The Transactional Trap: Why Seeking God Is Not a Business Deal

• Gratitude and Worship [00:04:32 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor encourages entering God's presence with thanksgiving, citing Psalm 100, to shift the heart and mind from worry to faith.
• Spiritual Warfare and Divine Protection [00:27:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The speaker declares that forces trying to stop believers are broken and that God is fighting battles against depression, anxiety, and sickness.
• Faith vs. Natural Sight [00:31:41 ▶️ 📄]
  > Using the story of Elisha, the pastor illustrates that while problems may look overwhelming naturally, spiritual reality reveals God's superior power and angels fighting on behalf of believers.
• Identity and Destiny [00:30:19 ▶️ 📄]
  > A declaration of faith is led to affirm believers as children of the Most High God, equipped and empowered to fulfill their destiny rather than living in mediocrity.
• Anxiety and Striving [01:09:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor addresses the human tendency to worry about the future, health, and relationships, describing it as 'striving and straining' to force outcomes.
• Divine Provision and Sovereignty [01:09:57 ▶️ 📄]
  > Based on Matthew 6:33, the pastor argues that God knows our needs and plans our future, so believers should seek His kingdom first rather than worrying about material needs.
• Kingdom Ethics vs. Natural Instincts [01:12:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts natural desires for revenge and grudges with God's way of blessing enemies and forgiving, defining 'seeking the kingdom' as walking by faith and integrity.
• Seeking the Kingdom [01:12:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor defines seeking the kingdom not just as religious rituals, but as living with integrity, excellence, and faith in daily life, even when no one is watching.
• Divine Addition vs. Human Effort [01:12:09 ▶️ 📄]
  > The contrast between human effort (talent, hard work) and God's ability to add things that exceed expectations and boggle the mind.
• The Story of David [01:14:34 ▶️ 📄]
  > An extended illustration of David shepherding sheep, highlighting his excellence, faithfulness, and positive attitude in a difficult, unnoticed situation as a preparation for kingship.
• Blessings Seeking You [01:17:43 ▶️ 📄]
  > The theological concept that when you are faithful, God sends 'Samuels' (opportunities, people, breakthroughs) to seek you out, rather than you having to chase them.
• Personal Testimonies [01:23:01 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares personal anecdotes about meeting his wife, acquiring a TV station, becoming a minister, writing books, and building the compact center to illustrate God's unexpected provision.
• Divine Provision vs. Human Striving [01:25:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts his own experiences of unplanned blessings (book deal, auditorium) with the futility of human striving, asserting that God adds what surprises us when we seek Him.
• Faithfulness in Small Things [01:28:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > Using the story of David taking lunch to his brothers, the pastor argues that small, seemingly insignificant acts of obedience are often the gateway to major destiny moments.
• God's Payroll [01:30:03 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the metaphor of employment to explain that seeking God and doing His way places one on 'God's payroll,' which offers superior rewards (peace, health, favor) compared to self-employment or worldly validation.

• Sermon Illustration [00:31:03 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts the biblical story of Elisha being surrounded by enemy troops. While his assistant saw only the natural threat (being outnumbered), Elisha prayed for his eyes to be opened, revealing a heavenly host of angels surrounding them, illustrating that God's power is greater than visible problems.
• Sermon Illustration [00:38:09 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about a loved one receiving a horrible medical diagnosis with little hope. He describes consulting wise doctors but ultimately turning to God for healing, finding that God provided hope and encouragement beyond the medical prognosis.
• Sermon Illustration [01:14:34 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor tells the biblical story of David, the youngest of eight brothers, who was left to care for his father's sheep in the desert. Despite being overlooked and having no future prospects, David showed excellence, fought off lions and bears, and maintained a praise-filled attitude (writing Psalms). This faithfulness prepared him for God to send Samuel to anoint him king, illustrating that God promotes those who are faithful in small things.
• Sermon Illustration [01:23:01 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal story from his early twenties where he went to a jewelry store to buy a battery for his watch. He met Victoria, whom he describes as the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. She ended up selling him a new watch, and they have been together for 40 years. He attributes this not to his own strategy, but to God orchestrating their meeting as he honored God in his daily life.
• Sermon Illustration [01:24:49 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a time when his father was pastoring. A man approached him in the lobby offering a construction permit for the last full-power TV station in Houston. The pastor did not pursue this opportunity; it came to him unexpectedly. The funds from later selling this station helped renovate the compact center.
• Sermon Illustration [01:25:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor describes how he never intended to be a minister, preferring television production. However, after his father passed, a door opened for him to pastor. He also shares how he was encouraged to write a book despite lacking confidence. An executive in New York saw his name on a sign, felt compelled to sign him, and offered a contract, resulting in books published worldwide.
• Sermon Illustration [01:26:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares how they needed a larger auditorium. After failed attempts to build, a friend he hadn't spoken to in years called to suggest they get the 'compact center' because the Rockets basketball team was moving out. He did not pursue this building; it came to them unexpectedly.
• Sermon Illustration [01:25:43 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about how he didn't pursue a book deal, but an executive saw his name on a sign in New York and offered a contract, resulting in books published worldwide.
• Sermon Illustration [01:26:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts how he didn't seek a larger auditorium, but a friend called to inform him that the Rockets basketball team was moving out, allowing them to acquire the compact center.
• Sermon Illustration [01:28:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor tells the biblical story of David, who was anointed king but returned to shepherd fields. He obeyed his father's small request to take lunch to his brothers, which led him to hear Goliath taunting the Israelites, setting the stage for his destiny.
• Sermon Illustration [01:29:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal story about picking out his father's suit and tie for television appearances every Saturday, noting that he never dreamed he would one day be picking out his own suit for TV.

• Pastoral Charge [00:03:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > Turn over worries and burdens to God immediately.
• Pastoral Charge [00:04:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > Identify and acknowledge specific things to be grateful for.
• Pastoral Charge [00:29:45 ▶️ 📄]
  > Verbally affirm the declaration of faith by saying 'Amen'.
• Pastoral Charge [00:33:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Come to the front of the sanctuary for personal prayer.
• Pastoral Charge [00:34:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > Post prayer requests in the online chat for remote viewers.
• Pastoral Charge [00:33:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > Invite congregation members to come to the front of their section for prayer during the next song.
• Pastoral Charge [00:34:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > Encourage online viewers to type their prayer requests into the live chat.
• Pastoral Charge [01:08:43 ▶️ 📄]
  > Instruct the congregation to open their Bibles to Matthew 6:33.
• Pastoral Charge [01:20:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Continue pursuing God and living according to His ways despite current circumstances.
• Pastoral Charge [01:22:07 ▶️ 📄]
  > Excel in current responsibilities and maintain a good attitude without waiting for a new opportunity.
• Pastoral Charge [01:22:27 ▶️ 📄]
  > Perform specific daily actions: excel at work, show family compassion, be generous, and start the day with thanksgiving.
• Pastoral Charge [01:34:47 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor calls the congregation to receive the blessing by saying 'amen' and participating in a closing prayer to seal the message.
• Pastoral Charge [01:36:05 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor poses a direct question to the congregation regarding their eternal security and peace with God.

[00:02:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:02:36] We're so blessed to have you with us. How many of you are ready to worship the Lord this morning and God's been good to all of us and brought us into another week and as I said honored to have you all here and of course online and listening live on Sirius XM and have a great service today and I really believe that it's better because you took time to come. God saw you take this step of faith to be here so we welcome you and we just I hope you came ready to receive what God has for you today. I know this that you know it's always
[00:03:06] our prayer and our declaration that not one of us will leave the same way that we came in i believe if you'll do your part and by that i mean if there's anything trying to weigh you down it's
[00:03:17] a perfect time to turn it over to god in other words don't don't sit here the next hour or two just kind of worried and i got this problem and what if this happens but why don't you say god
[00:03:26] my life is in your hands i'm gonna thank you for working in my life for fighting my battles here's what I've learned the bigger we make God the smaller our problems become the more faith
[00:03:37] rises in our hearts so we take the first half of the service first 30 minutes of the service just to thank God to worship him to praise him to pray and so I hope you'll join in with us today but
[00:03:47] know that we're honored to have you here let me just make that declaration not one of us are going to leave the same way we came in here you're going to go out of here more joy more faith and

