UMBC PM SERVICE - May 23, 2021

If God is big enough that he could create the universe, you rest assure, he can direct to garment or or or deal with one to keep us out of trouble and there's no telling how many times God has diverted you amen from the very clutches of death and we don't even know it.

We don't even have a clue about it.

I remember this one time.

My children were. They said they were going on a field trip somewhere, maybe.

I know where it was. It was to the NASA Space Center in Houston or out around where Maytown? Yeah. And

I wasn't going to go and the Lord told me go. And I don't want to burn that day off to go down there and Chase all that much of 4H kids around. I want to say that date it said on that deer stand. I don't want to go to the Lord said go you need to go. And then I mean in in the last time me and him had that conversation. He woke me up in the middle of the night. Tell me you got to go. So I went I remember being there that day and I took you in a few of the sights, but all day long. I mean, I'm like, Watching. Oman. I mean ready to pounce on somebody if they looked at at any of them, kids wrong or done anything like that, in the most interesting conversation took place between the Lord. And I I lay in bed that night after we got home, and I was like, will Lord nothing happened. He said it exactly.

He said, exactly. Exactly. So, you know praise the Lord God is good. No, all the time.

We're going to read a few verses, and I will try to drag anything on tonight, but I got to say something about an individual. And as I was chewing on these verses meditating on this particular, man, came to my mind.

You've heard me talk about brother, Melvin Smith. He'll go down as one of the one of the greatest.

In in my, in my mind in my life, such an awesome man of God. So it's such a powerful man of God such a loving caring compassionate, man of God. And

He was so anointed. That I had him at a place that he's almost. Untouchable.

And he preached at my ordination service years ago and and he was talkin about the things that go on in a preacher's life and I never forget something, he said he was preaching and he was waxing as an imminent, style is only brother Melvin Smith to do and and he said, I've had a brother Melvin. It doesn't seem life-saving ever bothers you, or he ever tries you or he's ever after you and I can't sit like he did but he would always go.

He said, hey, let me tell you. He said friend, he said, I am laid in my bedroom in bed, many a night and just felt the Demons of Hell Circle in the bed that I was laying in. He's got my attention now because I thought they were scared of you. I'm here, where I had him and he said him. And I mean, it's to the point that you can't even breathe easier than I would lay there and he's at now just say Jesus, Jesus, Jesus Precious Jesus. be with me tonight and never forget, never forgot him saying that in, and there's been many a nights I've laid in bed and So ironic that, I've said, Jesus. Jesus, Jesus, help me Lord. And, and I tell you,

At the name of Jesus, the word says that even the demons have to flee. There's power in the name. Jesus, there is Deliverance, in the name of Jesus, there's strength in the name of Jesus. Let's read for a minute. I got it as we're turning to that 12th chapter of 2nd Corinthians. I got to say

Brother. Robert been a long time since I heard a message and been convicted by message, like the one, you preached this morning and I praise God for you being obedient

Don't do it again.

No, I'm I'm joking when I say that. And I can not, I can see this honestly. For a preacher to sit down and get free. Stew is is it is it is

In a 12 chapter. Let's read starting with verse number 6. It's our boy here, the old Apostle, Paul

he says for though, I would desire to Glory I shall not be a fool. Or I will say the truth. But now I forbear list any man should think of me above that, which he sends me to be sure that he hear us of me, I'm here brother Melvin, Smith saying that very thing. He doesn't lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations. There was given to me a thorn in the flesh. The messenger of Satan to Buffett me lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing, I've been sold the Lord Thrice or three times and it might depart from me and he said, unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee for my strength is made perfect. In weakness most gladly therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities? That the power of Christ May rest upon in the church says me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities and reproaches and necessities and persecution in this dresses for Christ. Safe for when I am weak, then I am. What I am strong. Father, we love you, we thank you for Revival today, I'll call it like I see it. We thank you, Lord, for your presence. We thank you for your love. Father, we thank you for your faithfulness. We thank you. For you were denied for ever need. It was mentioned, we lift them to you tonight. And oh, Lord, we just pray. You would Ross ever so close to run to you. Help us to bring honor and Glory unto. You help us to shine the light in this dark and lost world. In the name of Jesus. We pray. Amen. And amen. I was talking about brother brother, Melvin Smith worsened, and that's that's how brother Melvin was. I probably he would have been the first to tell you that the Brad things. Way more of me than than he should. He would have been the first to say then Brad holds me of place. He ain't he shouldn't hold me. Brother Melvin would have been the first to tell you that, I am nothing. But what made him special was, who he believed in, who we trusted and who he had surrendered his life too. And you just, he was such an amazing man. In Paul, Paul is making mention of that. Paul says, hey, you know, there's been opportunities arise for me to be lifted up, he said, but hey, I don't want to glory in myself, not in whatsoever because Paul newest secret that the average person didn't know and that is that he actually ain't done nothing. He ain't office. Nothing. Overcame nothing.

