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february 5, 2021 winter blind camp friday night meeting
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Transcript
Introduction and Audio Delay Explanation
00:00:22
Speaker
Mike on greetings. Here is the winter camp blind camp 2021 Friday night meeting February 5th. Enjoy the presentation.
00:02:11
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Audio begins now.
00:03:36
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mic on audio will begin in a couple seconds please be patient thank you
Meeting Kickoff for Participants
00:06:41
Speaker
Those lectures have been.
00:07:08
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you
00:07:56
Speaker
you
00:08:45
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you
00:09:57
Speaker
2021 winter camp meeting for the blind and the physically challenged. I apologize for the delay.
Song Service Begins
00:10:05
Speaker
We had a baptism at 6.30 and it took us a little while to get things in order for this meeting. So we apologize for that. Today we're going to have a song service first at this time.
00:10:32
Speaker
And to think I thought we had our song service already. Okay. Let's go ahead and turn to page three, pass it on. Because I think that David really likes this song.
00:11:05
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It only takes a spark to get a fire going.
00:11:16
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And soon all those around can warm up in its glowing. That's how it is with God's love. Once you've experienced it, you want this love to everyone. You want to pass.
00:11:47
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When wondrous time is free, when all the trees are budding, birds begin to sing, the flowers die.
00:12:11
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How it is with God's love What you've experienced it You want to see it's fresh like spring You want to pass it on I wish for you my friend This happiness that I've had
00:12:52
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I want my world to know the love of love has come to me.
00:13:19
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Praise God. Amen. We'll do one more and then we'll sing our theme song and I won't forget this week or this day.
00:13:48
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Let's go ahead and sing, give me oil in my lamp. It's page seven.
00:14:19
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Give me oil in my life by praise Give me oil in my life Keep me burning, burning, burning Keep me burning, burning, burning
00:14:38
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Sing hosanna, sing hosanna, sing hosanna to the King of kings. Sing hosanna, sing hosanna, sing hosanna to the King.
00:15:00
Speaker
Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising, praising, praising. Give me joy in my heart, I pray. Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising, praising, praising. Keep me praising till the break of day.
00:15:25
Speaker
Sing, O Santa, sing, O Santa, sing, O Santa to the King of Kings. Sing, O Santa, sing, O Santa, sing, O Santa to the King of Kings.
00:15:49
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Give me peace in my heart. Keep me resting, resting, resting. Give me peace in my heart. I pray. Give me peace in my heart. Keep me resting, resting, resting. Keep me resting till the break.
00:16:16
Speaker
O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing, O sing,
00:16:38
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Give me love in my heart, keep me serving, serving, serving. Give me love in my heart, I pray. Give me love in my heart, keep me serving, serving, serving. Keep me serving till the break.
00:17:04
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Sing, O Sena, sing, O Sena! Sing, O Sena, to the King of Kings! Sing, O Sena, sing, O Sena! Sing, O Sena, to the King!
Theme Song and Prayer
00:17:37
Speaker
It's time for our theme song and let's go ahead and turn to page 412.
00:18:04
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Why come to me? My life has started. I sit up low. Over with his life, my turn has snow. Until with his life, my turn has snow.
00:18:56
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Amen. Thank you.
00:19:21
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Let's pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank you again for watching over us. We thank you that David could be baptized today. We ask that they'll continue to be with him every minute, every hour of every day. We ask that they'll be with the pastor as he brings to us the word of God tonight.
00:19:49
Speaker
We ask that thou be our sage person that is watching online and those that are here. We thank you in Jesus' name. Amen. Did I ask somebody to have a special music at this time?
Discussion on Special Music Performance
00:20:16
Speaker
Was you going to have one? Okay. You want to do this one with me? You got that one in mind? You go ahead.
00:20:42
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There's a sweet, sweet spirit in this place. And I know that it's the spirit of the Lord. There are sweet expressions on each face, filling us with your love.
00:21:10
Speaker
There's a sweet, sweet spirit in this place And I know that it's the spirit of the Lord There are sweet expressions on each face And I know that it's the spirit of the Lord
Exploration of Faith Through Biblical Figures
00:21:53
Speaker
This has been a rich evening already. And, uh, we have been working our way through heapers 11 and we, um, I'm going to read the rest today, this evening, um, for various reasons. We have two more in this series. We have David and we have Samuel and they're mentioned here, but they're mentioned in this list.
