The Pace of Grace Stride (Part 3)

0:15 We've been in a series called Stride. Everybody say Stride. And we're on week three of this awesome series talking about finding the pace of grace. Get your notepads out and your smartphones because you're going to want to take notes today as we start this series. and this is our vision month. And so at the beginning of every year, we start talking about vision and God gave me this vision all the way back in August. He told me, Michael, this past year you went beyond and God did so many amazing things. He said, this year, I want you to stride. And honestly, I was like, that sucks. Like that doesn't sound exciting. That does not sound, I'm a mover. Like I wanted the word to be explosion or, or take over or rampage or it's something like stride. I was like, what does that mean? But what I found is that there's such a deep revelation in this concept of striding. And let's look at the definition of what striding means. And if you haven't taken it for everybody to catch up, I want you to get this because this is what everything hinges on. That word stride means to walk with long, decisive steps in a specific direction. God told me, he said, Michael, there's so many of my people who are striving, trying hard, using all their energy and effort, trying to keep up their look and trying to keep up their image and trying to do all they can do, use their connections, use their personality to do what I would do for them if they would start striding.

1:46 If they would start following me and walk and let me set them in a direction and they start intentionally walking in long, decisive steps towards where I've called them to be. And I don't know what you're in here striving with today, but everybody has an area that we've been striving where we've been trying to use our own effort and energy to provide what God said he would already give us in his timing. Some of us are striving for a bigger house. Some of us are striving for a position. Some of us are striving for love, significance. And God said, will you please stop reaching for what I'll give you? Like, will you, will you please not lose your family trying to provide an amazing house for them, but you lose your daughter at what cost do you want the things that you made up in your mind that would make you significant at what cost? And God is saying that I want my people in 2018 to stop striving. I want you to start striding. Everybody say striding.

2:46 So when I came up to this It really started working on me and I can't get up here and preach anything that god doesn't take me Through because I just believe that's where you have to be authentic. I'm not up here as a perfect man I'm up here as a progressing man and if anybody needs to stride, it's your boy Because i'm a mover I'm my nature is if ain't nothing happening. I'm gonna make it happen You don't want to help me get out my way. I'm going to like I don't need you I can make it like that's my nature and god says slow down and allow me to work a miracle in your life. Allow me to do the heavy lifting. And what happens with so many of us is that we start using, we've been taught from a young age to, to, to work and to do all of these things. And what we end up is tired, burnt out, used up. And then we think God's left us. And he said, I'm back here and you're up there. I only provide for where I'm at. So, so you're out here starting three businesses. And yeah, I gave you the idea, but that was five years from now because I wanted to work on your character right here. So I'm here. You're up there. And that's why you lost all of that up there.

3:55 Because up there, you have to sustain what I did not give you in this season. And many of us are out here running and going nowhere, tired, frustrated, striving. And then we get mad at God. Well, God, you left me. He said, no, no, no. You left me. You got outside of the pace of grace, the steps that I set out for you. This is the thing that I want you to realize what God promised you is going to happen. It's just not going to happen in the time you want it to happen. It's going to happen where there is provision for it. And you don't want anything out of season. the right thing and the wrong season is a curse oh hear me say that one more that was too good i'm gonna say that again okay i'm gonna say it again the right thing in the wrong season is a curse if i if i walked up to an eight-year-old right now and gave them the car that they were supposed to have at 16 it would damage others and damage them not because they wouldn't one day be able to take that because they weren't ready at that moment many of us have walked into relationships that we weren't ready for. Many of us have walked into businesses that we weren't ready for. Many of us have set up dreams and plan without consulting God. And he said, you got to sustain that. But if you would walk in my pace and stop striving and start striding, he said, you'll get it in the season that you can enjoy it. And so I'm challenging us as a church.

5:28 Let's check our pace. Is there things that you're doing right now to keep up with people that you're not even supposed to be comparing yourself to? Are there things that you birthed out of a pain when you were younger and you said, I'll never be broke? And so you work six jobs. But at the expense of never being broke, your children are exposed to all kinds of stuff and you're wondering why they don't like you and why they're, it's because you left a place that God would provide and you decided to be Jehovah Jireh.

6:00 He's saying, today my grace is so good that no matter where you are, you can get back in the pace of grace. You're not too late. I heard it said like this, if the enemy can't get in front of you and stop you, he'll get behind you and push you. And many of us are being pushed. Like you've missed something. So some of my seasoned saints, the enemy tries to come to you and tell you you're too old, that you lost time, that look how far those people are and all this other stuff. And the beautiful thing about the grace of God is that he can take he factored in your mess ups like he took into account that you would disobey and you do your own thing and he says romans 8 28 that all things even your jacked up plan even that wrong relationship they all work together for the good of those who are called and that love i came to encourage somebody today it is not too late to find the pace of grace it's not too late for you to get in the will of God. I know you've been out there wilding. I know you've been doing your own thing. I know you've been texting people and had plans right after service, but God says today I came to interrupt your plans. And I came to give you the opportunity to start striding and get in the pace of grace. And if we're honest, many of us have bought into the lie that bigger is better.

