The Last Instructions of Jesus Part Two

So, with that, I am going to bring up a special guest who's going to speak. I met this man. His name is Todd. I met him at one of Glenn's functions.

And um he's going to share his testimony real quick. So, you ready, brother? >> He's a good man. Let's give it up for Glenn.

[applause] >> Thank you, sir. >> You're welcome, sir. I mean, Todd. Thank you.

My bad. Thank you. I'm Todd and um I guess it started way back when I was little. I mean, my family wasn't real church oriented.

Oh yeah. Oh yeah, I got a hold of my family wasn't real church oriented, but friends down the street and stuff, they kept me going to Bible studies and being involved. And I I grew up doing just I was allar little eager. um did real good throughout high school and um during that time I learned about getting high.

I mean I was doing a lot of I went to the orthodontist one time and they did something and when I woke up I was the comedy of the office. So I was like this this this kind of brought me out of my shell where I talk to everybody and cut up and it changed the way I felt about going out and I started drinking and doing drugs and settled down enough got married. I got two beautiful kids. One's in Montana, one's in Texas.

Both of them have two grandkids. So three feet granddaddy bless >> and that's a blessing. But I was just I really just got out of control. I was married in 95 and we stayed together about 13 years or so.

In 2003, I had a bad car wreck and that's where it all started. Um going through the divorce, I hit a lady on 75 coming to Atlanta and it killed her. And from there, I just really plumbed into drugs and just lost myself. Um I was all in Atlanta.

I left my home down in Fort Valley and came up here and just running the streets. I took a job up here and doing marketing for a company called Do You Snore. Um going to doctor's offices and stuff like that. And finally, eventually I just stopped going.

I just stopped going to work. I knew I was going to prison after all this. And finally, they sent me the the letter to come to court. And they gave me two years and 12 years probation.

So I did two years and then I got out thinking I was had everything under control. Met another little girl and started right back into the same thing, doing the same type of stuff and it got worse and worse and I got locked up again a couple of times. Finally in 2024 I got arrested and um I came here in 19 to we are living proof and that I got a buddy that runs it and it did me a good bit of good.

I mean it took three months I gave him and I really started focusing on my life at that time and I got a feeling of what what it is what so will be like if I participate in it do it but I thought I had it under control so I left and went back that's when I got locked up again in 24 and this time when they put the handcuffs on it was a relief I mean I was through with all of it I knew I was done and I did a whole lot of They gave us some iPads or tablets in the jail this time and they had a whole lot of um McSheen Foundation is really there in Virginia.

That's where I got all this literature from and just started trusting in the Lord, just reading what they had to say. And and a friend of mine that I know has been sober for a while, he picked me up from jail and he lives out in the country. So he carried me out to his house and my my phone was dead out of jail. I had nothing on me.

And he's like, "No, you're going to sit here and be still." [clears throat] Psalms 46:10. I'll never forget it. He said, "You're going to sit here and know the Lord."

And he wouldn't let me go nowhere. He wouldn't let me call nobody. Wouldn't take me to town. I got my cars in inbound.

I mean, I'm just stuck at his house. I sat there for like three days just sitting there. I mean, they ain't sitting there and read a book or something. I'm like, let's go somewhere traps.

I mean, let's go get something to eat. Let's just get out of that house. Then nine, six months, they had me locked up. And that's quite a story myself.

the judge after they took me in front of the judge about getting out and I said, you know, I told it in I said, "Man, there's nobody I don't know anybody that's going to come down here and sign their name on a bond to get me out. I mean, I my folks passed away. My little sister's gone. Why I'm here, I don't know, but God's got me."

And uh so I'm like, you know, nobody's going to get me out of this jail. I mean, so he just decided to let me out. I'm stuck here. So they sent me back to to the sale and uh it went on about two months I guess and a little young attorney came to me.

She said, "We're fixing to get you out." I said, "Okay." I said, "Same scenario. I still don't have anybody that's going to come down here."

And she want to do a bond reduction. I'm like, "It don't matter what the bond is. There's not freeze. I'm not going to get out."

We're standing in front of the judge and the judge looks at me after few moments and she just stares at me and I really like really think I'm going to go to prison which is probably where I should have went but she told me she said I'm going to make your penny your bond one penny and the whole courtroom erupted in laughter. I'm thinking everybody calm down because you know this is this is bad. But I mean it's just part of what God's done in my life.