[00:03:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:03:56] more victory in Jesus name. Amen. Good morning church. We are so glad that you've joined us today. You know, I love what you're saying, Joel, because I believe that when we focus on God, like you said, our problems become smaller. You know, King David had such a way of knowing
[00:04:16] how to change and shift the atmosphere of his heart. No matter what challenge he was facing, He knew that when he looked to God and give him thanks for what he already had, it began a shift in his heart and it began a shift in his mind.
[00:04:32] I think that's why he wrote in Psalm 100, enter his gates with thanksgiving, his courts with praise.
[00:04:40] So I think we ought to take a page this morning from Psalm 100 and say, you know what?
[00:04:45] I got something to be grateful for.
[00:04:47] How many of you can think of one thing?
[00:04:51] Maybe two.
[00:04:51] maybe many more that you're grateful for this morning. I'll tell you what, I'm grateful I got up this morning. I'm grateful I have a family. I'm grateful I know my name is written in the
[00:05:04] book of life. There is so much to be grateful for. And when we enter into his presence and his gates with gratefulness, and then we begin to focus on how wonderful he is, the praises just keep coming.
[00:05:19] The praise just comes out, and that pathway to God's abundance is there for us.
[00:05:24] So this morning, we are grateful people.
[00:05:28] Let's just enter in with that heart and expectancy for God to come and show us some amazing things this morning.
[00:05:35] Amen?
[00:05:36] Father, we thank you for this morning.
[00:05:38] We thank you that we can come together, Father.
[00:05:40] That we can be grateful as a body of believers.
[00:05:44] And Father, we want you to see our hearts this morning.
[00:05:46] we want you to know that we are looking to you for the future for all that we need all that we have that God it is all yours and we are yours this morning so father we just surrender it all we
[00:05:59] thank you for today we thank you for this moment and what you want to do in this moment and father we give you all the praise all the honor and all the glory in Jesus name and everyone said

[00:06:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:06:12] We recognize we wouldn't be here without your goodness, your mercy upon our lives.

[00:25:49] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:25:49] For Lord, you chose us before we could choose you.
[00:25:52] We're not here with a sad song, Lord.
[00:25:55] We're here with a song of praise.
[00:25:56] We recognize your greatness and we thank you for all that you've done, for where you brought us through, where you brought us to, Lord.
[00:26:04] We look back and see the victories in our lives and the times you opened doors and brought us people to love and protected us.
[00:26:12] And Lord, we know we didn't get here on our own, but it was your hand of favor and blessing.
[00:26:17] And we thank you for another day to be alive, for life to live and friends and family, salvation and redemption.
[00:26:25] Lord, we bless you today.
[00:26:27] As we start the new week off, Lord, we commit our lives afresh and anew into your hands.
[00:26:32] We say, make us and mold us into who you want us to be.
[00:26:36] Lord, I thank you that we are full of your wisdom, that we have clear direction for our lives.
[00:26:42] That we make decisions that honor you and that we can clearly hear your voice.
[00:26:47] You said you'd give us the power to obey.
[00:26:49] So, Lord, I thank you that we're making decisions that move us toward our God-given destiny.
[00:26:55] Lord, that you're our doorkeeper.
[00:26:57] You're opening and closing the doors in our lives.
[00:27:00] And we trust you that you will get us to where we're supposed to be.
[00:27:04] Father, I thank you that as we're worshiping you this morning, that every force that's tried to stop us has been broken in the name of Jesus.
[00:27:14] Depression, anxiety, addiction, sicknesses, trouble at work, at home, in our finances, whatever it is, Lord, I think that today is a breakthrough day.
[00:27:25] Who can withstand Jehovah?
[00:27:27] Lord, we thank you that you are fighting our battles and that you have victories on the way, that the angels are bringing the victories even now, that in the unseen realm, things have changed in our favor. Lord, that you will do what we can't do on our own, thinking that you're working
[00:27:43] behind the scenes in our lives. And Lord, that we'll not just make it through this year, but let 2026 be a blessed year and a favor-filled year, a productive year, a year, Lord, where we
[00:27:55] see loved ones come to know you, a year where we're free from any addictions, bad habits, a year where we're healthy and whole, and Lord, that we can run and not be weary. And Lord,
[00:28:05] we just speak blessings over this year. We thank you, Lord, that you're breathing on each one of us right now. Fresh vision, fresh anointing, fresh momentum, fresh growth, fresh ideas and creativity. Lord, I thank you that you're doing a new thing. Lord, that you're working in each
[00:28:25] one of our lives. And I do lift up those that are fighting battles in their health, those not feeling well, maybe in the hospitals, listening, watching. Lord, you said you would restore health back to your people. We're calling on you as Jehovah Rapha, the Lord, our healer. And Lord,
[00:28:41] I thank you that healing is flowing into all those that need it right now. Lord, even doing maybe what medicine cannot do, but Lord, you have the final say. We've seen you do it in the past. Lord,
[00:28:52] do it again for your people. Free them from chronic pain, whatever's trying to hold them back.
[00:28:57] Let today be a turnaround in Jesus' name. And Lord, not just physically, but I lift up those that are in tough times, those that have gone through loss. Father, you said you're close to the brokenhearted. Let them feel your presence even now. Let them know that we're praying.
[00:29:15] Lord, I thank you that you're comforting them, giving them peace. Lord, even when it looks like it's the end, let them see it's a new beginning, that you're still in control, that you have beauty
[00:29:26] for those ashes. Lord, that weeping endures for a night, but joy is coming in the morning in Jesus' name. Lord, you've done great things in the past, but we believe, declare the best is still yet to come, that we are victors and never victims in Jesus' name. And if you receive
[00:29:45] it, can you say amen today? So good to have you in the house of the Lord. Honored to have you.
[00:29:53] Let's make our declaration of faith. Are you ready? I am blessed, prosperous, redeemed, Forgiven, healthy, whole, talented, creative, confident, secure, disciplined, focused, prepared, qualified, motivated, valuable, free, determined, equipped, empowered, anointed, accepted, and approved.
[00:30:19] not average, not mediocre. I am a child of the most high God. I will become all I was created to be in Jesus name. Amen. You sound amazing today. You sound like children of the most high
[00:30:36] God. Can keep your shoulders back, your head held high, not just because of who you are, but how about because of whose you are because of who we belong to, you know, and I'm not saying
[00:30:48] we're better than anybody else, but don't go through life thinking you're less than anybody else. Not when you belong to the most high. And so that's what gives us the confidence to fulfill our destinies, to go forward in faith. And I love that song that we were singing and you know,
[00:31:03] the enemy is outnumbered. And that's from a story. You remember when Elisha, he was surrounded, the enemy troops snuck up at night and surrounded his whole house. And the assistant went out and came back in in a panic, said, Elijah, we're surrounded. I mean, there must've been tens of
[00:31:18] thousands of army that has surrounded his complex. But, uh, Elijah, he had the faith. He said, don't worry. There are more for us than there are against us. And, you know, you know, his assistant,
[00:31:32] he was looking at it in the natural, you know, what he was saying in one sense was true. We're outnumbered. It's two versus all of that. But we have to remember there's a world that we cannot
[00:31:41] see with our natural eyes. And that's the spiritual world. That's where God has angels fighting in your behalf. Even now, that's where God is working, pushing back forces of darkness. And I love what it said. Elisha simply prayed. He said, Lord, open the young man's eyes. He went back and looked
[00:31:59] again. This time he saw a heavenly host of thousands of warring angels that were surrounding the army that was surrounding him. You know, the principle is, you know, we all have things in life that, oh man, Joel, this medical reporter, this financial situation, this relationship issue with
[00:32:18] my child. I don't know how, well, you may not see a way in the natural, but you have to know that God is surrounding what's trying to stop you. His power is greater than what's coming against you.
[00:32:29] And you know, God didn't say you have to figure it out. He said, if you believe all things are possible. Let me tell you when you believe God goes to work. And I know today I'm in a room
[00:32:39] filled with believers and I don't know what's coming against you, but you got to know even today that things are happening behind the scenes that you cannot see. Now be strong and be of good
[00:32:51] courage for the Lord. Your God is with you and he's fighting your battles today. Let me tell you 2026, you're going to walk into some uncommon blessings and favor that you couldn't make happen. It's the hand of God working in your life. We're believing for each one of you. You're going
[00:33:08] to see God show out in your life, not just in the sweet by and by that's good. We'll go and make it to heaven. But how about in 2026, God show out in our lives, do something unusual, something to
[00:33:20] build your kingdom, to show your glory. Well, we'll take a moment this morning in every service, we do this to pray. And so if you have something you would like for us to agree with you in prayer
[00:33:31] about. We'd be honored to do that one-on-one. So during this next song, anyone's welcome to come to the front of your section. There'll be prayer partners all over the building. We'd be honored to pray for you. Rest of you, you're welcome to be seated if you like, and we'll take this next
[00:33:44] moment to pray. Our beautiful online family listening live on Sirius XM, thanks for always being a part. And my friend Sarah is there to pray for you as well. Good morning, Lakewood family.

