Sunday Service - 2025-08-31

Welcome to the Lansdale Life Church podcast.

If you're seeking a closer relationship with Jesus Christ, this podcast is for you.

Thank you for joining us today.

You can see if you turn in your Bibles, if not, I have the scriptures online here that

we'll work with this morning.

The absolute certainty of God's promises.

I want to make sure I count all my lozenges so Betty didn't take any.

So we'll put those in my pocket for ready when my voice leaves.

OK, promises.

There have been promises that the Lord has given you more than likely for yourself,

your family, your loved ones, those that are friends of yours,

and you have more than likely labored and have prayed, have besieged,

have waited for the Lord to answer your promises.

So I want to encourage you this morning that his promises are certainties.

They're not maybe ifs and I hopes.

We know that he never comes late to the party.

He always brings his grace and he provides for us those things which we need.

So I want to major on those thoughts this morning.

So in Hebrews six, 13 through 20, it says this.

No one is greater than God.

So he made a promise in his own name when he said to Abraham.

Now let me stop.

In Christian terms, the promise refers to God's binding declaration

to act on behalf of all of you.

It also denotes an assurance that transforms the future into hope.

And the present confidence that we have is in the Lord.

And I know many of us get discouraged after years of praying,

years of believing.

And I'll give you an example.

When my wife, of course, most of you know, has MS and she's not able to walk.

And I prayed for her for about two or three years believing that the Lord would heal her.

Then I got so disappointed and kind of all right,

well, Lord, if you're going to do it, fine.

But, you know, I have picked up that mantle again in the last year and a half.

And I believe for healing for her.

So there are times in your life when you may be discouraged,

when things don't look so good for the circumstances that you know to be true,

that God is always at work and never stops.

And that's what we're going to talk about this morning.

So going on in the word Abraham, just by way of a little reference in Joshua 24,

two, it says long ago, your ancestors, meaning Abraham,

including Tara, the father of Abraham and Nahor,

lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other Gods.

And historians have legitimately put out the understanding that not only was

Abraham's father a worshipper of idols,

but he also had a location where he made idols, he sold idols.

And he was really into the idea of pagan worship.

So this is the grounds in which Abraham grew up in, in idolatry.

And one interesting fact that Abraham, when he was younger,

smashed the idols and blamed the incident on the other idols for doing it.

So his father couldn't do anything because he thought obviously that idols had power.

And then Abraham rejected his father's beliefs and left.

And it's also like us leaving our old circumstances and moving forward in the Lord.

So this is where we pick up Abraham.

And then in Hebrews 14, it says, I, the Lord, will bless you with many descendants.

And after Abraham had been very patient,

he was given what God had promised. Very patient.

How many can identify the fact that you need more patience?

Yes. Okay. All right. Some of you are honest.

Being patient implies enduring or waiting is a deliberate act of the will rather than just mere necessity.

In James 5, 7, it says, exhort us to be patient in the Lord's timing.

So with the anticipation of promise comes the combination of patience.

When everyone wants to settle, when anyone wants to settle an argument,

they make a vow by using the name of someone or something greater than their selves.

So when God wanted to prove for a certain that his promise to his people would not be broken,

he made a vow. God cannot tell lies.

And so his promises and vows are two things that can never be changed.

We have run to God for safety.

Now his promises should greatly encourage us to take hold of the hope that is right in front of us.

The hope is like a firm and steady anchor of our souls.

In fact, hope reaches beyond the curtain and into the most holy place.

And in the last verse it says, Jesus has gone there ahead of us.

He is our high priest forever, just like Melchizedek.

And you'll notice I underlined or redlined some certain things that I want to major on this morning.

Obviously the word promise stands out in these scriptures.

So one, I want to talk about the promises of Abraham translated to Jesus, translated to us.

And I want to link that to our patience, proportionally.

To understand when God is working and sometimes we get blinded either within patience

or discouragement or long periods of time,

that through our patience then the Lord is still working.

