The Prayer That Answers Other Prayers | Pastor Levi Lusko | 1 Chronicles 4:9–10 | Fresh Life Church

Let's attempt things so big that if God doesn't show up, they're bound to fail. Come on. Let's do what we can never do on our own. Let's Let's see God do the impossible. Let's go after a generation. Let's Let's see young people all around the world. Let's do We could never do that on our own.

Let's not If we aim small, we might just get what we aim for that we can do in our own strength, but let's go after the impossible. If you have a Bible, 1 Chronicles chapter 4 is where we are. 1 Chronicles 4. I want to preach to you today specifically if you have ever felt like you're an impostor, like you're not qualified for the life that you're attempting to live, the job that you have, the relationships you're in, the world that you're you're living in, and that God's opened up to you.

Now, I'm not talking about being a hypocrite. I'm not talking about leading a double life. What I'm talking about is feeling unworthy. Feeling like you're a fraud, like you don't deserve what you've been blessed with, that you don't have what it takes to do what you're called to do.

That you are completely and totally in over your head. And that if everybody around you figured out how illequipped you were for the task that's put in your hands to do, they would want nothing to do with you, you know, because they would figure out, well, you're not you're not who we thought you were.

And maybe deep down you wonder if God, even if he really knew what was going on, would want to pick someone else. And let me just say, if you feel that way, I won't ask you to raise your hands. uh you're in good company in this church because I have felt that way every single day of the 18 plus years that I've been a part of this work called Fresh Life.

I have never felt um like I have what it takes for anything that God has ever called me to do. And so let me just say this. Um, I actually believe those feelings, those feelings they call that imposttor complex or the imposttor syndrome, feeling like you're a fraud, like I I can't I can't do this that you're calling me to do.

I don't have what it takes. I actually believe those feelings are a good thing. They're an indicator. They're pointing to something. Those sort of insecure fears that we all feel are not a disqualification. They're an invitation to trust God on a deeper level. And that God, when you feel that way, his goal isn't to comfort you.

It's to recruit you. It's to take you with those feelings on to do the great things that he wants to do. If you believe it, say, "Amen." >> Um, but it is absolutely crucial that when we feel that way that we choose the right response. we choose to do the right and appropriate thing and that of course is to pray.

Uh the title of this message is the prayer that answers other prayers. We all know that when it comes to finding genies and lamps and getting wishes that you can't wish for more wishes. That is a rule. It is you get three honey you are out after that.

That is that is all you get. Right? But the good news for us is God's not a genie. And there is no cap on the prayers that we can pray or on the creative prayers that we can pray that that that that wish for more wishes. The prayers that open up more prayers.

And there is in fact a prayer that answers other prayers. What is it? Well, let's read our text once again from 1 Chronicles chapter 4. Now, Jabz was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabz, saying, "Because I bore him in pain." And Jabz called on the God of Israel, saying, "Oh, that you would bless me indeed and enlarge my territory, that your hand would be with me, and that you would keep me from evil, and that I may not cause pain."

And I love this. So God granted him what he requested. God gave him what he asked for. And it goes without saying that if we're not praying any prayers, were giving God nothing to grant. Think about every prayerless day of your life. What a missed opportunity it was.

If God opens a drawer where he finds a stack of prayers from his people, he and he has nothing in there for you to to to that you've asked for, what a what a missed chance. What a forfeited opportunity. Do you remember back in the day when we had to buy cell phone plans with so many minutes, right? feels positively quaint now, but we would all be like at the end of a, you know, month and be like, "Oh my gosh, I I can't talk because I only bought 1,500 minutes and I've used them all."

Or or maybe you're like, "I'm going to call a bunch of people cuz I've got all these minutes and they they don't roll over." Remember that? They don't they don't roll, so I got to use them now. If I don't use them, I will lose them. Well, every day we have the opportunity to to call on God, to beseech God and and there's no going back to yesterday and and and and praying prayers for God to answer.

I've called this series the best of both worlds because we're trying to really get our our heads around what prayer does for us. Because through prayer, we're interacting with another place, another world. Jesus said, "My my kingdom is not of this world." So when we pray, we who are in this world currently, we get to interact with the next world, interact with the next life, interact with the unseen, and then we say, "Amen."

And we go back to our business in the scene, but we don't go back to it the same. Prayer changes things most of all me. Prayer changes things most of all me. >> So I I go to God to pray not just to change the situation. Perhaps sometimes I go to pray so he can change me through time spent with me.

