Every week I take time to wait on the Lord and
for this for these moments, for what he wants
to do in the house corporately. And this week
was incredibly intense of the pressures and the
atmosphere. And I was in some ways almost beside
myself. But Lord, what am I feeling? What are
we resisting? What is resisting us? And of course,
I do my best to get in alignment with the spirit
of God and in my Bible and finding scriptures.
And of course, I have things that I write and
inspiration. I believe the Holy Spirit comes
on me. I know it's not, it's illumination from
what's in his word. But I woke up this morning
early. I just had a sense. I said, Lord, you're
going to do something different today, huh? You
know, you can always tell me in advance so I'm
not spending two days laboring. Anyway, I'm very,
very grateful that the Spirit of God visits us.
And I'm grateful that we have a leadership team
and people who desire to have them moving. When
I say moving, it doesn't mean like God's got
a U -Haul. It means that he's living and active
and bringing his kingdom and his love and all
that he is, not only to us as a body, but to
us individually. There's some of you that God
spoke to this morning that you didn't even, Respond,
but God met you where you were at. There's a
lot that we have to share today, a lot that I
believe that the Lord is wanting to do that he's
already started. I want to, if you'll allow me,
to pick up where we left off last week, and that
is I want to touch again for a bit. Today is
going to have, again, two messages. think of
these fast weeks instead of a rifle, just think
of two barrels of a shotgun. There's cartridges
in each one. I want to first kind of get to what
I believe the Lord prompted me to speak on on
prayer and fasting. And then I want to get to
our river bank update. And we have some video
and we have some updates and we want to begin.
the process of what we started last week. So
would you turn your attention to the screen as
we talk about prayer and fasting? Thank you,
Jackie, for coming up. Thank you. Would you tell
Sonny and Stephanie and the team that they did
a great job of worship this morning? I know when
the Spirit of the Lord moves, it's very difficult
for all of their lists that they planned. It's
the same way with my message. I know their pain,
hallelujah. You have a list that you see how
it's gonna end and then Lord just kinda takes
it and moves it and that's the whole goal. Psalms
119, verse 10. This is the theme of where we're
at right now as a church. With my whole heart,
I seek you. Could you just say that verse with
me? Come on, you're actually gonna memorize a
verse in church this morning. Psalm 119, 10.
With my whole heart, I seek you. One more time.
With my whole heart, I seek you. And then Luke
11, 10. For everyone who asks, receives. And
the one who seeks, finds. And the one who knocks,
it will be opened. Church, do you believe that?
The Lord is wanting us not only to pursue him,
But the goal of that pursuit is that those who
do, those who give themselves in spiritual pursuit.
Now, as Tiffany was up here and she was navigating
the announcements and then giving the offering
scriptures, she talked about this fighting. Let
me just give a little caveat. She wasn't wrong,
but let me just make sure you understand. This
is not in the physical. You don't get to punch
somebody in the nose and say, in Jesus name.
Okay, that is not what she's suggesting. She's
talking about the reality of your faith. Your
faith, right? The weapons of our war are mighty
in God, Ephesians 6, for pulling down strongholds
and every, that's actually 2 Corinthians 10,
three and four, and every argument that exalts
itself against. The written word and the knowledge
of God. That's what you're fighting. Faith is
a violent tool in the spirit for God. That's
why he says the kingdom of God is advancing and
those who are of faith are pressing into it.
It's violence. It's the violence of faith. Not
violence as in carnage. and bloodshed in the
natural, but the fact of apprehending and breaking
through the crust of worldly arguments, worldly
resistance, restraints that are both felt, seen,
because our eyes are not on the natural, but
that which is heavenly and bringing that realm,
partnering with it to bring it to pass, releasing
the kingdom of God. So in that process, God is
saying, listen, those who pursue me, those who
will seek me. The goal of pursuit is you will
find me. Not that I've been anywhere, but it's
in the places where you've been stuck. For most
of us in this room, some are brand new to Jesus
and we're always wanting to. Bring those that
are new to Christ into that process. He said,
make disciples of all men. The door is the cross
and the yielding to the Spirit of God. Then it's
what? Learning to know Jesus. Understanding Jesus.
