The value of personal experience is worthless if not reflected upon in the light of God's goodness. >> [applause] >> And I'm not just saying keep a gratitude journal. Do that.
I got all kinds of little gratitude tricks. Me and Abby made one up on tour. It's the best thing ever she showed me.
And I taught it on my YouTube channel. And you can go there and see it. It's about a grateful heart is a stable heart.
I'm not just saying that. I'm actually saying things turn into blessings as you reflect on them. In time.
I will bless the Lord at all times. Does that mean I'm going to walk down the road singing Jireh this week? Does that mean I'm going to be in a meeting and they're going to be asking about the spreadsheet and I'll be like, "I don't know about the spreadsheet, but my God is sovereign, he's holy, he's righteous, he's pure.
I bless him at all times. " And it's like, "You can do that on your own time. This is company time.
We are doing a meeting. Submit the budget. " All right.
So, we're not turning we're not turning this this this beautiful Psalm into some weird excuse for us to live in this other reality. It actually is the way that we bring God's faithfulness into this moment for the fights that you're dealing with and for the future that you're uncertain about. And it's a beautiful thing.
It is a decision that you make to praise God, to glorify him, to speak about the things in your life that you want to see more of. To speak about the things in your life that God has given you. There's nothing wrong with admitting the things that you wish were different and getting help with them.
But stop elevating your request to people who are not supervisors. >> [applause] >> What do you think I should tell my husband? She's not married.
And even if she is, she is not married to your husband. She can only take you so far. These conversations, they they get real cyclical, right?
Cyclical. Because in the process of that, if you don't bring God into it, I'm talking about delayed praise, and I'm going to get back to that in just a moment, but for now I want I want you to remember this about David. When he wrote Psalm 34, he was through it.
When he was living it, and this may give you permission to struggle a little bit. That's why I called it ugly trust. Because let me get out of the King James, back over to the NIV, so you can see what's going on in 1 Samuel 27, verse 1.
But David thought to himself, "ONE OF THESE DAYS I WILL BE DESTROYED BY THE HAND OF SAUL. " DOES THAT SOUND LIKE A GUY WHO'S CONFIDENT IN GOD'S PROMISE? But it's 7 years.
7 years IS LONG ENOUGH TO WHITTLE AWAY AT your worship. And he thought TO HIMSELF, "ONE OF THESE days I will be destroyed by the HAND OF SAUL. THE BEST THING I CAN DO, the next BEST THING.
I DON'T LIKE WHAT I'VE GOT TO DO RIGHT NOW. I DON'T LIKE WHERE LIFE HAS ME. I DON'T LIKE THIS SITUATION.
BUT THE BEST THING I CAN DO CUZ I DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO, THE NEXT BEST THING, the one thing I CAN DO CUZ GOD HAS TO HANDLE THE NEXT THING AFTER that cuz I can't only focus on one thing right now cuz I don't really know about all this cuz it freaks me out when I try to think too far out. BUT THE BEST THING I CAN DO FOR NOW, BACK PLEASE, THE BEST THING I CAN DO IS ESCAPE TO THE LAND OF THE PHILISTINES. THAT'S THE ENEMIES.
THEN SAUL WILL GIVE UP SEARCHING for me anywhere in Israel and I will slip out of his hand. And David did that and for 16 months he lived amongst his enemies. For 16 months he lived amongst the enemies that he would eventually defeat when he became king.
Hold that. Hold that for a moment. Go back to the very first part of that verse.
David thought to himself, "I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be in my mouth. " He thought to himself, "I'm going to die.
" But watch this. He said, "My soul will make its boast in the Lord. " What's your soul?
Your soul is not your mouth. Your soul is not what your eyes see. Your soul is your mind, your will, and your emotions.
Put that in the comments. Your mind, your will, your emotions. Your mind, your will, your emotions.
He said, "My soul will boast in the Lord. " But we know that his mind was telling him, "You're going to die. You're not going to get through this.
This is it for you. He's going to kill you for real this time. This is the end of the line.
This is where it stops. This is where the fantasy ends. Yeah, that was cute when Samuel anointed you when you were a little boy.
Samuel's dead now. Yeah, that was cute when you saw your family back together and happy again, but it's not going to happen now. This is the one.
