Give Us This Day - 4

 Give Us This Day - 4

Subject – Kiss the Wave

By Rick Welborne

Matthew 6:9-15 (NKJV)
⁹  In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day our daily bread.
¹²  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
¹³  And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
¹⁴  "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
¹⁵  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

--Today we continue the series “Give us this day” and hopefully we are all learning how to, one day at a time, live for Jesus, lean on Jesus, and thrive in this life.

--Most of us, if I were to mention the name Joseph Merrick, would have no clue who I am talking about. He was born in Leicester, England, on August 5, 1862. If I said he was the Elephant Man, we would know.

--Films and movies have been made about his story. Very few people have ever suffered from more physical deformities than him. All of his fingers were useless nubs. 

--His misshapen head was the circumference of a man’s waist, his distorted mouth made his speech almost impossible to understand. His right arm was twice the size of his left. His deformed legs barely supported…

--In nineteenth century England, a perverse form of entertainment was human novelty exhibitions. Joseph was a headliner and one of these exhibits. Posters about him said he was half man/half elephant. 

--People paid their shillings to see this human freak show and people would shriek at the horror of his sight. One day a surgeon named Frederick Treves wandered into the human circus. His initial reaction:

Doctor Treves – He was the most disgusting specimen of humanity I had ever seen. 

--But Dr. Treves didn’t shriek and turn away. The sight of Merrick stirred his scientific curiosity and his empathy for this man. He tried to talk to him but could not understand him. He gave him his business card. 

--It was that business card that the London police found on him as he huddled in a dark corner of a train station like a wounded animal. The police called Treves who came and took Merrick to the London Hospital.

--Shortly after Merrick arrived, Dr. Treves ordered him a tray of food but failed to warn the nurse about his appearance. When she saw him she dropped the tray and went out of the room screaming. 

--Over time they adjusted to his appearance. Dr. Trevor orchestrated a very careful experiment for Merrick. He had a woman enter his room, smile at him, wish him a good morning, and shake his hand. Treves recorded:

Treves – The effect on poor Merrick was not quite what I expected. As he let go her hand he bent his head on his knees and sobbed until I thought he would never cease. He told me afterwards that was the first woman who had ever smiled at him, and the first woman, in the whole of his life, who had shaken hands with him. 

--The smile…the touch proved to be the tipping point, the turning point. He began to change from a disfigured thing into a man. Treves began to understand Merrick more and found him to be quite intelligent. 

--Another surprise the doctor found out about Merrick, he was a veracious reader of the Scriptures. He began to sneak him into plays, operas, and gave him books to read. 

--He would take him into the countryside where he loved to listen to birds singing, chase rabbits, and pick wildflowers. He would respond to the doctor quite often, “I am happy every hour of the day.”

--Merrick died at 27 and Dr. Treves eulogized the infamous Elephant Man this way: 

Treves – His troubles had ennobled him. He showed himself to be a gentle, affectionate and loveable creature… without a grievance and without an unkind word for anyone. I have never heard him complain. 

--Never heard him complain? How is that even possible with the kind of trauma he experienced? Happy every hour of the day? How does someone who was mistreated for so many years profess happiness every hour of the day?

--You may not be responsible for the difficulties you’ve had to endure but you are response-able. Our lesson learned from Merrick is this…the obstacles we face are not the enemy. More times than not, we are the enemy. The obstacle, believe it or not, is the way. 

1. Kiss the Wave.

--In regards to the obstacle or obstacles in our lives, it is vitally important that we learn to kiss the wave. This is actually a quote from the great Charles Spurgeon:

Spurgeon – I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages. 

--Another minister/pastor (not quite as famous) has always had a similar quote but maybe not quite as catchy as Spurgeon’s. 

Pastor Rick – Don’t let your problems or difficulties push you away from God but allow them to push you into a deeper relationship with God.

--Let me help you understand that kissing the wave doesn’t mean we won’t experience storms or even get seasick during them. There is a God Who can rebuke the wind and the waves…Peace, be still.

--This is so important to understand and is in many ways contrary to much teaching we hear today. Before you can rebuke the storm, you need to accept it. You can’t move past the pain if you ignore it or deny it.

--When you get cancer or any other bad diagnosis or problem, denying the evidence before you does no good. If you don’t own it, it will own you. 

