You can choose to stand on God's word even when your circumstances look bleak. Trust that Jesus has already overcome the world, giving you the strength to face your own storms with hope. Embrace the promise that trouble is temporary but His victory is eternal.
Welcome to the "Real Church podcast". Our mission is for you to know the "love of Jesus" and live out your God given purpose. Now join us and listen in to the latest message from pastor David John Phillips.
I wanna introduce to you guys my best friend, 1 of my best friends in the whole world. This guy is the reason that we planted real church, actually. He is the reason. Literally didn't know where Clearwater was on the map till I met this guy. Still didn't know.
He just told me he was from Clearwater, a place in Florida. I didn't know if it by Clear Lake or what. I had no idea. And and man, God did an amazing work. You wouldn't know it if you got to know him today but he used to be heavily involved in drugs and heavily involved in gangs and stuff here in Clearwater and God just did this **radical change** in his life.
I met him 4 years ago and he wasn't that dude. He was somebody completely different because God doesn't just change you a little bit, he changes you completely from the inside out. Now this guy let me tell you a little bit about him. So 1, he's deputized now. So went from went from carrying guns you know, I guess kinda against cops to carrying guns for them.
He's deputized. He teaches reentry classes at the local prison. He's their number 1 guy. He's an author. He he's a a man of God.
He preaches the gospel all over. He's a youth pastor, and then he travels to different churches from time to time and preaches. He's also a rapper. Go figure. Amazing rapper.
He he he raps now for Jesus, which is awesome. And and I've gotten to I've gotten to rap with him some. Go figure there.
You know?
Who would have thunk it? Yeah. But 1 of my best friends, an amazing father. And, man, I just I wanna say I love you, brother, and I'm excited for what God's gonna speak to through you to us. I'm excited to learn from you,
my friend. Might too, Dave. Appreciate you, brother. I got a new mic. Amen.
So I got my mic on. My wife told me don't forget to turn my mic on. And I almost did. Amen. So man, it feels so good to be here.
That worship was amazing. It was amazing. Let us experience the glory of his goodness. I experienced that today. I experienced the glory of God's goodness today because I remember a year and a half ago, 2 years ago, David John coming to me and say, hey, so I gotta tell you something.
*God* want me to move to Clearwater and start a church. And I'm standing here in that vision that God gave him. So I'm experiencing the glory of "God's goodness" right here in this moment. I'm experiencing the glory of God's goodness. 10 years ago, this morning I I got to praise, I'm getting an opportunity to praise and worship with my brothers.
This morning here in church, I'm praising the Lord Jesus Christ here with my brothers. I'm experiencing the glory of God's goodness. Because 10 ago, we were standing on the corner selling drugs together, and now we're in the "house of the Lord" praising God together. I'm experiencing the glory of God's goodness this morning. So let's go ahead and get into the word this morning.
If you have your bibles, turn with me to 1 Peter-4:12. *God* is amazing this morning, man. Those that praise and worship. Oh. If I can find it.
Right? *1 Peter-4:12*. Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trials you are suffering as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice, but rejoice that you participate in the suffering of Christ so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. Father God, just come to you this morning father just thanking you for who you are.
Thanking you for your presence this morning. Thanking you for the message that you're gonna speak this morning, father. Father, I pray that you give me the strength to set me aside, father, and allow you to move through me. I pray that you open the hearts of everyone here today father that this word not only pierced their heart father, but the Levi's door changed father. I pray that no 1 walked in here today walk out the same father.
I pray they have a deeper understanding of who you are In Jesus name, amen. In 2013, I had moved from I was living in Houston with my girlfriend who's now my amazing wife. And we moved to We're living in Houston and I wasn't being the person that I was supposed to be. I wasn't doing the right things. I was making a lot of mistakes, making a lot of bad decisions.
And my pastor friend told me that, I had lost everything. I just just sparrowed down. God had blessed me with so much and I had just just took what he what he gave me for granted and ran off and just went and doing my own thing with the blessings that God had put on my life. And I lost everything I had. I lost my job.
