Chris Hodges - Back Into the Light
All right, who’s glad to be in church today, anybody, anybody? Come on, put your hands together and give Jesus some great praise today, everybody! Oh, it’s good to see you guys. Welcome to church today, everybody, in week number three of a five-part series called «The Comeback,» and I’ll tell you more about that in just a second. But I’m so delighted to be here in church, and I’m glad you’re in church today. It’s raining buckets outside, so give yourselves a hand for showing up to church today, everybody, good job. And for you guys that are in Montgomery and Auburn, it is coming your way, hang in there, okay?
So, we’re glad you’re here today. I wanna say hello to all of our locations. We are one church that meets in locations across Alabama and Georgia, and we’re so glad you’re along for the ride. Of course, we have people that are watching online, probably quite a few people watching online today, staying high and dry, and so we’re glad you guys are with us today. I actually have friends that watch in Montana to Florida, so all over the country, that kind of watch Highlands every Sunday, so God bless you guys who are joining us online or maybe later on demand. And of course, we are in all 28 of Alabama’s Department of Corrections facilities.
Come on, say hello to them, everybody. God bless you guys. And I think you guys already know this. We are two weeks away from the greatest day in history, everybody, where we will be celebrating Easter at Highlands. It’ll take place over three days, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, so we’re adding services at every location. In fact, there are 120 services available to you at all of our locations combined, so we hope you find a service that works for you. People always ask us, is Good Friday a different kind of a service? A little bit. It’s gonna be the same music and message for that service as we will do on Easter, so it’s really an Easter service. But on Good Friday, we will include Communion, and it’s a very special time to focus on the cross.
So, love to have you at our services, and not only that, would love for you to consider inviting someone far from God to sit with you in church. Studies say this is the best Sunday out of the 52 to get a «yes». So we would encourage you guys to invite somebody far from God to sit next to you in church. In fact, as you leave today, we have some invite cards that look like this, that we don’t want you just to stuff them in lockers or put them on windshield wipers. We want you to have personal conversation with someone and say, «Hey, would you like to come to church with me»? And then share with them all of the services that are available at your location and go to the one that’s best for them. And let me tell you that I’m telling you that for two reasons.
Number one is we are believing God for thousands and thousands and thousands of people to give their lives to Jesus. Would you believe God with me of that, everybody? We really are. And historically, if it happens like it’s happened in the previous 24 Easter’s here at Highlands, that is gonna happen, and we’re gonna pray for that. So I’m inviting you to pray for our services. But I want this as much for you as I want this for them, because unless you’ve ever had the experience, as a believer, to have somebody far from God sitting next to you in church, and for you to feel all the, the nerves that you’re gonna feel, hoping that we get it right and sing the right songs, and you know, you’re gonna feel all of that in a different kind of way.
And then, when we get to that part of the service where we say, «Every head bowed, every eye closed,» and you bow your head, but you don’t close your eyes, you’re looking to see what your friend’s gonna do, and their hand goes up and tears come down their face, I promise you, it’s an experience that I couldn’t want more for you. It’s something very, very special to know that you played a role in someone’s eternal destiny. And so, maybe start talking to your friends, invite them to Easter, and we’re gonna believe God for a lot of, a lot of people get touched by the power of God. Can I hear a good amen, everybody, all right?
Okay, we’re in week number three, and our theme verse for this series called «The Comeback» is found in Romans chapter 8, verses 11. I’m reading it out of the New Living Translation, and it goes like this, «The Spirit of God,» the Spirit means the power, the breath of God, «that raised Jesus from the dead,» and you’d have to agree that was quite a lot of power that was present to get a dead body out of a grave, that same power, so the Easter power, the power that was present in that tomb on that day, «lives inside of you,» and that should give you a lot of hope. And it tells you why. «Because just as,» I love that little phrase, just as, so, «in the same way that God wanted to get his Son Jesus out of that grave, he wants to get us out of the places where we’re dead or dying. He wants to give life to our mortal bodies by the same Spirit that lives inside of us».
