WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.540 If you got a Bible, I hope you do, open it to 00:00:02.540 --> 00:00:04.599 the book. I'm gonna be actually in two different 00:00:04.599 --> 00:00:07.620 places today. I'm gonna be in Numbers chapter 00:00:07.620 --> 00:00:10.500 11, and then I'm also gonna be in John chapter 00:00:10.500 --> 00:00:13.480 number six. Numbers chapter 11, and then John 00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:16.120 chapter six. You're in for a treat today, because 00:00:16.120 --> 00:00:20.899 I have for you two titles. Two titles today. 00:00:20.980 --> 00:00:22.960 If you're taking notes, I hope you are. Write 00:00:22.960 --> 00:00:27.620 this down. My first title is Get Me Through the 00:00:27.620 --> 00:00:31.179 Middle. Get me through the middle, and here's 00:00:31.179 --> 00:00:33.759 my, if you don't like that title, no problem. 00:00:34.060 --> 00:00:37.280 Here's my second title. My second title is, it's 00:00:37.280 --> 00:00:40.359 less flashy, less catchy, and much more boring, 00:00:40.439 --> 00:00:43.119 but much more impactful. My second title is this, 00:00:43.299 --> 00:00:49.640 The Importance of Missions. Get me through the 00:00:49.640 --> 00:00:53.600 middle or the importance of missions. Now, if 00:00:53.600 --> 00:00:55.880 you haven't learned by now, I'm loud. I'm a loud 00:00:55.880 --> 00:00:58.600 preacher. I'm going to be yelling at you all 00:00:58.600 --> 00:01:01.560 day today. I pray you yell back at me. But most 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:04.719 importantly, I pray you yell at each other. So 00:01:04.719 --> 00:01:06.760 we're going to practice this today. I want you 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:09.560 to turn to a neighbor. Get all up in their face 00:01:09.560 --> 00:01:12.640 with that nasty morning coffee breath and say, 00:01:12.739 --> 00:01:16.510 neighbor. No, we didn't all do it. Say, turn 00:01:16.510 --> 00:01:22.450 to a neighbor and say, neighbor, I need you to 00:01:22.450 --> 00:01:29.349 help me get through the middle. Now turn to your 00:01:29.349 --> 00:01:31.489 other neighbor because that neighbor didn't like 00:01:31.489 --> 00:01:33.090 you. Turn to the other neighbor and say, other 00:01:33.090 --> 00:01:40.069 neighbor, did you know that missions in the U 00:01:40.069 --> 00:01:48.500 .S. It's God's heart. Numbers chapter 11 and 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:51.980 John chapter 6. If you got Numbers chapter 11, 00:01:52.060 --> 00:01:55.879 say, I got it. If you're still turning there, 00:01:55.900 --> 00:01:59.799 say, hold on. Oh, desperate hold on over here. 00:02:00.219 --> 00:02:04.700 We will wait for you. Numbers chapter 11. I'm 00:02:04.700 --> 00:02:06.200 going to start reading in verse number one. The 00:02:06.200 --> 00:02:09.520 word of God says this, and the people. This is 00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:12.639 the people of Israel, God's chosen people, the 00:02:12.639 --> 00:02:14.960 people that God has designed, destined, orchestrated 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:17.300 to usher in the kingdom of God. And the people 00:02:17.300 --> 00:02:21.360 of Israel complained in the hearing of the Lord 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:24.699 about their misfortunes. Everybody say, uh -oh. 00:02:25.460 --> 00:02:29.439 And when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled 00:02:29.439 --> 00:02:34.939 and the fire of the Lord burned among them and 00:02:34.939 --> 00:02:40.080 consumed. Some outlying parts of the camp. Pause. 00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:45.319 Did you read what I read? Don't make God mad. 00:02:45.639 --> 00:02:50.280 He will burn you and your tent and your goats. 00:02:50.439 --> 00:02:54.240 All of them. Verse 2. Then the people cried out 00:02:54.240 --> 00:02:58.240 to Moses. Right? Naturally. That is a natural 00:02:58.240 --> 00:03:02.379 response. If the chairs are on fire in faith 00:03:02.379 --> 00:03:05.560 church and it's God's fault, what are you going 00:03:05.560 --> 00:03:10.199 to do? Pastor Cammie, chairs are on fire. God 00:03:10.199 --> 00:03:13.039 did it. Tell him to stop it, right? That's what 00:03:13.039 --> 00:03:17.039 you would do. Moses, God's being mean. Tell him 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:20.219 to stop it. And so Moses, being the good leader, 00:03:20.319 --> 00:03:24.319 prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down, verse 00:03:24.319 --> 00:03:27.099 3. So the name of that place was called Tibera 00:03:27.099 --> 00:03:30.379 because the fire of the Lord burned among them, 00:03:30.419 --> 00:03:35.180 verse 4. Now the rabble. Come on, everybody say 00:03:35.180 --> 00:03:38.199 rabble. You might have a version of the Bible 00:03:38.199 --> 00:03:41.240 that says the mixed multitude. It might say something 00:03:41.240 --> 00:03:43.979 like the others. It's important that we know 00:03:43.979 --> 00:03:48.740 in verse 4, the rabble there, they are not, not 00:03:48.740 --> 00:03:51.639 Israelites. Remember, we're reading verse 1, 00:03:51.740 --> 00:03:54.080 the people of Israel complain. The people of 00:03:54.080 --> 00:03:58.539 God, these people are not. Israelite people could 00:03:58.539 --> 00:04:01.879 have been Egyptians traveling with the people 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:04.479 of Israel. Might have been nomads. Might have 00:04:04.479 --> 00:04:06.520 been people they picked up along the way in the 00:04:06.520 --> 00:04:08.879 wilderness. But they are not Israelite people. 00:04:09.680 --> 00:04:13.599 Likely Egyptians. The rabble that was among the 00:04:13.599 --> 00:04:18.600 people of Israel had a strong craving. Everybody 00:04:18.600 --> 00:04:23.500 say mmm. Dreaming about lunch. When is this preacher 00:04:23.500 --> 00:04:26.040 going to be done? Dreaming about the double bacon 00:04:26.040 --> 00:04:29.839 cheeseburger at lunch and the fries to go with 00:04:29.839 --> 00:04:32.939 and the chocolate milkshake. Come on, these friends 00:04:32.939 --> 00:04:36.600 had a craving, church. They had a craving and 00:04:36.600 --> 00:04:40.459 the people of Israel also wept again and said, 00:04:40.579 --> 00:04:50.399 oh, that we had some meat. Any vegetarians in 00:04:50.399 --> 00:04:56.500 the room? No vegetarians. This is the house of 00:04:56.500 --> 00:05:00.939 God. No vegetarians. I cannot believe. No vegetarians 00:05:00.939 --> 00:05:05.399 in the room. Oh, that we had some meat to eat. 00:05:05.480 --> 00:05:08.639 We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt that 00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:13.240 cost us nothing. The cucumbers and the melons 00:05:13.240 --> 00:05:16.709 and the leeks. And the onions and the garlic 00:05:16.709 --> 00:05:20.149 and the steak with butter dripping off and the 00:05:20.149 --> 00:05:24.509 onions on top and the fries and the bag of Skittles. 00:05:24.550 --> 00:05:29.089 Friends, they had a craving. But now our strength 00:05:29.089 --> 00:05:31.129 is all dried up and there's nothing but all of 00:05:31.129 --> 00:05:33.949 this manna to look at. Now let me just pause 00:05:33.949 --> 00:05:37.230 before I go on and read John 6. Pause so we can 00:05:37.230 --> 00:05:39.050 understand what's happening in the life of the 00:05:39.050 --> 00:05:41.610 people of Israel. They are at a critical stage. 