I lost everything except my amazing girlfriend who stood by my side. That's the only thing I didn't lose. And my pastor told me, why don't you move to Louisiana to this rehab? Why don't you go through this rehab and and spend It's a 7 month rehab. I think you need to go there and kind of get your head on straight and really seek after God.
And so I said, Okay, I'm a go. So I moved to Louisiana, Waynesboro, Louisiana, and what I knew about Louisiana was I've drove through Louisiana, you know, New Orleans down Louisiana going to Texas, and so I was like, alright, we're gonna move to Louisiana. So in my mind, when I thought about Louisiana, I thought about New Orleans. Right? Big cities, this and that.
And I remember being 5 minutes out, and he was like, alright, we'll be there in 5 minutes. And I'm like, minutes? It's cornfields on both sides. This is not what I thought I was coming to. Right?
I didn't know Louisiana had so many cornfields and this and that which I should have knew but I had this picture of Louisiana from TV. And so I went to this program and it was a faith faith rehab And it didn't really run like a rehab, right? It ran more like a bible college because we didn't talk about alcohol and drugs, we didn't talk about a 12 step, we didn't talk about anything that had to do with addiction. The only thing that we talked about was the love of Jesus, how he's seen you, *salvation*, *grace*, and all these amazing things of God is what we talked about. And so how the facility runs, it runs it's like I say, it's a 7 month program and it's broke down into 3 phases.
Right? So the first phase is a 30 day phase. Right? And in this first week, it's kind of like a detox, right? Because some people that come check into this program, I mean they high the day they come through the door, right?
So they a little time to get those things out of their system before they can start learning anything and moving forward. So, after your first week, you start taking classes. Alright? You have like bible, you wake up wake up from school every morning at 07:00, you go to class and you spend an hour in class. After class, you hang around for an hour and then at 09:00 you go to what they call chapel.
Alright? And we have church basically for an hour. After that, you kind of hang around the facility, to about 01:00 and then you have class again for an hour and then you just hang out for the rest of the day. So I did that for the first 30 days and in those classes we learned about grace, about salvation, and what it really means, what everlasting life means, how God sees us. All these amazing things about God is what we learned in school.
And so we go into second phase. Now second phase is a 3 month program. And second phase runs a little bit like first phase, but second phase, you get up and you go to class, but then after class, you go to work for 1 of their businesses at facility. They got like a yard crew, they got a carpenter crew, they got a car wash crew, they got all these businesses that Fresh Start, places called Fresh Start Ministries that they own. And so you work for 3 months at 1 of these facilities.
After you graduate from second phase, you move on to third phase. Now, in this program you work, right? So you kind of pay to go to this program and in the third phase you get a job you work. So now you're working for yourself, now you're making money for yourself for the next 3 months. And so, here I am, I'm going into third phase, everything from this point on, from first phase to second phase to third phase, I'm flowing through the program.
Everything going right, everything going good, God is amazing and and I'm worshiping and I remember 1 time I was I was I was praising, worshiping in the second phase and and it was a song, I praise you in this storm. Because I will lift my hands because you are who you are no matter where I am. And every tear I cry, you holding your hands. You never left my side And though my heart is torn, I praise you in this storm. And I'm singing that song as loud as I can.
And just as clear as you hear my voice today, God said, really? But would you really? He said, would you really praise me in the storm? Because see every and I didn't at the time I was like, of course, God. Right?
Yeah. Right? You know what mean? Like my life is going amazing right now. Right?
Of course, I'll praise you when it get rough. And then I remember that, like I remember that to this day, I remember that. And so I get into third phase and now it's time for me to start working. And I'm talking about I got I got faith to move mountains. Right?
I know God is gonna move, God is gonna work. You know, I came here and they've been telling me God brought you here. You know, this program, you didn't just check yourself in here. God drawed you here, God brought you to this program, and God is gonna see you through. And so I'm like, okay, I'm get I'm I'm a get a job, I'm a start working, you know, so I'm making money.