So let's dissect Abraham's promise and also see how patience is applied first to Abraham.

Secondly, and continuing down through Christ.

And then third, how the promise affects us as individuals.

So in this spreadsheet, and I don't put it all out there at once because you'll get too confused

and you say, oh my gosh, John, what are you doing to me?

So I outlined certain things and we'll go through these.

So let's give perspective.

Abraham, he was the bearer of the promise.

And I needn't go through the idea how God met him and he promised him

and we'll talk about what he promised.

But there was an offer given to God.

God made a covenant with Abraham and he enjoyed a relationship with Abraham.

And he was the bearer of that promise.

That started way back in approximately 2000 BC

and that covenant was cut on behalf of the people

that were going to be like the sands of the sea.

And going forward now into Christ, Christ is the heir of that promise.

So Christ was born in four to six BC and he lived to 33 AD and then his death.

And now fast forward, that covenant includes us.

We are the beneficiary of that promise.

Think about this, 4,025 years of fulfillment

in that covenant that God originally cut with Abraham.

So let's explore what that means.

Abraham was chosen and entrusted to carry it forward in faith that he had toward God.

In Genesis 22, 17, to Abraham and his seed, it is said this,

to your offspring I will give this land.

So there was a promise of land to Abraham.

And going forward from Abraham to Christ,

Christ then is this promise fulfilled in Galatians 3, 17.

It says Paul hinges the entire promise that was talked about

on a single seed, identifying Christ as the primary and ultimate heir of Abraham's blessing.

And you may would have, maybe you would think that it stops there,

but it then goes on through us and we are included in this.

Remember, we are grafted in.

We are part of the covenant relationship of God.

So we are adopted into Christ in Galatians 3, 29.

It says, so you, meaning all of you and myself,

have been united with Jesus the Messiah and are now Abraham's child.

And we will inherit all the promises of the kingdom realm.

So those promises fast forward through all these generations unto us.

Now let's look at the scope of what this promise is.

First of all, in Abraham's situation, it covers the entire future of Abraham.

It was laid out before him.

He was going to be a great nation like the sands of the sea.

There was going to be a promised land.

And a blessing to all people was the third element of that promise.

At different times, it was defined different ways.

It talks about the possession of a country or the land of promise,

but still it was the promise that God had given.

And you bring that forward into Christ.

What was the scope of that promise when he was walking the earth?

It says in Romans 15 that Christ came as a servant to show God has kept all the promises

that he said from Abraham on turning the hope of a promise into a reality through Jesus Christ.

So there again, the promise is going forward.

Now what's that mean for us?

What's our scope?

The land promise now again expands into a heavenly inheritance in 1116 of Hebrews.

We being in Christ share in his inheritance,

receiving eternal life, obviously through the forgiveness of sins.

So that's the scope down through the ages.

Let's take a look at what has been realized in that covenant.

Through faith in God, in Genesis 15, six, Abraham believed the Lord and because of his faith,

the Lord accepted him as one who has done what is right.

So he believed the covenant was cut the promise given and Abraham believed some of us again,

like I had said, in our understanding have promises that have been given us from the Lord.

Hope that we have in our hearts for our loved ones,

our individuals that we have been praying for.

So in Christ's sake, he has told his disciples to have faith in God.

First of all, Mark 11 22, Jesus poured out, think about this.

He poured out his heart in tears and crying, trusting the father as he faced death.

So he again had faith to understand what God was all about as he ministered

and he was going to give up his life.

And then how is that realized in our life?

In Galatians 2 2 it says, I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

In Corinthians it says, for we walk by faith, not by sight.

So the big element across the span of 4,025 years is the fact that there was a promise given.

There is faith on behalf of all that generation to us that the promise would be fulfilled.

And then what is now the manifestation of that promise?

God reaffirmed that through Abraham's offspring, all nations would be blessed.

That was the third element.

