WEBVTT

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I am going to, at this time, we're going to invite

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you to join me just for one scripture that I'm

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going to read. Found in Revelation chapter 3.

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Amen. In verse 11. And then we'll be able to

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sit. I know we've been standing worshiping for

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almost, what is it, 40, 45 minutes now. Hallelujah.

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Or even longer. But you'll get to relax in just

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a moment. The word of God reads, Revelation 3

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.11. Behold, I am coming quickly. Hold fast,

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someone say hold fast, what you have that no

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one may take your crown. And with God's help,

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I'm going to speak for a few moments today on

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the thought, keep your crown. Keep your crown.

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Amen. You may be seated in the presence of God.

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Amen. Keep your crown. That is the message. Now,

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when we think of crowns, church, we usually think

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of those worn by kings and royalty. We think

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of crowns that are made of gold and precious

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stones and gems, such as the famous crown jewels

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of the British monarch. I was fortunate enough

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to view those a few years ago upon. visiting

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there in england and i was amazed by all of the

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elaborate jewels and and and gold uh in those

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crowns and and they're deemed priceless you can't

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sell them because there is no uh monetary value

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you can place i don't know if anybody here has

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ever worn a crown of some sort uh if everybody

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put a crown on your head or maybe sisters a tiara

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huh hopefully not the man praise god hallelujah

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uh but I think the only crown I've ever worn

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was at Burger King. How many ever wanted one

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of those crowns? Hey, man. I wore a Burger King

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crown. But, you know, it was made of very thin

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cardboard. It didn't last very long, right? By

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the time you left the place, it was already falling

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apart and just peeling. And I think that's the

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only crown physically that I've ever worn. But,

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you know, we understand the... concept and the

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idea of a crown. And throughout the Bible, there's

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different kinds of crowns. And I won't talk about

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all of the various crowns that we see in Scripture.

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There were different crowns, literal crowns that

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were made of gold and precious metals. But there

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is a certain type of crown that I want to focus

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on in the New Testament that is sometimes called

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the victor's crown. And it is a crown that is

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awarded to champions. It is a special crown.

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It is not one like we are used to seeing in our

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mind, like the ones I've described. But this

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is a different type of crown. The Greek word

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for this type of crown is Stephanos, Stephanos.

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And in Roman Greco times, runners or Olympians

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were awarded Stephanos, a crown made of leaves.

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or branches, or out of a wreath. And this was

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the type of crown. So you see, it was not gold

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and precious metals and gems. This was a rather

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humble thing, but it signified something victorious.

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It signified a great victory or the accomplishment

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of an athlete or of a runner. an Olympian. They

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were crowned with the Stephanos. And the Lord,

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when he writes to one of the churches, the seven

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churches in Asia Minor, in the book of Revelations,

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to the book of Philadelphia, he writes to them.

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He says to make sure that no one take your Stephanos,

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your crown. He's not talking about a royal crown

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like a diadem, such as one that you might crown

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or coronate a king or a queen. He is talking

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about the victor's crown. He is talking about

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the reward that one believer receives when we

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enter into glory one day. So it's the believer's

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Stephanos, that crown of reward that we ought

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to live our lives for. It is a reward for your

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obedience, for your endurance and your faithfulness

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unto the end. Somebody say amen today. But according

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to the word. The word of God, it is possible

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to lose your Stephanos. It is possible to lose

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your crown. You can potentially lose your victory.

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You can lose your reward. You can miss your reward.

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Your crown can even be stolen. by the enemy.

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It could be stolen by the traumas of life, by

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people, by problems and types of pain and plights.

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The crown, it can fall from where it belongs.

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And so the warning in the verse today that God

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had, that the Spirit of the Lord had for the

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church is as relevant today as it was then, that

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we must hold fast. Amen. Our reward. So that

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no one or no man or no thing can cheat us out

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of our Stephanos. That can cheat us out of our

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crown. And we ought to make sure that nothing

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in this life, be it spiritual, be it emotional

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or financial, relational, otherwise, will rob

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us of that great reward that is promised to those

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who... endure to the very end. How many of you

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want to make it to the end? Amen. That's my plan.