00:22:21
Speaker
We've gone through the various ones. We started with Abel and then Enoch. Yeah, I have them underline. I don't have them numbered. Then Abraham. After Abraham, we did Sarah and then Isaac and Jacob and Joseph and then Moses. And then this morning we did Rahab. And now we get to verse 32.
00:22:52
Speaker
The Apostle Paul started out naming these indications of people of faith. And now he says, and what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Berwick and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword.
00:23:19
Speaker
out of weakness, were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgeings, yes, and of change and imprisonment. They were stoned. They were sawn in two.
00:23:42
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They were tempted. They were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains and dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
00:24:11
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We're all gonna get to heaven together. And that's part of the lesson that he has in this. Yes, we've talked about those who had an advance for various reasons, and we haven't tried to explore all the details of that, but the vast majority of people are waiting, like Randy says, they're taking a dirt nap. But we're all gonna wake up and go to glory. And some of us may take a dirt nap.
00:24:41
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And that's okay. But I'm expecting that most of us are going to be seeing the Lord come in the clouds of glory.
Gideon's Family and Historical Context
00:24:47
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So that leads us to look back here to the story of Gideon. It named several of the judges. There were a dozen judges at least. Gideon was one of them. The Israelites had again stopped serving God and started worshiping idols.
00:25:11
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Idolatry is a terrible, terrible sin. We were talking about addictions. It's a kind of addiction. It changes your frontal lobe. You just can't think straight anymore. And you've got to choose to turn and find God the Savior. Gideon was from a family of God-fearing warriors. Most of his brothers had already died fighting the Midianites.
Gideon's Divine Encounter
00:25:38
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Gideon, as the story opens,
00:25:41
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was sneaking around trying to hide from the Midianites. He was threshing wheat, not on the threshing floor, but over by the wine press. He knew that they wouldn't have any reason to be looking where the grapes were growing because it was way too early to be harvesting grapes and the Midianites had a habit of just coming through and raiding, stealing stuff
00:26:11
Speaker
especially food, and Gideon was hoping that he could help the family eat this season. God suddenly appeared to him. We start the story in verse 12 of Judges chapter 6. The angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and said to him, the Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor. Now, yes, he was a soldier.
00:26:41
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His brothers were soldiers, but he wasn't feeling very soldier-ish right now. He was feeling like he was having to hide from the host of other soldiers. And so Gideon says, oh my Lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles which our fathers told us about? Saying, did not the Lord bring us from Egypt? But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.
00:27:12
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When God speaks to you, He can handle it if you fuss at Him. He can handle it. Now Gideon, even in his fussing, it's not as negative as it could have been. Just something in here for Dr. Patterson. He's saying God used to give us miracles. What's happening now? Well, he knew much of what was happening. The idolatry had infected even his own family.
00:27:42
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So the Lord said to him, go in this, the might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. I have sent you. Oh, what a commission. Gideon wasn't ready to just jump up and say, okay, I'm on my way. He said, I need some tokens from you. And he went and got a food.
00:28:09
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for the angel, and the angel said, put it on that rock. Angel touched it with the tip of his staff, and fire consumes it all. OK, I knew who I'm talking to. This is supernatural. And you don't want to be talking to some charlatan. You want to make sure this is God.
Destruction of Idols and Community Reaction
00:28:30
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So went on with some discussion of what should happen and what was going to happen.
00:28:39
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God said, what you really need to do first is get rid of the family idol, the city idol. The town he lived in had a shrine, a place of worship for Asherith, which included a pole. I don't know exactly how it worked and I really don't want to know, but there was some wood involved and he was told, you need to
00:29:07
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Get rid of that idol. And Gideon thought this over, and he said, well, it is a pretty big job. And the whole town will be against me if they catch me doing it. So he got a dozen of his servants. So this is a big family if he's got a dozen servants. And he said, OK, guys, we've got to sleep out there at night and do this thing quietly. How you chop down a pole quietly, I don't know. But they managed to get it torn down, and they
00:29:36
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did the altar where God said to do the altar and he offered, it's a very curious phrase, the second bull. Apparently there was an old bull or ox and this was the second one, second ox. Why God designated that particular one, it's not in the story but it's specifically mentioned. God can tell us, that's the one I want you to offer and when he says, that's what we do,
00:30:05
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So Gideon took the wood from that false God's idol and used it to make the fire on this altar where he's offering this sacrifice for God. How about thumbing your nose in the face of the false God? Morning came. City fathers got up. They saw that their idol had been destroyed where they were going to go worship that morning.