--Kissing the wave is confessing what’s wrong, as in the case of cancer, but it is also confessing what is right—God’s healing power. The healing process can begin with a brave question to your sickness or difficulty. 

“What have you come to teach me?” or “God, what can I learn about You through my pain?”

Batterson – When we find ourselves in difficult situations, we get so focused on getting out of them that we fail to get anything out of them. Then we wonder why we find ourselves in the same situation all over again. There is nothing wrong with asking God to change your circumstances, but His primary objective is changing you. The circumstances you are asking God to change may be the very circumstances He is using to change you. 

--In the words of Pastor John Piper, “Don’t waste your cancer.” You can fill in the blank with whatever challenge you face. Don’t waste it. Maybe it has come to teach you a lesson that could not be learned any other..

--Kissing the wave starts with a brave question…What have you come to teach me? When it comes to suffering, you must recognize that it has the power to enrich your life in a way that nothing else can. 

--Verses please, Pastor. Listen to the Apostle Paul and tell me if he may be saying to all of us…Kiss the wave that throws you against the Rock of Ages. 

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NKJV)                                                                                                                                ⁹  And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
¹⁰  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

--If you find yourself in a season of suffering, all that I am saying can be difficult to handle. No judgment here because I have had my share of pain. I know this…everyone is fighting a battle we know nothing about. 

--We have dealt with some pretty heavy things today. The pain and suffering of the Elephant Man Joseph Merrick and his discovery of happiness in the middle of pain. He found much peace in the Word. 

--We have discussed when we have an obstacle or obstacles in our way (health, family, marriage issues, kid problems, or any other pain) that we have to learn to kiss the wave that pushes us against the Rock of Ages.

--I felt God say “Stop” with the sermon and give people a chance to lean against Jesus in their pain so we stop. Jesus, give us this day!

Give Us This Day - 3

Give Us This Day - 3

Subject – Being Ambidextrous 

By Rick Welborne

Matthew 6:9-15 (NKJV)
⁹  In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day our daily bread.
¹²  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
¹³  And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
¹⁴  "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
¹⁵  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

1 Chronicles 12:1-2 (NKJV)
¹  Now these were the men who came to David at Ziklag while he was still a fugitive from Saul the son of Kish; and they were among the mighty men, helpers in the war,
²  armed with bows, using both the right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows with the bow. They were of Benjamin, Saul's brethren. 

--This week we hopefully are moving on from our past and are straining forward to become all God wants us to be. We are developing more and more each day. Lord, give me this day. 

--In our text we read about men who were Benjamites. There were several famous people from the tribe of Benjamin…King Saul, the Apostle Paul, Esther’s cousin Mordecai, and their most famous hero Ehud.

Judges 3:15 (NKJV)
¹⁵  But when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. 

--Ehud’s victory possibly set the stage for the Benjamites becoming great warriors. Every move we make, every risk we take, sets the stage for someone else.

Batterson – Your brave is someone else’s breakthrough. We think right here, right now. God is thinking nations and generations. We think what God does for us is for us, but it’s never just for us. It’s always for third and fourth generations. When we win the day, in our own unique way we enable future generations to dream a little bigger and think a little longer. 

1. Be deliberate in developing your skills.

1 Chronicles 12:1-2 (NLT2)
¹  The following men joined David at Ziklag while he was hiding from Saul son of Kish. They were among the warriors who fought beside David in battle.
²  All of them were expert archers, and they could shoot arrows or sling stones with their left hand as well as their right. They were all relatives of Saul from the tribe of Benjamin. 

--We can assume that these men of Benjamin were not born with this skill set of using both the right hand and the left sense only about one percent of the population is born ambidextrous. 

--So how did these men of Benjamin develop this unusual skill of using both hands for battle? To become an expert archer or rock slinger takes lots of practice. 

--It is not only the 10,000-hour rule of doing something over and over. How many of you know you can practice the right thing the wrong way? It’s counterproductive. Ander’s Ericsson says we have deliberate practice. 

--Three dimensions of Deliberate Practice according to Ericsson:

First Dimension - Well defined goals. These allow you to measure progress and provide a means of feedback. 

Second Dimension – Reverse engineering. It is studying the best practice of others, then adopting them and adapting them to your unique situation. It takes diligence and determination to get better.

Third Dimension – Effort. Deliberate practice requires maximum effort, which is neither fun nor easy. When you are training your body, you have to stress it beyond its natural ability. 

