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00:00 Hey family, Pastor Darius here.
00:02 I'm excited about this message, man.
00:04 It is a series that we're doing called Slow Jams.
00:07 We're using a teaching methodology of Jesus.
00:11 Not using anything profane,
00:12 but using that which is natural to explain
00:15 and to practice, well, and to help people
00:18 practice better spirituality spiritually.
00:21 So we're using a natural thing
00:22 to explain a spiritual thing.
00:24 Series is called Slow Jams,
00:26 and this lesson is on the importance of perseverance.
00:29 I want you to tap in, and as always,
00:31 if it blesses your life, send it to somebody else.
00:35 Take care, God bless.
00:37 This is my church.
00:38 This my church.
00:39 This my people.
00:42 This is my, I am home.
00:45 So for the next four weeks,
00:56 I'm gonna be engaging in a series,
00:58 and what I'm actually doing is I'll be utilizing
01:02 a teaching methodology of Jesus
01:04 called parabolic preaching.
01:07 It is preaching/teaching through utilizing parables.
01:12 Parables, and this is, each time I say this,
01:14 it's almost like it traumatizes people
01:16 who grew up in Sunday school and vacation Bible school.
01:19 Parables are fictitious stories Jesus told
01:23 to make a spiritual point.
01:26 It wasn't a real historical event.
01:28 People are like, oh my God.
01:30 You mean to tell me the prodigal son,
01:36 was it, it's a fictitious, you see what just happened?
01:38 It's like, no, Jesus is like, hey.
01:43 I'm gonna use something you can understand,
01:47 naturally, to help you understand something
01:52 that's difficult to understand spiritually.
01:55 Now, this is what happens, right?
01:57 Now we see this in sports, we see this in politics,
02:00 and we see it in religion, 'cause those are three areas
02:02 that everybody experts with no experience.
02:04 So what happens is whenever you do this,
02:08 there's like this spirit of Pharisee
02:10 or Pharisee-ical kind of attitude
02:12 that kind of shows up when some people are saying,
02:14 you playing that secular music in church?
02:19 It's like, and I understand the intent,
02:23 but sometimes it's important just to be
02:27 a little more open-minded because there are three words
02:29 I want you all to be familiar.
02:31 You know what, so I can just do this all at once,
02:34 'cause I don't even wanna have to do this more than once.
02:37 Let's clap our hands, let's welcome
02:38 our New Jersey family in right now.
02:40 Let me get everybody.
02:42 New Jersey!
02:45 Good to see you.
02:47 Good to see you, Jersey.
02:51 Excited about this weekend,
02:52 the Change Her Women's Conference in New Jersey.
02:56 Gonna be incredible, sold out,
02:59 just incredible, excited about that.
03:01 Now back to what I was saying, everybody listen to me.
03:04 There are three words, Pastor, I want you to understand
03:06 as I walk through this series now.
03:08 We're gonna be enthusiastic but informed people, all right?
03:12 One is sacred, that is that which
03:17 is exclusively for divine usage.
03:20 The next is the secular,
03:26 that which can be used
03:30 for holy purposes, but is inherently amoral.
03:36 Not immoral, amoral, it just means
03:41 it's not exclusive for divine use.
03:43 So what's an example of a secular song?
03:45 The best part of waking up
03:47 is that's spiritual.
03:51 Did we just sing that in praise and worship?
03:54 Am I making sense?
03:58 So you got in a secular car, you put on secular clothes,
04:01 you came.
04:02 What most people are arguing,
04:08 they're arguing because they don't know
04:09 the difference between secular and profane.
04:12 (audience exclaiming)
04:16 So all music that's secular is not profane.
04:19 Is some music profane?
04:21 Yes, and profane is irreverent, it's blasphemous,
04:26 it perpetuates immorality and self-destructive behavior.
04:30 But music that conveys love,
04:40 that expresses love,
04:42 music that expresses love isn't always endorsing
04:46 or condoning sin.
04:47 You got to have enough sense to know
04:52 what's the right context to do what they talking about.
04:55 So we're using parabolic preaching today, you know?
