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[0:00] God is good to us, isn't he? Amen. God is good to us. And I just appreciate what the Lord is doing. Brother Matt's going to come preach the word. I have really been enjoying what he's been preaching. I've really been enjoying it. And the children are going with Susan Carrasco. All right. Yes. They're going to have a great time. Amen. Brother Matt, preach the word to us.

[0:30] Praise the Lord, everybody. Praise God. We're going to switch things up, I guess. I don't know. Switch it up.

[0:57] We're going to, let's all stand. We're going to read the word. So, just going to give a little context to the title. I'm not going to show the title yet, but we're going to read this first.

[1:17] So, we're going to go to Nehemiah chapter 6 and we're going to start at verse 1. Nehemiah chapter 6 and verse 1. We're going to start there. Wait until everyone gets there.

[1:29] And we get it on the board here. And we get it on the board here for you. And I'm going to read this in the New Living Translation.

[1:43] So, let's read. Samballat, Tobiah, Geshem, the Arab, and the rest of our enemies found out that I had finished rebuilding the wall and that no gaps remained, though we had not yet set up the doors and the gates.

[2:01] So, Samballat and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them in one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But I realized they were plotting to harm me.

[2:15] So, I replied by sending the message to them, I am engaged in a great work, so I can't come. Why should I stop working to come and meet with you?

[2:29] So, Samballat and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them at one of the villages in the plain of Ono. Everyone say, Ono. And my thought today is, Oh, no, you don't.

[2:46] Oh, no, you don't. Praise God. Let's pray. Father, we love you today. We thank you for your goodness and your mercy. Oh, God, we praise you, Lord.

[2:58] God, would you help us today, God, to tell the enemy. God, to tell the enemy and the spirit world, to tell forces that oppose us, God.

[3:09] God, to tell our heart and mind and our fleshly desires and fleshly wills. Say, Oh, no, you don't. God, we pray and ask for a blessing today.

[3:20] Continue the work you're already doing in this place, God. And we praise you in Jesus' name. And everybody said, In Jesus' name.

[3:31] Amen. You may be seated. Oh, no, you don't.

[3:44] So we are in part three of this series of six months later. And I'm going to start. Okay, usually I'm going to ask a question.

[3:56] And we've been asking this question the last three services. And that is, where will you be in six months? Where will you be from now in six months?

[4:10] Amen. Will you be deeper in a devotional life? Or are you still trying to be consistent? Stronger in your prayer life or still apologizing for skipping it and skipping times and other things come up in our lives?

[4:25] Or will you be walking in purpose or stuck in the almost? Where will you be in six months? And so here's the thing.

[4:36] You don't need five years to change everything. You don't need a tender plan to change everything. You don't need all those things to change everything. But you just need a few months, a few weeks.

[4:49] You need to make a decision. It's going to be different. It's going to be different in my life. It's going to be different in my family.

[4:59] It's going to be different for my children. It's going to be different for my son and my daughter. It's going to be different for me because I am deciding with the help of the Holy Ghost and the help of God.

[5:12] I am deciding I'm going to change my family tree. I'm going to change my family's trajectory, their destination. Maybe my whole family ended up strung out on drugs and alcoholics and not going to college and not having a career.

[5:27] But, you know, I'm deciding today. You know what? I'm going to be somebody for God. I'm going to be somebody for Jesus Christ. Amen. I'm deciding today.

[5:39] Because here's the thing. Someone once said that you're always one decision away from a totally different life. You are one decision away from a totally different life.

[5:52] And you can look at that in the positive or you can look at that in the negative. Because one decision can change your family tree. It can change your life and your trajectory.

[6:02] Amen. And here's what we said in the first session. We said this, that your direction is more important than your intention. That your direction where you're headed is more important than your intention.

[6:18] Well, I intended to go here. I intended to go there. You're on a path right now. And we said in part one, that if you're not going in the way of the Lord, you're not going in the direct path, you need to repent.

[6:31] And we need to get back to God. Back to where he wants us to go. Amen. Amen. And so, in part two, and then in the second part, we talked about building an altar.

[6:41] Getting our lives in order and putting ourselves on the altar of sacrifice. And sacrificing our substance and sacrificing what we have.

[6:51] And saying, Lord, I know I don't own it all. Lord, it's all yours. So, here you go. But we're talking about a man named Nehemiah. And I know we're jumping around in these books, Ezra and Nehemiah.

[7:04] And it's one big story. Because Ezra and Nehemiah used to be one book. And then they put them Ezra and Nehemiah.

[7:14] But they're one big story. About how the people of God came back to Jerusalem. And they built the altar. Built the foundation. Built the temple.

[7:25] Rebuilt it. They rebuilt the walls. And they rebuilt the doors and the gates. But let's catch up to where we are here in Nehemiah 6. So, way back in 606 BC.

[7:36] That's when Babylon conquered Judah. Jerusalem. They had the captives. And the people of God were exiled. This is the first siege of three.

[7:50] And then later, a second one happened. And then another one happened. A total of three sieges to Jerusalem. But in 536 BC, what we learned last week was a man named Zerubbabel.

