Pathways // Nick Serban III

Pathways __ Nick Serban III

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

god, lord, pathways, abraham, called, test, higher, morning, obedience, mountain, hopes, rower, oftentimes, life, moment, son, isaac, story, process, treadmill

Amen. This morning for next few moments, I want to talk about this idea of pathways. And I think I saw on the screen a second ago, the title of the message. In Matthew 1714, there's a scripture that says this. So Jesus said to them because of your unbelief, For assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith, as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain move from here to there, and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except through prayer, and fasting. And it was, there was a moment where the disciples could not produce didn't seem to be able to produce enough power. There was a man who said, you know, Lord, have mercy on my son, they needed more faith. And Jesus very clearly said, you know, there's some things that need to happen. It can happen only through prayer and fasting, a withdrawal, a sacrifice, time, a separation time. And I got to be thinking, I got to thinking and I heard rehearsal this morning about nothing is impossible, and miracles and, and we're a good company this morning, that we believe in miracles. But yet, oftentimes, I saw it the other day, on a, on a post from somebody that there's there's a major movement today against miracles. And it's not necessarily that I believe in miracles, but people are saying, you know, we're making miracles, the god of things, as opposed to look to the lord of things. And I just want to challenge us today, that as we look to the Lord, we're going to believe for miracles as we as we surrender to Him as we believe in his name, as we lay hands on the sick. Listen, if you came here this morning, just know, we're going to lay hands on the sick before you leave. And if you were having to be sick, don't think we're just like rolling dice, and just hoping that maybe just by happenstance, that God may show up and you may be touched by the Lord, we're believing in the name of Jesus, that God is going to touch you, and God is going to heal you and God's going to God's going to change. Nothing is impossible with God. And God's calling us to dream today. And God's calling us to to higher heights. And God's asking us to look at our situations and look at where we are, and look where we're going and surrender to Him. In the process. When God asks you to do something possible, and you do it, you look good. When God gives you something impossible to do, he uses you. He looks good. I'm all about him looking good. I'm all about lifting him up. So all the world will see. So the facts are real, that there's often their sovereignty the Lord and there's free will of the Lord, there's there's freedom, we get to make choices, believe it or not, you get to make a choices. But the ultimate goal and the ultimate sovereignty the Lord is has directed us through His Word through, we don't want to get go against what the Word of God says. And so scripture says this scripture says, I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Right. But in that he keys called us so that we would give that we would go, that we would serve, we would worship and we would praise. But I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. And so sometimes I believe there's a disconnect between, you know, what the, what the Word says? Or what we just take for face value and the unction that we need to put into it. Another another thought, God says the No, I will deliver you from the flood. ever remember the story in Old Testament, knowing the flood, on your delivery from the flood? So now, build an ark. Build a boat? Well, here's, here's sovereign God. God says the Moses I will deliver you. But now go get the people and lead them out of captivity. Again, we're answering the question, What is God saying to us? What is God saying to you? God will protect me. You believe in the protection of the Lord, from Allah, I depend upon the protection of the Lord, but lock your doors and windows at night. God will be Jehovah Jireh provider but get a job. God has a wife for you. But you have to ask her out. God has a husband for you. I guess in the day and age today, you can ask him out. Maybe not I don't know. I hear the groaning and moan and the murmuring, murmuring. God will give you good health. But you got to eat right again, God will give you an amazing marriage. But you have to love one another. And you have to work on it. Isaiah 55 eight says this from my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord, as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts as the rain in the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it but and flowers so that it yields seed for the sower, and bread for the eater. And then Revelations, chapter two, verse 29, says this, are your ears awake? Listen, listen to the wind words, the spirit blowing through the churches. I believe even as I speak this morning, as I share this morning, I've had it happen. I've had it happen 100 times where I've had someone come up to me after the service and say, Pastor, thank you for sharing on on this topic. And I'm thinking myself, I don't, I don't even think I even touch that topic, but somehow through the power of your Holy Spirit. So God knows where every person is this