00:05:41.920 --> 00:05:44.420 Juncture in their history and in their life. 00:05:44.500 --> 00:05:47.199 They have been, what we just read, they have 00:05:47.199 --> 00:05:53.240 been emancipated, set free from 400 years of 00:05:53.240 --> 00:05:56.939 slavery in the land of Egypt. 400 years, been 00:05:56.939 --> 00:06:01.459 crying out to God. God, set your people free. 00:06:01.899 --> 00:06:05.720 Hallelujah. Been a week. God, hey, still here. 00:06:06.220 --> 00:06:09.339 A year goes by, right? After a week and a month, 00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:11.730 we're like, hey, God. Did you forget about your 00:06:11.730 --> 00:06:15.509 people here? Two years go by, 50 years go by, 00:06:15.730 --> 00:06:18.990 100 years. God's still here. In this moment, 00:06:19.189 --> 00:06:22.470 God has answered their prayer. He has emancipated 00:06:22.470 --> 00:06:25.769 and set the people of Israel free. This story, 00:06:25.930 --> 00:06:31.230 they're no longer slaves. 400 years. Friends, 00:06:31.290 --> 00:06:33.629 I don't know what you're going through today, 00:06:33.829 --> 00:06:40.029 but has it been 400 years? of slavery in Egypt, 00:06:40.209 --> 00:06:43.209 and in this moment, they're free, but they want 00:06:43.209 --> 00:06:46.149 to go back. They want to go back to the land 00:06:46.149 --> 00:06:49.610 of Egypt because they remember. They remember 00:06:49.610 --> 00:06:54.009 the fish and the steak and the butter, and they 00:06:54.009 --> 00:06:56.769 remember the leeks. I don't even know what a 00:06:56.769 --> 00:06:59.949 leek is, but they had them in Egypt, and they 00:06:59.949 --> 00:07:02.589 want to go back to the land of Egypt. They're 00:07:02.589 --> 00:07:13.509 free, but now they want to go back. I find it 00:07:13.509 --> 00:07:16.829 intriguing because how many times in our life, 00:07:16.990 --> 00:07:20.970 when God doesn't work, do we find ourselves right 00:07:20.970 --> 00:07:24.350 back in the same place that God delivered us 00:07:24.350 --> 00:07:29.490 out of? God sets you free. He delivers you from 00:07:29.490 --> 00:07:35.069 addiction. But you remember. You remember the 00:07:35.069 --> 00:07:38.040 highs. You remember the adrenaline rush. God 00:07:38.040 --> 00:07:41.040 sets you free from a relationship, but you remember 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:43.379 the good times. And you've got some cravings 00:07:43.379 --> 00:07:46.519 to want to go back. God delivers you from financial 00:07:46.519 --> 00:07:51.399 despair. And then all of a sudden, pre -approved 00:07:51.399 --> 00:07:53.860 $60 ,000 capital and credit card, hallelujah, 00:07:53.939 --> 00:07:57.220 must be the Lord, right? All of a sudden, you 00:07:57.220 --> 00:07:59.980 find yourself back in the same place God delivered 00:07:59.980 --> 00:08:03.069 you. This is the people of Israel. To a T today. 00:08:03.230 --> 00:08:04.589 Now let me go out. I'm going to read John chapter 00:08:04.589 --> 00:08:06.889 6 just so we can make this make some sense for 00:08:06.889 --> 00:08:09.149 us today. John 6, I'm going to start reading 00:08:09.149 --> 00:08:11.569 in verse number 30. It will also be up on the 00:08:11.569 --> 00:08:16.050 screen. The word of God says this. So they said 00:08:16.050 --> 00:08:18.899 to him. Just for some context here, the they 00:08:18.899 --> 00:08:22.120 is a group of people who come to the hymn. That 00:08:22.120 --> 00:08:25.420 would be Jesus. If you read earlier in this same 00:08:25.420 --> 00:08:28.660 chapter, John 6, you will read a story about 00:08:28.660 --> 00:08:32.340 Jesus who has done a miracle, friends. A miracle. 00:08:32.460 --> 00:08:35.700 The Bible says he fed a group of thousands, 5 00:08:35.700 --> 00:08:39.259 ,000 to be exact, but it's not even exact because 00:08:39.259 --> 00:08:42.539 they didn't count the women or the children or 00:08:42.539 --> 00:08:46.179 the goats or the rats. We got rats in Chicago. 00:08:46.480 --> 00:08:48.799 We count them as well as the population. He didn't 00:08:48.799 --> 00:08:51.340 count any of them. So he feeds a group of likely 00:08:51.340 --> 00:08:54.580 10 ,000 to 20 ,000 with five loaves of bread, 00:08:54.759 --> 00:08:58.159 two fish. Five loaves, two fish. Wouldn't feed 00:08:58.159 --> 00:09:00.279 this room for a meal. Five loaves, two fish. 00:09:00.620 --> 00:09:03.220 Wouldn't feed my boys on the car ride back to 00:09:03.220 --> 00:09:06.360 Chicago today. And yet Jesus feeds the masses 00:09:06.360 --> 00:09:09.799 with five loaves, two fish. I make a huge deal 00:09:09.799 --> 00:09:11.759 because the question that they're about to ask 00:09:11.759 --> 00:09:17.730 Jesus is ridiculous. Then what sign do you do, 00:09:17.870 --> 00:09:22.230 Jesus, that we may see and believe you? He's 00:09:22.230 --> 00:09:28.110 just fed the crowd with 12 baskets left over. 00:09:28.929 --> 00:09:33.649 Who doesn't love leftover meatloaf? The disciples 00:09:33.649 --> 00:09:37.889 loved it. 12 leftover after the miracle, the 00:09:37.889 --> 00:09:42.940 sign. Then what sign do you do, Jesus? That we 00:09:42.940 --> 00:09:47.580 may see and believe you. What work do you perform? 00:09:48.500 --> 00:09:54.320 Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness. Now 00:09:54.320 --> 00:09:56.759 they're going back to the story we just read 00:09:56.759 --> 00:10:00.220 in Numbers. Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness 00:10:00.220 --> 00:10:03.019 as it is written. As if Jesus didn't already 00:10:03.019 --> 00:10:06.860 know. He gave them bread from heaven to eat. 00:10:07.419 --> 00:10:10.259 Translated, Jesus. Talking to Jesus, the crowd. 00:10:10.399 --> 00:10:15.220 Jesus, we know Moses was the real deal. You know 00:10:15.220 --> 00:10:19.879 why? Because our forefathers told us crazy stories, 00:10:20.240 --> 00:10:24.320 wild stories, Jesus, about what happened to our 00:10:24.320 --> 00:10:27.580 forefathers in the wilderness. Jesus, you should 00:10:27.580 --> 00:10:30.960 have been there. There was water. It came out 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:34.179 of a rock. Moses hit the rock and water came. 00:10:34.500 --> 00:10:38.620 Crazy Jesus. We had a pillar of cloud and a pillar 00:10:38.620 --> 00:10:43.799 of fire. Wild Jesus. We had Panera bread falling 00:10:43.799 --> 00:10:46.399 from the sky every night on the ground. And we 00:10:46.399 --> 00:10:50.279 picked it up and had carbohydrates. Jesus. Crazy. 00:10:50.419 --> 00:10:53.990 We had a golden calf. Wasn't our best moment, 00:10:54.070 --> 00:10:56.870 Jesus, but we had it in there. There was a mountain 00:10:56.870 --> 00:11:01.610 shaking and God wrote stuff on a rock. Wild, 00:11:01.710 --> 00:11:09.169 Jesus, you should have been there. Then Jesus 00:11:09.169 --> 00:11:13.070 said to them, truly, I truly, I say to you, it 00:11:13.070 --> 00:11:17.889 was not Moses who gave you that bread from heaven. 00:11:18.720 --> 00:11:22.000 But my Father gives you true bread from heaven, 00:11:22.039 --> 00:11:25.379 for the bread of God is he who comes down from 00:11:25.379 --> 00:11:27.980 heaven and gives life to the world. And they 00:11:27.980 --> 00:11:31.220 said to him, Sir, give us this bread always. 