**To Receive Your Crown, You Must First Drink From The Cup**

Matthew 26:36-42

³⁶ Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
³⁷ And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
³⁸ Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
³⁹ And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
⁴⁰ And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
⁴¹ Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
⁴² He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

2 Timothy 4:7-8

⁷ I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
⁸ Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.


PAUL, means Small or little one  
    Yet no other figure in church history stands as high or has had such a far reaching influence!
****As Christ died for us, we should suffer and die daily****

Wherever Paul went you could either look for revival or a riot !!

2 Corinthians 11:23-27

²³ Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.
²⁴ Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
²⁵ Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
²⁶ In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
²⁷ In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Paul endured every species of hardship. Encountered every extreme danger!
 *To receive your crown, you must first drink from the cup*

Acts 16:19-24

¹⁹ And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,
²⁰ And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,
²¹ And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.
²² And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.
²³ And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
²⁴ Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

Assaulted by the populace, Punished by the Magistrates!
 **You must first drink from the cup**!!
Beaten, stoned and left for dead!
**You must drink from the cup**

Acts 13:50-51 Acts 14:5-7,21
Driven from one city he went to another and continued preaching!

Acts 9:16
*Paul was warned of many things he would suffer for Christ sake*

Paul never sighed never moaned!

Philippians 4:13

¹³ I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Paul in prison, back full of open wounds, hands and feet in stocks!
 He knew he must first drink from the cup to receive his crown!!

Now today granted, at least in this country it is not common for a christian to be beaten as Paul was.  But there is still a cup we must drink from!!

You may have to walk through:
  Tear stained eyes
  Pain and Sufferings
  Dark Clouds
  Times of questioning

But remember, as you are drinking from the cup your crown awaits you!

God has a tremendous plan and a purpose for your life and it includes
experiencing the cup of Christ.

There will come a time when you will go through things, and you don't understand
what God is doing.
But *This Cup** IS ALWAYS PREPARING YOU FOR A PROMOTION, FOR THE
CROWN, FOR THE HIGH PLACE THAT GOD HAS FOR YOU!

The cup always precedes the crown!

Anytime you go through a struggle (the cup represents, trials, struggles, adversities
in life) Anytime you go through this you might as well know and realize that always---He
promises if we endure the cup a crown awaits you!
We must endure to the end!!

ALWAYS BEFORE THE CROWN, THERE WILL BE A CUP!!

God uses adversity to develop us!
God is more interested in developing your character than He is solving your problems.

There will be times when you go through things and you don't understand what God is doing.
But remember the cup is always preparation for the crown!!

Matthew 26:39
³⁹ And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

Matthew 26:42

⁴² He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
What Jesus was saying ........was If i could pass on this cup of pain, trials, hurt, difficulties,
sickness.......But, I'm willing to drink from this cup if it is your will and I know there is a crown awaiting!!

If Jesus our example took the cup before His crown.....We must realize that in our life
the cup must be served to us sooner or later!
This gospel has 3 parts ...DEATH, BURIAL, RESURRECTION!
 First two parts seems like bad news but the third part is when we want to stand to our feet
and begin to shout!
But let us not forget Jesus had to drink from the cup Death and Burial before the
crown (resurrection)

This cup is the bad side before he good side
experience!

If I could just make it through the cup, I know i will soon receive my crown of victory!


Job......His cup experience!

He had everything, but in just a few short days he lost it all !!!

Lost his oxens
Fire consumed his sheep
Caldeans took his camels
Tornado wiped out his home
Health failed
Wife turned against him!

Job 13:15
¹⁵ Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

^{Job 23:10
10} But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

In other words ....after I drink from this cup I shall come forth as gold!!


Satan, have you considered my servant_________________?


When you are drinking from the cup ........That's when the Lily of The Valley shows up, Rose of Sharon
shows up!! JESUS rises with healing in His wings!!!
It's time to realize who Christ is, not on the mountain top but when you are drinking from
the bitter cup.

This is not a tragedy it is a trust!

(CLOSING)

Some of you may be drinking from that cup today.....Just know that God trust you just as He trusted 
Job!

God trust's you when the hedges are down!

Anybody can serve when wearing the crown...but can you serve during tough times? Difficult times? When you are drinking from the cup?

Don't quit in the middle of the cup!!