Jesus growing inside of you. Jesus maturing you.
And that's the journey through the rest of our
lives. And Jesus getting out of you, Lord, to
help and release his kingdom. Isn't that the
whole goal? Make disciples of all nations, teaching
them all things to observe in my namesake. Yeah,
I got one amen. Yeah, that's the Bible. Okay,
just so you know, that's the scripture. So the
process is you pursue him to find him. Well,
when you're brand new, yes, that's the first
door. But do you understand that door? doesn't
mean you have to get resaved, but that door stays
open over every area of your life if you choose
to pursue him. So whatever situation and season
you're dealing with, whatever circumstance is,
it's the pursuit of God in that circumstance
that he wants to let you find him in that arena.
So I don't know about you, but I've been walking
with Jesus now almost. It's almost going to be
48 years walking with the Lord. And I got saved
at eight. My dad wasn't sure, but it really did
happen. But the reality is for 48 different years,
there have been doors that weren't salvation
issues for me. They were hearing the king issues
for me where I was stuck. And how many know in
the journey, we're facing a stuck moment. And
yet there's only one door to go through. It's
to pursue him, his voice, his counsel, his will,
and to grab a hold and get from him direction,
wisdom, provision. Why? That is the journey for
every one of us. So the pursuit of the Lord does
what? I'll just put these on the screen. The
pursuit of the Lord is what? He gives answers.
God answers. He gives insight. He brings perspective
that you didn't think of. He gives you strength
in the midst of where you feel like you are just
flatlined. He brings hope. Hope for. something
to change brings courage to do what the moment
requires. Courage to do what the moment requires,
then he brings restoration and divine provision
to accomplish it. Sometimes he brings people.
Sometimes he brings tangible things. When we
started these 21 days of fasting, many of you
have... jumped on board. But if you say, well,
I missed the 21 days. Oh no, you haven't. The
word of the Lord for you today is there's 14
more. Hallelujah. Come on. Come on. Yes. And
I've, I've got people driving up and down the
streets of junction, looking at the McDonald's,
making sure you're not in there. No, I'm just
kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. The reality
is, this is a time for us to rally together in
unity around the purpose because we want breakthrough
for us as a church, but we want breakthrough
for one another and our brothers and our sisters.
Because listen, there are real hurts, there are
real needs, there are real impasses that we're
asking God to help with. I mean, I probably,
Because of what God's allowed me to do here as
a senior leader, I get to hear all of the stuff
that every team, from pastors to restoration
leaders to men's groups, women's groups to life
groups, the issues that are serious come to my
table and I get to hear it. And my job is to
pray and ask God for wisdom on how to respond.
And I only know a bit of all that the Lord sees
in our lives. But I do know if there was ever
a time that we needed him to dissolve some rocks,
to remove some boulders, to bring things where
our minds have come to a final judgment, the
word of the Lord today was, do not bite down
on that judgment. I'm the God. Who resurrects.
So what are we in? We're in a now season. All
we need is who God is. All we need is what he
has promised. And I believe that the Lord has
spoken to me and I want to release the word.
I didn't release it last week. I gave you in
both the first service I shared something of
my time away from the Lord. In second service
I shared something that was from the time away
but totally different. But I held back this word
because I believed it was for this Sunday. And
the Lord began to speak to me about his nature
as a prevailing God. He prevails. He wins. It's
the theme of our upcoming life conference at
the end of this fast, the prevailing church.
But if you just put it on the church, you forget
that he's talking about you. So we could have
said the prevailing ones. The prevailing ones
make up the prevailing church. And I heard the,
let me just define prevail. Prevail includes
words like, English words like continuance, tenacity,
patience, stamina, perseverance and persistence.
