← Dufresne Ministries Podcast
Dufresne Ministries Podcast
Refreshing Our Foundation | Debra Simons | Holy Ghost Meetings 2020 | World Harvest Church | Murrieta, CA
01:10:46
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Hi, I'm Nancy Dufresne. Welcome to our podcast channel. We know you'll be blessed by today's message.
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I learned early on that if I was going to. If I was going to succeed in this new life that I was living, serving God, loving God, that I was going to have to understand that God knew more than I did. And I had to understand that the church that he put me in, he put me in it because it was going to help me. It was designed to help me. And then when God connected us with Dr. Dufresne, it was a rescue for us. And so I realized for us to go on, this is vital to our life. And so that's why we're here, because we still understand that God hasn't changed his mind. And for everything that we're going to do in the future, this is where we need to be connected and get our supply. So it is an honor and a privilege to be in the meetings and to deliver the word to you all this morning. First of all, I want to give you a little bit of a background so that before I get right into my scripture so that you can understand a little bit why I am the way that I am, so you can understand the intensity. I was raised in a home, and I always tell everybody we did not know that it was dysfunctional until we got into about the seventh and eighth grade. Because then they started talking to you a little bit different, you know, from kindergarten garden on to sixth grade, you know, they're not talking to you about making choices for your future and everything. It's all about, you know, get your homework done. 7th and 8th grade, you know, you have different classes and, you know, they just talk to you in a different way. And so then they start telling you about life and politics and all that. And so then they start telling you about how, you know, a family should run and your parents should listen to you. And, you know, you sit there and think, well, my parents never listen to me, you know, and so, you know, we would come home and try to discuss this with our parents at the dinner table. Well, you know, they say, you know, you should listen to us, you know, and my parents were really big on honoring authority. This is what my parents said. If you go somewhere and you disbehave, you know, and somebody has to deal with you, you better understand you're gonna get dealt with again when you get home. So it's gonna be double indemnity. And back then, the nuns dealt with you. Your neighbors were allowed to spank you Your teachers were allowed to spank you. I mean, you know, it was, you know, at school, they had a paddle, you know, boom, you got a paddle, you know. And so my parents said, if anybody has to correct you understand this, you're coming home and you're getting another correction. My parents were not going to go to bat for us. If an adult said that we did something, they said, you know, basically, we're going to believe the adult. So, you know, you're going to have to. You're going to have to walk extra good to make sure that there's no misunderstanding. But my parents knew if we got in trouble, there was no misunderstanding. So. But when we would come home and say, well, you know, the teacher said this and the teacher said that, you know, it wasn't like they were diminishing their authority, but they made us understand very well. In this house, children do not have a say. And like Pastor Nancy was saying, my father used to have this saying when you would try to say something to him and he would just say in his, you know, sort of broken English that all of them started with Spanish and. And then they came to, you know, they got to California and they had to speak more English. In Texas, they, you know, pretty much stayed Spanish. But in California, you had to kind of transition. But if, you know, if we tried to, you know, had some input and, you know, my dad's way of telling us, be quiet, he would say, hey. He goes, you don't show me nothing. And what that meant was, you have no experience, you have no wisdom, you have no insight. So you're not speaking into my life. You have nothing to show. There's no fruit in your life. That's really what he meant. You have nothing that you've accomplished that would make me want to take your advice about anything. And, you know, I found out that when I got sick, saved, and I got into a local church, that part of my foundational upbringing was something that I didn't have to uproot. I could bring it right in and for the office of the pastor, what am I going to say to him? A man that's already, you know, had proven himself to be in a position. What does my input mean? So there was no problem there. And I was raised in a home where my mother and my father had two different views. And so at the dinner table, they would debate them. My mother was a company woman. She believed in the company. And so when she, because both of them had, you know, came over and they did field work, they got to California following the produce so they could have, you know, income. But then my mom realized, you know, we've got a family, so we really should try to look for jobs, that we could get a steady income. Because she said, you know, your father and I, we worked while there was, you know, crops, and then we wouldn't be working, you know, so we had money, and then we didn't have money, you know. And so she realized when they got here to California, they had actually two children, and they thought that that was all their family was going to consist of. And then five years later, after their last one, they thought I came along. So, of course, the joke was, debbie, we never planned for you. You were the mistake. And so you just kind of grew up with that. You were not really part of the family. They don't