They used to have a show when I was little called Sanford and Son, and he would always say, "This is the big one, Elizabeth. I'm coming to join you, Elizabeth. " What is up with all my outdated pop culture references today?
Pray for me. And David is having a moment. This is it.
He's going to kill me. This is it. There's nothing else I can do.
This is the end. This is it. This one's going to take me down.
This is it. And he thought that to himself, but he said, "My soul is going to boast in the Lord, and his praise will be in my mouth. " So, his mind is saying one thing, Saul's going to kill you.
But his soul is going to say another thing, I will bless the Lord at all times, and his praise will continually be in my mouth. THE MOUTH IS GOING to say, "GOD IS GOOD. " THE MOUTH IS GOING TO SAY, "GOD IS GREAT.
" MY MOUTH IS GOING TO SAY, "WHAT GOD PROMISED, HE WILL ACCOMPLISH. " MY MOUTH IS GOING TO SAY, "BUT HE'S FAITHFUL, AND HE'S PROVEN THAT. " MY MOUTH WHAT I'M TRYING TO GIVE YOU IS THIS SIMPLE PRINCIPLE.
Give me my camera. NOT EVERYTHING THAT GOES through your mind needs to come out of your mouth. >> [applause] >> YOUR MIND CAN TRY TO TELL YOU ALL THAT YOUR MIND WANTS TO TELL YOU.
OH, THIS IS IT, BUT I DON'T WORSHIP MY THOUGHTS. I DON'T EVEN TRUST THOUGHTS. I DON'T BOW AT THE ALTAR OF MY THOUGHTS.
THOUGHTS ARE THOUGHTS, LIKE CLOUDS ARE CLOUDS, LIKE RAIN IS RAIN. LET IT PASS OVER. OKAY, DEVIL, YOU WANT TO TELL ME TO KILL MYSELF?
YOU CAN TELL ME THAT. I'M NOT DOING THAT BECAUSE GOD HAS THE LAST WORD IN MY LIFE. I'M [screaming] GOING TO LIVE AND NOT DIE AND DECLARE THE GOODNESS of the Lord in the land of the living.
OPEN YOUR MOUTH [screaming] AND SAY, "YES! " YES, LORD! >> [music] >> YES, LORD, YES!
THAT'S WHY >> [music] >> HIGH FIVE SOMEBODY AND SAY, "I'M GOING TO KEEP PRAISING HIM. " I'm going to keep praising him. Even if I HAVE TO PRAISE HIM ON A DELAY.
WATCH THIS. HERE'S WHAT I MEAN, A DELAYED PRAISE. DO YOU REMEMBER the first time that you found out that live TV wasn't really live?
You thought YOU WERE WATCHING LIVE TV TILL SOMEBODY cussed and the TV just went silent. You remember the first time? I remember the first time.
I remember the first time that I learned about the 7-second delay. That's what they use in TV. Now, we were talking about 7 years, but let me shrink this and make it real practical.
When they have a Super Bowl halftime show and things get exposed, you can Google this later, that are not meant to be exposed, the network cannot take the liability that you just saw that on TV cuz they got the FCC and the SEC and the ACC and the Big Ten and all those the all those Cs. And and and so they THEY PUT IT ON A DELAY. WATCH THIS.
SO, IN CASE THEY NEED TO bleep it, they have time. It was a 7-second delay. THEY HAVE TO HAVE IT.
THEY THEY BROADCAST IT OUT 7 SECONDS AFTER IT HAPPENS. And I'm trying TO FIGURE OUT, DO I NEED TO put a 7-second delay? >> [cheering] >> Y'all getting quiet now.
This sermon is getting good. Do I need TO PUT A 7-SECOND delay from when it comes to my mind and when it comes OUT OF MY MOUTH? SO, I CAN start bleeping some stuff and censor myself SO THAT I DON'T STAY STUCK IN WHAT I FEEL, BUT MY SOUL CAN SPEAK AND SAY, "NO.
NO. NO. NO.
NO, WE DON'T LIE DOWN LIKE THAT. WE DON'T FIGHT BACK LIKE THAT. WE DON'T GET NASTY LIKE THAT.