So I get into third phase and the first week go by and I'm running around, I'm looking for jobs, I'm filling out applications and nothing come. Couple weeks go by, about 3 weeks in, nothing come. I'm like, look at the devil trying to come against me, right? Satan trying to come against me, but I'm a I'm a "stand strong". Right?
Because God gonna move. I'm a get a job. God gonna get the glory. My friend is starting to get jobs. And I'm like, hey, man, brother.
You know, God move. But I told you, they just encouraging me. Right? Because God is moving. I don't got a job yet, but God is moving.
Because they all getting jobs, and God is moving, and it's gonna be my turn eventually. Right? And so I get past my first month, and then guys from the class behind me start coming up, And they start getting jobs. And I'm like, Hey man, brother. You know, but I'm kinda like, What's going on?
Know? I only got 2 months left, God. I know you're gonna move. I need to make some money. You know?
My my girlfriend, she just had my son, you know? She's having a hard time out there, you know, I need to make some money God, you know. And so, they started getting jobs and they allowed me to fly home to see my girlfriend and my son and my daughter. And so I was able to fly home and then on the way back I missed my flight. Right?
I was late for my flight that morning. You know, right? I love you girl. But I was late for my flight, know, it wasn't my fault, but don't know, was somebody fault, it wasn't mine, but I was late. I missed my flight.
Right? And so I called them and I'm like, I missed my flight, but I'm a be on the next flight. And they was like, what? You missed your flight? They're like, listen man, you might wanna stay there in Clearwater.
You you might not have a bed when you get back. And I was like, no, like, please don't don't kick me out of the program. Like, I missed my flight. I didn't mean to do it. And so because see this program most of these people in this program they're court ordered.
Right? The judge told them they're facing some time, they're looking at time and the judge court ordered them to this program. And so I wasn't court ordered but I felt like I was God ordered. Right? I felt like I was court ordered because I felt like I needed to be in this place and have 7 months from to separate myself from the world and really seek after God.
Right? So I needed to be in this place. I needed I needed what God had for me here. I know this is where God wanted me to be. I know it's where he wanted me to be and I needed to be here.
So they they allowed me to come back and so when I came back, I don't know what was going on, but it was like after turn, I got back and I was on punishment, I couldn't talk for like 3 weeks, I couldn't use a phone for like 3 weeks, I couldn't go to Walmart, and I couldn't do a lot. And then, I get in trouble, then I get in trouble again, then I get in trouble again, and I'm like, what's going on? Like, I was skating through this program at first, right? And now, I'm getting in trouble, I don't know what's going on, I still haven't got a job, and I'm getting frustrated, I don't know what's going on. And so, now here I am into my I'm in my last month in third phase.
And I started working like little ends in jobs, job here, job there, but I wasn't I didn't have a permanent job of months. And I still had to pay my last payment to the facility. And so, I end up graduating the program and still haven't got a job yet. And you can imagine, I'm I'm a little frustrated. I'm a little frustrated because I still haven't got a job yet.
And so I graduate and so, you know, God ain't moving. Right? I know God called me here. I know I'm here for a purpose. I know I'm here for a reason, but God ain't moving.
So I dropped to my knees, right? And I'm praying and I'm praying and I need God to move. I need God to move. And you know what God said to me? I'm praying.
*God* tell me what to do. What to do next. I have this opportunity. A guy called, guy said, listen, don't you move to Monroe? And I get you a job and I told the staff, listen, I got a job in Monroe.
You know, Monroe is like moving to Tampa if you're in the Clearwater and moving to Tampa is just the same same amount of distance. Why don't you move here, I'll get you a job. And the staff was like, Listen, you need to stay here and finish paying off your payment. I don't think you should leave and move to Monroe. Think you should stay right here.
And I'm like, it's a job. Right? I'm good. I can I can do this? And so I I'm drop I I dropped to my knees and I'm praying to God, you know, tell me what to do.
What's the right decision? I don't know what to do. And *God* said, nothing. Nothing. You ever prayed to God and he said nothing?