The promise of descendants, the promise of land, and the promise to all generations.

The manifestation in Christ was found in 1 John 2.

It says, the son, which is Jesus, is the promise of eternal life and through him

all nations will be blessed.

And then the last one in manifestation of the promise, the Holy Spirit,

when it comes down to us in Acts 2 33, Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit as promised

poured out, which we see in here, and that's the dunamos, the power in which to live

in faith, understanding the promises will be given us.

So I hope that declares something for you with regard to where we are at.

So let's look at the promises that are anchored in his unchanging nature.

We have read that Christ Jesus fulfilled all these promises and continues to do so

through all these generations, 4,025 years nonstop.

Interesting point.

This is the longest and the most far reaching covenant of any biblical,

social, or secular covenant ever created.

Isn't that wonderful about God, how he's just brought that forward.

Our spreadsheet then shows his promises are unconditional.

They are eternal.

And from Abraham to us, we have an assurance that these things are going to come about.

So as Christians, now we want to embrace the certainty of God's promise.

Oh, well, it was nice to read.

It's this John, I get it and so forth, but we want to move from intellectual understanding

to a faith based trust in that covenant relationship that we have.

So that's what we're going to talk about.

So let's see how we can carry the promise forward,

allowing God to reshape us by applying it to our lives, our families, and to our friends.

So that's what we're about.

So as we carry this forward, there's a declaration of his intent of his intention to bless.

That's what we end up with at the end and understand because all peoples of the earth

will be blessed.

And that's what it says in Genesis 12, three.

We are called to extend that blessing then to the outward concept of people, places,

and situations, and welcome every individual possible into the family of God.

That's our mission.

In Romans 8, 28, it says, for we know that God is always at work for good to everyone

that loves him.

He is always at work.

He's never left on vacation.

He doesn't close you down.

He is at work on your behalf.

So God hears and answers our requests, not because we deserve it.

Some of us in our pre-Christian life may have thought about God and some of these situations

that you get into where, well, I don't deserve this or I don't deserve that.

You know what?

You deserve it, but it's not by what you do.

It's by who you are.

No amount of human effort or performance or moral living can obligate God to do

what he wants to do for you.

So let's take a look at two samples here.

The performance-based requests of those that think they can persuade God

versus the faith-based requests that we see here.

First off, the rationale by performance-based people goes like this.

I believe my influence on God will change my circumstances.

I.

Their action plan is simply my human effort will gain his favor and is based on what I do.

And their thought process goes like this.

I deserve his favor because of how well I serve, how well I pray, and how well I obey.

An example of that is simply where everyone ticks off the check mark and measures their

score to make sure that they merit.

How many have ever heard people say, well, I hope I get to heaven.

I've been a good person.

That's the merit system of what we're talking about.

It's not by the grace of God.

And on the other hand, faith-based requirements say this.

The rationale for us is I pray for God's generosity toward me.

And that's what we should be praying for.

There is not a thing that the Lord doesn't want to give you and supply your needs.

Now, once and passions and desires for all the new house or the new car or the job,

that's secondary.

What he's looking for is in the changed life to understand whether the real needs

and the real desires are for.

The action plan for us then is I will trust in him and patiently wait for his answers.

Our thought process combined to that is by gratitude and trust in God,

I receive what God provides.

There's a lot saying that maybe God doesn't exactly give you the promise that you want it.

But when he gives it to you in another fashion or form,

guess what?

It's better for you than what you ever thought.

That's for sure.

And then the example is this.

God feels near to me as I humbly serve him out of thankfulness.

So we have compared those two mindsets.

Look at the contrast.

The contrast between one is obvious.

The eyes, the minds, the measuring, the doing, and all that stuff.

That's not where we're at.

We're on the other side of the ledger where it talks about him.

It talks about God.

And in part of doing that, we are relinquishing our time,

our schedule, our anticipated outcome, because God is working on our behalf.

