I AM STRONG
Friday Night Women’s Event
Preparing for Women’s Retreat this year: theme BOOT CAMP
2 Timothy 2:3 New King James Version (NKJV)
You therefore must endure[a] hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
How do you endure hardship? Paul is telling us we will face hardship and therefore we MUST endure hardship or else we will faint in the day of adversity, give up and fall away.
I am strong because:
- I am weak.
We need to have this revelation:
I can do NOTHING without Him
I can ALL THINGS WITH Him
I am strong because HE IS STRONG!
Greater is HE that is in me.
He is NEVER tells us that we have to be strong ALONE on our own strength.
Ex: the only reason that I am here today and that this church exists is because of God’s strength.
Matt and I both wanted to quit so many times because we were tired. I had years of anxiety and depression and literally felt like I needed to check myself into an institution because I did not think I could go on. BUT GOD.
Psalm 124:1-5 New King James Version (NKJV)
“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,”
Let Israel now say—
2 “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
When men rose up against us,
3 Then they would have swallowed us alive,
When their wrath was kindled against us;
4 Then the waters would have overwhelmed us,
The stream would have gone over our soul;
5 Then the swollen waters
Would have gone over our soul.”
2 Corinthians 12:10 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.
It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can endure anything that life or our enemy will throw at us.
It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can overcome the sin that is constantly trying to ensnare and entangle us.
I have failed so many times. I have wanted to give up more times than I can count. BUT GOD
How do you know what you are doing it on your own strength?
I am hard headed and tried to do things on my own strength time and time again, but I always poop out and fail and end up crying out to God, “What happened”?!!
“You did it on your own strength,” He replies.
Are you worn out? Tired? Depressed? Feeling caved in? Angry? Destitute? Dry? Over worked? Fearful?
Any of these words describe you?
Then you are doing in on your own strength. Let Him take that burden from you.
Allow the Spirit to carry you over the storm- Yes! You will go through things! You will be in the fire and go through the storm; but let the Spirit carry you. Rely on His strength, not your own.
Press in to God. Pray more than ever. Fast. Read and APPLY the Word. Get it down in your spirit.
The purpose of your life is to bring glory to God, therefore when He fights the battle and you rely on His strength, not your own; HE gets the glory.
- I stand on the Rock.
There is no rock like our God!
Deuteronomy 32:4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
1 Samuel 2:2 There is no holy God like the Lord. There is no God but you. There is no Rock like our God.
Deuteronomy 32:31 For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede.
Psalm 18:31 For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?
Psalm 18:1-3 I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies.
2 Samuel 22:2 He said: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior– from violent people you save me.
Psalm 71:3 Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.
Psalm 62:7-8 My honor and salvation come from God. He is my mighty rock and my protection. People, trust God all the time. Tell him all your problems, because God is our protection.
Psalm 31:3-4 Yes, you are my Rock and my protection. For the good of your name, lead me and guide me. Save me from the traps my enemy has set. You are my place of safety
Notice I said, “I STAND”
meaning I am not lying down. I am not sitting on the Rock. I am in a firmly fixed position, STANDING on the Rock.
to “stand” means: be in a specified state or condition:
withstand (an experience or test) without being damaged:
Ex: “I stood the test of time”
Standing on the Rock means you TRUST Him. You trust His Word. You are FIRMLY FIXED, you will not be shaken and you will not moved. You know His Word is true.
EX: I have a love affair with God’s Word. I am standing on the Rock of His Word and no one, or nothing is going to move me to disagree with His Word. No science, no amount of emotion or feeling is going to move me. I used to argue with my philosophy prof over the Bible being true. His whole class was aimed at disproving the Word of God. I am FIXED. I am anchored.
You are anchored. You are not going anywhere no matter what happens in your life or in this world.
You see, the Rock is immovable and when you are anchored to an immovable God, you are immovable.
Standing on the Rock means you are safe and secure from all harm and trouble.
- I dwell in unity with my brothers and sisters in Christ.
Psalm 133 New King James Version.
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, even Aaron’s beard:
Running down on the edge of his garments.
3 It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion;
For there the Lord commanded the blessing—
Life forevermore.
In John 17 Jesus prayed that Hs followers would be established in love. holiness and unity. He knew the HS could not operate among us if there were divisions based on sin and selfish ambitions.
James 3:16New King James Version (NKJV)
For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.
James 4:1New King James Version (NKJV)
Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?
