How Long Will You Falter Between Two Opinions

So last week we talked about Elijah and the different times of your life. Um you know the brook chair time and when God tell dries your brook and then when God sends you to Sarapath. One thing I didn't really touch on though is there are times when everything goes huge and you're in the middle middle of God's will and it's just all clicking. That's your Mount Carmel victory time.

Okay? And that's what we're gonna study today is Elijah's Mount Carmel victory. And we're going to see what we can learn from that about about trusting God, etc. We we just read a lot of a lot of or sang a lot of songs about trusting God.

We're going to learn what that means here from the life of Elijah. So after he was sent to Zerapath and that's where we left off last week, he was uh with the widow and every day they came in and they got their food and their oil and and uh they made it through. That was the total time that there was a drought on the land was about three three and a half years according to James. Right?

So, that's a long time uh for there to be a drought. And then God at the beginning of chapter 18 in First Kings tells him to go to Ahab because he's going to end the drought. Okay? And um Ahab was the king at the time who had brought um idol worship in through marrying Jezebel.

And then they brought all the idol worship into to um Israelites and they all and they all um turned away from God. And so here we are. We're going to pick up the story in first Kings 18 verses 17-4. And I'm just going to read.

Then it happened when Ahab saw Elijah that Ahab said to him, "Is that you, oh troubler of Israel?" And he answered, "I have not troubled Israel, but you in your father's house have in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the baales. Now therefore, send Baal was the idol." Okay, the idol worship.

Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the 450 prophets of Baal, and the 400 prophets of Ashira, who eat at Jezebel's table. So Ahab went sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people and said, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him.

If Baal, follow him." But the people answered him, not a word. Then Elijah said to the people, I alone am left, a prophet of the Lord. But Baal's prophets are 450 men.

Therefore, let them give us two bulls, and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it, and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under it. Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord. And the God who answers by fire, he is God." So all the people answered, "Wow, that's well spoken."

Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one bolt for yourself and prepare it first." So he's basically saying, "You guys go first." Okay. And for you are many and call on the name of your God, but put no fire under it.

So they took the bowl which was given to them and they prepared it and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, "Oh Baal, hear us." But there was no voice. No one answered. Then they leapt about the altar which they had made.

And so [snorts] it was at noon that Elijah mocked them. He begins to taunt them and says, "Cry aloud for he is a god. either he's meditating or he's busy or he's on a journey or perhaps he's sleeping and must be awakened. And so they cried aloud and cut themselves as was their custom with knives and lances until blood gushed out.

And when midday was passed, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice which about 3:00. But there was no voice. No one answered. No one paid attention.

Then Elijah called all the people, "Come near to me." So all the people came near, and he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. And Elijah took 12 stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, "Israel shall be your name." Then with the stones, he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he made a trench around it, the altar large enough to hold two seas of seed.

And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces. [clears throat] Where am I? Uh, and then pour water on the burnt sacrifices on the wood. Then he said, "Do it a second time."

And they did it a second time. And he said, "Do it a third time." time and they did it a third time. You know that there's a drought on the land, right?

And he has them pour all this water on there. What amazes me as I read that is the fact that they listen to him. You know, he must have they the respect they had for him because he's the guy who called the drought was obviously pretty pretty impressive. Okay.

And it came to pass at the time of the evening of the offering of the evening sacrifice that Elijah the prophet came near and said,"Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. Let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and I am your servant and that I've done all these things at your word. Hear me, oh Lord. Hear me that this people may know that you are the Lord God and that you have turned their hearts back to you again."

Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and it licked up the water that was in the trench. You can imagine like the flames were looked like giant tongues of flame licking up the water. Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and they said, "The Lord, he is God. The Lord, he is God."

And Elijah said to them, "Size the prophets of Baal and do not let one of them escape." So they seized them and Elijah brought them down to the brook Keon and executed them there. So man, I love that passage of scripture. First Kings 17 and 18 is just the bomb.

In America today, there are lots of different religions, okay? There's Muslims, there's Buddhists, there's atheists who don't claim any religion, right? But Christians, our Lord's supposed to be Jesus Christ, right? [snorts] But there Jesus, he is Lord.

