Open the Double Doors – 9

Subject: Thanksgiving

by Rick Welborne

Isaiah 45:1-3 (NKJV)
¹  "Thus says the LORD to His anointed, To Cyrus, whose right hand I have held-- To subdue nations before him And loose the armor of kings, To open before him the double doors, So that the gates will not be shut:
²  'I will go before you And make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze And cut the bars of iron.
³  I will give you the treasures of darkness And hidden riches of secret places, That you may know that I, the LORD, Who call you by your name, Am the God of Israel. 

Psalm 100:15 (NKJV) 

1 Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! 

2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. 

3 Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. 

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. 

5 For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 

--Tonight we are wrapping up this series on going thru the double doors and with us just celebrating Thanksgiving I believe it would be fitting to talk about being thankful.

--Jehoshaphat is being attacked by the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites. He gets word the vast army is coming against him. He inquires of the Lord in what to do.

--He proclaims a fast and encourages the people of Judah to seek God for His help…they come from every town. Jehoshaphat leads them in prayer:

2 Chronicles 20:612 (NIV) 

6 and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. 

7 O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? 

8 They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 

9 'If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.' 

10 "But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. 

11 See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. 

12 O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you." 

1. When we decide to do what is good and right and when we decide to go through the double doors we can expect many enemies.

–After Jehosaphat decided to do what was good and right and to encourage others to do the same...he ends up with many adversaries...sound familiar.

--When we try to do what is right...we have a battle on our hands. Pastor Rick, it seems to me that the attacks are getting more and more intense:

Revelation 12:12 (NKJV) 

12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time." 

–Jehoshaphat and the people chose to believe that the battle was the Lord’s and chose a weapon that I believe will help us thru those great and effective doors...thanksgiving!

2 Chronicles 20:1722 (NIV) 

17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'" 

18 Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD. 

19 Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with very loud voice. 

20 Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful." 

21 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: "Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever." 

22 As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 

–I believe that we should..."Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever."

–We are trying to do the right thing...I hope we are trying to do the right thing...and as we do the battle lines will be drawn. In every battle there are wounds!  

Jim Cymbala - Those whom God uses, He bruises

Isaiah 53:10 (NLT) 

10 But it was the LORD’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the LORD’s good plan will prosper in his hands. 

–Paul received a thorn in the flesh and had to deal with the guilt of killing Christians. Joseph went thru about 22 years of abuse before rising to power.

–Moses spent 40 years on the backside of a desert after killing an Egyptian. David chased by Saul and had to hide in caves.

–Peter denied the Lord...shame. William Booth salvation army - nerves made him dysfunctional at times...wife spoke...John Wesley was falsely accused by his wife and she would lie to the press about him.

–Anyone who has served God for any length of time can show you the scares of ministry. Wow, Pastor Rick, I am really feeling lifted up into the heavenlies. 

–Remember Jehoshaphat when the enemy was coming and please note that they had not been defeated yet.  "Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever."

William Ward - God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say, ‘Thank you?’”

Psalm 100:15 (NKJV) 

1 Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! 

2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. 

3 Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. 

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. 

5 For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 

H. U. Westermayer– The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving.

2. Many believers forfeit the double doors by their lack of thanksgiving.

–One of the most debilitating curses of those who know Christ is to forget to be thankful!

Romans 1:2021 (NKJV) 

20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 

21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 

John F. Kennedy - As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.  

Psalm 95:13 (NKJV) 

1 Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. 

2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with Psalms. 

3 For the LORD is the great God, And the great King above all gods. 

–Let me give you some really good news before I let you go today. We seem to do like the old song “Looking for love in All the Wrong Places”

–We are looking for our source of help and yes even our source of thankfulness in all the wrong places.  My pay check is not the source...my job...my employer...not the source!

–The democratic party nor the republican party is my source...they do not hold the key!

Matthew 16:1319 (NLT) 

13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 

14 “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” 

15 Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?” 

16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 

17 Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. 

18 Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. 

19 And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.” 

–Life Church, who do you say Jesus is?  Is He Who He says He is?  Are you filled with thanksgiving?