We're calling on the God who does not just exist.
but he's a God who prevails in all things. All
things. There's not an area that God does not
prevail in. And it's the Lord who's inviting
us, and this is key, he's inviting us to prevail
with him, together with him. Because you can't
prevail outside of him. That's what this time
of prayer and fasting is about, is prepping us
to do. And here's what I heard the word of the
Lord speak to me on January 7th as I was waiting
on the Lord. He said to me this, look to me and
lift up your eyes and heart to see what is before
you. The world that is around you is dark, fearful,
and hopeless. Surrounded and filled by chaos
and destruction. But I am light and I am the
life. And the light of life is in me. I am hope
and peace and love. And I reward faith and those
who stay in faith. And then he changed the tenor
of the tune and he said, I break the plays. and
I scramble the plans of the thought out ways
of man. And all I could see, because that's how
the Lord speaks to me as he gives me a vision
while he's talking to me, all I could see was
the broken play on the football field where all
of a sudden you couldn't read what was coming
and what you had planned all of a sudden had
to take an option because the Lord was doing
an option. with the church and with his people
that couldn't just be drawn out. He scrambles
things. How many know that? He can scramble the
plans of the enemy. He can scramble the plans
of man. It's the Lord. We have scriptures filled
with that where the Bible says man has a way
that he wants to walk, but it's the Lord that
gives the direct path, right? So he said, I break
plays, I scramble plans and the thought out ways
of man. I determine correct paths. For I have
preordained plans and purposes. Hear the spirit
of the Lord speaking in your ear. I am the prevailing
God. I am the prevailing one. I have prevailed.
I am the prevailing one and I will prevail. There
is no other like me. There is no other God like
me. I am the Lord most high. I am the Lord almighty.
Now take your stand with me. Stand with me. Stand
in me. Stand with me and stand in faith. Watch
and see my prevailing power, grace, and provision.
Walk with me. Stay in faith. Believe and respond
to me in faith. For as I prevail, so shall you
prevail. And so shall this house prevail as you
stand with me, says the Lord. Now that's simple,
but it was so, I want to say the voice of the
Lord was almost deafening. I could not hear anything
else. It was clean and crisp. and loud in my
spirit. And so why? Why are we praying and fasting?
Well, because I know myself, and I think I have
a nature kind of like yours. I know I'm weird
and probably worse than all of y 'all. But the
reality is, I need to be reminded that this life
Has to be lived in faith. And once I take a step
in faith. I have to stand in it. And do all that
I can to stay in it. Having done all. What does
the scripture say? Stand. Now I thought it was
interesting. That the person that had the encounter.
Saw that the armor of the Lord was presented.
Because that's exactly what the scripture says.
Having done all, stand. Put on the full armor
of God that you may be able to stand. It's not
talking about just standing in regular knowledge.
It's not talking about standing in just the logos
of knowledge. It's standing in the place of faith
that actually cost you to step in to the fray
as you are now encountering the place of where
you're stuck. I think that's the revelation that
people need to understand. We're so easily quote
that scripture thinking, well, we just have to
stand against just the regular onslaught. Yeah,
we do. But that's not what the apostle Paul was
addressing in Ephesians. He was addressing the
direct warfare that was coming against the church
of Ephesus. And that's why out of all the scriptures
in every church he wrote to, he specifically
wrote it to Ephesus who was standing against
an enemy onslaught of one of the greatest, if
you will, and I don't mean to lift it up, but
in that time, he was standing against the God
of Artemis who had built its temple and its worshipers
around the world. They were fighting that atmosphere.
That's the context. And if you want to get the
further context, read Acts chapter 16, specifically
17 through 19. where Paul is writing in the book
of Acts, Luke is writing the account of what
Paul was dealing with as he wrote this letter
to the Ephesians. Now, standing in faith in the
midst now of things that are contrary, that seem
immovable, that seem impossible. That's why we
need prayer and fasting. Because at this point,
I've got, I got 12 pages. We're not gonna get
to this. We might have part three next week.