And the thing that we must understand is that there is patience that has to be learned from that.

Okay.

But you say it is difficult to trust in God.

I get that.

The nature of trust simply means that we relinquish our future resources and hopes to God.

It's in his schedule, in his doing, not ours.

People often sense that trusting God completely, especially with life's needs,

seems so difficult and may experience deep resistance.

Some of these resistances you probably have heard of and maybe you experienced them yourself.

The fear of losing control.

Anybody want to identify with that?

Okay.

Got a couple here.

I have to be in control.

Stepping into uncertainty feels risky.

The quote that I use that I've often heard,

I'd rather manage my own life than surrender it to the hand of God.

Well, big deal.

Guess what?

We have all found in some form or fashion that it's better to give our life to the Lord

than it is to manage our own merits.

Past disappointments, and this is the generation into society

that people are very disappointed.

When prayers are unanswered, we often build walls around our hearts.

Well, it didn't work.

I'm not going to do it.

It was like me not praying for my wife for some period of years.

I just left it go.

It's not that I didn't believe he wouldn't do it, but he just left it.

But, you know, as God rekindled that and believing the Lord for that,

and then some people obviously have memories of pain

that cast doubt on God's goodness.

And I understand that, but I will tell you with that,

there is a promise of what you've been praying for,

a faith that you apply to that, and a patience that you wait for it.

And then unbelief is in the unseen.

That's hard.

I've got to feel it.

I've got to look at it.

Trusting God requires faith in what we cannot see.

How many have ever seen God?

No, not a hand.

Okay.

We've experienced his Holy Spirit, his feeling of who he is,

but we haven't seen him.

Some of the responses are my senses need proof,

and without visual evidence, my belief wavers.

And for new Christians, I do understand that.

That's why it's needful for us to encourage one another,

yet, well, the day is long to bring them along

to understand what God's economy of scale is.

And then last, the desire for autonomy.

Independence feels empowering.

And boy, don't we live in a day like today.

People are empowered to do the things that they want to do.

And then the response to that, by submitting my needs to God,

I feel like I'm giving up my freedom.

How many have ever felt that?

I used to feel that way, way back when.

You know, I just want to do this.

This is part of me.

But as I've come to understand in my older age,

now that it is blessings to be able to let him

choreograph the life that is before us.

So here we have a man that is afraid.

My gosh, he's looking.

The anxiety about handing things over to God.

What's this all about, John?

Okay.

Fear and anxiety, stopping us from surrender,

again, contradicts the invitation of Jesus.

It says in Matthew 11, come to me,

all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.

Rest.

And then remember, it talks about laboring into the rest

that God has for us.

Sometimes that is difficult to do,

but when you finally get there,

there is a rest and an assurance that comes in our life.

Philippians 4, it says the apostle Paul urges all believers

not to be anxious about anything,

but again, to present every concern to God.

Everything.

When Joni and I, now that we're retired and we live

and we've gone from the house to the apartment,

we have certain things that we need.

And it's just wonderfully sovereign

when you're not as busy in life

and you can see God just tick those things over

for preference.

I'll give an example.

My wife is into ceramics and she's made a lot of stuff

and my belief is that between her painting and the ceramics,

if we live long enough,

there won't be enough counter space or wall space

to put everything.

So I had these two great big plates,

beautiful plates that she made.

And I said,

Lord, you know, I'd like to hang these up.

And I looked online and it was expensive.

You had to buy a dozen plate hangers

and the whole bit and I thought,

well, we're not going to do that.

So all of a sudden,

about a week and a half or so ago,

I took her down to ceramics

and here this lady had a bunch of plate hangers

she just got from Amazon.

I said, boy, they're nice.

She said, oh, you want some?

Yeah, okay.

I took two.

I said, thank you, Lord, even for the small stuff.

And I didn't even pray for them.

It was just a blessing.

Anyway, here are five steps then

to help us surrender and trust in God.

First one, let's start to do something.