–We should be thankful because He is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. We should be thankful because Who Jesus is has been revealed to us by His Spirit thru salvation and our encounter with Him!

–We should be thankful because Jesus said He would (emphatically) build His Church of which we are a part!

–We should be thankful because Jesus said He would give us (not democrats or republicans) the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven!

–We should be thankful because keys open doors even if they are the gates of hell and we are going thru those great and effective doors to see our miracles and our prodigals!

–We should be thankful because what happens on this earth is not determined by a politician, a govt,  or society but by the children of God who hold the keys to the Kingdom of God!   Life Church, we hold those keys!

1 Thessalonians 5:1618 (NKJV) 

16 Rejoice always, 

17 pray without ceasing, 

18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 

Gerald Good - If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness. It will change your life mightily.

Estonian Proverb - Who does not thank for little will not thank for much.

William Arthur Ward - Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

3. We can get thru the double doors because Jesus is the Door (the Gate)!

John 10:9-11 (NKJV)
⁹  I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
¹⁰  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
¹¹  I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

Dream Again - 7

Subject – When We Dream Together

by Rick Welborne

Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)
¹²  Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. 

Psalm 105:17-19 (NLT)
¹⁷  Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character. 

--The last several weeks we have been talking a whole lot about these three things in Joseph’s life. Today we are going to see how Joseph was a type of Christ in the Old Testament by looking at Jesus’s birth.

1. It is not so much about us as it is about “them”…Jesus came for “them”.

2. It is about the timing of God…When God determined the right time…Jesus was born.

3. It is about the test…the test of his character…a test of the character of all involved with Jesus’ birth. 

Luke 1:26-38 (NKJV)
²⁶  Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
²⁷  to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.
²⁸  And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"
²⁹  But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
³⁰  Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
³¹  And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.
³²  He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
³³  And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."
³⁴  Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
³⁵  And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
³⁶  Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.
³⁷  For with God nothing will be impossible."
³⁸  Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

--We have been talking for several weeks about dreaming again and about how we are not to give up on our God given dreams. Today as we look at the birth of Jesus…let’s see how dreams collide with each other. 

1. Mary has a dream or vision that she has been chosen to be the mother of the Son of God!

--Can you even imagine the magnitude of this kind of dream…good chance people will not believe you!

--Mary is engaged to be married to Joseph, and then, word reaches him that his bride-to-be is with child and he thinks maybe it is time to end this relationship. Who wouldn’t? I actually know a couple! Beautiful love story!

--When someone has a dream given to them by Holy Spirit, we have a choice…either we just put them away, or put what they are saying away, or we can dream with them.

Matthew 1:19-25 (NKJV)
¹⁹  Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.
²⁰  But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
²¹  And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."
²²  So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
²³  "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."
²⁴  Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,
²⁵  and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

--Once Joseph had the revelation that what Mary was dreaming was a God dream…He embraced the dream, he embraced Mary as his wife, and he embraced Holy Spirit Who was birthing the dream…he embraced Jesus.

--After Mary has her encounter with Gabriel, she goes quickly to her relative (her cousin) who is miraculously with child in her old age…when you dream for God…hang out with other dreamers.

 Luke 1:39-43 (NKJV)
³⁹  Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,
⁴⁰  and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.
⁴¹  And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
⁴²  Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
⁴³  But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

--What does Elizabeth do when she sees Mary…she has a Holy Spirit encounter, and then listen to this, she affirms the dream that Mary was carrying within her womb…the mother of my Lord would come to me!

--Mary has a dream, Joseph catches the dream even in adverse circumstances, Elizabeth affirms to Mary the dream is a God dream. How powerful it is when we can all dream together. What about the shepherds?

Luke 2:8-11 (NKJV)
⁸  Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
⁹  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 

¹⁰  Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
¹¹  For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

--Can you see with me how that when we begin to dream together, God does some mighty and wonderful things. The shepherds began to spread the dream everywhere they went.

--Joseph and Mary takes Jesus to the temple when to present Him to the Lord, they yet again, have affirmation of their dream…matter of fact it was an affirmation of Simeon’s dream.

