Apostolic Lighthouse
Let My Hair Grow. - Bro.Eddy Roach
house tonight and I know brother Donnie and sister Stephanie and maybe even my mother-in-law may remember me testifying or whatever you want to call it over at the nursing home. Oh excuse me over at the nursing home about this. Several weeks ago and it's just I couldn't get it out of my mind. I've been dwelling on it for quite some time. Seems like every time I pray this same thought would just come to mind and when brother Sampson texts me earlier today and asked me if I could preach it just hit me all over again. So I know that there's someone here tonight that's got to hear what I feel like God's laid on my heart and I'm gonna try to slow down and just deliver to you what I feel like God delivered to me. As I said in the chair this morning and all throughout the day just contemplating and reading and studying and as I said it may be a little bit different from the way I've preached before. I don't know how excited I'm gonna get and I've been told not to stay long and I probably won't stay long but I am gonna try to deliver what I feel like God's laid on my heart. So if you've got your Bibles I'd like for you to turn with me to Judges the 13th chapter and I want to begin reading at the first verse. Judges 13 in verse 1 in the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord and the Lord delivered him into the hand of the Philistines 40 years and there was a certain man of Zohar of the family of the Danites whose name was Manoa and his wife was Baron and Baron Ott and the angel of the Lord appeared unto the woman and said unto her behold now the Lord Baron embarrassed not but thou shall shall conceive and bear a son now therefore be where I pray thee and drink nor wine nor strong drink and eat no any unclean thing for lo thou shall conceive and bear a son and no razor shall come on his head for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines. And last the pastor if he would to pray over the remainder of the service and you may be seated and I've read and I know my pastor's made mention as many times it's very familiar to a lot of us in here the story of Samson the story of Samson is from Judges the 13th chapter clear to the 16th chapter in Samson after study in Samson judged Israel for 20 years that's how long he judged the children of Israel and if you would give me just a moment to kind of lay some foundation and lay a little timeline if you will of Samson's life in Judges the 13th chapter in the 25th verse it said God moved on him at times in Judges the 14th chapter we find out that Samson was going around and he he found the daughter's attempt nath which was of the children of the Philistines in judges the 14th chapter in the 6th verse we find out that after Samson had went and he found this daughter this woman that he wanted to marry he told his dad he said go in fetcher I want to marry her she pleases me and we know the story Samson's mom and dad said hey surely you can find someone of our tribe of our people surely they've got to be someone here around in Israel that you don't have to go over that way and a lot of times that's just like us as Christians if we're not careful we'll go to looking at the things that's going on around us and everybody around us and say hey they're doing it why can't I do it but Samson said hey Noah she pleases me well go get her well on the way to the wedding on the way for them to go in judges the 14th chapter in the 6th verse is when Samson was walking along and a lion rose out in the spirit of God came upon him and he slew that lion with his bare hands he didn't say nothing to nobody but the strength in the spirit of God moved upon him in judges the 14th chapter in the 12th verse is whenever they're sitting around the table and their feasting and they're having fun and he puts out a riddle before them and he tells them the riddle and they can't figure out the riddle so then you go on and you find out a little further on down the chapter is whenever they go to this woman that Samson wanted to marry and they said find out what the riddle is because Samson told him he said if you can discover my riddle then I'll give you 30 changes of garments and I'll give you this and I'll give you that where they couldn't figure it out he said but if you can't figure out you got to do the same for me and I know this is different in slope but just bear with me a moment so they go to his woman and they find out the riddle and once they found out the riddle Samson was very wroth he was very upset so in judges the 14th chapter in the 19th verse he goes down and he kills 30 of the men of astrolon and he takes their changes of garments and he goes and he brings it back to him and he says here but he said he was wroth he was angry so he went back home to his dad and while he was there the father of this woman gives her to his friend so Samson comes back he's upset he's mad he finds out what they've done well in judges the 15th chapter in the 14th verse the fourth verse he called 300 foxes and that's a feat in itself I can't even control one dog much less 300 foxes but he called 300 foxes and he put a firebrand between their tails he tied their tails together and he set them in the fields and it burned down all the the Philosines corn it burned down all their vineyards it destroyed all their olives all because Samson was wroth because of what had happened and judges the 15th chapter