00:11:31.779 --> 00:11:39.000 Jesus said to them, I am. Jesus says to them, 00:11:39.019 --> 00:11:41.899 Do you remember that water that came from the 00:11:41.899 --> 00:11:47.350 rock? Jesus says, You remember that manna that 00:11:47.350 --> 00:11:50.669 fell every night for a generation in the wilderness 00:11:50.669 --> 00:11:54.669 that you picked up and sustained you for a generation? 00:11:55.250 --> 00:11:58.169 That was me, Jesus says. The pillar of cloud 00:11:58.169 --> 00:12:03.669 and fire, that was me, Jesus says. I am the bread 00:12:03.669 --> 00:12:06.409 of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. 00:12:07.210 --> 00:12:10.210 And whoever believes in me shall never thirst 00:12:10.210 --> 00:12:13.889 again. Amen? Father, let's pray together today. 00:12:13.970 --> 00:12:16.899 Father, I love you. I praise you. God, your word's 00:12:16.899 --> 00:12:18.799 alive, living, active, has the power to go places 00:12:18.799 --> 00:12:21.259 my words cannot. So, Father, if we do nothing 00:12:21.259 --> 00:12:23.340 more than read your word today, we can leave 00:12:23.340 --> 00:12:25.759 here changed. Anything I say above and beyond 00:12:25.759 --> 00:12:27.480 this, let it be anointed by your Holy Spirit, 00:12:27.539 --> 00:12:29.419 I pray. In Jesus' mighty name, everybody said 00:12:29.419 --> 00:12:33.559 amen and amen. Get me through the middle or the 00:12:33.559 --> 00:12:36.139 importance of missions. Curious, in the room, 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:40.299 do we have any frequent flyers, frequent travelers 00:12:40.299 --> 00:12:43.539 by plane? Maybe you travel for work. Anybody 00:12:43.539 --> 00:12:47.480 in the room? frequently fly. Okay, has anybody 00:12:47.480 --> 00:12:49.980 ever been on an airplane? Anybody ever been? 00:12:50.019 --> 00:12:51.899 Okay, there we go. Everybody else, you've seen 00:12:51.899 --> 00:12:53.679 an airplane? Everybody we've seen an airplane? 00:12:53.899 --> 00:12:55.960 Okay. All right, we got them all. We got them 00:12:55.960 --> 00:12:57.759 all. My family, we're in a unique season of time 00:12:57.759 --> 00:13:00.480 where we travel frequently for what we do, what 00:13:00.480 --> 00:13:02.279 God's called us to do in Chicago. We don't fly 00:13:02.279 --> 00:13:04.639 frequently, but here's what I've learned. In 00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:06.740 the few times we fly per year, maybe once, twice 00:13:06.740 --> 00:13:09.120 a year, what I've learned about the whole process 00:13:09.120 --> 00:13:13.679 of flying, the whole TSA. It's orchestrated, 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:17.879 designed to suck the fruit of the Spirit from 00:13:17.879 --> 00:13:19.600 your face. That's what I've learned about the 00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:23.299 whole process. I mean, we're a family of seven. 00:13:23.419 --> 00:13:25.960 So when we fly specifically, like a move of God 00:13:25.960 --> 00:13:28.759 must happen in our home to get from our door 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:30.960 to our destination, right? We've got to find 00:13:30.960 --> 00:13:33.019 the suitcases because inevitably they're in the 00:13:33.019 --> 00:13:34.960 attic or the basement. Sometimes they're in the 00:13:34.960 --> 00:13:36.440 alley. We don't know why they're there, but they're 00:13:36.440 --> 00:13:37.899 there. We've got to find them. We've got to find 00:13:37.899 --> 00:13:40.000 the underwear with no stains in the underwear, 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:41.730 right? Especially if you're going to see the 00:13:41.730 --> 00:13:43.429 in -laws. You've got to make sure you impress 00:13:43.429 --> 00:13:45.509 the in -laws. You've got to find the socks with 00:13:45.509 --> 00:13:47.570 no holes in the socks. You've got to find the 00:13:47.570 --> 00:13:49.429 stuffies and the water bottles and the backpack. 00:13:49.610 --> 00:13:51.350 You've got to find it all. And then my family 00:13:51.350 --> 00:13:53.470 and I, when we travel, specifically by plane, 00:13:53.549 --> 00:13:56.330 we are faced with a critical decision. Do we 00:13:56.330 --> 00:14:01.309 drive to O 'Hare International Airport? Because 00:14:01.309 --> 00:14:03.529 if we drive there, then we've got to pay to park. 00:14:04.269 --> 00:14:08.399 It's $14 ,000 a day just to park. At O 'Hare. 00:14:08.539 --> 00:14:11.379 And so then we must decide, do we drive or do 00:14:11.379 --> 00:14:14.559 we Uber? We can't just Uber. Did you know that? 00:14:14.639 --> 00:14:19.320 We have to Uber XXL. Did you know that was a 00:14:19.320 --> 00:14:22.000 thing? I didn't either. It's the last time we 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.379 had to do it. Uber XXL. You got to get all the 00:14:24.379 --> 00:14:26.440 kids inside there. The largest Uber they have. 00:14:26.620 --> 00:14:29.100 The car seats. Got to get the backpacks and the 00:14:29.100 --> 00:14:31.139 suitcases. Got to get the kids in there and my 00:14:31.139 --> 00:14:32.559 wife in there. Got to get them all in there. 00:14:32.679 --> 00:14:34.340 And then you get to the airport. You got to get 00:14:34.340 --> 00:14:36.120 them all out. All the kids, all the car seats, 00:14:36.179 --> 00:14:37.860 the stuffies, the backpacks, the goldfish. Everything 00:14:37.860 --> 00:14:39.580 got to come out. All the while they're yelling 00:14:39.580 --> 00:14:41.600 at you. You got to go. Got to move. Hurry it 00:14:41.600 --> 00:14:44.370 up. You're a terrorist. Keep it going. We're 00:14:44.370 --> 00:14:46.029 not terrorists. We just have a lot of kids and 00:14:46.029 --> 00:14:48.490 a lot of stuff. Then, friends, you are faced 00:14:48.490 --> 00:14:51.309 with the reality you must go in to talk to the 00:14:51.309 --> 00:14:56.250 ticket counter person. They don't love you. They 00:14:56.250 --> 00:14:58.309 don't even like you, frankly, right? Like, you've 00:14:58.309 --> 00:14:59.970 got to get your ticket, and then you have to 00:14:59.970 --> 00:15:03.669 go through security. TSA. You've got to get all 00:15:03.669 --> 00:15:04.850 the kids through there. You've got to go through 00:15:04.850 --> 00:15:06.210 the thing. You've got to turn around. You've 00:15:06.210 --> 00:15:08.090 got to bend over. You've got to cough. The whole 00:15:08.090 --> 00:15:10.629 thing, just to get through security, to get to 00:15:10.629 --> 00:15:12.570 your gate. And then we get to our gate, friends, 00:15:12.690 --> 00:15:14.610 and we all do this. Last time we flew, true story. 00:15:14.889 --> 00:15:17.750 We all do this. We grab our phones or our boarding 00:15:17.750 --> 00:15:19.889 passes and we look at them. Tells an important 00:15:19.889 --> 00:15:22.350 story because your boarding pass is going to 00:15:22.350 --> 00:15:25.190 tell you, it's going to give you a number and 00:15:25.190 --> 00:15:28.629 a letter. That letter is important in how you're 00:15:28.629 --> 00:15:30.470 going to spend the next three, four hours of 00:15:30.470 --> 00:15:33.850 your life. If you get the letter A, you are blessed 00:15:33.850 --> 00:15:37.389 by God. Blessed because you have the window seat. 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:40.039 You can look out, see the clouds. You can hashtag 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:42.139 it, post it on your Insta. It's great, powerful. 