05:02 So I just want you to know, like, no one's perfect,
05:04 I'm not perfect, no leader's perfect,
05:05 but we are thorough, we are research,
05:08 we don't have to do gimmicks.
05:10 This is not gimmicky, it is something that we believe
05:12 can really, if you'll be open,
05:14 God's gonna speak to you in an incredible way.
05:16 We can have a good time and learn at the same time.
05:19 So we going in all month,
05:21 and that's the last time I'm saying that,
05:23 I just wanted to make sure everybody's clear.
05:26 So let's go to the book of Genesis chapter number 32.
05:30 I want to read a couple of verses, verse number,
05:32 and for those of you that are probably,
05:33 let's see, if you're 25 and under,
05:36 that little square thing that they, on the video,
05:38 that little square thing is called a cassette tape.
05:41 It's like, what is that?
05:45 That's a cassette.
05:46 I'm joking.
05:48 See, y'all don't know, see, I'm of the age
05:53 where you had to listen to the radio
05:56 to hear your favorite song.
05:58 You couldn't just go on YouTube or iTunes,
06:06 you had to wait to the DJ call,
06:08 you had to tell your friend, call the radio station
06:11 and tell them to play H-Town and High Five.
06:14 And when that song come on,
06:23 you had to put that cassette in there, press record.
06:27 If you was really gangster, you press record
06:30 and just let it play and hope you got your song.
06:37 Then the devil get involved
06:39 and mess up that film on the cassette.
06:42 You start praying.
06:43 Yeah, you had to be committed to music.
06:59 Genesis 32, verse 26, says,
07:05 "The man said, 'Let me go, for it is daybreak.'
07:09 But Jacob replied, 'I will not let you go
07:12 unless you bless me.'"
07:14 I wanna stop right there and tag a title to this text.
07:19 Here's the topic of the day's teaching,
07:21 Before I Let Go.
07:22 Before I Let Go.
07:32 (audience cheering)
07:35 In 1994, an R&B group named Blackstreet
07:44 released the record called Before I Let You Go.
07:52 And although this song that was released
07:59 by this genius of a musical group
08:03 was released for the purpose of entertainment,
08:05 this song does have educational value.
08:09 If you will do more than vibe to the lyrics,
08:14 if you will listen to the lyrics,
08:18 you will see a lesson in the lyrics.
08:22 If you will look at the lyrics with more than natural eyes,
08:27 but look at the lyrics with spiritual eyes,
08:30 which Shakespeare says,
08:32 when you look at things with spiritual eyes,
08:34 Shakespeare says you can see sermons in stones.
08:38 That you can look at anything and see spiritual things.
08:44 As a matter of fact, the apostle Paul talks about this
08:47 in Romans chapter number one,
08:49 when he says you can look at the creation,
08:52 and the creation is a revelation
08:55 of the grandeur and the goodness
08:58 and the greatness of your God.
09:00 You can look at the sun and see it staying in place
09:05 without being attached to anything
09:08 and say whoever did that is great.
09:12 Come on now.
09:13 Yeah, yeah.
09:14 And so this is interesting
09:17 because there is a lesson in these lyrics
09:20 if we are willing to listen with a spiritual ear.
09:23 And here is the lesson family.
09:25 You gotta catch this.
09:26 There are some things we don't get when we quit.
09:31 There are some blessings that don't flow because we let go.
09:39 Woo.
09:43 This song is actually a song that reveals
09:48 and exposes us to the importance
09:51 of the principle of perseverance.
09:54 There are some promises that are reserved
09:57 for those who persevere.
10:00 In other words, the Bible puts it this way in Hebrews 10:36.
10:04 You need to persevere so that when you have done
10:09 the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.
10:14 Come on now.
10:14 So he's saying that even though I'm in God's will,
10:18 it doesn't mean I won't have to wait.
10:21 And the enemy goes to work during the wait.
10:27 The enemy starts planting seeds of doubt during the wait.
10:34 The enemy causes us to question
10:36 what we heard during the wait.
10:39 The enemy uses the wait to get us to worry
10:43 and to wonder about whether or not
10:46 God's gonna make good on his word
10:49 and whether God will do what he said.
10:51 And I know it's too early for me to go here,
10:54 but I feel a little old school church on me.
10:57 And I want somebody to be reminded of what I used to hear
11:01 in the Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church
11:05 in Killmicah, Mississippi.
11:06 He may not come when you want him.
11:13 But he is always on time.
11:17 If you're wondering, when is he gonna show up?
11:19 On time.
11:20 If you're wondering, when is he gonna do it?
11:22 On time.
11:23 When is he gonna make a way?
11:25 On time.
11:26 'Cause whenever he gets there,
11:28 even if it's not the right time,
11:30 he'll make it the right time.
11:32 He's a on time God.
11:35 Yes, he is.
11:36 (congregation cheering)
11:39 You have need of patience
11:46 so that after you've done the will of God,
11:51 after you've done the right thing,
11:55 after you've obeyed and executed,
11:58 you might receive the promise.
12:01 This is interesting because some promises
12:03 are only possessed by those who understand
12:06 the principle of perseverance
12:08 because perseverance is actually long faith.
12:11 See, strong faith is not really strong faith.
12:16 Strong faith is long faith
12:18 because the strength of your faith
12:20 is not revealed in how big you can believe.
12:23 The strength of your faith is revealed
12:25 in how long you can believe.
12:27 It's revealed in your ability to keep on believing
12:32 when it seem like believing is not working,
12:35 to keep on declaring it's gonna happen
12:38 when it looks like it's not happening,
12:41 to keep on testifying it's on the way.
12:44 When there is nothing happening
12:47 that indicates to you it's coming.
12:49 It's the kind of faith that doesn't wait
12:51 until the manifestation to give God some celebration.
12:55 It's a faith that says,
12:59 don't wait till the battle is over,
13:02 but shout, clap, rejoice, leap, dance right now.
13:08 Long faith.
13:16 The Bible says the testing of your faith produces patience.
13:28 So if the testing of my faith produces patience,
13:32 that means God tests my faith with time.
13:35 He said, okay, you say you believe me.
13:41 I'm gonna test that with time
13:56 because there are some promises
13:58 that are only possessed by perseverance.
14:01 This is why, so this is something you and I need to know
14:05 before we let go.
14:07 I'm gonna say that one more time.
14:14 This is something you and I need to know before you let go.
14:19 Yeah, because when you let go of something you do see,
14:24 you also letting go of something you don't see.
14:27 When you and I let go of something, y'all not ready,
14:34 that's giving us a little agitation.
14:38 We might be letting go of something
14:39 that God's gonna use to give us some elevation.
14:43 God Almighty, this is why,
14:48 and I gotta get the discernment series.
14:49 I'm gonna teach y'all something called red flags.
14:51 This is why your discernment is so essential.
14:54 This is why your own personal relationship
14:58 with God is critical
15:00 because I can teach you principles
15:03 from the pulpit and the platform,
15:06 but you need discernment to know how do I apply
15:11 the principle in this situation
15:14 'cause sometimes you need to let go.
15:16 Some people problem is you holding on to the wrong thing.
15:20 (congregation cheering)
15:22 And then come on now, sometime God want me to let go.
15:26 Sometime the devil want me to let go.
15:28 I need discernment to know what do I need to hold on to
15:33 because if you tell me to hold on to it,
15:37 come rain or shine, sleet or snow,
15:40 I'ma be like Jacob and say,
15:42 I will not let you go until you bless me.
15:47 (congregation cheering)
15:51 I need discernment to know.
15:54 Do I let go of this?
15:58 'Cause if you like me, you're like,
15:59 now there's some stuff I held on to too long.
16:01 And then it's like other stuff I let go of too soon.
16:06 But I wanna admonish and encourage someone
16:15 to embrace this reality today
16:18 because our text teaches us a powerful principle
16:23 regarding this practice of perseverance.
16:28 The text exposes us here to a gentleman named Jacob.
16:32 And I don't have time to go through
16:34 all of his historical background
16:37 to give you greater context on what's happening here
16:40 at this point in the story.
16:42 But you just need to know if you allow me
16:44 to sermonically summarize this,
16:47 you just need to know he's in a season
16:50 and a situation where he needs a personal transformation.
16:55 Okay, are you here?
16:59 He's a man that needs a spiritual quantum leap.
17:04 He needs a big change in a short time period
17:11 because what God is getting ready to shift him into,
17:15 he's shifting into it so quickly.
17:18 If he doesn't change quick,
17:20 he'll forever be trying to catch up.
17:22 Did you hear what I just said?
17:27 See, this is why your own discernment becomes important
17:31 because you not only have to discern divine instruction,
17:34 you also have to be able to discern urgency.
17:40 I need somebody to talk about it.
17:42 Yeah, yeah, you gotta be able to discern,
17:45 is this something God's giving me a little time on?
17:48 Or is this something God's saying,
17:50 I need you not only to do it, I need you to do this now.
17:53 I need you to move now and shift now.
17:56 He's in a season and a situation
18:00 where he needs a big change in a short time period.
18:03 He don't have time to go through all of the cycles.
18:08 He don't have time for a coaching package.
18:11 Come on, this has gotta happen fast.
18:15 And it's gotta be big because he is a man
18:21 who is rich in cattle and in cash,
18:26 but he is poor in character.
18:29 Did you hear what I just said?
18:35 He is rich in cattle and in cash,
18:38 but he is poor in character.
18:42 And he has got to a season where he's facing a situation
18:46 he can't fix with a check.
18:48 I don't know, somebody talk back to me
18:55 in the ATL in New Jersey online.
18:57 Like he can't write a check for this one.
19:00 There are some issues he could write a check for and fix it.
19:03 There are some issues he can make a phone call and fix it,
19:07 but his net work and his net worth can't fix this one.
19:12 And Jacob is finally realizing, are y'all here?
19:21 That in order for me to fix this set of problems
19:26 that I'm facing, I have to allow God
19:30 to fix the problems in me.
19:32 (congregation cheering)
19:35 I want to know, am I preaching to a church
19:41 that say I want more than inspiration?
19:45 I want more than emotionalism.
19:49 PD, I'm trying to go somewhere.
19:52 I got a world of change.
19:55 I got a family to raise.
19:57 I got a kingdom of darkness to tear down.
20:00 Don't play with me on Sunday, PD.
20:03 Give me what I need to get to the next level.
20:06 Am I talking to anybody?
20:14 Don't miss it.
20:17 He realizes that in order to fix these problems
20:22 that I'm facing, God has to fix something in me.
20:26 (congregation cheering)
20:30 He realizes that this problem is not gonna be fixed.
20:36 It's an Esau problem, and Esau is his brother,
20:39 and there's this issue of hostility
20:41 that he has with his brother.
20:42 He thinks his brother's about to try to take his life,
20:44 and this is why he's having his meetup with his brother.
20:46 He doesn't even take his wife and children with him
20:47 'cause he's like, I don't want y'all around.
20:49 I don't know what's gonna happen.
20:50 So Esau represents the calamity
20:54 you can't correct with a check.
20:56 Are y'all gonna talk to me?
21:02 I said Esau represents the calamity
21:08 I can't correct with a call.
21:10 It represents something that can't be fixed
21:19 until God fix me.
21:21 (congregation cheering)
21:24 That up to this point in my life,
21:28 I've been able to succeed without fixing this.
21:33 I've been able to advance without fixing this.
21:38 I've been able to do better than most without fixing this,
21:43 and God says, no, no, no, no, no, Jacob.
21:47 For this one right here,
21:49 I can't fix this without fixing you,
21:51 and I'm actually using this to fix you.
21:54 This problem is your partner.
22:02 I am in divine partnership with this problem
22:09 because it is the only situation
22:12 that will give you a revelation of your shadow side.
22:17 (congregation cheering)
22:20 Come on here.
22:21 Darius, what do you mean?
22:24 You gotta catch this.
22:26 God uses some situations to show you your shadow side.
22:30 Darius, what's my shadow side?
22:33 Our shadow side refers to the aspect of our personality,
22:38 thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that are harmful,
22:44 but they're hidden from our conscious awareness.
22:47 It's a shadow.
22:53 It's aspects of our personality.
22:56 It's like you can be a way and not know your way.
23:01 Oh, gosh.
23:04 Our thoughts, our feelings, and our behaviors
23:09 that are harmful,
23:12 but they are hidden from our conscious awareness.
23:16 They are the things about me that I can't see
23:20 that are hurting me.
23:21 And my spirituality doesn't exempt me from my shadow side.
23:32 (congregation cheering)
23:36 Y'all, well, I got Bible.
23:39 All throughout scripture,
23:40 we see examples of people who did not reach their potential
23:44 because they didn't manage their shadow.
23:46 Because shadow sides aren't revealed in time.
23:55 They're revealed in seasons.
23:57 So that means it can be really easy
24:00 for somebody to confuse you
24:02 because you can be like, I've known you for 12 years,
24:05 but I hadn't seen this side of you.
24:09 And so you say they changed.
24:11 They never changed.
24:12 The shadow was always there.
24:14 It just took a certain set of circumstances
24:23 to expose that shadow side.
24:27 Y'all not talking to me.
24:28 This is why even when people are in romantic relationships
24:32 and they're getting ready to get engaged and go to,
24:34 I'm never impressed with how long they knew the person.
24:38 That is not an indication
24:40 of the potential success of the marriage.
24:43 It's not how long have you known them.
24:45 It is how many seasons have you seen them in.
24:47 You know who they are when they happy.
24:55 You need to know who they are when they stress.
24:58 You need to know who they are when they broke.
25:01 You need to know who they are if you get sick.
25:04 Will they take care of you?
25:05 Y'all not talking to me.
25:07 (audience cheering)
25:10 And it takes certain seasons.
25:16 They didn't just become jealous of you.
25:19 Jealousy was a shadow.
25:21 And your success
25:35 Abel's success brought out Cain's shadow.
25:39 Abraham lied and said his wife was his sister
25:49 because fear brought out his shadow.
25:51 Isaac did the same thing.
25:57 He followed a generational pattern
25:59 and said his wife was his sister
26:01 because fear brought out his shadow.
26:04 Moses killed a man and buried him in the sand.
26:09 See that shadow work there.
26:14 Instead of stopping and saying, what is it in me
26:17 that allows me to kill a man?
26:21 Instead of dealing with the issue, he buries the evidence.
26:24 So he's discreet, but not delivered.
26:27 Y'all aren't talking to me.
26:35 (audience cheering)
26:38 It's his shadow side.
26:42 David, shadow side.
26:43 Solomon, shadow side.
26:46 But it's not conscious.
26:53 It's not self-aware.
26:58 So the behavior's not changed
27:03 because they don't see a change needs to be made.
27:06 See, we have to see this as an expression.
27:17 You can be seen as an expression of spiritual warfare.
27:21 See, the enemy, see, for some people,
27:26 y'all have to, can I just take my time?
27:33 The Bible says in Ephesians chapter six
27:36 that we need the whole armor of God
27:38 so we can stand against the wiles.
27:42 That means methods or strategies of the devil.
27:45 The devil customizes a strategy
27:48 based on your character and your calling.
27:51 So the way he try to get to me
27:53 ain't the way he's gonna try to get to you.
28:02 Did you hear what I just said?
28:04 I said the way he try to get to me
28:06 might not be the way he try to get to you.
28:14 It's customized.
28:15 And for some people, his area of emphasis is
28:20 getting them not to change behavior
28:24 they know needs to change,
28:27 but don't care enough to change it.
28:32 But then for other people like you,
28:35 that's not his strategy
28:37 'cause he doesn't attack you in the area of behavior.
28:41 He attacks people like you in the area of blindness.
28:44 He said, 'cause if they see it, they gonna change it.
28:49 If they see it, they gonna fix it.
28:53 If they, come on here, if they see it,
28:56 they're gonna do something about it.
28:57 So she says, so what I wanna do with them
29:00 is I wanna stop them from seeing it.
29:02 As the God of this world, I wanna blind their minds
29:07 to the glorious light of the gospel.
29:10 I wanna keep them absent of self-awareness.
29:17 And the only way I can do that
29:20 is to deceive them into thinking they self-aware.
29:23 (congregation cheering)
29:26 The only way I can keep them from being self-aware
29:36 is to deceive them into thinking they are self-aware.
29:41 So that when God starts speaking about self-awareness,
29:45 they start thinking who else need to be in church
29:48 to hear the message.
29:52 I'm not playing this month.
29:53 Y'all thought this was gonna be,
29:55 you thought this was gonna be cute
29:56 and we was about to be electric sliding.
29:59 We coming for a devil this month.
30:01 We getting ready to be set free this month.
30:04 We going to another level this month.
30:06 We are playing no games this month.
30:09 (congregation cheering)
30:12 So God said, I gotta create a situation
30:33 to give Jacob a revelation of a shadow side.
30:39 So Jacob has this meetup with his brother
30:41 and his brother, he knows his brother's shadow.
30:44 His brothers can be volatile and violent.
30:47 He literally left home
30:49 because his brother was trying to kill him.
30:51 So on his way to meet the brother, he stops
30:57 and say, I gotta go to sleep.
30:59 And while he's asleep, the Bible said he wakes up
31:02 to a man wrestling with him.
31:06 (laughing)
31:08 Don't miss it.
31:10 A man is wrestling with him
31:14 and he assumes probably it's Esau.
31:20 He's probably thinking my brother has snuck up on me
31:27 and is trying to kill me in my sleep.
31:30 So he's thinking it's one thing in one season.
31:35 (congregation cheering)
31:39 But in the middle of the tussle,
31:42 he realizes I'm not wrestling with
31:47 who I thought I was wrestling with.
31:48 I thought this was Esau, this is God.
31:54 I thought this was a breakup, this is God.
31:56 Y'all are talking to me.
32:01 I thought this was a pink slip, this is God.
32:04 I thought this was a downturn, this is God.
32:07 He realizes, wait a minute,
32:13 this is no ordinary tussle.
32:18 This is a tussle for transformation.
32:31 So initially, he's like, get off me
32:34 until he gets a revelation of who's on him.
32:38 And then once he gets a revelation,
32:43 he gets a revelation of who's on him.
32:45 He realizes it's God.
32:47 Now God's gotta tell him, get off me.
32:49 Once I find out, all I need to know is if it's God.
32:55 If it's God, I'm holding on.
32:58 If it's God, I'm not giving up.
33:01 If it's God, I'm standing 10 toes down.
33:04 If it's God, I will be steadfast, unmovable,
33:08 always abounding.
33:09 I just need to know, is it God?
33:13 He said, let me go.
33:30 He said, I will not let you go
33:32 until you bless me.
33:35 And God says, what's your name?
33:39 He said, I will not let you go until you bless me.
33:45 And God say, what's your name?
33:48 He said, I will not let you go until you bless me.
33:52 God say, what's your name?
33:54 Jacob's like, I didn't ask you for an introduction.
33:58 I asked you for a blessing.
34:00 And God say, I know.
34:02 What's your name?
34:04 Y'all missed it.
34:08 He said, I am getting ready to bless you,
34:11 but I'm getting ready to bless you
34:13 in a way you're not quite comprehending.
34:16 I'm not about to bless you by giving you something.
34:19 I'm about to bless you by helping you become someone.
34:22 (congregation cheering)
34:26 Y'all are talking to me.
34:30 And once you become this version of yourself,
34:35 there are some things you are asking me for
34:42 and begging me for that you will become the kind of person
34:46 that wake up and go get it.
34:50 I feel like preaching in here.
34:54 I don't know who this is for, but go get it.
34:59 Shake it off and go get it.
35:03 You might be crying, but go get it.
35:07 You might be tired, but go get it
35:10 because God will do just what he said.
35:18 I gotta leave you now.
35:19 But before I go, I gotta tell you one more thing.
35:27 Hold on, change is coming.
35:33 God will take care of you.