Luke 2:25-26 (NKJV)
²⁵  And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
²⁶  And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

--Affirmation…so many dreaming together and before they could get out of the temple, yet another dreamer:

Luke 2:36-38 (NKJV)
³⁶  Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity;
³⁷  and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
³⁸  And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.

--She affirms that this child…this dream child is indeed the redemption of Israel and that, He in fact, is Jesus, the One Who would save the people from their sins.

--How about the wise men who saw His star in the East and made the long journey to see Him. They got King Herod all stirred up and all of Jerusalem with him.

Matthew 2:9-12 (NKJV)
⁹  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
¹⁰  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
¹¹  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
¹²  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

2. Every God given dream that we have will have a Herod (an enemy) who wants to abort the dream.

Matthew 2:13-18 (NLT)
¹³  After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
¹⁴  That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother,
¹⁵  and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”

¹⁶  Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance.
¹⁷  Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
¹⁸  “A cry was heard in Ramah— weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.” 

--You see; the spirit of abortion has been around for a long time…we see it with Moses when the mid-wives were instructed (at birth – full term) to kill all the male babies that were born…here with see it with Herod.

--America will be judged for every dream we have aborted when we have taken the life of an unborn baby or a full term baby…who knows what dreams were aborted…the next Billy Graham, the cure for cancer.

--Every Herod will be judged for killing dreams thru envy, jealousy, fear, insecurity, and hate! Make no mistake about those who abort babies or dreams, God will judge them severely. Notice the phrase…When Herod died…

Matthew 2:19-23 (NLT)
¹⁹  When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.
²⁰  “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”
²¹  So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother.
²²  But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee.
²³  So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.” 

--Why wouldn’t more information be given at the death of this sick, demented ruler who was so responsible for murdering so many babies and trying to kill the Messiah. Josephus says his death was brutal and agonizing:

Josephus - A loathsome disease descended upon the ruler (Herod) as a judgment from God on account of his sins. He died with burning fever, ulcerated entrails, foul discharges, convulsions, and a horrible stench!

--I guess we can safely say that God hates the spirit of abortion and He hates those who feel like they have the right or mandate to kill God given dreams. Do not be a dream killer.

Lou Engle – If you hang around the Dream King, you get into his dream stream, you join yourself to His dream team, and you do the Martin Luther King thing.

--Engle’s dream is to see the ending of abortion in America through prayer and fasting. He also talks about how it is impossible to hang around the Dream King and not have a dream.

3. Every God given dream that has ever died can experience the resurrection power of Jesus.

--The apostles and the followers of Christ watched their dream breath His last on a cruel cross…it was over!

The demons were dancing and all of hell rejoicing until resurrection power showed up! Jesus was alive!

--There are some Marys here today…the enemy is trying to kill your baby, your son and eventually they do but, Honey, it ain’t over until God says it’s over. 

--Mary is dreaming, with Joseph, with Elizabeth, with the shepherds, with Simeon, with Anna, and with the wise men from the east…you surround yourself with dreamers because when we dream together. Dream team.

Romans 8:11 (NKJV)
¹¹  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. 

Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)
¹²  Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. 

--Wake up the gifts are under the tree!

Dream Again - 6

Subject: Win the Day

by Rick Welborne

Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)
¹²  Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. 

Psalm 105:17-21 (NLT)
¹⁷  Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.
²⁰  Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.
²¹  Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. 

--The last several weeks we have been talking a whole lot about these three things in Joseph’s life:

1. It is not so much about us as it is about “them”.

2. It is about the timing of God.

3. It is about the test…the test of his character. 

--Today I want us to look at Joseph and see how is it even possible to get from the pit to the palace in Egypt. How could this ambitious young man arrive at his dreams? 

--So many look at Joseph types and just assume that they have ended up where they are by chance…by some fluke of life, they have arrived at popularity and fame just because.

--Some of you are old enough to remember when Jackie Robinson made his debut as the first black player to play major league baseball in the modern era. In the third inning he hit a three run homer.

--An Associated Press photographer captured the moment when Robinson crossed home plate and George Shuba (the batter up) extending his hand to him to congratulate him. A giant leap for racial equality in sports.