00:15:42.500 --> 00:15:45.720 You get the letter B, mm -mm, no bueno, nope, 00:15:45.820 --> 00:15:49.440 not good. You got the middle C, not good. Favor 00:15:49.440 --> 00:15:51.620 of God's not on your life. You get the letter 00:15:51.620 --> 00:15:56.009 C, awesome. Holy Spirit has anointed you. You 00:15:56.009 --> 00:15:57.950 have the aisle seat where you can get up and 00:15:57.950 --> 00:16:00.389 move around freely. So last time I fly, I grab 00:16:00.389 --> 00:16:02.970 my phone. We all do this. Lest you think I am 00:16:02.970 --> 00:16:05.570 the only heathen in the room. We all do. We grab 00:16:05.570 --> 00:16:07.690 our boarding pass and we get onto the plane. 00:16:08.129 --> 00:16:10.710 And we start looking in the area that we think 00:16:10.710 --> 00:16:13.509 we're going to be. Right? And you start stereotyping 00:16:13.509 --> 00:16:16.970 people. You're like that guy. Looks awesome. 00:16:17.129 --> 00:16:19.809 Looks like he'd ignore me. Earbuds in, arms crossed. 00:16:20.250 --> 00:16:23.129 Perfect guy. You're like, that person looks like 00:16:23.129 --> 00:16:25.850 they smell. Don't want to sit next to that person. 00:16:25.950 --> 00:16:28.950 So I grab my boarding pass, looking down the 00:16:28.950 --> 00:16:31.490 plane, and I look at the area that I think I'm 00:16:31.490 --> 00:16:34.289 going to be. I see a large guy. Large guy. Totally 00:16:34.289 --> 00:16:37.710 cool. He has the earbuds, the arms crossed. He's 00:16:37.710 --> 00:16:40.350 on the aisle seat. Then I see an empty seat, 00:16:40.429 --> 00:16:43.370 the middle one. And then I see another seat taken 00:16:43.370 --> 00:16:47.679 by a lady. Lady was special because she had something 00:16:47.679 --> 00:16:51.720 special with her. Someone special with her. Brand 00:16:51.720 --> 00:16:57.379 new. Days, weeks old, baby. Baby. Brand new baby. 00:16:57.539 --> 00:17:00.580 They're having a time. I can hear the baby from 00:17:00.580 --> 00:17:03.100 the front of the plane looking back there, seeing 00:17:03.100 --> 00:17:05.240 the guy, empty seat, and then the lady with the 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:08.480 baby. I'm thinking, dear Lord, baby Jesus, if 00:17:08.480 --> 00:17:10.680 there's any grace left in you, let that not be 00:17:10.680 --> 00:17:13.059 my seat. Because as I get closer, then you hear 00:17:13.059 --> 00:17:15.660 things, you start to smell things, you start 00:17:15.660 --> 00:17:19.799 to see things. Baby's projectile vomit coming 00:17:19.799 --> 00:17:22.819 out of baby. You get closer, I'm looking, I see 00:17:22.819 --> 00:17:26.559 brown dribblies coming down baby's leg. You know 00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:28.140 how you're supposed to have the tray table up? 00:17:28.559 --> 00:17:31.019 During text, not this lady. Nope, she had tray 00:17:31.019 --> 00:17:34.640 table. Down, changing the baby, changing the 00:17:34.640 --> 00:17:38.900 baby. I'm thinking, oh God, oh God, please let 00:17:38.900 --> 00:17:44.240 this not be my seat. Lo and behold, that's my 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:47.220 seat between large guy and lady with the baby. 00:17:47.299 --> 00:17:51.019 I sit down, the plane takes off. We're in the 00:17:51.019 --> 00:17:53.559 air. She's still having a time. Mom's having 00:17:53.559 --> 00:17:56.319 a time trying to keep baby calm, fed, nourished, 00:17:56.359 --> 00:18:00.599 all the thing. She's having a time. I now ding. 00:18:01.640 --> 00:18:03.900 I call it the dingy bar. You know the dingy bar? 00:18:04.059 --> 00:18:06.460 You got the air, you got the light, and you got 00:18:06.460 --> 00:18:08.559 the dingy bar. The dingy bar will ding the flight 00:18:08.559 --> 00:18:10.099 attendant. The flight attendant will come your 00:18:10.099 --> 00:18:12.859 way. I ding the dingy bar. The flight attendant 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:15.119 comes my way. I say, excuse me. And I try to 00:18:15.119 --> 00:18:18.940 like slunk away from the lady because she's doing 00:18:18.940 --> 00:18:21.220 the best she can. Best she possibly can. Give 00:18:21.220 --> 00:18:23.160 her the benefit of the doubt there. Excuse me. 00:18:23.180 --> 00:18:25.740 Are there any other seats anywhere on the plane? 00:18:26.759 --> 00:18:29.180 Now I could tell immediately this flight attendant 00:18:29.180 --> 00:18:33.000 was not on my side. She says, no, there are no, 00:18:33.079 --> 00:18:36.059 loudly, other seats anywhere on the plane. Now 00:18:36.059 --> 00:18:39.720 I must slunk back into my seat. Mom was having 00:18:39.720 --> 00:18:41.940 a time. Guy's over here just kind of chuckling. 00:18:42.119 --> 00:18:43.920 You could see his shoulders just kind of going 00:18:43.920 --> 00:18:46.460 at it, right? Like mom's having a time. She turns 00:18:46.460 --> 00:18:49.420 to me with what I can only describe as this demonic 00:18:49.420 --> 00:18:54.599 voice, force. She looks at me and says, how dare 00:18:54.599 --> 00:18:59.690 you? And I'm trying to be calm and respectful. 00:19:00.190 --> 00:19:02.690 Like, you're doing the best you can. How dare 00:19:02.690 --> 00:19:05.890 you? Can't you tell? I'm doing everything I possibly 00:19:05.890 --> 00:19:10.369 can to keep my baby fed and changed and clothed 00:19:10.369 --> 00:19:13.470 and nourished. I said, no, I cannot because it 00:19:13.470 --> 00:19:17.509 smells and it's gross. Can't you tell? How dare 00:19:17.509 --> 00:19:20.430 you? Now, again, lest you think I'm the only 00:19:20.430 --> 00:19:23.630 bad guy in the room, in the room, sermonic survey 00:19:23.630 --> 00:19:25.390 time, how many of the room you'd say, you know 00:19:25.390 --> 00:19:26.970 what, pastor, you should have just sat there 00:19:26.970 --> 00:19:28.950 and taken it. You should have just been there. 00:19:29.170 --> 00:19:31.809 If the baby vomits on you, so be it. You should 00:19:31.809 --> 00:19:33.509 have offered a chance. You should have just sat 00:19:33.509 --> 00:19:40.089 there, not said a word. Raise your hand. I don't 00:19:40.089 --> 00:19:42.900 see any hands. All right. How many in the room? 00:19:42.960 --> 00:19:45.200 You're on my side. Absolutely. Not sitting next 00:19:45.200 --> 00:19:47.220 to stinky, poopy, vomit baby. Anybody in the 00:19:47.220 --> 00:19:51.039 room? Be honest. Heathens, heathens, heathens, 00:19:51.039 --> 00:19:53.019 heathens, heathens, all heathens. I couldn't 00:19:53.019 --> 00:19:56.720 believe this lady was mad at me, friends. I couldn't 00:19:56.720 --> 00:19:59.420 believe this lady who's having a time, this lady 00:19:59.420 --> 00:20:06.190 who was my wife, was mad at me, babe. We're headed 00:20:06.190 --> 00:20:08.910 to a ministry trip. I had to write a sermon. 00:20:09.130 --> 00:20:12.150 Babe, I've been there. Done that with Geronimo. 00:20:12.230 --> 00:20:14.630 He's good. You got this, right? You got this. 00:20:14.710 --> 00:20:24.430 Couldn't believe my wife was mad. Me. We're still 00:20:24.430 --> 00:20:30.269 in counseling over this. Here's what I've learned, 00:20:30.390 --> 00:20:34.009 although this story paints a ridiculously true. 00:20:34.400 --> 00:20:38.480 story. It paints a powerful picture in the life 00:20:38.480 --> 00:20:41.779 of the people of Israel today. Because if we 00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:43.519 could just kind of paint the picture here, if 00:20:43.519 --> 00:20:45.740 we could say that the window seat represents 00:20:45.740 --> 00:20:48.660 the land of Egypt, then the middle seat represents 00:20:48.660 --> 00:20:51.400 what we would call the middle. The journey, the 00:20:51.400 --> 00:20:53.940 process, the Bible calls it the wilderness. But 00:20:53.940 --> 00:20:56.279 we also know that the aisle seat represents the 00:20:56.279 --> 00:20:59.640 land of promise. The Bible says the land of Canaan 00:20:59.640 --> 00:21:03.019 is the land of favor, milk, blessing, and honey, 00:21:03.119 --> 00:21:05.579 the Bible calls this place. So we got the land 00:21:05.579 --> 00:21:08.099 of Egypt, we got the middle, and we got the promised 00:21:08.099 --> 00:21:11.079 land. The people of Israel today find themselves 00:21:11.079 --> 00:21:17.299 in the middle, frustrated, stuck in the middle. 