Say. I'm gonna take it all!! Because it's time fro a new level!! This cup is letting me know I'm getting closer
to my crown!!

Don't give up is what I'm preaching!! Don't give up!! Don't shut up!!! Don't sit down!! But stand up proudly and drink from the cup!!!

1 John 4:4
⁴ Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

This is not a cruise ship we are on ....we are on a battleship, we are in a spiritua; warfare, we are warriors in the spiritual kingdom!!

Job said My redeemer Lives!!
              When this cup passes I'll receive my crown!!

This cup is designed to draw you close to the King!! So He can reveal to you His great Love, Mercy and Grace!!!

Are you drinking from the cup tonight??
Don't let it get you down, know tonight can be your night to receive your personal crown!!

Tonight can be your night to go to that higher place in Christ!! 

Come Receive your crown!!!!

*Give up! Just give up! Give up your guilt for His grace!*

If we could somehow step on a scale today that measured the weight of our spiritual baggage, some of us would break the machine. So many people are groaning under the strain of the baggage in their spirits. That weight is called guilt. We all have it to some degree, and some are in the super heavyweight division. Your guilt is like a cancer eating you up on the inside, unless you do something about it. Some of you have become numb to the pain and energy your guilt causes you, and you have gotten used to dragging your stuff around, into every relationship, every challenge to try something new, and every chance to move forward with your life. Guilt holds you down, and guilt holds you back. It’s kind of like wearing ankle weights at first, you’re aware of the extra weight, but after awhile, you forget that you’re wearing them, even though it slows you down. You just get used to the new normal. I'm sure there's a lot of guilt from those reading this.  I just know that to be true because we’re all human, and we all have done stuff to make us guilty. 

 

Well, here's some good news..........Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, Romans 8:1 (NIV) 

Webster’s dictionary says this about condemnation....... it means “to declare guilty, to inflict a penalty upon, to doom, to declare unfit for use.” The Word of God says NO condemnation for those who are in Jesus, who have trusted Him to remove their sin and guilt.

Any time you read the word therefore, you should ask yourself,  What’s it there for?  the first seven chapters of Romans lays it all out.......holy God, sinful man, coming wrath, perfect Savior, Jesus Christ crucified and risen, made right by faith, made holy by faith. Then Paul says in view of all that he sums up the message of God’s love....... Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. That’s the essence of who Jesus is and what He did. That’s the foundational message of God’s love to the world. This is the good news we have. This is what we share, with everyone. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

 How does that sound? I bet that sounds really good to those of us who are ridden with guilt. 

     How do you get past your guilt from your past?

1. Stop beating yourself up

You know what they say..... guilt is the gift that keeps on giving. We keep guilting ourselves, and we make ourselves feel lousy. We condemn ourselves, and criticize and berate ourselves and say, "I shouldn’t have done that!" And we condemn and condemn ourselves. We even try to pay for our own guilt, but it just doesn’t work.... it backfires. 

Psalm 38:4   For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 

  

There are a lot of forms of self-punishment. Illness is one.....you can make yourself sick. Depression can be a form of self-inflicted punishment. You wallow in your pity until you can’t get out. Maybe this is you.....you setting ourselves up for failure, because you feel this is your just reward. 

You say........ I don’t deserve to succeed. That’s saying, I’m guilty, therefore I’ll fail.  

 The ultimate form of self-punishment is suicide. Suicide is now the number one killer of college students and the number two killer of high school students. Why? Because people feel condemned even at that young age.

We have to begin by seeing that we can be our own worst enemy. Beating yourself up doesn’t fix your pain. It just reopens the wound. Through Christ, we can find the relief we’re looking for. We don’t need to beat ourselves up. Jesus Christ was nailed to a cross so you could stop nailing yourself to a cross. Jesus Christ was crucified so you could stop crucifying yourself. Ask God to help you stop hurting yourself.

2. Stop letting others beat you down

Is there one person or several in your life that is keeping you stuck in your guilt? If you have someone like that in your life, you won’t have to look far to find that person. It’ll be someone close......chances are it’s a parent, a sibling, a girlfriend or boyfriend, a spouse or ex-spouse.

You have the authority and the ability to end the misery. The may never change what they say or do to you, but you can change how you respond to them. Determine today that you will not let anyone steal what rightfully belongs to God which is the determination of your value. Only God can say what you’re worth, because He is your Creator, and He says you are His own. 

