Priscilla Shirer - How to Remain Faithful
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Summary
Priscilla Shirer delivers a powerful call to faithfulness and endurance at Concord Church, using the story of the lone house standing after Hurricane Ike in Gilcrest as a vivid picture of lives that withstand life’s storms. Drawing from 1 John 2:13–14, 28, she urges believers in every stage—infancy (knowing the Father intimately), adolescence (building spiritual muscle through trials), and maturity (becoming spiritual parents who testify Jesus is worth it)—to «remain» and abide in Christ. With eternity in view and Jesus' return imminent, she challenges everyone to build houses that last, stay faithful through every season, and pass the baton of faith to the next generation, declaring unashamedly that serving Jesus is still worth it.
Greeting and Celebration of Pastors
Good morning, family. It’s a pleasure to be with you this morning and to have the opportunity to share with the Concord Church. For those of you who don’t know, I go to church just about a mile from here, down the street at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Church. For all these many decades, we’ve been in the same community, in the same orbit, doing life, community, and church together. It feels like I’m at home with family, and it’s a pleasure to be able to serve you today. Thank you for having me. I can’t let the opportunity pass by to celebrate your pastors and leaders, Brian and Stephanie Carter. They are incredible people, and truly the Lord must love you all to have given you pastors who possess such integrity in their marriage, family, and ministry. That’s a big deal, and we are grateful for them.
I told the first service that Jerry and I are just about 24 years into being married now. In the first couple of years, we would go out with friends, but really, it was like my friend; I was friends with her, and then she was married. So basically, I was setting my husband up on playdates. About two or three years into our marriage, he looked at me and said, «Stop setting me up on these playdates. I don’t want to meet your friends' husbands and be set up with them.»
So we stopped hanging out with people, and I prayed for a long time that the Lord would give us a couple where the four of us were really knitted together in our hearts. The Lord answered that prayer for us with Brian and Stephanie Carter. For a lot of years now, we’ve really done life together, and that’s been a blessing to us. It feels like a gift to be able to serve them in this way this morning. I’m excited about God’s word and to share what I think is a simple yet important and profound challenge with you. It’s been a challenge for me, so I’m hoping it will encourage you as well. Are you all ready? Let’s pray.
Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus, I thank you for your word, that it is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword. Father, I pray that you would take the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart and make them acceptable to you. Father, build up your people today. We are your sons and your daughters, and we’re listening. Lord, we came for a word from you. Speak in Jesus' name. Amen.
Hurricane Ike and the Lone Standing House
It was September 2008. Some of you may remember when a hurricane named Ike swept through. It caused extensive damage. 110-mile-per-hour winds ripped through towns across Texas, but there was one town that was hit the hardest. It’s a little town called Gilcrest. This little town is a community that boasts about 200 homes or so. It’s not a big town, not a big community, but it’s where a lot of people in the latter years of their lives decided they would go for a little respite and peace during their retirement years. They went to this beachside community called Gilcrest so that they could have peace. But you all know how life is; the storm came in 2008 and devastated the community.
In fact, the aftermath was so devastating that people who visited the neighborhood 24 hours after the storm said that this beach town community was almost completely unrecognizable. What had once been friendly sidewalks, detailed landscaped lawns, and brightly colored small homes right there on the shoreline had been completely wiped out. There was very little left that even gave a nod to the fact that there had been history there, that there had been a neighborhood. Of the 200 homes that had been standing the day before, 199 of them had been wiped out by the storm.
It’s a completely odd and devastating sight to look at this neighborhood because there was only one house that remained after the storm. If I had time this morning, I would tell you about the owners of this house because they really gave testament to the fact that the only reason they believe their house still stood is that they had been through previous storms. As a result of having been through previous storms, they called in a master architect, a master builder, and asked him to help them retrofit their home to fortify it more securely so that for future storms they would be able to stand. After Ike, they were the only house that remained.
The reality is, if you look closely at that image, you will see and think about the fact that sadly, that picture mirrors the landscape of a lot of our own lives. Because when you look around you, you’ll notice that there are a whole lot of people who started with you who, upon realization, actually weren’t building houses that were meant to last. They talked a good game at the beginning; they meant well; maybe they had good intentions. But the storm came, and their houses are not still standing. They made vows to be committed—maybe to the marriage they were building, the family they had been entrusted with, the ministry that the Lord was birthing through them, or the business that they were starting. Maybe as single men and women, you started out together deciding to walk in integrity. But over time, you realize that everybody’s house isn’t still standing, and the landscape of our lives is dotted with houses that have been collapsing one after the other, as people have not been able to weather the storm.