Well, I'm going to next week after the holiday.

You know, it's just like losing weight after Christmas.

Everybody goes to the gym.

I'm going to get, you know,

and the gym attendance starts to go along

and then it falls off about March,

April and now it goes down.

So nobody does that,

but we're going to start.

Practice small things.

Don't take on the big things.

Take small things, hand over minor anxieties

that you have and concerns that you have.

It could be parking spots.

It could be dinner plans, grocery shopping.

You give these things to the Lord

and let him work on your behalf.

As you see God's faithfulness then

in these small things,

you'll begin to grow bolder

to take on larger challenges that you face.

Please, start small.

Understand.

It's just like training a child.

No, okay.

And they'd still put their hand out.

No, or you're teaching them,

you know, how to speak

and then, you know,

they gobbly gook all over the place

and all of a sudden they say something

and, you know, it amazes you.

They get the message so that we start small.

All right.

Step two, practice habits

that root yourself in faith toward God.

These probably are not new to you.

But remember, in YHWH it says this,

begin the day,

thanking God for specific past answers

or his creation.

Where we live,

we have a wonderful sun room

that's vaulted

and we have a big window

and I look out there

and it's on the back of the preserve

and I say, oh, you know, Lord,

you're just, your nature is so wonderful.

Your colors and so forth.

And just thank him for those things

or his love towards you

and his attentiveness toward you.

And then prayer, again,

as part of this,

is opening your heart to him,

really begins to break the back

of self-centered desires

when you give it to him.

Read and reread scripture.

Again, I'm not so much

for getting through the Bible

in a year

as I am meditating

on what God gives you

because as you meditate

and you ruminate on those things,

God begins to reveal things to you

by the Holy Spirit.

Not that reading the Bible

in the year is bad.

Thank him for the answers

to your current request

before they even happen.

Thank you, Lord,

for what you're going to do

in this situation

in the name of Jesus.

Number three, ground yourself

in God's unchanging character

during the day now,

not in the beginning,

during the day.

How many sometimes forget

about the Lord

and they're busy things in life.

Ah, okay.

At least you're honest.

Thank you.

All right.

We got one honest guy here.

All right.

During the day

you meditate on the attributes

like faithfulness and trust

allowing or truth,

allowing them to speak

into your conscience

by the Holy Spirit.

As you fill your vessel

with the word

and with meditation,

the Holy Spirit works

and takes that

and applies it

to your conscience

and your conscience begins

to direct what you are doing

because your conscience

is all over the place.

That's part of you.

But what we're doing

through the Holy Spirit

is programming,

re-emphasizing,

reminding ourselves

and in doing so

you'll begin to see

the life change occur.

Psalm 89, 34.

God says,

I won't break my agreement

or go back on my word.

And when doubts arise,

remind yourself

that God's nature cannot lie.

His, again, your hope,

rests on his unchanging nature.

Numbers 23 says,

God is no more human

or no mere human.

He doesn't tell lies

or change his mind.

God always helps our promises,

keeps our promise,

his promises.

And again, number four

is another recall

to past faithfulness

and encouragements and proof.

List on your phone.

Everybody has a phone these days

or on your computer

how Jesus has guided you

through storms

and answered prayers.

Know what happens

if you try to remember it

in your mind,

you're going to forget it,

especially when you get older.

So put it on your phone.

Oh, there it is.

Okay, Christ's life.

Okay, you know,

or land still life

or whatever.

And yeah, okay.

I remember these things.

Abraham waited

patiently

and then received the promise.

Again, rehearse where

and when God came through for you.

These answers will help you

initiate greater trust

and faith in the Lord.

Share these answers

with a trusted friend

or in your cell group,

your life group.

Hearing one another's stories

reinforces our confidence.

It doesn't even

necessarily have to be your story.

It can be somebody else's story.

How many have ever sat

in a small group

and you didn't say a word

and after you hear everybody talk,

you went home blessed

because of what God has done

in the lives

of your brothers and sisters.