ARE YOU CRAZY? " MY FRIEND WHO WORKS IN RADIO, HE SAID, "IN RADIO, THEY CALL THAT THE DUMP BUTTON. " I SAID, "WHAT IS THE DUMP BUTTON?
" HE SAID, "IF YOU SAY SOMETHING THAT YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO SAY LIVE ON THE AIR, YOU GO, 'OOP. ' YOU HIT A BUTTON AND IT TAKES OUT THE LAST FEW SECONDS OF WHAT YOU said to protect the station from the liability. " I said to him, "They [clears throat] have that in radio?
Do they have that in real life, too? CAN I HAVE A DUMP BUTTON LIKE A LIVE DUMP BUTTON IN MY LIFE? LIKE, YOU KNOW, LIKE, you know, get a little sharp with somebody, you don't mean to get sharp.
You say a little something that was reserved and you're like, 'Oh, no, I think that went out of thought bubble-ville into like mouth bubble-ville and I didn't know it happened. Where's my dump button? " This week, >> [clears throat] >> I want to I WANT TO CHALLENGE EVERYBODY WHO IS STRUGGLING this week.
You're not struggling? You could do it next week cuz you'll be struggling then. You ain't perfect.
I want to challenge everybody who struggles with magnifying the wrong thing in your life. Everybody who is struggling with how you're speaking about this season, oh, it's just a hard season. It's just a horrible season.
I know. I get it. That season is called life on this planet.
Now, tell who you need to tell. >> [applause] >> And I bring up Holly as a positive example. I'm using her for an illustration earlier.
I'm using her for going now. She did this last night. She goes, "I just I'm not going to say it.
" AND SHE DIDN'T. Y'ALL DON'T KNOW HER TO KNOW WHAT A MIRACLE THAT WAS THAT SHE HIT THAT DUMP BUTTON. >> [cheering] >> NOW, I KNEW I WAS PREACHING ABOUT THE DUMP BUTTON.
SHE DIDN'T. SHE WAS GIVING ME A REAL LIFE ILLUSTRATION WHERE SHE WAS ABOUT TO CRITICIZE SOMEBODY, but she wouldn't call it criticism. No, we were praying for them.
BUT SOMETHING IN HER KNEW, THAT HOLY GHOST SAID, THAT HOLLY HOLY GHOST SAID, "ARE YOU REALLY PRAYING FOR them right now? " Can I get a dump button? For the dumb stuff that the devil tells me?
Can I put it even before my mouth? Can I put it where it's like, "Oh, I'm not going to think about that longer. " Can I put a 7-second rule on that?
Like, okay, we're going to worry about that for 7 seconds. 7, 6, 5, 4. I wrote it down.
I didn't even need the last three. You can have your 3 seconds back, devil. I wrote it down.
I put it there. I deal with it later. Now, I'm going to do this.
Wow. David found his dump button. He knew to bring that stuff to God.
And to do the next best thing. He knew that there needs to be a delay between what you feel. Oh, help me.
And what you do. If you're thinking about going to see a therapist soon for your problems, one thing they're going to teach you that I'll just give you for free and then you can go on and see them and break it all the way down. They're going to tell you you need to put a bigger gap between the thoughts and the feelings and the actions.
So you can process and go like, is this how I want to respond? Or a don't button. As me and David like to call it.
I think it's important that we get this because when he says his praise will continually be in my mouth, that doesn't mean that's everything that was going through his mind. >> [applause] >> It was a decision. And I'mma give this personally cuz somebody is going to be just for you.
The thing he was so afraid of God was already lining up to take care of it. Let me think of that one. [applause] The thing that you are afraid of, God might already be taking care of.
And how much time do y'all have? >> [cheering] >> Okay. Okay.
I make you promise. I will do at least one bonus teaching this week from the basin on this subject. And I will put it on my YouTube.
At least one. I may need to do two. It's so good.
Where did David go to escape from Saul? To the land of the Philistines. Who was the first person that he defeated that elevated him to a place of prominence in front of the nation?
Goliath from Gath who was an uncircumcised Philistine. Right? You're like, uncircumcised?
is that really necessary to include that part? It's in the Bible. I'm not bleeping this, in the Bible.