So, I always like to say it this way. This is my favorite Easter verse, and I say it this way, that, that we’re grateful to celebrate, you know, Jesus getting out of the grave, but Jesus didn’t get out of the grave just to get out of the grave. He got out of the grave so you could too, which means you could have a comeback, and that’s what we’re celebrating, comeback stories. And we’re basically asking this question, and I would love for you to answer it in your own mind right now, and that is, «Where in my life do I need to comeback»?
Where in my life is my life not at the place that it should be and it needs to come back? Where in my life where maybe at one point I was doing okay here, but I’m not doing okay here. Maybe it’s your marriage, maybe it’s your relationships, maybe it’s your job or your finances, maybe it’s your health. I don’t know what it is, but that just needs, you know what, it does not need to stay where it is. And we’re trying to offer you a lot of hope and a lot of examples by the different people in Scripture that we’re showing that were at down and out kind of places. I mean, you know, death is considered to be the ultimate «it’s over,» right? But even God conquers over death. Can I hear a better «amen» out there, everybody, right?
Which means, and I’m not saying, this is not preacher talk, this is real, that means that actually can happen to you, it can happen, and it’ll happen in a, in a miraculous way. And we really believe that God wants to turn your life around. He wants you to, to come back. And today, I want to focus on an area that actually Pastor Mark asked me to speak on today, and that is some of you need to come back in the area of your mental health. Some of you guys are in a place right now where your life would be characterized as dark, maybe defeating, depressed, maybe you’re at a place where, you know, you don’t sleep well at night, maybe you’re plagued by fear right now, maybe even things that are going on in the world around us, just, it’s messing with you at a level that you would say is greater than most.
Perhaps fear has taken over your life. For some of you, worry has taken over your life. You just, you worry too much. You’re thinking about it all the time, and so, you would actually be dark. So, we would say it this way, «When we walk through darkness, defeat, and depression,» I’m gonna give you a promise, and again, this is not preacher speak. This is not, you know just some, «Oh, he’s a faith guy, whatever». No, this is real. God wants you to come back. He wants to lead you back into the light, which is the title of my message today.
So I dedicate this message to every person who’s felt darkness, and by the way, if you haven’t felt that way, if you’re not in any, you know, you’re not depressed, or anxious, or stressed right now, you probably know somebody who is. And I would encourage you to pray for them and maybe even have conversation with them about some of the content that I’m going to bring to you. And there’s likely a chance that you’re going to face this at some point in your life, and we would want you to know you don’t have to stay there. You can have a comeback in Jesus’s name, everybody.
Now, you’re looking at somebody who’s not naturally a depressed kind of a person. Like I’ve never really, I’ve had little, small situational based bouts of depression. And honestly, and for that reason, I’m embarrassed to say this, for, you know, the years of the church, I’d never really spoke on the topic. I didn’t even feel like I had any moral authority to do so and just never even thought about doing it. It wasn’t until 2018, so our church was 18 years old, when I brought the first message. We were in a series called «You Asked for It,» where we were answering questions that you guys had asked, actually, that we got from you from Easter services.
And so, I brought my first message, and it became the most rewatched message time of thousand, and I had to repent to you and to God for really ignoring something that is, is, honestly, I think we’re plagued by, we certainly experienced during the COVID years that they say, studies say, we’ve never recovered from, that more people are still being, they’re medicating their pain right now and battling with mental health issues. Of course, we see it in the news all the time with people who do, you know, crazy things, destructive things, that they’re really battling mental health issues. Anyway, I brought this message, and when I did, I decided to go on a writing project. The only problem was I didn’t know much about it.
So I spent two years, it’s the longest research project I’d ever done for the sake of a book. I did a two-year research project, and it was due in March of 2020. Does anybody remember that month? I just want to know if there’s anybody… yeah. And I was supposed to turn in the manuscript. Of course, the whole world was falling apart. We were shutting church down, and I postponed. I asked the publisher if I could postpone the release of the manuscript, and they said, «Yeah, we’re kind of busy, too,» trying to figure out COVID and everything. When I would go through my darkest moments of my life, and I had several instances, I’m just going to say this very, very transparently to you, I had several instances in 2020 where darkness, defeat, and depression were very, very real to me. And I don’t think I’ve really told people this, but I’ll go ahead and say it now. I’m not the pastor, y’all can’t fire me.
