FAITH IN THE MIDST OF FAILURE
ME (INTRO & ORIENTATION) Introduce myself to them and let them get comfortable with me.
25 years of ministry
We planted 7 churches
We have send out and trained hundreds of leaders over the world.
At one stage my podcast was downloaded between 30000-60000 per sermon
But in the midst of this
So no close to five years ago
I got ill while preaching, I had a death experience etc
We were building cash R11 million
But the wheels of the wagon came off…
WE (IDENTIFICATION) Make an emotional connection through what WE are thinking and feeling.
We all want to be successful
We want to be winners
We want to make a difference
Difference between Courage and Discouraged
Pastor Jim preach a sermon many years ago about how to encourage yourself in the Lord
Pastor Russ Austin our North American Apostolic team leader said: You will loose ore in life than you will win
Cheat mode - Comrades marathon years ago Taxi
GOD (ILLUMINATION) Introduce the biblical truth into the discussion
Joshua 1:
6 Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
And so, I just want to encourage you today. What’s been on my heart is through the struggle–we all go through them–realize that God is taking you
maybe to a whole new level in your Christian walk,
maybe to a whole new area in your ministry.
You see the struggle is no time to cry and blame God. That’s the worst thing you can do.
Turn your attention toward God.
God will use anything that the devil sends and He will get good out of it. The struggle is what gives us strength many times. (Applause)
One time a mom and her little boy were out in the back yard and they were looking at this little butterfly. And the little butterfly was struggling to get out of this cocoon. It was so hard and it was so difficult for him. And the little boy was just so impatient. Only his head was out. He was trying to get his wings out of the cocoon. But he couldn’t seem to do it. And it was just taking so long. This little boy said, "Mom can’t we help it? Can’t we make it easy on that butterfly?"
See, he didn’t realize that that’s not the way God had ordained it.
And all of us, and I’m the world’s worst, is we want a quick fix from God. God, we’re in trouble, come zap me with your magic wand. But you know, sometimes it happens like that, maybe when you’re a new Christian.
But as you go on down the road in our Christian walk, many times God wants to see how mature you are. He wants to take you to a new level. He wants to see if you’ll turn your focus completely toward Him. He wants to see if you’ll spend a little more time in studying His Word. Will you find His scriptures? Or are you just going to turn around and remain a baby and just cry and pout in the midst of struggle?
See it’s not always easy; but it’s the struggle that’s giving us strength. And finally, that little boy talked his mom into opening up the cocoon. And sure enough she opened it up with a little knife. And sure enough the little butterfly couldn’t fly. The little boy didn’t realize that God has ordained through the struggle of coming out of the cocoon that the butterfly would push his wings and through that struggle is where he would get his strength.
And many times it’s the same way with us. If we’re going to remain babies all the time, you know, we’re going to whine and cry in the midst of problems. If we’re going to become strong, we’re going to fight life through like daddy said. We’re going to fight through each struggle. In our struggles we’re going to turn our attention more focused toward God and when we come out of it, God is going to have enlarged our vision, enlarged our dream, enlarged us in our time of distress.
You know David was a tremendous example in the Old Testament. David lived quite an adventurous life. But, I wanted to draw your attention to a story about when he lived in Ziklag. He had gathered around him 600 men that were in debt, discouraged, and discontented. And he molded them into a mighty army. And they made their home in the city of Ziklag. And that’s where their wives and families lived. And for several years there he was based out of there and he defended the borders of Israel.
But the Bible gives an account of one certain day they were coming home from a three-day’s journey. They’d been gone three days and they were coming home to Ziklag, all the 600 guys. David was only 29 years old. And I can imagine these 600 men coming home–they’re thrilled. They’ve just been through another victory. And they get maybe 10 miles away from Ziklag and they look up over the horizon and they see some black smoke. And you know maybe their mood changes a little bit. Now all of a sudden they’re a little solemn. They’re wondering "What’s happening over there? That looks like it’s coming from our city." And as they go on, maybe the pace picks up a little bit. And they get closer and they get 2 or 3 miles away and they realize that that’s coming exactly from where their city was, the city of Ziklag. And no doubt the last mile their anxiety turns to panic and they take off running. They take off running to the city. And the Bible gives an account of what they saw. It was a horrible sight. Some raiders, some Amalekites had come in. A band of raiders had come in. And they had destroyed the city. They attacked the city and they had ransacked the city. They had set the city on fire. They kidnapped the women and children. And they had taken all the possessions that they wanted and the rest of the stuff they burned.
It was a dark hour in David’s life. Surely, it must have been the darkest hour. His home was burned, his possessions were gone and his family was kidnapped.