When David eventually became king, you got to get this. He was the first one who delivered the nation from the Philistines. And the Bible says that he subdued those enemies.
How did he do it? What did David know that Saul didn't that enabled him to defeat the Philistines? And when did he learn it?
I suggest that in those 16 months >> [snorts] >> that he went to be a mercenary, he was learning what time they ate breakfast and what time they went to bed. David saw that 16 months as a time where he was trapped. God saw it as training.
>> [applause] [applause] >> Can I tell you a time God did that to me? When we started this church, there were three different people, two of them were ministries, one of them was an individual, that said they were going to pay my health insurance and my salary so we could start the church cuz the church didn't have that many people. And they said, "We don't want you to be burning yourself out traveling and doing all this.
We're going to pay it. " One by one, they all backed out for different reasons. And no no hard feelings toward them.
But while I felt having a little baby cuz Elijah, my oldest, is the same age as the church, and we had that baby and we're moving. I remember and Chuck said, "Well, we just need to step up and teach people to trust God with the tithe and build the church and trust God in this area. " And I thought like, "Wow, is that is that really what this is for?
" And it was it was. If I had had those people do it for me, I probably would have trusted them. Who am I preaching to?
This is not about me. I'm I'm looking for you. >> [applause] >> If if they did what I wanted them to do, I wouldn't have seen what God can do.
And are you in a season right now? I'm asking. Where God is teaching you to trust.
But it doesn't FEEL LIKE TRAINING. IT feels like painting a fence. IT DOESN'T FEEL LIKE TRAINING.
IT FEELS LIKE WAXING A CAR. I MIGHT AS WELL FINISH OFF ALL MY references today. This is my last shot to do it.
IT DOESN'T FEEL LIKE TRAINING, BUT IT IS. BUT YOU DON'T KNOW THAT UNTIL YOU LOOK BACK ON IT. >> [applause] >> YOU DON'T KNOW THAT WHILE IT'S HAPPENING.
YOU DON'T KNOW THAT WHILE THEY'RE SAYING, "I think we need to see other people. It's not you, it's me. It's not me, it's you.
" Whatever the thing is, however however they say it, it still hurts. YOU DON'T KNOW AT THE TIME THAT EVERYBODY SAY THAT. THERE IS A THAT THAT YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT RIGHT NOW THAT GOD DOES.
AND WHILE THE ENEMY IS TELLING YOU, "YOU ARE NEVER GOING TO MAKE IT THROUGH THIS. " And I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT YOUR THIS IS. AND I WISH I DID, CUZ I WOULD SPEAK STRAIGHT TO IT.
I WOULD CALL IT OUT BY NAME AND SOCIAL security number. IF I KNEW EXACTLY WHAT Y'ALL were fighting about. If I knew exactly what you were taking too many pills about.
IF I KNEW EXACTLY what you were asking God for and feeling the silence of a prayer that bounces back down and you keep seeking but it keeps alluding you and it keeps slipping away. I WOULD CALL IT BY NAME. I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR THIS IS BUT GOD DOES.
>> [applause] >> BUT THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE YOU KNOW THAT I WANT to remind you of today. That you tend to forget IN MOMENTS LIKE THIS. WHERE YOU have tasted the sting of your tears about the situation THAT GOD WON'T CHANGE.
WHERE YOU HAVE TASTED THE AIR OF HUNGER FOR THE RELATIONSHIPS THAT HAVE LEFT YOUR LIFE. >> [snorts] >> A LOT OF TIMES WHILE THE ENEMY IS SAYING, "YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET THROUGH THIS. What are you going TO DO ABOUT THIS?
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO HANDLE THIS? " You forgot about that. >> [applause] >> And you were singing about that.
You said, "That's why I trust him. " That's why. Somebody shout, "That's why.
" I want to all caps chat all caps that in the chat right now from everybody. PUT A THAT in the chat right now. Put a that in the chat.
And when you put it in the chat, I want it to stand for this. T, things. H, he already.
T, taught. Me. >> [applause] >> Don't mess up the acronym.