[8:06] And 70 years to the date after the first siege of Babylon. 70 years that was prophesied that they'd be in exile. God moved upon a king.

[8:18] And Cyrus was moved to allow the people to return to their home and rebuild the temple. Praise God. Thank God for his promises and his word.

[8:29] Amen. Hallelujah. And Zerubbabel brought a group of people to rebuild that temple. He rebuilds the altar and the temple. And worship is restored.

[8:41] Lord. But it's not quite as glorious as the previous one. But now there's no wall. There's no safety. There's no distinction. And then 457 BC, Ezra leads the second wave.

[8:54] And then this. He leads the people to get back to the book. To get back to the law. To get back. And he teaches them about the word. And about the law of Moses.

[9:05] And then he gets them back into the word. So there's a revival of the word that happens. I'd love to preach that. But I'm not going to do it today. In 445 BC, Nehemiah steps in.

[9:15] Now we hear Nehemiah's story. And he, in chapter 1, he hears. Or actually he sees some people coming back. That escaped the siege in Jerusalem.

[9:27] And what's going on over there. And he asks what's happening. What's going on over there. And they say, well, it's in shame. You know, there's trouble. There's no walls. There's just the people there are not safe.

[9:40] And his heart is broken. And it says that he sat down and he wept. He wept. He was upset.

[9:51] But he prayed. He fasted and he prayed. And he gets permission. And there's a whole story that leads up to this.

[10:02] Artaxerxes sees him. What's the matter? He tells him what's going on. And then he gets permission to go back and start building. Because Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the king.

[10:13] Really close. But he gets permission. He gets favor. And so he prays. He's broken. He weeps. He fasts and treats the Lord and prays.

[10:24] And then God gives him favor and he goes back. He gets permission to go rebuild. Surveys the ruins. He casts vision. Come let us build this wall again. Because the wall represents safety.

[10:36] It represents safety and meaning to the people of God. And in 52 days he rebuilt this wall. But not without opposition.

[10:47] Not without facing some challenges. And he rebuilt most of the wall. And that's what we pick up in Nehemiah chapter 6. The wall is almost done. The gates and the doors of the gates need to be hung.

[10:59] And don't you know it. Right before it's finished. Here comes the enemy. Here comes the opposition. Because here's the thing about the word of God. Is that the word of God teaches us.

[11:12] It shows us patterns in human history. It shows us patterns in human behavior. It doesn't just tell us about plots and storylines. It tells us patterns.

[11:23] Patterns that we can learn from. Patterns of sin. Patterns of deception. Patterns of lies. Patterns that we can look to and say. Oh there's David on the rooftop.

[11:34] Get off the rooftop David. And we can see it time and time again. Throughout scripture. These patterns. Because that's what the Bible shows us. So when we look into the word of God. It's not just plots or storylines.

[11:45] And funny. Fun kid stories. It's actual patterns. That we can learn from. Amen. And apply to our lives. But the enemy is always showing up.

[11:57] Right when we're digging in. Or right when we're rebuilding. Or right when we're getting things done. Praise God. Right. You know we make a decision. Like us.

[12:07] We make a decision. I'm going to live for God. I'm going to give. And I'm going to give to the Lord. I'm going to sacrifice. I'm going to come to the altar. I'm going to pray. I'm going to start going to church. I'm going to start giving my life to God.

[12:18] And that's exactly when the enemy shows up. It's exactly when the enemy peeks up his ugly head. And says. Oh right. You think you're going to make something happen here?

[12:29] Let's see what I can do. Again. Patterns. Not just plots. So we pick up in Nehemiah chapter 6 verse 1. We read about Sam Ballet.

[12:40] Tobiah. Geshem the Arab. And the rest of our enemies found out that I had finished rebuilding the wall. And no gaps remained. Though we had not yet set up the doors of the gates. So Sam Ballet and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them in the villages.

[12:55] In the plain of Ono. But I realized. Everyone say realized. He had realized. They were plotting something. That something was not right.

[13:06] They did not want to just meet to have coffee. They didn't want to meet at Starbucks to chill out. To talk. And just talk about the latest gossip. Or the latest thing that's happening.

[13:17] They wanted to harm me. And cause distractions. So I replied to them. I am doing a great work. And I cannot come down to meet you.

[13:28] And this is how it always goes. You start praying more. You start reading more. You start fasting a little bit. And then suddenly the enemy decides to come in like a flood.

[13:39] And hits your calendar. And hits your emotions. And hits your group chat. And hits your friend group. And it starts to hit your confidence a little bit. And tries to distract you.

[13:49] And pull you away from your. Everyone say devotion. From your devotion. Tries to pull you off of your devotion. And pull you away from your devotion.

[14:00] Your health might take a hit. Your finances might take a hit. Your mental health might take a hit. And the enemy wants to distract us. And pull us off of what we. Our devotion.

[14:11] And say hey. Meet me in oh no. But we have got to decide. And make up in our mind. And we're going to talk about this in a minute. That oh no you don't. Oh no I'm not going to get off this wall.