Right? He said nothing. And so now here I am face I'm faced with this this decision. What what do I do? So I started talking to, you know, other friends getting their advice, getting their opinion, and I ended up saying, you know what, God?
I'm a stay. I'm a stay. I don't know what's going on. I don't understand it. I don't know why this is happening.
I'm I'm standing where I'm supposed to be standing. I know when I look down at my feet, know I'm standing where I'm supposed to be standing. I know I'm surrounded by the people I'm supposed to be surrounded by. I know I'm doing the things that you've called me to do. And I don't know what's going on.
I don't understand it, God, but okay. I'm a stay. And I end up getting a job. And I end up paying them off. And 1 of the things that the staff member said to me when I came to talk to him, said, listen, why do you think I haven't got a job yet?
He said, to be honest with you, Dre, I I don't know. It's not the words I want to hear. Right? But he said, he said, I don't know. He said, maybe God gonna bless you in threes.
I was like, alright. And so I was like, I'm a stay. I'm a stay. Because if I go by what I'm feeling, I will leave this program right now and I'll go. But I'm not going with what I feel, I'm going with what I know and I'm going stay.
And I stayed in the program, and I ended up getting a job, I ended up paying them off, and then I ended up being able to save up enough money to get my wife, my girlfriend who's now my wife, to come live with me in Louisiana, and my kids and we I was working, my family was there, and everything was going well. Have you ever been in a situation where you knew you was where God wanted you to be? You were standing in a place that God wanted you to stand? You was doing all the things you knew God was calling you to do and things still wasn't working out? I said as though something strange was happening to you?
You ever you ever felt like that? The other day, I got David Johnson. I work at a jail, and 1 of my inmates told me about this lady named Corinthian Boom. And a lot of y'all heard a lot of oooms, lot y'all know Corinthian Boom. So Corinthian Boom is a Dutch woman from The Netherlands.
I think it's about a 45 minute train ride from Amsterdam. And Corinthian Boom father was a watchmaker. And she was the first woman watchmaker ever. She was the first female watchmaker. And when she was 5 years old, she gave her life to Jesus Christ.
5. I got a son just turned 5. Right? And so she gave her life to Jesus when she was 5 years old. And growing up, as she as she got older, it was Nazi Germany era.
And so they had all these Jews fleeing. And her, she, her and her family, her sister, her brother, they all, they hid Jews, right, from the Nazis. And so in their their facility that they had, that they made watches at, they had a basement and they would hide all the Jews in the basement. And it was at 1 point, it was a couple of Hitler's troops didn't really want to be a part of what they had going on. And so her knowing that God has called her to do this, she's a believer in Jesus Christ and this is what this is her purpose.
Right? She discovered this is her purpose. This is what she was called to do. And so, she she took the the Nazis she took the Nazis in, and what she did was she she took their uniforms off and put them on some of the Dutchmen and sent some of her Dutchmen into his army and rescued like a 100 babies. Brought them out and and distributed them to a family and she said not 1 baby did not make it to her family.
So she was doing what she knew God called her to do at no matter what the cause was. She was fulfilling her purpose. She was doing what God called her to do. Someone told on her, and they came and they raided their home, and they raided their facility. And 1 of the amazing things about it is that when they came and raid them, what she what her and her sisters and all of them did, they took pages from the bible because it was illegal.
You couldn't have you couldn't have the bible. Right? You couldn't have you couldn't have no scriptures and none of that. So they took them and they ripped them they ripped pages and they stuffed them inside their socks and their shoes and hid them. Now, I'm a believer in Jesus Christ.
Right? I love the Lord. Right? But if the FBI or somebody or the government was coming to raid my house right now, I don't I don't know if the bible will be the the thing that I grabbed. But it just shows you the mindset that she had because the first thing that they did was grab what's most important to them.
And what was most important is that bible and those scriptures. And so she they they ran, they grabbed, they ripped pages, they stuffed them in their shoes, and they brought her in front of a judge. And this judge had paperwork. This judge had paperwork. And he said, Is all this Is this stuff true about you?