Call to Remain Faithful
I want to talk to you this morning about remaining, about being faithful over the course of time, about having houses that still stand—not just in one season, not just in the next, not just for one year or two, not just through one storm or just a couple, but over the seasons of life, through mountaintops and valleys. You and I have got to be committed to making sure that that which the Lord has entrusted to us, the assignments He has given us, the endeavors that He has put in our hearts to build for His glory, that in the end, our houses are still intact.
Where are the saints who will remain? Where are the saints who will be faithful? Where are the people who have decided that, come hell or high water, they will serve the Lord? The political landscape may change, the stock market may plummet, and cultural ideals may shift. But I’ve decided that my hope is built on nothing less than Christ and His faithfulness to me, and that we will be faithful over the course of time.
Y’all, so many people are jumping ship. Have you noticed? So many people have decided they are going to leave their marriages or give up on the parenting endeavor that God has given them with their children. Dreamers are throwing in the towel on the dreams God entrusted to them. Ministers are quitting what they said was a calling. Why is it such a rarity to find people who have just decided to stay, who have decided to be faithful?
In a room this size, with so many people, I know there are many of us from diverse backgrounds and experiences, dynamics, different seasons, and generations of life. I would be remiss to think that there aren’t more than a few who, if the truth be told on this Sunday morning, are on the brink of jumping ship. Because right now, this season of your life, if we were to take this microphone and start right here in the front and pass it all the way to the back, all of us could give testimony of hardship we are currently facing or have just come out of. The reality is that all of us in this room are in one of three places: you’re either right smack dab in the middle of a storm, you’re on your way into one, or you’re on your way out of one. It’s the nature of the life we live.
And maybe this Sunday morning finds you at a time where you have said to the Lord, «If you don’t tell me to hang on, I’m throwing in the towel.» I believe that possibly the Holy Spirit just sent me over from Arlington, Texas, to tell you in the name of Jesus Christ, «Stay! Remain! Be faithful! Keep your hand to the plow, keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, have integrity, have character, and remain!»
Y’all, the older I get, the less impressed I am with the famous and the more impressed I am with the faithful — people who have just gone the distance. They may not be famous, but they’ve remained. They may not be rich, but they’ve remained. They may not be applauded by the masses, but they’ve remained. They may not have millions of followers on Facebook or best-selling books, but they’re not concerned about that; they’re just trying to be steadfast, unmoved, and always abounding in the work of the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, stay!
Scripture: 1 John 2:13–14, 28 — The Call to Abide
John writes about staying over and over throughout his gospel—over 40 times. In the book of the Gospel of John, he uses the word «abide.» That’s the word for remain, stay, dwell, dig your roots deep, and be steady. Then in his letters, 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John—three epistles—scholars call those the «remaining trio, » or the «staying trifecta, » because over and over again in those letters, he keeps writing this challenge to us: remain. Be faithful. Stay in the good times but also, especially in the bad times—to stay over the course of time.
So I want to read a couple of verses to you from 1 John chapter 2. I’m going to read verse 13 and 14 and then verse 28. It says this: «I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.» It’s so important that he repeats it almost verbatim in verse 14: «I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.» Then verse 28 says, «And now, little children, here’s our word: abide in Him.» Some of your translations might say «remain in Him, » «so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him at His coming.»
John says, «I’m going to tell you right now what the catalyst is for the reason why I’m telling you to remain, what your 'why' will be as to whether or not you will choose—I will choose—to be faithful over the course of time.» He says, «Abide. Remain. Stay. Be faithful. Build a house that will last over the course of time.» And he says, «I’m going to tell you why. Verse 28, because Jesus is coming!»
That’s why! Because Jesus is on the way. Y’all, listen. I don’t mean in theory. I mean the sky is going to split. I’m telling you, the trumpet is going to sound. Jesus is coming back, and when He returns, we’re going to have to look our Savior in the eyes and give an account for what we did with this life that He entrusted to us. First, we’re going to have to answer the question of whether or not we were in relationship with God by placing faith in Jesus Christ. Then right after we seal that, the next thing will be that the Lord will look at our lives to see whether or not the houses He entrusted to us are still standing—whether or not we were faithful with the time, the talent, and the treasures that He gave us on this side of eternity.
