Apostolic Lighthouse
It's Just a Stone's Throw Away - Bro Kaleb Sampson
"Can we give a praise to the Lord?" (congregation applauding) Hallelujah, hallelujah. Hallelujah, come on, we can do better than that for God, can't we? (congregation applauding) (congregation applauding) Hallelujah, come on, put them hands together. Hallelujah, let them know that you're thankful. Let them know that you're grateful. ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah, I lift up my eyes and to the hills ♪ ♪ From whence cometh my help ♪ Where does your help come from? It come from the Lord. Whoo, hallelujah, hallelujah, I'm so thankful, so thankful to be serving a God that is alive. He's well, he's not sick. He's not on vacation, but he's setting there on the throne right now, here in our cry, here in our worship. ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ Here in us as we praise his name and we lift him up and we magnify, and there's something about when God's people get together and they begin to magnify the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, whoo, it turns the heart of God. ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ And he's mine for others' people. ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ Good to be in the house of the Lord tonight. Why you are standing, if you have your Bibles, I'd like to turn to the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 17. The book of 1 Samuel, chapter 17, will be going to verse 40. Hallelujah, hallelujah. First Samuel, chapter 17 and verse 40, if you have it, say amen. - Amen. - If you're still looking for it, say, "O me." Hallelujah, hallelujah. Got some honest people in the house of the Lord tonight. And thank God, thank God, hallelujah, the elder preached to us today, didn't he? Hallelujah, how many enjoyed the elder this morning? (congregation applauding) Hallelujah. I don't want to be deceived right here at the end of time, do you? Hallelujah, I've come too far to be deceived. I know too much to be deceived. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. Man, it ain't getting a lot of any man's on that. I figured I'd get a lot of more any man's on that. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Well, if you haven't found it, look on the board, they'll put it up there for you if you're having trouble. First Samuel, chapter 17. Man, good to have brother. Nothing here tonight from B.B., long-time friend. Good to have him here. Hallelujah, loved my shield family, B.B., church. Hallelujah. Verse 40, "And he took his staff in his hand and he chose him five smooth stones out of the brook. And he put them in a shepherd's bag, which he had even in a script. And his sling was in his hand. And he drew nigh near to the Philistine. And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David and the man that bear the shield went before him. And when the Philistine looked about and he saw David, he disdained him for he was but a youth and Rudy and of a fair countenance. And the Philistine said unto David, am I a dog that thou come as to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, come to me and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and unto the beast of the field. And then said David to the Philistine. Thou come as to me with the sword and with the spear and with the shield. But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of Host, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. Man, I'm glad to be identified with God. Hallelujah, I'm glad I've been buried in his name. I'm glad I took his name in baptism. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. This day will the Lord deliver thee into my hand and I will smite thee and take thy head from thee. And I will give the carcass of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air and to the wild beast of the earth that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Ooh, hallelujah, I'm glad there's a God in Israel today. And all this assembly shall know that the Lord save us not with sword and with spear for the battle is the Lord's and he will give you into our hands. And it come to pass when the Philistine rose and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. And David put in his hand and put his hand in his bag and took thence a stone and he slung it and smote the Philistine in his forehead that the stone sunk into his forehead and he fell upon his face to the earth. So David prevail over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone and smote the Philistine and slew him but there was no sword in the hand of David and therefore David ran and stood upon the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of the sheath. Therefore and slew him and cut off his head therewith and when the Philistine saw their champion was dead, they fled, you may be seated. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. Say man, brother Caleb, you dug pretty deep tonight. We're gonna go back and just do a little Sunday school Bible lesson today. Hallelujah, how many is gonna help me do a little Sunday school Bible lesson today? Hallelujah, hallelujah. It's not deep, it's not profound, but I wanna tell ya, hallelujah, hallelujah. I still believe that there is a God in Israel. I still believe that there is a God that looks down upon us and he hears our cry. Hallelujah, they line up every day and even today and they line up and they get their little ticket to walk in there and to worship a little Buddha that's sitting idle, that's sitting on a shelf somewhere and they pray to him and they beg him to do things and they are praying to a little idol that cannot hear them. And they are praying to an idol that cannot see them. They are praying to something that cannot do anything for them and