morning. God knows where every circumstance every situation is. And so we're going to believe, for him to speak to us today. And so, if you're taking notes this morning, the first area I want to talk about is highways, pathways lead to highways, pathways lead to highways, pathways lead to highways, hopefully you can hear that pathways lead the highways. Now, I must I must say these words, pathways lead to higher ways, higher ways. And so there's a scripture in Genesis 20 tubes. Take your Bible, Genesis 22, one through three it says sometime later God tested Abraham, Abraham. He said to Abraham, here I am. He replied, then God said, Take your son, your only son, whom you love Isaac, and go to the region of Moriah Sacrifice him there is a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you. It's incredible. It's an incredible story you may want to unfolded this week during the de veau time. But in Genesis 22, this story of Abraham this story of of this sacrificial moment, this story of obedience changes, so much. Pathways lead to highways, pathways. Sometimes when you look at a mountain, I think we had had a mountain picture there. They're not necessarily when you want to climb a mountain, it's not always just straight up. Oftentimes, if you want to climb a mountain, you kind of start here, and you kind of go this way. And you turn and you go this way. And you turn and you go this way, a turn and go this way until finally you've reached the top you've reached the pinnacle. You've reached where you want to go. And God's called us all to pathway we read the Scripture earlier. Trust the Lord with all your heart, lean on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your I'll change it for today. Your pathway straight. He's going to smooth things out, he's going to make things clear. And for the next few moments, I'm gonna talk about the pathway that God has called us on He's inviting us this morning to go higher. Over the past few years I've actually held a I felt membership at the gym across the street. And so I joke with people often I say if it was any closer, I'd be there all the time. And some of you would die to have the gym like you know, a block from your house or a block from your where you work. And so sure enough, I've gone over there a few times and and I've been on this thing called a treadmill and I've been on a treadmill before I've actually graduated to a rower I've got a rower and a treadmill and and I hate it I joined you know I hate it I hate running. I hate treadmills and I hate rowing but I like to eat and so I got it. You can't do one without the other. Okay, you got to you got to put some time into and so the other day I was on the I was on the rower and I happened to be in Japan because there's a screen with the rower and it takes you to different places you can. You can like you can float down the river. I can be in Boston going down the river, but this there's a new new new place they take you in Japan. And so here I am pulling and I'm watching and I'm seeing and it was extremely it was checked. lunging. And what was even more challenging. After the 2030 minutes I put in, when I got off the rower, or when I got off the treadmill, I was in exactly the same place as I was in that kind of frustrating, I mean, I mean, I saw some beautiful sights. I mean, I could have been in the Grand Canyon, you know, and there wasn't any more. And and I just felt, I just felt this this morning as we as we share this message that, that we even symbolically prophetically speak to some that are here in the room, that you feel like you're in the same place you were a year ago, where you feel like you're in the same place you were two years ago. And you're running and seemingly kind of wearing yourself out. Another analogy, you've kind of circled the mountain again. And he's calling us to go higher. And he's calling us, and sometimes even calling us higher. I gotta I've been offended by the treadmill across the street, because there's this one button on it, and it's called incline. Yeah, yeah. It's like, not only am I walking, but now you're gonna meet your harder for me to enjoy Japan, you know, it's gonna you're gonna make it harder for me to focus. And there's a button of incline on the on the on the rower. It's, I forget what the what the wording, they give higher tension, you know, you can go from a one to 100. And you got to figure out, you know, where you want, where you want to pull on this thing. And with God trying to grow us, and God trying to change us and God trying to help us as we are mighty man of God and mighty women of God, we have to realize that we are built with the incline button. And there are times that things are not going to feel all that great. Somebody say out there, amen. There gonna be times when we're stretched, we're going to there gonna be times when we do apologize when we think, you know, it really doesn't matter. But it does. Because God's called us to obedience, and God has things that are higher for us, you know, we reached a pinnacle, in our marriage, in our, in our lives, we have no children, no little children in our home anymore. And so it's been great, it's amazing. And yet, we have grandchildren. And when the grandchildren come over, now, we've we've gone around to all the outlets, and we've covered the outlets, so you can't put their fingers in it. And be no one's talking about, come on, we're here this morning. Right? And, and