I mean we’ve got problems, but I don’t think any of us have problems like that. Do we? But you know it was a dark hour. And the bible says that David and the men wept until they could weep no more. It was certainly the hour of distress. And to make David’s problems worse, his 600 men began to talk about him. And they said, David, you know, they began to say amongst themselves, they began to murmur. They said, "Why did David bring us out here? Why did David have us leave our city unprotected? It’s David’s fault." And the bible says they talked about stoning David. In David’s darkest hours now his friends turned against him. The same men that he had molded into a mighty army have turned against him. It was the hour of distress. But the decisions that we make in trouble are so very important. And David’s a great one to look at because he had nowhere to go.
His family was gone. His parents were gone. All the people he loved were gone. His own friends turned against him. But do you know what the bible says? The bible says that David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.
1 Sam 30:6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.
It’s so important folks– It’s so important in the hour of distress, don’t bad mouth God. Don’t say why God? Why me? No, get rid of that. Encourage yourself if you have nobody else to help you encourage yourself in the Lord your God.
And I don’t know that this is what happened. But it could have happened that David-- maybe he found his harp somehow. Maybe they didn’t destroy his harp. And he went over amidst the ruins in Ziklag, away from everybody else, and he got alone–just between him and God. He had a new commitment to God. He didn’t start bad mouthing God. No, you know what I believe he did? I believe he began to sing the praises of God. I believe he began to sing how great and how awesome his God was.
But before David could fight, he would have to get his strength and courage back. As David looked around him, he saw nothing but discouraged and downcast men. David had no one to encourage him, so he had only one recourse: He “encouraged himself in the Lord his God” (v. 6, KJV).
How did David praise God? Maybe he sang Psalm 34. I would find it hard to believe that this particular song did not come to David’s mind as he sought to encourage himself. David had written it just two years earlier when God had delivered him from the Philistine king Abimelech.
I mean, maybe he sang Psalm 34."I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth."
He said, "Oh magnify the Lord with me. Let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord and he heard me and he delivered me from all of my fears." You see the example David set? In the worst time of his life, in his greatest hour of distress, I believe he got alone and began to sing how great his God was. He knew God was going to bring him through. He knew God was going to bring him through with a larger vision, with a greater commitment. He knew the power of his God. You know when it talks about, "I will praise the Lord at all times; I will bless the Lord at all times," it means at all times. Not just the good times. Not just the okay times. It means in the darkest hour of your life. You’ve got to be able to lift your hands and just praise God. Praise His faith at work. It drives the devil crazy to praise Him in the midst of a storm. It really does. (Applause)
A Silent Adventure
SEA story and when I gave the church over…
WILL YOU PRAISE ME!!
1 Thess 5; 1-11 But since we belong to the day, let us be self controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet…….. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
2Thess. 2; 16-17 May our Lord Jesus………gave us encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
Heb. 10; 24-25And let us consider……spur..…towards love and good deeds, …..but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
WHY DOES GOD USE COURAGE AND NOT TO BE AFRAID IN THE SAME VERSE:
Because fear comes in a burst
It comes when you least expect it
We know the bigger the promise the bigger the problem
The bigger the destiny it seems the bigger the devil
When God gave them the promiseland, there were not only big grapes, but also big giants
There were not only big promises there were towering walls!!
When you walk into your destiny, when you walk into your promise right in front of you is your biggest giant you have ever seen!!
You see the bigger the giant the bigger the PROMISE
The enemy is trying to cover up!!
You see he trying o block your view of what is right behind you!!
Terror comes in a burst
Fear comes in a wave
Discouragement comes slowly. It cuts YOUR COURAGE AWAY!!!
It cuts your hope away
It cuts your boldness away
The effect is the same the paralysis you instantly while the other does its bit by bit
What does it mean to be discouraged it means your courage have been cut away!!
Your ability to face problems is cut away!!
YOU SEE THE ENEMY WANTS TO WIPE OUT YOUR COURAGE
HE WANTS TO SEE YOU PARALYZED
He want you to quit
The closer you get to the moment of destiny
The moment of power
The enemy paralyses you!!!
YOU (APPLICATION) What are you going to do about it? The challenge
Proverbs 24:16 -
For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.
Don’t Quit.”
When things go wrong as they sometimes will
When the road you are trudging seems all uphill
When the funds are low and the debts are high
When you want to smile but you have to sigh
When cares are pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must BUT DON’T QUIT.
Life is strange with its twists and turns
As all of us sometimes learns
And many a failure turns about
When you might have won, if you had just stuck it out.
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow
You might succeed with the next blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems a faint to a faltering man
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have won the victor’s cup
And he learned too late with a groan and a frown
Just how close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt
You can never tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when hardest hit
It’s when things seem the worst that YOU MUST NOT QUIT
(Source: Author Unknown)