--In a book The Boys of Summer Roger Kahn made a statement about Shuba’s swing that it was as natural as a smile. Shuba laughed at the notion that his swing was natural. 

Shuba – You call that natural? I swung a 44ounce bat 600 times a night, 4,200 times a week, 47,200 swings every winter. By the way, I did that for 15 years.

Mark Batterson – You cannot pray as if it depends solely on God; you also have to work as if it depends on you. It’s your work ethic plus your prayer ethic that will inch you toward your dreams. And it happens one practice, one day at a time. 

1. To fulfill your dreams will depend on what you do in the pit.

--I hope all of us realize that we have choices every day that we have to make. That will either keep us on our journey toward our dreams or send us into a pit of despair.

--I wish the Bible would have given us more details about what Joseph was doing while he was in the pit…it is of a certainty the decisions we make there in the pit are vital.

--I often say…between the promise and the prize there is a process. Today let me say it this way…between the declared dreams and the fulfillment of those dreams, there are lots of decisions to be made.

--What I do in the pit I find myself in today will determine how the rest of my story will be written…there will always be plenty of opportunities for you to quit…to give up.

--Joseph’s brothers wanted to kill him and throw him in a pit…they were really ticked about his dreams… Reuben intervened and the pit actually became his means of saving his life. How do you view your pit?

--What appears to you as the obstacle of your destruction may actually be God’s stepping stone to get you where you belong. The Dream Giver has the power to work everything for your good.

Lamentations 3:20-26 (NLT)
²⁰  I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss.
²¹  Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this:
²²  The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
²³  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
²⁴  I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”
²⁵  The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.
²⁶  So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD. 

--What is my attitude when I am in the pit…what is the inclination of my heart? Do I whine and complain or do I trust the God Who gave me my dreams in the first place? Do I trust Him with all my heart?

--You see, before you get to the palace God is testing your character to see if you are the man or woman He wants there to accomplish His will for that situation.

--Joseph exemplified certain disciplines for all of us to consider when life is not fair. He had to be intentional about not taking his eyes off of the promises and dreams of God. God’s promises are yes and they are amen!

--Think about how you react when you are detoured from your objectives and what do you do to make sure you do not lose your focus. Fix your eyes on Jesus, author and finisher, think about that. Beginning and the End!

--In the pit Joseph had to remember God is Omni-present…He is everywhere. God is Omniscient…He is all knowing. He is Omnipotent…He is all powerful.

--He is everywhere…even in the pit. He is all knowing…He knows his brothers are wanting to kill him but God knows Joseph will be used to save them. He is all powerful…He can protect him until the time is right.

--Let me ask you today…what do you know? More important…Who do you know? When you are in the pit and life isn’t fair…Who do you know? Paul:

Philippians 3:8-11 (NIV)
⁸  What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
⁹  and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
¹⁰  I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
¹¹  and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

--Life ain’t always pretty…life can be hard and challenging but what you do when you are in the pit will be your declaration to the world how much you trust your God.

--Look at your neighbor and say…Trust God in the pit! Trust God in the pit! He is the only One Who can get you from the pit to the palace.

2. To fulfill your dreams will depend on what you do before you get in the pit. 

--Say what? What are you doing to prepare yourself for the day you are thrown in a pit or thrown in jail. What are you doing to get ready for the day you are falsely accused or forgotten. 

--Let me say it this way…games are not won the day we play them…they are won with all the days of practice. All the repetition of doing the same drills over and over.

--When I was going to college in Texas a hundred years ago, I was introduced to tennis by a bunch of my college buddies. I played two years of basketball there and loved it but I found myself loving tennis.

--One of these friends took me to a tristate tennis tournament at the Samuel Grand Tennis Center in Dallas Texas. Keep in mind I had been playing tennis about 2 months. I was the worst in our group.

--As we sat there watching the match, I got inspired and I got a dream in my heart and I blurted it out of mouth. I said (out loud) I will come back to this tournament next year and win the whole thing.

--My friend laughed so hard and so loud that the tournament director came over and told him to be quiet or leave. He said, “Rick, these guys have played tennis all their lives…there is no way you can win!”