7:23 like the more we have it equals meaning it equals meaningful that faster is more fruitful but that's a lie because when i look at jesus's life the revelation that came to us in this series as i studied the scripture is that jesus was able to fulfill every messianic prophecy everything that people said about a savior he was able to fulfill all of that in three years and you never hear about Jesus running to his next appointment. He walked. You never hear in haste, the disciples, they quickly went to the next town. Never. You can't find it one place. And they dipped out because they were late. Like you never hear that.

8:10 There's some people like dipped out. okay what i'm saying to you is the bible says and jesus walked to capernaum and jesus walked to jerusalem he literally had a pace that other people could keep up with him and that he wouldn't miss his miracles along the way and many of us have started running so fast i'm trying to be the artist i'm i know i'm gonna be one day i want to be the father or the husband or the wife and i want to be the business owner and god says if you would just find my pace i would provide everything you need because there's provision where I'm at. There is problems where you're at. and so i want to challenge you today that your highest priority as we start 2018 is not to get promotion it's to find your pace of grace and i want you to write that down as the title today finding the pace of grace psalms 37 23 it says the lord directs the steps who directs the steps the lord directs the steps of the godly and he delights in every detail of their lives can i tell you that god wants to direct every detail if you're if your life if you let him he literally wants to say hey don't live in this neighborhood there's another neighborhood that i have for you because there's something there well god it doesn't make sense at the time don't live in this neighbor. Just obey me. Just listen. Don't date him. Well, God.

9:42 now you made a masterpiece and ricardo and god i i really think this is your will for me and ricardo to make some babies lord and i and he said don't marry him because he hasn't worked on his character yet and and when you get into that you're gonna marry the generational curses i got Ricky. he three years away but you want where i've provided not where you can see that's why the bible says we walk by faith and not by it's easy to go after what you can see it takes faith to go after what god is trying to provide for you and so okay pastor mike we gotta find our pace of grace i want you to break down these two words i want to break them down for you, pace and grace. Let's talk about the word grace for a second. Grace is the unmerited, unearned, undeserved favor and kindness of God. It is why we are able to experience salvation and forgiveness. Like we didn't earn it. There is nothing you have done. The Bible tells us it's the free gift of God. When Jesus climbed up on that cross and paid the final payment for all of sin weep grace poured out on all of us and it take into factor our mess ups our gender confusion our lying our manipulator it took in consideration and all we have to do is receive the grace of god and so when you receive the grace that is an amazing thing that starts something in your life and there if you study that word grace even deeper there's another definition and it goes something like this. Grace is divine enablement. Like God will allow you to have the grace for things that other people don't have the grace for. Like I have the grace to be the pastor of Transformation Church. I don't know what happened. I don't have the qualifications, but God on February 1st, 2015, I stepped into the pastoring role at this church and I can't explain it except God gave me grace to study. He gave me grace to be able to love on people. He gave me grace to

11:51 father, people in wisdom. It's a divine enablement. Ain't got nothing to do with me. There is a grace that God wants to give you to complete the purpose he's called you to. He wants you to give you grace to be that mother, grace to be that business owner, grace to be that motivational speaker, grace to be that teacher. He wants to give you grace. And this other word pace, I love it because it talks about movement. Pace is the rate or movement, especially when you're talking about stepping or walking. It's the rate of activity or progress or growth or performance. It's the tempo of a thing. So when you find your pace, when you find the tempo of a thing, then other people can get along with it and you can be able to go longer distances and you can be able to track where you're going. Let me put this together. When I talk about finding the pace of grace, write this definition down because it's going to help us work. The pace of grace is the rate of movement, progress, and growth that God sets and supernaturally provides for. There is a pace that you should be growing in your walk with God, in your business, in your finances that God will set and he will supernaturally provide for. He wants to give you a pace that you don't have to sustain. He wants to give you a pace, a way of doing things that he will do for you as you obey what he's saying. And some of y'all are like, Pastor Mike, I just don't know about that. You sing the song, Good, Good Father, but I just feel like God's left me out there a couple of times. And I feel like this may not be for me. I promise you it is. And today I'm going to give you three keys to finding the pace of grace. And I'm going to use the story in Joshua chapter six. If you have your Bibles, I want you to turn there. Joshua chapter six, because we're going to find the children of Israel led by Joshua for the first time coming up against opposition and God already promised them something, but they are now having to stand and begin to do what God