they line up every day just to pray and to get, try to get his attention. But I'm thankful today that I'm serving a God that hears my prayer. I said I'm thankful today to be serving a God that hears my cry, that I is not dead, that the tomb is empty today because he arose and he's alive and he's well and he's living and he's watching out for me and he's looking out for me and he hears my voice and he hears my plea and he's ready to hear my petition. Hallelujah, hallelujah. I begin to look at this and something begin to turn over on the inside of me when I begin to read this passage of scripture. Once again, I was drawn on a preach from this countless times and no doubt you have heard this preach countless times if you have been in the church any length of all, any length of time at all that there's something about the story of David and Goliath. It captivates us from Sunday school. We hear about this from Sunday school and all through the Sunday school years and if you go to Christian school, if you have that privilege even get to hear about it in Christian school and story and no doubt during the time when we come together on Wednesdays here meeting the church and no doubt you hear the stories about David and Goliath and the odds was against David and man it just didn't seem like that any, there was any hope at all for David and David was just man it just looked like everything was stacked against him and everything was going to go against him and they was looking at the giant and then they was looking at David and the Bible said that David was just a lad. He was just just Rudy, just a small in stature against Goliath and here is a champion here is a warrior in so much that it had every man of Israel they was hiding in the tent and there we have Saul who is head and shoulders above everybody in Israel and he's hiding in the tent and he's scared and no doubt that they had a right to be scared if you're looking at it in the natural. In the natural eyes David was standing in a dangerous place. In the natural eyes David was standing in a place, he was hanging in the balance if you will. David was fighting a fiercer and bigger adversary than he had ever fought in his life. David is standing there just on the brink of destiny and here Goliath is and he is the Bible said he was a champion. He was a warrior he knew how to fight and he knew what it was to be in battle and he knew what it was to kill people. And here David is just a lad the Bible said and he come walking out to him and the Bible said he'd been down and he picked him up five smooth stones and he put it in his little bag and he begins to make his way out to the battlefield and the Bible said that when Goliath looked and he's seeing him there was something that come over him he got mad. Here was a man that feared nobody. He feared no man. He feared no, he didn't fear their God. The Bible said that he began to curse David by his gods. There was a lot of stake that day on the battlefield. There was a lot of stake when David walked out there because he said if I win then y'all will be our servants but if you be me we're gonna be your servants. And no doubt when they're looking at us and my God we might as well get ready. We might as well get all of our clothes packed and get our family packed we're fixing to be servants by looking at it in the natural eyes. But the problem is that's what the devil gets us to do. He gets our eyes off the spiritual and he gets our eyes upon the natural and he gets to come in about with fear and doubt and anxiety and man fear begins to rob you of what God is one to do for you and your family. We begin to justify ourselves with our fear. Well man he's bigger than I am. Oh man this guy has his fear. The Bible said as was as a weavers being. I mean this saying it's huge and man this shield is so big it takes a person just to pack a shield to go before him. And the Bible begins to tell us how big that goliath was. And the devil he's trying to scare and even put more fear upon the Israelites by looking at it in the natural eye. And the devil wants you to realize before you get your blessing, before the morning comes, before the dawn breaks and why it's dark. He's wanting you to see there's no hope, there's no way, it's hopeless. It'll never happen, you'll never get your blessing. You'll never see your lost loved ones saved. You'll never see your husband come back. You'll never see your wife come back. You'll never see your kids come back. You'll never get that healing that she's been praying for and believing, you'll never get it. Oh, it's been promised to you and prophecies has come to pass and oh, it's good. You know, but it's never happened. How many years or how long has it been? Oh, and all of a sudden little doubts begin to form in your mind saying, well, it's never gonna happen for me. I prayed and I prayed and I prayed and it still not happened for me. Let me tell you something, that's looking at it through the natural eye. That's looking at what Glaath is in the natural eye. He's big, I can never whip him. I can never defeat him. But what you need to do is take a step back and say, okay, now I wanna look at it in my spiritual realm. Let me observe it from the spiritual side, if you will. Let me look at it from the spiritual side. Everybody in the camp of Israel was looking how big he is. How tough he was, how much of a champion he was. And they didn't want no part of him. And here's David looking at him through the spiritual realm and saying, hey, just let me have at him. I don't care how big he is. I just know how hard he's gonna fall. (congregation cheering) Say, well, preach, I don't know if I believe that. Read your Bible, we just read it in the story. David's already telling him what he's gonna