She said she looked at it and she knew everything on that paper was true about her. She hid Jews, she did this, she did that. So all the evidence that was against her was right there in front of her. And at this time, if she was guilty of any 1 of these things, they was gonna take her outside and line her up with about 30 men and shoot her. Right?
So she said she she told him what he needed to hear. He took the paper and threw it in the fire next to him. Burned all the evidence against her. Similar to what Jesus did, Jesus blood did for us. Right?
Same process. So now all the evidence that was against her was gone. So she still got sent to a camp. And in this camp, it was filled with about 200 women that only hold 70. She was in this room that only hold 70 people, and it was 200 women in there.
And she and she and as they was in this room, they threw him in the room, and her sis and she said she noticed that there was fleas and ticks all over the bed. A festation of fleas and ticks everywhere. And she told her sister, hey, don't don't lay on the bed. There's fleas and ticks everywhere. And she said her sister looked at her and said, thank God for the fleas.
And she said, I'm not gonna thank God for the fleas. It's fleas and ticks. She said, "thank God for the fleas" and the ticks. Now, when you think about that for a minute, here it is a woman who's sacrificed her life for the kingdom advancement, for the love of Jesus, rescuing people. She spent 4 months in a whole solitary confinement, And now she's in this room, overcrowded room.
She's sleeping with ticks and fleas. You ever been you ever felt yourself in a circumstance like that? Situation like those stories? Like, God, this is not what you this is not this is not the this doesn't line up with the calling on my life. I know the purpose you have for my life and my circumstances right now ain't lining up with where I know you're calling me to.
There's plenty of stories in the bible that touches bases on this 1. The 1 I wanna talk about is Joseph. So if you have your bibles, turn with me to Genesis-37. And we're go through the story of Joseph, and we all know the story of Joseph pretty well. So it says, Joseph lived in a land where his father has no.
Actually, let's go to 3. So we know Joseph here's here's Joseph, 1 of Jacob's son. It was about 12 of them. Joseph Joseph was 1 of the youngest of the 12, and this is a story we're jump into. Now Israel, who is Jake who is Jacob, but God changed his name to Israel.
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of the other sons because he had been born of him of old age and he made him richly ornamented robe for him. When his brothers saw their father love for him more than them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream and when he told his brothers they hated him all the more. He said to them, listen to this dream I had. We were binding sheaves of grain in the field.
Suddenly, your sheaves my my sheaves rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around me and bowed down to me. Now, I'm gonna paint this picture for you. Joseph brothers hate him already. Right? Because his dad *favors* him.
Right? And he made him a a very colorful robe. Right? That he wore. So in in any time he had that robe on, to them, it was just a a reality check that like, you know, I'm the favorite.
Right? I'm the favorite. He knew that he was a favorite. And anytime he wore that robe, his brothers hated him. And then he tell him this dream that we was in a now they're in the field.
Right? They're in the field right now doing what the dream was. So I can imagine him, you know, them them they're they're getting the sheaves up and he say, hey, I had a dream. Then but then he says this, he says, listen to this dream I had. Now, when when I tell you guys, hey, listen, I'm about to say something, we know, you know, in in our culture, in our language that you just want me to hear what you gotta say.
I'm gonna tell you something and you listen. But in in the in the original language, right, in the in the original Hebrew language, right, that's the it means so much more than just listen and receive what I'm about, like, receive what I'm about to say. No. Listen. So at that time, this is how they understood when he said listen.
Listen at that time, it meant what I'm what I'm saying is important. You need to listen to it, and you need to respond. Right? So admit So with them, it says When I said When he says, listen, it means, hey, what I'm about to say is important, and when I when I say what I say, respond to it. You need to do something about what I'm about to say to you.
It's it's important. So you understand that. Right? So for him to say that so now you understand that when he's saying listen, that means, not only for them to hear, but for them to respond to what he's fixing to say, because it's important. So he says, listen to this dream I had.