Then I get to come back to the situation a new me. >> Right? That's the my wife likes to call him and she said this all throughout her parenting journey. Holy smokes break. You know, like where you cuz she she said she got so jealous sometimes parenting when she would drive past businesses and see people outside smoking and she'd go as a mom, I don't get a smoke break.

You know, they're all they're always there. The little ones are always there. So, she said sometimes I would have to just pull the door shut in the bathroom for a holy smoke break. Right? Where she would say, "Holy God, help me. I'm I'm at my wits end here."

Right? What was she doing? She was praying so she could come out of that closet, out of that pantry, back into her situation, a different version of her. You don't pray and then become more selfish. You don't pray, "Lord, just thank you for your cross. Thank you for your kindness.

Thank you for your spirit." And then and then you just are so mean on the back end of that, right? Prayer changes things. Most of all, where me? It changes me. It changes my heart. It changes who who I am. So, we get to be in this world but interacting with the next world.

And we get the best of both worlds. Now as a refresher for those who have been here and as a sort of like recap for those who have not been with us uh the year is 1200 BC give or take 100 years we know this is the time of the judges this 300 year long period the time of the judges we just don't know exactly where it falls within them but roughly chronologically we're after Joshua before Samuel Joshua brings the children of Israel into the promised land across the Jordan River, what Moses wasn't able to do.

And after the conquest of Canaan, the taking of this land flowing with milk and honey, but before the inauguration of the kingdom under Saul and eventually David and eventually Solomon and the reign of all the kings in between, there was this period called the time of the judges.

Now, Israel was originally intended to have no king but God. But during times of spiritual rebellion, that left them with no king at all. Right? And so God was meant to be their king, their ruler. But when they weren't honoring God, weren't following God, which quickly happened. They they followed God until Joshua was dead.

And then after Joshua died, the children of Israel by and large forgot God. And so this whole period of the judges was like the wild wild west. I mean, it was just crazy. Everybody was doing what was right in their own eyes because they didn't have God as their king and they didn't yet have any human government of a of a kingdom.

And so it was just literally crazy. It was it was madness. And they would fall into sin and fall into idolatry. And God would raise up these different judges to rescue them from the the the difficulties that would come upon them because of their sin. And then they would immediately when it got good again, forget God again.

We tend to do that, right? We call out to God in our great need, but then we once it's once it's not so urgent anymore, then we kind of think we can handle it on our own. And so it was during this period of just a bleak flatline.

Uh there's no real spiritual pulse for the nation of Israel. We're told of this period that there was no widespread revelation or or vision of God and that the word of God was rare in those days. And that makes what we find in this list of names 1 Chronicles 4 all the more meaningful when out of the doldrums of name after name after name of person who didn't seek God all of a sudden comes someone more honorable than his brothers more honorable than those who came before more honorable than those who came after him.

We have Jabz shining brightly, all the more brilliant for the contrast of what he was surrounded by. Do you see that? My friend uh and I were talking the other day and I asked him a question. I said, "Any new hobbies?" Right? You It's just one of those things you ask like, "What's given you life these days?"

And nothing could prepare me for it. He said, he said, "I've gotten really into mining lately." Now, he's an architect, right? He said, "I've gotten into mining. I bought some land. It comes with mineral rights. I'm allowed to go out on the land and mine. I was like, I I'm I sort of thought you were going to say goal for swimming laps, you know, like it was mining.

I was but hi ho. Really? And he's like, yeah. And so he's been texting me photos of his mine. Literally like this was the other day I got this and this was like he got off work and rushed out to his land and he's he's looking for gems and and I said, "How's it going?"

He's like, "Well, I found this one. It's it's called a purple sapphire." And but but then it quickly was was like and it's not that good because I didn't have my good tools and I was able you didn't I got there late and I and I was like wow you're like a legit minor.

Look at you go. Look at you go. Look at that first photograph again. That's 1 Chronicles 4. It's just dirt. It's just so and so did so had two so and so wickedness. So and so didn't care about God. So and so lived for the weekend. So and so just did whatever they wanted to do.

Did whatever they felt like doing. And then all of a sudden, Jabz, all of a sudden, that's your cue to show the next one of the good one. All of it. Jabz, there he is. There he look at him. He shines so brightly. He sh just in in the midst of the darkness of what he was surrounded by.

Jabz sought God. Jabz called on the God of Israel. And so God as he's looking to and fro throughout the whole earth, he's just dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, sapphire >> gem. Jabz chose to see God. JZ chose to experience the best of both worlds and he chose to overcome the label that had been spoken over him by his mother.