Anyway, so, all right, so. But you got a new lead pastor over here, right? But I actually had several panic attacks. Actually, we have a fire station near our house. I mean, I was there one night at midnight at the fire station, I thought I was dying, and they hooked me up, and they told me, you know, «You’re okay, you’re totally fine. There’s nothing going on. Your heart’s perfect». And I was just battling some anxiety, and it was really the Lord, because it allowed me, because the manuscript was not due yet, that I was able to include a lot of the things that I went through and I turned it in. Of course, the book came out in 2021. And I still don’t consider myself to be an expert on the topic, but I definitely have more moral authority than I did.
And look at me, everybody, I care about you in this area. I care about you in every area, but I really care about you in this area. And if you are feeling that way, please, I told you my story, I was very vulnerable right then to hopefully remove the stigma, if there’s any place the conversation should be happening about mental health, it should be in the church, amen, everybody? Because God’s got answers. And I got myself a comeback in 2020, and hopefully, you’re going to see one happen in your life as well. The story that I used back then was the about the story of the prophet Elijah, whose life is written about in 1 Kings.
In 1 Kings 18, great preaching material, he defeats the prophets of Baal and Asherah. His altar was, that was consumed in water was consumed by the fire of God, and all the gods of Baal and Asherah did not show up, and he defeated 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah. And then right in the next paragraph, he prays, because there had been a 3 ½-year drought and it rained. I mean this guy was seeing serious success and victory. And in the next verse, it’s in the next chapter, but it’s the next verse, the Bible says this, «Ahab,» who was the king of Israel, «told Jezebel,» who’s the queen of Israel, «everything Elijah had done,» how he had killed all of the prophets with a sword, 850 of them, «So Jezebel posted on Facebook to Elijah to say,» and that’s all it was, by the way.
So, she didn’t even tell him directly. He just read it in a message. It was a post on Instagram. It was a comment, «May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I don’t make your life like you made those prophets of Baal and A», in other words, «You killed them, I’m getting ready to kill you». And the Bible says, this great man of God, who knew victory and success, I can relate to this, «was afraid and ran for his life». In fact, «When he came to Beersheba,» and I’ve only highlighted that word so you’ll remember it, because I’m gonna come back to it at the end of the service, so just remember that word. «When he came to Beersheba,» he left a lot of things, including his servant. He decided to face his mental health issues alone.
«He left his servant there, while he went a day’s journey into the wilderness». So he went into solitude, «came to a broom bush,» which is a low-growing tree, actually, where he could get up under and get out of the sun, «sat down under it and prayed that he would die». He was suicidal. And he said, «I have had enough». How many of y’all know that can be your life verse once in a while? Isn’t that right, everybody? Like, man, I think I’ve just had enough. And he said, «Take my life». Again, suicidal. And then he throws in this random comment that I’ll explain later. «I am no better than my ancestors». Like, what does that have to do with anything? And Elijah actually goes through a series of depression and emotional trauma, honestly.
And so when I was doing my research for the book, probably the greatest revelation that I received that I want to pass on to you is that, that most doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, Christian or secular, all agree that there’s about nine major causes of depression. There are many causes, but there are nine major ones. Watch this, of the nine, two of them are genetic in nature, or medical in nature, where you might need some medication. Tammy and I, our youngest son, is actually on the autism spectrum and needs medication. In fact, I’ll never forget the day he got it for the first time. He walks straight up to me and goes, «Dad, for the first time in my life, all the wires connect, I can think».
You know, so I don’t deny that some people’s issues are purely medical, or genetic, or biological. And two of the nine are, but watch this, seven of the nine aren’t. They’re what they call «psychosocial» or «behavioral». They’re lifestyle related, which actually should give you some good news, because if you’re doing it to yourself, you can not do it to yourself. And that should give you a lot of hope, right? That, that if you’re in this place, there’s, there are sometimes some things we can just not do and that’d get us healthy again. Well check it out, Elijah did five of the seven. And I wanna give them to you very quickly before I give you the solution.