I mean there I found a penny like a couple of days before in my sale. I mean it's not a lot of money in jail. I mean it not change. You can find some dollars here and there but there was a penny in my sale and I was just thumping it over there and I thumped it and went the sink and I told her I said Joe I said I have a penny.

I said it's in my sink. I said I just found it. And she said well give it to the bonds clerk and and you can go. She said why don't you go to rehab.

And like I said, that's just something God had to have a hand in that because I I didn't have anybody that was going to come get me. I got some friends what I thought were friends really were just acquaintances. People that, you know, I was around, they were around when it things were good, but when it comes bad time, they're not there. >> That alarm clock.

We don't have alarms there. Yeah, we got a long round baby. >> Yeah, but >> who did that? Dustin.

>> Dustin did that. >> Sorry about all the technical difficulties. >> That's right. All right.

[laughter] >> Devil trying to get him ready. >> He's trying to get him. He's always after you. That's something you know.

You never can't even stop believing in the Lord because he will come after you. Man, I'm still I'm young at this. I mean, I got a long history of being high and getting in trouble and this that and the other. Started when I was in my 40s and I'm 50 now and it's been a long history of it.

Just continuously getting those handcuffs put on for various reasons. Um, sometimes I wonder why they pick me all the time. But I'm from a small town and they knew who I am and they they did they every time I left the house I was getting it was my fault. I mean I shouldn't have been doing what I was doing.

They wouldn't have been bothering me I guess. But you know I've come back to this program this time and I came back when they let me out and the judge told me to go to a rehab. And I called Randy. I said look man I know I didn't do right the first time.

I mean I was on the the the fees and stuff. I was do good with that. But I thought I got it. I mean, and I left.

This time I come back. I told him I said, "Look, I want to follow this thing. I want to see what it is y'all offer." And during all this time, I mean, he's put people like Mr.

Glenn in my life. He's put light bulb Marcus Anderson and Joel and Jen and all these people that are associated with this police place that really care. I mean, these are true friends. I mean, I can call them.

anything's bothering me, I know that they'll have some fun and talk me through it. >> So, I have true friends now. I mean, like I said, I don't have any family anymore. And it hurts when you hear people talking about, "I'm going to see mom.

I'm going to see dad. I'm just going to my sister's house or his brother's house." It really hurts. I mean, and it's taken a lot to get over that.

And I still over the wreck. I'm not over all that. We talked about that last night. I mean, I took somebody's mother, two boys.

I sat on the courtroom floor. I think the color was the same color as this. And talking to the little boys, told them how sorry I was and her mom and dad and her ex-husband. I had to face all them people.

I mean, I was truly sorry. I mean, I wish it would have really at that point in time in my life. I wish it would have taken me instead of her. I would have definitely swap with her, but I could I can't do that.

That's not in my control. That's in God's hands. Like I said, learning that just be still and know that I'm God. That's That's where I'm at with learning who God is because he's done a lot in my life.

I mean, he's got me good girlfriend now that cares and >> she's definitely focused on the Bible and learning her way with God. So, everything's going good. Um, I just everything's really good with these people around. I'm glad to be part of this church.

>> And I'm a little nervous up here today for some reason, but it's in my usual crowd. We want you. >> Well, this ain't my usual crowd of people that have been through the same thing that I've been through or at least some of it. But, um, I appreciate y'all letting me share and I look forward to learning the Lord more about you and definitely not as pretty and not as pristine as she was.

Kenne did a great job as last year, but thank y'all again. Again [applause] >> [applause] >> Make sure I'm on now. Okay. It's not easy to come up here and speak like that to people.

So, um I think we give a hand. [applause] So, you know, last week we started this kind of series and we were talking about the kind of LZ fair thought process that, you know, you could just say something, you know, 30 years ago or get sprinkled at birth, you know, and and then because of that, even if you have no relationship with Jesus Christ, you can just skate on up to heaven and skip everything. And it's just not that way in scripture. Okay?

um you have to have a relationship with him, but once you do, no one can take you out of his hands. And so, we went through that background. And so, now over these next seven weeks, we're going to look at the letters that Jesus wrote to his church um 60 years after he was resurrected, died, and rose again, right? And uh buried, died, rose again.

