next step in the journey of David. And this is the part of the story most of us know, even if we didn't grow up in church, going to Sunday school, we've all heard about David and Goliath. So today, we're talking about David the Warrior. And I want to do an extensive reading of Scripture today. I'm going to read a lot of Bible up front, and then we're going to jump into this message. So a lot of Bible reading. So if you brought a Bible, get it open. If you got a phone, click open your Bible. If you don't have any of that, just look on the screen, and we're going to go through this. It's a lot of Scripture. The way I look at it is, even if I don't preach good, at least I read a lot of the Bible, okay? So here we go. First, Samuel 17, beginning in verse 4.

It says, "A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze, weighing 5,000 shekels. On his legs, he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point, Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine? And are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects. But if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us. Then the Philistine said, this day I defy the armies of Israel. Give me a man and let us fight each other. On hearing the Philistines words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified. Skip down to verse 23. Goliath, the Philistine champion from Geth, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance. And David heard it. Whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all fled from him in great fear. Now the Israelites had been saying, do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter and marriage

and will exempt his family from taxes in Israel. David asked the men standing near him, what will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, this is what will be done for the man who kills him. Skip down to verse 32. David said to Saul, let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine. Your servant will go and fight him, Saul replied, you're not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him, you're only a young man. And he has been a warrior from his youth. But David said to Saul, your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. That's a bad man right there. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear. This uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them because he has defied the armies of the living God, the Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me

from the hand of this Philistine. Saul said to David, go and the Lord be with you. Skip one more time down to verse 49, reaching into his bag and taking out a stone. He slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead and he fell face down on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone without a sword in his head. He struck down the Philistine and killed him. David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. Now let's rewind in the story. All the way back to chapter five. I gotta show you this and then we're gonna get into this. After the Philistines had captured the Ark of God, the Ark of the Covenant, which was the presence of God. They took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. They carried the Ark into Daegon's temple. Daegon was a false God, they worshipped a stone statue. And they set the Ark of the Covenant, which is the Ark of God beside Daegon. When the people of Ashdod rose earlier the next day, there was Daegon falling on his face on the ground before the Ark of the Lord. They took Daegon and put him back in his place. But the following morning, when they rose, there was Daegon falling on his face on the ground

before the Ark of the Lord. His head and hands had been broken off and relying on the threshold, only his body remained. There's so much here, we don't even have enough time to do it all, but this is the last service. So I wanna preach for the next four hours from the subject. (laughing) Just a little jokey joke. If I could give this sermon today, a subtitle, this is what I would give this as a subtitle, a giant praise, a giant praise, a giant praise. In our text, the Philistines are attacking Judah. The Philistines have been a constant enemy of Israel. And the symbolism here is pretty interesting to me. It's powerful because Judah is one of the 12 tribes of Israel and I learned a Bible called the Judah, the word Judah literally means praise. And you have to understand that the enemy is always trying to attack your praise. He wants to get a stronghold on your praise. "because joy is found in praise." And the enemy knows if I can get your praise, I get your joy. But we also know that the joy of the Lord is our strength. So he knows if I get your praise, I get your joy. But if I get your joy, I get your strength. So the enemy says, "I'm gonna take your praise." And this is why, ladies and gentlemen, we have to understand praise matters. Praise matters.

Why? Because your praise is more than a song. It's your strength. Your praise is more than a melody. It's a weapon in the hands and out of the mouth of a follower of Jesus. Your praise is more than just making noise. It's an decision to trust God, even if everything around me looks really bad, even if everything around me is telling me I need to be afraid. See, anybody can praise God when the sun is shining. But real praise is when you're in a storm and you praise God anyway. Real praise says, "I will bless the Lord at all times." See, praise is what keeps our eyes on heaven when everything on earth is falling apart. And this is why the enemy hear me attacks your praise because he knows the power of your praise. Does anybody have a praise today in the 1145? Does anybody have a praise? Yeah, I'm gonna push you a little bit today. Now, let's talk about this giant. This giant, we've all heard of this giant. His name is Goliath. Goliath is huge. Most would say over nine feet tall. That's a big boy right there. This is bigger than those defensive linemen we watch on TV today. This is a big dude.