00:21:18.160 --> 00:21:21.220 Because for 400 years, they've been crying out 00:21:21.220 --> 00:21:27.049 to God. God, set your people free. And in a moment, 00:21:27.109 --> 00:21:30.349 he does. He emancipates them from captivity, 00:21:30.450 --> 00:21:33.730 slavery in Egypt. And we all know he could have 00:21:33.730 --> 00:21:37.309 zapped them immediately into the land of blessing 00:21:37.309 --> 00:21:40.890 and favor and milk and honey. But he doesn't 00:21:40.890 --> 00:21:44.769 do that. For 40 more years, it's almost as though 00:21:44.769 --> 00:21:47.769 we could say he condemns them. Although he doesn't, 00:21:47.769 --> 00:21:50.250 from our perspective, it feels like he condemns 00:21:50.250 --> 00:21:54.210 them to the middle, to the frustration of the 00:21:54.210 --> 00:21:59.380 wilderness. Friend, you may be here today and 00:21:59.380 --> 00:22:02.759 you may be saying, you know what, this kind of 00:22:02.759 --> 00:22:04.960 describes my life because God in my life has 00:22:04.960 --> 00:22:09.039 done a work. He has saved me. He has emancipated 00:22:09.039 --> 00:22:13.400 me. He has removed me from captivity in my Egypt, 00:22:13.559 --> 00:22:17.680 in my sin. And I know that God has a land marked 00:22:17.680 --> 00:22:20.660 out for me, a season of life and ministry and 00:22:20.660 --> 00:22:24.000 blessing. ahead of me, a new season of ministry 00:22:24.000 --> 00:22:27.900 ahead of me. But today I find myself stuck, frustrated 00:22:27.900 --> 00:22:30.720 in the middle. I find myself drinking that same 00:22:30.720 --> 00:22:33.059 water coming out of the rock. I'm like, God. 00:22:33.470 --> 00:22:35.869 Dr. Pepper would be good every once in a while, 00:22:35.950 --> 00:22:39.069 but it's the same water. It's the same manna 00:22:39.069 --> 00:22:42.509 every day. I mean, it's the same thing. It's 00:22:42.509 --> 00:22:45.630 the same job. It's the same car. It's the same 00:22:45.630 --> 00:22:48.470 bills over. And you find yourself frustrated 00:22:48.470 --> 00:22:51.710 and stuck in the middle. And what I've learned 00:22:51.710 --> 00:22:54.910 is that God uses the middle, the frustration, 00:22:55.150 --> 00:22:59.660 the feeling stuck. of the journey, of the process, 00:22:59.779 --> 00:23:02.779 of the wilderness. He uses it to remove remnants 00:23:02.779 --> 00:23:06.380 of our past from us, to prepare us for what he 00:23:06.380 --> 00:23:13.460 has in the future for us. Maybe today you're 00:23:13.460 --> 00:23:18.680 here, still captivated by your Egypt, captivated 00:23:18.680 --> 00:23:20.500 by your sin. Today you're going to have an opportunity 00:23:20.500 --> 00:23:22.920 to experience that freedom that the people of 00:23:22.920 --> 00:23:25.460 Israel experienced. that I have experienced, 00:23:25.640 --> 00:23:28.920 that so many in the room have experienced. But 00:23:28.920 --> 00:23:30.240 friend, let me tell you this, that the journey 00:23:30.240 --> 00:23:32.119 you're about to walk into is not necessarily 00:23:32.119 --> 00:23:35.480 the land of blessing and favor and milk and honey 00:23:35.480 --> 00:23:38.279 immediately. God may have a new journey marked 00:23:38.279 --> 00:23:41.099 out for you, marked with what you would say is 00:23:41.099 --> 00:23:43.000 the frustration of the middle, but friend, it 00:23:43.000 --> 00:23:46.869 is the best place you could possibly be. In fact, 00:23:46.869 --> 00:23:48.309 if I could just even take it a step further, 00:23:48.369 --> 00:23:49.910 because friends in the room, if you are saved, 00:23:50.009 --> 00:23:52.210 sanctified, filled with the Holy Ghost, you got 00:23:52.210 --> 00:23:54.349 the victory kind of a person. If God has done 00:23:54.349 --> 00:23:57.789 a work in your life, God has designed, orchestrated 00:23:57.789 --> 00:24:01.750 you to be a missionary to this world. You don't 00:24:01.750 --> 00:24:03.490 have to be a fully appointed Assemblies of God, 00:24:03.569 --> 00:24:06.109 U .S. missionary, world missionary to do what 00:24:06.109 --> 00:24:07.670 God's called you to do. He has called each and 00:24:07.670 --> 00:24:10.730 every one of us to fulfill the Great Commission. 00:24:10.910 --> 00:24:15.109 Therefore, go. and make disciples. The Bible 00:24:15.109 --> 00:24:18.410 doesn't say, open the church doors and yell loud, 00:24:18.670 --> 00:24:22.509 hey, Lincoln, get in here. No, the Bible says, 00:24:22.589 --> 00:24:27.109 go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing 00:24:27.109 --> 00:24:30.049 them in the name of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit. 00:24:30.150 --> 00:24:32.490 Here's what I found. When people give their life 00:24:32.490 --> 00:24:35.750 to Jesus, God does a work instantaneously in 00:24:35.750 --> 00:24:38.349 their heart. They move from death to life in 00:24:38.349 --> 00:24:42.779 a moment, in a moment. But oftentimes those same 00:24:42.779 --> 00:24:45.099 proclivities, patterns in their life require 00:24:45.099 --> 00:24:48.559 a journey, a process to be removed to prepare 00:24:48.559 --> 00:24:51.980 them for the future he has for them. Our job 00:24:51.980 --> 00:24:54.279 is to fulfill the Great Commission by getting 00:24:54.279 --> 00:24:57.880 people out of Egypt and into the middle. Because 00:24:57.880 --> 00:24:59.740 we know the middle is going to lead to the promise. 00:24:59.900 --> 00:25:02.140 The frustration of the middle is going to lead 00:25:02.140 --> 00:25:06.880 to the promised land. Can I share a story with 00:25:06.880 --> 00:25:10.490 you? Story of a guy named Big Sean. Big Sean 00:25:10.490 --> 00:25:15.509 is one of our friends in Chicago. Large, probably 00:25:15.509 --> 00:25:20.990 6 '6 guy. Lives on the street. He lives under 00:25:20.990 --> 00:25:23.230 an underpass in Chicago, right off Lakeshore 00:25:23.230 --> 00:25:26.190 Drive, under the Wilson underpass. This is a 00:25:26.190 --> 00:25:29.089 large man who is mentally not all there. When 00:25:29.089 --> 00:25:30.650 you have a conversation with him, you understand 00:25:30.650 --> 00:25:35.450 that he is clearly demonically possessed. And 00:25:35.450 --> 00:25:37.670 the things he says and the things he does, you 00:25:37.670 --> 00:25:39.490 talk with him and you almost get chills because 00:25:39.490 --> 00:25:40.650 you understand you're dealing with something 00:25:40.650 --> 00:25:43.799 spiritual here. So one night our team from our 00:25:43.799 --> 00:25:46.400 church, our ministry was out. We have a big homeless 00:25:46.400 --> 00:25:48.900 ministry that we do. And we were out under this 00:25:48.900 --> 00:25:51.579 particular underpass. What we typically do is 00:25:51.579 --> 00:25:53.880 roll up. We have a bunch of food. We feed them. 00:25:53.920 --> 00:25:55.440 We clothe them. We give them whatever they need. 00:25:55.579 --> 00:25:59.299 We pray for them. And then you move on. You do 00:25:59.299 --> 00:26:00.660 all that stuff and then you move on. Because 00:26:00.660 --> 00:26:02.380 it's not a place you want to stay for too long. 00:26:02.700 --> 00:26:05.000 So this particular night I've got a caravan of 00:26:05.000 --> 00:26:06.460 three people. I'm leading the caravan. We've 00:26:06.460 --> 00:26:09.759 got two cars behind us. Myself. My oldest son 00:26:09.759 --> 00:26:12.160 was with us that particular night. My kids are 00:26:12.160 --> 00:26:14.759 out on the streets, friends. That's why I'm asking 00:26:14.759 --> 00:26:17.240 for your prayers for my family. So we're out. 00:26:17.299 --> 00:26:18.880 We do our whole thing. We feed them. We pray 00:26:18.880 --> 00:26:21.160 for them. And then I get back into my van to 00:26:21.160 --> 00:26:23.819 start it up, and my van will not start. I'm leading 00:26:23.819 --> 00:26:25.920 the team, the caravan, this particular night. 