We'll just see. But this is the part that I felt
like the Lord highlighted as fresh illumination
for us today as we get ready to transition to
our topic on the river. Prayer in fasting is
key at this moment because the thing that he
wants, our needs are met and our first need that
needs to be met if you're anything like me, is
that you need to be assured that what you've
stepped in faith in, he's actually spoken to
you to do. And he assures you in that fellowship
that you are in his will and you are contending
according to his purpose. Because if you don't
have that, you'll start questioning it. You'll
start doubting. And then, It'll be like a bad
battery. Sometimes you'll have a charge and sometimes
you won't. Sometimes it'll, have you ever jiggled
the connectors on the battery and you got it
to start? You just drove it, you let it sit and
all of a sudden, click, click, click, click,
click. How did that happen? There was a loose
connection. Times of prayer and fasting does
what? It connects you to the source. That reminds
you to do and to stay in with what he encouraged
you to step out with. Why? He's the author of
that idea or that place of what you're contending
for. And that, what do we call that? We call
that fellowship. We have a different idea of
fellowship in the natural. But there is a spiritual
fellowship that takes place. that oftentimes
we don't go until we get into a place of faith,
and that's when we need the conversation with
the Lord in our heart. It's not just saying words
or repeating some phrases of repetition in prayer.
That has nothing to do with anything. This is
what we're talking about here in times of prayer
and fasting is real communication of being honest
with our heart's condition, our emotion, and
the situations we're facing. should be made in
states of vulnerability and in those places of
vulnerability it's made when we're really praying
to the Lord it's made in a place where our heart
is exposed to him and we're not covering our
heart to try to seem religious we're being very
real with the situation that we're facing and
the turbulence in our own heart about it. Prayer
is our spiritual connection to the Lord, who
is God and who is father, who is love, who is
compassion, who is mercy, grace, light, and truth.
And the key to prayer in this season is the drawing
near part. This is the special part when we say
we are setting time to pray and fast. We're not
setting time to Jenny Craig it. We're not setting
time to have a diet plan. Although it's working
for me, but I don't like it, that part. The whole
point is I'm setting time to draw near in a greater
place of vulnerability in seeking him. Not just
in seeking him that there's passion and pursuit
of it, but in me, it reveals areas that have
not, maybe I have just haven't been vulnerable
in. If I don't understand the drawing near part
and I miss this most important ingredient to
that type of prayer, I will miss this important
ingredient that actually then. gives me power
and strength for other types of prayer. You see,
let me just say it. Fasting and prayer moments
of drawing near have fellowship with God and
his spirit, which I'm supposed to hear and I'm
supposed to have, I pray for veils of my eyes
to be open, pray for my ears to have everything
dead cut away so I would hear that my heart would
receive. any area that he wanted to deal with
where I would be real and raw. It's not professionalism.
It's getting vulnerable and talking to the one
who knows me in and out. And yet it's that process
that he wants to step into with you and me. And
if I don't get that process, then what I'm losing
is I'm losing an element. of how then I'm supposed
to be operating in other prayers. What other
prayers? Other prayers like intercession for
others. When it doesn't affect me, but it affects
them. If I don't have that place tuned, dialed,
and filled with his power and presence, I actually
do a disservice, even though they may not know
it, because I've actually not been in the presence
to actually pray for them. Praying for healing,
praying for deliverance, praying for breakthrough.
It comes from these moments when I get together
with the Lord and we do business in here. It
helps me do business out there. The single most
important aspect of prayer is drawing near to
fellowship with the one who already knows us.
And let me just give you this scripture. First
John. First John 1. verses one through four,
I want you to listen how the apostle John writes
this. That which was from the beginning, which
we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes,
which we looked upon and have touched with our
hands concerning the word of life. Stop. Now,
if you understand the gospel that John wrote
first, first John is letters to the church. The
gospel of John is the account. of Jesus's ministry.
And as John was writing that about his time with
Jesus in the three and a half years, what was
John's opening line in the gospel of John? In
the beginning was the word of God. The word came
forth from God. The word came and was made flesh
and we beheld him and we handled him, right?
I'm paraphrasing, but that was the nature. That's
right in the first eight verses he describes
it. Now he's writing to the churches and he's
reminding them. Many, many, many years later,
some people say 40 plus years later, he's now
writing this letter to the church. And what does
he do? In the beginning, that which we heard,
that which we've seen with our eyes, that which
we looked upon, that which we touch with our
hands, concerning the word of life. So he's calling
Jesus what? The word of life. Why is that so
important? Because when you go to prayer, you
are not just listening. to something that is
wrote or practiced. You're listening to the word
of life himself. That's why it was so important
today as the word of the Lord came into this
place saying, I am the resurrection life. Why?