But [sighs] amongst Christians, there's a new idol that's risen up in America today. Okay? Hey, do you know what that idol is? It's the It's me.

It's us. It's the disease, what I call the disease of me. And it's even infiltrated the church. Church is about entertainment, making people feel good for a moment so they'll come back.

Okay. The messages are, you know, put vision boards out there and and dream big dreams and nothing's too big for your God and and and you know, just put big hairy audacious goals out there and all these other things. I've read all these books, okay? I used to I used to before I got saved, I was all into success books and everything and it's the same thing just taught with God.

Okay? There was a time that I actually thought, man, I should write these success principles as God principles because that's really as the more I learned about the lesson, the more I was like, whatever. Okay, just but think about it. When you're out there and you're, you know, praying for these big things for you, who's the focus of the deal?

It's you. What you're being taught, what we're being taught is put it out there what you want and then God's gonna give it to you as if he's at your beck and call. But Christians are supposed to be focused on God, not us. Okay?

That's supposed to be the focus. And the world systems, the technology, they're all focused on you. The advertisers try to make you feel unhappy with weight and all these other things so that what you'll buy their thing and buy their whatever product ompic or whatever you know [clears throat] everything's about you and that's a tool of the devil. The devil's number one tool is to keep us so busy, so running around, so whatever that we don't have time for that relationship with God.

The devil's fine with you coming to church on Sunday as long as he's in your box on Sunday and then you leave that church and the rest of the week you're rushing, frantic, and forgetting about God. Okay? Hence the notebooks today. I want you guys to write stuff down and remember some of the stuff.

I've got some notes for you later. Okay? And so I ask the same question that Elijah asked those people back then. And it's the the question is this.

How long will you falter between two opinions? Okay. If God is God, then follow him. If you are God, then follow you.

But don't get in the between on the fence. Okay? Don't say you're Christian, but live like the world. Okay?

That's that's called lukewarm. Okay? We learn in Revelation that Jesus says he's going to spit lukewarm people out of his mouth. Okay?

You don't want to be that person. Don't don't let Jesus vomit you out. Okay? It's not where you want to be.

So, so you have homework this week, okay? I want you to watch your thoughts in four questions because this can subtly creep in and we don't even realize it's happening. So, here's the four questions I want you to to ponder this week. Okay?

When you wake up, what's your thoughts? What's your first thoughts? Are they fears? Are they the dos you have?

Are they your kids? Are they your your your spouse who's heard? What is or is it God? Okay.

What is your first thoughts? And this isn't a judgment thing. I'm not judging here. Okay?

I challenge myself with this stuff all the time and I fail. Okay? As well. So my whole goal is just together.

We're on a journey together to grow. Okay? But ask yourself, okay, what are those first thoughts? Look at them.

Analyze it. Write it down. Next thing I want you to look at your finances. How do you spend your money?

Because how you spend your money often will tell you what you care most about. If everything you do you use to buy, like we're coming up on Christmas, man. If everything you have is going to pour into gifts for your kids, you know, and there's no nothing, no tithe, and there's no giving to charities and there's none of that. Guess what?

Your kids are your God. Buy your time. Buy your money. By the way spending your money.

It's an ind indicator of is God your God or have you allowed other things to come in and get you on the fence? Okay. Four. Third question.

How do you spend your time? What do you want to do? Okay. What do you spend most [clears throat] of your days doing?

Yeah, you got to work your eight hour day or whatever. Okay. What are you doing with the other time? And even when you're working the eight hours, are you really working eight hours?

Okay. Are you spending time there surfing the internet shopping for Christmas gifts, you know, or whatever? which would be stealing from your employer. Um, not that I've ever had that happen to me, but um, so how do you spend your time?

And finally, are you actually trying to control life? Because life is uncontrollable. Okay? You can't coordinate all this stuff.

Okay? You just can't. So, are you really trying to control it? Because I tell you, that's the source of so much stress.

Okay? when a curveball comes up, look for what God is doing. Okay, I got a story revolving two guests we have here today. Okay, it plays right into this.