We were buying the sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheave rode and stood upright while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed to it. I can imagine them having what I like to call the light bulb effect. Right? I I have brothers. Right?
And I can imagine me telling them something like that. And I can imagine them like, so what are you trying to say? We're to bow to you or something? Right? You trying to you trying to say we're gonna worship you?
Is that is that the catch? Just because you know this is caught on to what he said. Right? And so, obviously, that that that fear of the anger So a little bit later on in the story, we know how it goes. They their father stay out working and their father send him out and he gets out there and, they so his father sends Joseph to his brothers to check on him.
And they do what? They throw they take him, they throw him in the pit. Right? They say, look at They see them coming and say, look at that dreamer. Right?
Look at that 1 with a vision. Talking about what God is going to do, we're going bow to him. Let's throw them in his pit and kill them. Right? Let's see what happens to his dream.
Let's look and see what happens to that plans that God have on his life. And they threw him in the pit. Like imagine him being in that pit. Right? Which wasn't a big deal.
My brother beat me up, threw me in a pit. You know, not a big deal. You know, my brothers have beat me up before. Didn't hate them. Didn't like them for a couple days.
Right? But it wasn't, you know, it wasn't a big deal. Alright. Eventually, they're gonna get me out of this pit. You know what I mean?
Alright. Fun is over with. No. I can imagine him climbing out the pit like, alright. It's over with.
And then they and they sold them. You being sold. And I can imagine him. Now, Joseph had a dream. And Joseph knew so well that God had a plan for his life.
He seen it in a vision. He knew God had a purpose in his plan and I can imagine that was a long walk to Egypt. Because here I am, a man who God has a plan for his life. God has revealed his plan for my life and now I'm in chains sold as a slave to Egypt. I can imagine what he was feeling in that moment as he's walking to Egypt because these chains "don't line up" with the purpose God have for my life.
This title as a slave don't line up with the plans that God had for my life. It doesn't line up. That was a long walk to Egypt, chained and bound. And then when he gets to Egypt, he's a slave for Potiphar. And so we know the story.
He's Potiphar plead the faith Potiphar notices the favor of God on his life, and he puts him in charge of everything. Right? Everything was at his disposal, except his you know, everything is mine, except my wife. Right? So we know the story.
His wife comes, tries to have him to sleep with him, he rejects her. He runs out the room and leaves his robe, and she lies on him and says, hey, he tried to sleep with me. So then he gets thrown in jail. And I can imagine being Joseph in jail. Once again, *God* has a plan for my life.
He's already revealed to me what that plan is. But now, I'm a slave in jail. Don't really line up with It's really hard to see where God's taking me. Right? Really really hard to see it.
Sometimes it's very hard to see past circumstances when they're when they're so vividly clear, when they're when you're in them. It's hard to see when you're in that circumstance, when you're in that situation. Couple things happen. Some of Pharaoh's men get put in jail and Joseph interprets a dream form. They get out, happens just like they say it was, and they forget about Joseph.
Joseph, the favor of God was on Joseph's life when he was in the jail. See, the favor of God was on Joseph's life when he was in Potiphar House as a slave, and when he went in jail, favor of God was still on his life as he was chained and bound in jail. And people seen that favor on his life. And the the the guard the leader of the guards put him in front of everybody, put him in the and and he basically ran to jail. So then, Pharaoh has a dream and then Pharaoh does what?
They the the people the cup bearer tells him, hey, I know a man that's in jail right now. He interpreted my dream. He comes up there, cleans himself up, goes in front of Pharaoh, interprets a dream, and we know the story from the "pit to the palace". Now Joseph is front is is is at the head of at the right hand of pharaoh in control of everything, controlling everything. And then what happens?
Famine comes in the land. Jacob sends his brothers to Egypt to buy grain. And they run into Joseph, who they don't know their brother they sold off to slavery. So he, in our terms, played a couple games with him. Joking around with him.