She named him pain. She named him he inflicts pain. She named him he will inflict pain. We don't know all of the circumstances. it it you know all birth is painful but apparently his birth was really painful. Now we get a clue later when he's called honorable. Okay, honorable can also be translated in Hebrew super heavy, right?

So maybe he was just a big baby and and and that caused his mom discomfort, you know. Uh but but it's also a play on words because he became a heavyweight, right? You know, you talk about someone being a lightweight versus a heavyweight. When the Bible says he was honorable, it it's saying, "Oh, you ever get a gift and you feel like, oh, this is heavy, right?"

And we sort of equate heavy with expensive or heavy with valuable. And so it it's like Psalm 1 where the wicked is like the chaff that the wind drives away. There's nothing of substance to it. There's nothing of worth to it. It's just a tumble weed blowing in the wind.

So is so is the one who sits in the seat of the scornful. So is the one who's, you know, just eh and and and just just living for this world. But the Bible says the man who trusts in the Lord, he's like a tree planted by the rivers of living water, who whose roots go deep down into God's word.

And and he doesn't sit in the seat of the scornful. He instead delights in the law of the Lord and meditates in it day and night. And he's going to put forth green leaves and whatever he does shall prosper. This is the idea of a oak tree versus a tumble weed.

This is Jabz. His life had weight. His life was significant. He was heavy. But because his pain uh this pain was given to his mom. She chose to speak the pain. A lot of times we're we're referring the pain that we've experienced, right? Because it can be hurt in you.

And then you end up pushing that forward to other people. And so she speaks out that all he's good for is to cause pain. And it's funny how powerful even an off-handed remark can be for good and for evil. I read this book a while back and it just gave me just the mentality of just being being more careful with my words.

It was written by a doctor talking specifically about the relationship between a father and his daughters, a father and his little girls. And in it, she just it was one off-handed reference, but it never it never it never left me. She was uh interviewing this girl who was maybe in her 30s, 40s.

Her father was dead. And she said, you know, just interviewing her about the impact of her dad on her life. She said, "I can still picture myself in the backseat of his car." And I had my toes up on the little armrest, my my feet up on the armrest, and and he looked back at a red light and saw my toes down there and just looked up at me and said, "You have such cute feet.

She said, "It's it's been decades, but I still remember how good it made me feel that my dad thought my toes were cute. My dad thought I had cute feet." She was living in that affirmation. Those words that were spoken to her gave her life. Well, Jabz's mom said, "You caused me pain.

All I see is pain." But he chose to overcome the lie embedded in that name. Heard about a man a while back who uh wanted to be an actor. So he moved to Hollywood and and tried and of course persisted through all the difficulty it takes to make it in that industry.

And against all odds he got himself a studio contract. And that is to say, the studio was agreeing for the years of the contract to make movies with him throughout throughout the time. And only one year into that contract's terms, the studio brought him in, sat him down, and he was told they were going to drop him, and they were no longer going to make movies with him.

And when he asked why, the studio executive said, and I quote, "You have no future in this business. you need to also, if you're going to continue to try, change your name because your name is too pretentious for a young man. And so they dropped him with the advice, change your name.

Your name is not good enough. You're not good enough. You have no future. Oh, and he added on the way out, you should get a haircut. Maybe you'd look a little more like Elvis Presley if you look more like him. So, how he looked, what he was called, who he was, not enough.

And it's a good thing Harrison Ford didn't listen to the words that were spoken over him that day. Or the world might not have Han Solo, Indiana Jones, or a very funny old psychologist that now we we have in in Harrison Ford. But these words can hold us back.

Jabz, fortunately, didn't let his mom's prophecy over him limit him. And he chose to believe a different word. He chose to believe a better word. And how did he have access to it? Well, I told you the word of the Lord was rare, but it was there. It was there.

And we we have to choose to listen to the whisper of God's word and not the shout of the flesh, not the shout of the devil, not the shout of the word. And though it was rare, it was there. And the whispered stories of God being God to Abraham and to Isaac and to Jacob and what God did through Moses and what God did through Joseph and and Joshua.

He chose to believe that minority report. He chose to go after what the two were speaking and not the 10 were speaking. He chose to focus on the God who can deliver us from the giant and not on how big the giants are. Jabz called on the name of the God of Israel and he chose to bow his knee and appeal to heaven.