Pride promotes strife!
The major source of conflicts in the church centers in a desire for recognition, honor, power, pleasure, money and superiority.
If you are causing division and disunity in the Body, I will pray for you to change and that the HS helps you to change and to overcome. BUT IF YOU DO NOT CHANGE, I will pray you out.
The BODY is more important than the individual.
This is what Jesus meant when He said, “If your right eye offends you, pluck it out”
Ex: years ago we let Ranger in our pool. BIG MISTAKE!
God knows if you are being stinky and causing division and HE does not like it! He is jealous over His bride! Be careful how you treat your brothers and sisters in Christ! DO NOT SAY GOD WOULD NEVER DO THAT! I have seen Him do it a few times. YES, He loves you and cares about you as an individual and He will be gentle with you and continue to try to change you. BUT if you are doing harm to your siblings, He will separate you. Let that be a warning to you.
RATHER, a fervent love for God and for one another, along with sanctification in the truth of God’s Word, will bring God’s nearness to Him and His anointing on His people.
God desires UNITY, one mind and one accord.
Acts 2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord[a] in one place.
“accord” -(of a concept or fact) be harmonious or consistent with.
The Spirit came after they were all in harmony with one another.
EX: how many are music people? If you have a musical ear, you can literally hear if one instrument or one voice is out of tune because it is out of harmony. It’s like the princes and the pea.
This does not mean that you have to be besties with everyone. It means that you have a mutual love and respect for one another. You can agree to disagree. You do not pick fights over stupid, trivial matters.
EX: I cannot even tell you how many times I have had to overlook someone’s nasty remarks about myself, my husband and my children all for the sake of UNITY.
UNITY means you stick it out and work it out! You don’t leave because you get offend.
What if Ps. Matt didn’t show up to church because he got offended? seems a little silly for us to say, “We are just staying home from church today because we are upset with so and so” or worse, “Ps Matt and I are offended and we are going to find another church!” Good luck!
If the church is not preaching the truth, by all means leave. But being offended is not a good reason. I am always forced to work it out because I am not going anywhere. WORK IT OUT.
We are stronger together!
Ecclesiastes 4:12 [Full Chapter]
Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Imagine a rope braided from 400 cord! you are never break that rope!!
- God is faithful.
How many of y’all know the song, “Ever Be”?
There is a line in this song that always wrecks me, “Faithful You have been, and faithful You will be”
Faithful- loyal, constant, true
GOD is so FAITHFUL! He will do what He said He would do. Do you believe it?
I have seen God move mightily on my behalf time and time again. I have seen Him answer BIG prayers. He did it for me in the past and HE WIL DO IT AGAIN.
Deuteronomy 7:9 “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;
Psalm 89:8 O Lord God of hosts, Who is mighty like You, O Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You.
1 Corinthians 1:9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Revelation 19:11 [ Christ on a White Horse ] Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
Why is it that we always forget the last time He moved?
We come up against a trial, go through a storm and we completely forget that He was faithful to get us through the last trial and we break down whining and crying.
Why do we forget??
We need to constantly remind ourselves that HE IS FAITHFUL.
He will answer. He will move. He will heal. He WILL because He is faithful.
If you need help remembering the last time He was faithful, think back to your salvation day when He was faithful to pluck you out of the miry clay. Go back to the time He healed you. The time He answered prayer in a BIG way.
I go back to the time that He reached in to my chest and pumped my heart.
I go back to the 9 months he got me through a very hard preeclampsia pregnancy with Faith. That’s why her name is FAITH, because God is FAITHFUL.
I remember the early years of ministry when I was tired, worn out and depressed, in and out of the ER because of my panic attacks and He was faithful
I go back to times when He was faithful to defend me against those who falsely accused me
I go back to last summer when my heart went into A Fib and wouldn’t return to a normal heart rhythm and the dr. had to shock my heart and He was faithful
I want to leave you with this one scripture tucked away in an obscure book of the Bible with only 3 chapters: Nahum whose name means “comfort”
Nahum had a two-fold purpose
- God used him to pronounce impending judgment on Ninevah, the cruel and wicked capital of Assyria
- Deliver a message of comfort for Gods people, comfort knowing that God was faithful to uphold justice against Israel’s enemies and faithful to establish His kingdom
Nahum 1:7New King James Version (NKJV)
The Lord is good,
A stronghold in the day of trouble;
And He knows those who trust in Him.
HE IS FAITHFUL!