He's a champion of the Philistines. He's mean, he's intimidating, and he's talking trash every day when the Israelites would come out and they would see this giant with his sword and his javelin and his shield. And he would say things like, "Give me a man. I'll rip him to shreds. I'll feed his flesh to the birds of the air." The Israelites are like, "Oh my goodness, okay. This guy is for real. This is real serious." The Bible literally says that as he would come out taunting them and talking trash, they were dismayed and terrified. But David shows up, and while all these soldiers are standing there, shaking in their literal boots, David shows up and says, "Who dad?" This is my translation today. Who is this dude talking trash? Not only about us, but about the God we serve. David was having none of it. He shows up and he says, "Who is this?" And they say, "That's Goliath. He's the champion of the Philistines. He is a killer. He is a murderer. He's been a warrior since his youth." And what I love about David

is while everybody else saw a threat, David saw an opportunity. While everybody else saw a giant too big to fight, David saw a target too big to miss. And this is what sets David apart from all the other soldiers. It wasn't that he was bigger or stronger or more experienced in battle. It wasn't that he was more courageous than these other soldiers. It was just that David had the ability to see himself victorious before he ever stepped out to fight. And while everybody else was scared of the giant, I love David. He says, "What do I get if I kill him?" This is the mindset of a champion. This is the mindset of a warrior. What do I get if I kill him? He swims against the current of everybody else's fear. The other men are armed, but not dangerous. The other soldiers have swords. David doesn't even have a sword. The Bible says David shows up to the battle with some cheese, some bread, and some granola. These other soldiers have swords. David shows up with a charcuterie board. Talk about, "Who is this?" I'm ready to throw down. I love David. He can see himself victorious.

So much so that he says, "What do I win when I kill this giant?" And they tell him, "Did you see it?" They tell him, "The king will do three things. Three things will be done for the man who kills this giant." First of all, number one, they say, "If you kill him, the king will make you rich." See, you gotta understand that if you follow after the king's desires for your life, he'll enrich you. See, and by the way, I'm not just talking about, I'm not up here postulating prosperity gospel today. I'm not just talking about money or wealth or possessions. I'm talking about grace and mercy. I'm talking about favor and blessing. I'm talking about the right relationships and the right opportunities. I'm talking about peace of mind and peace in your soul. I'm talking about a God who will lead you to green pastures and lead you to still waters, that if you follow after the king's desires Can you say amen? Number two, they say the king is gonna let whoever kills Goliath marry his daughter. I love this because this is a picture of joining the king's family. This is so good because for every one of us in the room today who have given our lives to Jesus, this is exactly what we've done.

When we stepped into a relationship, when we got saved, we joined a king's family. We stepped into a royal lineage, the Bible calls it. We became part of a royal priesthood. And this is powerful, especially if you're like me. And when you look at your family tree, that thing is chacked up. Maybe I'm the only one who's got a crazy family. Everybody's got at least one crazy uncle. I got like four or five, 17, okay? My old, I don't have a spiritual lineage. I didn't just wake up in church. I didn't just wake up floating on a cloud, drinking communion juice every day. No, I was far from God. I didn't have a pastor in my family. I didn't have people who were followers of Jesus in my family. I wasn't handed this legacy of being a follower of Jesus. And maybe you're like me and you weren't handed a spiritual lineage, but you were handed generational curses. But hear me, when you step into a relationship with Jesus, those generational curses are broken. Why? Because we switch bloodlines. The Bible says when we come to Jesus, we are adopted into a new family. We are brought into the family of God. I'm a child of the King today. And those generational curses of the past are gone because they're covered by the blood of Jesus.

So no matter what my parents did or my family did, now I have the blood of Jesus coursing through my spiritual veins. I've joined the family of the King of Kings. I've joined the family of the Lord of Lords. Can you say amen? Number three, they say reason number three. This is what will happen. They say this is why you should do this, David, because whoever kills the giant, that your family will never pay taxes again. I thought I'd get an amen right there. See, see for the young people in their own, you're like, okay, that's cool, but whatever. But for those of us that obey taxes for a while, this is like preaching material. This is shouting material in the sermon. This is where y'all to say amen, Pastor Daniel. He said, your family, don't miss that. He didn't say you. He said, your family will never pay taxes again. This is amazing because this implies that a decision I make today can impact future generations. You're telling me a decision I make today won't just impact me, but a decision I can make today can impact my entire family. You mean this could impact generations to come, ladies and gentlemen, you can do something in this generation that will impact the next generation. What you do today can change