So, last Friday, um I think the Friday before last, um I had a a date and the date canceled because she was sick. So, I looked at that. When God throws you a curveball, what do you do? Do you get mad?

Oh, man. You know, another night alone or or maybe she doesn't like me or you know, any of that stuff. What? What did I do?

I sat there. I'm like, "Oh, cool. All right, I got some time. Let's see what God's up to."

Let's see what God's up to. When a curveball comes your way, let's see what God's up to. So, I get my lawn chair because in the front of my house, the sun sets kind of over my driveway. So, I'll come out sometimes.

Justin knows I'll just sit out there and soak in the sun. So, I had an extra hour and the sun wasn't down yet. So, I sit and soak in the sun. Well, then I see him working on his truck uh across the way.

So I go up and talk to him. You know, that wouldn't have happened if I was running around getting ready. And I tell him about the church. He's been my neighbor for three, four months, and I've not had a chance to even talk to him about this church.

So I shared the church and everything, and here they are, him and his wife. Isn't that cool? That's fun. So God's up to something.

Okay. Then I went out then I'm like, "All right, I'm hungry." So I went to the Mexican place in Lawrenceville. And in in pops Ed, who has visited here before, and his wife, and we ended up talking for like an hour.

And as they left, they're like, "This was a God- orained thing. like maybe we need to start coming to your church, which they're not here yet, but I invited them. But um but Romans 8:28 says, "All things work for good." So when a curveball comes your way, you can relax because things are going to work out okay.

All things work for good. I tell my kids all the time, "What could possibly go wrong?" And they all roll their eyes and but nothing ever does because even if something goes wrong, it's going to turn out for good, right? That's how God works.

So we must get to a place where God is our focus and we obey him completely in all these areas. So I ask again, how long will you falter between two opinions? If God is God, you can trust him. You can live with him.

We learned in the last introductions or the last instructions of Jesus came from my book, but I did a sermon series on it that if you read it, Jesus is very clear only one group, the faithful church gets to be exempt from the testing that's going to come on the whole world, which I believe is the mark of the beast. Okay? Only one church is going to get raptured up. One, the faithful Christians.

There's a lot of Christians out there that think they're Christians, but they're not faithful. Okay? When Jesus says he's going to spit them out of their mouth because they're lukewarm, that means he's gonna spit you out of your mouth. Okay?

When he says, "Many are going to come to me and I'm going to say get away from me. I never knew you." He does mean that. Okay?

So, you want to be in this faithful church. So, here's what made the faithful church faithful. Okay? Three things.

Abide, obey, and love. Okay? abide is simply focusing on him, not us. That's the crux of the heart of the problem.

Okay? We got to focus on Jesus. You wake up. What do you want me to do here, Lord?

What are you trying to teach me here? Oh, this person called in. What are you up to, God? Always looking for what God's doing and then joining him.

It's getting in the morning, getting into his word, getting into prayer, and and getting in sync with God so that you go into your day. And then obey. Obedience is the litmus test of whether you love the Lord or not. Jesus Christ himself said it in John 14:21.

He said, "He who has me at my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me." In other words, Jesus knows you love him if you obey him. If you're not obeying him because you're living for yourself, he doesn't know you that you love him. Okay, that's the litmus test.

And he who loves me will be loved by my father and I will love him and I will manifest myself to him. That is such a hot word, man. Manifest, right? It's like you're How do you abide?

How do you have God just in there? My kids are shaking their heads. By obeying God. All right.

It's a beautiful thing. And what is God's number one thing he he tells you to do? Love God. Love others.

Love. Okay. Reach out in love. They will know we are Christians by our love.

By our love. Remember that song from way back when. [snorts] But what do we see a lot today? Christians bashing other Christians over little things like you think you're oh, you think there's a trinity and you don't and you you're Catholic and you're not and and all these things.

It's that's not love. We're not showing the world anything different than what the world is showing us. Okay? That's got to change.

We spend an in inordinate amount of time hating others, arguing, etc. There's no room, no room for hate. Okay, the past is gone. Lay it down.

Jesus himself spent no time in such things. Okay, remember the rich young ruler story? When the rich young ruler comes to Jesus, he asks him, "How can I inherit eternal life?" And the the Jesus tells him all these things.