God gave His best because you are worth it, regardless what anyone says. Who are they in comparison to the Almighty God? Don’t give anyone permission to determine your worth. God demonstrated how much you are worth. He died on the cross for you. How dare anyone devalue you! 

You can decide to let other’s attacks roll right off of you. Tell yourself, That won’t work on me any more. I will not give them the ability to do what only God can do. I will not let them make me feel I am inferior. Ask God to give you a strong mind and spirit to withstand people who attack you. Ask God to give you a new response.

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.

Guilt and blame will try to shame, but Christ declares I’m worthy.

Maybe you’re thinking, I wish I could believe that. I feel so unworthy. I know what I’ve done.

3. Stop resisting God’s love for you

Guilt only serves one good purpose, and that is to drive us to repentance. After that, nothing else good can come of it. Instead of letting your guilt drive you away from God in embarrassment and shame, let it do what it is supposed to do: drive you to the embrace of a loving God who wants more than anything else to free you from your sin, your shame, and your painful memories.

John 3:16-17  For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.

It’s not about what you’ve done....it’s about what God’s done. He’s made the first move, and He waits for you to respond to His love. He knows who you are and He still loves you......that’s the amazing grace we sing about! No one deserves to be declared not guilty! We deserve to be declared guilty, but instead, there is no condemnation. Stop resisting His love for you. Stop feeling like you can’t go to Him because of your shame. What are you thinking, that you’re going to surprise Him with the dark secrets of your life?

Romans 5:8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

You have no chance of being declared “not guilty” in God’s eyes unless you are in Christ. You will never be able to get rid of your guilt unless you are in Christ. You will never be able to stop beating yourself up unless you are in Christ. You will never be able to stop letting others beat you down unless you are in Christ.

“Therefore now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Your life is free and clear from every thing....everything once you trust Jesus Christ to be your Forgiver and Savior.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!  (message bible)

That’s far better than living with the old guilt. So where are you? In Christ, or outside Christ? Free from condemnation, or under condemnation? You don’t have to stay under condemnation. Christ is the Way.  Christ is the Truth. Christ is the Life.

Where do you need to start today? Maybe you need to stop resisting God’s love.  Give up! Just give up!  Give up your guilt for His grace! 

Say, Jesus, I need you to take away my sin and replace it with your grace. Forgive me and heal me, even for eternity.nMaybe you need to ask God’s help to stop beating yourself up.  He’s already forgiven you, why can’t you? Maybe you need to ask God for the strength to stop letting someone beat you down. Ask God for a new vision of who He created you to be.

"Don't Let Anything Hinder You Here"

Galatians 5:1-7 

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.  Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 

Ye did run well......you were keeping to the course, you were making steady progress.

You were putting forth a reasonable amount of effort.........

Paul is saying, At one time you had taken this to be your lifes work, your goal, your ambition, That which was worthy of your best efforts.

Gal 5:7

who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?

HINDER, "to cut into" was used of "impeding" persons by breaking up the road, or by placing an obstacle sharply in the path; hence, metaphorically, of "detaining" a person unnecessarily, 

For the Galatians, it was the Judaizers, who were trying to persuade them to go back to the works of the law, or the flesh, they were mixing law works with grace. 

The danger of this is, that when one believes his righteousness with God is attained by his works, he is fallen from Grace, which brought salvation apart from any works of the flesh.

Worldly enticements Hindered the escape of Lot’s wife

 Gen.19:26  But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

Worldly possessions Hindered the rich young man from discipleship....

Mt.19: 16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 

22  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

Natural earthly concerns robbed martha of the presence of Jesus.

Luke 10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou care that my sister hath left me to serve you alone? bid her therefore that she help me

41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

*****Cumbered means to........

to drag all around, i.e. (figuratively) to distract (with care): 

be driven about mentally, (b) to be over-occupied, too busy, about a thing

Mark 4:19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

Weights, as well as sins, hinders our progress....

Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

*****Weight, meaning........ a mass (as bending or bulging by its load), i.e. burden (hindrance): whatever is prominent, a protuberance, a bulk, a mass; 

hence, a burden, a weight, an encumbrance

  There're many of us who are not necessarily carrying around a load of sin, but we are trying to run this race with all the excess weight! 