do. David said, I'm gonna cut your head off, buddy. And I'm gonna feed it to the fowls of the air and to the beast of the field. That's what I'm gonna do. There's something about it. There wasn't one moment. There wasn't one second. That David didn't think that my God can't do it. My God can't heal. My God can't deliver. My God can't save. My God can't redeem. You need to get your eye off the problem and get your eye on the promise. You need to get your eye off the failures and get your eye off the overcomer. (congregation cheering) Say, what are you talking about? Never before had Israel stood on the brink of victory as they were standing that day. They had never been that close as they was that day. All it took was just a little shepherd boy with a dream, with a vision, with the anointing, saying, oh, I can do it. (congregation cheering) You know, you're always gonna have the naysayers. You're always gonna have the ones that say, "Well, what if he don't?" Well, it's been how long since you've been praying for that need. It'll probably never happen. And you know what? Elder Triple used to say when they told him, "Well, what if it don't happen?" He would say, "Well, what if it does?" What if it does happen? Here he goes the onion to the king, somebody that should've been preaching to him faith, somebody that should've been saying, "You can't do it, David." And he's saying, "Man, David, I don't know." Man, you look kinda small. And there's David saying, "Hey, oh, king, you don't know, "but I was in the field one day, hell." And all of a sudden, there came a lion. And he'd come roaring out of the woods and he grabbed up one of my little lambs. Hell, and I was watching over them, and I went over, and I just slew that lion that took that lamb back out of his mouth. And oh, oh, king, if that ain't enough, I was watching him again one day, and I was sitting there, and a bear came out. And that bear grabbed up one of my little lambs. Oh, and I couldn't stand it. I went over there, and I grabbed that bear, and I smote him. And oh, king, if he could do it for me, for the lion, and if he could do it for me, for the bear, this uncircumcised Philistine ain't no match for my God. The problems that you are facing, the things that you are going through, and are going through right now, whether it be physically, financially, spiritually. I come to tell you tonight, they are no match for my God. But as long as you are hearing the naysayer, say, what are you talking about? The Bible said that he picked up some stones. They were literally a stone's throw away from victory. Say, what are you talking about? I'm going to tell you something. How many times, how many times have we come up? We tried something, and we felled in the natural realm. Say, well, we tried, and it just wasn't for us. I wonder what would happen if Thomas Edison would have had that same attitude. Well, I tried to invent the light ball, but it just didn't work for me. It just didn't happen for me. What are you talking about? Over 6,000 times, he began to put something together, only to see it fail, when he thought he had something created and something conquered, and he put it all together, and it failed, and then he put it all together, and then it failed. Then he put it all together, over 6,000 times, but there was something in the heart of him saying, I know I can do it. I know I can get it done. I know. What are you talking about, preacher? I'm going to tell you something growing up. I heard the old saying so many times. It's just a stone throw away. Oh, man, it's not very far. Just as the crow flies. Just just a stone throw away, and there it is. Oh, that's the way it was for David, and that's the way it is for us. It's just a stone throw away. Our victory, our blessing, our accomplishment, our overcoming, it's just a stone throw away. But we give up. We quit praying. We quit fasting. We quit coming to church. We quit pushing. We quit pressing in. Why? Because we prayed one time, and it didn't happen. And we prayed two times, and it didn't happen. I wonder what happened. Well, I wonder what happened with Naaman. If he just would have washed himself one or two times. And then said, well, this lepercy ain't gone. It just ain't for me. No, no, no, no, no, no. Let me tell you something. I've got to go down seven times. I-- [APPLAUSE] Our circumstance makes us looking in the eye. And it makes us concerned. It makes us fearful. It makes us scared. It makes us feel hopeless and helpless and no doubt maybe feeling like giving up. But let me tell you something. Get up again. Come to the church again. Pray again. Fast again. Worsop again, right again. [APPLAUSE] This last year, no doubt for some of us has been a very, very hard time in our lives. This past year, losing the loss of loved ones, financial hardship, sickness, failed circumstances in our life that would make us look and say, OK, we just need to give up. We just need to turn around. God don't hear our cry. God's not hearing my plea. But I'm telling you, the devil knows that just just a stone throw away to your blessing, to get what you need for what God's got for you. And he's trying to tell you, throw in the towel, give it up, turn around. It's no use because he knows that blessing is right around the corner. [APPLAUSE] He only wants to see. He only wants you to see how big the giant is. He only wants you to see how big your problem is. How big your circumstance is. How big your failures are. But I'm going to tell you something. God wants you to see how big he is. How much he is. How much he loves you. How much he cares about you. [APPLAUSE] What are you talking about? Oh, the devil wants you to give up. He wants you to turn around. God, just all the things that you've done in your life. God