And the ruler goes, "I've done all of those things since I was a kid." And he goes, "Ah." And Jesus, it says Jesus loved him, right? And and it said, "One thing you do, sell all your possessions and come and follow me."

And the guy walked away sad because he Jesus knew his heart. He loved his possessions more than Jesus. Even though he did all the things, he tithed and everything. And Jesus never ran after him.

Can you imagine someone coming up today to a preacher with money, a tither, all this stuff? The type of guy, a good guy, does everything right. The kind of guy you you you you think a pastor would hope to have in his congregation. And he comes, what can I have do to have eternal life?

And he says, "Sell all your stuff and then follow me." It's never going to happen, right? The pastor would be like, "Oh, just ask Jesus into your heart right now and then join our church, you know, because that we need your tithes." And um but Jesus didn't care.

And when the guy walked away, Jesus didn't chase after him. Okay? Jesus didn't run after him. In Matthew, okay, Jesus sent out the disciples to let's see if it's here.

No, it's right here. So Jesus sent out the disciples to go into the other cities. He was he was duplicating himself. He sends the disciples and he gives them instructions on what to do when they go to this town and this town to preach the word etc.

Okay? And he gives them this instruction in uh Matthew 10 14 and 15. And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet, assuredly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah which got destroyed um in the day of judgment than for that city. Jesus is saying to them, "Guys, if people don't listen to you, walk away.

Don't worry about it. Focus on the ones that do. Not all of them are going to hear it." Okay?

So Jesus didn't waste time on arguing and all this stuff that we see so much of. Okay? He didn't do it. Jesus spoke the truth and either people embraced it or they didn't.

And he didn't worry about the ones that didn't embrace it. And he loved on the ones that did. Most Americans, most of their days, their thoughts, their spending, their times and their attempts to control are a waste of their days from an eternal standpoint. Do you understand that?

This is not our home. We're going up there. If you've asked Jesus into your heart, that's your home. And it's an all eternity home.

We're just here for a blip. Okay? That's the all eternity home. So, that's important.

And the things we do. My 20s, I did nothing of eternal value during my 20s. Okay? I wasn't saved yet.

and I did nothing of eternal value. So when we spend lots of time thinking only about ourselves, we're not doing anything of eternal value. It's only when we're abiding with God, we're obeying his commandments and we're loving on others that we're building for ourselves treasures in heaven. Right?

So from an eternal standpoint, that's the important stuff. So I ask again, how long will you falter between two opinions? If God is God and we sing songs like we trust him, etc. , let's start trusting him.

Let's start obeying him and let's start doing the things that he has called us to do rather than sit on the fence or even worse go the other way. It's time to get off the throne and put God, okay, in his rightful place in your life. James 4:8 says, and how do you do it? James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you."

You just have to start walking towards him. Okay? Jesus welcomes. He just start walking towards him.

When you wake up, you focus on him, not your desires, wants, and fears. Him. You focus on God. You let him determine and give you what you need.

He will. He may not give you everything you want, but he will always give you what you need. He's very good God. Okay?

And there's four foundational truths I want you to write down here. Um, I have these written down in my own notebook, okay? And I review them a lot, especially when I'm contemplating not obeying God. [clears throat] And this is it.

The first truth is that God is the one who knows what is right for me. God is the one who knows what is right for me. Okay? You don't know what his job for you in heaven is going to be.

You don't know what's going to happen next year. You don't know what's going to happen later this day. Only God does. So, it makes sense that he's the one you want to listen to, right?

Not me. I don't know what I'm doing. Um, so God is the one who knows what is right for me, too. God is pure love, and I am the focus of that love.

He loves you. God is pure love, and I am the focus of that love. He loves you. He's got your best in heart.

Okay? He know he has plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Three, God will never tell me to do something that's detrimental. Whatever he tells me to do will turn out best.

And I'm sorry I didn't give you these ahead of time, Gabe, before you could have had them up there. Might have been smart of me. God will never tell me to do something that's detrimental. Whatever he tells me to do will turn out past.