And then he reflects on a particular happening and there's and I don't want to get caught up tonight and what Paul's Thorn In the Flesh was they different speculations, but none the less the word. He said that he testifies that there was a thorn in the flesh giving it to me. And now he says this, he said it was a messenger of Satan that was sent in the buffeting or to it to disrupt the ministerial work that he was trying to do. And he said it just aggravated me so bad, it was causing a problem is getting in the way, the three different times, I went to the Lord unto the Lord. Take it away from me, get it out of the way, ring me up and, and in the Lord, as politely as he could simply told him,

We are we like a lot of kids nowadays, we don't like to be told, no.

Somebody kills, you tell him no man and you are absolutely looking for some of those paddles to shock them with so they don't fell out on the ground.

I'm done. Especially at Walmart, where you just fill them bhagya buggy up with stuff and mama says, no. And I'm thinking, man, if I done that,

Miss thing, I would have heard and all huh. They said I would have heard would have been feed her saying. Come on in. You dumb and Foolish Boy.

we like that a lot of times Lord to tell us, no, Paul was too.

But I really need you to remove this out of the way. No. But if you would remove this out of my life, I could be so much more effective and it would be so much smoother. I can come in so many things and it would be great. For the last time, Paul. No. And God says the most amazing thing to it.

He said the grace that I give you. It's enough.

He said, it's sufficient. What did he mean by that? He meant that it's enough Paul for you to be Victorious. And so the brother begins to think on it.

And in the most amazing Revelation hits.

He said you know, Lawrence Wright.

And in any goes a step further, he says, not only is he right? But the more I think on it, He says. You know. When adversity comes my way. And and I embrace it.

And overcome it. I make you look pretty good. Then he takes it a step further.

When he says this.

In that night, Mercy says most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities?

That listen what he says, the power of Christ May rest upon me. Are you mean, what do we do? We want, do we want to be flooded with infirmities and shorten come in and, and, and in troubles and trials, so that so that that power May truly be made manifest in our lives. I'm working faster y'all, I haven't going around looking for no infirmities. I was going around looking for any adversity, it seem like that Finds Me on his own. I haven't going around looking for it for any fights.

But I'm always wanting to embrace and accept the power. Of Christ, Jesus. Is the word, says it rests upon me then, then he, then he goes here with it. Put the next verse up there for us. Ashley.

Therefore he's thought about all of this. He says, therefore I take pleasure in infirmities and reproaches in the festivities in persecutions in distress has for Christ's sake for when I am weak Then I am strong. When I was a kid growing up up on I live on 2991 and I can still leave maybe two or three. Four in here that ever. Remember going up 29 91 when the old bridge was in there on Calle cricket was an old iron tight bridge and right below that Old Bridge was the place, they called the baptizing hole. Now, now those woods were clean cuz the cows run those woods. And, and you've heard me talk about spending some Sunday, afternoons, as a little fella on those Creek Banks watching those. Those old science with some old paperbacks Heavenly Highway hymns. Open up singing while there's a baptism going on. I wish that I could take this younger generation and go let him see it. It was amazing. But now Monday through Saturday, it was still called the baptizing hole but it was a swimming hole.

And and I don't know about y'all, but I was, I wasn't when I was born. I didn't know how to swim.

Come on now. I know maybe you came here knowing how to swim. Well I did and the but man, I was a water bug. I love, I love going to the crib and so forth. And so my dad was an old hot old 195 Union pipefitter and so he would be awful lot of Fridays and in the end of weather was right and it hadn't rained in curious kids down there to that, that swimming old on Friday. And in down there at the swim know, now that that creep was probably all the way across except it may have been in over in the bend was a snake hole. I mean, if you see any mold Creeps in either dark color old. Been always wanting some trees Lane Dover in there. Anyway, that's how you knew you were serious about living for the Lord, because that's where you got baptized was over in that. And if you wasn't serious about serving the lord, it wouldn't no preacher could have dragged you off over there in that hole. It's so that's where you would swim at in. And I never forget, we're down there, one Friday. And man, I wanted to learn how to swim, but I want to learn how to swim in this shallow water. You're worried. If it don't work, I can stop and get my feet back under me. Never forget what my daddy grabbed me by the arm and come on, son, and And I mean I'm kicking and screaming and crying and then all the sudden, I don't care about no water, no more. I didn't want to come down here to go swimming today. Anyway, that's that's the turnaround I done and he grabbed me in Right off in the, in the midst of that, moccasin hole over there and look it up.