Told him to send send him back to see his send him go back and get your brother. Come back. So now, Joseph finally reveals who he is to see brothers his brothers. He break down crying, and then, pharaoh tells him to send go get your brothers, go with your family, and come back. They come back, they live in a land, and then Jacob then Jacob dies.
And so his brothers say, now that father's dead, surely he's gonna try to kill us now. Right? Turn with me to Genesis-50. Y'all still with me? Amen.
*Genesis-50:19*. So Joseph brothers said surely he's gonna kill us. And Joseph says to his brothers, do not be afraid. Am I in a place of God? Which translate, am I God?
I am not God. You intended to harm me, but God intended for it to accomplish what is now being done. He said that you intended to harm me, but God intended for what you intended to work out for my purpose, for my good. See, in this life, the bible said that we will have trouble, we will have trials, but the bible says, Jesus says, but take heart because I have overcome the world. I have overcome the world.
When I was in that program, what what God had in my life did not line up. I'm here to tell you today church that it does not matter what you're going through, what you're struggling with, God will turn that thing around for the good. Thank God for the fleas. When Corinthians Boom was in that thing, sister said, Thank God for the because they found out later that the guards would not come inside the building because of the ticks and the fleas. And because of the ticks and the fleas, they was able to preach the word of God to those people because of their inconvenience, because of their uncomfort, because of their circumstance, because of the pit that they was in, they was able to preach the word of God.
It was because Joseph was in that pit and he was faithful and he understood who God was. He was able to rise up and God was able to get the glory. Anytime that God gets the glory, we reap the benefit. We reap benefit. It does not matter what your life and what your circumstances.
It doesn't matter what your life looks like. God turns it around. It doesn't matter what comes against you. You was you was working at that job, you was working hard to get that promotion and they turned you down and you thank God for it. Thank God for the rejection.
I went to the doctor and the doctor gave me a bad report. Thank thank God for the bad report. I got a bad report from the doctor. Thank God for the bad report. Thank God for the fleas.
Thank God for the circumstances. Thank God for the affliction. Thank God for the poverty. If it wasn't for the poverty that went through my life, I wouldn't be standing here right now and be able to preach the word of God to you. If it wasn't for the inconvenience, if it wasn't for the circumstances I went through, I wouldn't be able to preach the word of God.
I wouldn't be able to stand you here and tell you about Jesus. If it wasn't for the if it wasn't for the hard things. See, God is good when everything in our life is going right. But listen, when everything is going wrong, he's all the more good. Amen.
The Bible said, what grace abounds, what sin abounds, grace abounds all the more. He's good. So if any negative thing comes in our life, any anything comes in our life, God turns that thing around for the good. So when you look at your circumstances right now and it does not line up with what you know the plan that God has for your life, you thank God for it. Because when God asked me, would you really praise me in the storm?
I said, yes, God. You see, because I felt some type of way, but faith is an action word. It's not a feeling. So I don't care about what you feel. God don't care about what you feel.
He care about how you respond to what you know. How you respond to what you know. Because if I went by what I felt, I had no faith. But if I went by my actions, I had all of faith. And my faith wasn't from me.
My faith for my realization that I needed God. That I had to stand in the presence of God. I had to come to him. Affliction, it wasn't for the tragic things that happened in my life, it wasn't for the tragic, if wasn't for the inconveniences My my wife had to spend 9 months with 2 babies under 3. And it killed me to be in this program and be away from her for 7 months.
Because she was struggling and she was hurting and it was inconvenience for her and it was and it and it hurted me that I couldn't be there for her. But listen, those 7 months of sacrifice has brought me and yielded so much more. So I was inconvenienced and God turned that inconvenience around because I wasn't the man that she deserved. And now I am. And it's because of the *grace* because of God.
It's because of the inconvenience. It's because of the inconvenience. I I didn't go with what was convenient. What was convenient was for me to move back to Clearwater and just get back in where I fit in at. That was convenient.
We don't do convenient. But we don't do convenient. It was inconvenient for me to leave her and go somewhere else and at the time she didn't understand it. At the time I didn't really understand it. But faith is an action word.