We are still going in the right direction but we are letting those weights hinder us! 

Paul realizes something here and he relays it to us in the scripture **there is other things beside sin that slows us down.......

         LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT THAT'S HINDERING YOU!!!!! 

When we are slowed down by the weights that hinder us.........It takes us longer to see -THE WILL OF GOD 

                      FULFILL OUR CALLING 

                      FIND PEACE AND JOY OF THE HOLY GHOST!!!  

  WEIGHTS CAUSES US TO BE HINDERED!!!!!

Ye did run well, who or what hath hindered you?  What have you allowed to break your stride? What or who have you allowed to come between you and the lord,? What has caused you to feel as though you no longer need to give 100% 

What weights are you tolerating in your life? What excesses of the flesh have you given your permission to?

What unchristian feelings or attitudes have you given place to and allowed to harbor in your heart?

(Pride) (anger) (resentment) (self pity) (indifference) lukewarmness?

Sometimes storms come into our lives, not always as it were from the devil to destroy us, some storms are allowed by God to save us, to deliver us from the things that are holding us back, and breaking our stride, and distracting us from the goal.

Acts 27:18-19 Paul the apostle is In the midst of a Great storm.

18 And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship;

19 And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship. (The furniture, the utensils).

The bible says everything that can be shaken will be shaken and only those things ........ Sometimes it takes a storm to show us what is unnecessary in our lives, sometimes the things that we are the most proud of are the first things to go in the middle of the storm.

Sometimes we need to lighten the ship......sometimes we allow our hearts to pick up excess baggage and we need to lighten the ship but it’s not until we feel that it is a matter of life or death that we actually take the initiative and get rid of it. 

Sometimes the storm comes to reveal the enemies of your destiny.

If you feel like you are going through a storm, it may be time to lighten the ship.

Who hath hindered you?

What has hindered you?

There are things in this life that at times slow us down, and some of these things we have no control over.

But there are other things that hinder our progress in God that are things that we simply allow and we must choose to lay them aside and get back to running this race with a 100% commitment. 

Satan is credited with many things in the bible. He is an accuser, a murder, a liar, a sifter and yes..... He is also a Hinderer. I want to show several ways that Satan hinders us.......But remember..... we should not let anything hinder us here!!

I. Satan Uses SIN to Hinder US.

2.Satan Uses STORMS to Hinder US.

3. Satan Uses SICKNESS to Hinder US.

4. Satan Uses SASTISFACTION to Hinder US.

5. Satan Uses STRIFE to Hinder US.

6. Satan Uses SPORTS to Hinder US.

7. Satan Uses SHOPPING to Hinder US.

8. Satan Uses SELFISHNESS to Hinder US.

9. Satan Uses SEPARATION to Hinder US.

  It may be that the most tragic words on the unbeliever’s tomb will be.....I would’ve accepted Christ, but Satan hindered me.

LAY ASIDE THE WEIGHTS THAT HINDER YOU!!! 

 WILL THIS BE YOUR NIGHT TO GET RID OF THE WEIGHTS THAT ARE HINDERING YOU??? 

GOD IS READY TO LIGHTEN YOUR SHIP BY THROWING AWAY THINGS THAT ARE HINDERING YOU!!! 

WILL YOU ALLOW HIM TONIGHT???? 

Depression, a very real problem in a Christian's walk.

1 Kings 19:1-19:18

A couple of years ago, the Southeast Christian Church offered a time during their Wednesday Evening Service (attendance of at least 600) for people to come forward and have the Elders lay hands on them and pray for healing. The speaker pointed out that there was "a lot of hurt in this room" - sickness, broken relationships, grief. He said that at the invitation, the elders would be available for prayers of healing.
The response began as a trickle. Soon, others began making their way down from the balcony; walking along individually or in pairs, or rolling forward in wheelchairs. Before long, the trickle became a torrent. Elder Bob Carpenter said he was not prepared for the response to the invitation. "I was totally surprised by the magnitude of it." Elder Bill Beauchamp did not expect the vast response either… nor did he anticipate the type of prayer needs revealed. "At least 2 out of 3 asked for prayer for depression," he said. "I thought it would be more for physical needs. But so many said, "I’m depressed. I feel unworthy. I see no future." I was amazed at how many felt unworthy."