So, these are love letters, you know. Um, there Jesus coming back after 60 years through a vision to John saying, "Hey, here's the things I already see my church getting wrong. Let's let's correct them." And he tells them what they're doing wrong in each letter.

Tells them what they're doing right and tells them what to do to fix the situation and get back. And most of the time is to get back into a relationship with him. Okay? So, that's where we're going.

And we're going to start with the first letter in Revelation 2. But before we do that, I want you to take a deep breath with me real quick. Okay? Just take a deep breath.

There is no judgment here. >> Okay? >> I'm not a dude who's going to judge you. I try as hard as possible to use my own examples of my own failures rather than pick on people I know.

Um because you know if I can be open and honest and transparent like Todd, then you know that opens up everyone else to being open and transparent. So, as I share the things that Jesus shares, not just this week, but in future weeks. If something is said that kind of uh pricks your heart, that's that's the Holy Spirit convicting you. Okay?

That's not Brian Peter judging you. Okay? And and what you do is you simply do what Jesus says in this thing to do. Okay?

Uh you don't have to feel bad about it. Okay? He took away all your sins. If you asked them into your heart, he took away all your sins.

You're free. You're not going to miss out on heaven because of your sinful act if you ask Jesus into your heart. >> The only possible chance is you you just choose to ignore the relationship, you know, but as long as you keep going to him. So when you hear something that's maybe gosh, I'm doing that, you know, he's calling me out.

I'm not calling you out. Okay, that's the Holy Spirit saying, dude, and then just take it to God and just just start trying to get better. None of us are perfect. And I'm going to try to give as many examples of my failures as I can because um you know I can pick on myself.

So no judgment. Revelation 2 um verses 1-7. I'm going to read I don't know if it's up there but that's okay if you have a iPhone to the angel of the church at Ephesus. Right.

These things says he who holds the seven stars in his right hand who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands. I know your works, your labor, your presence, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars, and you have persevered, and you have patience, and you have labored in my name's sake, and have not become weary. That's a lot of good stuff.

Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen. Repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent. But this you have that you hate the deeds of the niclatians, which I also hate.

We'll talk about the nicalations in a couple weeks. But he who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. So, as I first read this, I was impressed by, you know, all the good things they list in this church.

In a few weeks, we'll get to the faithful church, and God only lists a couple things that the faithful church was doing, right? He's listen all these things these people are doing good. Okay? They're good guys.

Um or or we think, but they've they've left their first love. They've forgotten love. And it's easy to fall into that trap. Okay?

We can get so wrapped up in our works that we forget relationships. Okay? So so hard trying to work for God that we forget about the relationship with God. And that's that's kind of what he's calling out here.

I remember when I first got saved. Um man, I I just couldn't believe that the savior of the universe, the creator of the universe would would want a relationship with me. It was beautiful. Um they used to have something back then called promisekeepers where they would go and they'd fill a stadium with men.

Okay? and and and [snorts] I would take my guys from work there. And I'm telling you, there's nothing like you get 50,000 men in a room, you know, saying how great thou art and lifting it up and and man, it'll give you goosebumps. It'll shake rafters.

You know, when one man stands firm on the Lord, it's it's in the devil runs, but 50,000 of them. I mean, you you saw heaven and uh it was beautiful. And so I fell into a uh Baptist church is where I I first started going and and I teased the Baptist last week, but I learned a lot and grew a lot in that church. Okay.

Um I fell into the Sunday school class of Bill Prince, who ended up becoming a mentor to me. He's passed away now, but um he became a mentor to me. Uh the first week we held this church service, there were like 70 people here. As I was preparing for this, Nate, I realized, wow, 35 of those people can trace the roots back to that Sunday school class.

Some of them I hadn't seen in 20 years. One of them drove an hour and a half to be here in my first um service just to support me. And and someone I hadn't seen in forever. Man, that was just that was a special time.

Okay. But I got into works too much. I was there Sunday for Sunday school, Sunday for church, Sunday night for church, Wednesday night for church, bringing the family there, leader of the men's ministry. Then I started a Christian mortgage brokers association across America.