The first one was, if you look at his life, he was always running from this place. It uses that word a lot, running from this place to that place, running, running, running, running, running, running. And for a lot of us, we’re doing this same thing. We are running ourselves into exhaustion. And I don’t know who I’m talking to today, but I would just say to you very respectfully and very pastorally, you’re going too hard, and it’s going to catch up with you. And for those of you who say, «I can do it,» there’s a lot of things you can do that you cannot sustain, like, if you keep doing, it’s going to catch up with you. And some of you are feeling the effects of, look at me, it’s too much, it’s just too much.
And I mean, there’s lots of, there’s lots of data that tell us that your lifestyle is the leading cause of depression. In fact, one researcher said it this way, «We were never designed for the sedentary,» that means staying still all day behind a computer, «indoor,» in fact, there’s a direct correlation from the amount of sunlight you get and depression, «socially isolated, fast-food laden, sleep-deprived,» 90% of Americans aren’t getting enough sleep, studies say, «frenzied pace of modern life». So everybody wants to talk about what medication you’re on. We need to talk less about chemical imbalances and more about the imbalances in the way we live our lives, that’s a fact. And that’s why we pause.
That’s why we come to church on a Sunday. It’s a regroup, it’s the first day of the week before we enter a week, and we stop, and we say, «God, you’re important, your worship’s important. A day off’s important. I’m gonna», and that’s hopefully what’s happening for all of us. And if you’re watching online, I hope that’s happening for you, I hope that you’re having this worship experience where you can, you know, get your life back in order to a certain degree. The second thing that Elijah did that is one of the causes, the data research causes of depression, is isolation. In 2023, three years after COVID, the U.S. Surgeon General declared loneliness as a public health epidemic. They actually said that they now can trace loneliness to increase of heart disease, stroke, and early death, loneliness.
And there are a lot of people, you say, «Well, I got people all around me,» but you can have somebody right next to you and be lonely in your heart. And there are some of you that feel that way. You feel like nobody understands me, nobody gets me, and you feel very, very lonely. And in fact, one doctor that I researched said, «The single greatest predictor of depression is not trauma, it’s actually loneliness». And maybe that’s you today. Maybe you find yourself in a place where, you know, that’s happening in your heart. I’ve got some answers for you by the grace of God today, all right?
Another one that he did, remember he said, and I told you to remember, «I am no better than my ancestors»? Like dude, why are you thinking about them right now? Because it’s something that humans almost cannot stop doing, and there’s chances are a bunch of you guys are doing it too, and that is comparing ourselves to others. So like… and even today, it’s wonderful and terrible at the same time, and honestly, it’s more terrible than wonderful, that we have apps and social media apps so we can constantly keep up with how great everybody else’s life is, right? And they showing it all the time. They given us their highlight reel, and we always compare it with our miserable lives. They say that this generation is the first generation that’s combining two opposites. We’re both narcissistic, always thinking about ourselves, not others, which is very, very dangerous, and low self-esteem at the same time.
So if you’re thinking about you and you don’t even like you, see what I’m saying? And the social media piles on it, because we’re always seeing all these wonderful pictures of, «Oh, they’re working out, I didn’t do that today». You know, and they’re showing you, oh, their beautiful kids, and they were slapping their kids right before that picture. Y’all nailed that, right, everybody? Okay, okay, and we’re comparing ourselves with each other. Here’s another one. I haven’t read the text to you yet, but I’m gonna read it to you in a minute, but Elijah constantly, in fact, he said it twice, he rehearsed a narrative, watch this, that he knew wasn’t true.
Because at the beginning of 1 Kings 18, it says Obadiah, another prophet, told him, «There’s a hundred other prophets, you’re not alone». And he starts saying, «Oh, I’m alone. There’s no, no one left, I’m all by myself». And a lot of us do the same thing. We believe the lies we tell ourselves. So there’s actually, they call it ruminating, where you’re actually are taking a truth, and it can be a real distressing truth, I’m not saying your distress isn’t real, but if you take your distress and mull it over and chew on it, it gets worse and worse and worse and worse, and then you start believing it. And when you believe it, it starts to destroy your life. The fifth thing that Elijah did that researchers say will cause depression is that it’s when you forget why you were created, like you don’t even know why you’re on the planet.
I’m talking about your real purpose in life. My favorite person I researched over those two years was Viktor Frankl. Frankl was a Jewish psychiatrist who counseled people coming out of the Holocaust. They were Jewish survivors of the Holocaust. And he had a theory that was different from Sigmund Freud. Freud believed if you give people pleasure, they get happy. It’s not true. In fact, Frankl said, actually, if you don’t have purpose, you dull your life with pleasures, but it still doesn’t satisfy you. But as Frankl, he said this, it’s one of my favorite quotes ever, he said, «Life is never made unbearable by your circumstances». Some of you say, «Oh yes, it is». No, it’s not, because there are people, watch this, that go through the exact same thing you go through, but it doesn’t hurt them like it hurts you. Why is that? Because your life is really not defined by your circumstances, «but only by the lack of meaning and purpose».
Because when you have purpose, when you go through a bad day, you still know how to fight through it because you have a purpose. Are y’all following me, everybody? All right, here’s the sixth one. Remember I told you Elijah did five of the seven? Well, I’ve added one that the researchers and the doctors never included, but I’m telling you, it’s a cause of depression, so I’m adding it. This is mine, and that is, you’re gonna get depressed when you’re under spiritual attack, okay? And that’s a fact. And there’s more spiritual going on than you realize. Somebody say, «Are you one of those preachers that believes there’s a devil under every rock»? No, but there’s a devil under every other rock, I promise you that.
Let me say it this way, there are more devils than y’all are giving credit for, and that’s a fact, everybody. And so let me give you my favorite quote from my favorite person, and that is, God, okay? Thank you very much. And the Bible, God says, «You have an enemy,» and I don’t like that. Well, that doesn’t make him go away. Had somebody say, «I don’t believe in all that spiritual warfare». I said, «Well, that doesn’t make the devil not do it». «Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion,» this is 1 Peter, «looking for someone to devour». He’s at the drawing board right now trying to destroy your life, and I truly believe, a lot of times, he works harder at destroying our life than we work at defeating him in Jesus’s name. It’s true now, I’m telling you the truth. «So stand firm in your faith,» everybody, because there’s a devil after you, you gotta realize. Those, so those are the causes.
So, all that got Elijah in this cave of depression, and now it kinda makes sense, why? He did six things, right, that he had going on. Because you say, where was it spiritual? Because Jezebel’s not just a person. Jezebel’s a spirit of fear and intimidation. Let me say it this way, if you’ve ever felt fearful and scared of that person at the same time, or scared of that thing, that’s a devil trying to destroy your life, because you’re not supposed to be plagued by fear. You’re supposed to be, you’re supposed to be blessed by faith and believe that God’s got you no matter what. Come on, say a good amen right there, everybody, right? Okay, so, «He went and lay down under the, that tree, that broom bush,» and watch what happened, this is very interesting, «he falls asleep,» so he takes a nap. «And all at once an angel came».
Now if an angel came to your dark, depressed situation, what do you think the angel would do, okay? So this is very interesting to me, because I would think an angel would go, «I’m here, worship God,» or like build an altar, or sacrifice an animal, or do something like that. «Repent,» I think that’s what I thought the angel would say. Watch what he says. The angel said, «Hey, let’s go get some lunch together, you need to eat something». «And he looked around,» and that angel put «some bread» and butter, come on. Butter’s not in there, but I know it was there, come on, everybody, right? Okay, «and a jar of water and watch what», so this is the heavenly prescription. Somebody lean into this. This is the heavenly prescription for depression, the first one, I’m gonna give you five, that «He just ate, drank, and then he went back to sleep again. And the angel of the LORD came to him a second time and touched him and said, 'Now let’s go to dinner.'»
I’m here to tell you on a Sunday, everybody, that God’s plan for your depression is sleep, eat, sleep, eat. Can I get an amen, somebody? All right. I’m very serious. Why? Watch this, it tells us. «He got up and ate. And strengthened by that food, he was able to travel forty days». In other words, he could only take the get out of depression journey if his body was healthy enough to do it. And some of you guys are trying to attack something spiritually, and you’re not physically able to do that spiritual thing. And so for some of you, the first step in your depression journey or getting out of it is to «recover your strength,» like you need to rest, and work out, and get better sleep, and slow down, and cancel some things, you really do. And Jesus did this for his disciples all the time.
In Mark chapter 6, it says, «There were so many people coming,» you would think the next line would be, «so they preached another message to him, they added a service». No. «There were so many people coming that he said to them, 'Hey, let’s get away from these people and to a quiet place and let’s get some, '» say the last word out loud, let’s get some… (rest). And I’m here to tell you, as one of your pastors here, God wants you to rest. Like your Sabbath day, today, wasn’t designed just to be, go to church for 70 minutes, call it done, and then go work, work, work, go mow your grass, and do this and do that, and make some phone calls, and. Eat, sleep, eat, sleep. I’m going home in a few minutes after this.
Miss Tammy’s gonna have me something, and I don’t know what it is, but it’s gonna be, she’s preparing it as we speak. And oh, thank you, Father, all right? So God bless y’all, we’ll see you next week. No, I’m just kidding, okay. But then I’m gonna go down to the basement, I’m gonna turn on the golf tournament, and I call, I’m gonna turn the golf tournament on and not watch it. I’m gonna, I’m gonna nap through about half of it, and by the way, when I wake up, they gonna be doing the same thing, ain’t that right, everybody? Not much changes in that tournament. And why? Because I have decided that I’ve gotta have some rest. I can’t keep going hard, hard, hard. I probably studied ten hours yesterday, studied all week, traveled some last week, you know, and then, honestly, doing service after service after service, it’s not easy, you know, and get home. But now I’ve got to set aside some time to rest because it’s in God’s Word. And some of you guys need to do the same thing.
Now men, you ought to say «amen». That means all your honey do’s this afternoon, I just told you God says, «No, you gotta take a nap, everyone». Come on, men, I helped you out right there, okay? And then, the Bible says, «He went into a cave,» which he should have never done, by the way, it’s a dark place, «and he spent the night. And the word of the LORD came to him,» what do you want me to do? «Why are you here, Elijah»? And here’s the lie he tells, «I’m very zealous for the LORD. The Israelites have rejected your covenant,» and by the way, that’s not true, there was hundreds who were still serving God, «they’ve torn down your altars, they put your prophets to death with a sword. And I’m the only one left,» and it’s not true.
So here’s what God says. This is your second prescription. First one is recover your strength. «The LORD said, 'All right, go out and stand at the mouth of the cave and get in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.' And a great and powerful wind tore through the mountains and shattered the rocks, but the LORD was not in the wind. And then, a great earthquake came, but God wasn’t in the earthquake either. And then after the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper».
What does all that mean? Elijah only knew God in the dynamic but didn’t know God in the intimate. So he was used to the fire from heaven God, but he had lost his personal whisper time with God. There’s a bunch of you, you’re faithful in church, you come in with the lights, and the music, and the message, and all the things that we give you, you know the dynamic, but have you lost the intimate and the personal? Have you lost Monday by yourself with your boombox and your… they don’t probably use those anymore, do you? Like, your little speaker, your playlist, your Bible, your prayer time.
Now I’m going to say something, I’m going to say it strong because I, I received it from God, I believe, strong. And y’all know I don’t talk this way very often. And there’s not many times over 24 ½ years have you heard me say, «God told me to tell you this». It’s a handful. So when I say it, I would love for you to lean in, because I’m telling you, God told me to tell you this, that there is somebody that’s listening to me right now, you have forsaken your time in the morning with God, and it’s costing you a lot, it’s costing you a lot. And God’s not mad at you. He’s saying, «Come back, we need to have our time in the morning again together». You need to get back to the still whisper of God and get close to God again. Come on, say a good «amen» right there, everybody.
And if you do, immediately you’re gonna see the results of how your day is so much different, your mental health, and your emotions, and your life, your darkness is gonna, when you spend time with God every day, get back to the whisper. You know the dynamic, but get back to the whisper. We need to return to God’s presence. Get your daily time with God. I’m giving you all Rs. So recover your strength, return to God’s presence. Here’s the third one. «And when Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face,» your face represents what you look like, it’s your identity. We don’t know who you are unless we see your face, right? «And he went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. And the voice said to him, 'What are you doing here, Elijah? '»
And watch what he does, everybody. He repeats the same lie. «I’ve been very zealous for the LORD Almighty. The Israelites have rejected you. They’ve killed the prophets with a sword. And I’m the only one left». And it wasn’t true. And there’s a lot of you guys that have started to believe something that’s not true, and you believed it because you’ve kept telling yourself this, and that’s why it’s critical. Third R, write it down if you’re taking notes, to «remember who you really are». And I’ve come here today to remind you, you’re a child of the Most High God. You are called to be the head and not the tail, above and not beneath. God has great things for your life. You are saved, redeemed, healed, transformed, and blessed by the power of Almighty God! You need to know who you are! You know, tonight we have the Growth Track. You hear about Growth Track, Growth Track. You hear that all the time.
Can I tell you what it’s really all about? Because I have, somebody told me something, they said, «Oh, I know why y’all do that. You just, y’all just looking for more people to volunteer on a Sunday». I said, «No, not at all. The Growth Track is your place to get connected to a local church, but the rest of it’s all about telling you and showing you who you really are». That’s why, if you come tonight, you actually get two in one. You get step one and step two because of Easter. But in step two, it’s all about a spiritual gifts and a personality profile, and all we’re trying to do is show you who you really are, because we pastor you best when you’re sure of who you really are and you’re not believing a lie about yourself. And I’m here to tell you, God’s got something very special for your life.
Look at me, look at me, you’re fearfully and wonderfully made, you’re a masterpiece of the Most High God, created in Christ Jesus, and somebody needs to tell you that again. And when it happens, the darkness is gonna go in Jesus’s name. Let me show you the next one. «So the LORD said, 'Go back the way you came, '» now remember I told you to remember the word Beersheba? Well, that’s the way he came. That’s where he left his servant. Let me say it this way, he left the ministry. Boy, I know that feeling because I felt that way in 2020. I would have never taken my life physically, I’ve never had that thought in my life, but I was ready to commit ministry suicide. I was done, I was so done, and that’s where Elijah was.
And God says, «No, no, no, you don’t need to be done, you need to go back, you need to go back to the place that you committed your life to Christ». And he watches this, and he says, «And get back to work, and anoint this guy, and anoint that guy, and anoint that guy, and get back, go back the way you came». What does that R represent? To «refocus on your calling,» your assignment. Listen to me, you have an assignment, you have a purpose, and when you don’t know what it is, you die. If you’re not connected to your calling, your God-given assignment, you die, now maybe not physically, but you die. Your dreams die, your emotions die, your health dies, your mind die, why? Because you were put on the planet to do something that actually matters.
Conversely, Psalm 126 says that «When you are restored back to health, it’s when you dream. And when you dream, your mouths are filled with laughter, and your tongues with songs of joy». What am I saying? I’m saying that when you’re doing what you were created to do, that’s when you get your joy back. I wanna go so far to say this, of the five Rs that I’m giving you, this prescription for mental health and emotional health, this one might work the easiest. Like, if you’re only to do one, I’ve seen more people get their life back by saying, «I’m not gonna live for myself, I’m gonna live for others, I’m gonna make a difference in this world,» and they get their life dreaming again. I had a buddy of mine who’s a golf buddy here in the church, and he participated in our First Saturday Serve yesterday.