00:30:34
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And they started asking questions and it didn't take long to find out, oh, Gideon did that. And they come to Gideon's house and shout to Gideon's father, bring out Gideon so we can beat him up or kill him. It's not really quite clear, but bring out Gideon and we need to do him in because he destroyed our idol. And I think Gideon's father had been involved in this false worship.
00:31:03
Speaker
But he repented very quickly. His son's life is on the line. He challenged them. He said, well, isn't Baal strong enough to defend himself? Why should we go to bat for him? Got Gideon a new name. You find this name Jerub Baal. That's let Baal plead. That's what that Jerub Baal means. And so Gideon got this new name. And every once in a while, throughout scripture, you'll find that name poked back toward Gideon.
00:31:34
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Let Baal defend himself. If he's a god, he should be able to defend himself. Oops. They didn't bother Gideon. Well, God had more for Gideon to do, but it was important to start here. Do you recognize why? If we're holding sin in the life, we are holding back the blessings of heaven.
00:31:59
Speaker
This community was holding on to idolatry. By that action, they were keeping God from blessing them. They needed to repent and turn. They needed to turn to God. And so this warrior is the call to be the prophet. That's what judges were, warriors and prophets.
00:32:23
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of somewhat priestly role to fill.
Gideon's Army and the Role of Signs
00:32:26
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And he was told that you need to get an army together and go and destroy the Midianites. Gideon said, that's a little bit big. I need to make sure that you tell me what to do. Let me get a sign from you. And he said, well, here's a sign.
00:32:52
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I've got this fleece, they had killed the sheep and they had taken off the skin with the wool still on it. And so it was a fleece of wool and they can be very nice and soft. But he says, I'm going to spread this fleece on overnight and I want you to make the fleece wet and the ground around it dry.
00:33:18
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And sure enough, next morning he went out and wrung out that fleece. It was sopping wet. But then he got to thinking, wool attracts moisture. That could have been just normal science. God, I want you to do me another sign. This time I want you the fleece to be dry and the ground to be wet. God did that. God did that for him. Now, having said that,
00:33:47
Speaker
I need to go on and say another word because you can only imagine how many people have said, Pastor Fred, is it okay for me to ask God for a sign? Can I put a fleece out for God? And I've had to answer this and I've developed a pretty clear thought in my mind. I don't believe it's wrong for you to ask for God for a sign. To ask for a sign is not wrong, but sometimes
00:34:13
Speaker
It's indicative of a lack of faith and we should be connected with him better so that we don't need to ask for the signs very often. There's times that a sign is important. Most of you know that I'm interim pastoring up in center of the state, Midland and Mount Pleasant. The pastor who was there a year ago was very much loved and doing a very good job, Pastor Rod.
00:34:43
Speaker
And he got this call from Amazing Facts that said, we really need you out here helping us at Amazing Facts. And he said, I don't feel called to go. And they said, well, we really think that you're the man that God wants here. And now, I didn't hear this story directly from Rod, but I heard it from the elders of his churches. And Rod said, OK, I'll pray about it. Call me back in a week. And so he and his wife, they started praying.
00:35:13
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, that's major to move from Michigan to California. There's fires out in California. There's not so much snow either. But he'd been in California. He didn't like California. He was happy in Michigan. And so they prayed. And after they prayed for a while, they said to each other, you know, it would be only appropriate if we let our house go up for sale.
00:35:40
Speaker
And if it sells within the week, which surely it won't, then we'll know that God wants us to go. So they call it a realtor. Two hours later, the house was sold. Two hours. Okay, okay, God. You have shouted to me very clearly. So there's times, and it just seems to come together often that, okay, God, if this is what you want me to do, and we just move ahead. When David,
00:36:11
Speaker
Let Larry know that he really was ready for baptism now, and he wanted it to be done as part of blind camp. Larry said, well, let me start working the process and see how this works. There's a lot of details that need to be gone through. But Jeff was able to come and fill the baptistry. I agreed that I would, I did the interview first. I didn't say, oh yeah, I'm ready to baptize him. I said, I need to talk with David, make sure he's ready for baptism.
00:36:39
Speaker
What a story he had to tell. This has been a year. And that's what God does to us. He will take ahold of us and shake us and say, straighten up. Gideon had to be a part of that story. In his day when he said to the people, it's time to turn away from the idols and start serving the Lord. So the signs do come and they tend to often be as a normal part of life. So everything came together.
00:37:09
Speaker
Hallelujah, this was a very exciting evening for me. Hope you know that. So here's three things that I recommend you do when you need to have indications from heaven.