--The Benjamites may have been the first to truly use the Cross-fit training method. It took many years and lots of blisters to get where they were awesomely ambidextrous. 

Ericsson – There is no point at which performance maxes out and additional practice does not lead to further improvement. Keep practicing till the day you die. That is what winning the day is all about.

2. Ehud’s victory became the tribe of Benjamin’s story. 

Judges 3:15 (NKJV)
¹⁵  But when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. 

--Remember the quote from Batterson. Your brave is someone else’s breakthrough. Ehud was one of the most significant southpaws in the Bible. So what does that have to do with the Benjamites being ambidextrous? 

--Whether we understand it or not we are all born into someone else’s story. Ehud’s left handed victory became, for the tribe of Benjamin, their signature story.

--The Benjamites cultivating right and left hand skills in battle, was a way of honoring Ehud, and his deliverance for Israel. Becoming ambidextrous was a way of tipping their hat (or helmet) to their national hero. 

--Most of us ignore our non-dominant hands. Why bother when it is so much easier to use our strong hand and it is so much better. How we handle our weak hand affects so much in our lives. 

--When I played basketball, developing my left hand was so important. Looking back after evaluating the great basketball players, I wish I would have spent more time training myself with my left hand.

--Ehud didn’t just provide a victory for the nation of Israel but he inspired other generations to develop skills that were not natural to them and to rack up more wins for Israel.

--His brave in winning the victory was not just their breakthrough, it became their inspiration. Everything we do, we should be thinking future generations.

Batterson – God wants to use you at your point of greatest giftedness. That’s a given. He is the One Who gave you those gifts in the first place. But God wants to also use you at your point of greatest weakness. Why? Because that is when His power is made perfect. That is where we provide double trouble for the enemy.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NIV)
⁹  But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
¹⁰  That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

3. Connect the dots.

--There is probably no phrase used more than “David verses Goliath.” It is one of the greatest mismatches and obviously the underdog story that everyone knows. 

--We have the tendency to read stories the wrong way, we always think David had the disadvantage. If it was hand to hand combat, yes. There is no way David could win that fight. But David had an advantage.

--Eitan Hirsch, a ballistics expert with the Israeli Defense Forces says that an average sized stone slung by an expert could travel the length of a football field in three seconds flat. 

--He said at that velocity, it would have the same stopping power as a .45 caliber hand gun. Goliath had a huge spear with its tip weighing 15 pounds. That’s impressive but Goliath brought a knife to a gunfight.

--Think about this, David was not the underdog, Goliath was a sitting duck, and a really big one at that. The irony is that no one saw David’s potential in this battle. 

--When Samuel came to anoint the next King of Israel, David was left in the field with the sheep. Talk about being hurt by your father. Then when David volunteered to fight Goliath, Saul belittled him.

1 Samuel 17:33 (NIV)
³³  Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth." 

--When David was being forgotten as he tended his father’s sheep, God was cultivating a skill set in David that would catapult him into the national stage. God is doing the same in your life today if you allow Him.

1 Samuel 17:37 (NIV)
³⁷  The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you." 

--When it seemed like God had forgotten David, God was preparing him for something bigger than he could ever imagine. This is important…David was willing to look foolish going up against a giant.

--This is how our brave can be someone’s breakthrough. David had to just win the day to change his life and other’s too. There is a final irony to this incredible story:

--Saul was a Benjamite. If anyone should have fought Goliath, it should have been him. He was head and shoulders taller than anyone else. He was a big boy. David connected the dots with God, Saul didn’t.

--The lions and bears look different in each of our lives but the truth is, God is getting us ready to face the giants. Everything in your past is preparation for something in your future. 

--It’s the Goliath in front of us that helps us discover the David within us. Keep winning the day and the giants will fall.

--Remember what we all said as kids…the bigger they are the harder they fall. Win the day!

Give Us This Day - 2

 Give Us This Day - 2

Subject – Time to Let Yesterday Go

By Rick Welborne

Matthew 6:9-15 (NKJV)
⁹  In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day our daily bread.
¹²  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
¹³  And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
¹⁴  "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
¹⁵  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

Philippians 3:13 (NKJV)
¹³  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

--From 1837 until 1901, Queen Victoria ruled the British Empire. Her 63-year reign set the record in Britain only to be broken by great-grand-daughter Queen Elizabeth II. Victoria’s name – The Victorian Age.