Like I I was just running for God. But what happens is you can you can get wrapped up. Okay? It's fun to do something for the Lord.

It feels amazing to see God work in a specific thing after you've done it. Okay? But but we can't get wrapped up in that. That's not the easy yoke that Jesus talked about.

Okay? Think about Jesus. Did he wake up in the morning and just start running to the next town? He was always walking.

There's I've not seen any reference of Jesus ever running. Okay? He was always walking. He's on the water walking.

I mean, he's just always walking. He's taking his time. And God brought the people to him. Okay?

And that's the same thing. Um, so, so a question would be why why are you you running to try to do things for God so hard? It's good, okay? But, but it's better to have that relationship and then let the works flow through that relationship.

That's how it's properly done. That's what Jesus modeled. So, [snorts] in Luke chapter 10, the disciples, he sent them out and they're casting out demons and and all this stuff. And they come back, they're rejoicing.

They're like, "Man, even the demons are suspect to subject to us in your name."

you know and he's excited and then he shares and then Jesus says listen guys okay this is Luke 10 chapter 20 says do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you but rather rejoice because your name's written in heaven rejoice over the relationship with Jesus Christ not over the good stuff that truly Jesus was doing through them right because they weren't casting out demons Jesus was they were doing it in Jesus's name so you know it is the work and and this is a great quote from uh Oswell Chambers.

It is the work that God does through us that counts, not what we do for him. Okay? So, you may be running around trying to to to to be as fruitful as possible. And for me, it was uh to try to prove that I was a good guy.

Okay? Somewhere back in my childhood, maybe because I stuttered till I was seven, maybe because at 14 I was 90 pounds with braces and glasses, zero women attracted to me, zero friends. I mean, it was just and and somewhere deep down in there a negative thought process came about of who Brian Pier is. And so I spent and I didn't want that.

So I started reading success books and I spent my 20s trying to to make money and um get girls, right? because that's what you think is is going to prove that you're you're really a man. And then once I got saved, okay, the the and I was running. My 16-our days were nothing to work at, you know, when you're young.

I can't do that now. But um but they were nothing. But once I got saved, I started I was still running. But now I was running to try to prove my worth to God or to try to prove my worth to other people.

Okay? I [clears throat] was already validated when I asked Jesus in my heart. I was already validated. I'm There's no works you can do that gets you more saved.

Okay? You you just can't. And so I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Um trying to earn my salvation instead of instead of just embracing the truth.

And so I want to ask you ask yourself if that's you. And if so, Jesus says here, repent and then turn back, okay, to that relationship again. [clears throat] The relationship, if you get that going, you're still going to do works. It's just going to be the works that God wants.

Remember, he knows what he wants to do with us in heaven. If you keep running, running, running, maybe God wants you to be going down this path, but you're running so fast ahead of him, you're down that other path. What's going to happen is he's going to crash your stuff to where you have to eventually come back over to the path that he had all along. Okay?

In '08, my business crashed. My wife left and I I went into a a really tough period of time. It was God repositioning me because I've been running too far ahead of him and I wasn't taking it easy and having that slow easy yoke. Jesus says, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Okay? And if we get too focused on works, then pride can come in. That's another big thing that that doesn't please Christ. Okay?

>> [clears throat] >> the more good works he did. You know, these people, the closest people to this loveless church would be similar to the scribes and the Pharisees, you know, they were they were people who we all rag on, you know, because Jesus would always rip into the scribes and Pharisees, but they did everything right. They were like the goody two shoes of that time. They were like people would look up and they're they're the godly ones that are following all this stuff, right?

But they had no they didn't have God's love in their heart. And that's what Jesus called them out on because he could see their heart. we can't see people's heart. But they were prideful.

They wanted to have the good seats at the thing. They wanted to be respected as the religious dogooders. Why? They had pride has crept in.

I think the heart of legalism is pride. Okay? >> And through history, the church has been pretty bad about that. And we we simply just should not judge anyone.

All judgment is given to Jesus Christ only. So, we shouldn't judge. And I want to throw some examples of things you may not even realize are happening. Okay?