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But there is a crown, and I don't just want to

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make it to heaven. I don't know about you, but

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I don't just want to slide in like a runner rounding

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third base coming home, you know, by the skin

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of my teeth, you know. I don't want to make it

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on a pinky, you know. They got to zoom in the

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camera. Did his pinky touch the base? Okay, he's

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in. He said, I don't want to just barely make

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it to heaven. Amen. I want to get there and hear

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those words, well done, my good and faithful

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servant. I want to hear those words. I want to

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be crowned, not with the king's crown, that's

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his, but with my Stephanos, with my reward, with

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my prize. And so how is it then that the believer

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today can keep your crown? How can we hold fast

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to that? Let me give you a few things to consider

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here this afternoon to keep your crown. Number

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one, to keep your crown, you have to first keep

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your eye on the prize. Keep your eye on the prize.

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You need to know why you're running. You need

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to know why. You need to know why you're running.

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Not just that you're running. That's not good

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enough. Hey, look at me. I'm running. Don't pat

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yourself on the back just because you're running.

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The question is, why are you running? Why are

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you running? We're not as believers just running

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for exercise. Is that correct? We're not just

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running for exercise. We're not just running

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just to run. We're not just running on a treadmill

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or running just to make a few laps around the

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block. There is a prize at the end of the run.

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There is a reward. There is something that awaits

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us both in this life, because God is that good,

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and in the life to come, the promise of our reward.

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Paul writes about this in 1 Corinthians chapter

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9. He said, do you not know that those who run

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in a race all run, but one receives the prize?

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Everybody's running, but only such will receive

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the prize. He said run in, someone say run. Come

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on, say it again. Run. Run in such a way that

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you may obtain it. He said, you've got to run.

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You've got to run your life in such a way that

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you can eventually obtain that reward. And anyone

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who competes for the prize is temperate or self

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-controlled in all things. Now they. do obtain

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a perishable crown, but for we, an imperishable

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crown. So we are running for a crown that will

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not diminish or will not perish or lack over

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time, but we are running for an imperishable

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reward, a heavenly, divine, sacred, and everlasting

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reward. We are running this race, this Christian

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race, and we are running with the calling of

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God upon our lives so that eventually, We will

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be crowned. But if you lose sight of the fact

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that that is our reward, that is our goal, that

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is the point of it all, then you could allow

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petty and terrestrial and earthly and material

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and worldly things to keep you and to distract

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you from that ultimate prize that God has. If

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you take your eyes off the prize, you will find

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yourself running for all kinds of reasons. reasons.

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You may find yourself running, but you're running

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from things. God did not call us to simply run

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away from things. He didn't call us simply to

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run from our past, from people, from situations,

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from the devil. The Christian life isn't simply

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about running away from things. It's about running

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towards something. Amen, somebody. I have come

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the day to encourage Courage to motivate, to

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edify somebody's heart and spirit today. If you

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ever feel like perhaps you're getting distracted

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or you're losing sight of what it's all about,

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let me remind you here this afternoon that we

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are running a race and we're running to finish

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this race. We are running to receive that prize

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that God has prepared for his people. Hallelujah.

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I'm not running from the world. not running from

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the devil. In fact, the devil is supposed to

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be running from me. That's why the Bible says

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resist the devil and he will flee. I'm not fleeing

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from anybody. I'm not fleeing from anything,

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but I am running towards my calling in Christ.

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Amen. Somebody clap your hands. Let's give God

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some praise here today. That's why Paul said,

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I press toward the goal for the prize. Of the

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upward call of God in Christ Jesus. I'm running

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towards it. I've got my eyes on the prize. I

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cannot afford myself. I cannot afford to miss

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my divine moment in God. I've got to keep focused

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on him. I can't be like Peter who's stepping

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out on the water and allowing the wind and the

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waves to distract him from his eyes being fixed

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on Jesus. I've got to fix my eyes on the prize.