That word is still living, active, and alive.
My goodness, I get excited. All right, calm down.
And he says concerning the word of life, the
life was made manifest and we have seen it and
we testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal
life which was with the Father and was made manifest
to us which we have seen and heard. We proclaim
to you that you too may have fellowship with
us. And indeed, here it is. Our fellowship is
with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
So the goal is twofold. The goal of what God
is doing is that you would know the word of life,
the one who was the word came forth. out of the
Father as the word that was made flesh, that
took on human form, that paid for our sin and
rose again. That living word of life is meant
to know Jesus. He sent his Holy Spirit to remind
you of his word and to make his word personal
in your life. And with that, everyone that he
draws to himself, everyone that he saves, everyone
that he knows now, his goal is that they would
have common fellowship around who he is, his
nature, his character, his will, his purpose,
and that you would be filled with his love in
doing those things. As much as we do those things,
our goal in all of it is that you would have
fellowship with father and son and that you would
hear him personally. So there is a will of God
that is extended to his body that's very clear.
That we can know and discern the will of God.
to make disciples of all men. He's building his
church. He's building people. He's building bodies
of Christ. He's set in elders in every city,
every place where God is. He's still doing that.
He's still planting churches. He's still extending
the kingdom. But in the midst of it, he is also
developing and trying to deepen you that you
would have fellowship with the Father and the
Son. I know this is simple, but it is profound
because the only way you go deeper in that is
that you have to have times where you set aside
the things that have become routine to get vulnerable
with the Spirit of God. The areas that have become
common and blocked you get removed. The little
perspectives, that's why it was so important
this morning, little stones that begin, it can
divert the stream of your heart. The whole point
is to remove the rocks that you would stay in
the flow of the Spirit. And that's what that
word fellowship is, the word koinonia. And it
means partnership, participation, interacting
socially. Just as much as that is fellowship
this way, the same word is fellowship this way.
The American church has a problem with fellowship
this way. Most all church services in Western
America try to deal with three points, three
little how -tos, and try to get you to fellowship
on this way. Very few actually dig in and dive
to get you to have fellowship this way. And the
issue is it's supposed to be both. That's why
it says they continued in the apostles' doctrine
to know what the will of God is and they broke
bread house to house. It's both. There's fellowships
and groups and getting into people's lives and
ministering to one another. It's absolutely essential.
Ministering to the community. Ministering to
the hopeless. Absolutely there has to be a stream.
But if you don't have this stream, this turns
into a soul -led perspective. because then everyone
does what's right in their own eyes with the
ministry they think is important rather than
actually connecting of ministering to him personally.
Are you there? All right. I'm gonna close that
part. Can you just say amen? Okay, you can come
to church today, say I got preached a message.
And now to the church. Second course. Can we
do that? All right. I would like some more time.
Let me get here. Raise the wall. Arise and build.
That's the theme that we believe that the Lord
has directed us to. The scripture is Nehemiah
chapter 2, 18b. Let us rise and build, and then
they set their hands to do this good work. We're
saying, let us rise and build, and then we will
set our hands to do this good work. I'd like
you to take a look as we have a video, the video
that is the one that I've made, James, that you
shot on the riverbank. Let's show that right
now, if we can. Church family, MFI family, Brad
Neuschwander from Life Bible Church here, coming
to you right on the bank of the Willamette River.
What you're seeing behind me is a massive pile
driving machine and crane. that is getting ready
to start operating tomorrow morning as we are
putting in a 500 -foot steel wall, Z -pile, to
save the buildings and the riverbank. All of
the geologists and people we've had out said
if we don't do something within this year, we
won't have any buildings. As you can say, this
is our youth. It has our commercial kitchen and
the motel that we purchased this property 12
years ago is all being threatened on this end.
And just south of us, we have lost over 40 feet.