what your kids experience tomorrow. What we build in this generation can literally become a foundation that we build the next generation on if you believe that, give God praise. See, see, this is my story. This is my testimony. Some of us are the first person in our family to follow Jesus, the first person to break an addiction, the first person to get married and stay married, the first person to pray over our children, the first person to say, as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord, and maybe we didn't get the legacy we wanted, but we can build the legacy that we wish we had received. So David says, okay, so you're telling me that if I kill Goliath, the king will make me rich, I get to marry into the king's family, and I'll never pay taxes ever again. Sounds like a deal. And what I love about David is that when he hears this, he starts talking out loud. He starts reminiscing about other times God came through. When a lion came and a bear came, he said, the same God will deliver me. He begins to talk and encourage himself. He'd be, I can do this, I can take him, let me at him. And the Bible says that what David says, as he's saying, I can do this, that so hears what David says.

And he says this, go and the Lord be with you. Here's what I need you to catch today. So what he says is what opens the door for him to fight the giant, because there's power in your confession. There's power in the words you speak. The Bible says the power of life and death are in the tongue. Do you know, do you know that there are medical doctors who aren't even Christians who have studied the power of our thoughts and our words? And they've actually found that when you speak positive words over your body, it can actually affect your brain and the way your body responds, that what you say out loud, that your mind is so powerful, that as your mind begins to believe, but this isn't really new research, this isn't really new information, because for over 2,000 years, the Bible has been telling us this. Proverbs 23, seven says, "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." See, you have to understand that sometimes if you could just get a thought, if you can think it, you can speak it, you can live it. See, sometimes we have to realize that our minds are powerful. My question to you today is, what are you thinking? What are you thinking about yourself? What are you thinking about your marriage?

What are you thinking about your journey? What are you thinking about your future? Because it matters, even world-class athletes understand this, and the world of the MBAs, and the NFLs, and the MLBs, and all of that, and the world of professional sports. Athletes don't just work out and practice. They actually go through this process of visualization. Professional golfers, they hire people who would help them with their swing. They hire statisticians, and they hire people to help them with their workouts, but then they will even hire mental coaches to help them learn how to think and see themselves, not just making a putt, but holding up a trophy at the end of the tournament. This is a real thing. The power of visualization that some athletes in professional sports world are not just visualizing what play they're gonna make, or what route they're gonna run. They actually visualize themselves at the end of the game, declaring we won. Because there's something powerful about our thoughts, and our thoughts become our words, and our words become our actions, and our actions become our habits, and our habits forge our character, and our character takes us right into our destiny. So what we say out loud matters. The power of positive self-talk. This isn't just for the sports world.

This is stuff that's in the scriptures. This is the mentality, hear me, and the mindset of an overcomer, of someone who says I'm more than a conqueror. So what are you thinking? And what are you saying? Stop walking around saying like I'll never be anything. I'll never amount to anything. Nothing good ever happens to me. Huh, figures this would happen, just my luck. I'll never get that job. I'll never have an opportunity like that. I'll never make that much money. Nothing ever works out for me. No, you have to say God's got this. I can do this, in fact, I can do all things, through Christ who gives me strength. I'm gonna get that job. I'm gonna walk through that opportunity. I'm gonna get that godly spouse. I'm gonna let the Holy Spirit do a work in me that's gonna change my marriage. I'm gonna do whatever it takes to have a better relationship with my kids. You have to start talking about it. Now, why? Because your confession will open doors for you, just like it did for David. Years ago, before I became a pastor, I was a high school dropout.