would never hear your cry. God would never hear your plea. God, you've done too much. I'm going to tell you something here tonight. You ain't done too much. You ain't went too far that my God can't touch you. That my God can't help you. I'm going to rephrase that. You ain't went too far that my God will want to touch you. [APPLAUSE] We get locked up on looking at the impossible. We get locked up on seeing how big it is, how big our problem is. And we forget how big our God is. Has he ever failed you? Has he ever left you alone? Has he ever forsaken you? Has he ever left you when there was no way? And you just left you to your own trouble and your own circumstance? No, no, no. He may not have come when I wanted him, but he's always been on time. I said he's always been on time. I said he's always been on time. I said he's always been on time. What are you talking about? We need to understand that at those times when the enemy seems to be pressing the most, the situation he seems to be the worst. And it feels like everything is against us, that when we are, that's when we are the closest to our victory. That's when we are the closest to overcoming. We are just that stone throw away if you'll reach your hand in the bag and say, OK, devil, I've listened to you for the last time. I've heard doubts speak to me in my ear for the last time. There ain't no sense of going back. There ain't no sense. They don't care about you. There ain't no sense. God don't hear your prayer. I'm going to tell you something. The devil's a liar. He lied from the beginning. He lied when there was nothing to lie about. He lied when there was no reason to even lie. He lied. And I'm going to tell you something. He's lying now. He's lying today. He's trying to deceive you. He's showing you how big the problem that I come to tell you how big God is for you. So what are you talking about? We wouldn't be telling about the story of David. Brother Tony, if he hadn't stood up to the problem, I wouldn't be preaching about David tonight and preaching to you about faith if David hadn't stood up in the problem in the midst of his circumstance and looked at John in the eye and said, let me tell you something, buddy, I don't care how big you are. I don't care how tough you are. I got a God. (congregation cheering) And he said, you come to me with spirit and sword and shield, but I come to you in the name of the Lord. I come to you with my God. I come to you with a God that's never failed me. I come to you with a God that hears my prayer and hears my cry and sees my need. He's delivered me before and he's going to deliver me again. And let me tell you something, buddy. I'm going to cut your head off and I'm going to feed it to the wild of the air and to the wild beasts of the field. Why? Because I know my God. And we're preaching about David because why? Because he stood up in the middle of his circumstances that seemed like there was no hope. When everybody else was cowered down in the tent, we're not reading about Saul. We're not preaching about Saul tonight. We're not preaching about David's brothers tonight. We're not preaching about the different ones that Saul had in his armory, in his armory. Abner and Joab, we're not preaching about none of them because none of them stood up in the myth middle of the trial and the circumstance. They are forgotten, but who we are preaching about tonight is the person in the middle of adversity when their problem didn't seem like it was going to go away. They still kept trusting. They still kept believing. They still kept coming. They still kept worshiping. Say, what are you talking about, preacher? Oh, no doubt this economy that we are in. Our great president and his great economy that he's got going for us right now. No doubt, here we are. And man, everything went to McDonald's the other day, just with my family. Cost me $60 to go through McDonald's through the drive-through. Just for me and my own family, not ordering nothing just super crazy. Ah, went to Taco Bell and cost us $58. Go through Taco Bell. My goodness gracious, but I'm gonna tell you something in the time of uncertainty and finance. You know what the devil would like to tell you? Well, I'll tell you what, man, we're running tight on money this week. You can't afford to pay your tithe in your offering. Man, you're gonna need that money for bills. You're gonna need the money to pay them bills with. I'm gonna tell you something tonight. You can't afford not to pay your tithe in your offering. I said, you can't afford not to pay your tithe in your offering. You can't afford not to bless God. And when the devil says, well, just walk by them plates. Walk by them offering pants. Man, just keep that money in your pocket. You're gonna need it. That's when you look to devil in the eye and say, okay, devil, in the middle of uncertainty. I gotta be blessed. I want. Devil, I know, making $500 a week. Don't pay my bills. It's $800 a week, but I know one thing. If I put it in the God's hands, it's like God multiply it. I know my God can take two small fish in five loaves and break it, and when it's all said and done, there's still 12 baskets full. And I know when my God takes my little $500 a week check and he blesses it and he multiplies it, not only with him $800 bills, be paid, but I'll have money left over. Well, Brother Caleb, how does your math work out? I don't know how it works out. I can't tell you, I'm not God. I don't know how David whips. I don't know how David whips Goliath. Here he is, almost 10 foot tall. He's got a guy packing his shield that I thought could have whipped David. What happened to this guy? Where was he at? But I know one thing. I know a God that's never felt me. I know a God that's never let me down. I know a