It's wonderful.

And then creating a prayer wall,

which we have,

we have that in WhatsApp

in our cell group

or a list on your phone

or computer postings,

posting the, again,

the reminders of prayer needs

and share with others.

So what I do,

so all my brothers and sisters

remember at the end of the week

when we're not waiting,

I take it, redo those,

and then post it again

and everybody gets a zing

on their phone.

Oh yeah, I have to pray for this.

So, you know, redoing repetition,

being the mother of learning,

it always helps

to keep these things going forward.

And then gauge

in corporate confession and celebration.

Maybe this isn't something

you don't do,

but it always helps.

When you're worshiping the Lord

as we've done this morning,

you can begin to proclaim

aloud during this corporate worship,

his past provision for your life.

Thank you, Lord, for doing this.

Thank you for that.

And again, that's part of praise

and worship.

And proclaim aloud his future for you

and what he's going to do

on your behalf.

Declarations,

exhortations,

those things that you are speaking

to yourself.

Let's take a look at Job.

He offers us insight

into our struggles of trust.

Now, remember,

Job has two parts to it.

The trust element is one

and we so often are focused

on what he's going through

as a horrendous experience.

And you can see this poor guy there

with boils all over his body.

So in Job, Job, he declared

that though he's slammy,

yet will I trust him?

In Job 13.15,

he affirmed on wavering hope

even if he faced death.

Think about that.

Lord, I will pray for these things

and believe for the promises

that you have given me

and the things that I declare

even into my deathbed.

And then he takes care of that

after you have gone to your reward.

Job accepted suffering

without demanding explanations,

trusting God's wisdom

despite not knowing

why he suffered.

And again, I'm not majoring

in the idea of suffering

this morning,

but he trusted God

and his wisdom,

not knowing why he suffered.

Job refused to curse God

or sin with his lips.

I mean, maybe we have got

the point of discouragement

to where, Lord, I give up.

Well, sometimes that is a confession

that we have to walk through.

But as sanity comes

and reason comes,

Lord, forgive me.

I just take that back.

I still believe in your promises.

I do believe what you have said

to me is going to be true.

So again, he refused to curse God

and he preserved

and his personality was there.

His integrity was there

and he demonstrated trust in God

under these intense circumstances.

So he endured through affliction.

He trusted, again,

the element of God's provision

and it refined him

and his character as gold.

He was refined.

And those, again, that our believers

understand that when we go

through trials and tribulations,

there is a refining process.

And even in while you wait

for your promises,

there is a refining

and maybe your understanding

of that promise has changed.

Maybe it's an articulation

of how you pray

for that particular promise

that God is working.

And Job example then teaches us

that faith means accepting

from God what he gives.

Well, Lord, you've got 98% there,

but not quite 100%.

I want you to do it again.

No, we accept what God gives us

for that answer,

not expecting only favorable outcomes.

And then remember what we already

read two times in scriptures,

but I'll repeat it again.

The combination after Abraham

had been patient,

he was given what God had promised.

Sometimes there is a lesson

to be learned about

if God would immediately

give you your answer,

you wouldn't have to exercise patience.

I run a caregivers group

in Meadowood

and we kind of go around the room,

we cry together,

we laugh together

and it's very endearing

now and a half.

And lots of times

most of these people

don't know the Lord.

Their big thing is

they run out of patience

with their spouse.

They get mad at their spouse,

they get frustrated

with their spouse,

you know, and they talk harshly

and all these things,

again, given the caregiver 24 seven,

I understand somewhat,

but the big thing is

they don't have patience

and that's what the world is.

They weren't patient.

Our whole society is what,

geared on them now.

I tell you what,

you talk about an Amazon delivery

in our neighborhood.

There's about 400 people.

There are three Amazon trucks

all around the place.

Everybody wants stuff quickly.

And you know what?