00:26:26.180 --> 00:26:28.519 We fed them. We prayed for everybody. Van won't 00:26:28.519 --> 00:26:31.819 start. I send the team on ahead. I stay behind 00:26:31.819 --> 00:26:35.220 with myself, my son, and then we had one other 00:26:35.220 --> 00:26:36.700 guy. I said, hey, why don't you stick back with 00:26:36.700 --> 00:26:38.859 us just for... You know, security. It's not a 00:26:38.859 --> 00:26:40.619 place you want to be in Chicago for too long. 00:26:40.720 --> 00:26:42.660 Left there. So we're stranded. I call my wife, 00:26:42.720 --> 00:26:45.160 babe, find us a tow truck. I got to make sure 00:26:45.160 --> 00:26:46.960 we're good. We're safe here in this area. Find 00:26:46.960 --> 00:26:49.220 us a tow truck. This is Chicago, friends. Anything 00:26:49.220 --> 00:26:52.180 you want, you can get any time of day. You want 00:26:52.180 --> 00:26:54.960 a Ben and Jerry's? It's there. You can have it 00:26:54.960 --> 00:26:56.460 delivered to your house at 2 a .m. You need a 00:26:56.460 --> 00:26:58.779 tow truck any time of day? It's there. For 45 00:26:58.779 --> 00:27:01.720 minutes, my wife could not find a tow truck. 00:27:01.839 --> 00:27:04.039 This is like 7 o 'clock at night. Unheard of 00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:06.720 in the city of Chicago. We're there. She's frantic. 00:27:07.659 --> 00:27:10.240 panicking because I got our son with us in an 00:27:10.240 --> 00:27:12.599 area you don't want to be there. And so we get 00:27:12.599 --> 00:27:14.680 out of our van and then Big Sean is standing 00:27:14.680 --> 00:27:18.680 there. For the next 45 minutes, you have to understand, 00:27:18.759 --> 00:27:20.980 I have never had a coherent conversation with 00:27:20.980 --> 00:27:24.759 Big Sean, ever. For the next 45 minutes, we shared 00:27:24.759 --> 00:27:28.319 the gospel with Big Sean. Big Sean, in the most 00:27:28.319 --> 00:27:30.599 coherent possible way, asked questions about 00:27:30.599 --> 00:27:33.140 the gospel, asked questions about Jesus. At the 00:27:33.140 --> 00:27:36.480 very end of that conversation, Big Sean gave 00:27:36.480 --> 00:27:41.299 his life to Jesus. We moved. We didn't move. 00:27:41.519 --> 00:27:46.059 God moved Big Sean from slavery, addiction, demonic 00:27:46.059 --> 00:27:49.559 possession. He moved him from his Egypt into 00:27:49.559 --> 00:27:53.119 the middle, into the process where God's going 00:27:53.119 --> 00:27:55.119 to start pruning some things out of him to prepare 00:27:55.119 --> 00:27:57.460 him for what he has for him in the future. The 00:27:57.460 --> 00:28:00.579 crazy thing about this story, we finished with 00:28:00.579 --> 00:28:03.390 Big Sean for 45 minutes. Again. He gives his 00:28:03.390 --> 00:28:05.990 life to Jesus for 45 minutes. My son's running 00:28:05.990 --> 00:28:07.890 up and down the embankment, Lakeshore Drive, 00:28:07.990 --> 00:28:09.769 not a place you want to go and hang out. He's 00:28:09.769 --> 00:28:11.569 just hanging out doing his thing. We get back 00:28:11.569 --> 00:28:15.509 into my van. The van starts right back up. God 00:28:15.509 --> 00:28:18.809 had us positioned there as missionaries in the 00:28:18.809 --> 00:28:22.410 city of Chicago to move one guy from Egypt ultimately 00:28:22.410 --> 00:28:24.869 to his promised land. But we know that it's going 00:28:24.869 --> 00:28:26.710 to be frustrated in the middle for a little while 00:28:26.710 --> 00:28:28.809 while God removes the things from him. The van 00:28:28.809 --> 00:28:31.490 starts right back up. We get back in the van. 00:28:31.589 --> 00:28:33.369 Johnny, my oldest at the time, he didn't know 00:28:33.369 --> 00:28:36.009 how to phrase it. He said, Dad, I didn't know 00:28:36.009 --> 00:28:39.710 God could do magic like that. We talked about 00:28:39.710 --> 00:28:42.190 the power of God. Two things needed to happen 00:28:42.190 --> 00:28:44.809 that night. Big Sean needed to hear the gospel 00:28:44.809 --> 00:28:47.450 in the most coherent way he's ever heard it. 00:28:47.509 --> 00:28:50.470 He needed to give his life to Jesus. And my son 00:28:50.470 --> 00:28:53.609 needed to see the power of God on display in 00:28:53.609 --> 00:28:57.089 a tangible, real way. Moving Big Sean from his 00:28:57.089 --> 00:29:00.089 Egypt to the wilderness, ultimately to his promised 00:29:00.089 --> 00:29:02.809 land. That's what we're called to do as missionaries. 00:29:02.970 --> 00:29:04.869 That's what you're called to do as believers 00:29:04.869 --> 00:29:07.369 in the Lord Jesus, to move people from their 00:29:07.369 --> 00:29:10.230 Egypt. We know it's going to be frustrating for 00:29:10.230 --> 00:29:12.970 a while while God prunes and removes some things 00:29:12.970 --> 00:29:15.089 from the past to prepare them for the future. 00:29:16.849 --> 00:29:19.049 One last story. This is a little more personal. 00:29:19.710 --> 00:29:22.390 When I was... Pastor, what time are we done? 00:29:23.150 --> 00:29:26.119 We're good. Okay. You can send me a keyboard 00:29:26.119 --> 00:29:30.180 player. It'll make me sound more spiritual. Awesome. 00:29:30.259 --> 00:29:33.799 Thank you. Personal story here. I was 12 years 00:29:33.799 --> 00:29:38.460 of age, and my entire world shattered, completely 00:29:38.460 --> 00:29:41.180 changed, blew up. I grew up going to church, 00:29:41.240 --> 00:29:43.380 kind of like what we're doing here today. We 00:29:43.380 --> 00:29:45.619 went to church on Sunday morning. The next six 00:29:45.619 --> 00:29:47.920 and a half days of the week were met with utter... 00:29:48.829 --> 00:29:51.049 Violence, I think, is the best word to describe 00:29:51.049 --> 00:29:55.750 my upbringing. My father is a Vietnam vet. I 00:29:55.750 --> 00:29:57.849 am grateful for the military. Lest you think 00:29:57.849 --> 00:30:00.589 there's any disdain, there's none. I'm grateful. 00:30:00.670 --> 00:30:02.829 If you have served, if you serve, thank you. 00:30:02.890 --> 00:30:05.730 We honor you. We are so grateful for your service 00:30:05.730 --> 00:30:08.829 and sacrifice. Just the reality of my story. 