And and and if you find yourself doing this, because I've been guilty of this, you know, um looking [clears throat] at someone, they got their their their um pants down to their knees and their underwear showing out and stuff. I've negative thoughts there, right? Like, dude, you're not going to get hired anywhere, you know? Um but [clears throat] I've heard people just get on to people that they don't even know.

Okay, and we just can't do that. Uh I remember talking just some examples from this week. a good godly woman talking about how this lady in front of her had a little kid with her and was dressed trashy. Okay.

Was dressed like a you know um you [clears throat] know and I don't even know the right words to say. I'm in church. Um but the uh first off we don't know that she's saved. Does the Bible talk about women dressing conservatively?

Sure. Okay. But wait, I don't even know if she's saved. So you can't hold the Christian standards to someone who's not saved.

And even if she was Christian, the way we dress is usually the way people around us dress. I mean, back in the 80s, in the early 80s, I was in South Florida when Miami Vice came out. You better believe I dressed like Don Johnson, right? You know [laughter] why?

Because I thought it was the cool way. Actually, I'm still kind of dressing like him now, right? But [laughter] but back then, you know, why? Because everyone doing it.

A lot of times we just follow. So, she may not know. And it doesn't matter. You don't unless you know her heart.

Now, if you're her mother, you're her friend, you say, "Hey, you know," then you can come up to someone that's not judging. If you know someone and you share with them something they're doing that may not be good. Okay? We saw a couple weeks ago where Peter, no, Paul called out Peter.

Okay? Because he was doing something that wasn't good and that could harm the flock. And so, that's okay to do. You got to know the person.

You know, I hear people um rag on pastors. Joel Ostein gets gets teased a lot by certain groups, you know. And uh you know where I sit on that is listen, God is his judge. God is my judge.

Okay? And I'm held as standard up here and so does he. And it may be that God told him to to be an encourager and not to talk about things like revelation. Okay?

It may be as long as he's doing that, that's up for God and Joel to know. Okay? But I do know there's been times I flicked the channel on a Saturday, found a Joel Ostein sermon, and man, it's exactly what I wanted to hear that day. It was like encouragement.

It's I needed to hear it. So So who am I to judge that dude, right? And and as soon as I told people that I was starting to be pastor, man, I got judged, you know? You're divorced.

You can't be a pastor. You know, I saw you drink a glass of wine at dinner the other night. You can't be a pastor. >> And the divorce thing comes from from Timothy.

And it's incorrectly uh read if they're if they're gleaning that from that because it's not talking pastor because we're all supposed to be preachers. Our lives, our our ministry says everything, we're all supposed to be preaching, right? And and that verse says you must be married. Well, Paul wasn't married.

Does that discount him? So, so we got to be careful about judging things. At the start of this year, I was not going to start a church. It wasn't on my plan.

But God gave me both the vision and the thing. and he told me that there's a voice that's needed out here. When [clears throat] people talk about revelation, it's with fear or it's with judgment, turn or burn. Okay?

And he's telling me to preach out a revelation with love. And so that's my goal here, okay? Is to always come across loving, not judging. And [snorts] this isn't a scary thing, okay?

If it does come soon, guess what? Heaven's on the other side of it. It's not bad. You know, we don't have a bad place we're heading to.

>> Amen. So, I want to challenge you, okay, to to try not to judge people. I have to check myself on this all the time, okay? And and and if you do, because probably more than any other thing, this is the thing that turns non-Christians off is when we pass judgment on them, okay?

When we sit there in our nice little church click and all those bad people are over there, we're no different than them. Every one of us is a sinner, okay? Including the preacher boy here. Um, everything's level at the the foot of the cross.

We should see everything as judgment. You dude, Todd, I see you as a Christian leader, man. One day you're going to be in leadership. Okay.

You've got some leadership PR characters. Me and Ken. And you got a good heart. Me and Kianne were talking about that a couple earlier this week that you've got a good heart, man.

It comes through. It shines through. >> So, um, God's going to do neat things. Don't get scared about that.

Just just keep the relationships on and just take it when he comes. But he's going to bring opportunities your way because you're special. >> Um, so Glenn had an event on Wednesday here. Man, it was beautiful.

It was They were busting in people from other rehab things. There were 200 people in this place, the overflow room over there. Okay. Way more people than I've ever been able to pull in.

Um but uh but they were giving out these chips, you know, and and for for one month um clean or six months clean or nine months clean, okay? And they were all cheering for each other and those people are in a dog fight, okay, to fight something that has a very hard addictive grasp on them and they're fighting. How long are you? Nine months.

>> Nine. So Glenn was telling me this week that nine's one of the toughest things to get to. Okay. So so you're doing really good, man.

I'm proud of you. Um but but I saw more Christian love in that room. Okay. I saw more Christian love in that room amongst all those people trying hard to come back from from drug addiction and rehab and all that um than I see in a lot of churches because they were cheering for each other.

Okay. How many times have you seen someone, you know, criticize another Christian who's starting to have a a momentum or having some success or whatever the case may be? You know, I've had to check my own spirit. I hear [clears throat] of somebody else's ministry taking off and I think, you know, for a second and then I have to run it that there's a place for all of our voices.

Okay? And and so some are thumbs, some are fingers, >> but but we all have a role no matter what it is. Okay? We just have to be faithful in our role and we get the same result.

One other thing to think about, every time you point a finger at someone, there's three pointing back at you. And that really um that really I I try to keep that pre present because I'm I can see the struggle, you know, for me finally getting clarity on that fact that God loves me and that he's he's he's crazy about me. I'm his boy, okay? You're his his child.

You're his you're a prince. You're a princess. to finally get that in my heart, okay, was huge. And and uh I can see it in other people, but I hadn't se I saw it in like um past relationships where they were, but I didn't realize I still had it in me.

And God had to a few years ago clean that piece up, too. Okay? To where to where I really get it now. Okay?

And that's a beautiful place to be. So, I want you to open up yourself this week to any blind spots that you may have, some areas where you may not be, you know, um, being the best version of you or the best version of Christ that you can be and then repent and just take it back. We have to embrace the love Jesus had.

And I think there's a major hindrance to that love in a lot of people's lives is this thing that I've touched on where they know intellectually that they're saved, but deep down in their heart, they still carry some of that, you know, um damage. And the devil, if you don't bring it all into the light, the devil will use that to take you back. That's where people um people will relapse back into stuff. Okay, people sabotage their lives over and over again.

They do the same mistakes because they're falling back. Um, at the ministry thing on Wednesday, I was talking to a girl and she's relapsed many times and she said something that was very interesting. She she said to me, "This time I've forgiven myself." >> That's nice.

>> And this is the last time. Okay, that was beautiful. That's she'd been saved, but she didn't it didn't get down here. It didn't go from the head to the heart.

So, she fell back because the devil was still there sitting there whispering, "You're not bad. You're not bad. You're this bad person." Okay?

So, that's why it's so important for us to bring stuff into the light. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says this, "If anyone is [clears throat] in Christ, they are a new creation. The old has passed away." Passed away.

When someone dies, it passed away. That means it's dead. It's buried. Lay it in a coffin.

Put the dirt over it. That old person has passed away. Okay. Behold, all things are new.

Okay? You got to get that from here to here. Okay? And really embrace what Jesus Christ has done for you.

Works won't prove you're good enough. Okay? And it's only been the last few years that I finally got to this place. And and so I want to beg you not to wait forever.

Okay? You two, you both shared your testimony one week after the the other. Okay? And you shared some things from the past.

If you guys will bring it into light, okay? So that you know each other's worst stuff, okay? And then you pray. The devil doesn't have any any foothold to there's nothing he can do.

Okay? He's stuck. He just has to choose a different couple, you know? And and it's true, you know.

So here's the thing. We can't fix you can't fix you. >> Yeah. >> Amen.

>> But you don't have to fix you. >> Okay. Jesus is in that business. You just have to embrace the love that he already has for you.

The love that he's already thrown out on you, who you really are. Okay? And to do that, just if you pray, spend a little time like he was saying, be still and know it's God. just be quiet and and let God do some of the talking.

Okay, I'm bad about that. Um there are times where life is so overwhelming to me. You know, when you're an adult, you don't have you you don't have any that mom or dad run to. But my mom's in Florida, my dad's passed away.