they're sitting there sings on tables, and there's things and pretty much we removed them all, but when we know the kids are coming over, we take the things that are nicer, or things that maybe they're gonna get a hold of that they could break. And what do we do with them, we put them higher out of their reach. And we're doing it for a number of reasons. One, because we like our stuff, Alright, number number two, is because they're not wise enough to maybe be able to differentiate between something that is maybe, you know, too heavy, or can break very easily, you know, the difference between a, you know, a glass stick or something that's glass and a and a plastic stick, or whatever it is. And so we purpose to remove those things and, and we move them higher. And again, we're not doing it because maybe one day they will understand but when they they're going to understand when they get to the place where they can understand that you know what, I had to move it higher, God's calling us higher. And there's some things that we need no longer to be playing around with down here. But we need to be reaching. We need to have a elevated mindset that he's he's pulling us that he's he's he's longing for us to embrace what He has for us. A number of years ago, I had the opportunity to go to Quito, Ecuador, but we flew to Quito first. And that's a personal story. He's here in the room. But Jonathan, over here, he was on the trip. And Quito happens to be a higher elevation. I don't know if it's nine or eight 910 1000 feet above sea level. And there's something called out to tude sickness that people get sometimes and it comes on basically good looking men. But and so I had all the guys Jonathan got it No. And so on this on this trip, Jonathan got out to the sickness and and so we had to we had the purpose. In order for him to come off as outages sickness. We had we had to come from the altitude getting getting the van and start driving down and until we got to a certain place that his body was comfortable with and as that his heart was comfortable with. He had you know a big headache and it affects people differently. But I've been I've been in out to the 10,000 I've actually been elevation of 14,000 and Have, you noticed some things that happen when the elevation gets higher. And in fact, if you were to tell me today, you know, hey, after service today, Pastor, let's go climb, you know, the Smoky Mountains here in Tennessee. Well, you know, I'd probably, you know, grab a blanket, you know, a few snacks or whatever. But if you told me that, you know, let's go climb Kilimanjaro, Smoky Mountains, Kilimanjaro, I would purpose myself, I would prepare differently for the one mountain than the other. Let me just bring this here. God is calling us to climb the mountain. God is calling us to higher places. And there's preparation that takes place here. And it's different preparation from the blanket to the gear. Another point I want to make about altitude is that sometimes even when we've gone up to altitude, in a bus, we purpose that we took our time going up, because our bodies then acclimate. And here's some of the things that happen when we've prepared for the altitude. We didn't talk as much. Because you can't breathe as freely at a higher altitude. And so we had to say I'm not I'm not yelling at students on the bus, you know, I had I had to purpose I had to be very, very particular about what I said, because I was trying to pace myself because of the oxygen that was getting into my body. Now that's a that's a physical thing. But spiritually, when we are climbing, oftentimes, we want to win accolades on the way up the hill. Hey, what do you think of that? What do you think of that? Or, you know, I think God's saying this to me, but what should i What should I do here? Let me you know, let me get 10 people's opinions, and I'm gonna weigh these 10 people's opinions over here, when the Holy Spirit say, do this. Then maybe there's less of this. And there's more of this. There's less of, there's less of, you know, trying to just gather more strength from other people, as opposed to Lord, I surrender to this process. Pathways lead to higher ways. So the pathway God has us on is leading us to a higher, higher place. In the scripture passage. God tested Abraham. Then God said, Take your son, your only son, whom you love Isaac, and go to the region of Moriah, Sacrifice him there. As a burnt offering on a mountain, I will show you pathways lead to higher ways. Number two, pathways come with testing. Pathways come with testing, Genesis 22, three through six. Early the next morning, Abraham got up and loaded his donkey he took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac, then he had cut enough wood. For the burn offering he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you. Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife as the two of them went on together. What do you do when you're facing change? What do you do when you're facing death? What do you do when you're facing difficulty in finances? What do you do when you're believing for one dream to take place? And yet the dream seemingly has turned into a nightmare. You speak the word of God. And you rely on what he is told you. And you rely on the covenant you rely on the direction that he gave. And so it's a time of no moping. No gossiping, no pulling people down. No whining, no crying, it's okay to cry. But you're what I'm saying here, if you will begin to use the word of the Lord in your in your difficult time. And just holding on to direction that he's given. I'll point this out later. But Abraham said, Here I am. Here I am. And not till not till later on. When everything stops and the sacrifice changes. He asks again, and he replies here I am. There was no discussion from God from the first I understand until it was time and somehow in the in the world we live in in the time we live in. We continue to want confirmation. We continue to want these moments in our lives. Let me let me say a confirmation is amazing. It's amazing when someone comes up to you and says, you know, hey, the Lord told me you had this dream last night about this, whatever, you know, it's kind of like, hallelujah, that's wonderful. But you know, I don't need that in the process. When there's true dedicated obedience to the Word of God, anybody with me this morning? He asks, he asked him who he was. And here he is in the middle of a test. Pathways come with testing. Path, they always come with testing. We changed things up, I took our first oldest son, Pastor Nick, for his first for his driving driving test for the first time. And when he went and took this test, I don't think he passed it the for he didn't pass it the first time. No. And I was so anxious. I was I was, I was so wound up on this thing that I decided, You know what, I can't go back and do this again. So Kim, you take Nicholas to go take the test. And she did. And he passed, he was probably more nervous with me than he was with you. And that's the That's why I told myself. And so we pretty much made that. Kim pretty much took all the kids for their tests, I would help them figure out how to drive and all that, but but she was much more relaxed and less anxious on the test. But guess what? I want you to get this today. How many? How about this? How many would say you're going you're kind of going through a test? You kind of you're kind of being tested right now? Anybody here? All right. I got both hands on my foot. Alright. Here's the here's the deal. Guess what? Tests tests are not all that bad. For for for Nick had to take a what a test. So that what the keys of a vehicle were now available to him. And he could drive. Oftentimes in life, and I see it all the time on on the internet, I see it on, you know, people posting stuff, you know, pray for me in the middle of the middle of this bid, or whatever. And oftentimes, this testing process that we are in, and I appreciate the ability to pray and all these things, but the end of the day is Be obedient in the situation that God has called you to ensure it may get a little difficult along the way. I mean, here we have we have Abraham that God says, You know what, go sacrifice. Your only son. It was his only son. We'll tell you more about that in a minute. But go sacrifice him. Yes, sir. said that the next morning he went right away. Thank God for the next morning's because sometimes when it's not the next morning, we have the next day or the next week to talk about it. What do we do? Try to rally up the troops. Hey, Woody, what do you think about this? I appreciate counsel. Don't Don't get me wrong. But I tell you what, there is godly counsel. And there's worthy counsel. And I want nothing but godly counsel in decisions that get to be made. Without the test, I don't get the freedom. And the same without God. I don't get freedom. pass the test. Somebody needs to work today. pass the test. pass the test that's right before you right now. How you respond, how you react, how you love how you pray, how God uses you? How you're obedient? You know, and I know, again, I know in incredible seriousness, but when we receive the offering that I mean, this church survives through the Lord who says I will build my church, the gates of hell will not prevail against it. But you know what? We pray that God provides provision for every person in this place. And because the word of God tells us the time, we work in that that's called obedience. And so oftentimes, when we're not obedient in this area, then we wonder why things aren't working out. So well over here. Did I just say that? Do you receive it? Do you understand where it were coming from here? pass the test, pass the test when he when the Lord speaks to you? And you say, well, he doesn't speak me that way. I tell you what, if you go higher, if you go higher, he'll start speaking to you this way. If you decide to go higher, anybody with me this morning, if you decide to go higher, you're going to be in the Publix Supermarket. You're going to be in Tarjay in the spirit of God is going to download on you and speak a life that for you to speak life to someone. Because that's the God that we serve. He's called us to be His hands. His feet. Thank God for The pillar of fire by day and the cloud, pillar, fire and cloud by day, but when it comes down to it, God's called you and God's called me to be his hands. God's called me to step out, God's called me to give God's called me to serve, and he will build his church, but he wants to use us in that process. God is not testing you to punish you. He's testing you, because he's ready to promote you. How many had a bad week last week? Could that bad week be part of the promotion that he wants to give to you could that bad moment, that difficult thing that you heard that difficult situation that you're in, that he's