God that's never forsaken me. (audience cheering) You know, when the doctor comes in and he gives us the bad report. Oh man, you got this and you got that and you're looking at it. Brother dusty through the natural eyes and they're saying, you're a little daughter. Oh man, we're gonna do the best we can and that's all we can do. We're just human. Oh man, we're not super human, we're just human. But I'm gonna tell you something. It don't waver an apostolic child of God. Why? Because we know what my God can do. I said, we know what God can do. And when the doctor says, there's no hope. There's nothing else we can do. That's when God says, move aside. It's when I get to work. With that same impossible, with me. All things are impossible to him, I believe. (audience cheering) What are you talking about? I'm gonna tell you something. Romans chapter eight, verse 31. If God be for us, who can be against us? What are you saying? I don't care who's against you. I don't care what opposition is against you. If God's on your side, there's nothing in this world that can penetrate what God can do. Say, what are you talking about? Elisha's servant, he come running into Elisha. And he's saying, and he's screaming to the prophet. We're surrounded, they're ever on every side. We're surrounded, what are we gonna do? Oh, there's no hope. We'll never get out of this situation. And Elisha says, hey, let me tell you something, boy. You go out there and look again. Let me tell you. And the Bible said that he went out there and he looked again and he realized there was more for them than there was out there. That was against them. I come to tell you, there's more with you. There's more on your side. There's more. (audience cheering) What are you talking about? David said, in the book of Psalms chapter 124, if it had not been the Lord who was on whose side or side. Now may Israel say, oh man, I'm gonna tell you something. Why did he just say in verse one? If it had not been for the Lord, who was on our side? And then he comes right back in. In verse two, if it had not been for the Lord, who was on our side. When men rose up against us, they had swallowed us up quick when the wrath was kindled against us. Then the waters had overwhelmed us and the stream had gone over our soul. Then the proud waters had gone over our soul. But blessed be the Lord, have not given us a spray to their teeth. He hasn't given us over to them. He hasn't turned us over to our enemies. It's that had not been for the Lord who was on your side. (audience cheering) What are you talking about? Job and his trials and his circumstances. He's sitting there and he's looking. Men, all of his animals are gone. The sheep's gone and the goats and the cattle and the donkeys. Having the camels, everything in the oxen, everything's gone. It's took, here he was, man, he was wealthy. Had everything going for him, everything on his side. And now the runner comes in and said, "All of your children are gone. All your children are dead." (audience gasping) Job is standing there and Job knows the Bible said that he was a righteous man. He was a righteous man. So what are you talking about preacher? I don't know why some of us have to go through what we have to go through other than I do know that just bad things happen to good people. But I also know that here was the Lord and he let this happen to Job. He took down the hedge around about him and let the devil take to him. Oh, and here's the devil saying, I'll have him cursing you to your face and hear his cattle and his substance is gone and now his kids are gone. And here he is and he's still saying, Nick, it was I come in this world and Nick and I shall return but blessed be the name of the Lord. I don't know why I'm going through what I'm going through but all I do know that he's faithful and he's just and he hears my prayer. He knows exactly where I'm at and he knows exactly what I'm going through and what I'm facing. And I would like to tell you tonight that man at that moment everything changed and everything got better. But all of a sudden here he is and he wakes up one morning and he's got boils all over him. Oh, big old nasty, pussy boils all over him and he's miserable and he's out and he's sitting in a bunch of ashes and he's got some pottery and he's scraping out of nasty, could that be? And he's sitting there, all of his money's gone, all of his substance is gone, all of his kids have died and his wife is sitting there saying, my God, won't you just curse God and die? And all of his friends are sitting around him and they're saying, man, Job, there's something in your life. You've been sinning, Job, if anything, couldn't get any worse, here it's got worse and he's facing and he's looking at his friends and he's telling them, there's no sin in my life. Oh, woman, you speak foolishly. Oh, I'm not cursing God. I'm gonna maintain my integrity with God. If God before me, who could be against me? Oh God, I'm gonna hang on to him. I'm gonna cling to him knowing that he's too wise to make a mistake. I'm just gonna hang on and through my valley, through my uncertainties, through my troubles, through my trials, I'm gonna trust in him. And he looks at all of them and he looks up to God and he just starts praying and he just starts thinking God. And the Bible said that God gave him more than what he had in the beginning. God gave him beauty for ashes. I'm gonna tell you something today, you're facing the trials, you're facing the circumstances, you're going through, but I come to tell you tonight, you're just a stone, throw away, dig in your bag, pull out a stone, put it in your sling, let the devil know whose side you're on, who you're living for. Oh God, I'm still gonna be serving you. I'm still gonna be