THINGS HE ALREADY TAUGHT THAT. THINGS HE TAUGHT YOU IN THE VALLEY THAT YOU WENT THROUGH BEFORE THE MOUNTAIN THAT WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE. I'M TALKING ABOUT SEASONS WHEN YOU WERE BROKE, BUT HE FED YOU LIKE A FATHER FEEDS MANA TO HIS CHILDREN.
THAT. >> [applause] >> YEAH, THAT. THE THING THAT YOU PUSHED THROUGH AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN KNOW YOU WERE THAT STRONG.
YOU FELT A LITTLE COCKY FOR 3 DAYS AFTERWARDS. YOU'RE LIKE, "OH, WOW. HEY MAN, THAT WAS HARD, BUT I DID IT.
" THAT. YOU FORGET THAT EVERY TIME YOU GO THROUGH THIS. BUT TODAY'S THIS [screaming] IS JUST A THAT IN THE MAKING.
AND SO I CAME TO PREACH TODAY. GIVE ME 5 MINUTES, I'LL FINISH. THIS MESSAGE IS ABOUT DELAYED PRAISE.
WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, PREACHER? I'M SAYING THANK HIM TODAY FOR WHAT WILL ONLY MAKE SENSE LATER. GIVE HIM A PRAISE RIGHT NOW FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T POINT TO, FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T PROVE, FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T VERBALIZE, FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T UNDERSTAND.
PUT A PRAISE ON THAT, ON THAT SITUATION, ON THAT MISUNDERSTANDING, ON THAT STEP, on that question, ON THAT INTRICACY, ON THAT STRUGGLE, ON THAT STRONGHOLD. >> [music] >> I'm not done yet. I'm not DONE YET CUZ GOD SAID WE NEED TO GET YOU BACK TO THAT.
YOU'RE GOING THROUGH THIS IS FINE, BUT THAT'S NOT WHY YOU TRUST HIM. THAT'S NOT WHY YOU PRAISE HIM. THAT'S NOT WHY YOU LOVE HIM.
YOU DON'T LOVE HIM CUZ IT'S ALWAYS A FEELING. YOU LOVE HIM BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED YOU. >> [applause and cheering] >> You haven't BEEN WHO YOU WANT TO BE LATELY.
YOU'VE BEEN STRUGGLING WITH PERFORMANCE ISSUES. THERE'S BEEN HEAVY GUILT, HEAVY SHAME, HEAVY FEAR ON YOU. WELL, IT'S A GOOD THING YOU'RE NOT PRAISING HIM ACCORDING TO YOUR PERFORMANCE.
YOU'RE PRAISING HIM ACCORDING TO HIS GOODNESS. >> [applause] >> AND HE IS GOOD AND ALL THE TIME OH, TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD [screaming] IS GOOD. I'M NOT PRAISING HIM FOR THIS PAIN IN MY BODY.
I'M NOT PRAISING HIM FOR THIS ISSUE WITH MY KIDS. I'M NOT PRAISING HIM FOR THIS SITUATION THAT WILL RESOLVE. I'M PRAISING HIM FOR THAT.
YOU WANT TO GO ALL THE WAY BACK? LET ME TAKE YOU TO CALVARY WHERE THE PRECIOUS LAMB OF GOD SUFFERED, BLED, AND DIED for me. SEE THE CROWN OF THORNS ON HIS HEAD.
SORROW AND LOVE FLOW MINGLED DOWN. DID EVER SUCH LOVE AND SORROW MEET? OR THORNS COMPOSE SO RICH A CROWN?
I'M NOT PRAISING HIM FOR A FEELING. I'M PRAISING him by faith. This is A FAITH PRAISE.
I PRAISE HIM LIKE THAT. I GOT IT >> [music] >> LIKE THAT. I KNOW IT LIKE THAT.
I MET HIM LIKE THAT. HE SNATCHED ME LIKE THAT. HE FILLED ME LIKE THAT.
HE RAISED ME LIKE THAT. HE FORGAVE [music] ME LIKE THAT. THAT'S WHY I >> [screaming] >> PRAISE.
HEY, thanks for [music] stopping by my YouTube channel. I hope you were blessed today. If you were, share this with somebody.
Like and subscribe and leave me a comment. Let me know where you're watching from, what [music] we can pray for you about. Hope to see you back here again really soon.