--Not long after assuming the throne, Queen Victoria fell in love with Francis Albert Augustus Charles Emmanuel. She proposed to him 5 days after he arrived at the castle. 

--They were married on February 10, 1840. The following is her entry into her diary about her wedding day:

Queen Victoria – I never, never spent such an evening!! My Dearest Dearest Dear Albert…his excessive love and affection gave me feelings of heavenly love and happiness I could have never hoped to have felt before! He clasped me in his arms, and we kissed each other again and again! His beauty, his sweetness and gentleness--- really how can I ever be thankful enough to have such a Husband! To be called by names of tenderness, I have never yet heard used to me before—was bliss beyond belief! Oh! This was the happiest day of my life!

--What tenderness…nine months later she gave birth to her name sake, Princess Victoria. She was not fond of being pregnant and she thought newborns were ugly.

--That being said, she and Prince Albert had nine children…I am just guessing that dear Albert’s “excessive love and affection” had something to do with that. Just saying.

The royal couple had been married 21 years when Prince Albert contracted typhoid fever and died. Victoria went into a period of profound grief from which she would never recover.

--She had his room turned into a shrine. Every day for the rest of her life, she had the linens on Albert’s bed changed, his clothes laid out, and a basin of water poured for his morning shave. She slept with his night shirt.

--We experience a piece of us dying when we lose a loved one but Victoria stopped living altogether. She only wore black the rest of her life. She died 1/22/1901, but she stopped living December 14, 1861. 14,283 days.

--I wish Victoria was the exception to the rule, but we all know she is not. Most people stop living before they breathe their last. They become prisoners of past mistakes, past hurts, past offenses. 

--If you live long enough you will experience profound pain and suffering. There is no escaping this reality. Life is unfair, and then you die. Slightly depressing. The good news, you can move past your past!

--Our culture is not good at dealing with grief. We have to face it and learn its lessons for us to go forward.

Sir Walter Osler – So many people are so overwhelmed by so many things. We’re paralyzed by things we cannot change—the past. We’re crippled by things we cannot control—the future. The solution? Let go of “dead yesterdays” and “unborn tomorrows.”

1. We have to let go of dead yesterdays.

Philippians 3:13 (NKJV)
¹³  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

--The Jews had a wonderful way of grieving. They would allow for a pre-determined amount of days for two different kinds of grieving.

--When Job was grieving the loss of his children, his friends sat with him in silence for seven days. This week long period for close relatives is a Jewish ritual called Shiva. Take note, they sat in silence.

--Too many people (Christians) say way too much to people who have lost a loved one. A pastor friend of mine told a family who just lost their 16-year-old son…Why are you crying, he is in heaven with Jesus? I kicked him.

--We went outside and he wanted to know why I kicked him. Yes, their son is in heaven but they will not see him graduate from high school, college, get married, have children. Hug him and hold him before he sleeps.

--People need an extra measure of grace during this time. Silence. Just say, I love you and can I get you anything? That’s enough. We give them space and room to breathe because their hearts are broken. Praying…

Matthew 6:9-11 (NKJV)
⁹  In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day...

--How do we get through this kind of pain and grief? Father, give me this day. Help me today to deal with this pain. Help me today to trust You and to not allow my heart to be wounded or bitter.

--I believe I have some right to speak to this matter because I have dealt with it personally and in my 30 years here I have done close to 400 funerals/memorials. 

--It hurts when you truly love family and friends who leave us to go on to heaven. But with God’s help, you can get through it and you can continue living, not just existing. Hopefully we still believe this:

2 Corinthians 5:8-9 (NKJV)
⁸  We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.
⁹  Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. 

--When we are experiencing profound grief, pain, and a broken heart, whether from the loss of a loved one, a betrayal, an unexpected tragedy, we have to pray…Father, give me this day. Today. Get me thru today.

2. We owe it to everyone to pray for God’s help each day.

--This may be a shock for someone to hear today but life does not stop for those around you just because you are going through something terrible. It may be your time of greatest influence.

Romans 14:7-8 (NKJV)
⁷  For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself.
⁸  For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.

--Queen Victoria owed it to her empire to keep living, to keep leading. She owed to her children who needed her so much. She owed to Prince Albert. So important, she owed to herself to keep living. Listen to Paul:

Romans 1:14 (NCV)                                                                                                                                               ¹⁴  I have a duty to all people—Greeks and those who are not Greeks, the wise and the foolish.