Depressed Mood?
Loss of Interest?
Sleep Problems?
Difficulty Concentrating?
Agitation?
Restlessness?

Life is too precious to let another day go by feeling not quite yourself. If you’ve experienced some of these symptoms nearly every day, for at least two weeks, a chemical imbalance could be to blame. And life can feel difficult ALL DAY. Depression is very real part of life for many people regardless of what some may say in the religious world.

In an average week 50,000 people will make visits for therapy. Seventy-five percent of these clients will have either clinical depression or some sort of anxiety disorder.

Depression can be a very real problem ........

God gives us a study in clinical depression in I Kings 19

From this text we find that Elijah experienced many of the classic symptoms…

Fear - “Elijah was afraid and ran for his life….” 1 Kings 19:3

Suicidal tendencies – “(Elijah) prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, LORD,’ he said. ‘Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.’ 1 Kings 19:4

Excessive tiredness – “Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep…” 1 Kings 19:5 slept for a couple of days… maybe longer

Feelings of rejection – “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
1 Kings 19:10 He experienced this depression for a long time.

What’s really bizarre about this is,that just days before, Elijah had preached one of the greatest sermons of his life. He confronted 400 prophets of Baal on the Mt. Carmel and exposed them as the false prophets they really were. And because of Elijah’s faith & obedience God literally sent fire down out of heaven to consume the sacrifice he’d placed on the altar, and then a few hours later sent a downpour of rain on a land that hadn’t had rain for 3 years.
Why would a man who had preached an impressive message and had experienced some of the most powerful displays of God’s power… Why would he suddenly be crippled by fear, hopelessness and despair? Why would he run away to a desolate corner of the world and seek to die?

There’s probably all kinds of reasons, but the fact is – he did. And what this tells us is that even God’s most dynamic servants can suffer from depression. It’s not necessarily a mark of a lack of faith. It’s not necessarily a mark of an immoral lifestyle.
Elijah was THE man of God in his day. And now he’s so far DOWN in the depths of despair – even UP looks wrong to him.
But that’s not where God left him. God didn’t say: “well sorry Elijah – you have a chemical imbalance, and medicine hasn’t been invented yet – so I can’t help you!” Oh no…long before psychiatry was ever thought of, long before healing could be bought in the little purple pill, long before we had clinics and psychiatrists and psychologists long before all of that… God healed a man of depression and it was not an isolated instance. And what God did for Elijah, He can do for you & me too!

I want you to notice what God did to heal Elijah ...God recognized that Elijah’s depression was not an imaginary problem. Elijah’s depression was real. It was tangible. You could have cut it with a knife. AND God did not say – “get a hold of yourself Elijah. This is a SINFUL attitude … where’s your faith man???”

Oh, no… God didn’t treat Elijah roughly

In answer to Elijah’s prayer to die, God just lets him sleep. Then God’s angel feeds him and lets him sleep some more. Then God sends him down to the desert in the South for 40 days and nights.
In all that time, God doesn’t say a word… God doesn’t offer any council. God doesn’t set Elijah down and have a face to face talk. In all that time, Elijah is left alone – Elijah’s given time to rest and to think…No sermons, no long counseling sessions… just love and rest.

But eventually God did deal with Elijah’s depression.
And I want you to notice what He did:

1st – God sent him to church – God sent him to Mt. Horeb, the Mt. Of God (where the Law given to Moses).
Church is one of the best places to deal with Depression. When Church is done right it’s the place where we listen to each other and help one another. “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2
Back in 1999 Duke University conducted a study of nearly 4,000 older adults. One of their conclusions: "Attendance at a house of worship is related to lower rates of depression and anxiety."
But church doesn’t stop with being in a house of worship… Time alone with God in prayer and Bible Study is a powerful anti-depressant.

2ndly - God had Elijah tell Him what the problem was.
God asked Elijah: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (I Kings 19:13) God didn’t ask this question just once, He asked Elijah that same question two separate times. "What are you doing here?" Didn’t God know? Of course He knew, He’d sent Elijah to this mountain. But Elijah needed to tell Him what was wrong in his life. Elijah needed to explain what HE thought the problem was. And once Elijah told Him what he believed was wrong, then…

3rd – God dealt with the false beliefs, the false ideas that were fueling Elijah’s depression. Jesus said, “The truth shall set you free.” Why is that? Because false ideas, false beliefs (especially false ideas about God) have power to put us in bondage. Our lives are built around what we think is true about life. And if the foundations of that reasoning are based on wrong information or impressions, the result can be devastating.