John says the reason why you want to make sure your house is still intact over time is because eternity is in view. And when eternity is constantly in our view, brothers and sisters, when we’re reminded of the fact that one day Jesus is going to return—even, by the way, I think that day is coming sooner than we think—He says when you keep eternity in view, it changes the way you deal with the stuff of Earth: the decisions you make, the responses and reactions you give to people, the words you use, the steps you take, and the forward motion you determine in your businesses, ministries, relationships with your spouses, children, and grandchildren. He says you’re going to want to build a house that is firm and solid and that stands over the course of time because you’re going to have to give an account for this house of yours.
Did you notice that in verses 13 and 14, John deals very specifically with the fact that there are stages and seasons of remaining and being faithful? He recognizes that every season of life isn’t going to be the same. He writes, «I’m writing to you, little children, » then he says, «I’m writing to you, young men, „—that’s adolescence. Then he says, „I’m writing to you, fathers.“ He acknowledges that there are stages and seasons of life, seasons of development, progression, and maturity. One season will lend itself to different hardships, difficulties, joys, or sorrows than another. There are different storms that come in different seasons of life. But he says, „I’m writing to you in each stage so that you will remain, wherever you are, in whatever season or stage you find yourself in on this Sunday morning.“ He says, „I’m challenging you to remain there until God releases you so that you can have a sturdy house that will remain over the course of time.“
Stage 1: Little Children — Know the Father
For just a few moments, what you and I can do is look at these three stages of faithfulness to see where we are in the progression. The bottom of verse 13, the last line, starts us out: He says, „I have written to you, children, “ and here’s why I’m writing to you when you’re in that phase of your growth: „I’m writing to you, children, because you have come to know the Father.“ He says, „I’m writing to you when you’re in that infancy stage.“ The word in the original language that he uses, translated as „children, “ refers to an infant. Think about what babies do: they rest on the shoulders of the one who loves them the most. They don’t produce; they don’t generate; they don’t offer much. They just relax in the embrace of the one who gave birth to them. They learn to recognize the voice of their mother or father; they learn they can be covered, taken care of, nourished, and provided for by the one who gave them life.
He says, „I’m writing to you, little children, when you’re in that phase because the whole goal to build a solid foundation for this house of yours—the whole goal of your life when you’re in the infancy stage—should be verse 13: to come to know who your daddy is.“ There’s no way the foundation of your house will be firm unless you know your Father.
Safari Story — Zebra Foal and Knowing the Mother
Jerry and I, as was mentioned, you saw a picture of us with our boys—three boys that we got the opportunity to travel with throughout their lifetimes in ministry. We’ve been traveling a lot; we homeschooled them for many years so they could come on the journey with us. One of the places we got to take them about five years ago was to Cape Town, South Africa. Because we were homeschooling, I planned what they were learning based on the fact that I knew they were going to Cape Town. We knew a year in advance that we were going to go, so we saved up money for them to go. Man, we thought this might be a once-in-a-lifetime thing; let’s take the boys with us.
So we planned our homeschooling around it. I thought, „Okay, we’re going to learn about the apartheid movement and the geography of Table Mountain and Lion’s Head, and maybe even see some animals that are indigenous to that area.“ My goal was that six weeks later, when we went there, we would actually see those things in person. We took the boys, and I think they thought they were going on vacation. But no, we were not just waking up every day seeing whatever there was to see over in beautiful Cape Town. I was milking that experience, waking up early in the morning. They had attitudes about getting up. They thought they were just going to relax in the hotel. I was like, „No! You’re going to see all this and you’re going to be happy about it!“ One day you’re going to rise up and call me blessed!
So I dragged them around all week, making them see Table Mountain, the apartheid museum, and taking a ferry over to Robben Island to see where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. One of the things we did was we woke up before the sun came up one morning and traveled two hours outside Cape Town to do a little half-day safari. I wanted them to possibly see some animals that we had only seen online, so we got to this open-faced Jeep. There was a very bubbly guy who was our guide. He sat at the front of the Jeep and we began to go around this safari park. We saw lots of animals we had never seen before in person. I remember specifically when we stopped by a herd of zebras. I can consciously remember thinking, „I hope he doesn’t spend a lot of time talking about these zebras because we can see zebras at the Dallas Zoo down the street. We don’t need an explanation.“ But after he stopped and explained, I was glad he did. He pointed out a baby foal that was with the herd. He said, „Y’all see that baby zebra right there? I’m stopping at the zebras to point out that baby because this is the first time I’ve seen the baby back with the herd since it was born about two or three weeks ago.“
He said, „I want to tell y’all why. The stripes on every single zebra are as unique to each zebra as thumbprints on human beings. You can’t see it with the naked eye, but particularly the configuration of stripes that are right there in the middle of the forehead of every zebra is just as distinct as fingerprints on human beings. So when a new baby zebra is born, the mother will take that foal aside from the herd for the first two or three weeks of its life because her whole goal is to make sure that her baby is not distracted by all the configurations of stripes on the foreheads of the other zebras. The mother wants to bait the baby to just zero in on the stripes that are on her forehead. So when she brings the baby back to all the other stripes, the baby will not be confused about the configuration of stripes that belongs to the one who gave it life.“
John says the whole reason you want to take time to get to know who your Father is because we live in a day and age that tries to present to us a whole bunch of closely configured stripes. If you’re not careful, you’re going to be played for a fool. You’ll have to know that by His stripes and His stripes alone, you have been healed. You’re going to have to know who your Father is. You’re going to have to know His character. You’re going to need to know the sound of His voice. You’re going to have to know how He related to Moses, Joshua, Ruth, and Esther. You need to see Him in the New Testament as the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory—the glory of the only begotten, full of grace and truth. The reason you’re going to have to know is so that when the culture presents to you a new, modernized version of this Jesus—the one who is silent against injustice and has lowered His standard of holiness—you need to be able to see that version and say, „Ah, that’s not who He is, because I know who He was.“
You need to take time to really get to know who your Father is. John says, „Don’t circumvent this part of the process. Infancy is for intimacy. It’s for you to get to know who your daddy is.“ And those of you on this Youth Sunday that are young people in the house of God, listen—don’t circumvent or negate this part of the process. Don’t succumb to the pressure that you need to be something other than where you are right now, just getting to know who your daddy is. In this hustle and grind culture that tells all of us we have to produce more, do more, and be more—no! Sometimes we just need to sit down somewhere and get to know who our daddy is.
Warning Against Pressure Too Soon
Pediatricians will tell you not to bounce babies too early on their legs. Resist the temptation to put too much pressure on their legs too soon because even the most minute amount of pressure too soon, while their bones are still malleable and soft, can cause just a slight distortion in their spines. You won’t see it initially. It’s over years, as they mature and as their bodies grow, that you will see they have a little bit of a limp in their step because too much pressure was put on them too soon. And y’all, we have a generation of young people who have had too much pressure put on them too soon. You don’t see it initially; it’s later in life when they are walking with a spiritual limp, when their morality is off and their conscience is skewed; it’s because they didn’t take time to just get to know who their daddy is.
Knowing God Throughout Scripture
You need to know that in Genesis, He’s the Breath of Life. You need to see Him in Exodus as the Passover Lamb. You need to come to know Him in Leviticus as your High Priest. You need to know that in Numbers, He’s the fire by night; and in Deuteronomy, He is Israel’s guide. You need to see Him in Joshua as salvation’s choice and in Judges as Israel’s guard. You need to know that in Ruth, He is the Kinsman Redeemer. You need to have seen Him in 1 and 2 Samuel as our trusted Prophet. You need to know that in Kings and Chronicles, He is Sovereign. You need to have seen Him in Ezra as the true and faithful scribe; and in Nehemiah, as the one who rebuilds walls and lives. You need to know that in Esther, He is your courage. In Job, He’s the Timeless Redeemer. You need to have taken time to see Him in Psalms as your morning song and in Proverbs as your wisdom.