--Please don’t misunderstand me, we all should take time to grieve, to hurt, to process what we have been through but if we will ever be healed, and we can be, we must pray, Father, give me this day.

--When we fail to bury our dead yesterdays whatever they were or how bad they hurt, we are not just cheating ourselves.

--We are cheating those who could be touched by our influence and our touch. Hear your pastor, we also cheat God because we are saying we can’t trust Him or believe He can give us this day.

3. Keep straining forward and keep praying, give me this day.

Philippians 3:12-15 (NCV)
¹² I do not mean that I am already as God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal, but I continue trying to reach it and to make it mine. Christ wants me to do that, which is the reason He made me His.
¹³  Brothers and sisters, I know that I have not yet reached that goal, but there is one thing I always do. Forgetting the past and straining toward what is ahead,
¹⁴  I keep trying to reach the goal and get the prize for which God called me through Christ to the life above.
¹⁵  All of us who are spiritually mature should think this way, too. And if there are things you do not agree with, God will make them clear to you. 

--Let’s face it, none of us are all God wants us to be. We have not arrived by any means but we keep trying and why we keep praying…Give me this day.

--Yesterday is done and tomorrow is still unknown but today I can apply myself to strain forward through whatever it is I am going through. I am preaching to myself as much as I am you.

--He made me His, not so I would lay down and die or give up. But that I might trust Him to do in me, and thru me, what He can today. One day at a time, Sweet Jesus, that is all I am asking of You.

I'm only human, I'm just a woman. 

Help me believe in what I could be 

And all that I am. 

Show me the stairway, I have to climb. 

Lord for my sake, teach me to take 

One day at a time. 

One day at a time sweet Jesus 

That's all I'm asking from you. 

Just give me the strength 

To do every day what I have to do. 

Yesterday's gone sweet Jesus 

And tomorrow may never be mine. 

Lord help me today, show me the way 

One day at a time. 

Do you remember, when you walked among men? 

Well Jesus you know if you're looking below 

It's worse now, than then. 

Cheating and stealing, violence and crime 

So for my sake, teach me to take 

One day at a time. 

One day at a time sweet Jesus 

That's all I'm asking from you. 

Just give me the strength 

To do every day what I have to do. 

Yesterday's gone sweet Jesus 

And tomorrow may never be mine. 

Lord help me today, show me the way 

One day at a time.

Give Us This Day - 1

 Give Us This Day - 1

Subject – Finding Strength to Live One Day at a Time

By Rick Welborne

Matthew 6:9-15 (NKJV)
⁹  In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day our daily bread.
¹²  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
¹³  And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
¹⁴  "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
¹⁵  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

--Today we start a new series that I truly believe is going to be a big help to many who need help with discipleship. With living a disciplined life.

--I believe Christians should be the example to the world, to young believers, and to new converts what it means to live a disciplined life.

--We have a tendency to be extremely judgmental toward those outside and inside the church who break the rules as we judge them. Yet we do not see the obvious right in front of us. We don’t see our own mess.

--We judge the world for their excessive drinking when we eat excessively. We judge those addicted to illegal drugs when many in the church are addicted to legal drugs. We all need to be disciples. 

--So how can we become Christ’s disciples and be able to overcome the day of endless distractions and ceaseless change? Listen to these words from a self-proclaimed average man, the Father of Modern Medicine:

Sir Walter Osler – So many people are so overwhelmed by so many things. We’re paralyzed by things we cannot change—the past. We’re crippled by things we cannot control—the future. The solution? Let go of “dead yesterdays” and “unborn tomorrows.”

Philippians 3:13 (NKJV)
¹³  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

--If yesterday is history and tomorrow a mystery, pray a simple prayer that can totally change your life. Give me this day. When you win today, tomorrow will take care of itself. Do it every day and nothing is impossible.

--So how do we do that? We have to look into the Word of God and see what winning looks like. We establish daily rituals that make us better, we break bad habits, and establish new ones. We become disciples.

--If I were to ask you today, “How long have you lived?” Most of you would give me your age. But is that truly how long you have been alive? Listen to Mark Batterson:

Batterson – How long have you lived? I mean really lived. It’s easy calculating age. It’s more difficult quantifying life. Why? Because time is measured in minutes, while life is measured in moments. When was the last time that time stood still? And if you turned those moments into minutes, how long have you lived?