in the 14th verse we find out another dealing with Samson Samson after he'd done that he went it was on the mountainside and while he was there the children of Israel came up against him because the Philosines came and said hey we come to get this man well they go up and they talk to him and while they're talking and like I said it's just different I know but just bear with me but while they're talking to him they said hey the children of Philosines is here why did you do this Samson you know there are masters you know they're over us why did you do this Samson they've come to kill you they've come to kill us so we've come to take you and we're gonna bind you and we're gonna bring them down he said as long as you don't kill me so they bind Samson up and they bring him down when he gets down there the spirit of the Lord gets upon him again and in judges the 15th chapter the 14th and 15th verse you find out that the spirit of the Lord was on him and he slew over a thousand of those men with a jawbone of a donkey he gets upset he throws it down he thinks everything's done but then he gets thirsty and in that 19th verse he looks over and God told him to grab that jawbone in that same jawbone he begins and receives water out of that jawbone in judges the 16th chapter what did Samson do again he goes into a harlot's house and while he's there at the harlot's house the Philosines said we've got him now we've got him now so while they're laying in wait Samson goes in the third verse of that same chapter and he grabs ahold of the gate of the city and he carries the gate and the post of the city and he takes it to the top of the hill and that wasn't just no little gate that we have around here that gate and those posts wait over four tons that he carried on the top of that hill because of the strength of God and judges the 16th chapter and the fourth verse is where he met Delilah now I don't know if you see in a pattern here but it seemed like every time that God was moving every time God would deliver him he would go right back in to the enemy every time he would get a blessing every time God would do something for him the very next verse or just a few chapters versus down you find what is he doing he's going right back into the world he's going back right back into the Philosines he's going right back and then doing the things that he knows better than to do the spirit of the Lord comes upon him again and he's right back again in judges the 16th chapter in the fifth verse is where Delilah was offered 1100 pieces of silver to Tim Sampson and she was offered this by the Lord the the Lords of the Philosines there was five of them there that offered them and they said we'll give you 1100 pieces of silver a piece and today's times that equals twelve thousand five hundred and forty four dollars a piece so she would get 62 thousand seven hundred and twenty dollars to betray Sampson to find out where his strength lies you going down through the seventh verse is where Sampson is being tempted the first time he tells her he said hey if you bind me with seven green whips there was never dried I'll be like any other man so what she do she binds him up the Philosines are pulling these Sampson Sampson breaks him off and he goes about his way the very next verse we find out that she's still crying and she's complaining she said Sampson you know you lied to me Sampson what how can I find what is the reason for your strength Sampson why are you so strong Sampson he said well you get some new ropes you buy me with new ropes I'll be like any other man and what does she do she got back and she says the Philosines are pulling these Sampson he said he break them like it was threads but there again he's going right back into the same shape twice the third time she comes in and she's a squalling and she's a Sampson and this goes on for days and days it's not just you know the Bible reads like it just one time after another but I'm sure it was days after days of the same old thing because she goes in again and she says Sampson you've lied to me Sampson Sampson you don't love me why why won't you tell me where your strength is he says okay he said if you take my hair and you weave it through the weavers beam I'll be like any other man since she gets him asleep and that's what the enemy do just rocks you to sleep everything's going good nobody knows what you've done nobody knows that you've done this or that it's all right you're good you can just coast along you can come and set on a pew and nobody will ever know you can come to prayer meetings nobody will ever know you can live like this over here and nobody will ever know that's what the enemy of hell is doing that's what the enemy of hell is doing and he's going right back into it the Philistines are upon these Sampson and what's he do he shakes up and he runs out again if she follows she the Bible says she vexed him daily she vexed him daily every day crying every day morning hey why won't you tell me Sampson just tell me where your strength is and you know that's just like the enemy of hell he'll come to you every day where is your weakness why do you live the way you do why do you dress like you do you know you're being made fun of why do you go to that church over there where they shout and scream and carry on why do you do all that you don't have to do all that you don't have to live like that but if we catch ourselves we're going right