You need to have seen that in Ecclesiastes, He’s a time and season, and in the Song of Solomon, He’s the Lover’s Dream. In Isaiah, He’s the Prince of Peace, and in Jeremiah, He’s the weeping prophet. In Lamentations, He’s the cry for Israel, and in Ezekiel, He’s the call from sin. In Daniel, He’s the stranger in the fire; in Hosea, He’s the forever faithful one. You need to know that in Joel, He’s the Spirit’s power, and in Amos, He’s the strong arms that carry. In Obadiah, He is the Lord our Savior; in Jonah, He’s the great missionary. In Micah, He’s the promise of peace; in Nahum, He’s our strengthened shield. In Habakkuk and Zephaniah, He brings revival. You need to know He’s the one who restores what was once lost; in Zechariah, He is our fountain; and in Malachi, He’s the Son of righteousness rising with healing in His wings.
And y’all, that’s just who He is in the Old Testament. Because the truth is, if you wait about 400 years, and you just flip over a couple of pages, you’ll see that in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, He’s not just God now; He’s your Messiah. In the Spirit-filled book of Acts, He’s the reigning fire from heaven. In Romans, He’s the grace of God. In Corinthians, He’s the power of love. In Galatians, He’s freedom from the curse of sin. In Ephesians, He’s our glorious treasure. In Philippians, He’s the servant’s heart. In Colossians, He’s God in the Trinity; in Thessalonians, He’s our calling King. In Timothy, Titus, and Philemon, He shows up as our mediator and our faithful Pastor. In Hebrews, He’s the everlasting courage. In James, He’s the one who heals you when you’re sick; in 1 and 2 Peter, He’s our faithful Shepherd. In John and Jude, He’s the lover coming for His bride.
And in the Revelation, in the very end, when it’s all over and said and done, He was, He is, and He will always be the first, the last, the beginning, and the end. That’s who He is! Amen! Take time to get to know who your daddy is. Remain here until He releases you because if you abort this part of the process, you will have no character. Your foundation won’t be solid. And let me tell you something: when the spotlight you’re craving hits you and you have no character, it will burn you to a crisp.
Stage 2: Young Men — Build Spiritual Muscle
John says the reason why you’re going to need a sturdy character in your fledgling stages is that you are going to grow up and become young men and young women. He’s referring to puberty here; he’s referring to adolescence. He says you’ll know when you’re in this stage. Verse 13, „I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.“ He reiterates this in verse 14 and says, „I’m writing to you when you’re in the adolescent stage because you are strong.“ This is the stage where you gain muscle.
Our boys are huge, y’all—they’re giants! They’ve been giants! At about age 12, we could tell they were going to be powerful boys. Each son sprouted up to about six-foot-two, and they had size 14 men’s shoes! They have been big for a long time. It was around that age that I recognized their strength; at that time, they could toss me on the couch when we were wrestling and pin me down. I realized, „Oh, I’m out!“ Each son had their moment where I had to realize they could take me down and that their father was going to have to wrestle with them, not me.
It wasn’t until their later teenage years that their father allowed their coaches to add weights to their training. Before then, he was like, „No, they’re too young; they can do push-ups and stuff, but don’t put any weight on them until they’re older.“ Once they started lifting weights, the power that was in them began to take shape on the outside of them. Suddenly there were biceps and triceps, and their chests were rounded. This is when they started walking around the house with their shirts off, thinking they had swag!
I was like, „Boy, that’s nasty! Put your shirt on!“
The power was in them, but now it started to be evident on the outside of them. John says, „This is the adolescent stage. You know you’re in it when life is weighty, when the heaviness of that dynamic—the marriage, the parenting, the struggles in your finances or your ministry—when the burden feels too heavy for you to keep lifting!“
He says, „I’m writing to you today to remain through this season because this is the season where most people jump ship.“ This is the season where folks start throwing in the towel and bailing on the assignment God has given them because it’s burdensome and weighty. But if you hang in there, this is the stage where you develop spiritual muscle, where the strength in you starts to show up on the outside. I’m talking about when folks can look at you and see that you have a peace that passes all understanding, a joy anchored in something different, that they have hope when everyone else around them is hopeless.
Somehow there’s still a smile on their faces. Why? Why does she react like that? Why does he speak like that? Why does she walk like that? How is she able to make choices like that? It’s because the strength that’s in you is taking shape on the outside of you.