[14:22] I'm going to stay here. Because I'm doing a great work. Not just for myself. But for my family. And for my kids. And for those that come after me. I'm doing a great work.

[14:33] And I cannot calm down. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Off this wall. Praise God. It's an invitation. For a distraction in your life.

[14:45] It's an invitation to pull you away from your devotion. To God. Right. You're actually making progress in your prayer life. You're making. You're seeing God do things. And God move in your life.

[14:58] And then you get that text message. Or that phone call. Or that invitation to go somewhere. And you begin to feel that pull. That pull to be distracted.

[15:09] Verse 4. It says four times. It wasn't just a one time deal. It was a four. Four times he sent the same message to me. Meet us in oh no. Meet us in oh no.

[15:21] Meet us in oh no. Meet us in oh no. And each time I gave the same reply. I'm doing a great work. And I cannot come down. So when those distractions come in like a flood.

[15:34] When those things hit. When they hit us. And look. I'm not saying that we don't have emotions. Or feelings. Or anything like that. But we have got to find. Again. All of this is coming from a place of personal awareness.

[15:49] That I struggle. I'm talking about me. Matt. I struggle with devotion. I struggle sometimes. With finding the place of prayer. Because I got so much going on in my life.

[16:01] I got kids and work. And other things that are just happening. And that's every one of us. Every one of us. But each time.

[16:13] Those distractions come. The health hit comes. Every time. I am doing a great work. And I cannot come down. Just like Nehemiah replied to Sam Bella. And the other enemies. When they said meet us in oh no.

[16:25] Be distracted. Come down and meet us in oh no. We say oh no you don't. I am doing a great work. And I cannot come down. Keep telling them. Praise God. Sam Bella didn't come with a sword.

[16:37] He came with a schedule change. He came with a distractions. And some of us need to be delivered of these things. We need to turn off our notifications.

[16:49] We need to put our phones. Either turn them off. Or put the do not disturb message on there. And allow God to work in our lives.

[17:00] Because distraction doesn't always look like sin. It looks like a DM that comes through Facebook. Or whatever social media platform you happen to be on.

[17:11] That derails your prayer life. A text in the group chat. That pulls us from reading the word of God. Maybe our husband or our wife.

[17:23] Says hey I want to take you somewhere. On the weekend. Or on church night. Or on church day. Or from a church event. I'm just being real folks.

[17:35] I've faced this as well. Maybe Netflix. That pops up and says. Are you still watching? Your Bible is there.

[17:50] Opened up. And Netflix asks. Are you still watching? You want to go to the next episode? The kids counting down. And you're like.

[18:02] Decision. Bible. Next episode. I'm going to binge watch. Distraction isn't always sinful. But it always steals. Our devotion.

[18:15] Praise God. Those distractions. Verse 5. The fifth time. So it's five times now. Sam Ballad's servant came with an open letter in his hand.

[18:27] And this is what it said. There is a rumor among the surrounding nations. A rumor. Everybody like rumors? Everybody know some? Some juicy ones? Tell me after service.

[18:37] Tell me it is true. That you and the Jews are planning to rebel. And that this is why you are building the wall. So now he's trying to destroy his reputation.

[18:47] He's trying to destroy his credibility. As a person of God. As a Jew. Rebuilding the wall. You're not just rebuilding the wall. To build the respect.

[18:58] And the dignity of your people. You're building the wall. Because you want to rebel. You want to rebel against the king. This is why you're doing it. He also reports that you have appointed prophets in Jerusalem.

[19:09] So now you've got people saying you're doing the right thing. You've got people talking. You've got people posting. Saying this about you. Saying you're, you know, yeah, this is the guy. He's doing a good work.

[19:22] Gossip. Gossip. Gossip. Look, there was a king in Judah. You can be. That's what you first say.

[19:34] And I replied. There was no truth in any of your story. You were making up the whole thing. Verse 9. They were just trying to intimidate us. Imagining that they could discourage us and stop the work.

[19:49] So I continued the work with even greater determination. Nehemiah. We've heard.

[20:00] We've heard about what's going on. What you're doing. We've heard really what's happening with you. You're planning to rebel and overthrow the king. This is what you're really doing. We've heard rumors. We've heard stories about it.

[20:12] This is what you're doing. And Nehemiah said. No idea what you're talking about. No idea. And he says.

[20:23] So I continued with greater determination. When he received that letter. You know what he probably did. He's like. Grab that pick. Grab that boulder.

[20:36] Double time. Boom. Boom. Boom. Build. Rebuild. You know what? They're going to try and lie on me. You know what? No. I'm going to let it fuel me. I'm going to let it fuel my work. Because I know it's for God.

[20:48] I know the real reason why I'm doing this. It's not because of what they're saying about me. But I'm going to dig. I'm going to build. I'm going to build up this wall. With greater determination. I'm going to hang these doors.

[20:59] With greater determination. Hallelujah. Because I know my heart. And God knows my heart. Amen. Amen. Because intimidation wants to creep into our minds.