I was an alcoholic, I was a drug addict, I was selling drugs to be able to afford just the party lifestyle that I was living. It's a long story, I'll spare you all the details, but at the age of 17, I'd have been incarcerated seven different times that I could remember. I had three DUIs and three different states by the age of 18. I was lost, I was addicted, I was broke, busted, and disgusted. I was on a life that was leading straight to either death or prison. Because of my lifestyle, there's a lot of stuff that happened in my life. I was in a car accident. One night at five a.m. in Athens, Alabama, fell asleep at the wheel of my car due to alcohol poisoning and drug overdose. My car flipped several times through oncoming traffic, and when I landed in this ditch next to a small creek in Athens, Alabama, and the paramedics arrived at the scene of my accident and had to cut me out of my mangled car with the jaws of life, one of them noticed I stopped breathing. Another one checked my pulse, I had no pulse. I literally died in that moment. They took me, rushed me to the ambulance, cut away my clothes, performed CPR, used the AED device on me, and luckily, my lungs filled oxygen again, my heart started beating again,

and I lived through that accident six months later, one of my best friends put a gun to his head at a party and pulled the trigger, and my friend was gone in a moment. And so it was after experiences like that, that I was at the lowest place in my life, and I just, the best way I can describe you, what happened is I had an encounter with God. I had an encounter with Jesus that radically changed my life. So when I say I got saved, I was radically saved. And as I started going to church, I quickly began to realize that I felt like God was calling me to step into ministry, and I felt like I began to discover there was a call on my life that I wanted to give God my life since He gave me a fresh start. He gave me a new life, and so I began to make a decision that God, I'm gonna learn, I'm gonna follow you, I'm gonna go to Bible college, I'm gonna be a pastor, an evangelist, a missionary, whatever you ask me to do, God, I just wanna serve you. And I'm telling you that because as I was in ministry school and I was in Bible college at this church, So there were times where I had to go to my pastor and be like, hey, pastor. So yeah, I know it's Wednesday night service tonight, but I got to go to the probation officer. I got to take a drug test and stuff. So I'm going to be late for church. And so that's cool, praise God for what he's doing in your life.

But it was just kind of like this weird dichotomy. I'm like, in ministry school and also on probation. So this is a weird dichotomy. And this one particular Wednesday, we were going to have church there that night. And we dressed nice at this church. It was just more traditional at that time when we would have church services with the adults anyway. And so I put on this suit that I had got, and it was like a three-piece suit. I had the jacket and the pants and the vest with some nice shoes, you know what I'm talking about? Like, I was dressed up to go to church. But I wasn't going straight to church because I had to go see the probation officer. I had to go check in, my little monthly check in. And so I go to the probation officer and I walk in wearing this real nice suit, and I go to sign in. And as I signed in, I'll never forget the lady behind the counter. She got looked up at me, looked back again, and put her glasses down. She was like, honey, you don't have to dress that nice to come see him, you know that, right? And I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. So I signed in and they go sit down. And next to these two dudes, and one of those dudes kind of leaned over, he was like, hey, bro, y'all have to, it don't take all that, bro. You just show up, pee in the cup and go home, dude.

It don't take all that, man. You ain't even pressing nobody. And I realized what was happening in that moment. They thought I was dressed for where I was. But I wasn't dressed for where I was. I was dressed for where I was going. And you may not be where you wanna be yet, but you can start living like it now. You can start thinking like it now. You can start talking like it now. You can start walking like it. Now, you may not be there yet, but you gotta start waking up in the morning and saying, today is the day the Lord has made. I'm blessed and highly favored. I'm the head and not the tail. I'm above and not beneath. No weapon formed against me shall be able to prosper. I'm not talking about where I am now. I'm speaking in the trajectory of where I believe God is taking me. Ladies and gentlemen, David's confession is what opened the door for him to fight the giant. And David says this while he's speaking positive words and he's saying I can take it. He says he begins to reminisce and share his testimony. He said when a lion came, I killed it. When a bear came to take the sheep, I killed it and the same God that delivered me out of the paw of the lion

and the paw of the bear will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. Here's what I need you to see here. Is that some of the trouble that you have gone through in your past, it wasn't just trouble, it was training. Because some of your trouble was training you, getting you ready for something bigger. And when you defeated that last thing in your life, that last battle, that last enemy, that last storm that you walked through, listen, God used it to prepare you for the thing that's standing in front of you right now. So I have this revelation like, wait a minute. Now I understand why that attack happened. Now I understand why that thing came against me. David realized now I understand better while there was a lion. Now I understand why the bear came. They didn't just come to take the sheep. They came to stop me from getting to the giant. What did you go through in your past that tried to stop you from getting where you are today? The lion and the bear were on assignment to stop you. But aren't you glad that God takes what the enemy meant for harm and he'll turn it around and use it for good in your life? I don't know about you, but this is my story. The things that Devil tried to use as a stumbling block in my life became a stepping stone in my life.