14:00 is saying so that they can find the pace of grace to win the victory. And what I came to tell you today is what God has shown you in your heart, the purpose that he asked for you, the destiny that you're going to end up at. It's going to happen. It's going to happen, but there may be a different pace than what you're trying to do right now. And God wants to help you with that. Let's look at Joshua chapter six. And for everybody who didn't read their Bible this morning, we're about to have Bible reading time. And, um, this is a pretty lengthy scripture. So I want you to stay with me and I want you to put yourself in it so we can see what God has to say about finding the pace of grace. Verse one, it says, now the gates of Jericho were tightly shut because the people were afraid of the Israelites. No one was allowed to go out or in, but the Lord said to Joshua, I have given you Jericho, its king and all its strong warriors. You and your fighting men should march around the town once a day for six days. Seven priests will walk ahead of the ark, each carrying a ram's horn. On the seventh day, you are to march around the town seven times with the priests blowing their horns. When you hear the priests give one long blast of the ram's horn, have all the people shout as loud as they can. Then the walls of the town will collapse and the people can charge straight into the town. So Joshua called everybody together and he said, y'all, we got, um, God gave us some directions. Take up the arc of the Lord's covenant. And for everybody who doesn't know what that is, the arc of the Lord's covenant, all it means is the presence of God in the midst of his people. So, so when they took the arc of the covenant, that was the place where God resided. Now, because of Jesus, God can reside on the inside of us. But back then he resided in the Ark of the Covenant. So basically what they're saying is wherever they go, they were taking the presence of God. Okay. So anytime you see that they're taking the presence of God, he says, um, he says, so Joshua called together the priest and said, take up the Ark of the Covenant and

16:09 assign seven priests to walk in front of it, each carrying a ram's horn. Then he gave orders to the people, march around the town and the armed men will lead the way in front of the Ark of the Lord the presence of God. After Joshua spoke to the people, the seven priests with the ram's horns started marching in the presence of the Lord, blowing their horns as they marched. And the ark of the Lord's covenant followed behind them. Some of the armed men marched in front of the priests with the horns and some behind the ark, with the priests continually blowing their horns. Look at verse 10. Do not shout. Do not even talk, Joshua commanded. Not a single word from any of you until I tell you to shout and then you can shout. Verse 11. So the ark of the Lord or the presence of God was carried around the town once that day. And then everyone returned and spent the night at camp. Joshua got up early the next morning and the priest again took the presence of God. Jump down to verse 14. It says on the second day, they did the exact same thing, marched around once and returned to the camp. Look at this. They followed this pattern for six days. They followed this pace for six days. They found a pace to do the same exact thing for six days. We're going somewhere with this. On the seventh day, the Israelites got up at dawn and marched around the town as they had done before. But this time, they went around the town seven times. The seventh time around, as the priests sounded the long blast on their horns, Joshua were commanded the people shout for the Lord has given you to town Jericho and everything in it must be completely destroyed as an offering to the Lord only Rahab the prostitute and other people in her house will be spared for she protected our spies do not take any of the things that are set apart for destruction or you yourselves will be completely destroyed and you will bring trouble on the camp of Israel everything made from silver and gold and bronze and iron is sacred to the Lord and must be brought into his treasury.

18:11 Verse 20, when the people heard the sound of the ram's horn, they shouted as loud as they could. And suddenly, everybody say suddenly. And suddenly the walls of Jericho collapsed. The thing that had been their obstacle, the place where they knew they were supposed to be, their promised land was now accessible because they obeyed what God said. And the Israelites charged straight into the town and captured it. Go down to verse 27. This is my last scripture. It says, so the Lord was with Joshua and his reputation spread throughout the land. Everybody say, I'm finding the pace of grace. Now, Pastor Mike, why did you read that entire story? Because many times you need context when we're about to get a revelation from God. And revelation, all that means is revealed truth. I want you to realize that God has a pace of grace for everything concerning your life.

19:08 He wants your marriage to have a way that it moves to progress and grow that he provides for. He wants your finances to grow at a pace that you, your character can sustain. So many of us, we live in this right now generation, this microwave generation. We want everything now. We won't even commit to cell phone contracts. We want something that has no strings attached to it because if you're not doing it fast enough We're gonna find somebody else who can do it faster. We want to be on the platform now We want to have the business now We want to do everything that god has called us to do and we don't want to wait. We want to do it now JG Wernthworth.