[21:14] Rumors. And lies. And things want to be said about us. About our reputation. About who we are. But if we know who we are. And what we're doing. And we know it's for God. We have no need to worry.

[21:25] But there's got to be a determination that raises up inside of us. See, Nehemiah doesn't even flinch. In fact, he gets inspired to work even harder. And for us. We cannot feed into those lies.

[21:39] And try and defend ourselves. And say, well, no. You're wrong. And that's not true. And blah, blah, blah. You know, go after it. You know what? They're going to say what they're going to say.

[21:50] People are going to say what they're going to say. I'm the kind. Look. I'm the kind of guy. When someone says something to me. I want to. My spirit rises up. I go. Oh, yeah?

[22:02] Is that what you think? I'm the kind of guy. But God is working on me. And he has to work. I said, Lord. Let your will be done.

[22:14] God, you speak. Lord, you work this out. You know, when I got fired from that job. The first thing I wanted to do was barge in there and say, you are wrong.

[22:24] This isn't right. You have no idea what you're talking about. And instead of doing that, I prayed.

[22:36] I said, God, there's some you're working out in me. There's some you're working out in my career. I don't know, Lord. But I'm going to trust you. A month later, I got hired in another company.

[22:50] Because employees and coworkers at that job spoke up of my character, spoke up of my work ethic. And I don't want to say that about my old boss.

[23:04] But I'm going to say, God takes care of you. God takes care. If you're doing the right thing, God takes care of you. And God will open the right doors. Amen. In your life. Praise God.

[23:14] Praise God. But he kept working with greater determination. His mind was made up. Because he made up his mind.

[23:25] I'm going to live for God. I'm going to do God's work. And that's what some of us need to decide. We need to, as Paul said, we need to reckon. We need to count as.

[23:37] In our walk with God. We need to count it as. And live unto God as it's so. We need to decide and make up our minds.

[23:48] I am dead to sin. I am alive to God. I am dead to dead works. And I'm alive unto good works. I am alive in the spirit of God. And I have made up my mind.

[23:59] I have made greater determination to live for God. There will be opposition. But I've made up my mind. There will be those that oppose me and things that oppose me. But I have reckoned. I have made up my mind.

[24:10] I'm going to be obedient to the word. I'm going to have faith. I'm going to be obedient to God's will in my life. Amen. Praise God. The enemy will try and get us a doubt.

[24:23] Your salvation. Doubt your faith. Doubt your life. Doubt what you're doing. But that's what we need to say. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin.

[24:37] But alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Hallelujah. That's Paul. Paul say you need to reckon ye yourselves. You need to count it as you are dead to sin.

[24:51] This is a daily decision that we make. I am dead to those works. I am dead to that sin. I am dead to that. But I am alive. Hallelujah. Unto God through Jesus Christ.

[25:02] That's why we need the Holy Ghost folks. That's why we need the Spirit of God inside of us. Hallelujah. It's that power. Amen. That lives inside of us to give us that power.

[25:13] Give us that authority. Give us. Amen. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. One minute I said that. Wrecking is an accounting term. It means to count something that's already true based on what God has done.

[25:25] Not how you feel. Oh boy. Imagine Nehemiah if he had gone with what he felt. We need to live for God not based on our feelings.

[25:37] We need to live for God based on his word. Based on what he has done for us. And count it as such that we are dead to those dead works.

[25:48] You're not trying to die to sin. You already are in Christ Jesus. Now we need to live like we're alive in him. Hallelujah. Praise God.

[25:59] You're not under sin's power anymore as Paul wrote about. So we need to stop living like we're still under the authority of sin. You've been liberated. The blood of Jesus covers your sins in your past.

[26:11] Amen. It's gone, washed away. That's why we need to be baptized in Jesus' name. And we need to be filled with the Holy Ghost. Evidence by speaking in other tongues. Hallelujah. Praise God.

[26:25] Sin doesn't own me any longer. Shame doesn't run me. Fear doesn't have a foothold in me anymore. I may still feel the pull. I may still feel that pull to sin and miss the mark.

[26:40] But I got to return daily to the altar. I got to return daily, amen, to God's rule in my life. To the Spirit's rule in my life. Fear does not have to stop you.

[26:51] It just has to slow you down. Don't let it. Don't let fear, don't let doubt stop you. David Bernard said, if you're waiting until you feel bold to obey God, you may never begin.

[27:06] But boldness follows obedience. So verse 10 says, later I went to visit Shemaiah, son of Deliah and the grandson of Mehetzebel, who was confined to his home.

[27:23] He said, let us meet together inside the temple of God. And both the doors shut. Okay. They want to kill me. They want to hurt me.

[27:35] Okay, so this is making sense. Okay. Be safe. Your enemies are coming to kill you tonight. All right. So Nehemiah is approached by Sambalat and Tobiah to go to the land of Ono.

[27:49] And then they're sending letters lying about him to the king that he wants to rebel. But he's determined now. And now this other enemy shows up.

[28:01] This other prophet shows up and starts telling him, hey, let's go hide inside the temple of God. And both the doors shut because they're coming to kill you tonight.