trusting in you. When my boy was born at one pound and 11 ounces and he was just 13 inches long and looking at him there in that incubator. Oh, hooked up to all of that stuff. Man, you could almost see right through his skin. Oh man, we're doing, and we're going on and we're getting on these build-a-bear, where you build your own teddy bears and we're going on there and we're ordering some clothes for him, couldn't find nothing that small for him. And we're looking at him and man, the doctors are telling us he's gonna be this and he's gonna be that and man, he's gonna have this kind of problem and he's gonna have that kind of problem. And oh man, and we're traveling around the country, Columbia and Springfield and Kansas City and everywhere you can imagine taking him and oh, it's all these doctors and they're giving us these bad reports and they're telling us about things and I'll never forget my dad. Man, I ain't gonna tell you my face wasn't shaking and it wasn't wavering and man, I'm looking at my boy and man, he's just so small and so tiny and so little and man, how could anything ever live out of that. And I'll never forget what my dad said and he comes in and he lifts up his hands and he said, God, whether this boy lives or whether this boy dies, when the smoke all clears, I'm still gonna be serving you. I'm still gonna be trusting in you. I'm still gonna be believing in you. (audience cheering) And there was something that come over on the inside of me, oh, my faith was renewed, my faith wasn't indeed from power upon high. And I said, God, I speak the same thing, no matter what happens, I'm still, God, you're still just, God, you're still pure, you're still holy, you're still righteous. (audience cheering) I said, what are you talking about? The children, the three Hebrew boys, they was looking at that fiery furnace and they say, you either bow or we're gonna throw you in there. And they say, no, we're not gonna bow. Oh, was they scared? Oh yeah, they was probably scared. Did they feel like running? I would say they probably felt like running. Did they probably think, my God, are we ever gonna get out of this? No, they probably knew they was probably gonna die, but it didn't change their decision. God, you've been too good to us. God, to turn our back upon you. God, we're just a stone, throw away. Whether we live or whether we die, whether you save us or whether you take us. (audience cheering) Come out of there and they didn't even smell like smoke. I'm gonna tell you something. You're gonna come out of your situation. You're gonna come out of your problem. You're gonna come out of your circumstance. And I'm gonna tell you something. You're gonna look around and you're gonna say, God, how in the world did we ever make it? How did we ever do it? If it had not been for the Lord who was on our side. (audience cheering) What are you talking about, preacher? I'm gonna tell you something. You're closer to your miracle. You're closer to your blessing. You're closer to your breakthrough than you ever thought. Or you can either imagine the devil's trying to tell you how far it is, how far you gotta go. And I'm telling you, it's just a stone's throw away to victory. It's just a stone's throw away to victory. But it's up to you to dig in the bag. It's up to you to take out the stone. It's up to you to put it in a sling. It's up to you to keep coming. It's up to you to keep praying. It's up to you to keep worshiping. It's up to you. (audience cheering) To keep lifting up your hands. (audience cheering) When the devil says, "Oh, you don't need to go tonight." It's just prayer meeting. Man, it's just Monday night prayer meeting. That's when you need to say, "Okay, devil." Come on, honey, come on, kids. We're going to prayer meeting tonight. We gotta get to the church to pray. When the devil says, "Oh, it's just Wednesday night service." Oh, it's just midweek service, you're so tired. You've worked so hard. Man, there'll be Sunday, Sunday morning, Sunday night. Man, the choir will sing. And man, there'll be high church. And you'll feel the presence of the Lord. And man, you don't have to go tonight. That's when you need to say, "Okay, honey. Okay, baby, let's go." We gotta get to the church. We gotta get to the house of God. God's got something for us. How do you know? Because the devil's fighting me too hard for God not to have something for me. Wait, no, me at the church. You know, when you're on the brink of victory, when the devil's fighting you the hardest. When you're in the battle of your life, the hardest, that's when, that miracle, that blessing, it's just right there. (congregation murmuring) What are you talking about? They had the Red Sea before them, the Egyptian army behind them. And here they are. And they're saying, "What are we gonna do? Where are we gonna go?" And here Moses is saying, "Hey, just stand back and watch what God can do." I come to tell somebody in this house tonight, you just need to stand back on what God can do. Say, "Well, preacher, I pray before." That's all right, pray again. (congregation clapping) God said he prayed for him. Man, you just know it was gonna happen. If God prayed for him, so what do you see? He said, "I see ministries." He prayed for him again. You know what? God's just giving us an example. You need to get down on your knees again. You need to get to the house of God again. You need to get to the prayer room again. You need to get to the worship line again. You need to run the aisles again. You need to sing again. You need to worship again. You need to shout one more time. I've said it before, I'll say it again, and I'm almost done. Just come to the music. God ever told you to jump up and take off running and you didn't do it. God ever told you