There used to be a giant oak tree, a full patio,
fire pit. You can see sidewalks gone, landscaping,
of course. Those all can be replaced. But buildings
and property and land can't be replaced as over
the last... 18 years, we have lost almost 100
feet of property. We're standing on a $2 .25
million project that I'm just presenting now
to our congregation because we were told no for
two and a half years. Our city finally has intervened
and said, we'll give you a window and you have
to be within 20 feet of the river. I want to
thank you for partnering in prayer. Your prayers,
your contacts of people that you might know.
We've tried legislators, senators. We've gone
from the state houses even to our national houses.
We're just believing God to do a miracle through
his people and bring resources that we know not
of. Thank you. Thank you for partnering with
us. Thank you, church family and MFI family,
for being willing to partner with Jenny and I
and our whole church eldership team and church
body. In this moment of crisis for us. We love
you. Thank you very much. Of course James didn't
tell me that my mustache was crooked. But anyway.
The only thing I can watch is why is it crooked.
Anyway. Apparently I didn't have a makeup crew,
but hallelujah. All right. As I stand before
you this morning, I'm doing something that I
don't like to do. When I talk about finances,
when I talk about what the Lord does, I like
to do things on the basis of principle. And the
things that we've... instituted, if you will,
in the culture of Life Bible Church have all
come from the revelations of the scripture and
why we do what we do and how we steward finances.
And if you know anything about me, maybe you're
new to Life Bible Church, I am a good little
German boy in the fact of I like plans and I
like order. I don't know. I can shoot from the
hip prophetically and people say, how does that
possible that you, you've always lived like you're
on the seat of your pants? Yeah. But when it
comes to finances, I don't live that way. You
can ask my wife. I have things budgeted and planned
out five, five year increments, seven year increments,
10 year increments. And it kind of drives her
nuts because I recognize in my life I probably
have more time than I have money. Now, I want
God to bless me and I want to increase those
things, but I also have to have a plan. I'm a
budgeter. I'm a planner. I'm a guy that likes
to take things and just, all right, here's how
we eat this thing one bite at a time. So to be
forced into an area. that I'm faced here is not
something that I relish or even want to do, but
it is something that I believe that I am supposed
to do and that God doesn't really care how I
like things. Now, I don't like that either, but
that is just the way it is. And so I am coming
to us saying we have an urgency. You've heard
me say we have a $2 .25 million project. That
is the scope of the whole The beautiful thing,
as I said last week, the city of Harrisburg,
the city council, the city administrator, out
of all the times we've rejected by every other
organization, this plan that was come up with
TVP Engineering and given to the city, this is
our only shot at this because as you can see,
We barely have enough land to get that machine
in to hold its weight and to keep 20 feet back.
Once that 20 foot mark would erode and we don't
have a wall there, we will not be able to do
anything on our own land. So the time is now.
Fact is, they told me when we got back from our
time of just being away, the week as we got here,
he said, I want to show you this because I need
you to see the urgency. On the south end of the
corner, our general maintenance guy had cut the
tarp where our patio bricks back within an inch
of the edge so that it would not flap and all
that tarp that we put on those patio bricks that
we had to remove. He cut it back to about an
inch, inch and a half. It now has another seven
feet of whip in the wind. So just seven feet
of land in that corner has eroded in three weeks.
That gives you an idea of the rapidness that
I'm saying this with urgency. So what did we
have to do? By faith, we had to, as an eldership
team, we had to sign contracts. and we had to
make a decision. Lord, are you bringing? Is this
our answer? For two and a half years, is this
our answer? And we believed as a leadership team,
it was. And we still believe that. We believe
that this was a God moment, that God sent that
engineering firm, that God sent that man and
that team that are working with us, and that
it is a God moment. Do I ever like the price?
No. If you know anything about me, I don't usually
settle on the first price. Because that's how
my dad raised me. And if you want to find out
how deep not accepting the first price is, just
talk to him. He's on the second row. The reality
is we try to be great stewards of everything
that comes here. And this price that we have
received. is an incredible price. Compared to
what everybody else has quoted us between six
and eight million, all the other engineering
firms and all the other things, this price is
in essence a third. And I believe if I'm just
saying this, I say it in faith and with truth,
that is a miracle price for us. Does it seem
staggering? Yeah, to our natural minds, it does.