--I had one year to learn how to play a game that I had just started playing and to come back and fulfill a dream in my heart. My friend kept mocking but I kept dreaming. Within a month I could beat all my friends.

--I watched tennis on TV as I held my racquet in my hand imitating how they were swinging, I went to the library (remember those) and got books on tennis. I ordered tennis magazine and read it cover to cover.

--At that time I was 200 lbs. so I started jumping rope every day and eating better until I got down to 170 lbs. I would hit on the wall for hours and finally got where I could hit 2000 times without missing. I biked a lot.

--I would go to the courts and beg people to let me play but I was not good enough to play in their little groups. Within three months I could beat everyone in our city except one little Korean guy…he was so good.

--He beat me over and over again but each time I was getting better and getting wiser about the game. He would laugh and tease me that he could see a little improvement…He was just fuel to the fire!

--I would practice every day serving for two hours…I would practice in the wind and in the sun…I knew I had to be ready for what the conditions would be. Picture in the paper shoveling snow off the court so I could play. 

--I found a small tennis tournament close by entered…I won. There were only three rounds but I got the trophy! I was so excited but my friends kept saying…that’s not the big tournament…I just shut them out!

--I met an older man in a tennis tournament who wanted to play every week…he was like a human backboard, he never missed and he would beat me because I made so many mistakes. I told him my dream.

--He was the first person who did not laugh at me when I mentioned my dream…He said to me…You can win if you do what I tell you…I could not wait for his wisdom…tell me…tell me!

--He said…quit trying to hit a winner every time you hit the ball and use your ability and athleticism to win…in other words hit the ball back at least seven times before you go for a winner…let your opponent lose the point.

--As soon as I applied his wisdom, I beat him for the first time and he never won against me again. I kept practicing every day. I would set up three matches in one day…I put in the time. The day finally came.

--I was so excited and so nervous, that in the first round I was so nervous I could not hit the ball back and forth with my opponent. He said, Good grief, let’s just start…All that preparation kicked in…I won. 2^nd won. 3^rd. 

--After winning 6 matches I found myself in the finals…it was tough…He won the first set…I was nervous and wanted to abandon the game plan but I didn’t. Keep the ball in play 7 times, 8 times, and more. Be consistent!

--I squeaked out the second set using that strategy and I perceived the plan was wearing down my opponent…I won the third set 6-2 and was elated and thankful. I won it three years in a row.

--The first place I went was to my buddy who laughed at me when I told him my dream to show him the trophy. Of course, he was in shock! Pastor Rick, what is the point to this long story.

--The point is this…before you find yourself in a pit, in a prison, falsely accused, forgotten, or discouraged by family there are certain disciplines you need to have in your life.

--On the job training is okay, sometimes, but that can be overwhelming if we have not done our homework ahead of time. Peter says it this way:

2 Peter 1:3-8 (NIV)
³  His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
⁴  Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
⁵  For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
⁶  and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;
⁷  and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.
⁸  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

--In other words, David didn’t win the battle with Goliath the day he hit him in the head with the stone and cut his head off…He won the battle as he daily disciplined himself to worship and to protect the sheep.

--David was being prepared to handle the giant as he was taking care of a bear and a lion. We win our battles (our pits) by the daily disciplines we have put into practice…we keep adding to our faith.

3. To fulfill your dreams will depend on you winning the day…win the day!

--This could be one of the greatest years of your life! Sure, Pastor, that sounds great but that seems impossible from where I am sitting right now…it seems like just a dream to get there…can’t do it.

--Let me ask you this…can you discipline yourself to have a good hour…of course. Can you put enough hours together to have a great day…I think so! How about a week…maybe! What about a month?

--Here’s the key…win the day…win today. You see, you get in shape one workout at a time, you get out of debt one payment at a time, you graduate one class at a time, you get the job promotion one project at a time.

--You win the game or the match one practice at a time…just win the day! Win today! Do what it takes today! Pray today! Learn today! Persevere today! Have self-control today! Win the day! Psalm of Ascent:

 Psalm 40:1-5 (NKJV)
¹  I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry.
²  He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.
³  He has put a new song in my mouth-- Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD.
⁴  Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
⁵  Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered.