What have you built your life on?

Make sure your foundation is on The Rock.

Matthew 7:24–27 (NIV)
24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Hunger for God, let your light shine, give, pray, fast, store up treasure in heaven, don't worry.

Matthew 5:6 (NIV)
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Matthew 5:14–16 (NIV)
14“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 6:3–4 (NIV)
3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Matthew 6:6 (NIV)
6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Matthew 6:17–18 (NIV)
17But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,
18so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Matthew 6:19–21 (NIV)
19“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 6:31–33 (NIV)
31So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Matthew 7:24–25 (NIV)
24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

1. Lean into Jesus.

He paid the price for our sins, is praying for us, and is waiting to come back someday!

2. Don’t be afraid.

Cry out to him to give you a spirit to overcome the fear, peace that passes all understanding.

2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)
7For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

3. Don’t worry.

Pray!

Philippians 4:6–7 (NIV)
6Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

4. Find joy and grow!

Find joy in knowing Jesus, lean in to Him. Take time to hear from God.

James 1:2–4 (NIV)
2Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
3because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

5. We will get through this!

This is not the end of the world.

6. Continue to be the church.

7. Hit the right note!

I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me and I have done what he has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbor needs me, however, I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely, as stated above. See, this is such a God-fearing faith because it is neither brash nor foolhardy and does not tempt God. —Martin Luther in 1527 concerning the proper response to the bubonic plague.

2030: This World Is Not Our Home

This world is not our home.

We are citizens of Heaven. Our life is so much more than our time on Earth, it goes on forever. What we do in our time on Earth has huge implications on our time in eternity.

Colossians 3:1-2 – “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

Matthew 6:9-10 – “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Ambassadors – “an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country.”

Eph 6:20, 2 Cor 5:20

What does this perspective do?

It realigns our priorities
It resizes our problems

It realigns our priorities

Our focus should be on the resurrection, looking forward to eternity. Jesus should be THE PRIORITY that aligns all other priorities in our lives. When we live in the light of eternity, our priorities become more in line with God's.

1 Corinthians 15:32 (NLT) – “And what value was there in fighting wild beasts—those people of Ephesus[a]—if there will be no resurrection from the dead? And if there is no resurrection, “Let’s feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!”

Pastor John Wesley – “I judge all things only by the price they shall gain in eternity.

It resizes our problems

Jn 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Pray, fast, worship, spend time in the Word, serve, be still.

2 Corinthians 4:14, 16-18 –…”we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself….16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Psalm 39:4 – “Show me, LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.”

2030: Worship

Let's Talk about Worship

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Worship it's not just a song, but our whole lives.

Matthew 6:33 (NIV)
33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Isaiah 6:1–8 (NIV)
1In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple.
2Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
3And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” 4At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.”
6Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” 8Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

WORSHIP IS OUR WHOLE LIFE RESPONSE TO THE GLORY OF GOD.

We can't encounter the glory of God without realizing our sin.

1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
31So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

2 Samuel 6:12–16 (NIV)
12Now King David was told, “The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God.” So David went to bring up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing.
13When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf.
14Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the LORD with all his might,
15while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
16As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart.

2 Chronicles 20:1–4 (NIV)
1After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.
2Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi).
3Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.
4The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.

2 Chronicles 20:12 (NIV)
12Our 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 on you.”

2 Chronicles 20:13–18 (NIV)
13All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD.
14Then the Spirit of the LORD came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.
15He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.
16Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel.
17You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’ ”
18Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD.

Mark 5:1–6 (NIV)
1They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.
2When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him.
3This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain.
4For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him.
5Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
6When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him.

Mark 5:6 (NKJV)
6When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.

Mark 5:15 (NIV)
15When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.

- 2 Chron 20:18, they were worshipping when they were still fully surrounded.
- If we deny something good about God, we imply something bad about him. -Matt Redmon
- Mk 5, this man was alone and scared and wanted to hurt himself, just like many of us. When he saw Jesus, he ran and worshipped Him.

2030: Fasting

Fasting

Psalm 63:1–5 (NIV)
1You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
2I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
3Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
4I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

What if we sought God like we seek food.

FASTING: VOLUNTARILY GIVING UP FOOD FOR SPIRITUAL PURPOSES.

FASTING IS AN expectation.

Matthew 6:16–18 (NIV)
16“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
17But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,
18so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

FASTING IS NOT A WAY TO LOOK SPIRITUAL.

Luke 18:9–14 (NIV)
9To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable:
10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.
12I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Isaiah 58 (NIV)
1“Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.
2For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.
3‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.
4Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?
6“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
7Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. “If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
11The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
12Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
13“If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

There is a connection between the vertical (our relationship with God) and the horizontal (care for others). God wants us to seek Him because we want to know Him, not because we want something from Him. God will restore that which has been broken.

FASTING IS NOT A WAY TO manipulate GOD.

FASTING WILL change US

This is the end result of fasting. It helps us remember that it's not about us, it's about Him.

FASTING IS ABOUT humbling OURSELVES BEFORE GOD

FASTING IS ABOUT hearing FROM GOD

FASTING IS A KEY TO RELEASING THE supernatural power OF GOD.

We need the supernatural life changing power of God in our midst.

2 Chronicles 20:2–4 (NIV)
2Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi).
3Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.
4The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.

2 Chronicles 20:21–24 (NIV)
21After 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.”
22As 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.
23The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
24When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped.

HOW TO FAST.

START small

DETERMINE THE length

DETERMINE YOUR purpose

EXPECT TO struggle

WITHDRAW

END easy

1 Peter 5:6–10 (NIV)
6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
8Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.