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Lord. I've got to remember what it's all about.

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I've got to remember that this running that I'm

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doing is for a prize. So in order to hear those

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words, well done, my good and faithful servant.

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I don't know about you, but in my faith, I don't

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want to come in second place. I don't want to

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have just a consolation. I don't want to have

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a participation trophy. You know, trophies don't

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mean a whole lot anymore because everyone gets

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one. You know what I'm saying? I mean, back in

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the days, you had to earn it. Right? But because

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we live in a time and an age where, you know,

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we don't want to offend anybody or hurt anybody's

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feelings. Everybody gets a trophy. And you know

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what that does? In the process of rewarding everybody,

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you cheat those who actually put in the preparation

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and endured and came out on top or were victorious.

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And it devalues the whole concept of a reward.

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I don't know about you, but when I get to heaven,

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I don't just want a participation trophy. I don't

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just want a good attitude trophy, if that's all.

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I don't just want what I want. I want the Stephanos.

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Hallelujah. I want that crown upon my head that

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said you endured to the end. You overcame your

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trial. You could have given up. You could have

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thrown in the towel. You could have said forget

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all of this. But you kept fighting. And you kept

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running. And you kept remembering that there

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was a prize at the end of it. And you rose above

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your problems. And you kept on worshiping. Come

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on somebody. You kept on praying. You kept on

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worshiping. You kept on dancing. You kept on,

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oh, I wish there was somebody in this house today

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that was running. Anybody want to run? I've got

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to run. Second thing we've got to do is you've

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got to hold to what you have. You need to know

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not only why you're running, brother, sister,

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friend. You need to know what you're running

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on. What you're running with. The Lord told his

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church, in verse 8, the same church of Philadelphia,

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he told them, he said, you have a little strength.

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He says, I see all your works, and I have set

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before you an open door. In other words, I'm

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blessing you. How many of you know God's got

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an open door for you? Amen. I'm putting before

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you an open door, and guess what? Nobody, not

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even the devil himself, can shut it. So all these

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things are going to happen for you because I've

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already ordained it. I've already ordered your

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steps. It's going to happen. Just keep running.

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But then he tells him, but for you have little

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strength. So on the one hand, God's saying, I'm

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about to open up some massive doors for you that

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no devil can shut, no man can shut. Well, at

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the same time, you need to recognize you're working

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with a little strength. And a little strength

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doesn't sound very promising, folks. It doesn't

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sound like a whole lot. I want God to give me

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a lot of strength. I want God to give me a lot

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of resources. I want God to give me a lot of

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stuff. Because that's how the human mind thinks.

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We think we need a lot in order to accomplish

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a lot. But we serve a God that's in the little

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things. Oh, I wish I had a believer here today.

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Hallelujah. I said we serve a God of the little

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things. And that's why in verse 11, as we read

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earlier, the Lord said, hold fast to what you

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have. Hold fast to that. I want you to understand

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today, church, that God doesn't need a lot in

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order to do a lot. He said, I've got doors I'm

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going to open in your life. And all you've got

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is a little strength. But all that strength is

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all that you need in order for you to make it.

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You may be looking at your life today. I feel

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like I'm talking to somebody right now. And you

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may be thinking, I don't have a lot. I don't

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have a lot of contacts. I don't have a lot of

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friends. I don't have a lot. of money. I don't

00:15:39.500 --> 00:15:41.799
have a lot of people. I don't have a lot of strength.

00:15:41.980 --> 00:15:44.679
But let me tell you something, that God can do

00:15:44.679 --> 00:15:47.539
more with the little than he can do when you

00:15:47.539 --> 00:15:50.919
have a lot. Oh, I wish I had a witness in this

00:15:50.919 --> 00:15:54.340
house today. Whatever you do, don't count yourself

00:15:54.340 --> 00:15:59.059
out. Don't count yourself out because of how

00:15:59.059 --> 00:16:02.639
little you have. That's where God specializes

00:16:02.639 --> 00:16:05.120
in taking the little strength that we have and

00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:08.980
stretching it beyond. What we thought was humanly

00:16:08.980 --> 00:16:12.440
possible. This is how God works. And you know

00:16:12.440 --> 00:16:15.500
why he does it? So he gets the glory. Because

00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:17.379
if you have a lot and you accomplish a lot, you

00:16:17.379 --> 00:16:20.960
can say, look at what we did. But God takes the

00:16:20.960 --> 00:16:23.980
little stuff. Somebody say little strength. Come

00:16:23.980 --> 00:16:26.919
on, say it again. Little strength. I don't know.

00:16:26.980 --> 00:16:28.500
I feel like there's somebody here today. You

00:16:28.500 --> 00:16:31.370
feel like you got little strength. You know,

00:16:31.389 --> 00:16:33.049
I just got a little strength. Pastor, you know,

00:16:33.070 --> 00:16:35.590
it's been one of those years. It's been one of

00:16:35.590 --> 00:16:37.269
those days. It's been one of those months. I

00:16:37.269 --> 00:16:39.809
just got a little bit of strength, you know.

00:16:39.950 --> 00:16:42.129
Man, after that big bill I just paid, I just

00:16:42.129 --> 00:16:45.190
got a little bit left in my account. Man, after

00:16:45.190 --> 00:16:47.009
what I've been, I just got a little bit of hope.

00:16:47.330 --> 00:16:49.590
I'm just dreaming. I don't dream as big as I

00:16:49.590 --> 00:16:51.750
do. I just got a few. I got one more dream left.

00:16:51.850 --> 00:16:54.289
I just got a little bit of things that I'm still

00:16:54.289 --> 00:16:56.809
working on and still waiting on. I just got a

00:16:56.809 --> 00:16:58.809
little bit of this and a little bit of that.

00:16:59.110 --> 00:17:01.080
Let me tell you, don't look. Look at what you

00:17:01.080 --> 00:17:03.960
don't have because that's not where revival is

00:17:03.960 --> 00:17:05.900
coming from. Somebody needs to help me here today.

00:17:06.160 --> 00:17:10.440
Your miracle is in what you already have. I said

00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:15.970
your miracle is in what you already have. That's

00:17:15.970 --> 00:17:18.990
where God's going to move. Elisha told the widow

00:17:18.990 --> 00:17:22.970
who was about to see her sons taken by the creditors

00:17:22.970 --> 00:17:28.690
in 2 Kings 4, verse 2. He asked her this important

00:17:28.690 --> 00:17:32.819
question. What do you have in your house? What

00:17:32.819 --> 00:17:36.279
do you have in your house? Tell me, what is it

00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:39.839
that you've got? What can we work with? And she

00:17:39.839 --> 00:17:42.200
replied and said, your maid service has nothing

00:17:42.200 --> 00:17:47.039
in the house but this jar of oil. And she was

00:17:47.039 --> 00:17:49.779
probably thinking, man, I'm embarrassed to admit,

00:17:49.940 --> 00:17:53.740
I'm ashamed to admit that this is all I've got

00:17:53.740 --> 00:17:57.099
in my house. I just got this little jar of oil.

00:17:57.359 --> 00:18:01.059
But a little jar of oil is greater than an ocean

00:18:01.059 --> 00:18:04.039
of water. Because God can take that little jar

00:18:04.039 --> 00:18:08.359
and multiply it and stretch it. And so that's

00:18:08.359 --> 00:18:11.420
exactly what the Lord did. He said, go and borrow

00:18:11.420 --> 00:18:15.140
just as many vessels as you can. Bring all the

00:18:15.140 --> 00:18:18.079
emptiness that you can. Collect all the jars

00:18:18.079 --> 00:18:21.339
that you can. And then watch how I'll take that

00:18:21.339 --> 00:18:24.019
little bit of strength, that little bit of oil,

00:18:24.200 --> 00:18:26.619
and watch me multiply. I don't know if there's

00:18:26.619 --> 00:18:29.019
somebody in this place today that's waiting on

00:18:29.019 --> 00:18:31.799
God to multiply some stuff. And I preach like

00:18:31.799 --> 00:18:35.500
I want to here this afternoon. Somebody say preach.

00:18:35.579 --> 00:18:38.920
Hallelujah. If God, if you've got some little

00:18:38.920 --> 00:18:41.299
things that you want, God, if you're waiting

00:18:41.299 --> 00:18:44.819
on a multiplication miracle, you're in the right

00:18:44.819 --> 00:18:48.279
place with the right God. Because I don't know

00:18:48.279 --> 00:18:51.180
who I'm talking to right now, but God says I'm

00:18:51.180 --> 00:18:53.940
about to take that little strength that you've

00:18:53.940 --> 00:18:58.539
got and do a miracle in your life. Somebody ought

00:18:58.539 --> 00:19:02.180
to praise God. Somebody ought to celebrate. Somebody

00:19:02.180 --> 00:19:07.200
ought to worship. Come on, right there, somebody.

00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:11.099
You got to grab a hold of this word. Come on,

00:19:11.119 --> 00:19:13.839
why don't you take a moment right now. Grab a

00:19:13.839 --> 00:19:19.539
hold of this word. Everything you need is in

00:19:19.539 --> 00:19:22.900
the house, he says, to fulfill your calling,

00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:28.440
to finish your race. A little with God is greater

00:19:28.440 --> 00:19:35.819
than a lot without him. And so he tells the runners

00:19:35.819 --> 00:19:38.799
in the church of Philadelphia, he said, I'm about

00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:41.400
to I'm about to blow your mind. I'm about I've

00:19:41.400 --> 00:19:43.920
already said that there's doors that are coming.

00:19:43.960 --> 00:19:46.839
You haven't even seen them yet. But just know

00:19:46.839 --> 00:19:50.890
this. You have a little strength. But that little

00:19:50.890 --> 00:19:55.309
strength is all you need. That's all you need

00:19:55.309 --> 00:19:58.490
is a little strength. Hallelujah. Someone say,

00:19:58.549 --> 00:20:03.910
that's all I need. All right. I want to give

00:20:03.910 --> 00:20:06.710
you the third thing, and that is don't stop running.

00:20:09.269 --> 00:20:11.150
Turn to somebody and tell them, don't stop running.

00:20:12.890 --> 00:20:16.410
Don't stop running. Don't stop running. Can I

00:20:16.410 --> 00:20:18.130
get into the meat and potatoes of this message

00:20:18.130 --> 00:20:21.079
now? Anybody hungry for the word today? Hallelujah.

00:20:23.519 --> 00:20:25.859
Amen. So far we've just been eating salad and

00:20:25.859 --> 00:20:28.519
breadsticks and stuff. That's some good stuff

00:20:28.519 --> 00:20:29.940
right there. I like that. Maybe you consider

00:20:29.940 --> 00:20:32.180
that meat. Amen. But let's get into some meat

00:20:32.180 --> 00:20:34.940
and potatoes right here because not only do you

00:20:34.940 --> 00:20:36.859
need to know why you're running and what you're

00:20:36.859 --> 00:20:38.779
running on, but you need to know how to run.

00:20:40.819 --> 00:20:44.680
Someone say, you got to know how. You got to

00:20:44.680 --> 00:20:47.539
know how to run. So let me, give me a few moments.

00:20:48.109 --> 00:20:51.990
To talk about how to run. It's not enough to

00:20:51.990 --> 00:20:54.569
know why. It's not enough to know what you're

00:20:54.569 --> 00:20:57.029
running on. But the word of God tells us how

00:20:57.029 --> 00:21:01.809
to run. In Hebrews 12 .1, the writer says, therefore,

00:21:02.190 --> 00:21:06.289
we also, since we are surrounded by so great

00:21:06.289 --> 00:21:08.650
a cloud of witnesses. In other words, we've got

00:21:08.650 --> 00:21:12.509
an audience. Do you know you've got an audience?