[28:12] But I replied, verse 11. But I replied, should someone in my position run from danger? Should someone in my position enter the temple and save his life?

[28:24] No. I won't do it. Here's the key. I realized that God had not spoken to him. But he had uttered this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sambalat had hired him.

[28:39] And they were hoping to intimidate me and make me sin. Then they would be able to access, or I'm sorry, accuse me and discredit me.

[28:52] He had discernment. It sounded right. It sounded good. It had all the religious coverings to make it sound right.

[29:05] But Nehemiah had a discernment that there's something else happening here. I cannot give in to this. I cannot go hide. There's something not right about this.

[29:19] Shemaiah gives a fake word, and it sounds holy. But it leads to fear if you were to follow it and believe in it. Not to faith. It sounds spiritual, but makes you run instead of build.

[29:34] Again, another distraction. Another thing that would pull him away from the wall. And building what God has called him to do. There are voices in our lives.

[29:46] There are voices on YouTube. There are voices on social media that sound holy. That sound right. That sound like it's from God. But there are distractions.

[29:57] These are distractions that want to pull you and cause you to fear. And cause you to pull away from what God is doing in your life. Amen. But this is where spiritual maturity comes in.

[30:11] Folks, we need to grow up. I'm telling us right now, we need to grow up. We need to grow in our faith. We can't trust our emotions.

[30:22] We can't trust those. We need to grow up in our faith. We need to get into the Word. This is why devotion is so important. This is why getting to the Word of God is so important. This is why praying is so important.

[30:33] This is why coming to church is so important. It's hearing the preaching of the Word. Talking to our pastor. Talking to the leaders in the church. Talking to elders in the church. Amen. Because we hear.

[30:44] We hear. And we can discern what is of God and what is not of God. Amen. And these voices are designed.

[30:56] The devil is so crafty, isn't he? He's so crafty. These voices are designed to pull you off the wall. You're doing a great work. But these voices that sound holy and sound right are designed to pull you off the wall.

[31:14] So we got to be careful who we're listening to. What YouTube videos we're listening, watching or listening to. Because those voices are designed to pull us off the wall.

[31:25] Not every voice that says God told me is from God. If it pulls you out of your purpose, it's not him. If it pulls you from your devotion, it's not him.

[31:36] If it pulls you from church, it's not of God. If it pulls you from praying and reading his word, it's not of God. We need discernment.

[31:48] We need spiritual maturity in our lives. Nathaniel Haney said deception always wears a spiritual mask. That's why you need discernment more than inspiration.

[32:05] Inspiration fades. Inspiration fades. And what's that word I'm looking for? Motivation.

[32:17] That fades also. Motivation and inspiration. All those fade. That's why discipline is so important. Because discipline says in spite of what I feel, I'm still going to go.

[32:29] In spite of what I feel, I'm still going to give. In spite of what I feel, I'm still going to pray. In spite of what I feel, I'm still going to read God's word. I'm still going to go to the church house. I'm still going to hang out at small group with my brothers and sisters.

[32:39] I'm still going to go to the barbecue after church with pastor's house. Because I want to be around people of God of like precious faith. True spiritual maturity is marked. This is what David Bernard said.

[32:50] True spiritual maturity is marked by discerning what sounds spiritual. But isn't it biblical? So we need that discernment. That spiritual maturity in our lives.

[33:04] Praise God. Now I want to break something down real fast. Because there are enemies that are in the scriptures. Because remember, scripture teaches us patterns, not plots.

[33:16] Okay? And there are enemies that we are going to face in this day. Samballot. His name literally means sin gives life.

[33:28] Sin gives life. What a lie of the enemy. What a lie. What a lie. And what a message that this world tells us. Samballot shows up and when you're almost finished says, it's not that deep.

[33:40] It's not that big of a deal. Come down from the wall. Meet us in Ono. And we'll talk. Ono. But that's what culture says. Sin is fun.

[33:53] Religion is discipline. Not as fun. Distraction isn't always sinful. But it will always pull you from what God called you to build.

[34:04] So there's always a Samballot around us in this world. The spirit of the sage. That sin gives life. That's what the message of this world wants to tell us.

[34:17] Tobiah, another enemy, means that Yahweh is good. Oh, that sounds good, right? That sounds okay. Tobiah sounds spiritual. But he's working with the enemy.

[34:28] He's working with Samballot. You know what that sounds like to me? Compromise. That's what compromise sounds like to... God understands if you come down off that wall.

[34:43] It's okay. Come down for a little bit. It's okay. Just give in a little bit. Give in a little bit. And come down. You don't have to go that far. We're going to Ono. So it's cool. Tobiah had access to the temple.

[34:56] And living in a place he never should have been. And some of us have let the wrong things live in our spirits. Some of us have let the wrong things live in our house.

[35:09] Some of us have let the wrong thing, wrong attitudes, wrong spirits, wrong things live in us and live in our homes. And we need to get that stuff out. We need to get that compromise out of our house, out of our spirits, out of our mindsets.

[35:23] Amen. Hallelujah. You can't rebuild or build a life while renting out space to compromise. Amen. Hallelujah. That's good. There was Geshem, which means storm or violent rain.