And he prayed not a long prayer. Listen, it wasn't like a big old long we read it. It just took a moment, right? I mean, he he said he said, "I just want you to bless me. I want you to to be with me. I want you to to prosper me and I want you to help me to cause evil.

Don't don't let me do what my mom said I'm going to do. I want to to write a new story. I want to leave a better legacy. I want to take part in a different kind of destiny. I want to I don't care what the culture around me is doing.

I'm gonna go against the flow. I If everyone's saying this on social media, if everyone's doing this, I want to It was just this little It was this little defiant prayer that said, "I'm going to trust you. I'm going to seek you." Not long, but God's not listen, it's not length that gives a prayer power. >> Jesus gave us permission to pray short, powerful prayers.

Look what he said in Matthew. This is a sermon on the mount. And when you pray, do not use vain repetition as the heathen do. See the reference? He said that would be just six, seven, all these long prayers. I don't need all that. He said, no, no, no, we don't need all that.

He said they think that big old long prayers are going to impress God. He said, I'm not looking about that for that. I'm not I'm not about all that. Just speak from your heart. What's important is that you mean it. And Jabz just said, God, would you help me?

Would you bless me? God, I I need you. I need you to overcome the the heredity and I need you to I need to overcome the sins of my fathers and on my grandfathers and and everything I've seen the example all around. He didn't have a template. He just chose to trust the Lord.

Would you bless me indeed? Supernatural favor. That was week one. Would you enlarge my borders? Would you prosper me? would you give me influence, opportunity, platform, and responsibility? And again, both of those requests, what God heard them and answered them. God was delighted to say, "Yes, I'm going to give you what you've had the faith to ask for."

Charles Spurgeon said, "His devotion was the key to his promotion." Don't you love that? >> And don't you know that when you read scripture, you find this? Do you see a man or woman who excels in their work? They'll stand before kings. They will not stand before unknown men.

There is just something about treating your work like worship. There's just something about choosing to not just believe that the hour of worship on Sunday morning is just the important part, but that what you do on Monday and what you do on Tuesday and how you treat people on Wednesday and how you show up at school on th these are acts of worship as well.

And when you choose to believe your work is worship, there's a sense in which you're being faithful with something small and God can entrust you with greater levels of responsibility. Jabz had a vision for his life. Jabz wanted to scale what had been entrusted to him. Jabz wanted there to be a ROI, a return on investment.

God, you gave me this life. You gave me some talents. You gave me some skill, and I want to do it as an act of worship. His devotion was the key to his promotion. I'm reminded of how Daniel showed up to his job, being a wise man, a counselor to a pagan king.

And he just chose to distinguish himself, choosing to believe it was worship, doing I mean, in these days that we're living in, it's not that hard. Just show up. That's literally what? Mind-blowing. You You did a thing, right? You're you're still here, right? You did what you said you were going to do.

You didn't cut corners. And when you do that over time, you're going to get a reputation for excellence. You're going to rep get a reputation for for just going above, doing more than was was required of you, underpromising and overd delivering. That's how Daniel showed up working for this king.

And so, he just got more and more and more opportunity. Literally in the book of Daniel, there's like three different kings and everything changes, even in some cases the name of the country. And yet Daniel's still there because they might have killed everybody else. Like, well, that guy, he's got a great reputation.

We want you working for us, too. Same thing with Joseph. Didn't matter what Joseph went through, he approached it with excellence. He's in a jail cell. He's got the cleanest jail cell there is. And eventually, someone's like, "Well, we need someone to volunteer to do this other thing."

Like, I'll do it. And so, he does that. Soon the warden of the jail says, "Um, can you just run the whole prison for me?" He's like, "Well, it's not really my job." No, no, I'm just doing do my time. No. He's like, "Of course." And so pretty by the end, he's running the entire prison.

It's the same way when he's at Potterer's house. He does such a good job as a slave in a situation he doesn't want to be in, but he does not choose to believe the narrative that he's a victim. He is more than a conqueror. I I I didn't I didn't end up here because of the hatred of my brothers.

I ended up here because God sent me here. And so soon Piper says, "Will you run everything for me?" Yeah, except I I want to pick my menu of what I ate for lunch. Other than that, Joseph, I want you to run the whole joint. Do you see a man who excels in his work, he will stand before kings, he will not stand before unknown men.

And so like Jabz, there's this sense in which if you do something well, if you do something with all your heart, if you do something unto God and not to men, there's going to be a sense in which that blessing does lead to greater opportunity, greater responsibility within the kingdom.