The thing he tried to use that take me out, became the thing that took me into my purpose and my destiny if you believe it, say amen. Here we go. The Bible says this as David stepped out in confidence and boldness. It says Goliath, curse David. Watch this by his gods, by his little G gods. I want to teach for a moment. One of those gods was none other than that false God from 1 Samuel chapter five known as day gone. In fact, according to ancient Jewish Rabbi tradition, Goliath had an image of day gone engraved, literally carved into his skin like a tattoo over his heart. And remember, day gone had already fallen back in 1 Samuel chapter five. So he was worshiping a fallen god. Remember what happened to day gone? When the Philistine army captured and stole the ark of the covenant and they put it in the presence of their little G God, it says day gone fell. How faced down on the ground, they tried to pick him up. They set him back up again. But the next day when they woke up and walked out, Now, as we run over to 1 Samuel chapter 17, back where David is beginning, ready to fight Goliath, we see David running toward the giant with a sling and one stone.

He took what? He had five, but he only needed one. Can you say amen? It says, David took one stone and he put it in the sling. And when he released it toward the giant, it hit him in the forehead and Goliath fell down. Now, if you know Bible, then you understand the significance of what's happening here. Because just like David, we too have a stone. He is the cornerstone. He is the chief cornerstone. He is the capstone. He is the rock of ages. That even when they tried to roll a stone on the outside of his tomb, the stone that was on the inside of the tomb was bigger than the stone on the outside of the tomb. See, see, we have a rock. His name is Jesus. We have a rock. The Bible says, David throws the rock, watch this. And it says the rock sank into the giant's forehead. And he fell, how? Face down on the ground, just like his God. Hold up, time out. I would think that because of the laws of science, and physics, and gravity, that if a stone hit you on the forehead so hard with such velocity that it sank into your forehead, that it would knock you in an equal and opposite direction. Come on, Newton's law.

But he didn't fall backward. The Bible says when he gets struck in the forehead, he falls face down on the ground. Why? Because when someone falls face down on the ground, it is a universal sign of worship. It's a sign of surrender. It's a sign of submission. And I came all the way to McKinney, Texas to tell you that when you stand up before your giant and you lift up the name of Jesus, every giant has to bow down in the presence of your God. Every demon, every devil, every generational curse has to bow down in the presence of God. My Bible says every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess that God is the Father to the glory of God. Ladies and gentlemen, I want to ask you, would you stand up on your feet today? Would you lift up the name of Jesus? Would you lift up the stone? The corner stone today. Every voice, every voice. [MUSIC PLAYING] Somebody lift his leg. [MUSIC PLAYING] [CHEERING] Somebody lift his leg. [CHEERING] [MUSIC PLAYING]

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I believe it was Arizona State University and they literal sound waves boom a sound wave would extinguish flames Here's my here's my thought. Here's my question If they could extinguish flames like that using a sound wave in the natural How much more in the spirit realm when we begin to release a sound in a room like this? Does it extinguish the fiery darts of the enemy that he's trying to bring against us see see some of us the problem is not Some of us the problem is it's not that we don't have hype. It's not that we don't have a motion It's that we we we don't ever have enough faith to stand up and say Jesus I need you in my marriage Jesus I praise you even though I'm in the middle of a storm Jesus I trust you even though I'm walking through a valley you got to open up your mouth My question sees today. I know I'm pushing you a little bit, but that's okay I'm gonna play it in a few minutes, but before I go I got to push you a little bit. What are you thinking? What are you speaking? What is coming out of your mouth in the beginning? God created us He reached out into the dirt and he He breathed his life into us and everything God created. How did he create it with the sound of his voice? When it when it says the word create and Genesis one, it's the word barak and this is the word That if you look if you look at the original etymology of this word, it is a creative power Do you know that at the core of who we are not just cells? But atoms the smallest thing we could look at with a microscope That at the core of an atom the nucleus to what I know what scientists have found there a sound wave Because sound has creative power Sound has creative power as Paul and Silas Locked up in a prison chains in the lowest parts of the prison and pastor Paul looks over a young Silas That says hey, I don't know about you Man, I didn't think we'd end up here for preaching the gospel But while we're here We might as well praise the Lord and the Bible says as they started to worship as they release a sound Into the atmosphere the prison doors flew open the foundation of the jail started to shake and they walked out of there free