19:50 877-CASH-NOW. what i'm saying to you is that in the kingdom of god there is a pace to your promised land and if you don't accept that there's a pace to your promised land you will live your life frustrated and providing for yourself and wondering why things are not working it's because god says i want to develop you as i bring you into what i have for you and so what the children of israel found out is that they had to find their pace of grace. So I'm going to give you three points. How do you find your pace of grace? Point number one, you have to keep the promise preeminent. You have to keep the promise. And this word preeminent means in front of you. You have to keep it first. You have to keep it out in front of you. I want you to see what God told Joshua. They come up to a land where they are the first generation that actually gets to see the promised land. I want you to remember the context of this story. The people that were there before them were their grandmothers and grandfathers, and they were led by Moses. And Moses brought them out of slavery and they went into this wilderness because God was trying to work on their heart. And they took an 11 day journey and turned it into a 40 year death because they wouldn't stop complaining about the process God had them in. It kind of sounds like us. God, why am I at this job? God, why can't I move out of this house? And God said, you keep complaining, you'll die there.

21:19 I'm trying to work something out of you and work something into you, but you keep complaining about where I put you. Would you please be quiet and work through this process? You do not have to consult your feelings to move forward. Oh, somebody came just for that. No, God doesn't care how you feel. Comfort and growth do not go together and never will. And so he's asking you, will you obey me and will you move forward? and Joshua's parents and their descendants weren't able to. And so now they're standing in the promised land that they've been hearing about all of their life. And they come up to this fortified city, a wall back in the day, the wall that was around Jericho was their protection. So they literally come to their promise and it is shut up. It's closed. And I want you to see what God says to Joshua when he comes up to the place that he's supposed to live in. And he's supposed to conquer and it's closed look at chapter 6 verse 2 he said but the lord said and i came to encourage somebody let me stop right there because i know you tried before but the lord said and i know you tried to have a baby before but what did the lord say and i know you tried to get into that college before but what did the lord say literally look at what he gave to joshua he said i have given you jericho i want you to understand the emphatic language that god is using right there he did not say i'm going to give you jericho he talked to him as if it was past tense he said i know you're looking at an obstacle that is bigger than you but it's already yours do you have the faith to believe me even when you're looking at a shut door and i came to encourage somebody who's been looking at shut doors, who's been looking at obstacles that are bigger than you. God is not saying, if you do this, I will give it to you. He said, I've already given it to you. I've already called you, but you have to remember the promise. Joshua had to keep that

23:26 promise in front of him. He had to look at Jericho and say, God said, he's already given me that. Some of y'all need to go back to that home and say, God's already given me that. You need to go back and speak to your family relationship. And he said, our family's going to be healed. God has already given me that you're needing healing for your body. You need to confess. God has already given me that, but God said, and many of us are looking, but they said, and not, but God said, my question to you is what has God said to you? What is he placed in your heart that you need to bring preeminent in your mind? Cause Joshua would have not had the faith to go after Jericho and follow God's instructions if he did not remember, oh, no, no, no. My family died because they wouldn't believe God. I'm the first one in my generation who's going to see the promised land. And that's some people in here. You've been in generation of generations and generations of poverty and generations and generations and generations of lack and generations and generations and generations of lust. And God said, I'm taking to your place. Your family didn't get to see.

24:30 They're not even going to understand because you're going to speak to things. And I'm already telling you, I've already given it to you. But what happens when you have to go in faith when it's closed up? You have to remember what God has said. Can I tell you something very practical? Many of us need to stop focusing on the problem and focus on the promise. Some of y'all keep focusing on what happened and why they didn't. No, no, no. What did he promise you? Well, I know I just lost this house, but God said that I was going to be able to live and be and be one that would be a philanthropist and give to other focus on the promise. Well, I know we're infertile right now, but God said I would have a son and I would focus on the promise. Well, I know that I just got denied to this school, but God said that I would teach one focus on the promise. because when you focus on the promise, it'll give you faith to face your obstacles. Can I give you a practical step for everybody in here? If you want to practically find your pace of grace, what you need to do is post your promise somewhere. I want you to know I'm like literally this week. I want you to find something or, or, or a picture that represents something that you're believing God. And I want you to put it somewhere. You can see it all the time. I want you to keep that promise in front of you so that when the walls look like they're shunned, you need a happy marriage and y'all are always fighting like this. Post the happiest picture of y'all.

25:59 no no do you hear what i'm saying to you you gotta post the promise and you gotta keep it in front of you because as a man thinketh proverbs 27 tells us so you've been focusing on the defeat and it hasn't come so joshua had to look at the past of what his parents didn't do and look at the future of what was in front of him and still believe. I'm coming to tell you today that no matter what's behind you and no matter what's in front of you, you have to, somebody say still believe. So this is how he started to find his pace of grace. The second way that you find your pace of grace, you let God set the pace. You let God set the pace. So many of us are out here trying to do what we see and what we think God has for us, but we're making a plan on our own. So it's like, Oh God, you want me to be a CEO? So now I'm going to strive and I'm going to make a plan and I'm going to do this stuff.