But To God, it's not. And so we have to write
checks about every 30 days in the amount of about
700 ,000, just doing rough figures. That just
makes you go weak in the knees a little bit.
It's staggering, but we've stepped into faith
now. We've stepped in as a, not just a leadership
team, but as a congregation. And here's our part.
Here's how the math works. And this is the simplest
way I can put it to us. There is 500 feet of
bank, 500 feet of river bank, plus a little more
than that, but for numbers sake, because I just
like things simple. Every one of those steel
pilings, and James, I don't know if we can, can
we do some more drone footage? And let's watch
this video as you see the 500, you see the beginning
of the wall. That is the line of where the wall
is going to be. That crimson cord that we laid
out is almost exactly where the wall is going.
And there you see, one, two, three, four, five,
six, seven, seven or eight piles that have been
driven in already in the ground. Getting some
live footage there. You see them lifting up on
the right -hand side there. That's a full 56
-foot piece of steel that's being moved into
place even right now on this video. You can see
where the bank has eroded. You see them moving
and setting I -beams to begin to just have a
place and a guide to put those in. All right,
so those steel pilings right there, those steel
pilings are basically bent to create like a W.
So you got half of a W and a half of a W and
then they join together at the end and then another
W. So it becomes kind of a corrugated, wall all
along. Each one of those sections or pieces of
steel represent a foot. And so by the time they're
bent, even though they're larger than a foot,
by the time they bend, they're a foot in, I guess,
linear feet. And so two pieces make one piece.
That means two feet. So one section, if we could
put my equation back on now, 500 pieces. at one
foot of 500 pieces of river bank with 2 .25 million,
and this is just good old German Mennonite math,
equals $4 ,500 per piece. That's what it costs.
We got 500 of those to raise at $4 ,500 a piece.
So that's what I'm placing before you. I'm reminding
you of Exodus 35, verses 21 and 22. It says,
and those whose hearts were stirred and those
whose spirits were moved came and brought and
sacrificed their offerings to the Lord. Both
men and women came, all whose hearts are willing.
Just a moment now, I'm gonna have the ushers
come forward and they're gonna give us some raise
the wall, arise and build commitment cards. I'm
asking you. to take a card per family, or you
can take as many cards as you want. That'd be
awesome. And there are different levels of commitment
that you might be willing to do. I'm asking you
to pray. It's not a sense that I wish that we
could plan two years and just figure out how
we're going to do this in incremental steps.
We may have to adjust that in time, but the point
is, in the next 20 to 30 days, God's got to provide
another $700 ,000. And then he has to do it again.
And I think there's scriptures where God fed
the multitude several times, right? So we have
great biblical basis to do that. As you get that
card, if you know what you're supposed to do,
great. Fill it out and get your seed in the ground.
Here's what we're going to do. If we could put
the graph on the screen for me, please. Deanna
and James are working together. And as she gets
things, we don't see amounts that people do and
what they give individually, she does. And then
she's gonna say, okay, you can add another X
amount of money to our graph. So this is the
graph that we're gonna start showing every week
right now already, which is an absolute, I wanna
give praise to God. Between $75 ,000 and $80
,000 have already come in and I haven't even
talked about that. So let's just give the Lord
a thank offering for that. That is awesome. The
fact is, I want to just say I got a text this
morning. I sent that video to our MFI family.
I've had several texts this morning say, Brad,
we're standing with you in prayer. We've just
sent a check. We're standing with you at help.
I'm telling you the body of Christ. is incredible.
We've had another church that wrote us a five
figure check already just to help. I want you
to know that we're not alone in this. Obviously
we know that, but God is doing some miraculous
things. So every, every time we meet a percentage
of that 2 .25 million, you're going to see a
little. Now, James couldn't make 500 little bars.
So he's cutting it by one fifth. There's a hundred
bars up there. So we can just do the math divided
by five and you'll see the bar. But every time
we do that, we'll put that up on the screen.