to get up, shout and clap your hands and you didn't do it. And you said in there, saying, "Man, "if they would sing that song just one more time, "I'd run. "If they would just go into that verse one more time, "I'd shout. "If he would just ask one more person "to stand up and testify, I'd testify." Why? Because the devil's telling you, "Oh, man, God, is that really you? "Am I the only one that's ever done that? "God, is that really you talking to me? "I'm gonna tell you something. "It ain't the devil telling you to run. "It's not the devil telling you to go over there "and grab brother so-and-so or sister so-and-so "and pray for him. "Whoo, it's not the devil telling you to go over there "and give that person a word "that God's spoken to your spirit. "And you're nervous and you're scared. "Think, "Man, what are they gonna think about me? "God, is this you? "Are you really speaking to me? "I'm gonna tell you something. "It's not the devil. "Devil ain't gonna tell you, "it ain't gonna give you a word or something good "for somebody in the house of God. "I'm gonna tell you something. "Get up and go give it to him. "Because why you're ministering to them "and you're giving them the blessing "or the word or blessing that they need. "God, it's just gonna be imparting that blessing "into your soul and in your spirit. "When you get up and run "and nobody's gonna think, man, "they're gonna think I'm crazy. "They're gonna think I've lost my mind." No, no, no. That's gonna say, that's God saying, okay, you get up and run and let me do the work. You get up and run and trust me with your situation. You get up and run and trust me with your problems in your circumstance. Well, they said, it's hopeless to give up. I'm telling you, it's just a stone's throw away to your blessing. It's just a stone's throw away and you're giving up too quick. What are you talking about, preacher? Florence Chadwick, she was the daughter of a San Diego police officer. She grew up on the beach and fell in love with the water and swimming. And Florence had, she had a gift of swimming, of endurance swimming. She started swimming competitively. And at the age of six, she won her first race of two and a half miles of rough water swimming. At the age of 10, she was already placing in adult competitions. And one year she won her first prize of winning a six mile rough water race. She endured swimming and competition, swimming and of swimming marathons between somewhere in the vicinity of 23 and 20 miles in 10 and 15 mile races. She would win these competitions. Just a 10 hour swim would require up to 42,000 strokes. She could be in the water swimming for 13 to 14 hours at a time. She began to train. She had this goal that she set. She wanted to swim the Catalina channel off of the coast of California. She attempted it for the very first time in 1952 and the fog was so bad that time as she began to swim. And she began to swim and swim. And she was in the water for 15 hours and 55 minutes. And of these rough sea waters. And there was sharks. They had spotted sharks and man, the fog was so bad that she couldn't see the other side. And man, as she began to swim and not knowing where the other side was. Florence in her time of swimming and being fatigued and exhausted. She finally looks over at the boats and she begins to tell them, pull me in. I can't, I just can't do it. I can't see where I'm at. I don't know exactly where I'm at. So pull me in. And as they pull Florence into the boat and they got her to the boat and they begin to make their way. She was less than a half a mile from the shoreline. And she gave up. Oh, she could have been the first woman to ever swim this channel. But because she didn't know where she was at. And then these rough waters that she was at. She gave up this race, knowing. And they said, you could have done it if you know where you was at. Oh, yeah, I could have done it. If I would have just known where I was at. And when I read that story, something spoken to my spirit. And God told me to come and tell somebody in this church exactly where you are at. You're right on the brink of your blessing. You're right on the brink of your miracle. You're right on the brink of what God has not for you and your family. But he's telling you, the devil's speaking to you. You can't make it. You won't make it. It's not for you. This church is... (audience applauding) This apostolic way. It's not for you. God will never bless you. God don't know where you're at. God don't care about you. And all I'm telling you is just get a stone, put it in your sling. All I'm telling you, you keep swimming. I'm telling you're right on the brink. Oh, it's dark today. But joy's coming in the morning. Your blessings coming in the morning. If you'll just, thank God. (audience applauding) It's always the darkest before the dawn. It's always the hardest before the blessing comes. Say, well, how come God ain't done it for me yet? I don't know why. I wish I have the words to tell you why. I wish God would speak and sometimes he does. He speaks to the ministry and reveals things to us in the ministry. But there's just sometimes that God is just wanting us or trying to figure out how much we have on the inside of us just to hang on, just to keep trusting in him. Do you really, it's easy to trust whenever things going your way. It's easy to pay your ties and your offerings, but Aaron, when you got money in the bank account, it's easy to go out and do what you wanna do when there's money, when there's health in your body. It's easy to come to church and lift up your hands and worship whenever things going your way. When you got your family around you, when you can lean over and grab your kids and shout and worship with your kids and they're in the house