00:21:13.210 --> 00:21:14.890
Don't look around in here. I'm not talking about

00:21:14.890 --> 00:21:17.049
the church. Someone's like, ooh, I better pose.

00:21:17.170 --> 00:21:19.569
I didn't know I had an audience. Is this going

00:21:19.569 --> 00:21:21.730
on Instagram or what is this, you know? Get my

00:21:21.730 --> 00:21:24.630
good side if you're going to, you know. Not here.

00:21:24.809 --> 00:21:26.890
We got an audience, you know where? In heaven.

00:21:28.490 --> 00:21:30.289
There's a great cloud of witnesses. You know

00:21:30.289 --> 00:21:34.089
who are? All the saints down the ages. All the

00:21:34.089 --> 00:21:37.009
other ones who made it over and lived to tell

00:21:37.009 --> 00:21:40.720
the story. Oh, my God. I'm not just talking about

00:21:40.720 --> 00:21:43.119
the saints in this Bible church. I'm talking

00:21:43.119 --> 00:21:45.440
about the brethren in our lifetime that have

00:21:45.440 --> 00:21:50.460
already made it over. A great cloud of witnesses,

00:21:50.700 --> 00:21:53.519
he tells them, they're all waiting. They're standing

00:21:53.519 --> 00:21:56.960
in the bleachers. And they're watching us run

00:21:56.960 --> 00:21:59.980
our race. Hallelujah. I'm getting excited about

00:21:59.980 --> 00:22:04.299
that. Amen. And he said. We are surrounded by

00:22:04.299 --> 00:22:06.579
a cloud of great witnesses. And then he says,

00:22:06.680 --> 00:22:12.559
let us lay aside every way and the sin which

00:22:12.559 --> 00:22:17.900
so easily ensnares us. And let us run our race

00:22:17.900 --> 00:22:21.019
and let us run with endurance the race that is

00:22:21.019 --> 00:22:25.359
set before us. He said, we've got a great cloud

00:22:25.359 --> 00:22:28.000
of witnesses. They're all cheering us on. Amen.

00:22:28.099 --> 00:22:32.180
They want us to win. But in order to run and

00:22:32.180 --> 00:22:35.559
to achieve this crown, this Stephanos, to be

00:22:35.559 --> 00:22:37.859
crowned with the Stephanos, the victor's crown,

00:22:38.119 --> 00:22:41.819
we've got to run, but we've got to do so wisely.

00:22:42.799 --> 00:22:45.779
And he said, if you're not careful as you're

00:22:45.779 --> 00:22:48.200
running, there are some things that can get in

00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:51.380
your way. And so if I can for a few moments deduce

00:22:51.380 --> 00:22:53.960
some of these powerful applications from this

00:22:53.960 --> 00:22:57.259
one verse. He says you've got to run the race

00:22:57.259 --> 00:22:59.420
that is set before us. So the first thing I just

00:22:59.420 --> 00:23:02.500
want to just deduce from here is that you've

00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:06.880
got to run your own race. Amen. Amen. Amen, somebody.

00:23:08.019 --> 00:23:10.799
God didn't call you to run somebody else's race.

00:23:12.339 --> 00:23:17.859
Hello. He called you to run your own race. Can

00:23:17.859 --> 00:23:20.720
I make this plain? Somebody say, make it plain.

00:23:22.330 --> 00:23:23.950
God's not going to receive you in heaven one

00:23:23.950 --> 00:23:25.710
day and say, you did a good job running your

00:23:25.710 --> 00:23:29.869
brother's race. He's not going to look at you.