And I was studying, I was in the middle of my office, home office, and all of a sudden, all these pictures pop up, pow, pow, pow, pow, pow. And everybody in red shirts, and he’s passing out food to people who are hungry. And he goes, «Oh, PC, man, I had the best day ever». Well, I know for a fact this guy’s incredibly busy. He’s got a big old company he runs, and he’s just all fired up about his Serve Day, these two or three hours that he gave away that he probably didn’t have time for, but he’s all fired up about it, and he had joy in his heart, why? Because that’s where joy is found. Somebody said, «I can’t find God». Let me tell you where God is. He’s over there where hurting people are. You go serve those people, you’ll find yourself some God, and you’re gonna find joy again.
Now some of us just need to recover and remember our calling, refocus on the fact that you’re called by Almighty God. This is good preaching. Come on somebody, amen? Here’s one more. I hear the music, I’m gonna be done right here, okay. Here’s the last one. So he’s done all these others, and it says that «Elijah went from there and found Elisha,» who became, by the way, his Mark Pettus, his successor, the one he said, «I’m gonna pour my life into you». «And he was plowing the field. And he went up to him and threw his cloak around him,» and said, he said, basically said, «Hey, let’s do life together».
And from that moment on, Elijah’s written about all throughout the Bible still, watch this, but two things never happened again. Elijah’s never alone again, and Elijah’s never depressed again, ever. You know why? Because you can’t do this alone. You have to, fifth R, «reconnect with Godly people». The closer you are, the more you lean in, which is another reason why I want you to come back tonight and consider joining this church. Don’t just attend it, join it. It’s in your notes if you’re looking at the app because two are better than one. Pity the person who falls, has a depressed day, and there’s no one there to pick him up. But in Jesus’s name, we stepping back into the light with the help of our God. Can I hear a good «amen,» everybody? Come on, give God praise together, everybody, all right. No one moving around, just let’s bow for prayer. Would you just, right there where you are, just take a moment and just:
God, I pray for every person who’s going through darkness, and depression, anxiety, fear, trauma, God, their hearts are heavy, their souls are broken, they’re, they’re stressed. God, they can’t sleep. God, I’m asking today, God, that you put the light of God on the inside of them and give them the courage to take steps towards you, powerful steps towards you, Lord, because we know you have the solution. God, give them a comeback, I pray, in the mighty name of Jesus.
With every head bowed, every eye closed, please no one moving around at all of our campuses, just for a second, you’re here today, and you really need to give your life to Jesus, and maybe this is for the first time, maybe this is a rededication, because if you’re honest with yourself, you’ve wandered away from God, you know it, you feel distance, and you want to be close again.
Check it out, you got to have him, you have to have him. You can’t honestly face any of this without the help and the relationship that comes with knowing God, and of course, that only comes through his son, Jesus Christ. Today, you’re willing to give Jesus your life, make him the Lord of your life. He’ll forgive your sins, put his power on the inside of you, and give you a home in heaven after this life, but you have to surrender your life completely to him. I always say it’s the easiest thing you’ll ever do, but it will cost you everything. And if you’re ready for that, I’m not gonna have you stand up or come down to the front, but I wanna pray for you right there where you are. But I am asking you to be bold.
Say, «that’s me, pastor, that’s me. I need, I need to get my life right with God». Without hesitation, at all of our campuses, even online, if that’s you, and you want prayer, put your hand up high right now, let me pray for you. Lift it high, lift it high, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, all over this room. God bless you, God bless you, God bless you. Anybody else just wanna join them? God bless you, guys. Thank you, way in the back, so awesome. Just my favorite thing that happens every Sunday. God bless you, I see you way at the top, God bless you. If you lifted your hand or maybe you didn’t, just pray this prayer, just whisper it right there where you are, say:
Jesus, I need you, and today, I make you the Lord of my life, and I surrender my life completely to you. So forgive me, change me, live inside of me. I believe, you’re the Son of God who died on a cross and rose from the dead, and today, I put my faith in you and my life in you. Thank you for saving me. In your name I pray, amen.