He's not going to steer you wrong, man. He's just not. And number four, therefore, no matter what he says, I gladly choose to obey no matter what he says. Okay, that's trusting God.

And Exodus 14:14, God says, "The Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace." Okay? You don't h you're not in this game alone. All right?

If you've asked Jesus in your heart, God's in this game with you. But you got to obey him. Okay? And you got to listen to him when he tells you to do stuff.

When you're praying in the morning and he tells you to to text this person or or or reach out to this person, just do it. Do it later that day. There's a reason. Okay?

You don't know that reason, but there's a reason. H Just do it. I'll stop. I'll go down and pray in the morning every morning.

Okay? I do my morning quiet time, whatever, and I end it with a prayer. And I'm on my knees. That's my favorite place to be is on my knees.

I've got a big pillow on my couch. I bring it down to the floor. I I sit on that and I pray over uh a couch. And um and I always will um I start thanking him and then I pray for different people and different things.

Okay. Um and I'm always seeking from him. Okay. what he wants me to do that day.

Okay? It's not about me. It's it's about him and I ask him into the different parts of my life. Okay?

And then I let it go. Okay? It's easier to have life when Jesus is there with you. The big cra Christian catchphrase is let go and let God.

You've heard that, right? Let go and let God. And then the people who are saying that are running around like a chicken with their head cut off trying to control everything because they're not obeying. Okay?

They're not letting go and letting God. They say it, but they don't live it. If you focus on him and abide, spend that time in the morning, okay? And you spend your time in your Bible in prayer and you do what he says.

It's simple obedience, you'll truly begin to be free. Okay? Let me give you some examples. Just obey what the Bible tells you to do in all circumstances and trust that God's going to work it out.

Let's say you have a job and you don't like that job. Okay? I don't like my job. All right?

Back in 2008 when the market crashed and I wanted to be a preacher. I sent out resumes everywhere. I have swept floors in a church if it would have gotten me a chance to eventually preach. God did not open the door.

Okay? The only door that stayed open was the mortgage business. And so I stayed in it. And what did I do?

I worked it with all my might because that's what the Bible tells us to do. Whatever your hand finds to do, work it with all your might. So, I worked it with all my might. And we've lived a good life, right, kids?

We've had, you know, all the bills met, everything's good, we've gone on lots of vacations. So, God's blessed me with that. But, but I didn't want to be there, and I still don't want to be there. But guess what?

It's not my It's not my life. This is where God has me. Okay? Whether I like it or not, this is where God has me.

So, it's incumbent on me to be content with it and have joy even when I'm there because that's what the Bible tells me to do. So, I obey God and it's not as bad. Okay? Because there is joy in doing a job well.

I get at least that joy. Okay? Because I do it well. Even if I'm not crazy about it or maybe you're married, you're not happy.

The worst thing you can do if you're married and you're not happy is start going online for advice and help because then the algorithms catch it and you get all these gurus, you know, that start telling you all the things about how that person's the devil or the other person's the devil and now you're being fed with all this junk. And that's not what the Bible tells you to do. Bible's pretty clear you're stay married, okay? One man, one woman.

All right? Unless adultery or unless the unbelieving spouse leaves, those are the only two two reasons. So, you need to stay together. How [clears throat] do you do it?

What if you're not happy? Pray. Start with prayer. Do you know that if a husband and a wife pray together every day?

Okay, pray together. That's the key. Every day, they have a 0. 003 divorce rate.

It's almost impossible to have a divorce if you pray together every day. All other Christians have the same divorce rates as the world. There's no difference. It's about that prayer.

So, turn it over to God. God says to stay together. You're not happy. Start praying with that spouse.

Okay. Now, what happens about abuse? Okay. Maybe you're in an abusive marriage.

It's a different different game, man. I'm not going to talk about that as far as because I don't have the answer for that except go to the Lord and seek the Lord and what he wants you to do. Don't go online and seek answers from everybody else because they're going to tell you all sorts of crazy stuff to do. You know, um go to God.