Strengthening Faith Through Actions
00:37:23
Speaker
First of all, do your best at the work that lies nearest. God gives work for every one of us to do. If you're a Christian, you are a witness. You are a missionary. You will have opportunities to talk about Jesus, improve those opportunities.
00:37:37
Speaker
Open your mouth and say, I love Jesus. And watch how this makes a difference in people's lives. It does. God calls every one of us. And he's able to take advantage of blindness that you can witness in times and places where somebody with sight can't. Just every one of us is unique. Every one of us has special experiences. Do your best at the work that lies nearest and you will see God's hand in your life. That's the first step. Second step.
00:38:06
Speaker
is to watch for God opening providences. God is good at doing things that we say, well, I didn't ever see that door before. Well, it's open now, walk through it. Most providences open, and it might give you a task that allows for a dozen years. Watch for those opening providences, and then listen for his instruction.
00:38:33
Speaker
Gideon was out there by himself and all of a sudden he heard God speaking to him. He saw him too, but the voice was enough. Okay, Gideon was doing all this. So let's move on along with the story. He sent out the word, we need to go and beat up on those Midianites who are attacking us. And there were over a million in the Midianite army. They had got some allies and there were over a million soldiers.
00:39:02
Speaker
That's a big army. And so Gideon wrestled the people that he could, and he invited them. And he had 32,000 soldiers. Well, he's got less than a third, maybe even less than a quarter of the number of soldiers they have. And he says, what am I going to do? He's afraid that there's not enough.
00:39:31
Speaker
He gets them together and he says, okay, let's start marching. And they get settled and they're getting a little training and getting everybody organized. And God says to him, Gideon, there's too many. So in accordance with God's instruction, he decides maybe he needs to apply this rule that had been given in Deuteronomy. God said, send anybody away who's afraid. Here's in Deuteronomy it says,
00:40:01
Speaker
There's four groups of people that are not supposed to be part of the army. The Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies. So the officers are to speak to the people saying, is there somebody who's built a new house and has not dedicated it? So you're building the house and you haven't been able to move into it yet. Go home and finish your house. We don't need you in the army. Second one, is there anyone who's planted a vineyard and has not yet eaten the fruit of it?
00:40:30
Speaker
Let him go home and get that first crop off before he comes and fights in the army. Verse 7, I'm in Deuteronomy 20. This third one, is there a man who has become engaged and hasn't gotten married yet? Let him go home and get married before he joins the army. Now, if you thought those were good enough, listen to the fourth one, the last one. If there's anybody who's fearful or faint-hearted, let him go home.
00:41:00
Speaker
If you're scared to go into this battle, then just go home. We don't need you. So Gideon applied this, and really in the Gideon story, the emphasis is on if there's anybody who's afraid. And you wouldn't guess how much of a change there were.
00:41:22
Speaker
22,000 men who left that army, they were afraid. They said, we are going to leave. So they left. Well, that leaves 10,000. And Gideon says, God, this is going to have to be a God thing. We only have 10,000. There's a million of them. Only you can win this.
00:41:52
Speaker
And God said to him, Gideon, there is enough people there that they will think that they're mighty and strong if I let you win at this time.
Gideon's Victory Strategy
00:42:05
Speaker
I'm going to give you a test. You're going to take the people forward, your army forward, and as they cross a stream, you're going to notice
00:42:15
Speaker
the way that they drink. Now, you know, when you get to water, you can get down on your face and put your face in the water and swill it up like a cow does, or you can take a handful at a time and bring it up to your mouth, more like a dog lapping the water. And there was a marked difference. 300 men went just walking through the water and took a couple of handfuls of water. But the rest, almost 10,000.
00:42:45
Speaker
Got down on their bellies and swilled that water. They were gonna get, we don't wanna go into this battle dehydrated. We're gonna make sure we have plenty of water. Oh, God said to Gideon, the ones that kept their face forward, just lapping a bit of water, those are the ones I can use. Send the rest home. Oh God, what are you doing to us? So there were 300 men.
00:43:11
Speaker
And Gideon now has moved so that they can see the enemy army and they're spread out. They are all over the place. And God says, Gideon, you look like you're a little bit apprehensive about this. Why don't you go down an eavesdrop on the camp? Take your servant with you. Just go down an eavesdrop on the camp.