in the process of promotion to you? Tests means that I'm going higher. And I'm all about getting into all about going higher. So God comes. It takes Abraham through this kind of a very simple three step process. He takes him from where he is. He takes him from where God needs him to be. And he shows him what he needs him to do. Too often in our walk with the Lord. We decide where we're at. And we won't move until we know what the end result is supposed to be. Think of it as a process. Sometimes later, Genesis 22. Sometimes later, God says to Abraham, he said to him, Abraham, here I am, Abraham says, he replied, then God said, Take your son, your only son, Abraham had a couple boys at this at this point of life. But why did you say take your only son, and so if you go to the root word of only, here's what it was. This is this is for somebody today already. The root word of your for only was your unique promise. The unique promise that was for him alone, that God bless him, it was a blessing from the Lord the God opened up the womb the unique thing is that he's entrusted him in that moment, any interests us today, in that moment, the unique promise, not what you created with your own strength, but what he created through you. And this is where he carries us From Glory to Glory. This is the the life we talked about the pathway. This is the the headlamp ministry that I love, love talking about, I gotta get maybe one day, a build a, like a jacket with like, like headlights, you know, LED lights on the side, just to prove the point that the further I go, the further I will see. The further you go with the Lord, the further you will see the verse For many of us, not necessarily here on this Sunday morning. We just, we just we're just waiting for something to happen. And if I know anything about our God, He wants us to elevate, he wants us to go higher with him. There's grace on this mountain. There's financial breakthrough. But first, we need the relational breakthrough. There's greater clarity. As soon as you embrace obedience. Again, we want the we want the end dog gift. And we watch people and we say You know, I want what they have. I want what I want within their life. We watch this over and over and over again. And we and then we, you know, I've ever heard the statement. Nothing's too good for God's little children here. And I believe that, but I also believe there's process in it. And oftentimes we see the end result we're not knowing the process that takes place. You know, this, this message today, you know, didn't show up this morning and took me 15 minutes to put together. There's process in it. There's prayer and if there's moments in it, think of some great ministries across across his land. You know, there's process there's those who are paying prices. And God's called us to pay the price of obedience, so that he would elevate us that we would hear that we would see that we would respond. Genesis 22 Three, early the next morning Abraham got up I loaded his donkey, he took with him two of his servants his son, Isaac, when he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place. God had told him about between obedience. Sometimes we have delays. So I'm grateful for early the next morning, early the next morning. And this led to incredible revelation that he receives when he gets to the top of the mountain. back to Genesis 22 123, sometimes later, God tested Abraham, he said to him, Abraham, here I am. I think this is a question that we ought to ask, ask ourselves, even this morning, as we process this, this message, here I am. That's, that's, that's what he says, Here I am. And he's asking you the question, even to us this morning. You know, everyone, you remember being in grade school, and they would call off roll, you know, here. I used to hate that, you know, especially if they asked you to pronounce your name or whatever was, you know, here, I'm here. Here I am. Here I am. And maybe this morning, the Lord's asking us this question. You know, if I, if I called your name or the Lord calls your name, when you say, here I am. Are you in the place that you supposed to be? About this? Are you in the place that people think you are for the four hours we get together on Sunday morning. But then you're back to the place you're in shouldn't be. Here I am. He's just trying to identify where where he is. Abraham, he knows where he is. Here I am. I'm in the process of elevation. I'm in the process of growing, I'm in the process of going to the next. He wants our location today. He wants your location today. We're going to close in a few moments. He wants your Where are you today? Where are you in the process of miracle? Where you're in the process of life, circumstance and business relationship. He doesn't want the fake moment. Aren't you grateful to be part of a church that we're not to be fake? Aren't you? Aren't you glad we're part of a part of a church that you know, there gonna be some tears shed? There were some there were some moments of, of, you know, introspective. God, where am I? Are you? Aren't you glad to be part of the family of God? That that there are there's a crowd of witnesses up there and even down here that are watching? Aren't you glad to be part of a church that dedicates babies until the Lord and it's more about the congregation than the baby themselves? That we would be living examples that we would show what it is the fight what it is to pray