26:56 Joshua didn't do that because he could have gone in. He's like, I got my army. These are some big, strong dudes. What we're going to do is we're going to climb the wall. We're going to jump over. We're going to yak, yak, yak, stab some people. And then we're going to take over. And what he did was what all of us needed to do. He went and consulted God. See, because many of us are struggling with plans that we made right now. plans that we didn't consult God with. We're married to people we didn't even ask God. Now you in and now just calm down. We got counseling and all kinds of things for you right now. But hear me. We've made so many plans without letting God set the pace. Look at it in verse 3. God set the pace for them. He said, now what I want you to do, and I can just see Joshua like, yeah, God, I'm ready, boy. There's a promised land. We hear, we see it. We're about to take over. He said, what do you want us to do, God? Just tell me. Are you sure you're ready for the instructions I'm about to give you? Because your training didn't prepare you for what I'm about to take you through. The pace I'm about to set is not going to look like anything anybody else is doing.

28:08 He said, this is what I want you to do, Joshua. He's like, I'm ready, God, whatever you want me to do. I want you to march around the town once a day for six days. hold on that's funny god i don't think you heard me i said i'm ready to take over jericho we're ready to come on i got my boys let's go he said um so i want you to walk around the city one time a day for six days and then i got something else okay and so this is where you want us to come in and suplex somebody and be able to make it happen ourselves, right? Okay. He said, no. On the seventh day, I want you to walk around the wall seven times. I want you not to say a word. And then on the last time, I want you to blow some horns.

29:04 And after you blow horns, everybody shout at the top of their lungs. you really want me to go back and tell the whole children of history that we're about to walk and blow horns but see what you have to realize is god's saying the story i'm trying to write in your life it's a story that gives me glory if it made natural sense then you could take credit for it he said i'm so strong and mighty that i will take the fullest things and i will confound the world i will take something that has nothing to do what you think you're doing and I'll make it fall at your feet but you have to let me set the pace if you set the place you sustain it but if I set the pace I give you victory every time some of us in this room need to go back and consult God and say change my pace because I've been making plans without you I've been starting businesses without you I've been doing things without you. And today I'm tired of providing for myself. I am tired. I am broken. I am lost.

30:12 God set the pace for me. And see, pace has to do with tempo. It has to do with the repetitive time we do it. How many people have hands? Put your hands up in the air like this. I need participation. Everybody got hands. Okay. Everybody clap for me. Okay. That was beautiful. How many people have a favorite song? Like you got a favorite song. Like it's your jam. Okay. This is what I need everybody to do. I want you to start clapping at the pace of your favorite song on the count of three. And I want you to do it loud. Okay. I want us to act a fool and hear your favorite song. Sometimes like, oh my God, Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber. Okay. Listen, figure it out. Here we go. One, two, three. Everybody start clapping. stop that was a hot mess why was it a hot mess because all of us are trying to do our own pace and what's happening is we all have a different race and a different pace so if somebody was trying to figure out what pace they were supposed to go at looking at everybody else they would be completely confused and that's what we look like when we're scrolling through Instagram and comparing ourselves with our coworkers, we're trying to find a pace that's not ours. We're trying to look at how fast are they clapping it? Oh, they're clapping slow. Oh, no, they're clapping fast. But what happens is when you let God set the pace, when there's somebody that's higher than you setting the pace, you can be able to find the pace, the rhythm, the tempo that you're supposed to be in. So we're going to try this. I'm going to set the pace for us and I want everybody to help me. DJ, can you go ahead and set the pace for us and y'all follow me.

31:51 Everybody. Whoa. Hey. We're going to double time it. Let's go. Now walk it out. Now walk it out. Now walk it out. Okay, stop, stop, stop, stop. Some of y'all was in, you in the club. Get, sit down. He was like, he was in the club. Like, he flashed back to last night. but watch what happened when a pace watch what happened when there was a pace set we were all able to get in unison god was not just trying to take joshua into a promised land he was trying to take an entire generation into a promised land and until we find the pace of grace We leave our families, our companies, our churches behind because we didn't let God set the tempo.

32:55 And if you let God set the pace, he said, you'll walk into everything I have for you. You're not going to miss anything, even though they're doing it now. I got a plan for you. I know the desires of your heart. I've made you a promise. I've set the pace for you. And you have to remember what God has done. see the thing about God uh God never is slack on his promises like he he's not a man that he should lie so when he gives you a promise and he sets a pace you can be sure that he's gonna do it I have a four-year-old daughter her name is Isabella I talk about her often I messed up and I made my daughter a promise when I wasn't thinking about it when she was three she came to me and she said, daddy, when I turn five, I want to go to Disney world. Will you promise me that we can go to Disney world when I turn five? And I was watching a game or doing something like that. I said, baby, sure. We're going to Disney world when you turn five. She said, great.