Elijah’s reply to God revealed what Elijah had wrong...
ELIJAH DIDN’T THINK THAT GOD WAS DOING ANYTHING.
In 1 Kings 19:14 Elijah replied to God and said, "I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too."

Hidden in the middle of that statement was this accusation:
"I’ve been beating my head against the wall serving you Lord. And everything seems to just be falling apart around me… What have you been doing God???
And so, God corrects Elijah’s thinking. He tells him "Elijah – you’re not the only one left"

In 1 Kings 19:18 God tells Elijah
“I have reserved seven thousand in Israel - all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths have not kissed him."
"Elijah, I’ve not been doing nothing (God seems to be saying)… in fact, I’m just getting started"
"Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. Also, anoint Jehu … king over Israel, and anoint Elisha …to succeed you as prophet. Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. (I Kings 19:15-17)
In other words, don’t worry about it Elijah… I’ve got it all under control. I AM doing something.

When a person is depressed, they don’t think God is doing much of anything. They have no hope, no confidence, and God isn’t easily seen by them. A person in depression needs to realize that – just like Elijah – God IS working in their lives… even when they can’t see Him.

So God got Elijah into Church,
He got him to tell Him what was wrong.
And He corrected some of his false thinking and beliefs…

And lastly, God gave Elijah something to do. When God finished His counseling session with Elijah, Elijah was still in his complaining mood, but God basically tells him: “Get back to work. I’ve got a job for you to do… make yourself useful”.

During the 1st part of the 20th century, J. C. Penney was a real man who presided over a very real and powerful empire of over 1,700 stores. At the time he had the country’s largest chain of department stores, each one bearing his name. But, although his enterprise made him incredibly wealthy, J.C. Penney’s life was not devoid of setbacks and troubles. In fact, beginning in 1929, events took place that nearly cost Penney his life. When the Great Depression struck the country, it came at a time of great financial vulnerability for Penney. In the good times, before the Depression, Penney had overextended himself and had borrowed heavily to finance many of his ventures. But when the Depression hit, banks began to request repayment of his loans sooner than anticipated. Suddenly cash flow was tight, and Penney was finding it difficult to meet payment schedules. Constant and unrelenting worry began to take a toll. "I was so harassed with worries that I couldn’t sleep, and developed an extremely painful ailment," he said.
Concerned about his deteriorating health, Penney checked himself into the Kellogg sanitarium at Battle Creek, Michigan, (kind of the Mayo Clinic of its era). There, Dr. Elmer Eggleston, a staff physician, examined Penney, declaring that he was extremely ill.
Penney later recalled "A rigid treatment was prescribed, but nothing helped," He was constantly tormented by periods of hopelessness and despair. His very will to live was rapidly eroding.
"I got weaker day by day. I was broken - nervously and physically, filled with despair, unable to see even a ray of hope. I had nothing to live for, I felt that I hadn’t a friend left in the world, that even my family had turned against me."
Alarmed by his rapidly deteriorating condition, Dr. Eggleston gave Penney a sedative. However, the effect quickly wore off, and Penney awakened with the conviction that he was living the last night of his life. "Getting out of bed, I wrote farewell letters to my wife and to my son, saying that I did not expect to live to see the dawn." Penney awakened the next morning, surprised to find himself alive. Making his way down the hallway of the hospital, he could hear singing coming from the little chapel where devotional exercises were held each morning. The words of the hymn he heard being sung spoke deeply to him. Going into the chapel, he listened to the singing, the reading of the Scripture lesson, and the prayer.

"Suddenly something happened," he said. "I can’t explain it. I can only call it a miracle. I felt as if I had been instantly lifted out of the darkness of a dungeon into a warm, brilliant sunlight. I felt as if I had been transported from hell to Paradise. I felt the power of God as I had never felt it before."

In a life-transforming instant Penney knew that God, with His love, was there to help. "From that day to this, my life has been free from worry," he declared. "The most dramatic and glorious 20 minutes of my life were those I spent in that chapel that morning."