Today we come to the third and uh the third of four uh prayer requests and it's this that your hand would be with me. that your hand verse 10 would be with me which is so vital. Jabz was so smart to include this. Why? Because of the first two prayers.

Because of the first two prayers. You see, God answered what he asked for. And there are two sources of discomfort when it comes to prayer. The first source of discomfort when it comes to prayer is the prayers we pray that God didn't answer. Right? Can we can we be real?

Now, in one sense, theologically, it's not true because no is an answer, too. >> We like to say, "God didn't answer that prayer." It's like, "Yeah, he did. He just didn't give the answer you wanted, bro." >> Right? But that's hard sometimes. >> It's very hard sometimes when a prayer we pray with all of our might and God chose to do something different.

That that's a source of discomfort when it comes to prayer. But guess what? There's a second source of discomfort when it comes to prayers. And that's the prayers that he answered. And then you get it and it turns out it was hard. Here's what I've discovered. Blessings and burdens are both heavy >> and so can easily be mistaken one for another.

Oh, you wanted to get out from your parents house cuz you just were just being told to do every, you know, all the things we all feel. Then you get out and you're like, why is everything so expensive? Right? I remember being in my first apartment, man. I wouldn't run that heat for nothing.

I could I could see my breath in my bedroom once I connected the dots that this heat cost money, right? It was just crazy to think about. So, I wanted emancipation. Then I got it and it was a little heavier, right, than I thought it was going to be.

We pray for a spouse and we get one heavy being married sometimes. There are there are moments, right? God, you answered my prayer. Think about this. Whatever is causing you difficulty today is probably an answer to a prayer in a previous season, right? We prayed for children. We prayed for God to use us.

Then we do and what happens? Life gets more complex, right? We the the the disciples prayed for revival, prayed for and then all these people show up and it's crazy and there's people pushing at him at every turn and everyone's hungry, right? You what what you pray for now becomes something you have to steward.

You have to manage. You have to lead. Okay. Bigger, bigger, bigger borders. Great. Now I got this land. Well, guess what, homie? Someone's got to take care of that land. Book of Proverbs puts it this way. That the the barn stays clean when there's no cows. Yeah. What a clean barn, right?

What a clean church we would have if there were no people in it causing any of the problems, right? What how how clean and easy your your your business would be if there was just no employees and no customers. All of People always ask me like, "What are the biggest problems you're facing?"

They're all people problems. Every single one of them. Most of them me, right? I'm the hardest person I lead. I by by a long shot, right? So all the and and it would be so easy without people, but take away the people, you take away the power. >> Proverbs says the the the the the barn stays clean when there's no cows in it.

But much increase comes through having cows. The whole point of the farm is having them. And so we pray for God to bless us. And then then all of a sudden we do and the business grows and it scales and now it's more complex. And how do we how do we, you know, have culture stay intact where it was just you and your your your family and right and it's now it's growing.

How do how do we continue to scale? How do we continue to have the same culture that it started with? All of these things bring a creeping sense of weight and then one day you blink and God really blesses it and now it's gotten so big that you don't feel like you have the tools to continue in it.

And you look at yourself, you go, "Now I feel like I'm an impostor. I feel like I'm a fraud. Who am I? How can I continue to do this? And like I said, when we feel that way, that's not a bad thing. When we feel that way, that's actually a good thing because that brings us to a breaking point where hopefully feeling out of control, feeling illquipped and unqualified, we can turn to who?

We can turn to who? We can turn to him. We can turn to God for his help and his strength. Or as Jabz put it, that your arm would be with me. >> I need your arm to be with me if I'm going to handle all the blessings you want to give me >> and all of the enlarged borders you're willing to entrust to me.

Paul put it this way. 2 Corinthians 1, he's writing to the church of Corinth about his time doing ministry on the continent of Asia, the Roman province of Asia. He says, "For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came up to us in Asia."

Pause right there. Your attention, please. What happened in Asia? Revival. Tons of people coming to know Christ. A church being started, right? But but all of the the ministry now has brought what? Complexity. And it is teased out adversity. And so it always is. So what does he say?

Well, now I despared because I was burdened beyond measure. I was at my wit's end. I was above my strength. I was in over my head. I felt like I was an imposter. I didn't have what it took to keep doing what God called me to do. So that we despared even of life.

You realize it has to get pretty bad for Paul to reach for the anti-depressants, right? This is a perennially upbeat guy. You're like, "Well, doesn't he know Romans 8:28? He wrote the thing." Okay. So, he knows God can bring good, but he's feeling pretty bad. He's feeling like a fraud.