33:57 so her father made her a promise so at her fourth birthday party she told all of her friends she had faith enough in what her father said to start saying it out of her mouth y'all better help me she told all of her friends he said when i turn five my daddy is taking me to disney world and all her friends looked up and I looked up and my daughter reminds me every week when she's watching the Disney channel she says daddy that's where we're gonna be next year for my birthday she's we go past the Disney store she says daddy that's the dress I'm gonna wear when we go to Disney world she's understand that her father is going to make good on her promises.

34:49 And so she's, oh, y'all missing it. She's already lining up her words, her speech, her wardrobe. Oh, y'all better hear me. Because she knows that her father is going to come through on the promise. I know that if I as a earthly father can give good gifts, how much more? Your father in heaven. I feel it, I feel it, I feel it. He wants to bless you. He wants to change you. He wants to take you from grace to grace. And listen, at the moment she feels that maybe it's not going to happen. All she says is my daddy said. what I'm telling you is that she doesn't worry about how much money me and her mother have.

35:42 I want you to get this. She is not concerned about what's in our bank account. She is not concerned about airfare. She doesn't even have a concept of what it will take to get us to that place. But all she knows is that my father made me a promise. And my daddy has completed his promises before. And so he's going to complete the promises now. We already looking at tickets. Y'all pray for us. what I came to tell you is that if you let God set the pace, that he's going to be the one to fulfill the promise. And so that's why when we get on the treadmill of life, that God says, okay, I want you to walk. He's God walking is weak. Like God, there's so many people doing better than me. There's so many people, father God, that are doing the right thing.

36:42 And God, I just, I feel like I'm behind. I feel like you're telling me to walk and not try hard in my own strength, but obey you and do what you've told me to do. Man, I'm walking these stupid laps and it just looks, no, God, I don't think you said for me to walk.

37:04 I think your word said I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. So God, I'm going to go against everything that you've been providing for me. And I may look stupid and I may almost fall. And then I get off because I was never meant to run at that pace. And I walk away from God and I start making dumb decisions and I start taking on relationships that were never meant for me that give me a moment of relief because I was never meant to walk. And many of us walk away. so that that christ life wasn't for me and god said yes it was i just didn't want you to run into the blessings i wanted you to walk into them i wanted you to know that i'm going to use the foolish things while other people are running and expending all their energy and stunting on instagram and doing all that other stuff i'm gonna build you in the pasture i'm gonna do you like david nobody even gonna see you coming and and then when and then you're not gonna have to position yourself, they'll call for you and you'll be ready when it's time. See, most of us, we get away from God and we start running. We start striving. But the thing is, when God sets the pace, he doesn't change the pace. He wants a pace that's sustainable. So even if I'm like, I'm going to run back to God, I'm going to run back to him. Even when I get on, the pace is still the same. I can't speed up what God is doing.

38:37 so what happens is we get up here and even i'm trying to start running and i'm gonna hurt myself trying to run when god told me to walk and i'm trying to ask you what area of your life are you running in and god's saying walk it's gonna happen you're gonna get to seven miles you're you're gonna get but every lap i want you to obey me every lap yeah i know you want your husband, but he's, you're 26. And you said, I'd never be 26 and not be married. He said, yeah, if you walk at this pace, I'm going to work everything out of you. The hurts, all that stuff. It'll be 36 when you get married, but do you want to set the pace or do you want me to set it? Cause you can get married and get divorced and my plan will still come to pass by 36. You'll just be more scarred and more broken and more hurt. He said, but I don't want you to go through that. So if you let me set the pace, well, God, he is fine. He said, please let me set the pace. Please don't, please don't compare yourself to other people. Let me do it. Yeah, you're going to be that CEO, but what if he wants to work on your character for five years? What if, what if, what if he wants to build a foundation in your family that is strong enough to take wealth?

39:54 I thought about this the other day. So many people lose their health trying to get money and they have to pay for their health. Like the money you made to try, you, you work yourself into something that's going to take the money you had to work for.

40:14 God's saying, I came to give you life and life to the, I don't, I don't want you. I came to give you life and no sorrow with it, but you got to go at the pace of grace. And God told me personally, he said, Michael, I want you to stop striving because if you start striding, walking in the direction, you'll get there. He said, but at this speed, he said, you'll be able to do it for a long time. See, sprint runners, 100 yard dash, 200 yards. But a marathon runner, they find their stride. And God's saying, will you just serve me? And will you just do it for six laps around whatever I've called you to do? Well, I'm just a stay-at-home mom. God's got you there for six laps. Stay there. Love those kids. Serve them.