It’s when our faith is no longer this intangible thing; it’s spiritual muscle, structural integrity in the scaffolding of our house that will keep it standing over time and through life’s storms. Don’t give up in this season! If you find yourself in this season today on this Sunday morning, and things are hard and you’re about to throw in the towel, the Holy Spirit of God says, „Stay! Spiritual fortification is coming to your house right now in Jesus' name!“
Stage 3: Fathers — Spiritual Parents Testifying
The reason you’ll need a solid foundation and sturdy scaffolding as fortification in your house is that He says, „I’m writing to you, fathers.“ You’re going to graduate to mothers!
Please notice that he does not say „adults.“ He says, „I’m writing to some spiritual parents.“ These are people who have stood the course of time. They’ve been through some storms and have the scars, wounds, and bruises to show you when they went through this hurricane, this hail storm, or this rain storm, and yet here they are in this season of their lives, and their house is still standing. Spiritual parents are those whose houses are still standing, and they are willing to fling open the front door and invite the people who are coming after them in, saying, „Come on in here and sit in my living room, and let me testify to you about why serving Jesus is still worth it.“
John says, „I’m writing to you, fathers, because you have known Him who has been from the beginning.“ This is the same John at the beginning of his gospel, John 1:1, who said, „In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.“ He’s talking about Jesus. He says we need some people who have walked with Jesus long enough that they are able to declare unashamedly who Jesus is and that He is still worth serving.
We need some people in a culture and time that seeks to generalize God so that He is one of many options instead of an unmatched entity without comparison and with no counterparts. We need some people who are willing to declare without shame that Jesus is His name and that He is still worth serving—not because they heard about Him through the testimony of somebody else, but because their house is still standing and He has proven in their lives to be the Chief Cornerstone.
We need some spiritual mothers and fathers in the house of God. Y’all, we’re not supposed to come to church and have everyone be a millennial. There have to be some mothers and some fathers who can tell the story, who can testify to the fact that He is the Chief Cornerstone—that He’s the lily of the valley, the one of whom the prophet spoke. It’s not just clichés to them; they’re telling you this because they’re a living witness that Jesus is worth it.
For those of you who are here at Concord Church and have gone the distance—maybe you’ve been married for a long time, raised your children, or served God faithfully in this church—I see your faces. You’ve been here for decades serving God. We say thank you for having houses that are still standing, because your stability and faithfulness allow those of us looking on to see that Jesus is worth it.
And for those of you young people in the house or those just starting out in some season of your life, know that He is faithful. He’s worth serving, and He is able to present you faultless before the throne with exceeding great joy. He will carry you, He will sustain you, and He will keep you until you see Him face to face. He’s worth it!
Personal Story About Her Mother
So, brothers and sisters, be faithful. Whatever assignment the Lord has entrusted to you, put your hands to the plow and don’t look back. Many of you know that my mother went home to be with the Lord three years ago now—unbelievably so. In the last six weeks of her life, we all knew these would probably be her last days with us. The four of us kids, our kids, and then one of those kids has kids, so my mother’s great-grandchildren crowded around her room down the street at our childhood home where Dad still lives. We were just there, lying on the bed, hanging out with her—all the kids and grandkids piled together.
In those last days when she could speak to us, she was basically passing the baton of faith, looking us in the eyes and saying, „Don’t you dare drop this baton!“ That, in the face of death, her house of faith was still standing. She refused to let even the biggest disappointments of our lives—y’all, with the tears still falling and the discouragement and the disappointment, the disillusionment of God not answering our prayers, and so many of our friends' prayers—she hadn’t answered them in the way we hoped He would, nor the way we knew He could.
It’s hard when you know He can do it but He doesn’t. The discouragement of that, the heartbreak of that, the tears watching our father sob—the tears of sadness as he was losing his wife of 49 and a half years. Even in the face of that, to have a mama telling us that Jesus is worth it!
Watching my mama, I decided that whenever my time comes, I will take whatever baton God has given me and pass it to my sons and my sons' sons and daughters, looking my posterity squarely in the face and saying, „You serve Jesus!“ I want a house that’s still standing! So Concord family, whatever God has given you to do in your families, ministries, and businesses, be faithful; He’s worth it.
Closing Prayer
Lord, I thank you so much for your word. I thank you that you are coming soon. I pray, Father, that by your Spirit, you will sustain us so that when we see you face to face, we can hear, „Well done!“ In Jesus' name, amen.