00:30:09.009 --> 00:30:11.789 My dad is a Vietnam vet. He was a sniper in the 00:30:11.789 --> 00:30:14.730 Vietnam War. I cannot imagine what my dad saw. 00:30:15.170 --> 00:30:17.650 I can't imagine what they went through. I can't. 00:30:17.930 --> 00:30:20.049 And I never will. He never talked about it, and 00:30:20.049 --> 00:30:22.970 still to this day does not. He had a severe anger 00:30:22.970 --> 00:30:26.210 problem going into the military, which was only 00:30:26.210 --> 00:30:29.349 exacerbated by the war, and then further exacerbated 00:30:29.349 --> 00:30:33.730 by a severe alcohol problem. And when I say alcohol 00:30:33.730 --> 00:30:38.089 problem, this isn't just get drunk. This is drinks 00:30:38.089 --> 00:30:41.269 whiskey, beer, like it's water to this day. He's 00:30:41.269 --> 00:30:43.890 74 years of age to this day. It's the exact same 00:30:43.890 --> 00:30:51.000 thing. My upbringing was met by violence. Again, 00:30:51.059 --> 00:30:52.539 I'll be delicate. I know we have young people 00:30:52.539 --> 00:30:56.759 in the room there. Culminated in a moment where 00:30:56.759 --> 00:30:59.440 my father attempted to murder my mother with 00:30:59.440 --> 00:31:03.299 a machete. My brother calls the police. They 00:31:03.299 --> 00:31:08.160 take my dad off to jail. That moment clearly 00:31:08.160 --> 00:31:12.980 marks you. And it stays with you. And if I'm 00:31:12.980 --> 00:31:15.180 being honest, the reality is that marks me to 00:31:15.180 --> 00:31:19.119 this day. I would love to tell you that that 00:31:19.119 --> 00:31:22.180 moment set me on a course and a trajectory towards 00:31:22.180 --> 00:31:25.279 God. It did not. It set me on a course trajectory 00:31:25.279 --> 00:31:28.700 running from God. Really for the next three or 00:31:28.700 --> 00:31:31.160 four years, I ran from God with everything I 00:31:31.160 --> 00:31:34.380 had and got into all the trouble you can imagine. 00:31:34.980 --> 00:31:37.680 Wrong friends, wrong things, trouble with the 00:31:37.680 --> 00:31:42.319 law, in places I shouldn't be. You name it, I'm 00:31:42.319 --> 00:31:46.940 there. Just wild and rampant for three, really 00:31:46.940 --> 00:31:53.880 four years of my life. 16 years of age, right 00:31:53.880 --> 00:31:57.339 around 16 going on 17. My mom had invited me. 00:31:57.559 --> 00:31:59.799 I was still living at home, but I was doing my 00:31:59.799 --> 00:32:02.359 thing. She invited me to go to dinner one night 00:32:02.359 --> 00:32:05.940 at a cafe. I grew up in South Dallas. A cafe 00:32:05.940 --> 00:32:08.500 called Cotton Patch. Cotton Patch Cafe, if you're 00:32:08.500 --> 00:32:11.160 ever in South Dallas. Look it up, go, it's awesome. 00:32:11.779 --> 00:32:14.019 Invited me to dinner. Little did I know, my mom 00:32:14.019 --> 00:32:17.059 had invited that particular night some family 00:32:17.059 --> 00:32:20.220 friends. They happened to be Assemblies of God 00:32:20.220 --> 00:32:22.980 world missionaries. They were world missionaries 00:32:22.980 --> 00:32:38.299 to Austria. Nick and Ruth Wilson. This moment 00:32:38.299 --> 00:32:42.529 changed my life. Because as we're walking into 00:32:42.529 --> 00:32:56.410 Cotton Patch, they looked at me and said, David, 00:32:56.450 --> 00:33:00.910 you have a call of God on my life. I didn't know 00:33:00.910 --> 00:33:06.410 what that meant. I had no clue what that meant. 00:33:07.289 --> 00:33:09.210 And they walked me as we're walking. We hadn't 00:33:09.210 --> 00:33:11.660 even had dinner yet. Normally you save it for 00:33:11.660 --> 00:33:16.880 after dessert. So for the next hour, two hours, 00:33:16.940 --> 00:33:19.339 whatever it was, we walked through what we would 00:33:19.339 --> 00:33:21.740 call God meant. We walked through what repentance 00:33:21.740 --> 00:33:24.500 meant. We walked through what it meant to serve 00:33:24.500 --> 00:33:26.359 God and to give your life fully to the Lord. 00:33:26.819 --> 00:33:29.119 In that moment at Cotton Patch Cafe, I gave my 00:33:29.119 --> 00:33:32.339 life back to Jesus because of a world missionary 00:33:32.339 --> 00:33:36.039 who just happened to be home. They serve overseas. 00:33:36.200 --> 00:33:38.839 They only come home every so often. They happened 00:33:38.839 --> 00:33:41.460 to be home that night, that day. My mom invited 00:33:41.460 --> 00:33:44.000 them, and because of that world missionary, it 00:33:44.000 --> 00:33:47.099 changed this U .S. missionary for the rest of 00:33:47.099 --> 00:33:50.700 my life. But I also tell you that because the 00:33:50.700 --> 00:33:52.839 reality is this, that I would love to tell you 00:33:52.839 --> 00:33:55.839 that I, today, as a man of God, no longer find 00:33:55.839 --> 00:33:58.079 myself in the middle, but the reality is I do. 00:33:58.259 --> 00:34:00.500 I find myself in the frustration of the middle 00:34:00.500 --> 00:34:03.589 almost daily. Because the moment when I was 12, 00:34:03.690 --> 00:34:06.730 when my father attempted to murder my mother, 00:34:06.829 --> 00:34:09.690 that stays with you. And it will never leave 00:34:09.690 --> 00:34:12.530 me. It will never go away from me. Because the 00:34:12.530 --> 00:34:15.929 reality is this. I today, as a man of God, married 00:34:15.929 --> 00:34:18.769 to my best friend, my high school sweetheart. 00:34:34.349 --> 00:34:42.329 With five amazing kids. You have to forgive my 00:34:42.329 --> 00:34:45.309 emotion. My son will tell you I never do this. 00:34:47.769 --> 00:34:53.010 I find myself often still frustrated in the middle. 00:34:54.110 --> 00:34:57.909 Because my reality is the same proclivities that 00:34:57.909 --> 00:35:01.289 my father exampled in front of me. I've dealt 00:35:01.289 --> 00:35:03.469 with in my own life. The same substance as my 00:35:03.469 --> 00:35:06.449 father abused, I have abused. The same things 00:35:06.449 --> 00:35:08.710 that my father has dealt with, I have. The same 00:35:08.710 --> 00:35:11.150 anger he's dealt with, I've dealt with. And if 00:35:11.150 --> 00:35:14.389 it's not for the frustration of the middle, God 00:35:14.389 --> 00:35:18.769 pruning, God removing, God preparing me, I'll 00:35:18.769 --> 00:35:22.750 find myself back in the same place that God delivered 00:35:22.750 --> 00:35:25.789 me out of. Friend, you may be here today frustrated 00:35:25.789 --> 00:35:30.059 in the middle. Can I tell you that John 6, 35 00:35:30.059 --> 00:35:32.960 is true. Jesus says, I am the bread of life, 00:35:33.019 --> 00:35:35.639 he says. Whoever comes to me will never hunger, 00:35:35.659 --> 00:35:37.920 will never thirst again. Friend, the middle is 00:35:37.920 --> 00:35:40.739 the best place you can possibly be. Whether you're 00:35:40.739 --> 00:35:43.159 stuck in Egypt and need to move to the middle, 00:35:43.219 --> 00:35:45.400 whether you're in the middle today and waiting 00:35:45.400 --> 00:35:47.380 for your promised land, the middle is the best 00:35:47.380 --> 00:35:50.119 place you can be to experience the grace of God, 00:35:50.239 --> 00:35:53.880 the favor of God, the direction of God, the sustenance 00:35:53.880 --> 00:35:57.179 of God, the mercy of God, unlike any place you'll 00:35:57.179 --> 00:36:00.480 find in Egypt or in the promised land. Friend, 00:36:00.539 --> 00:36:02.889 you may be stuck here in Egypt today. God wants 00:36:02.889 --> 00:36:05.869 to remove you from Egypt. He wants to emancipate 00:36:05.869 --> 00:36:08.670 you, set you free, and move you ultimately to 00:36:08.670 --> 00:36:10.869 the promised land, but by way of the middle, 00:36:10.949 --> 00:36:13.409 by way of the journey, by way of the process, 00:36:13.489 --> 00:36:16.070 to remove some things to prepare you ultimately 00:36:16.070 --> 00:36:20.510 for what he has for you. I think my title, I 00:36:20.510 --> 00:36:23.090 think it's wrong. That's our prayer, is it not? 00:36:23.110 --> 00:36:26.570 God, get me through this. And yet I think my 00:36:26.570 --> 00:36:29.750 prayer and our title today should be, God, don't 00:36:29.750 --> 00:36:33.570 get me through it. God, keep me. in the middle 00:36:33.570 --> 00:36:36.949 until you've done all you want to do in me. Remove 00:36:36.949 --> 00:36:39.610 all you have to remove from my path, from me, 00:36:39.650 --> 00:36:42.750 to prepare me for what you have ultimately in 00:36:42.750 --> 00:36:46.789 the promised land. Whether you're stuck in Egypt 00:36:46.789 --> 00:36:52.269 today, surrounded by your sin, accompanied by 00:36:52.269 --> 00:36:57.469 your addiction, whether you find yourself freed 00:36:57.469 --> 00:37:00.170 but frustrated in the middle, maybe you find 00:37:00.170 --> 00:37:03.360 yourself today living in your blessing. God wants 00:37:03.360 --> 00:37:06.860 to do a work in your life today. He wants to 00:37:06.860 --> 00:37:09.460 stir some hearts. He wants to set some people 00:37:09.460 --> 00:37:12.300 free. He wants to call people into missions today. 