41:05 Well, I'm just a low clerk, and you've called me to the platform. Stay there. Serve. Do it. Well, God, I just, this feels so uncomfortable. It's okay. Don't stop on lap four. don't stop on lap two don't stop on lap six god says because at some moment i'm going to change the pace and on lap seven i'm gonna say i don't want you to run i just want you to obey me this is why you have to listen that's why in this time of fasting and prayer we're not just listening oh god gave me instructions some of us get instructions and we just run away from the presence of god and he was like oh i was trying to tell you one more thing on lap seven i want you to speed up the pace. And I want you to go around seven times in one day. I want you to listen to what I'm saying. And what he was doing is trying to see if they would obey all the way through. See, for many of us, we do partial obedience and partial obedience is disobedience. And when we are trying to follow God, he needs complete obedience. So he says, walk this race. And he says, then when you shout, I will give you the victory. Can I help you? When you let God set the pace, it will change everything in your life because God has already been there before.

42:22 And wherever God is, he provides. How do you know you might be striving and you might be out of the pace of grace, one thing it said about the children of Israel is they were going at a pace. They were walking at a pace where they never were without the presence of God. Let me help you. You may be striving and you may be out of the pace of grace if you don't have time to spend time in the presence. When you say stuff like this, man, I just can't find time to read my word. you're going too fast when you say stuff like man i just i forgot to pray today you're going too fast see the children of israel had to carry the ark of the covenant so they had to walk slow enough around this thing to make sure the presence of god was with them at all time because without the presence of god they know they would lose the battle and that's why moses would stay stuff like this if you don't go i'm not going don't let your spirit go and let me have to go where your spirit is not out. And so what I'm telling you is if you're too busy to pray and you're too busy to worship and you're too busy to read your word, you're probably going too fast and you're getting tired and you're sustaining yourself and you are trying to figure out how to get out of it.

43:38 And God's saying, would you please find the pace of grace? I'm back here. You're up there. I'll take you there. If you come back here. so what's the last thing to us finding our pace of grace you have to know the promise and the pace won't match let me help you these guys were warriors so they knew how to kill people they walked as a preliminary to kill people like it wasn't like oh let's walk today it's like let's walk to kill him. You understand? And God told them to do something beneath their training, beneath their rank, beneath what they have been positioned to do. And he asked them to walk, but he was going to tear a wall down by their walking. That doesn't make any sense. That doesn't make any sense, God, that you're telling me to serve in the children's area.

44:35 And somehow you're going to develop a book out of me. Like the children's area has nothing to do with my book. And God says, I am writing a story that will give me glory. If you planned it, then you would take the credit. I just want you to obey and I'll still give you what you can't make happen for yourself. So God tells you to start saving money. And you're like, I'm only saving $50 a month. Like what's $50 going to do for the promise? He said, just be consistent and do what I said to do. He said, cause you don't even know there's a settlement up ahead, but I'm just waiting for you to obey me in six laps and do what I say on the seventh lap. And I'm going to give you the victory. What are you saying to me, pastor Mike, your position right now does not have a lot to do with where you're going. It has to do everything with what God's doing in you. He wants to build your character. He wants to see if you obey. He wants to see if you serve because again, the generation before them, they did not obey God. And what God told me through this, he said, Michael, I'm trying to break generational curses. This was their Egypt. They went to the promised land, but had seven days for God to take the character that they had grown up in out of their life. Their parents had 11. They turned it into 40 years. These people had six and obeyed God and saw the promised land. What I came to tell you today is keep serving, keep giving, keep loving, keep sacrificing, keep doing the last thing God told you and finding your pace of grace. Well, God, what does this have to do with what you place inside of me? He said, it has everything to do because if you realize and don't get tripped up that where you're at and where you're going to be, they don't have to be synonymous because I'm supernatural. I can qualify people for stuff.

46:30 Y'all, I've never preached a day in my life until seven years ago. Didn't go to seminary, didn't do any of those things. I was in the music industry and God said, be faithful where I've planted you and I will produce the promise in your life. God is not caught up in hierarchies and credentials. He will surpass every, every wall that is in your way to put you where you're supposed to be. But he's saying, will you realize that where you are right now and where you're going to be, it doesn't have to be the same thing. And I see many young people in this place. Like, I just want to work in my field. God said, work where I'll change you.

47:10 Work will I make you who you're supposed to be. And some of y'all are like, dang, I got to stay at this job another year. What I'm saying for you is that may be the place that God gives you the greatest breakthrough. And you look up and God says, shout because I've given you the victory. And you'll look up and you'll say, this didn't even take nothing out of me. We just been walking. I mean, it was the same thing we was doing last time. We just been walking. We just been praying and we just been faithful. And then God says, give me praise glory to God and the obstacle that was in your way that you were walking around literally crumbles. I'm telling you what the enemy wants you to work for. God will give to you if you find the pace of grace. What are you saying? Pastor Michael, there's some things you're going to have to stop doing that seem like they make complete sense.