I finally got up there. And I mean I'm kicking and I'm splashing and I'm an inside of me. I know this is it man. That Hot Wheels collection. I got it's over. and, And I mean, I'm I'm just worried for a little boy. This was traumatic and I'm I going to get out of here and I fought it and fought it until the point that, I mean, I didn't see no Bright Light. No Light. No where And in just about the time, I quit fighting it and then I'm going to be honest with you, had he left me there. I will be staying up here in front of you today.

Just about the time that I was burnout and couldn't flop, no more.

He picked me up out of there. And of course, the man I'm crying. And in my thing I'm telling mama and I'm thinking about all that, I don't know how many more times he done that, but guess what I learned to do. Oh, I learned to swim and also learned to run from him when I knew he was going to do it.

Here's my point, though.

Is is I was fighting hard and heavy.

and then when there was no fight left in me,

that's when he would harm it.

He says in here. He says. In persecution, in the stresses, for Christ's sake, for when I'm weak.

Paulette that don't make no sense, you can't be weak and strong. You're going to be one of the other you're saying when you're weak, that's when you're strong, let's back up to see what Jesus how he answered that to him. When he said in verse 9, he said my grace is sufficient, it's enough. And then Jesus says, for my strength is made perfect in weakness. This is the worst. I've talked to, I don't know how many people about your lately, and I want to tell you what he is saying right there, everything about Christ Jesus is perfect. UK and in Christ. Jesus has no Witnesses.

He has no weaknesses, amen. He has no vulnerable places. He has nose at me. There he is, perfect for what he means, right here and you. And I didn't see if we can grab a little bit of pause and night and truly understand what he's saying it was, it, it does so much for us cuz what he said, he said for my strength is made perfect. In weakness, what he saying is, is my strength is made perfect in your weakness. Put the temperature back up and see if it's not. His weakness is our weakness. And when and when we have fault and kicked in and just keep going on, and we come to the point that we're about to give up and guess what? That's when the power of Christ that he talked about resting upon us, that's when it manifest itself in our lives. And I'm no longer are we relying upon our strength up on our power, but we have surrendered to the fact that I give up, I can't do anything with this. I can't make any difference. I can overcome Lord, would you take a hold of it? And according to his word, he says that when we reach that point, they men when we spent all our energy, when we spent all of our very being with us, when we are so weak, that we can't go on. That's when his strength manifests itself in our lives and begin. Rolling out a bus, I emailed. And in the end we take on that. We didn't even know we had any and all of it as getting the glory of getting the owner in and I want to tell you these days, not a stronger testimony. Then to look at someone any men who in all their, right? We wouldn't fall term for throwing their hands up in the air, and then I can't do it. I'm done. I give up, but yet run around and see them arrive in a victory in an anointing power of a man and not just simply survive, but overcome through the name of Jesus because then we know that if none other than the Lord, amen, who has done it through them. I don't know about y'all but I get excited when I see people that the Lord has has taken over in their lives, a men, and he's worked a great word through them and Paul grab that. That's why he said you know what? When these things come my way, I'm going to quit running from him. I'm going to quit. Asking him to take them away from me. I'm going to quit. Asking him to deliver me from them. And instead, I'm going to own

And I'm going to be victorious through them.

in the world's going to know, the Jesus lives here.

That's good for you.

And it's special to me. Because I've had moments.

Kangal.

Can you smile? Can you laugh? Caney.

And then a still small voice.

Says, I'm with you. And in my grace is enough.

Are you ready to hand me? The reins.

Okay, here you go.

And the Lord works it out in your life. So, So, I'm not encouraging you to run to a place of weakness.

But it should be encouraging to us to know that when we reach that place, this is going to sound strange. But I've said, stranger things that when we reach that place we're just getting ready to shine. We're just getting ready to find a source of strength like none other. And I rejoiced I Rejoice because he he saved me Irene George because he went to Calvary, but when we get on these versus tonight, we found out. He's done so much more for us that he's equipped us with everything. We need to not just make it

But to bring him glory as we do. What A Savior. Water friend.

For when I'm weak.

Go ahead and say it Valerie. Then I'm strong.

When I'm broken. Then I'm strong.

When I ran out of power. And Christ, I become powerful.

And I'll read this for you and I'm done in Philippians, 4 and 13. Man Church listless. Let's put it. Let's put it to practice, I can do all things through Christ. Who strengthens me?