00:43:33
Speaker
Gideon didn't know what to expect, but when God says, go eavesdrop, he went to eavesdrop. And while he's down there near the camp, he's sitting outside a tent. And you know, tents do not stop the words from coming through. You can hear whatever is being said. And it's dark, it's night, and they've slipped into the camp. The guards weren't very alert. And he's listening, and he hears
00:43:57
Speaker
I had a dream last night and oh, it was, it was really quite the dream. This barley cake came tumbling into camp and it routed the whole camp. Barley cake came tumbling into camp. His, his partner said, that is nothing but Gideon and his army. They're going to destroy us. And Gideon thought, he says, okay, thank you God. Went back to his 300, got to those 300 men.
00:44:25
Speaker
And he said, here's the plan, guys. You need your trumpets. Now, we've enjoyed David's trumpet. And it sounds really nice. But this was probably not the silver trumpet like what David plays, or even the long straight one, which would have been more typical at that day and time. Probably this was the shofar, the ram's horn kind of trumpet. Not that it makes a big difference. They sound different.
00:44:55
Speaker
But the silver trumpet was used to call for war. The ram's horn trumpet was used as a part of prayer. It's a welcome the Sabbath, it's a prayer, it's an acknowledgement of God. So this ram's horn trumpet being blown is saying, God, it's up to you. So that's the one thing they had. That was held in their right hand so they could blow the trumpet. In their left hand, they were to hold a torch
00:45:24
Speaker
But the torch wasn't blazing, it was just smoldering there because it was covered with a pitcher, a clay pitcher. And he says, guys, this is what we're gonna do. We're gonna go out and we'll put 100 on this side and 100 on that side and 100 on this other side and it'll be kind of a horseshoe shape so that they will be driven home. Well, they were driven, that's for sure. At the signal of Gideon,
00:45:53
Speaker
They broke the pitchers, the torches flare, the trumpets blow, and the people shout, the sword of the Lord and of Gideon. And the camp wakes up and gets scared. They see the lights all around, and they say, oh, we must be surrounded by a big army. Yeah, 300. Big enough army. And not only do they turn and run, but on their running, they
00:46:22
Speaker
kill each other. They're in their man dash. They're just killing each other as they go. And of course, as this army is being routed, the various Israelites from around start joining in on persecuting, chasing, killing. And so it was a signal victory. God had chosen that there would be few enough that there would be
00:46:53
Speaker
no way for anybody to say, I won this victory. It's because of me. Gideon couldn't say it was because of him. He knew it was God. And the soldiers knew it wasn't us. It was God. What offensive weapon did they have with that trumpet and that torch? They didn't even have a sword, let alone
00:47:15
Speaker
the big guns that we like to use today. Now, God is still in the business of routing sin from our communities and first of all from our own lives.
Closing and Future Plans
00:47:30
Speaker
God plans victory for us and He is giving that victory to us. Now your enemies may be external like they were for Israel,
00:47:40
Speaker
fighting him from outside. They may be in your own family, but more than likely the enemies that you need the most help with are from inside. Selfishness, greed, that's all inside stuff. And we need to let God give us the victory there. And he's very well able to do that. So my invitation to you today is commit to walk in the victory that Christ is providing for you
00:48:09
Speaker
so that His name can be praised in your life, in your family, in your community, in your church, throughout the world, so that He can come. Hallelujah. Grace is Lord. We thank you for your grace and your power. We're awed as we think of this story of Gideon and his victory in your strength over such powerful enemies. Lord, we have enemies today. We have attacks. We have troubles.
00:48:34
Speaker
We invite you to use us for your glory. Give us the victories that we need personally, and show yourself strong to gain the victories and finish this work so we can go home. To this end, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. God bless you.
00:49:00
Speaker
Thank you so much, Pastor. Appreciate your messages. Tomorrow, we will meet here at 9.30 for the Sabbath School.
00:49:19
Speaker
And then we'll have Dr. Alan Patterson will put on the Sabbath school program. Remember a year or so ago, he was up at Camp Asavo, and he took right almost into the time of the preacher. I hope that that happens again. Is that right? Pam's the one that's in charge. And then our pastor, Daniel Fraz, will have the service because
00:49:49
Speaker
Fred has to go up to preach in Midland tomorrow. So your, any questions? Okay. Well, good night and we'll see you tomorrow morning. Oh, breakfast is, breakfast is eight o'clock. Yeah, breakfast is eight o'clock.
00:50:19
Speaker
a little bit like your leg or a little right around. I appreciate that.
00:50:50
Speaker
Oh, folks, that's all for now. Until next time. Bye bye and God bless.