He will answer your prayers and ask him what to do. Okay? Just because the Bible doesn't specifically say something doesn't mean that you can't take it to God and and have him give you clarity. Okay?

because there's things we face today that weren't around back then like the internet. So [clears throat] just take it to the Lord. If you hit a stumbling block, you know, pull back, go to the Lord for clarity and then trust whatever he tells to do. We had started this church.

We'd been around three months and um we were averaging about 14 people, okay, a a week. And four of them were my kids. Um so and three of them were up here. That's a preachers count.

um you know but but we didn't have a lot of people and and that was you know God what's up and then the government went on lockdown and my business was basically shut down. So now all the these two things are happening at the same time. I'm like huh? So I had Glenn preach one Sunday and he had did a great job and then I um went got away and sought the Lord.

I had hit a stumbling block so I went and sought the Lord. He gave me specific things to do. When I came back, I executed all those things and they've worked great, including that Bible study that we do at Bri at Zach's place. Um, all of that was an idea that God had given me.

Okay? And and we move from there. It it's just it works great if you just trust the Lord. God will give you clarity.

Health, I've been in at least three discussions with people in the last few month in the last month or so about what if I got cancer, what would I do? And what I would do is nothing. I would I would pray. I would juice.

Maybe I'd eat try to take cut out all sugar. You know, I'd eat better, right? Um but but that's it. And here's why.

I trust God. God's not going to take me out until I'm done with what he has for me. I believe that. Okay.

I should have died when I was in college driving drunk before I was saved. But God was still protecting me from situations because I literally there were many times I should have been dead. My kids still say I should have been the way I drive, you know, because they got angels on my wheel, right? And I said, man, God's not going to take me out until I'm he's done with me here.

And if he's ready to take me out and he gives me cash, then I'll go gladly. You know, I whatever he wants, I'm good with that. That's trusting the Lord. Now, because of that, I don't have to worry about death.

I don't worry. You know what? 80% of all health problems come down to what? Stress and your food, the gut, what you eat.

80%. Any scientist or health person will tell you that, right? If you start trusting the Lord and truly trust him with your life and whatever's going to happen, and you leave the results to him, the stress goes away. You no longer have to worry about what people are saying and what's going to happen and oh no and is there going to be a sickness or what how my kids going to turn out and you don't worry about any of that stuff.

Pray. Let God handle it. Okay? You just obey him and spend time with him.

Okay? And that's now your stress goes away. Well, that takes away half your problems. And then eat better.

Okay? Cut the McDonald's out. McDonald's is no good. All right?

Gut and worry. Trust God and eat right. I just solved 80% of the health problems in America right there. Okay.

Sign me up for Dr. Phil. Um, [laughter] so people worry about where are they going to be in five years. You don't know what's going to happen in five years.

Where are you going to live? You don't know what's going to happen. When you set your strategic plan in 2020, who saw COVID coming? You know, maybe some people, but certainly not most people, right?

And that changed everything. You don't know something like that can happen next year. So worry about your kids. Pray and trust.

Pray and trust. Pray and obey. Just worry about today. All right.

I mean, Christmas is coming up. You know what's funny about Christmas? Good job, Gabe. Um, you know what's funny about Christmas is Jesus never told us to celebrate Christmas.

Okay.

when he sat there and what he told us to remember him was when he was doing the the last supper you know take this bread take this cup in remembrance of me okay it was the cross that we need to be remembering not Christmas okay that doesn't mean you don't do Christmas I'm not against Christmas I get gifts for the kids or whatever it's time with the family treat it however I'm not dogging on people who don't follow Christmas do follow Christmas it's but what I'm saying is this if you're allowing Christmas to get you all flustered and what am I going to get these people and how are they going to like it and and and you know I have to get this and then I'm meeting with this family here and this family here and there's too many of them and and all that.

Relax, man. It's you're you're off track. You're trying to control everything. You're trying to control your schedule.

You're trying to control everything. Just relax. We're coming up on Thanksgiving. Go and eat with your family and relax.

Man, my brother, [sighs] he's a Democrat. He's from Chicago and he's gonna he we're g we always have a fight. No, no, no, no, no. Don't think like that, okay?

Just love on them. Don't even talk politic. Just just love on them. You know, if it brings the politics up, don't take the bait.