He's feeling I don't know what to do anymore. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves. Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? That we should not trust in ourselves, >> but in God. Why? What's his resume? Why should we trust him? Who raises the dead? Can you do that?

Didn't think so. Right. So, so my case, Paul says for why you should trust in God, not yourselves. When a blinking dashboard light on your soul goes off saying, "I feel like I'm an imposttor. I don't feel like I have what it takes." Say, "That's your cue to get on your knees and trust in God."

Cuz guess what? He can do the impossible. Proof, case in point, he raises the dead. >> Verse 10, who delivered us from so great a death, past tense, hell, sin, the grave. He does deliver us actively, presently, currently. in whom we trust, he still will deliver us. He's good in the past.

He's good in the present. He's going to be good in the future. Paul's encouraging himself just like you need to. So, it's not a bad thing when you feel like I often feel, God, I don't know how to do this. I don't know how you're going to provide.

I don't know how this is even possible. How to reconcile the dream in my heart and the actual ability that I have and that we have and the resources that are there and the the people that are there. How is this all going to happen? And we have to remind ourselves, I trust in God who raises the dead.

This is not on me. What you've blessed me with, what you've enlarged our platform to include, I need your strength, your May your arm be with me. >> May you always help me. The idea of the arm implies power, implies strength. I mean, there's so many times in the Old Testament, it's referenced in that way, like Isaiah 59:1.

Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save, nor his ear heavy that it cannot hear. What is he saying? He's saying, bro, God doesn't have T-Rex arms. He's got long arms. So trust in him for his power. Joshua 4:24, he did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and that you might always fear the Lord your God.

He's saying he's saying it was God who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt. It was God who split the Red Sea. It was God who caused a drinking fountain to open up from the rock and rained down bread upon them. He did these impossible things so that his people might fear him.

God's the God of the impossible. So when it comes to our vision here, that those who are stranded in sin might find life and liberty in Jesus Christ. News flash, you can't save anybody. I can't save anybody. But look at Acts 11 verse 21. And the hand of the Lord was with them. and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.

So, I'm encouraged that the impossible thing God has called us to do is possible, but only through the mighty outstretched arm of the Lord our God. And I sort of just I just sort of pictured Jabz in the mirror looking at his puny arm and going, "With this that you've done for me, God, I I I can't.

How can I? There's no way." Right? It reminds me of this quote from Jay Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China. He said, "Unless there is an element of risk in our exploits for God. There is no need for faith. >> If God called you to do something that is within your power and you have the resources and you have the skill and you have the gift, guess what?

You don't need faith. So, you don't even even need him. So, just go on and do your little thing. But if you want to do something that only God can do, you need his mighty arm. You need to stay in a place of dependence. And that's why it's a good thing that you feel like you're in over your head.

Someone once said that you should attempt something so big that unless God intervenes, it is bound to fail. It is doomed to failure. That only if God did it can it work. And so the sermon in a sentence is it is a colossal mistake to attempt God's work without God's power. >> It's a huge error to ask God for blessing and ask God for enlarged opportunity but then not trust on his power to do it because scriptur is clear.

It is not by might. It is not by power. It is by my spirit says Lord. We need God's spirit to do what he has called us to do. And that's exactly what he has given us. Jabz said, "God, give me your arm. Let it always be with me.

Let there never be a moment where what I'm doing I'm responsible for. Where what I'm doing I can explain it all. I want to stay dependent on you. I want to stay at a place where I am looking to you for my next breath. And when you do that, when you ask that, just like what JZ it's it said about him, God will answer that prayer. >> That is a prayer that God wants to answer.

What's more, it's a prayer that actually answers other prayers. And I'm going to show it to you because when God's arm is with you, his strength is in you. Number one, >> arm with you, strength in you. This is how it works. As his arm is there, you keep looking to it and you you gain confidence from his presence.

His outstretched arm actually will bring out a version of you you didn't even know was there. That's the exhilaration of trusting him. You know, they say about Napoleon on the battlefield that when he was actively there, his soldiers fought different than when they were by themselves. The Duke of Wellington actually said you could mathematically show that his army, Napoleon's army, fought as though there were 40,000 more of them than there actually were when he was at the front of the charge.

They were so inspired and they they took so much from his charismatic presence. seeing him because he fearlessly would and often foolishly would be at the front of every charge. But they they were different versions of themselves. When his arm, that's a king was with them. They fought like there was more of them than there were.