So So when the tough stuff hits me, I go to Jesus. Okay. There have been times where life was so hard that I had to sit there in the morning and and I pray every morning and and some mornings all you can do is just imagine you're there and um I imagine I'm there. I'm just I I just don't even know what to pray and I just imagine that God's this big dude in a chair and I just crawl up in his lap, man.

and he's just cuddling me and I just sit there cuddled for a little while until it all feels better. And uh then I'll rise up to take on the day, you know. And um that's that's Jesus. [clears throat] That's that's a relationship with him.

That's, you know, real. He's your dad, man. He's your dad. Okay?

And and you can go to your dad. He's not going to let you down. It's a beautiful, beautiful place to be. And so we're going to wrap here um with a I I don't want to let a couple things go.

Revelation 2 again um verses four and five. There's something startling that Jesus shares here. He says, [clears throat] "Nevertheless, I have this against you that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen.

Repent and do the first works or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent." So what does that lampstand back in in um the first chapter of Revelation verse 20? It's again Jesus speaking and he describes what the lampstands are. He says the mystery of the seven stars which you saw.

Okay, this is John has seen this vision. The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand and the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches. So I take from that that we do have guardian angels.

Okay. >> Um because he says each of the church has an angel. Okay, which is kind of neat. All right, my kids will attest I've got angels.

What on my wheels? Right. And they they all think I'm a horrible driver. Okay, which I don't know that I agree with, but they think I do.

They're all shaking their head. [snorts] And so I tell them all the time, I got a but and what could possibly go wrong? I say that all the time, right? They roll their eyes.

They roll on their heads, but nothing ever goes wrong, right? Because God's got me. >> Amen. >> Okay, God's got you.

It's a neat thing. And [snorts] um but but so we all have angels. But then he says here the seven lampstands are the seven churches. So the seven lampstands are those people are those whatever.

And he says here if you don't come back to love, I may remove my lampstand from your lampstand from its place. Okay? Which sounds a lot like last week we were we were Matthew um 7:21 and 23, right?

where he said uh you know a lot of you will come to that day saying Lord Lord look at all the works we did again works right and he says get away from me or I never knew you depart from me all right it's the relationship guys it's all about the relationship I don't want any of the people that are under the sound of my voice who who listen to me online or whatever to hear in that day get away from me I never knew you okay so I'm going to keep talking relationship keep talking relationship going blew in the face and how do you avoid it?

You repent and you come back to that relationship. Okay. What if the prodigal son never came back right? Remember the story of the prodical son guy goes to his father he says I want my inheritance which is really really uh bad.

He's he's basically saying I wish you were dead but because you're not dead give me my half of the a lotment. which the dad does and off he goes and he spends it in, you know, debaucherous living and he runs out of money eventually and ends up in a pig pen. Okay, he finally comes to his senses his senses and he comes back and before he's even far off the father comes running out to him and throws a a thing around a robe around him, puts rings on his fingers, brings him in, they have a big feast.

But what if he sat there in that pig pen and said, "Man, I've just done so much bad. I can't go back to I can't go back there." He'd have missed out on the feast. >> He'd have missed out on everything.

He was still his son. Wherever you're at, no matter how far away you are, you're still God's son. Okay? And it's never too late to turn back.

But you got to turn back um to that relationship. It's like the 10 virgins. Five weren't ready and five were, you know, and and they and but their problem was he didn't know them. Just turn back to that relationship.

I tell you the truth, the relationship with Jesus Christ is the best thing you can possibly have. It's better than any human relationship on this planet. It really is because he knows everything. He and and he's always there, man.

You can call someone and they they're busy, but God's always there if you just open it up, man. It doesn't even make sense that I can have a great relationship with him and you can have a great relationship and we all can have it and he has time for all of it, right? It's like beyond comprehension where we run around crazy over just a couple to-dos. So wrap it with this.

If you have any pride, if anything you've heard today, if you if you've been judgmental, okay, if you've been living life all about you, if you wake up in the morning and the first thing you're thinking about is you you you problems and you spend the whole day with you and you're and when you have a free moment, you're scrolling instead of thinking. Um and and just for stuff for you, for you, for you, and it's all you, okay?

Um if you're trying to handle everything yourself, if you're a control freak, okay, trying to control your time and your money and everything. Okay? If you've [clears throat] never fully embraced your position as a child of God, [sighs] truly let that into your heart. I spent 20 years saved before I finally got it down here.

Okay? Um Jesus says just repent. Okay? Just you take it to him in prayer.

You say, "I'm sorry, Lord. I'm so sorry. You mean it." Repent means you're not only sorry, but you turn.

You try not to do it again. Okay? and and and then turn back to love, okay? And let him flow in.

Let his love flow in. Let it flow through you and and just enjoying it. Okay? So, two things I'm going to give you to-dos.

I'm going to give you homework. All right? Already you're saying this, preacher boy. All right?

You're going to give me homework. Two things to try to focus on this week. If if you pray, I want you to add five minutes to your prayer. But I want you to add five minutes by being silent.

Okay? Just don't say anything. Let God do the talking. Okay?

I have to force myself to do that because I don't I I I tend to I'm I'm I throw all my stuff out on God. I almost have to work through it. I have a little uh what do they call it? Um what's it called?

It's it's not it's not autism, but it's right before that. Um anyway, and so my mind I have to settle it down by by journaling and I have to settle it down by taking it to God, but it I'm always thinking and so I have to stop myself. And it may [clears throat] be a little tough at first, but look what he says down here. He says, "To him who overcomes, I will give to eat from the tree of life."

It may not be easy for you to still your mind, especially at first, okay, when you try it, but you can do it. You can calm your mind and then just stay still and let God tell you. So each day I prepare for these these sermons and literally almost every day God gives me a nugget during that quiet time that I have to add to it. And so the sermon just becomes built out over the week.

Okay. One of the verses I shared you didn't have because it just came yesterday. And so one of the verses was you didn't you didn't have up there. But um five extra minutes of prayer.

And then this week I want you to open your Bible and read. And some of you probably already do. You open it up, you read. Okay?

But if you don't, all right, I'm not talking podcasts. I'm not talking, [snorts] you know, things like that. Those are good, but that's someone else's life and someone else's stuff that he's feeding into you. Okay?

This book, God will speak specifically to you about something specifically that day. I can't tell you how many times in the morning I read something and then I experience that same thing in the afternoon. I giggle. I'm like, that was written 3,000 years ago.

kind of they know today on you know May 25th or whatever that that I would need that right today you know so don't make it hard it could be if if you're not used to reading the Bible read a proverb okay there's 31 proverbs 31 days or Glenn what he does is um he reads one chapter uh each so we started in the New Testament Matthew which I think is a great place to start for especially for you guys it's less less you know crazy than the Old Testament [snorts] um and I'm not talking the Old Testament there's lots of great stuff from But for a new believer, man, Matthew is easier to grasp.

Um, so you read one chapter a day and then on day two, he reads day chapter two and then chapter three and, you know, you just start reading through the Bible that way. Whatever. Take a few minutes more to read in that book and let those words come. You may say, "Brian, I'm too busy for that five minutes."

>> Bunk. >> It's just not true. It's just not true. You can get up early to go on vacation.

Don't tell me you can't get up early. Spend some time in the word. You can get up. You if if it's important, >> you do.

We always have time. 7 hours and 27 minutes is how much the average American spends on this every day. That's a full darn work day. Okay.

Three hours of TV at night streaming shows. That's a thing, right? you you go through a whole season in like a couple days. Okay?

Not saying don't do it. I'm just saying stop five minutes short. Go to bed five minutes early and do these couple things and you're going to have a better week. Okay?

And you're going to start growing that relationship again in a strong and powerful way. And that's going to be a blessing to you um and to everyone hearing it. Okay? So these two things you can do to grow the relationship.

Like it. >> All right. That's your homework. So, um, let's pray.

Heavenly Father, Lord, I thank you so much for a wonderful, beautiful weather we're having here in Georgia. Lord, it's just >> off the chain for the end of August to be in the 70s. Um, I'm just so thankful for that because I love it. And, um, Lord, I'm just thankful for these people on Labor Day weekend to come out here and to listen to me um, and and Gabriel and Kelsey.

And Lord, I just I just pray your blessings on them this week. I pray that they'll have um just an amazing week of of growing and learning in you and just the beauty that is all that. And and Lord, I just thank you for each one of them. They're a blessing and I love them.

Um and I know you love them. So, uh have a blessed [music] week, guys. Love you. Amen.