through what it is to do what God's called us to do, that we would not be used to elevate anyone but him in the process. He's asking the question. He wants our location today. He's not the thing that you produce on your own strategy. He's not actually after the thing that's driving you creatively. He's after. Where are you? No, no, really? Where are you? No, no, no, really? Where are you? Abraham? Where are you, Jonathan? Where are you? Kwame? Where are you? Where are you usually on the on the climbs, you have to decrease. You have to give things up. Usually on the climb. If you've if you're going anywhere. We've we've we've tracked in jungles and I've written up mountains in the in buses, and they've limited you in the bus of the weight you can bring can't just throw it all in the kitchen sink under there. They want to they want to they want things light and movable. What do we hold on to? What are we holding on to? And here Abraham is in the moment that early next morning. He gets up. He's gonna go. He didn't bring 12 servants in about a couple. He knew what had to be done. Pathways lead to highways, pathways come with testing. And number three pathways bring clarity. misread the conclusion of the story in Genesis 22 six or 19 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering Place in the Sun Isaac carried himself the fire in the knife as the two of them went on. together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father, Father, yes, my son Abraham replied the fire in the winter here, Isaac said, but where's the lamb for the burnt offering? Abraham answered, God will provide the lamb for the burnt offering my son, the two of them went on together. When they reached the place God had told him about God built an altar there and arranged, arranged the wood, a random range range of wood, He bound his son Isaac and laid them on the altar on top of the wood. And then he reached out his hand and took the knife, the slave son, but the angel from heaven, called out to him from heaven, Abraham, Abraham, what does Abraham say, Here I am, in obedience, in following the direction of the Lord, do not lay a hand on the boy, you said, do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God because you have not withheld from me, your son, your only son, Abraham looked up, and they're in the thick of it saw a ram caught by its horns, he went over and took the ram and sacrifice it to the burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place the Lord will will provide. And to this day, it is said on the mountain of the Lord. It will be provided Jehovah Jireh, the angel the Lord called Abraham from the heaven a second time and said, I swear by myself declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, you're on your own only son, I will surely bless you. Your only promise, your greatest promise, your unique promise, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. And as the sand of thy enemies in the in through your offering, and nations on earth will be blessed because you will have obeyed me. How about this? How about some families being blessed at this body? How about some children being blessed out of this body because of families. Then Abraham returned to the servants and they set off together. And Abraham stayed in for Shiva. When praise demands, a sacrifice, you know the word for worship. You know how many enjoyed worshiping the Lord today enjoy the real word for worship with translate it. It's not it? Shouldn't we actually wish to change the name here? We won't do it. But it's not the worship team. We didn't spend time in worship, it would be called the sacrifice team. Because worship is sacrifice. When praise when God demanded a sacrifice Abraham that he's had to choose to worship even then when difficulties come when testing comes when, you know you're taking the driver's test, we're here this or this is sad, or or there are these moments, difficult conversations. Maybe there's difficult, difficult discussions even you know, here's Isaac talking about his dad in that verse where something, something's not adding up here in this. Obviously, you knew this has been done before. The leading the guiding the moments. The pathway. The higher we go. The more clarity we get. And the thing that is stuck with me even this even this morning, in early hours, is when we see pathways, like we see here, pathways become smoother. We're able to lead with pathways to the next generation. You're able to you're able to lead. I heard somebody say recently, you know, they were getting an award. And they said you know, I mean, I may not be able to fill the shoes that this person wears. But at least I can follow the pathways that they've made. God has called us all the pathways. There's testing in them. There's moments of discouragement in them and yet when we find ourselves obedient in them there are higher ways there are greater ways So today in the conclusion of the story, God fulfilled prophecy. And we've, I don't know if we teach our children here in the back to sing this, but father Abraham had many sons, and many sons as father Abraham, and I am one of them, and so are you. As we pray, praise him, we long for him, and we look to him. Don't mistake your pathway for catastrophe. Don't mistake your dismantle dreams, your dried out hopes, your discouraging circumstance or disjointedness, your brokenness. Your debilitating fears. For things are the enemy, but