That's great for an earthly king. How about for the King of Kings? How about when you know the King of Kings is with you, the Lord of Lords is inside. This brings out strength. This brings out courage. This explains Peter preentecost, post Pentecost. Think about think about Peter.

The night Jesus is arrested, a little girl's like, "Hey man, are you from Galilee?" He's like, "I don't know what you're talking about, you know, like just so scared. I think you're I've seen you with Jesus. Never heard of the guy. Never heard of the guy, bro. Three hours ago, you swore that you would die before you would ever deny him.

All it took was a little girl. That's Peter's arm. That's Peter's bicep and tricep, right? But when he gets filled with the Holy Ghost, >> when the arm of the Lord is with him, Peter fearlessly will preach the gospel all over the empire and be willing to die on a cross upside down as an act of worship unto Jesus.

That's what happens when God is with you. That's what happens when God's strength is inside of you. Bruce Wilkinson said, "You and I are always one plea." How many pleas? >> One plea. Away from inexplicable, spirit enabled exploits. By his touch, you can experience supernatural enthusiasm, boldness, and power.

It's up to you. What if you and I started before we did something that was hard or scary or intimidating, put little calendar reminders to just ask for God's arm to be with you and trusted in his power to do what you're called to do. This is why praying going into the day, praying going into the week, this is why a season of prayer will cause there to be a different version of ourselves.

Praise God. We can act like there's 400,000 more of us than there actually are to do this impossible thing God has called us to do. Secondly, we just it's like wishing for more wishes because when his arms with us, his peace is there to settle us. His peace will actually settle you because often times following him will follow you into will will cause you to follow him into pain, follow him into difficulty like Paul desparing even of life.

Why? Grief and and opposition and confusion. Like I said, life becomes more complex the bigger the the the things that he has entrusted to us becomes. And that's that's just a lot. And so there's going to be days when you're going to feel like, I don't know how I can do this.

And that again is when we pray and when we say, God, I need your arm with me. I need your power. I need your ability. I'm not relying on me. I'm relying on the God who raises the >> dead. If you can do that, so you did it.

You're going to do it. And I believe you can do it still. You will find a supernatural peace washes over. Isn't that what Philippians 4 says? It says, "Be anxious for nothing." He says, "Don't worry, warrior, but in," You see what I did there? I just worked that right in there.

But in everything, he says, "By prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." And what happens? The peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. He said, "I'm not asking for peace. I ask for his power.

But peace is the result that I didn't even ask for. It's a prayer that that came about as a result result of of the other prayer I prayed. Whenever I talk to people who have had to bury children and they ask, "How how am I going to do this?

How and I I always say to them, I have no idea. I have no idea how you're going to do it. And I have no idea how I did it. All I know is when I trust God, he gives me peace that actually bypasses my understanding." People would say to me, "I don't think I can do this."

And I would say, "I don't think you can either." >> I don't think it it's going to come in our rational minds. I think if we actually thought about it, we wouldn't do any of the things God called us to do because they're all crazy, right? I mean, think about how many times God told people to do stuff that made no sense.

Okay, whichever God answers by fire, that's the real God. Elijah's like, "Cool." God's like, "I'm going to first want you to dump bucket after bucket of bucket of water on the on the rocks and sacrifice." And Elijah's like, "Do you know how combustibility works?" Like, this doesn't make any sense.

But God, listen, likes to stack the deck against himself so that when he shows up, it's clear to everybody who did it. It's clear to everybody who gets the glory. Right? So don't think God calling you to do something that doesn't make sense is actually going in the the the the reasons for why this can't be God.

It's in fact probably the reasons why it is God and was God cuz he wants the glory and if you had what it takes to do what you are called to do it would bring you glory but because God alone has the power to do. So when we trust him even though I don't know how God I I don't know how I'm going to walk through life without my child.

I don't know how his peace as I trust him day by day bypasses my mind >> and guards me and it can do the same for you no matter what you're facing that feels impossible today. Number three, his wisdom is available to you. I love that the Bible actually says while God's arm is there with us, we get to ask him for whatever else that we need wisdom for because we're going to feel like confused.

And and and James puts it so clearly. If you lack wisdom, ask him. And you're like, "Oh, should have thought about that. Seems so easy. You mean I get to be confused and feel like I don't have it and I don't know." And you get to be like, "Yeah."

And then he's like, "Here, cool. I got it." It was right right there all the time. You know, it's it's so funny because it's so simple and yet so often we rush into it without pausing to ask him for wisdom. There's this fable called Narnia. And in the fable, there's these two kids with a horse that can talk.