35:38 I'm out of time.
35:43 (congregation cheering)
35:46 He said, Israel and Jacob are fighting.
35:56 Israel is the new version.
36:10 Jacob is the old version.
36:13 And the new version and the old version
36:18 are in a battle with each other.
36:21 Is there anybody here that knows that the new version
36:28 and the old version are in a battle for your future?
36:35 But I believe I'm talking to some people
36:40 that's getting ready to tell Jacob
36:44 that you can go no further.
36:47 You got to die here.
36:50 This next season of my life is called new.
36:54 New me, new joy, new peace, new friends,
37:03 new money, new opportunity, new, new, new, new.
37:08 I see new on you.
37:10 I see new on you.
37:12 (congregation cheering)
37:15 (upbeat music)
37:18, (indistinct)
37:23 (upbeat music)
37:26 (gunshot)
37:53 You hear, he wrestled all night.
37:58 He wrestled in the dark, dark times.
38:07 He wrestled 'cause it takes time to get Jacob under control.
38:17 (soft music)
38:21 (congregation cheering)
38:25 But you got to keep wrestling.
38:28 I know you're disappointed in you.
38:34 I know what that feels like to be disappointed in you.
38:39 See, I thought I would have fixed this by now.
38:44 I thought this wouldn't trigger me now.
38:51 I thought all this cash and cattle would have fixed this.
38:55 But you've got to keep wrestling, not for something.
39:07 You got to keep wrestling to become Israel.
39:11 I feel your presence, father.
39:18 (soft music)
39:20 You're not in a fight over it.
39:25 You're in a fight over you.
39:28 And you have come as far as Jacob can take you.
39:44 This next chapter of your life requires Israel.
39:48 It requires a willingness to not quit.
39:57 How many know fighting to become Israel is a good thing?
40:11 Would you consider that well-doing, doing well?
40:15 So here's the scripture.
40:16 Don't be weary in well-doing.
40:22 Here's the promise.
40:23 Here's the promise.
40:24 It's a promise.
40:26 It's a promise.
40:28 Don't be weary, worn down, and well-doing.
40:32 Here's the promise.
40:34 For in due season, not you might, not you should,
40:41 you will reap if you faint not.
40:44 That's the promise.
40:47 And I know you're disappointed in you.
40:53 And I know sometimes you look in the mirror,
40:56 you say, "I'm tired of me."
40:57 But you got to fight.
41:00 Because this next chapter requires Israel.
41:07 Lord, it hurt me for you to show me this shadow.
41:11 Lord, I was embarrassed.
41:15 Lord, I was confused.
41:21 I didn't know how blind I was.
41:23 But I know you never show me what's wrong
41:28 just to show me what's wrong.
41:29 Whenever you show me something wrong,
41:30 you're showing me what you're getting ready to fix.
41:33 I'm getting ready to fix this.
41:38 'Cause this next chapter of your life requires Israel.
41:43 Jacob, it means conniver, trickster, manipulator, scammer.
41:53 Israel means prince with God.
41:59 And princes don't have to manipulate.
42:07 Princes don't have to be conniving.
42:10 If you're a prince, you don't have to scam.
42:12 His behavior changed when his revelation of his self did.
42:18 But you got to fight.
42:20 Father, I pray for a grace to not give up.
42:25 We hear you and we will not let go until you bless us.
42:35 Make me a vessel.
42:36 Make me an offering.
42:39 I pray this over your people in Jesus' name, amen.
42:45 Clap your hands, everybody.
42:46 Come on, real quick.
42:50 Lift those hands and receive this real quick, come on.
42:53 Come on.
42:56 Amen.
43:00 So we'll just thank you for that.
43:01 I want to pray a benediction over you before you go.
43:02 Is that all right?
43:03 Amen.
43:04 Father, bless us and keep us.
43:06 Cause your face of favor to shine upon us.
43:09 Be gracious to us.
43:11 Protect us, provide for us.
43:13 And above all else, grant us peace.
43:16 This is my prayer for your life in Jesus' name, amen.
43:20 God bless you, we love you.
43:22 We'll see you next week.