[00:34:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:34:00] we are here to stand in agreement with you today on everything that's on your heart all the prayers and petitions that you are asking God for maybe you're not even real sure what to pray for
[00:34:11] specifically today but I want to encourage you that God knows God knows your needs before you even ask we want to encourage you to put those things that pop up on your heart in the chats
[00:34:21] so that we have prayer partners that are watching and can be praying for you as well we've already got some coming in and, but it's not too late. Go ahead and add in everything that you have that
[00:34:32] you would like for us to stand in agreement with you on. I say this often, but it's just such a good reminder that Bible says where two or more are gathered together in his name, that his presence
[00:34:43] is there. And if his presence there, that means power is there. So we believe something supernatural is going to be happening today. And even if we don't see it right away, we can trust that God
[00:34:52] is at work in each and every one of our lives.
[00:34:55] Again, we have some that are already coming in.
[00:34:59] I see that Evelyn, praise report here.
[00:35:02] And of course, I love starting with praise reports.
[00:35:03] But Evelyn, you're thanking the Lord for another beautiful Sunday morning.
[00:35:08] I absolutely love that.
[00:35:10] When I read that, it just put a smile on my face because you're right.
[00:35:13] It is another day.
[00:35:14] It's another day that God has made and we shall rejoice in that.
[00:35:18] It is a beautiful Sunday morning.
[00:35:19] If you woke up today with air in your lungs And maybe everything in your life isn't perfect, but God has given you breath.
[00:35:25] That means that your time on this earth is not over.
[00:35:28] So just begin to thank the Lord for that.
[00:35:31] Start there.
[00:35:31] If nowhere else, you know where to go.
[00:35:33] That's a great place to start, Evelyn.
[00:35:35] So thank you for sharing.
[00:35:37] Angela, God has healed you.
[00:35:39] Wow.
[00:35:40] I didn't get specifics on how He's healed you, but ultimately that doesn't matter because God just says He will heal.
[00:35:46] And whether that's with your mental health or whether that's something physical in your body, maybe it's healing of your heart.
[00:35:51] from a trauma or an abuse or something that has happened to you. God is in the business of healing. So thank you for sharing that this morning, that you are someone who has received your healing. Thank you. It encourages the rest of us, all the other people watching that God
[00:36:07] listens and that he's good at what he does. So we're glad you shared that, Angela. We have some financial needs that I'm seeing. That's important. Finances are a big thing to God. You know, we're
[00:36:17] not to be ruled by our finances, but we live in a world where that's our currency. So it is a big deal. And God promises in his word that he will pour out the windows of heaven and bless us as
[00:36:30] we're doing our part in being good stewards of what he's given us, that our finances are a concern to him because he knows how important it is for us to walk on this earth with a currency. So Camille,
[00:36:42] for your daughter to get a scholarship, great prayer request. We stand in agreement with you for that. We believe in Jesus' name that it is done, that she will have favor and that the scholarships will chase her down in Jesus' name. Christy, you said restoration in your finances.
[00:36:59] So Christy, again, not sure what all the details are to that, but in complete agreement that God will restore. If I have learned anything in my life, and I'm no spring chicken anymore, but I
[00:37:11] have learned and I have witnessed that God is faithful and He's a God who knows how to restore And that which the enemy has taken from you, God knows how to put it back together.
[00:37:20] If we just trust Him, if we just put Him first and we give it to Him, He can be trusted with those things.
[00:37:26] So whatever reason, you know, things crumbled or got pulled out from under you, whatever reason you're walking in a dark place financially, just know that God owns it all.
[00:37:37] And that sometimes it's not so much about how much we have, but who are we trusting what we have to.
[00:37:42] And that's where we usually start.
[00:37:44] That's a great place to start.
[00:37:45] We have healing. Valerie, you said healing from lymphoma, cancer, not a small thing. We're praying for you, Valerie. Carol, for her medical tests to come back clear. So we just want to pray right now
[00:37:58] over those that are asking in their bodies for healing. The Bible says by his stripes we are healed, but we just agree that you come across the right doctors at the right time. And I've
[00:38:09] shared this before, but I'll share it again. There was a moment in my life, someone I cared about got a horrible diagnosis, ended up having to go to specialists at the medical center and not much hope for a future. And I remember getting that report and knowing what the doctor said. And
[00:38:23] I was so grateful for the doctors because they're wise and they get wisdom from God.
[00:38:27] But I also remember putting that and show up to the Lord and saying, God, this is what the doctors have to say, but I want to know what you have to say about my healing. And when I did that,
[00:38:36] the Lord just began to encourage me and give me hope in the things that he can do. So I want to encourage you to do as well. We take what the doctors say and we know that there's some truth
[00:38:45] there, but ultimately God is the one who holds all truth. And he's the one that created us. And he's the one that can determine what type of healing you get. And so we just agree in Jesus
[00:38:56] name that that is done. Uh, we're going to pray over families, uh, strength and unity. Uh, Cynthia, you asked for strength and unity for your family after your mother's passing so hard when someone who is a matriarch in a family to pass.
[00:39:11] Teresa, for strength, her sister passed away, and it's been difficult.
[00:39:15] So, Teresa, we know when someone passes, it leaves such a void in our lives.
[00:39:19] So we just pray that God's hand is upon you and that He walks with you and beside you.
[00:39:24] And anyone else that is struggling with somebody who's now absent from their life that was such a big, held such a big space, we understand the void.
[00:39:33] We've walked through that void.
[00:39:35] You're not alone in it.
[00:39:36] But again, just can't express it enough that when we put our hope in God, that's the sustainer of the promises.
[00:39:44] That's the one we can go to in the dark days.
[00:39:47] You know, a scripture is just popping to my mind, and I think it's in Psalms 119, verse 116, Psalms 119, 116, but it says, sustain me according to your promises that I may live and do not let my hopes be dashed.
[00:40:01] And I've prayed that over my own life.
[00:40:03] And one thing I want to tell you is that when we put our hopes in God, He promises that He will not let our hopes be dashed.
[00:40:11] He will not let our hopes fail because He is the one holding it all.
[00:40:16] We can put our hopes in man, put our hopes in other things, but God is the ultimate hope to put our faith and trust in.
[00:40:22] Well, again, it was an honor to pray for you today.
[00:40:23] We'll continue to pray for you throughout the week.
[00:40:25] God bless you and enjoy the rest of the service.

[00:40:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:40:29] So good. You may be seated.
[00:41:21] recently in our midweek service here at Lakewood we uh explored some hard questions we actually did a series called ask anything where we allowed people to submit questions uh faith questions life questions and we uh as a group as a group of teachers uh explored them and tried to answer
[00:41:41] them give some perspective on them and so we thought we would continue that conversation here this morning uh for all of us those here and those watching online I'm here with Pastor Eric Luchetta and pastor Jeremy Marone. They are two of our teachers and our Monday night Bible study,
[00:41:56] as well as in the church, pastor Jeremy and them, they work hard with our interns, with our leadership courses and just phenomenal teachers. And we want to continue the conversation because we believe that you can hold questions and you can hold your faith at the same time.
[00:42:12] And oftentimes, um, in church, we, we believe the lie that you can only have one or the other, but there's a lot of things that we navigate in our life that are hard and we have questions and
[00:42:23] we carry those questions and we believe that the church is the best space to ask those questions about our faith about circumstances events that's transpiring in our world so we're going to go ahead and answer we're going to try we won't maybe fully answer everything but these are actually
[00:42:39] questions that you submitted we asked the church on social media submit any questions that you might have around faith, around the Bible, around life. And these are some of the ones that came.
[00:42:50] So I'm going to start, um, number one to you, pastor Jeremy, if we can, um, this is one of the major questions that was asked is, is the Bible reliable? How do we know that the Bible is

[00:43:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:43:04] true? Ready? Go. Yeah. Uh, well, one, one, uh, first thing I would say is a 2000 years of billions have changed lives. I think that's number one, that the gospel changes people's lives. And out
[00:43:17] of that, you see all kinds of things in the world that the people of God, Christians, have established over the world, including hospitals, schools, all kinds of stuff. But other than that, I would say 40 authors, 66 books, over 1,500 years, and they all tell about one story. That's
[00:43:36] supernatural in itself. Uh, 35 of the 40 writers of the Bible lived at a time when no other writers of the Bible lived. So they didn't like share. They didn't compare. God called each one of them
[00:43:48] and inspired them to write part of scripture to give us God's self-revelation. That's what it is.
[00:43:54] And then of course we have the prophecies in second Peter chapter one. Peter says, look, we were there. We were the apostles. We saw Jesus. We saw his resurrection. But even then we lean on
[00:44:03] the prophecies that were fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. And so, these are all things that we can lean on to understand that the Bible is clear to us. And then, of course, the Bible's
[00:44:12] been scrutinized more than any other book in the ancient world, and it comes up strong every single time. I think that's pretty good. And then, of course, the resurrection of Jesus. So, I mean, if there's any one thing, it's like a book was written about this man. The Bible's one story
[00:44:30] that leads to the person of Jesus Christ. He predicted his death and resurrection and then did it i mean that's with witness accounts with witness accounts yeah 500 people saw him alive

[00:44:38] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:44:38] at one time it's amazing it's amazing good take um let's switch gears uh i actually um asked chat gpt i said what's the most common question that you get around the world and this is the answer
[00:44:52] number one why am i here so people around the world are asking that question why am i here what is my purpose why do i exist so pastor eric why don't you go ahead and get this easy
[00:45:04] question. Why are we here? Why do we exist? Give us your perspective. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I think

[00:45:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:45:11] that there's a lot can be said on why God created us and why we existed, why we exist. But I think the main reason is this heaven and earth were meant to reflect one another, look like one another,
[00:45:23] resemble one another, be in alignment with one another. And God created human beings to fulfill a function, a certain role where that would happen. God wanted it that when you looked at the earth, you'd know what heaven was like. And if you were in heaven, you'd know what the earth
[00:45:40] was supposed to be like. That all of the beauty and the order and the justice of heaven where everything is right was meant to be seen equally in the earth. So in other words, from the very
[00:45:52] beginning, what we see is that it was God's desire for his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven and human beings. It's human beings. We are the ones that God works with and through to
[00:46:09] cause heaven and earth to better reflect one another. How many of you know we're made in the image of God? All right. Well, much of what it means to be made in the image of God is that we've
[00:46:21] been given the assignment to live and to work in the world in such a way where heaven and earth better reflect one another and when God created the earth and created human beings for that role
[00:46:33] he said very good he made humanity to fill this fulfill this function and he said it is excellent it is very good and whatever God calls very good he's committed to until the very end yes Adam and
[00:46:47] Eve sinned we all sinned as well but because of Jesus's death and resurrection we are being conformed more and more into the image of the son who is the image of God. In other words,
[00:46:59] our image bearing vocation is coming only because of Jesus. Jesus came, he sent the spirit, and now we are empowered to live the life that God intended. It's awesome. So image bearing,

[00:47:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:47:13] you know, I think, I think knowing Jesus is a part of that, right? They kind of work hand in hand that my purpose comes alive. Why am I here to know Jesus and to bear his image? What does that
[00:47:25] look like practically though every day? You know, what does that actually mean for how we're supposed

[00:47:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:47:29] to live? Yeah. Well, here's the thing. Let me ask you a question. Is anybody in heaven right now depressed? No. Is anybody starving? Anybody going hungry in heaven? No. Well, then we know that that's not God's will for the earth. That means when, if you know somebody who is depressed,
[00:47:50] maybe they got a bad doctor's report. You give them a call. You encourage them. When you lift them up out of that despair, you just cause the earth to better reflect heaven. If you meet
[00:48:01] somebody's financial needs, maybe you buy them dinner. Nobody's hungry in heaven. When you feed somebody, you are causing the earth to better reflect heaven. And so, but I would say this, here's one thing that I feel might be the best representation or one of the best things to do
[00:48:18] to cause heaven and earth to reflect one another. And it's this. My daughter had a problem last year in fourth grade with another student. This other student was kind of being rude to her. And my
[00:48:30] daughter, Olivia, didn't quite know how to handle it. So I suggested to her that she talks to this student and just says, next time that she's rude, just say, hey, that hurt my feelings. Please don't
[00:48:40] talk to me like that. And I asked Olivia if she could do that. And she said, yes. I dropped her off at school that morning, picked her up that afternoon. And I said, Olivia, how did it go at
[00:48:50] school today? And she said, dad, it was amazing. It was awesome. She went on to say that during the day, that girl, her classmate was rude to her a couple of times. And Olivia said, please don't
[00:49:02] talk to me like that. That hurts my feelings. She was very nice about it. But Olivia said right at the end of the day, this girl came up to her, looked her in the eyes and said, I am so sorry
[00:49:13] for how I've been treating you. Please forgive me. And Olivia said, dad, I forgave her. And we even hugged, but here's the thing that stands out the most. Now I'm a Bible teacher and my daughter
[00:49:29] has heard me teach on this many times, but I'll never forget what Olivia said that night, right before bed. She said, dad, I can't help, but think in that moment when we forgave one another,
[00:49:41] heaven and earth reflected one another. And so here's what I would say. Here's what I've come to believe. I think that when two people reconcile in forgiveness, that might be the moment most where heaven and earth both reflect one another. That's awesome. What an awesome perspective.

[00:49:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:49:58] Awesome truth. Pastor Jeremy, last question. This is a big one. Why is Jesus better? Why is he the way in a world, in a culture that we live in, where you, you see universalism, you see
[00:50:15] many ways. Um, one major question that came in consistently throughout the month was explaining why is Jesus different than all the other religions that are in our world today?

[00:50:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:50:26] It's a great question. Um, number one, I would say that the resurrection sets it apart.
[00:50:33] The resurrection sets it apart in a way that Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. He predicted his death and his resurrection, and then he did it. So that's number one. But I would say
[00:50:43] for all of the religions or religious systems around the world, they contradict one another.
[00:50:48] So they can't all be true just by nature of logic. So one of them has to be true, and we believe it's Jesus. And the difference in Jesus is that the ancient gods, they believe that
[00:50:59] the ancient gods would have never condescended. They would have never come down as a human being.
[00:51:05] but our God put on human flesh to reveal to us what his character is like and then and then saved us and forgave us through his death and resurrection so where every other religious system basically is the idea that we save ourselves or we reach up to God and try to
[00:51:21] find God on our merits Jesus goes my works are the thing that saves you we are saved by works it's just the works of Jesus yes and we receive his works in our own place and and and have eternal

[00:51:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:51:32] life because of that. So good. So amazing. Isn't that a pretty awesome thing to remember and to be reminded of anything you want to add to that thought? No, I mean, just for me personally.

[00:51:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:51:44] Yeah. I would say it's the resurrection seals the deal. If he came out of the grave, he's obviously worthy of being followed. He's the only one to defeat death. That's right.

[00:51:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:51:54] Might as well give your allegiance to him. That's right. That's right. Well, and, and, and his, and his 11 followers all died for the faith that tells me you don't you don't die for things you
[00:52:03] know are fake you don't die for things you know are alive yeah you die for things that you believe are true they believe they saw him alive thank you that's can we thank these guys and what they do

[00:52:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:52:12] and i mean here here's here's two things before we before i pray for you number one um we're passionate about these conversations because the church is the space where we should be having these conversations and these are the times these are the best spaces to bring your questions there
[00:52:29] there are questions that you ask now you will ask at some point in your life and and we want this to be a place where you bring your questions along with your your confidence i mean they both work
[00:52:39] hand in hand but i i will say that these conversations to hopefully lead you to a place of great hope and confidence in what you do put your faith in when you put your faith in the bible
[00:52:50] When you put your faith in Jesus, these type of conversations, we hope ignite your hope and ignite your confidence that you can continue to trust Jesus and his word.
[00:53:01] Amen.
[00:53:02] So let me pray for you.
[00:53:03] Father, I thank you for every person under the sound of my voice.
[00:53:06] Maybe they are in a place of question.
[00:53:08] Maybe there are wrestling with some things in their life because of what they see in the natural, what's happened in their life.
[00:53:14] May they gain from this moment, great confidence in your word, great confidence in trusting their whole life to you, that you died and you rose again so that we can put great faith and trust in you for our salvation. Great trust in you every day of our lives, partnering with you,
[00:53:33] bearing your image so that heaven can come to earth. Thank you, Jesus, for coming down to us and dying for us. We're reassured today. We're reminded today, and we're going to continue to bear your image every single day of our lives. We love you in Jesus' name. And everybody said,

[00:53:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:53:54] amen. God bless you this morning. My name is Ryan Hall, and I am an academic liver transplant and a palliability surgeon here in the Texas Medical Center. Since I was young, I imagined getting to do was take care of people who did not really have an opportunity otherwise. Jesus told
[00:54:14] us and we all feel it inside to care for those in need, to take care of the sick.
[00:54:21] For me, I was hoping and dreaming of doing things like this since I was a kid.
[00:54:25] I had years where I was extremely frustrated that I hadn't yet, but I engaged and gave and came to conference and did the things that I could while I was in that season and now in a time where I'm able to go do these things, it makes me appreciate the years that
[00:54:39] I was giving and doing what I could even before I ever went abroad.
[00:54:42] If you had a chance to go to McKinney Mission Hospital, you would see the heart of Lakewood Church and everything you see there.
[00:54:49] When I got to visit McKinney with Dr. Paul, I could see each step that I'd heard about for years of what the church had done to help right there.
[00:54:59] And everything that is there is geared towards caring for them in the name of Jesus and showing them what He thinks of them and how much He loves them.
[00:55:08] And so anything that you do, understand it is directly impacting people in a way that I think it is probably hard to imagine. It certainly was for me before I went. So thank you so much for
[00:55:19] what you do. It's making a huge impact in needy places like McKinney Mission Hospital.

[00:55:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:55:24] Yeah, Lakewood, thank you for being so generous and just continuing to support the ministry.
[00:55:29] I see Dr. Hall over here, an amazing surgeon, just doing such great work. But all this happens because of faithful people, you guys here and watching and listening. And we just thank you for your generosity. And we take a moment in every service to worship the Lord with our ties
[00:55:44] and our offerings. So we'll do that right now for a moment. But again, just grateful for your consistency and keeping the ministry going. Not only we show you stuff that happens overseas, but we do stuff in the community as well. Part of the missions, of course, is to take the gospel and
[00:56:00] you know, humanitarian, but also through the media, people all over the world watch and listen.
[00:56:04] And so this all happens because of faithful people.
[00:56:07] And sometimes, you know, they, they might see us, but when it comes to God's kingdom, it's, you know, you're getting the credit for changing lives all over the world.
[00:56:15] And just quick scripture, you all know, but it says, when you give, it'll be given back to you, pressed down, shaken together and running over.
[00:56:24] That's our prayer for each one of you.
[00:56:26] I know you're generous.
[00:56:26] You give your time, your energy, your sacrifice.
[00:56:29] Well, I just been saying it all year, 2026.
[00:56:32] how about some pressed down, shaking together, running over blessings coming your way because you're faithful, you keep doing the right thing. So we appreciate your generosity.

[00:56:42] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:56:42] Yeah. I love that scripture in Luke. You know, you think about it. God has given us a privilege to give, you know, he says, give it out. I'll give it back to you. You know, we don't know
[00:56:53] all the ways that God wants to give us his blessings back, but I do believe he wants us to experience what giving is all about. And so he says, give and I'll give back to you. Sometimes
[00:57:06] I have to remind myself and I want to just remind us all today, what are we believing about our giving? What are we believing it's actually doing? Are we believing what it says in Luke?
[00:57:18] Are we believing that maybe quietly we don't have enough or does it really make a difference?
[00:57:24] You see, I think what we believe about our giving changes everything for us.
[00:57:31] You see, when we give with a heart of faith and we believe when we give, it's not only blessing other people like Dr. Hall was talking about and about like the communities that we bless because he really, I think that's the best gift God can give us is to know that
[00:57:48] we can take what he's given us and share it with others.
[00:57:52] See, there's nothing that feeds your soul more than when you know there are people around you that are being helped, that are in need. I believe that's the best gift. Have you ever had someone
[00:58:02] that you spoke the gospel to, or you were able to help and it just enriched your soul? I think when you believe that about your giving, that's the best gift. The second thing God wants to do is
[00:58:14] he wants to give it back to you. Press down. He wants you to experience not only the blessing of helping others, but the blessing of being a giver. So today let's remember what and believe
[00:58:28] what is our giving doing and give in faith, believing that God, I'm not giving and it's not lost. I'm giving and it's abundance. He says, press down, shaking together, running over.
[00:58:43] God, I believe this is going to run over to my children, to the next generation. I'm storing up treasure in heaven. And that's what we want to get excited about. And that's what we want to
[00:58:55] keep in our heart and on our mind and let our faith just rise when we give. So know today that God sees you giving, and it's not about how much you give. It's about the heart with which you
[00:59:07] give. I believe God sees that. So we want you to know we thank you and we love you. And let's be challenged to say, God, I'm giving in faith when I give. Yeah, I love that. So good. Lord, thank

[00:59:19] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:59:19] you for our generous givers. Lord, I thank you that you're working in their lives. Even now we're not given because we have to Lord we're given because we love you to honor you. We recognize all that we have came from you. And so Lord, as we return to give our tithes, our
[00:59:34] offerings, donations, I thank you that we live under the open windows of heaven or just what you promised that you will, you will bless your people in ways that they haven't seen or just on their jobs, opportunities, and contracts, and Lord, letting their gifts and talents come out to
[00:59:50] the full. Thank you that they'll shine brightly, Lord. And I just thank you, Father, just for a year of abundance and overflow so we can be a greater blessing to build your kingdom. And Lord,
[01:00:02] so they can each fulfill the purposes that you've laid out for them, leaving that inheritance to their children and their children's children. Lord, I just speak abundance and overflow and your blessing over your people in Jesus' name. God bless you today as you give. We love you guys.

[01:00:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[01:00:44] Houston, Texas, 77227, or call us toll-free at 888-567-JOEL.

[01:00:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]
[01:00:56] Church, will you stand with us?
[01:00:57] We have a new song for you this morning.
[01:00:59] It's called, Thank the Lord.
[01:01:01] Come on.

[01:01:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:01:02] We're at Lakewood today.

[01:05:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[01:05:15] We love you guys.
[01:05:17] What an amazing way to start the week right here at Lakewood.
[01:05:19] So honored to have you, and if you're visiting, you're our special guest, but just a joy to have each one of you here and watching and listening.
[01:05:27] Once a month, we always honor one of our volunteer teams.
[01:05:30] And this month, it's our beautiful women's ministry.
[01:05:33] Come on up, these beautiful women.
[01:05:35] We want to honor them.
[01:05:37] Sarah here runs the ministry.
[01:05:39] Talia's been with us.
[01:05:41] Desiree, you got a beautiful baby, Desiree.
[01:05:43] I love that.
[01:05:43] And just, you know, there's so many different areas you can get plugged in here at Lakewood.
[01:05:47] Women's ministry is one.
[01:05:49] These guys meet Sunday mornings about 10, 15 before the service.
[01:05:53] Plus they do stuff online.
[01:05:54] But you know, it's a big church.
[01:05:56] We'd love to get you connected to make some great, great friends.
[01:05:59] And these ladies are, you know, amazing leaders.
[01:06:02] And if you want to find out more about it, find out, you know, you can check it out on the web or after service, you can find Sarah, but a lot of different teams, choir, usher,
[01:06:10] all these things.
[01:06:10] But can we celebrate our beautiful ladies here in the women's ministry, mighty women of faith at Lakewood.
[01:06:16] Thank you guys so much.
[01:06:19] Hey guys, between services, I met some friends from Ukraine.
[01:06:23] only one of them speaks English my friends here but these are pastors in Ukraine their building has been hit with a fighting you see them there the bishop the son and their I got to visit a little while but doing
[01:06:36] amazing work and you know we don't fight battles like they fight battles you know buildings being hit and bombed but you know what they're faithful they're serving God and we just speak blessings over you guys we're going to continue to pray
[01:06:47] and support you and do all we can thanks for what you do amazing people I had one more thing y'all if I could just uh, oh, yeah, I know what it was It's for our online audience
[01:06:58] Don't forget next this saturday is what we call homecoming and it's for people that you know live out of town You've never been to lakewood would love to have you be a part I'll be down here with my family on saturday and sunday. You can come to the service. That's that's next week, but
[01:07:10] thanks for being a part guys great to have you here today and I want to ask you when you see yourself on the big screen if you'll give our tv audience a great big lakewood welcome
[01:07:18] God bless you. It's great to be with you today and I hope you'll stay connected with us during the week through our daily podcast, our YouTube channel, social media, and you can come visit us in person. We'd love to have you be a part of one
[01:07:35] of our services, but I like to start with something funny. And I heard about this group of school children. They were in the cafeteria line at their Catholic elementary school. The start of the line,
[01:07:46] there was a big bowl of apples. A nun had written a note. It said, take only one. God is watching.
[01:07:53] At the end of the line, there was a big bowl of chocolate chip cookies One of the children had written a note. It said take all you want god is watching the apples Say it like you mean it. This is my bible. I am what it says
[01:08:09] I am I have what it says I have I can do what it says I can do today I will be taught the word of god. I boldly confess. My mind is alert. My heart is receptive
[01:08:21] I will never be the same. I am about to receive the incorruptible, indestructible, ever living seed of the word of God. I'll never be the same. Never, never, never. I'll never be the same in Jesus name. God bless you. If you'd like to open your Bibles to Matthew chapter six,
[01:08:43] you're welcome to Matthew chapter six and verse 33. Don't forget. We have great services all week and our new Wednesday night service has kicked up this year and it's a great service.
[01:08:54] If you can come back on Wednesday night, we have a great time here, but always honored to have you.
[01:08:59] And so enjoyed some of our team from the Monday night Bible study, Pastor Eric and Jeremy.
[01:09:05] Monday night, those guys are online or those men and Pastor Mark Greathouse as well.
[01:09:09] But we have a great team here at Lakewood.
[01:09:11] But thanks again for coming out.
[01:09:14] I wanna talk to you today about blessings finding you.
[01:09:17] It's easy to worry about the future How can I accomplish my dreams and what if I don't get that good break?
[01:09:25] What if my health goes down or I don't meet the right person?
[01:09:28] Creates all this pressure where we have to make things happen We live striving and straining trying to force this door to open and make this person like us turn this problem around When jesus was talking to people like this in matthew chapter 6
[01:09:45] They were very worried about their food their clothing how they were going to make it He said to them in verse 33. Don't worry about those things your heavenly father knows all that you need
[01:09:57] He was saying god has already planned your future He knows what it's going to take to get you to your destiny. You're not doing life on your own It's not just up to you. The most high god is ordering your steps
[01:10:11] and Jesus gave us the key in verse 33. He said, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. He was saying, in effect, you don't have to spend
[01:10:26] your life seeking the blessing, seeking provision, seeking approval, seeking the right people.
[01:10:32] That's going to lead to frustration. There's a better way to live. If you'll seek God, then the blessings will seek you. There's a reversal. When you keep God first place, that takes the pressure off. Now it's not up to you to make it all happen. That's God's
[01:10:49] responsibility. He will add all these things. But if we don't understand this, it brings stress, tension. Hey man, I got to get this promotion and I got to win over this coworker. I got to fix this
[01:11:02] problem. And sure, we have to use our gifts, be determined, take steps of faith, but you don't have to live with that pressure. You can stay in peace knowing that because you're honoring God, he's arranging the good breaks. He's lining up the right people. He's scheduling the healing,
[01:11:21] the turnaround. You don't have to find it. It's going to find you. Don't spend your life chasing the blessing, chase God, and the blessings will chase you. But I wonder how many of us are trying
[01:11:34] to do God's job. We're striving, straining, manipulating. Take the pressure off. Let God be God. He knows what's best for you. He's already written every day of your life in his book.
[01:11:48] He knows what you need, who you need, when you need it, and how to get it to you. He'll open doors that you could never open. He'll bring people you never imagined. He'll put you in rooms
[01:12:02] where you weren't qualified, opportunity, resources, influences, far beyond what you had in mind.
[01:12:09] God's dream for your life is much bigger than your own. Where he's taken you, you could never accomplish by yourself, just your own efforts, your talent, your hard work. That's all good, but God is going to add things that exceed your expectations, that boggle your mind,
[01:12:29] that thrust you where no one in your family has gone. And it says, seek first the kingdom and his righteousness. That means his way of doing things. God's kingdom in one sense is opposite of what we naturally think. He said to bless your enemies, be good to those that do
[01:12:50] you wrong. I don't want to bless them. I want to get revenge. Forgive those that hurt you. I don't want to forgive. I want to hold a grudge. No seek first the kingdom. If you want God to add, you have
[01:13:03] to do it his way. It means walking by faith and not by sight. You may have a situation where you don't see how it could work out. The odds are against you. You could be worried, discouraged.
[01:13:16] instead, God, I don't see a way, but I know you have a way. You being for me is more than what's trying to stop me. That's seeking the kingdom, being faithful at work, doing the right thing
[01:13:30] when no one is watching integrity, excellence. That's God's way. Trusting when you don't understand a good attitude, when life's not fair, biting your tongue, when you want to tell someone off, putting down your carnal desires. That's not just being disciplined. That's seeking the
[01:13:49] kingdom. That's doing it God's way. That's what puts you in position for God to add all these things. But sometimes we hear we need to seek God and we think, okay, I got to pray two hours in the
[01:14:02] morning. I got to read my Bible more. I got to come to church more. And that's all good. That's part of it, but you can honor God in your everyday life. Having a faith-filled attitude, treating
[01:14:13] people with respect, kind to your family, being excellent at work. That's his righteousness.
[01:14:20] That's God's way of doing things. When you live like that, you are seeking God. That means blessings are seeking you. We see this in the life of David. He was a teenager out in the shepherd's
[01:14:34] fields, taking care of his father's sheep. He was the youngest of eight brothers and he got stuck with the leftover job out there in the desert, lonely, boring, no future to speak of. And David
[01:14:47] had big dreams. He could sense the greatness that God put in him, but he was at a disadvantage.
[01:14:54] Some of his brothers were in the military. They had prestigious positions. Well, David could have slacked off and taken the easy way out. I don't care about these sheep. Big deal if we lose a few.
[01:15:07] Nobody's going to know. David was a person of excellence. He did the right thing when no one was watching. He cared for those sheep night and day, made sure they had food and water. He'd fight
[01:15:19] off wild animals, killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands just to protect the sheep. All that time that David was going the extra mile, doing the right thing when it was hard, being his best
[01:15:33] when he wasn't getting any credit. He wasn't just being a good son, a good employee. He was honoring God. That was a time of testing, a time of proving. People may not be watching, but God is watching.
[01:15:49] Maybe nobody is telling you thank you. You're not getting the credit you deserve, but you keep doing the right thing. You keep showing up on time, doing more than you have to.
[01:16:00] People may not see it, but God sees it. He's the one that matters. He's keeping the records.
[01:16:07] You're not just being faithful. You're seeking God. You're doing things his way. That's what puts you in position for him to add all these things. Promotion doesn't come from people.
[01:16:19] it comes from the Lord. David kept a good attitude in a difficult situation. He didn't complain, get better. Out in the fields is where he wrote some of the Psalms. When he got up in the morning,
[01:16:33] he could have thought, oh man, another day with these stinking sheep. I'm so tired of feeding them, cleaning up them. Why don't my brothers have to help? He had plenty of reasons to complain and
[01:16:45] live sour. But David made the decision. He was going to do things God's way. Maybe that's where he wrote Psalm 118. This is the day the Lord has made. I'm going to rejoice and be glad in it.
[01:16:58] Perhaps he wrote Psalm five out there early in the morning. You will hear my song of praise.
[01:17:03] Maybe it was Psalm 63. Oh God, you are my God. And earnestly I seek after you. He had this attitude to praise Thanksgiving right out in the desert when it was lonely, unfair, when he didn't see
[01:17:18] a way out, but he's still full of praise. He's still caring for the sheep with excellence.
[01:17:24] He's still being faithful and consistent. Well, David thought that the shepherd's fields were his destiny in the natural. There wasn't any way out, but when you seek God, blessings start seeking you. God will add things that you couldn't add. He'll speak to people to
[01:17:43] be good to you that you've never met. God told the prophet Samuel, travel to the city of Bethlehem to the house of a man named Jesse, for I've chosen one of his sons to be the next king of Israel.
[01:17:57] Here, David is out in the fields, just minding his own business. Another ordinary day, being faithful, serving with excellence, doing more than what was required. But as he was seeking God, what he couldn't see was Samuel was seeking him. Something was headed his way that would change
[01:18:18] the course of his life. Many of you are like David. You go the extra mile. You take care of your family with kindness and compassion. Even when you're tired, you still shine at work. You
[01:18:32] give it your best. You serve at church, in your community, always being a blessing. It may seem like you're stuck, reached limits, no way to go higher, but God has some blessings seeking you right now. Things you can't see. You couldn't plan. There was no sign of it, but your Samuel
[01:18:52] is about to show up. Healing is pursuing you. The right person, the door opening, the breakthrough in your business. You couldn't find it. It's going to find you something better than you ever dreamed. See, God sees you doing the right thing when it's hard. He sees your consistency day after
[01:19:13] day, being good to people, sacrificing your time and energy. He sees you being excellent, staying holy and pure, refusing to compromise. God has a Samuel coming, a surprise, something unexpected. Suddenly the right person is knocking on your door. That's not a lucky break. That's
[01:19:34] the blessing seeking you because you're doing things God's way. His favor is going to find you.
[01:19:42] Samuel showed up at Jesse's house, David's father, and asked to see the sons. And Jesse brought seven of them out. Samuel looked at them, studied. No, it's not any of these. Can imagine he's a
[01:19:54] little confused. Thought, did I come to the right house? Did I hear God wrong? Jesse spoke up, said, I do have one more son, but he's the youngest. He's small. He doesn't have any experience. I'm sure it's not him. People may discount you and try to make you feel like you're
[01:20:13] not enough. You're not tall enough, talented enough, attractive enough, funny enough. The good news is you're not dependent on what people think about you. They don't determine your destiny. They may push you down, but God knows how to lift you up. They may overlook you, but God
[01:20:32] knows how to make you be seen. He'll promote you in front of the people that are trying to discredit you. He'll prepare a table in the presence of your enemies. Now quit worrying about who's not for you
[01:20:44] who looks down on you. Why won't they give me any credit? No, your time is coming. Samuel is on the way. You keep pursuing God, doing things his way, and the blessings will chase you down.
[01:20:58] What you couldn't make happen will come to you. You didn't have to strain, manipulate, force.
[01:21:05] It's going to fall into your hands. See, David wasn't out in the fields coming up with a campaign strategy, how he could get elected. He didn't go to different villages, passing out flyers, holding town halls, making a case how he'd be a great King. He didn't go after the throne.
[01:21:25] He went after God, faithfulness and excellence, integrity, praising, and the throne came to him.
[01:21:33] You don't have to make it all happen. God said all these things he will add. What God is about to add is something you didn't see coming. You didn't work for it. You didn't earn it. You didn't
[01:21:47] have the experience. It's the goodness of God thrusting you into your purpose. Now here's the key. Stay consistent. Every day you do the right thing. Samuel is a little closer. You're passing the test. David had to prove to God that he would take care of those sheep before God would let him
[01:22:07] take care of his people. If he had slacked off with the sheep and didn't keep them fed and let wild animals harm them, God would have never trusted him to take care of the Israelites.
[01:22:21] Be your best where you are. Don't wait for Samuel to show up. Then you'll have a good attitude.
[01:22:27] Then you'll be faithful. Then you'll let your talent shine. The way to honor God is to shine where you are. Excel at your workplace. Be compassionate with your family. Be generous with your time and resources. Get up in the morning and thank God for his goodness. Stay
[01:22:45] full of praise. That's seeking God, doing things his way. That's when blessings will come seeking you. When I look back over my life, many of the important moments when I was thrust to a new level
[01:23:01] weren't things that I was going after. I was simply honoring God like David in the shepherd's field, so to speak, just being my best where I was. And suddenly the Samuel showed up in my early
[01:23:14] twenties. I went to a jewelry store to buy a battery for my watch. I walked in and here came Samuel walking. I mean, here came Victoria walking toward me, the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen.
[01:23:26] And I don't know if God spoke to her to come wait on me or she is just overwhelmed by my good looks, but she came right over and started talking to me. I was there to buy a battery for my watch
[01:23:39] and she ended up selling me a whole new watch. And she's been taking my money ever since then.
[01:23:46] That was 40 years ago. I don't know how that can be. I'm only 39, but I could have never made that happen. But as you honor God, he has the right people coming towards you. David said, I was
[01:24:03] young. Now I'm old and I've never once seen the righteous forsaken. You don't have to worry.
[01:24:09] Make it all happen. Talk someone into liking you lower your standard. Cause you may not meet anyone.
[01:24:16] No, keep honoring God. And the right person will find you someone better than you can imagine that sees you as the gift that you are. They're already in route. Your steps and their steps are
[01:24:30] being ordered by the Lord. What God has purposed, nothing can stop. One Sunday morning when my father was pastoring, I was running through the front lobby up the stairs to the TV area and service was about to start. A man came around the corner and said, Joel, my cousin has a construction
[01:24:49] permit for the last full power television station in Houston. He wants you to have it. I never dreamed we'd have a television station that wasn't even on my radar. I didn't go after it. It came to
[01:25:03] me. We put the station on the air. Few years later, we sold it. It was those funds that helped us renovate the compact center. God knows what you're going to need and he knows how to bring
[01:25:17] it to you. When my father passed, I was working behind the scenes. I never thought I'd be a minister. Suddenly this door opened. I didn't pursue it. It pursued me. I was planning on doing
[01:25:31] television production the rest of my life, but God is going to add things that surprise you, cause you to bloom and blossom. He's put gifts in you that you haven't tapped into yet.
[01:25:43] A few years after I'd been pastoring, Victoria encouraged me to write a book and thought, Victoria, I don't know how to write a book. I don't know what to say. I don't even know where
[01:25:53] to begin. But an executive from one of the largest publishing companies in the world was walking to the subway in New York, going home. And he saw my name on a sign. He didn't know how I was. He'd never heard of me, but he told me something told me that I was to sign you
[01:26:12] for a book deal. He went, looked us up, researched it, offered us a contract. Now I have books in many languages all over the world. I could have never made that happen. I couldn't have planned
[01:26:24] it. I couldn't have won his favor. I didn't even know him. This was the hand of God causing blessings to seek those who seek him. One more. How about when we needed a larger auditorium?
[01:26:37] I was trying to build, but things kept falling through. Well, a friend called that I hadn't spoken to in years. And he said, Joel, you need to get the compact center. The Rockets basketball team is about to move out. I didn't go after this building. I didn't know anything about it.
[01:26:56] It came to us. What am I saying? You don't have to strive and strain, try to make everything happen, you're trying to do God's job. That's going to bring frustration. You don't have to figure it all out. Your job is to keep God first place. Keep doing things his way. As you seek him,
[01:27:18] he's going to have the blessings seek you, the right people, the contracts, the healing, the open doors. It's going to track you down. The scripture says no good thing will God withhold when you walk uprightly. That's you. You're walking uprightly. You're committed, faithful,
[01:27:36] being good to people. God is not going to withhold anything you need to get you to your destiny.
[01:27:44] Samuel came and anointed David as king, a very powerful moment, but David didn't go to the throne. He went back to the shepherd's fields. One day, his father asked him to take lunch to his brothers that were in the army in another city. David could have thought, dad, I'm not an
[01:28:02] Aaron boy. I'm not going to take them lunch. That's beneath me. You saw him anoint me King.
[01:28:08] I made for bigger things than that. He could have dismissed it, went on his way, but David wasn't too big to do a small thing. He knew as you're serving others, you are serving God. He took the
[01:28:23] lunch, that's when he heard Goliath taunting the Israelites. As David walked in obedience in small things, in what seemed insignificant, it was leading him to a big thing. He would have never met Goliath had he not been faithful to do the simple task that his father asked. Don't discount
[01:28:44] small acts of obedience, doing simple things that may seem beneath you. Joel, I got more training than this. I'm more qualified, more experienced. Don't ask me to take care of the sheep. Find somebody else to take them lunch. You don't know what's going to be waiting for you. There are some
[01:29:02] Goliaths, some destiny moments that are hidden in small acts of obedience. I used to pick out my father's suit and tie to wear on television each Sunday. I'd go over to his house every Saturday
[01:29:16] evening and I'd write it down. He wore this and that keep the record. My mom would say, Joel, daddy's 70 years old. He can pick out his own clothes, but I had seen what my father would wear
[01:29:27] and I want it to look good, but I never dreamed one day I would be picking out a suit and tie for me to wear on television. Being obedient in small things is showing God he can trust you with
[01:29:41] big things. David took lunch to his brothers, honoring God, doing a small thing. And Goliath showed up a big thing that forever changed David's life. A destiny moment where he became a national hero. Hebrews says that God is a rewarder of those that diligently seek after him.
[01:30:03] When you're seeking after God, doing things his way, then you're on God's payroll. He's a rewarder.
[01:30:11] he'll compensate you. When you do a small act of obedience, there's a reward. When you forgive someone that doesn't deserve it, God will reward you. When you get up in the morning and take time
[01:30:24] to thank God for the day and acknowledge his goodness, there's a reward. When you stay faithful in the shepherd's field, obscurity, not getting the credit, but you keep being your best. God sees that. He'll compensate you. And God knows how to pay you like no one else. He'll pay you with joy
[01:30:45] and wisdom, good health, great relationships. But sometimes we're on the wrong payrolls.
[01:30:52] We're working for the wrong boss. Maybe we're self-employed working for ourselves. I got to strive. I got to strain. I got to work this thing out. The problem is we don't pay well.
[01:31:05] you'll barely get minimum wage out of that or we're letting our circumstances be the boss frustrated by what's not changing upset with the neighbor trying to set them straight that doesn't pay well maybe we're let our letting our feelings dictate our mood people's approval what they said
[01:31:25] they left me out they said i'm too small i gotta prove them wrong no you need to change payrolls You need to turn in your resignation. No more letting stress, fear, people's opinion, jealousy, be your boss. Get on God's payroll. Start doing things his way. Seeking first his
[01:31:47] kingdom. Have you seen it? The first of the year, there's this list of the best companies to work for. Some have great benefits, beautiful facilities, retirement packages, extended vacation. That's all nice, but nobody can pay you like God can pay you. The best payroll you could
[01:32:08] ever be on is the most high gods, not just material things, but how about paying you with peace, health, a sound mind. How about supernatural provision, protection, and favor? I have to remind myself of this because it's easy to get on someone else's payroll, striving, trying to make this
[01:32:28] happening. Wonder what it's going to be like in 10 years. How's this going to work out? What if that doesn't change? You can't control all that. Your future is in God's hands. You don't have to
[01:32:39] figure it all out. It's not up to you to get to your destiny, to open the right doors, to find the right people, to come up with the plan, the strategy. Your job is to keep God first place.
[01:32:52] use your gifts and talents to honor him then he promises he will add everything you need you don't have to add it he's responsible to open the doors and bring the right people protect you
[01:33:06] when you're on his payroll you'll be well compensated he'll take you further than you can imagine but i wonder today if you need to change payrolls are you self-employed trying to do it all on your own, that's going to wear you out. Are you trying to keep score, outperform,
[01:33:25] prove who you are? You're going to go in debt. Dave Ramsey were here. He'd tell you, pay it off, get out of debt. That's draining the life out of you. Trying to keep up with people's expectations,
[01:33:38] running a race you're not supposed to be in. David would have never made it to the throne if he'd been on the wrong payroll, out in the fields, if he is bitter, competing with his brothers, trying to prove to his father who he was, he'd been stuck.
[01:33:54] His attitude was, I'm going to do it God's way. I'm going to seek first his kingdom. He started the morning thanking God. He excelled where he was, faithful in small things, good attitude day after day, excellent when no one was watching. The right time, payday came. God took him from
[01:34:14] the background to the foreground, from being discounted to being in charge. Now make sure you stay on the right payroll. Do it God's way. No more straining, striving, worrying. You're trying to do God's job. Take the pressure off. Today can be a turning point. Do your best and
[01:34:35] then rest. Then God promised he will add all of these things. If you'll do this, I believe and declare, like with David, Samuel is about to come looking for you. Things you couldn't make happen,
[01:34:47] good breaks, the right people, healing, freedom, the fullness of your destiny in Jesus' name.
[01:34:56] And if you receive it, can you say amen? Let's pray together. If you have five minutes, let's just seal it in prayer. Lord, thank you for what we've heard. I know it falls on great ground,
[01:35:09] faithful people here at Lakewood. And Lord, today we're going to come back to that place of peace.
[01:35:14] we're going to live honoring you doing all that we can and lord we're going to let you and trust you to do what we can lord no more striving no more straining we're going to work hard we're
[01:35:25] going to use our gifts but god we're going to trust you to do what we can our life is in your hands lord help us to believe help us to come back to a place of peace and trust and faith
[01:35:36] and lord as we do this like you did for david in your perfect timing you will bring the samuels you will defeat the Goliaths. You will take us to our throne, to our destiny. Lord, we trust you
[01:35:49] with our lives, our children, our family, our dreams. It's in your hands. Lord, I ask that you would watch after your people. I thank you for watching after your people this week as they go to work, as their children go to school, that your angels are watching after them. Give them a
[01:36:05] blessed week in Jesus name. With our heads bowed in prayer, just a quick question. If your heart stop beating in the next few minutes. Are you at peace with God? Do you know where you'd spend
[01:36:19] eternity if you died a little while from now? If not, I would love to pray with you. I'm not here to condemn anybody. I'm here to help you find a new beginning. I know this comes from a personal
[01:36:32] relationship with Jesus Christ. In just a moment, if you're not at peace with God, or maybe you are a Christian, but you've grown cold toward God. You know, you need to rededicate and recommit your
[01:36:47] life to Christ. If that's you in just a moment, I'm going to ask you to take a step of faith and stand right where you are. And we'll pray together. I can't think of a better time to get
[01:36:59] on the road to victory than right now. God is not mad at you. Your sins have already been forgiven.
[01:37:06] all you have to do is accept the free gift of Christ's salvation will you do it today the enemy in your thoughts he'll whisper do it next week do it another time listen the Bible
[01:37:19] says today is the day of salvation you're not hearing this by accident well Joel it's embarrassing to stand in front of everyone have people at the house I can't lift my hand listen to what Jesus
[01:37:31] said, if you won't be ashamed of me before people, then I won't be ashamed of you before my father in heaven. I'm going to give you a great opportunity to show God that you're not ashamed
[01:37:43] of him. If you're not at peace with the Lord, or you just need to rededicate, you need to recommit your life to Christ. You need a fresh new start, a new beginning. If that's you, would you be bold,
[01:37:56] take that step of faith and stand right where you are and we'll pray together would you do that come on lakewood let's give them a hand as they stand all over the building come on don't put it
[01:38:11] off i feel like there ought to be others your heart's beating fast come on lakewood let's clap them in they're still standing anybody else watching listening anybody else god bless you please remain standing let me tell you how proud we are of you i know that took courage to stand
[01:38:33] And more importantly, I know God's never going to be ashamed of you because you took this step of faith. The scripture says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Let me help
[01:38:44] you to call. Do you mind all praying this after me? If you would, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins come into my heart. I make you my Lord and savior. Amen. Or let me stand just one more moment. If
[01:39:00] you would, I want to tell you again, how much we love you. We're going to be praying for you.
[01:39:03] I also want to give you a personal invitation and a challenge to come back and be with us on a regular basis This next year of your life is a very important time We'd love to have you come back and get plugged in be a part of the services
[01:39:19] I'll make a promise if you'll do that before the year is over your life will never be the same for the better We are going to help you grow and become who god's created you to be. I know you're busy you work hard
[01:39:32] Sunday's probably a day off, but I can tell you this. When you get into a community of faith and put God first place, there is a blessing on your life. Your new week will go better. We'd love to
[01:39:44] have you here right up over here. There's a place called new beginnings. Some of our team will be there. They can talk to you about how you can get what the next steps are. We'd love to have you do
[01:39:55] this, but know this, the moment you stood up, God washed away all your sins, your mistakes, your failures. You are starting with a fresh, clean slate. Write it down in your Bible, March 15th, 2026, a new day of victory in your life in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Well,
[01:40:14] let's all stand together, please. Thanks so much for coming out today. How many of you going home better off than you were before? Amen. All right, guys, we love you. And until we meet again,
[01:40:25] may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord show you his favor and have mercy on you.
[01:40:30] and may the Lord watch over you and give you his peace.
[01:40:34] God bless you.
[01:40:35] Have a great week, a favor-filled week.
[01:40:37] See you back real soon.