Don't take the bait. Okay? Just say, "Man, I respect your opinion." And leave it at that.

There's nothing you can say about that. So, I ask you one final time, maybe not, but maybe. So, how long will you falter between two opinions? And here's the thing to think about.

If there is fear in your life, any fear, you're not trusting God. Okay? So, the presence of fear means you're not trusting God in that area. Whatever that area is, your health, your kids, whatever, you're not trusting God.

Okay? If you have anxiety over something, you're not trusting God. The anxiety is proof that you're not trusting God in whatever that area that you're anxious over. Okay?

Okay? Whether it's money or kids or whatever. Okay? If you have worry, whatever area you're worrying about, you haven't turned it over to God.

You're still trying to somehow get it through the goalposts. You're still clinging to it, and you don't need to be. What about doubt? Same thing.

Stop trying to be God. We weren't born to be that. Let God be God and take care of the things. You just focus on him.

Okay, that's the secret. Trust and obey. Trust and obey. Leave the results to him.

What if I fail and and and and people will laugh at me? Think about Noah. 120 years, right, to build that ark in the desert where there had never been rain before. You know how many people ragged on that guy?

I mean, years and years and years. So what? When the rain came, he was the one laughing. Don't worry about that stuff.

God can close doors in your life. And if he does, he's going to open another one. So don't worry about what could go wrong. Okay?

Obey God. And if something goes wrong, he's going to turn it into something right. That's how it works. 25 years of testing this in my own life.

I'm analy. I write down. I journal every day. Every time I'm I I can look back and say, "Manny was faithful.

Manny was faithful. Manny was faithful." If you start writing down prayers requests and write them down and pray every day, you'll be surprised how many of them you checked off as being answered. Twothirds of them at least checked off as being answers.

The ones that weren't probably the answer was it it wasn't good for them. Okay? So don't you don't have to worry about your life. Who says that?

Jesus. Jesus in Matthew 6 25 through34 Jesus Christ himself this is red letters all right Jesus says this therefore I say to you do not worry about your life do not worry about your life it's a direct command from Jesus so what are you worrying about you're being disobedient by worrying you realize that you're actually being disobedient by worrying isn't that Do not worry about your life, what you will eat, what you will drink, or your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap, nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not of more value than them? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing?

Consider the liies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin. And yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not a raid like one of these. Now if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow's thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you of leave little faith, the things they had to worry about back then, eating clothes, right?

We have a lot more stuff you think to worry about because the world wants us to worry about a lot more stuff, but we don't have to. Okay? And he wraps it here. Therefore, do not worry, saying, "What shall I eat or what shall I wear?

What shall we drink? For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added onto you.

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow has enough troubles of its own. Okay? Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. So I I wrap with this.

How long will you falter between two opinions? If God is God, trust him. If you're God, trust you and good luck, okay? But also, don't ride the fence.

Okay? Don't ride the fence. Don't falter in between the two opinions. Go one way or the other.

My opinion is you should go the way God because I think that's the smart play. Okay? Wouldn't you agree? Amen.

God's a smart play. All right? Trust and obey. Trust and obey.

Trust and obey. Get off the throne and let God get on that throne once and for all in your life. Come on up, Gabe. Kelsey, as they come up.

Ah, don't do that. Thank you, baby. Don't do that. So, Lord, this is so cute.

Um, as they come up to do a song here, I want you to think about the stuff I've shared. I want you to think about is there an area of your life that you're worrying about that you're that you're trying to control that you're stressed out about that you're you're trying to do too much in. Okay? [music] If there if there is something, lay it down.

Okay? The beauty of coming to an altar, I it's a symbolic thing where you're laying it down. You can go into your week and say, "Hey, I laid that down there. [music] I don't need to pick it up and carry it with me anymore."

Okay? That's the beauty of it. But but be thinking, be cognizant [music] of the areas where you maybe you're not trusting the Lord. And then maybe make a commitment today to get back to just obeying him in those areas because man, it is the best place to [music] be.

It's fun being in the center. You're not missing out on anything by by going after the Lord. It just takes [music] a lot of your stress away. Okay?

It's a beautiful place to be. All right. So dies.