48:11 Like, yeah, because I'm going to do this and I'll do this and do this. And God in prayer and in this time of fasting, he's going to say, do something different. And you can't partially obey. You're going to have to fully obey. Some of you, he's going to ask you to give a large gift. Some of you, he's going to ask you to go on a date with your wife every week. Well, God, we don't like each other.

48:32 He said, I want you to rock around this wall for six times. You've been praying for a better marriage and every date is going to suck. The first six dates, at least. and on that seventh time and whatever number it is, God, there's going to be a breakthrough. All I'm saying to you is don't get caught up and where you're at right now, because the walls are coming down. If you obey and stay in the pace of grace, can I give you a personal testimony? I've been walking this out in my life. God kept telling me Michael less is more You're gonna do less i'm gonna do more because I would rather You be able to be the benefactor of my blessing and I get the glory Then you get the glory and you throw me a little blessing You know how people go up to the war show and be like y'all just want to thank god But if everybody on my click and they always but like they just throw in and I thank god God said i'm tired of pity praise I want to get the glory out of somebody's whole life That means i'm going to take you down paths that don't make sense, but you'll end up in the promise So what he said to me when I took over this church, he said michael I want you to be quiet like he told the children of israel So I want you to be quiet and I want you to stop trying to make ways for yourself I'm I have a personality. I feel like anybody will like me if I have enough time with you in the right situation Like I'm gonna make you like me and I'll move myself into where I feel like I need to be.

50:06 God told me when I became the pastor, he said, you will not try to make relationship with anybody you come in contact with. I'll bring you every relationship you need when you need it. I said, dang, that's hard, God, because I'm at all these conferences and I'm going to these places and there's men and women of God that really inspired me. And I want to ask them questions because I'm a mover and I want to help God's plan come to pass. And he said, you can't help my plan come to pass. You can get in the way of my plan, but I'm going to do what I've already called you to do if you work with me. And I was like, no, God, but you ain't hooked me up with them. And I just wanted to move it forward. And God said, you be quiet and you march around these walls. Don't you say a word until I tell you to shout. I said, OK, one of my biggest influences in this time has been Stephen Furtick. And some of you guys know who that is. He's one of the leading preachers in our generation is making a huge impact. and that man has made a huge impact on my ministry and on my life and the way I think and I've been in rooms with him probably eight or nine times in the past three years and every time I'm in a room I'm like okay God is this cool if I you know just say what up dude you know what up Stevie you know what I'm saying just just trying to and God said don't you dare I've already given you the instruction not to make any relationship I'll bring whoever you need when you need it so I'd be places, and the last time, it was at Victory. He was at Victory in August for Word Explosion, and I was sitting right behind him, and Paul is my boy, so if I wanted to meet him, I could have been like, Paul, let me go back and meet Stevie, you know what I'm saying, just want to tell him he's been a blessing, encourage him, let him know how much he's blessed me, you know what I'm saying, and I was just thinking of all these things, and he's sitting right behind me, and then Paul says, hey, why don't you turn around and greet your neighbor and let him know who you are and dah, dah, dah, dah. And I was just like, hello, how are you doing Jack? Nice to meet you.

52:03 Like I turned right around and I met cause God said, don't you dare come out of the pace that I've set for you. So I left that night me and natalie went home and I said well god Okay, I guess i'm just used to this pace. Just i'll be the loser in tulsa that nobody knows But remember this was coming from a place of needing significance and god said I already called you Like I don't need any man to tell you what i've already told you If anybody says anything it should be confirmation to what you already know And if they never clap and if they never say anything, if they never invite you, you steal who I called you to be. So he's working that in my heart. Two months later, I was studying at the library and that's where I go to study on Wednesdays. And I was studying there and I get a DM message from a girl on Instagram from Elevation Church. And she said, check your DMs now with the exclamation.

53:03 And I was scared because, you know, I don't usually be sliding in the DMs when girls be, you know what I'm saying? but I knew her character, you know. So I went in there and she said, hey, I saw you at the conference. I thought we exchanged information, but I need to get your number right now. Pastor Stephen's trying to get in contact with you. I said, they must have some more Stephens at their church. I said, that can't be the Stephen, you know what I'm saying? And so she said, text me your number. I text her my number. And five minutes later, I got a text message from a number I've never seen before in my life. And I was not going to share this, but God told me to share it to let you know that when you stop striving, when you stop reaching, God says, I already got what you desire and stuff you don't even need, but I know the desires of your heart. And so I'll give you that too. But when I made it up in my heart to stop going after what God said I didn't me, he then blew my mind. This is the message that I got, and I want to share it with my church family. Can you play that real quick?