look at them and embrace them as let me pass the test. There are many scriptural references, especially in the Old Testament, you could look at the life of Joseph, when he was imprisoned, that he had to pass a test, they finally came through, and God used him mightily. I close with an illustration. I use, I probably share this illustration at least once a year, I try to look back at my notes when the last time I shared this. But this I get to practice every Sunday how the Lord speaks to me. And so I just want to share this, if you've heard it before. Take some notes. But in the 17th century, there was an epidemic of yellow fever. Maybe it was like COVID, I don't know. It was undiagnosed and untreatable. Many people lost their lives, many who thought to be passed, were actually buried alive. Before the advent of modern medicine before they could figure out you know how to treat this. What they would do is they came in fear. And so they would, they would just take these bodies that seemed dead, and they would bury them. It was an irrational, irrational do this, it was just all they needed to do. Historical records indicate that during the yellow fever plague victims collapse, seemingly dead. And there were 149 reported cases in, I believe, was an English countryside of people who seem dead, but were actually buried alive. Think about this. And once you get that they were actually buried alive. And how they figured that out is one time they exhumed exhume the body but they had to check something. And they realized that there was some motion that took place in the casket. Kind of kind of creepy. I'm going somewhere with this once you get this. And so they had a major, major issue on their hands. And so cemeteries decided to hire a sacred grave Walker, who would walk the midnight hour, the midnight shift. And in fact, the graveyard shift, we actually that's a terminology that comes from this story is a true is a true story. And they would walk and they would make their rounds daily. And they're there, they would walk up and down. I mean, imagine medicine job like that. I mean, someone's got some some tough jobs, you know, but can you imagine just walking through a cemetery all night long. Because what they had done was the people had died, they decided they had this brilliant idea that they would tie a rope to the, to the foot of the person in the casket and bring some string up, six feet up, and wrap it over a piece of iron. And put a bell on the outside of it. And the secret grave Walker would walk all night long. listening for one thing listening for the sound of a bell all night long. Just listening wants to hear this bell. And if for some chance they would hear that bell. There was a team of people, a team of people who came and they ran family members ran well, and what did they do? Just kind of stand around and just you know, believe they were there was they were going to rise from the dead no and they began to dig. They will be I mean family members who had lost this loved one they will begin to dig and dig and dig and dig, hoping that their mom hoping that their sister hoping that their friend was still alive, that there will be the life given back to that which was seemingly dead. Think about that. I know there are a lot of dreams in this house, we land the plane this morning. I know that a lot of hopes in this house for greater for better for circumstance. But this morning, I want you to know that our Lord, he can bring back to life anything hurts, dreams, brokenness so our even our prayer today is ring the bell of truth over our hearts, Lord Jesus, bring back to life, the places deep inside of us, that we have allowed to slowly die. When praise demands the sacrifice, when praise says, You know what God's calling me to do this. God's called me to give up maybe my hopes and my dreams and and how I'm thinking of things. And you follow through, look at the blessing in Abraham's life. Look at the blessing that He bestows upon obedience. And so this morning in this house, on this day, as we discuss pathways what's dying? What's what, where's the disappointment? That the Lord can bring life back to those hopes the Lord can bring life back to that circumstance or situation, that he does all things well, and he can change anything. We sing it earlier. Do you truly believe it? That nothing is impossible with God, that miracles still do happen. We just stayed with me this morning. Father, we love you. We surrender to you, long for you. For those areas that need life, those areas that need healing today, we say thank you in advance. We do things well. You do things? Well, we're going to close in a song we're gonna close in prayer for this morning. As this message has unfolded, maybe the Lord has spoken to your heart. Maybe there's some areas that you need life back. Maybe those hopes and promises that you're waiting for. Maybe you're not the most desperate moments, but maybe you're in a place where you know, what could it be today? Could that miracle take place today? Sure. He's calling us to dig through. He's calling us to, to surrender. Sure. He's calling us to obedience. But it's their life today. I believe there's life. We'd love to pray with you this morning as they sing this song. If you've got a need this morning, got stirred in your heart. If today's the day of say no, I'm gonna step in obedience. But you come let us pray with you. Let's watch what God will do.