We're going to keep track of what gifts have
come in outside of the body of Christ percentage.
You're not going to know who gave them. And we're
going to keep track of what the body of Christ
is doing among us. We'll keep track of that.
I want everybody to be in on this process. There
is nothing hidden. Everything is being open.
There is full transparency. We've got to see
God do a miracle. But I'm believing as we've
all stepped into this place, the Lord is going
to speak to you about what he wants you or your
family to do. Now, as I sat down late last night
and I was here after dark and I prayed up and
down the river and I was... just putting thoughts
down to what the Lord wanted me to say today
in this portion. I felt like the Lord said, I
want you to remind them of things. And here's
what he reminded me. He said, there's some that
have stored silver and some that have stored
gold and some that have stored precious metal
and crypto. Is this not the time, says the Lord?
Is this not a time of why I've allowed those
to increase in your hand? And I would just humbly
present that to you, to myself, to those that
happen to have those type of resources, that
that may be something that you would take out
of. And Deanna is at a conference right now,
but I told her, I said, you need to be ready.
I don't know who owns crypto. I care. I bless
you. But now's the time to decryptify yourself
in Jesus' name. You know, however it is, we'll
make sure that the gift is tax deductible because
this project is all tax deductible and we'll
make sure letters get written and you'll come
on your tax receipts. But we are standing at
a moment where we need the Lord to move through
us and beyond us. Amen. Would you allow me just
to pray over you and to pray over these cards
and just. See what the Lord would do as he stirs
our hearts and our faith. Father, in Jesus' name.
Lord, we're standing at a pivotal moment. We're
standing at a pivotal moment. Calvin, if you'd
come, you had a word. I want you to come and
give that word right after I pray. We're standing
at a pivotal moment. Lord, you spoke to me this
morning. Someone handed me a watch. And you said
immediately, I heard the Spirit of the Lord say,
this is a new time for this church. You're stepping
into a new time that I am increasing your understanding
of life in the Spirit. So Father, I pray for
faith. I pray for a release of courage. And I
pray for miracles. Lord, let the miracle, as
you said in Exodus, blessed will you be in your
bowl and blessed will be your bread. Lord, let
the bread multiply even as we give. Let it multiply.
Let it be supernatural. Let provision come that
is unheard of in Jesus' name. I now say in Jesus'
name, let your favor be upon your people. who
are calling now on your name. Calvin. The Lord's
just been really impressing upon my heart how
absolutely crazy, crazy is good in my world,
how absolutely crazy good it is that every pile
of that wall is being driven in the season of
the fast. And this morning, as we were in the
prayer room, the Lord gave me this picture. I
was in the airport this week and I saw a currency
exchange. And he gave me this picture of a currency
exchange and the gate rolling up. And he said,
Calvin, for our church, that we are not building
a wall. We are building a bridge, a bridge to
a new season. And that God is exchanging the
currency in this body and in the kingdom of God
right now into a new season. And every physical
thing that we spend is the currency in which
we build the kingdom with. And there is something
shifting. There is something moving. There is
something when that last pile goes in the ground,
God is declaring a new season over this place
and a new season over his people. And I just
declare to you today that many of you were at
the altar today, you were giving stuff. Your
stuff was, as you watch those piles go in, it
takes a lot of force to drive them down, but
everything on them gets peeled off as they go
in. It just gets peeled off. And today it's good
news for the church because everything you are
giving this morning, everything you're going
to be giving in this days ahead, it's all not
giving a one way thing with God. It is an exchange
and he is exchanging something that you're giving
for something that you can't believe. And it's
going to cost you something, but it's going to
give you so much more. So let's just get a hold
of that in the kingdom and let's begin to take
on this kingdom of exchange, this exchange for
the physical. Listen to the Holy Spirit. Get
in a place of faith. It's urgent. But we want
you to hear the Lord. And next week we'll receive
some of those cards. We're going to just let
them come in. And let's just do this together
as a family. Thank you for taking the time to
listen to this week's message. We are so grateful
for those who tune in each week. and have given
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send us a text message at 541 -625 -1365. We
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