of God. But I'm gonna tell you something. I'm gonna tell you where your faith is really tested. When there ain't no money in the bank account. When you got more bills than you got money. When your kids is not just a hands reach a way to worship. When there's not health in your body and there's sickness. And he's saying, he don't care about you. He don't hear you. I'll come to tell you tonight, you're just a stone's throw away. He's lying to you. He's telling you, he's lying. He's trying to deceive you. He's trying to get you to throw in the towel. Why? Because he knows the morning's coming. He knows there's joy that's coming in the morning. He knows there's a blessing coming. He knows if you'll just hang on and say, okay God, I don't know why. I don't know when. But I know you're gonna do it again. Why? Because I'm never forsaking me. You've been on my side. You've never left me. (audience cheering) As we stand to our feet. Say, oh, we would have never got Psalms 124 if David hadn't have went through first Samuel. If Daniel never, or David never would have went through first Samuel and facing the giant and facing the bear and facing the lion and knowing what God could do. We would never would have got Psalms 124 when he said if it had not been for the Lord who was on my side. When it looked impossible. Say, well, preacher, you say it, but how am I gonna pay them bills? I don't know, but I know he knows. Well, preacher, I still got this sickness. I still got this physical need. All I know is God can do it. He's done it before. He's no respecter of person. He can do above and beyond what I can imagine or even think. Nothing's too hard for God. Cancer's not too hard. Your finances is not too hard. Sugar diabetes is not too hard. High blood pressure is not too hard. Lost blood ones is not too hard. What? I've seen him raise the dead. I've seen him open the blinded eyes. I've seen him stop the undead, the deaf ear. You've seen him do that? I've seen him do that. I've seen him do that. Myself has been praying for a lady that her ear was she was deaf in her ear from birth. She was in a Pentecostal. Matter of fact, she had red and orange and green and all kinds of colored hair. Standing out the altar and I'm reaching down and I'm praying and I'm talking in her left ear and all of a sudden, man tears begin to flow down her face. Man, I'm thinking man, the power of the Holy Ghost is on her and it was. But man, I'm thinking man, man God's really touching her. But what I didn't know was she was deaf in her ear since birth and when I leaned down to begin to talk to her in her left ear, that ear popped and she heard everything that I began to speak in her left ear. (audience cheering) Sister Lita, all I know is they're saying it looks like you got cancer. Oh, it looks like you have cancer and we prayed and what was the verdict? No cancer. What are you talking about, preacher? Let me tell you something. I don't live my life. I don't live being apostolic. I don't trust in God because my God can't hear me. My God don't care about me. I trust in him because he does hear me and he does care about me and he counts to see my needs and my petitions and he knows exactly where I'm at. Say well, preacher, has he healed everybody you prayed for? No, he hasn't. Brother Mass, cigarettes, I'd love to tell you that everybody I've laid my hands on, he's done it. But you know what? He's done it for enough that I just keep laying hands on him. And every person that walks up here, there is not one, there is not one ekeling of doubt in my body, in my prayer. When I pray for somebody, I've got to wear and some of y'all, I wanna pray for you. I'll ask you, what is it? 'Cause I want to name the problem. I want to name the infirmity. I want to name the issue of what's going on. I want to curse it. I want this, why? Because I want to take power and authority over it. Why? Because I know that I have the faith and I serve a God. (audience applauding) (audience cheering) Say, Brother Caleb, you're crazy. I am crazy, but I'm gonna tell you something. I got faith and I know my God can do it. Because I prayed before, that mean he won't do it. Because you got prayed for before, don't mean that God don't care about you. We're fixing to go back there and there's nothing better than sister Jenny's chicken and dumplings. I promise you, you know why we're having them tonight? Because I asked her, it's about time I got some dumplings. And so she said, well, we'll have it for a fundraiser. And I said, glory to God. And I'm gonna go back there and feast, but I'm gonna tell you something. I feel in the Holy Ghost tonight and I have fought a spirit while I've been preaching of opposition the whole time I've been preaching. But I'm gonna tell you something. I have fought that spirit while I've been preaching because I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is fixing to do something in this play for somebody I'm fixing to pray for. (audience cheering) And brother, cigarettes, I'm just old-fashioned enough and I'm just hard-headed enough that I'm just gonna keep bulling my way because I know God is fixing to give a miracle to somebody in this house that believes. (audience cheering) Somebody that's willing to dig in the bag and say, okay God, it's me again. I'm coming again. I've got to pray for it, but I'm coming again. How many come to leave with me? I'm... (upbeat music) ♪ Oh hallelujah ♪ ♪ I hear the voice of the Lord ♪ ♪ Joy's gonna come in the morning ♪ ♪ The sun's gonna shine ♪ ♪ It's just a loud time ♪ ♪ Joy's gonna come in the morning ♪ ♪ The devil has lost his battle ♪ ♪ He can't hold back the dawny ♪ ♪ We've been paying her for tonight ♪ ♪ Joy's gonna come in the morning ♪ ♪ Oh hallelujah ♪ ♪ I hear the voice of the Lord ♪