[35:41] Storm or violent rain. And Geshem always shows up when you're tired. Always shows up when you're weary. When you're when you finally have momentum building.

[35:54] Here comes the pressure. Here comes the tempest. Here comes, you know, the storms. And it turns and throws us into spirals sometimes. And family, stress, work.

[36:06] It comes in different forms. But it comes into our lives. And it's these that are meant to make us panic.

[36:17] And say, well, maybe I can take a little break. I am a little, you know, under the gun. I need to maybe come off the wall a little bit. I need to come off my devotion a little bit. Geshem, storm, violent.

[36:30] Because Geshem did this. Geshem is not trying to destroy you. He's trying to distract you. He's trying to pressure you. And pull you off that wall. Pressure you to come off that wall.

[36:42] And then there was Shemaiah. Which means Yahweh has heard. Shemaiah, this false prophet. Who gave a false word. That sounds spiritual. He says, let's go and hide.

[36:54] Let's go in the temple. Let's hide. Let's shut the door. That sounds good. But that's fear dressed up like faith. That's fear dressed up like something good. And something that God would permit and allow.

[37:06] But that's not the spirit of God. Amen. This is why we need that maturity. We need to get into the word. And we need to allow the spirit to speak to us. Amen. If this distraction or whatever it might be.

[37:19] Would lead you away to retreat or to hide. Instead of building. Instead of praying. It's not from God. It's not from God.

[37:30] Amen. Does everyone hear what I'm saying? These are enemies in scripture. And we're reading patterns. Not just plots. Patterns that are there.

[37:42] But also patterns that we see today. In this age. Come on somebody. Hallelujah. And the final enemy.

[37:54] Us. The final enemy. Us. We self-sabotage. Can I get an amen?

[38:07] We self-sabotage. Let's be honest. The greatest enemy of devotion. Is not Sambalat. Tobiah. The false prophet. Geshem.

[38:18] Or even Satan. It's us. We self-sabotage. We self-distract. We give in to stuff. We pull ourselves away.

[38:36] When we don't reckon. Or count ourselves. As alive to God. When we don't. Make up in our minds. And say. I'm living for God.

[38:47] Daily. Today. I'm going to serve the Lord. I'm not going to give in to those things. I'm not going to pull myself. Off the wall of devotion. Amen. I'm not going to pull myself. Because I'm on Instagram.

[38:58] Or TikTok. Or Snapchat. Or Facebook. I'm not going to pull myself up. Because I'm checking. You know. For the latest email. Or the greatest opportunity. To go.

[39:08] It's the flesh. It's self-sabotage. We want devotion. But we won't set boundaries. We want prayer.

[39:19] But we don't set alarms. To get us going. We want results. But we don't want routine. Because routine is boring. It's mundane. Oh. Oh. Teens.

[39:33] Are tempted by trends. Distracted by devices. I mean that goes for actually everybody. Looking. Looking right.

[39:43] Fitting in. Finding friends. Singles. Struggling with loneliness. Looking for worth. Moms and dads. Feeling overwhelmed. And tired. Hello. Moms and dads.

[39:55] Feeling overwhelmed. And tired. Too busy to breathe. I just need a breath. I just need a break. Men battling pressure to perform.

[40:08] But scared to be still. Bombarded. With sexual images and things. Pornography.

[40:21] That's everything. Especially because we're so visual. Women holding on. Holding everything together. While feeling unseen. Feeling alone.

[40:34] Empty nesters. Wondering. What do I build now? Am I finished? Have I anything to offer still? Do I have anything to offer the next generation?

[40:45] Do I have anything to offer the church? I just want to say. Yes you do. I do. I'm speaking to every age right now.

[40:56] Teen to empty nester. Thirteen to a hundred. You have something to contribute and offer and give.

[41:08] Amen. Wish I would have got a bigger amen for that. But here's the thing. It's easy to make excuses.

[41:21] But you can't defeat the enemy. You can't keep building that wall by making excuses. The altar has got to start with us.

[41:32] It's got to start with you. Deciding I'm going to the altar. Amen. Anthony Mangan said, Every revival begins when someone builds an altar again.

[41:46] Nehemiah verse 15. So on October 2nd, the wall was finished. Just 52 days after we had begun, when our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated.

[42:03] And they realized this work had been done with the help of our God. The enemies couldn't stop Nehemiah. They couldn't stop the people of God.

[42:13] Because they had determined with more intensity, we're going to finish this wall. It's of God. It's God's will. And I'm not going to allow distractions to pull us off this wall.

[42:24] Church, we cannot allow the enemy to pull us off our devotion. We cannot allow our flesh to pull us off our devotion or the wall that we're building. Amen.

[42:35] Hallelujah. Praise God. There's too much at stake. There's too much at stake. Amen. Hallelujah. Woo. So where will you be in six months?

[42:50] Where will you be in six months? Are you going to still be at almost? Still talking about prayer or living in it?

[43:06] Next New Year, I'm going to make another resolution. Church, you are doing a great. Mom, Dad, you're doing a great work.