The words from the hymn that spoke so eloquently and miraculously to J. C. Penney were these...

Be not dismayed (discouraged) God will take care of you.
Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
God will take care of you, through every day, over all the way.
He will take care of you, God will take care of you.

A GOOD FATHER part 6

TRAIN YOUR CHILDREN

Ephesians 6:4 – “And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger; but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

We must teach and train our children to respect authority in the home … or they won’t respect authority at school or in the world. We need to teach our children that there are BOUNDARIES … rules and regulations … a line that they will not cross.

Your children are going to test you. They are going to see how much they can get away with. They are going to see if you mean what you say … if you’re going to take a stand, or if it’s just an idle threat. And...… every time you back down from Godly instruction, you will have to draw the line further and further away from God’s standard. If you’re not careful, after awhile, They will have become the authority … and you will become the one in submission to them.

Train your children to respect authority. Earn their respect … be consistent … discipline them with love … or they will never respect the authority of God in their life. 

BE A GOOD FATHER … train your children.

It’s not easy being a good father … BUT … it’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE either. It takes hard work, hard praying, and making hard decisions. You can’t do it alone.... God doesn’t expect you to....God doesn’t want you to.....Don’t leave Him out of your fatherhood.

**Another Lesson from The Lord's Prayer**

When we asked forgiveness from God it was for our own good....same thing when we need to forgive others.....it's for our own good. We can't be healed,never really move toward wholeness, we will never really get on with our lives until we are able to let go of the resentment,until we can give up gaining revenge...and forgive. When we have been wronged, we need to look at who God is, and what God has done for us. How far am I to go with this forgiveness ?.......How far has God gone with you?............. We are to forgive them. Not because of who they are or what they have done; but because of who God is, and what God has graciously done. Take a look at Matthew 6, verse 12. Right in the middle of the Lord's Prayer is a prayer that you and I, if we are not careful, just pray as a motion when we say the Lord's Prayer. ***Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors***. We are asking God to treat us, to forgive us, exactly the way that we deal with other folks who have wronged us.

Father, please forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. In Jesus name. Amen.

"HELL HAS WHAT THE CHURCH NEEDS"

Luke 16:19-31

What every Church needs and what every Born Again Believer needs is.....

1. VISION ....vs23

 

We need a vision for the lost. 

A vision of hell.

 Proverbs 29:18.....Where there is no vision the people perish! 

We need a vision for what God can do through us. A vision about our life.

We need a vision about this church that God has placed us in.

Not a vision of feel good Christianity......but a vision for the work of God in this church.

Acts 16:16-21 Paul and Silas turned the city upside down.

2. TEARS ....vs24

Tears of Compassion 

Now is the time to have compassion....Love

Tears of Repentance

Now is the time to confess our sin.

Tears of Regret

The rich man found that out but it was too late.

3. REMEMBRANCE ....vs25

 Never forget where we came from....remembering will help us to make the right decisions concerning our souls and the souls of others. 

The Christian life is a life of decisions. It begins with a decision.....To believe......

To serve God or man...... the rich man chose "the pleasures of sin for a season."..... Lazarus chose what really mattered, the things of God

We cannot undo past mistakes or sins but we can give the pieces of our life to God and see the wonders that God can do with those pieces.

4. SEPARATION ....vs26

From evil......

God is a God of separation. One of the keys to spiritual maturity is that when God reveals truth to you in the Word of God....you obey it.

From compromise.....

Love God but hate sin. Don’t try to love both God and sin.

5. PRAYER ....vs27

Here is a man praying for the lost. God works in response to man’s prayers. Man’s prayers for the lost fulfill the plan of God.

6. MISSIONS ....vs27

The rich man in Hell wanted to send out missionaries.

7. CONCERN ....vs28

We need a concern that people don’t go to this place of torment and anguish called Hell.

Hell is a place of remorse and despair when they see the perfect joy of God

Hell is a place of abhorrence of the very evil that they had loved.

Hell is a place of eternal desire for freedom.

Hell is a place of memory of lost opportunities.

Hell is a place of regret over deeds committed.

Hell is a place of absolute hopelessness.

Hell is a place of eternal separation from loved ones.

Hell is a place of fire.

Hell is a place of remorse for not listening to the Word of God.

Hell is a place without opportunity.