So we learn to thank *God* for the hard times we face in life because when we know our God that we serve, when we know the God that we serve, it gives us praise, it gives us joy in the hard times. And we thank God for the hard times because we live in a world when things get inconvenient and things get uncomfortable. The first thing we want to do is we want to go around it. How can I get around this problem? How can I go over or under or go around this problem?
When God say, you stand strong. You stand strong on the word of God. I don't care what your circumstances says, what my word says. I don't care what your situation looks like, what does my word says. Stand on the word of God.
Stand on what you know the word says and praise *God* because it is so easy to praise God when everything is going right. I tell you when I first got in that program and I was skating through the program and everything was going good and everything was going right, it was I was standing up there, I praise you in this storm and I was joyful and I was happy but listen when times got hard, when times got uncomfortable for me, when things was not lining up, I had to remember what God said to me. I had to remember that God said, would you really praise me in the storm, Tridel? Because I am the same God when everything in your life is going right and you're joyful and you're happy and the favor of God and you can see it and the people can see I am amazing and I am good. But am I amazing and am I good when everything is going wrong?
When the doctor say you got cancelled, am I good then? When things don't work out the way you want it to, am I good then? Will you praise me then? Will you shout my praise then? In your circumstances, in your situations that's terrible, that don't line up with what you know I've called you to, will you praise me then?
Would you tell people about me then? The Bible says that in this life, *John-16:33*. I'll let you see it for yourself before I wrap up. *John-16:33*. Like my mom used to say, not not little John, but big John.
I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world. Take heart, I have overcome the world. When Jesus got ready to leave, he told his disciples, the things that you see me do, these things you would do, but even greater.
Jesus overcame the world. He overcame the circumstances, the situations And he say we would do even greater things than these So when you stand on that, you look at your circumstances and say this too I will overcome because I know that the God I know that God lives in me. I know that God lives in me.
I'm gonna ask if you guys would stand up. Phil and Penny and, Jerry and Heidi, if you guys could come forward. I'm gonna dismiss you guys in just a second. And we're gonna sing a song. And if you need prayer, you can come forward.
I believe that there's a lot of people that are going through storms right now, and that's what you have Christian brothers and sisters around here for to encourage you through the storm, to pray for you in the storm. And maybe there's some of you that don't know Jesus. You don't know what it's like to have peace in the storm. You can know him too. If you want to know him, if you wanna start a relationship with him, I encourage you not to leave.
I encourage you to come and talk with 1 of these amazing people. Thank you, Naomi. Naomi is part of the prayer team as well. She's amazing. You can come and talk to 1 of these people during this song.
If you are going through something, you just need prayer, need encouragement. These are mighty men and women of God women of God. They will pray for you and encourage you and it will help you. Thank you guys for being a part of Real Church. We're gonna sing this song.
You can stay in worship or you can leave. And then also if you're interested in just seeing what your next step is at Real Church, we have a short 30 minute class, and my wife is gonna be teaching next steps in the cafeteria. So please do that. What song are we singing, Justin? Jesus, we love you.
You. Jesus, we love you. So I'm gonna pray. He's gonna start singing. You can stay in worship.
You can come get prayer, or you can go. We love you guys. Thank you for being a part of Real Church. *Father*, I thank you for this amazing people. *Lord*, I I pray that anybody that needs you, a touch from you or needs to just be encouraged in the middle of the storm, whatever they're going through, Lord, I pray that they just make a step to come forward for prayer, Lord God.
There's something significant about just coming forward, making a decision. If somebody needs to start a relationship with you, father, I pray they they they feel it right now. I pray that they don't just hide it. They don't walk away. I can do this on my own.
No. We do this together, that they come forward for prayer. *Lord*, I pray this congregation is just blessed in everything that it does. Let them have an amazing day today. And if there's anybody that needs to take their next step at Real Church, we'll let them go through next steps class class as well.
Thank you, Jesus. Let's sing. Amen.
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