00:37:12.599 --> 00:37:14.559 Can we pray together today? Father, I love you 00:37:14.559 --> 00:37:18.340 and I praise you. Again, I'm grateful for the 00:37:18.340 --> 00:37:22.039 opportunity to gather around your word. Would 00:37:22.039 --> 00:37:24.800 you do what only you can do in this moment? Let 00:37:24.800 --> 00:37:30.760 me make this synced, but... Maybe you're here 00:37:30.760 --> 00:37:32.739 today and you would say, Pastor, here's my reality. 00:37:32.920 --> 00:37:35.719 I today find myself still frustrated, stuck in 00:37:35.719 --> 00:37:40.460 Egypt. I find myself surrounded by sin. I find 00:37:40.460 --> 00:37:44.000 myself in a reality of the decisions I've made. 00:37:44.199 --> 00:37:47.780 Just stuck in sin. Today I need to be free. I 00:37:47.780 --> 00:37:49.960 need to be emancipated. I need to be set free 00:37:49.960 --> 00:37:54.739 from my captivity. Or maybe for you, you've had 00:37:54.739 --> 00:37:56.679 that moment. You've made some decisions that 00:37:56.679 --> 00:37:58.679 led you on a path. path away from God, and you 00:37:58.679 --> 00:38:00.539 need to come back into alignment. And you find 00:38:00.539 --> 00:38:02.780 yourself still kind of stuck and frustrated in 00:38:02.780 --> 00:38:05.219 Egypt. If there's anybody in the room today, 00:38:05.280 --> 00:38:07.480 you can say, I need to give my life to Jesus 00:38:07.480 --> 00:38:09.380 for the first time, or I need to come back into 00:38:09.380 --> 00:38:12.380 alignment with Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Lord 00:38:12.380 --> 00:38:14.360 means He's in charge of all. I hold nothing in 00:38:14.360 --> 00:38:16.539 my own control. I give it all to Him. Savior 00:38:16.539 --> 00:38:18.739 means I accept Him as the one who died on a cross 00:38:18.739 --> 00:38:21.800 in my place for my sin. I need to come back into 00:38:21.800 --> 00:38:23.119 alignment with the Word of God. If you're here 00:38:23.119 --> 00:38:24.400 in the room, would you just wave a hand? No one's 00:38:24.400 --> 00:38:25.739 looking around. Wave a hand at me and say, pray 00:38:25.739 --> 00:38:40.909 for me. Move yourself from Egypt. Maybe you're 00:38:40.909 --> 00:38:42.590 in the room today and you'd say, Pastor, I find 00:38:42.590 --> 00:38:45.710 myself freed, no longer in captivity, but frustrated 00:38:45.710 --> 00:38:48.650 today in the middle. I find myself asking God, 00:38:48.730 --> 00:38:51.570 why the same water? God, why the same manna? 00:38:51.630 --> 00:38:55.750 Why the same wandering every day? You've promised 00:38:55.750 --> 00:38:59.650 me a land of blessing, a season of fruitfulness 00:38:59.650 --> 00:39:04.440 and ministry ahead. But today I find myself frustrated 00:39:04.440 --> 00:39:07.280 in the middle and I need to be reminded that 00:39:07.280 --> 00:39:09.659 God is as near to me in the middle as he was 00:39:09.659 --> 00:39:12.239 in Egypt and as he is in the promised land. I 00:39:12.239 --> 00:39:14.880 need to be reminded and encouraged today by God's 00:39:14.880 --> 00:39:16.760 grace in the middle. Anybody here wave a hand 00:39:16.760 --> 00:39:19.699 to me? Pray for me today. Praise God. Praise 00:39:19.699 --> 00:39:23.739 God. Amen. Maybe you're here today and you say, 00:39:23.840 --> 00:39:26.940 Pastor, I feel a call of God on my life. Into 00:39:26.940 --> 00:39:29.849 the mission field. Whether that's overseas or 00:39:29.849 --> 00:39:31.230 whether that's right here in the United States 00:39:31.230 --> 00:39:33.750 of America, I feel that the Lord has positioned 00:39:33.750 --> 00:39:36.949 me, called me by name, and stirred my heart today 00:39:36.949 --> 00:39:40.869 and birthed inside of me a dream that I didn't 00:39:40.869 --> 00:39:43.730 even know was there. But I feel a call of God 00:39:43.730 --> 00:39:46.570 on my life to answer that today and to say, I 00:39:46.570 --> 00:41:55.880 am committed. Here I am. Send me. frustrated, 00:41:55.880 --> 00:41:57.679 stuck in the middle, Lord, I pray you remind 00:41:57.679 --> 00:42:00.579 them that they're not stuck. God, you're removing 00:42:00.579 --> 00:42:02.360 some things from the past to prepare them for 00:42:02.360 --> 00:42:05.340 the future. God, remind them of that daily water 00:42:05.340 --> 00:42:08.280 and manna. You are more than enough. You are 00:42:08.280 --> 00:42:10.639 the bread. You are the well that never runs dry. 00:42:10.760 --> 00:42:15.239 You are the one who crawls, who sustains, the 00:42:15.239 --> 00:42:17.239 one who does it all. So God, remind them and 00:42:17.239 --> 00:42:19.780 encourage them. Lord, I pray over my brother 00:42:19.780 --> 00:42:22.219 who's called. Lord, I pray your anointing and 00:42:22.219 --> 00:42:28.119 your manna. your colossal, give them a complete 00:42:28.119 --> 00:42:30.880 knowledge of your will, spiritual wisdom and 00:42:30.880 --> 00:42:32.880 understanding. And for those who are called and 00:42:32.880 --> 00:42:35.699 you're just a little afraid to answer that call 00:42:35.699 --> 00:42:37.659 today, give them courage and boldness to know 00:42:37.659 --> 00:42:40.480 that when they step out of the bow, that's where 00:42:40.480 --> 00:42:43.920 you are. You're in the midst of the wind and 00:42:43.920 --> 00:42:47.239 the waves and the storm. You're the one who sustains, 00:42:47.239 --> 00:42:48.619 you're the one who calls, you're the one who 00:42:48.619 --> 00:42:50.760 provides. And so God, I pray your anointing upon 00:42:50.760 --> 00:42:53.420 this church. Thank you for the heart of this 00:42:53.420 --> 00:42:57.719 church to not just minister here in this house, 00:42:58.000 --> 00:43:01.900 but to minister locally, globally. May your blessing 00:43:01.900 --> 00:43:04.400 and your anointing fall upon this house in such 00:43:04.400 --> 00:43:08.980 a rich and unique way. Lord, I pray over Pastor 00:43:08.980 --> 00:43:13.559 Darren and Kim, your anointing, your fresh vision. 00:43:13.820 --> 00:43:16.639 May they never rely on yesterday's anointing 00:43:16.639 --> 00:43:22.079 for today's call and today's challenge. We honor 00:43:22.079 --> 00:43:27.570 you. We thank you. awed sinners like us. You 00:43:27.570 --> 00:43:31.670 are so good and so kind to us. We commit our 00:43:31.670 --> 00:43:33.829 lives to you once again. In Jesus' holy name, 00:43:34.010 --> 00:43:37.690 amen. Faith Church, God bless you. Thank you.