00:23:29.950 --> 00:23:31.910
He's going to say, what did you do with the race

00:23:31.910 --> 00:23:36.430
I set before you? And so I believe that in this

00:23:36.430 --> 00:23:38.769
last hour, because the Lord said, behold, I've

00:23:38.769 --> 00:23:42.109
come quickly. This word is a word, it is a prophetic

00:23:42.109 --> 00:23:44.829
word. It is a word of the end time. Because all

00:23:44.829 --> 00:23:47.250
of this is about how quick and how soon the Lord

00:23:47.250 --> 00:23:50.150
is coming. He said, but you've got to run your

00:23:50.150 --> 00:23:53.950
own race. Do not be tempted to step out of your

00:23:53.950 --> 00:23:57.269
lane and get into someone else's race. We need

00:23:57.269 --> 00:24:00.670
every man in here, you need to run your own race.

00:24:01.589 --> 00:24:04.309
Every woman, you've got to run your own race.

00:24:06.950 --> 00:24:09.710
My race is my race. I've got to stay in the lane

00:24:09.710 --> 00:24:12.390
that God put before me. He said this, for the

00:24:12.390 --> 00:24:18.700
race set before us. So what race is God calling

00:24:18.700 --> 00:24:22.579
me to run? Don't worry about what anybody else

00:24:22.579 --> 00:24:27.079
is doing. Stay in your own lane. Don't worry.

00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:28.759
Well, I don't know. I see that brother over there,

00:24:28.779 --> 00:24:32.440
man. He's getting all the opportunities. No,

00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:35.579
you run your race. I don't know about that, sister.

00:24:35.680 --> 00:24:38.519
Man, if they only knew the stuff I knew about

00:24:38.519 --> 00:24:41.380
her, well, just keep it to yourself then. Run

00:24:41.380 --> 00:24:43.859
your own race. I got another way of saying that.

00:24:43.900 --> 00:24:51.559
Mind your own business. Mind your own business.

00:24:51.619 --> 00:24:55.359
Someone just say, mind your own. Mind your own.

00:24:57.099 --> 00:24:59.079
Everybody's got their own race to run. But what

00:24:59.079 --> 00:25:01.339
we need in this last hour are not people who

00:25:01.339 --> 00:25:04.420
are going to be swayed by the populace. Not people

00:25:04.420 --> 00:25:06.119
who are just going to go with the crowd and go

00:25:06.119 --> 00:25:08.980
with the flow and go. God's not looking for you

00:25:08.980 --> 00:25:11.680
to build a consensus with anybody. What he wants

00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:14.740
for you, what is the race I set before you and

00:25:14.740 --> 00:25:19.230
are you running in it? Because when you stand

00:25:19.230 --> 00:25:21.750
before heaven, God's not going to put you in

00:25:21.750 --> 00:25:23.170
a big group of other people and say, how'd you

00:25:23.170 --> 00:25:26.690
all do? He's going to say, did you run your race?

00:25:46.190 --> 00:25:47.569
The kids that God has given me, it's going to

00:25:47.569 --> 00:25:50.150
look different. The way I live my life, I might

00:25:50.150 --> 00:25:51.990
even rule my household a little differently.

00:25:52.130 --> 00:25:54.190
I might have a higher standard in my house than

00:25:54.190 --> 00:25:56.869
you. I might have a different standard than you.

00:25:56.970 --> 00:25:59.250
But we don't have to compare each other with

00:25:59.250 --> 00:26:01.309
the races that we're running. Why? Because God

00:26:01.309 --> 00:26:06.250
has set before me a race. Hello, somebody. I

00:26:06.250 --> 00:26:08.230
hope I'm helping you. The next thing I need to

00:26:08.230 --> 00:26:10.029
tell you about, we introduce from here, is that

00:26:10.029 --> 00:26:33.640
you don't need speed. You need stamina. No. Run

00:26:33.640 --> 00:26:38.700
with endurance. Stamina. That's what is needed.