With no chains and no bondage Let me tell you today your praise matters the sound you release does something something happens in the spirit realm So in just a moment, I'm gonna give you an opportunity to not be one of those people this well I'm just too dignified. I'm not gonna open my mouth. I'm not gonna praise out It didn't take all that this seems like a lot of hype and emotion But some of those same people will go over to cowboy stadium AT&T stadium and shout like they've lost their mind I refuse to shout louder for a team than doesn't know me then for the God who created me who formed me and fashioned me Somebody open your mouth. Somebody open your mouth today Every voice Oh Jesus be the day to get sure Oh Jesus be the day Jesus be the day Jesus be the name Jesus be the name Jesus be the name Jesus be the name Jesus be the name ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ ♪ We can't show the glory, yeah ♪ [MUSIC PLAYING] relationship with this Jesus I've been talking about maybe you've never given your life to Jesus made that made the decision to say I'm gonna follow Jesus I'm gonna give him everything if that's you I want to pray for you before I get off the stage maybe you've never prayed a prayer like this to make Jesus the Lord of your life maybe you prayed a prayer like this at one point but if

you're honest you've been living you've been in the driver's seat you've been making the decisions you've been doing life your way instead of truly taking up your cross and following Jesus today is your moment to say I'm coming back to you Lord I declare you're the Lord of my life I want to give you everything that's you with his still bow to not still close I'm not gonna ask you to come forward or anything like that I just want to know who I'm praying for if you're ready to give your life to Jesus for the first time or the 15th time but today something has shifted and you're ready to respond on the count of three just lift a hand let me see you one two three quickly no hesitation all over the room hands are going up just lift a high in the sky so I can see you all over the room right word in this service today for people to say yes to Jesus you can put those hands down I'm gonna leave you in a simple prayer I'm gonna say some words but you're gonna repeat after me from your own heart and life fellowship we're gonna pray this prayer out loud with those who lifted their hand we're gonna declare these words with them let's all pray together say Lord Jesus can't hear you say Lord Jesus today I give you my life I believe you died on the cross I believe you rose from the grave and today I decide to follow you as Savior as Lord of my life I give you everything all that I am all that I have is yours Jesus is Lord and heaven is home in Jesus name amen come on give him praise one more time right there amen let's give God a shout of praise one more time man what an incredible incredible day and life fellowship if you're a part of our prayer team I'm gonna invite you to begin making your way down front now and I don't know about you but I know that in moments like this when I feel the Lord moving when I feel the Lord speaking to me sometimes I just need somebody to pray over me to help me process and that's what our prayer team is gonna do for you today so they're gonna make themselves available down front if that was you and you prayed that prayer today maybe for the first time or you began to trust Christ as your Savior for the first time I would encourage you to text the word Jesus to 510 so that we can put some resources in your pocket to help you in your faith journey because you are not

designed to do this alone and speaking of trying to do this alone we offer our growth right class the first and second Sunday of every month and that's a great way for you to learn more about life fellowship who we are how you can get plugged in and how you can help make a kingdom difference right here at life fellowship and then selfishly because I'm the next gen guy I'm gonna promo my own event man we have an incredible honor and duty to invest in the next generation here at life fellowship we believe and our kids and our students and our young adults and then up to where we're gonna take our students on their annual fall retreat and we're gonna do what we just did today we're gonna praise God we're gonna deepen our roots and we're gonna encourage them to become the leaders that God's called and created them to be so if you've got a 6-12th grader in your family in your neighborhood somebody you work with you want to get them signed up for this it's 99 bucks all in that's all it takes if that's a problem and come see me I'll get you there I mean we want as many kids in the room with us this this October it's gonna be a phenomenal phenomenal event and then last but definitely not least tomorrow night at 7 o'clock look at me Leandro 7 7 that's because Leandro said it was 7 we're gonna have a night of corporate prayer right here in this room we're gonna join together and we're gonna pray and ask the spirit of God to move in and through the lack of our church in our community amen that was a lot let me bless you and pray over you as we go yeah we thank you for today thank you for the truth that we heard God would the Lord bless you and keep you may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you the Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace and in Jesus sweet name we pray amen you guys be blessed and we'll see you next week you (upbeat music)