It is gratifying

to sit home,

to punch your computer in order

and it comes to your door

the next day.

Oh my gosh,

what a society

that doesn't help us

in our patience

toward what we're talking

about this morning.

Okay.

Worship team,

would you please come forward?

And in doing so,

I'd like to share with you

an experience

of trust

and of learning patience

for a promise

that was difficult in coming.

Now, maybe you want to

close your eyes

and think about this

and I want you to think about

the promises

that God has given you.

The hopes and dreams

that you have

for your family,

for yourself,

for your friends.

And as I share this experience,

you'll see why.

And I want you to apply it

as you hear my story

with regard to your own situation

and life

that you're interceding

and praying for people.

This is a personal testimony

of turnaround in my life

because my parents claimed promises.

At 18,

I rejected the Lord

and left home.

I enlisted in the Air Force

and in those days

when you ran away

from home,

you didn't travel over Europe

at your parents expense.

You usually went into the service

or off to some other place.

I was stationed in Bermuda.

Lovely, lovely place.

You get into trouble

very quickly there

and I did.

My mother and father realized

how deep in sin

I really was

and started a prayer vigil

with others for me.

My mother had assurances

from God

that someday I would return to him

and they prayed into this promise.

After four long years

I was discharged

headed for Florida

only one day layover

to say hello

and goodbye to my mom

and my dad

and in my life

and in my thought

it was probably forever.

I walked into uncomfortable feelings

toward my parents.

They asked me to go to church

with them the next day.

But I refused

as I had a job

and a girlfriend waiting for me.

I needed to leave early Sunday morning

but that evening for some reason

I consented to go with them

and you know who that is.

That's the Holy Spirit.

God ordained the entire service

on my behalf

and I returned Jesus

and never did go to Florida.

Amen.

I didn't.

Yes.

Yes.

So here's the thing.

So in one 24-hour period

for those of you

that are still believing

for the unthinkable

my parents' prayers were answered.

I returned to Christ.

God's plan for my life

was resumed

and prophecies over me

would be then fulfilled.

So what does this teach us

about trusting patiently

while God works

on your prodigals

on your loved ones?

It does these things.

Their faith

meaning yours in your case

in spite of setbacks

discouragements

and whatever

allowed them to keep trusting

for an impossible situation.

And I won't go into

how impossible that was.

The endurance

in spite of hopeless circumstances

they believe God

even when I was living

a horrible life of sin

ulcerate its stomach

from drinking acts of theft

and immorality

and so much more.

I don't even want to mention it.

They were patient

in act of faith and prayer

not passively waiting

wringing their hands in despair

or worrying.

God's timing is always perfect

even when it felt

there was delay.

As patience prevailed

the promise was fulfilled

and I stand before you here today

thanking the Lord

for my parents' prayers

on my behalf.

Because I wasn't going

down this road.

I was going down another road

an alien road.

I for all intent purposes

I probably would have been dead

by now the rate that I was going.

So God does the impossible

and when you have patience

to see him work

he will perform that miracle

that answer for you

in his timing.

So now let's pray.

Lord help us to have faith

for you in all of our circumstances

no matter what they are

they are many

they are varied

they are different

they are big

they're small

they're personal

they're at large

they're friends

they're family

they're loved ones

they're prodigals

Lord whatever

it doesn't make much difference

to you because you love us all.

And give us strength

to be patient

for your answers

for us

and our families.

Sometimes Lord

we have to take our hands off

and leave them

to your activities

and influences in their life.

And Father we thank you for that

and Lord we will celebrate

and worship you

with all our heart

in advance of these answers.

So we thank you so much.

We thank you for all your miracles

and your wonders

and fair decisions

on our behalf.

We thank you in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

Thanks for joining us

at Lansdale Life Church

as we praise God

and discuss his word.

Don't forget to join us

for Worship Live Sunday mornings

at 10 a.m. Eastern on YouTube.

Be blessed

and have a great day!