[43:18] Singles, you're doing a great work. Empty nesters, you're doing a great work. Teenagers, you're doing a great work. And you cannot come down. Your kids need you to stay on that wall.

[43:32] Your children, your grandchildren, your husband, your wife, they need you to stay on that wall. I get it.

[43:43] We're all responsible for our salvation. We need to work it out ourselves. I get that. But what we do or what we don't do does affect our family.

[43:57] It does affect our husband and our wife and our children, our grandchildren and generations to come. Your kids need you to stay on that wall. Your family's, hear me, hear me.

[44:09] Your family's victory is found in your daily devotion. I just heard a message about generational curses and about, well, sin that are alive and things that are alive.

[44:29] How it affects the next generation. It affects our children. But your family's victory is found in your daily devotion.

[44:40] Yes, it is. I heard a great practical two-part question.

[44:51] I'm coming to a closure. I heard a practical two-part question to see if you have a life of devotion. And Daniel Bernard, the son of David Bernard, he said, so I've got a question for you.

[45:12] And this will tell us, this will tell you, this will tell if you have a life of devotion. Which is, if you can answer this question like that. Not thinking about it. And I don't need to hear responses, okay?

[45:26] Because you know. You can, you know, you can say a lot in church. It can mean nothing. You know, you can. I heard a two group. So here's the question.

[45:37] When and where am I going to pray and study God's word? When and where am I going to pray?

[45:53] If you can answer that question, you're moving in a good place. If you can't answer that question, that's where you're going to start.

[46:08] When am I going to pray? Where am I going to pray? My wife told me, she goes, you know, I want. And this is before I even heard of this question. Before she, because she's the one that told me about this message.

[46:19] And she goes, I want our children to know. I'm praying at 5 o'clock. Or 5.15. She picked a time and went downstairs. I want them to hear me. Because they need to hear me.

[46:31] And they need to know that I have a life of devotion. A life of prayer. I thought, man, that's so good. Because it's not about us. It's about our children and our grandchildren.

[46:46] Our devotion. Our lives. And what we're giving to God. And what we're calling out to Him. Affects our children or grandchildren.

[46:57] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. And you might feel guilt today. Because maybe your grandchildren and your children aren't where. Maybe you thought they should be. Or where you want them to be.

[47:07] And maybe their lives are in shambles. And there's trouble. And there's jail. And there's drugs and alcohol. And they stopped living for God. God. Don't let that pull you off the wall.

[47:22] Don't let that stop you from praying. Don't let that stop you from having devotion. Find you a place to pray. Pick a time to pray. Build an altar.

[47:32] And say God. I am devoting myself to you. Because God is going to do a work through you. By your life. And by you declaring.

[47:43] I am doing a great work. And I cannot come down. Oh no. I'm not going to go there. Oh no. You can't devil. Pull me from my devotion.

[47:53] Oh no devil. You can't pull me from the sacrifice. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Let's all stand.

[48:20] I just feel such a burden. For our families. For our children. And our life with devotion. And what we're doing.

[48:33] There's a story in. In the book of Isaiah. Talking about. King Hezekiah. And he had.

[48:45] Wanted 15 more years to his life. And God. Gave him. 15 more years. And then it ended up showing all the riches.

[48:58] And all the glory. That he had to. An outside nation. And Isaiah. Approached him. And said.

[49:10] The time is coming. When everything in your palace. Will be carried off to Babylon. Remember. This king made a decision. Everything in your palace.

[49:25] Will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing. Nothing. Will be left. Some of your very own sons. Will be taken away. To exile. This is the prophet.

[49:37] Telling Hezekiah. Even some of your own sons. Because of what you've done. Even some of your own sons. Will be carried off. To exile. They will become eunuchs.

[49:49] Who will serve in the palace. Of Babylon's king. It wasn't just a warning. It was a generational consequence. And here's what. Hezekiah responds.

[50:01] This message you have given me. From the Lord. Is good. Wait a minute. We just told you that. Some of your own sons. Are going to be carried off.

[50:11] And made eunuchs. Castrated. And he. Has the audacity to say. Hey this message you told me. Is good.

[50:23] At least there will be peace. And security. During my lifetime. Wait what? Your sons are about to be taken into captivity.

[50:38] And your response is. Well. At least it isn't during. Well I'm alive. Let my children.

[50:49] Deal with the consequences. Of my actions. Let my children. Deal with the consequences. Of my decision. The repentance. And the altar for that. The same God.

[51:00] The same guy. Who begged. God. For 15 more years. Of life. Doesn't even pray. To have his children protected. And if we're not careful.

[51:18] If we are not careful. We will do the same thing. We'll say. Well as long as I'm blessed. As long as I'm in church. That's good for me.

[51:28] We will. While our kids. Are dealing with the consequences. Of our actions. They are dealing with the consequences. Of coming off that wall. Mom and dad.

[51:41] Grandparents. Stay on that wall. You're doing a good work. You're doing a good work. A great work.

[51:54] I cannot come down. My children are dependent on me. My grandchildren. Are dependent on me. I don't want just peace for my day. I want peace for my children.