00:26:38.880 --> 00:26:42.279
Church, hear me today. In this hour, especially

00:26:42.279 --> 00:26:44.680
among the younger generation, which you're all

00:26:44.680 --> 00:26:48.279
the younger generation today, praise God. That's

00:26:48.279 --> 00:26:56.279
right. I'm young. Put me in. But the Bible teaches

00:26:56.279 --> 00:26:59.000
us that the race is not to the swift. Or the

00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:02.160
battle to the strong. The Bible teaches it's

00:27:02.160 --> 00:27:06.240
given to the one that endures. This is not a

00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:08.000
race to see who gets there the quickest and the

00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:11.420
fastest. This is not a numbers race. This is

00:27:11.420 --> 00:27:15.380
not a foot race. In fact, oh my Lord, I'm not

00:27:15.380 --> 00:27:20.200
even racing against you. It's a race against

00:27:20.200 --> 00:27:24.880
time. Because time is running out. But here's

00:27:24.880 --> 00:27:27.849
the thing. going to cut any corners on the way

00:27:27.849 --> 00:27:30.710
to the prize. I'm not going to take an alternate

00:27:30.710 --> 00:27:34.089
route. I'm going to endure to the very end. The

00:27:34.089 --> 00:27:38.150
crown doesn't go to the fastest. It goes to the

00:27:38.150 --> 00:28:03.059
one who patient, patient, patient, patient. I'm

00:28:03.059 --> 00:28:06.160
running patiently. And eventually, you know what

00:28:06.160 --> 00:28:08.680
God's going to do? God's going to reward us with

00:28:30.700 --> 00:28:33.480
Let's lay aside every weight, every heaviness,

00:28:33.700 --> 00:28:37.200
every burden. If you don't lay aside the weight.

00:28:37.500 --> 00:28:39.839
Now, I want to just. Well, maybe I will break

00:28:39.839 --> 00:28:41.619
it down just a little bit. I want to say break

00:28:41.619 --> 00:28:44.519
it down just a little bit. Okay. Just so you

00:28:44.519 --> 00:28:46.789
understand that there are. to things that can

00:28:46.789 --> 00:28:49.289
hold us back. Some of it is sin, right? Of course,

00:28:49.289 --> 00:28:52.450
if you're living in sin, immorality and sin,

00:28:52.529 --> 00:28:55.630
unconfessed, that will absolutely sideline you

00:28:55.630 --> 00:28:57.750
from making progress. I think we all understand

00:28:57.750 --> 00:29:00.289
that. At least we should. But the other things

00:29:00.289 --> 00:29:02.369
that we don't talk enough about is every weight.

00:29:02.490 --> 00:29:04.549
He makes a distinction. If all he was talking

00:29:04.549 --> 00:29:06.829
about, if a weight was sin, then he wouldn't

00:29:06.829 --> 00:29:08.670
have said weight. All he would say is lay aside

00:29:08.670 --> 00:29:10.869
the sin. But he said lay aside every weight.

00:29:10.950 --> 00:29:13.829
The weight are not necessarily sins. The weight

00:29:13.829 --> 00:29:16.220
are simply things that we have not... offloaded

00:29:16.220 --> 00:29:19.839
off of our lives. The weights are simply the

00:29:19.839 --> 00:29:22.180
burdens, the cares, the hurts, the pains, the

00:29:22.180 --> 00:29:24.460
frustrations, the disappointments that have been

00:29:24.460 --> 00:29:26.900
placed on our life through one means or another

00:29:26.900 --> 00:29:29.599
that through a process of time we never got rid

00:29:29.599 --> 00:29:32.160
of and eventually it either slowed us down or

00:29:32.160 --> 00:30:04.950
it took us off of our race. And he said, disappointment,

00:30:04.950 --> 00:30:07.569
my shattered dream. I wish somebody would hear

00:30:07.569 --> 00:30:10.369
what I'm saying today. You got to unload those

00:30:10.369 --> 00:30:13.630
things in the name of Jesus because I didn't

00:30:13.630 --> 00:30:16.390
start this race just to quit. I didn't start

00:30:16.390 --> 00:30:21.029
this race just to take that easy or the off ramp,

00:30:21.089 --> 00:30:24.529
the next off ramp. Hallelujah. And so if I got

00:30:24.529 --> 00:30:26.769
to let go of some things, let somebody say, let

00:30:26.769 --> 00:30:40.059
it go. you know