back into same old place again it says she vexed him so that his soul felt like he was dying finally he broke down he said all right all right all right it's my hair I'm a Nazarite I'm not drinking he's strong drink I'm not done this but my hair you've got to cut my hair if you cut my hair my strength will be gone what a Sampson do he goes right back in and she laws him down and sleep she comes in and she shaves his head and the Bible says then she comes again and says Samson the Philistines are upon these Samson he jumped up and he said I'll do like I've always done I'll do like I have it other times but you read the Bible he said he wist not that the Lord of the Spirit of the Lord had departed from he didn't even know the Spirit of the Lord had departed from it hey I'm just gonna do like I've always done I'm gonna come and I'm gonna sit on the pew and I'm gonna clap and I'm gonna worship and nobody will ever know but Samson didn't know that the Spirit of the Lord had left him whenever he was still dabbling and fooling around with the things of this world in the enemy came in and I know it's like I said I know this is slow but bear with me says the enemy came in and they bound him brother Mark I want you to put up there 16 the 21 and 3 22 because this is a part I'm going I'm getting to right here it says but the Philistines took him and put out his eyes and brought him down the gates and bound him with fetters of brass and he did grind in the prison house next verse brother Mark how big his hair begin to grow again after he was shaving now my father in law always used to tell me we go to get a haircut and for a long time I always used to go to heave sisters in jumping to get my haircut now my father in law explanation is always hey it don't matter he said you know what the difference between a good haircut and a bad haircut is he said two weeks I said well you know what I don't want to walk around for two weeks with a bad haircut so I just wait but Samson I begin to look it up to find out how long it was the way the bobble reads it like it just continuing but for seven years Samson was down at that grinding meal pushing pushing and I don't have it I wish I could have a picture of it because I looked it up it was a giant wheel and he had a beam here he would go and he'd push just like an animal just round and round for seven years and as I begin to read this I begin to wonder what must have been going through Samson's mind he couldn't see so he couldn't see that his hair was growing he didn't know it but I wonder if why he was going around and just listening to that sound that grinding wheel he may have been thinking God what was I doing God I'm sorry for my sins God you you delivered me out of this but I went back God God why did I do that God I don't know I'm sorry Lord please forgive me and how many times are we like that we've done stuff and we've made mistakes and we're at the grinding meal thinking God are you ever listening God do you know where I'm at God why am I going through this I shouldn't have done this God but here I am again at the old grinding meal God please help me please forgive me of my sins every day I don't know but it said seven years that he walked and he grind on that grind zone he walked and he grinded every day for seven years and I know it had to be going through his mind hey look at all those how I killed the lion with my bare hands God what was I thinking God oh Lord I got I slew 30 men with my strength with the strength that you gave me God God I'm sorry Lord I don't know and I know I've heard it said before my pastor our elders even said it a lot of times we do things and we wonder why I shouldn't have done that no you done it because you wanted to it wasn't a lapse in memory or or what you done it just because you wanted to but I know there's been times in my life where I've done things and I sit back and see why did I do that I don't even know why I've done that I've done it many times just just an example driving to work and and turn the wrong way they were mad why why did I turn this way I don't know if Samson was thinking God why did I do this but somewhere in those seven years he must have been praying somewhere in those seven years he must have been calling out to God because the Bible says how be it means nevertheless his hair begin to grow and I know it's not this the strength in the hair but maybe it was just a reminder for Samson for all those they say God are you really listening to me God are you really there God I'm so sorry for the things that I done God even are you there God I know many times and maybe this is just for me I've been praying God am I getting even higher than this room that I'm in God do you even know that I even exist well Samson like I said he couldn't see and I'm not I'm not bald headed and I'm not making fun of my pastor but I know when people that don't have hair sweat would grow down the head a lot faster than it will mine because I've got hair so maybe why Samson was over there walking around grinding he be getting noticed hey I'm not sweating as bad as I used to maybe he felt that oh man what's going on man what's going on that's why whenever that blad brought him out after those seven years he brought him out and he brought him out to where there's gonna throw a big piece they was gonna have a big sacrifice they was gonna make fun of the man of God they were gonna make my fun and they did they