1. You are Only One Decision Away from a Totally Different Life.

--Show me the size of your dream and I will show you the size of your God. If you are going to dream big you need to pray…Give me this day. You arrive at your dreams one day at a time. 

--Discipleship is so important to the believer and the daily decisions we make will either project us into a better future or continually keep us in the mire of a disappointing life.

--The only moment we ever really have is now—it is now or never. We need to learn like we will live forever but live like there’s no tomorrow. Pray “Give us this day” and learn God’s ways.

Hosea 4:1&6 (NKJV)
¹  Hear the word of the LORD, You children of Israel, For the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: "There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land.
⁶  My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. 

--A word as you start this journey…if you attempt to make too many changes in your life at one time, your chances for success goes way down. 

--Take on one habit at a time. You know what you are battling inside so pick one of those habits and go to work on it. God, give me this day what I need to overcome this thing in my life.

--As you make the daily decision to ask God to give you this day, this day will turn into a week, a month, and even a year. As you begin to overcome this habit faith grows for the next.

Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) ⁶  But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

2. The Twenty-Four-Hour Rule.

--Most of us remember or have heard of Emmitt Smith (NFL Hall of Famer) having the record for all-time rushing yards…18,355. He had what he called the “twenty-four-hour rule.”

--Win or lose, Emmitt gave himself a 24-hour window to celebrate the win or lament the loss. Sounds like Osler. After the 24 hours it was back to basics. 

--I remember playing tournament tennis. After playing 5 or 6 matches in just two days (full matches), more times than not (win or lose) on the way home I would go to a court and work on my weaknesses. 

--Why would I do that? I knew what I did today (that one decision) would make a difference in my future tennis and in future matches. 

--Interesting about Osler who was obviously a very smart man, he was the son of a pastor who had ingrained into his mind the Lord’s prayer. 

Matthew 6:10-11 (NKJV)
¹⁰  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹  Give us this day our daily bread. 

--That one decision to pray “Give us this day” is much easier said than done. We probably wish it said, “Give us this week.” Or “Give us this month.” Or “Give us this year.”

--That would be so much easier, wouldn’t it? That way we wouldn’t have to depend on God every day. But that, of course is the point of the Lord’s prayer.

--Our one decision to pray the prayer, “Give us this day” is to remind us of our dependency on God every day.

2 Corinthians 3:5-6 (NKJV)
⁵  Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God,
⁶  who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

3. Do It for a Day

--Mathew Barnett is the co-founder of the LA Dream Center which has helped tens of thousands of people who find themselves at the end of their ropes. An amazing complex. Tricia has worked there.

--Many of the people who go there are trying to overcome life-controlling addictions or rebuild broken lives. No matter what habit they are trying to break or what their goals are, Matthew always asks them this question:

Can you do it for a day?

Batterson- There is a simple kind of genius to that question. Why do so many problems remain unsolved? Why do so many bad habits remain unbroken? Why do so many goals remain unachieved? Nine times out of ten, we are so overwhelmed by the size of the problem, the habit, or the goal that we give up before we ever get started. 

--You can ask a lot of people who are facing lots of challenges but no one has ever said no to the question, “Can you do it for a day?” Not one. Why? Because anyone can do anything for a day. 

--Can you do it for a week? Probably. Do you think you can do it for a month? Maybe. Or a year? I am not so sure. The longer the timeline, so are the odds for success. How about the rest of your life? I will not answer.

--Can you do it for a day? Now, that I can do. The odds of success get greater as the time slots get smaller. When we get our problems to a day slot, anything is possible. 

--This shows us the wisdom and the genius of Jesus in the Lord’s prayer. This truth is so Biblical.

Matthew 6:11 (NKJV) ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread. 

--Remember the expiration date on manna? One day. What is our deadline on being angry? One day at sundown. When are God’s mercies made new? Every morning. 

--How often are we to take up our crosses? Daily. When are we told to rejoice and to be glad? Today. The twenty-four- hour rule is everywhere you look in God’s Word.

Genesis 1:5 (NIV)
⁵  God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning--the first day. 

--I have no idea what problem you are trying to solve or habit you are trying to break or build, or what God-sized goal you are going after. I am not sure what a win would look like to you.

--From someone who loves you, just win the day that is in front of you now. If you put two days together, you’ve got a streak going. 

Can you do it for a day?

Matthew 6:11 (NKJV) ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.