It's not a true story. And they don't have food. And this lion, Alan, who represents Jesus in the book, sent them on this mission to do something. And it's multiple days. And the horse starts eating grass. And the kids go, "Well, we don't have any food. What? We can't eat grass."

And the horse says, the horse says, "Why didn't you ask Alam for food?" And they say, "Well, he should have known we would have needed food." And the horse says, "Yeah, but I think he likes us to ask." Yeah, he did know you needed food, but I think he likes it when we ask.

Well, God, you just give me this wisdom. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. He He has it all. He knows you need it, but I think he likes it when we ask. So, ask him for the wisdom that you need. It's available. He's not just going to give you strength, but his heart.

Not just his heart, but his mind. Not just his mind, but his example, which can fourth point, rub off on you. When his arm is with you, his example rubs off on you. You become slowly but surely more like him. Isn't that the point? Ephesians 5, therefore be imitators of God as dear children.

So if God's hand has the power to confer blessing, if God's hand has the power to enlarge territory and you're saying, "God, I want you to always be with me and you're holding his hand." What's your goal as time goes on? To not stop at level one, which is just bless me, enlarge me.

But it's to realize, oh wow, I'm with you trying to be an agent of you enlarging territory for other people. I'm with you actively in this seeking to be an agent where you can bestow now blessings upon other people and that's where the fun really starts where you start giving out the comfort you received where God met your needs and then as you walk with him you get to be a part of this adventure of him meeting other people's needs and opening doors for other people so his example rubs off on you and then fifthly and this is possible all of the previous four were made possible because he's with you.

When his arm is with you, he comes too. It was like this epiphany I had when I was like, "Oh, God doesn't have an amputated arm." You know what I'm saying? Like, it's not like, "Send me your arm." And God's like, "Send him a FedEx." And it's just an arm inside, right?

God was happy to say, "Yes, here's my arm." arm. But the other prayer is answered because when he brings his arm, he brings his head, he brings his shoulders, he brings his knees, he brings his toe. God said, "I'll bring all of me with my arm. I bring all of me to help you."

I saw this real on Instagram the other day. I couldn't find it, so I had to look for it. I found it on Tik Tok, but it was it made me laugh so hard because it said, "As an adult child, this is why it's good to invite your dad with you on vacation."

Have you seen this this meme? Right. This is this girl. She says she says uh your your reminder that your trip can become all-inclusive if you just bring dad with you. She said, "If I bring dad, he doesn't just send his arm. He sends his checkbook." He's He says," She says, "It's good to have dad there."

Come on. This book tells us it's good to have dad there. It's good. Come on. He has blessed us with every blessing in the heavenlies in in in Christ Jesus. And when he when he sends his arm, he sends his mind, he sends his strength, he sends his soul, his limitless resources.

So when you feel like you're imposter, when you feel like you don't have what it takes, when you feel like you're a fraud, run to the father. It's good to have dad with you. >> David was never enough for Goliath. Five loaves and two fishes was never enough for a multitude.

Esther was never enough to save a nation. But God was there and he wants us to ask. So we ask you, Father, for your mighty arm to be with us. May we not think the blessings that you've blessed us with, the enlarged opportunities you provided to us were done by us or are there for us.

May we having been blessed be a blessing. May we continue to point to God and say it was by his outstretched arm. He did deliver us. He will deliver us. And he delivers us still. Come on people. If this is your heart's cry, just raise up a hand.

Raise up your hands to God. You're saying, "Heaven, help. Heaven, help us to keep trusting in God." Thank you, Jesus. Some trust in chariots. Some trust in horses, but we will trust in the name of the Lord our God. You can put your hands down. I want to now invite anybody who's not trusted Christ for salvation to make the most important decision of your life.

The Bible says that Jesus died on the cross for you, paying your bill, and he rose from the dead, defeating death in the grave. And he's willing, standing at the door of your heart, knocking, willing to come in. But you have to invite him in. And your religious accomplishments, your good deeds can't save you.

Only Jesus can. But you have to invite him in. So, so like I said a moment ago, he wants us to ask. He took care of it at the cross, but you must ask him to come into your heart. So, while we're praying, some of you perhaps are ready to make this decision.

I want to pray with you. And we're the church going to pray together with you as well. Say this to God. Mean it in your heart. Dear Lord, I know that I'm a sinner and I can't fix myself, but I believe you can. So please come into my heart and save me.

Thank you for the cross and the empty tomb. Thank you for new life. I give you mine.