said look what our God done look at what our God done he delivered this man to us but Samson remembered you go ahead put that title up her brother Mark but Samson remembered hey I was praying and I know I can't see I know I can't see but I can feel my hair so maybe that's just God let me know that hey I forgive you son I forgive you of all your sins even though we've been stumbled as the child of God even though we may mess up there sometimes we just gotta have that reassurance that hey God is still on our side sometimes we just gotta know we gotta have a brother or sister walk by and pat us on the back to hey God still loves you it's just like being a married relationship if we don't go around and tell our wife or her husband hey I love you every now and then they're gonna wonder hey what's going on why are they talking to me they need that reassurance and sometimes we as a child of God we need that reassurance when we're going through the lowest of lows in our life when we're going through the deepest valleys of our life and we don't know how to get out of it and we're in a we're in a rut and we can't find our way out of it and we're going God please help us that's why I put this title up here tonight God let my hair grow let me know that you're still on my side let me know give me some kind of sign that you're hearing my prayers God give me some kind of sign that I'm going the right way even though I know I've stumbled and I may have messed up God didn't you hear me that you're still on my side even though Samson messed up time and time and time again and he got his eyes plucked out seven years he had to go through it that lets me know hey it may be a long time we may have to walk through that trial I pray to God I don't have to walk through some of my trials for seven years I don't know how long it'll be for you I can't tell you that when you get up in the morning it's gonna be hallelujah is an amen but I do know that the Bible says that we've been a man there for the night but joy is gonna come that lets me know that hey God you here's my prayer God says hey even though you may not understand it you may not know why you're going through what you're going through just hold on and keep trusting in me because when Samson was walking around that grind his stone blind I don't know what it must have sounded like I know brother Samson talked about that old corn shucker and that that sound I don't know if Samson heard that same every day until he drove him and saying I don't know but I know somewhere in the midst of seven years he must have been praying because as I said he judged the children of Israel for 20 years he was at that grinding stone for seven so for 13 years Samson knew what the spirit of God was like for 13 years Samson knew hey I've got a God for 13 years he knew what God spirit was like and maybe when he was walking around that grindstone he kept thinking God I know what your spirits like why did I make the mistakes I've made God have you ever gonna forgive me of my failures and there's someone here tonight that needs to realize and pray God let my hair grow God give me that reassurance that you're still on my side God even though I've stumbled and I failed by the wayside please let me know that you forgive me please let me know that you're still here because I can't see any way out of my struggle I can't see any way out of my my shortcomings so if you hear tonight I don't know who you are like I said when brother Samson texted me earlier this morning day he kept going back and back in my mind God let my hair grow God let my hair grow give me that reassurance that you can still hear my prayers give me that reassurance and when I'm laying on the floor tonight and I'm crying out to you that you can still hear me God give me that reassurance when I go and I'm standing there and I'm looking at a brick wall and I can't find my way around it that you're still there God let me know that you still on my side God let my hair grow as I said this is very different for me tonight but someone in here it's got to know that God is still on your side someone here that may be going through something has got to know God still here he sent this old crazy nutty red-headed guy up here to tell you that God still loves you God is still on your side even when you've messed up even when you've made mistakes and I'm here to tell you I've made my fair share and there's been many times I've laid and I've cried God do you even care you mean you brother wrote you I mean I've said in question many times God why why maybe going through this what what about God God are you there maybe it's just me I don't know but there's somebody here tonight needs to know God is on your side so when you're going through those trials scripture said how be it his hair begin to grow God begin to let him know hey I'm still with you son I'm still with you Lord bless you you're sure you want to give up and you've lost your will to try everything you plan is come on it's who's starting over and you're running out of heart but not not good with you for he's got a word only you can do so don't you call for Satan's life God's hand still on your life oh no God's not with you I know that God is not through with you for he's got a word that only you can do don't you fall for Satan's life it's on your life oh God's not through with you here to say that God believes in you it doesn't matter what you've done Jesus