[52:06] I want peace for my grandchildren. I want peace for my family. And I'm not going to come off this wall. I'm not going to stay on this wall.

[52:17] Because I'm doing the good work. Hallelujah. Jesus. Where are you going to be in six months? Where are you going to be in six months?

[52:31] Are you still going to be building on that wall? Are you going to finish God's work? Or are you going to be pulled off that wall? And distracted. Hallelujah. Are you going to be pulled off that wall.

[52:42] And distracted. And worrying about your own safety. And your own security. And your own pleasure. Hallelujah. Praise God.

[52:59] I know we already prayed earlier. And we sought after God. I'm telling you. I'm telling you. If you need to repent. If you need to get your life in order. If you need to rebuild your altar.

[53:09] If you need to get your priorities straight. If you need to get your devotion. Devotional life back in order. If you need to receive the Holy Ghost. If you need to get baptized. In the name of Jesus.

[53:20] All of that can happen today. Today. Today. Hallelujah. Today. Today is the day of salvation. But if there is any practical.

[53:33] Take away from today. Start with that devotional life. Pick a place where you're going to pray. Pick a room. Pick a chair. Pick a place.

[53:45] Pick. And then pick a time. And devote it to God. And say. I'm going to seek your will Lord. I'm going to seek your face. I'm going to pray for my life. I'm going to pray for my grandchildren.

[53:55] I'm going to break these generational curses. And I'm going to pray for peace. Not only in my lifetime. But also for my children. And my grandchildren. Praise God.

[54:06] Hallelujah. I'm not backing up. Praise God. Hallelujah. I'm not going to build it for myself. I'm building it for greater. I'm doing it for the world. I'm knocking it down.

[54:18] Hallelujah. Praise God. Oh God. If we would be determined. We would be with greater determination. To build a life of devotion.

[54:31] Hallelujah. So we can see revival in our lives. And revival in our family. And in our children. Hallelujah. Oh. In the name of you.

[54:41] Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Oh God.

[54:52] Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Oh no you don't devil Oh no you don't devil Oh no you don't devil Come on mom Come on mom Oh no you don't devil

[55:54] Hallelujah Oh no you don't devil Come on dad Come on granddad Come on Oh Jesus Oh come on Hallelujah Come on these altars are open These altars are open Hallelujah Hallelujah Come on The next right step Come on the next right thing for you You know what that is Hallelujah Oh Jesus We praise you Lord I surrender Come on let's pray

[56:57] Let's take a few minutes here Let's seek after the Lord Let's ask God to touch our hearts Lord touch my heart with this word Lord Touch my heart with this word Lord I want to keep building I want to keep moving forward Lord God I don't want to be distracted I pray God that you would help us to hear your voice right now Hallelujah That's right Let's keep praying Come on let's ask God to help us Let's ask God to help us right now Let's ask God to help us right now Help me Lord God I need your touch in my life Lord Help me to be the man and the woman that you want us to be Lord Help us to be the family Oh God That you want to build in our lives Help us oh God right now

[57:57] Lord Jesus Let us see you oh Lord Hallelujah Come on the Holy Ghost is trying to help us right now Let God help you right now Let God touch your life right now That's it That's it That's it That's right That's right That's right Hallelujah Hallelujah Come on let God help you right now Let God help you right now Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah Lord, we are talking to you right now We're talking with you right now, Lord That's it, that's it, that's right

[58:57] God, we love you, Lord We love you, Lord We love you, Lord We love you, Lord We love you, Lord We love you, Lord Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah Yes, Jesus Yes, Jesus We thank you, Lord We thank you, oh, God Hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah.

[59:45] You know, you cannot overstate the process of building in the kingdom and building your life and building your faith. Amen.

[59:57] Those of you that go out to a job every day, you work and labor, you know how it is. You're there in your building and your building and your building.

[60:10] And the job is not done, so you've got to come back and just keep at it and keep at it and keep at it. And building a life of faith is no different. You've got to keep at it.

[60:21] You've got to keep at it. Building a family, you've got to keep at it. You've got to stay up on the wall. And all of the distractions that want to take you away will always be there.

[60:33] And, you know, and the harder you work, the more distractions will come. Amen. You've just got to stay at it. Amen. Amen. We need to take this word and put it in our hearts. We need to put this word in our hearts. Amen.

[60:49] And let's let God touch our lives. Can we lift our hands one more time? Let's thank the Lord right now for the move of His Spirit. Let's thank Him right now for the word that we heard.

[61:00] God, help us to put it into our hearts, Lord. Help us to put it into our hearts, Lord. That's right. That's right. That's right.

[61:12] Help us to put it into our hearts, O God. Help us, Lord, in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.

[61:24] In the name of Jesus. Hallelujah. Praise God. Praise God. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[61:36] Hallelujah. God bless everybody. Greet one another in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. And for those of you that got the text, we're going to be cooking up some burgers at my house in a little while.

[61:50]  And you're welcome to come over. Amen. And just be a part of the fellowship. Amen. Amen.