even know why you showed up. So. But, you know, listen, I have no scars about that. It has helped me through life. So when they got here, my mother, you know, she started to talk to my father and tell him, you know, we need to get us some good jobs. We got a family. You know, we need to get a home. And so they did that, and they got jobs. And so my mother got a job at a poultry pot processing plant. And my mother was so grateful for that job because it was helping raise her family by putting food on the table and helping to keep a roof over our heads. And so my mother was all for the company. Now my father got a job. But my father's mentality was different. My father was, you know, benefits for the employees because he got into a crowd where they would say, they need to give us more money or they need to do more for our insurance. So these two views were at the dinner table. And of course, my mother was the type that, wait a minute. How can you expect them to do all this for you when they're the ones that started the company? Well, and of course, my father would argue, but, yes, Mary, but we're working this. And my mother said, no, no, no, no, no. So we hear now, we also saw this. My mother and her thinking, she was just grateful to have a job, just give me something to do, get my paycheck, go home, take care of my family. But because my mother loved the company, if they asked her to do something else, she would gladly do it. So what they did to my mother is, you know, she would be in one department, and if they needed somebody someplace else, they would take her and train her to do something else, because she would gladly do it. She'd adapt herself to what they wanted because she was grateful to have a job. And my mother had this mentality, other people need jobs. They could replace me easily. Somebody else is waiting for a job, and if I'm going to keep my job, I need to adapt myself to what my employer wants. So as they move my mother around from department to department and would train her, whenever there came an opportunity for advancement, they would look around and they would see all of the experience she had in different departments, and so they would elevate her. And my mother didn't want to be elevated. My mother didn't want to be promoted. She didn't like the responsibility of being, you know, like a lead foreman or, you know, or a supervisor or, you know, she didn't like that. But she would do it because they would tell her, so and so retired, so and so left. Mary, we don't have anybody else, or could you do it until we find somebody? And of course, they would never find anybody else because my mother would do it. So what we saw was my mother, because of her love for the company, she and her faithfulness, she would get promoted. Now, what we saw about my father is that promotions. He was a hard worker, but promotions were slower. And he never went to the height that. That my mother went. Because my father had the mentality that really, the company should treat their employees right. So he got in with some union people, and, you know, you're a shop. What is a shop steward? Something like that. You, you know, kind of like back the people. Now, don't get me wrong, my father did get elevated, but it took a lot longer. Because, of course, you understand somebody with that mentality, you gotta make sure, you know, that they're not gonna come and try to take something from you. They're not gonna try to be putting claims on you all the time. They would cost the company money. And that's what my mother used to say. She'd say, you understand when people get hurt, that costs the company money. And so my father would say, well, yeah, but you got hurt on the job. Yeah, but think about this. If everybody did that. Now, see, these are the conversations that went along in the house. But we saw dad. Dad did get promoted because he was a hard worker. He knew field work and he liked to work. But he never got the promotion or anything to the degree that my mother got. Because my mother loved the company. My mother was grateful to have a job. My mother realized, you know, they didn't have to hire me. And so there was a mentality of entitlement in Her. And of course, my mother really was the stronger influence in our life. And so she taught us that. When we were younger, my mother would tell us, you know, when we had relatives that had children and they would need a babysitter, you know, they would say, you know, we'll pay them. And my mom said, no, we're family. You don't pay family. And she would say, you don't pay family because one day they. They're going to be. They're going to have their family, and they're going to need somebody to help them with their family. So we don't have to. We don't, you know, swap favors for money. There's no money in family. That's what my mother said. And really, what my mother was teaching us is, listen, what you sow, one day you'll be able to reap. You do for them now because they need help. And somebody will be there to help you when. When you need help. And it won't always be about money. And so she instilled that, you know, that's part of the foundation of my upbringing that formed my thinking, that helped me in making decisions. I didn't like to babysit other people's kids. You know, we. You know, I just. I just didn't like to be in other people's homes and stuff like that. And so, you know, one of the neighbors came one day, and they said, you know, I noticed you have. We had military all around us. It was a big military base, a training base where we lived. And so there were all kinds of people from all over the place, you know, and so there was a couple, and they had been transferred in, and they had been new. And so they came and they saw, you know, that, you know, we'd be out in the front yard, and this lady knocked on the door, and she says, I notice you have two daughters. She says, you know, we've just been transferred in. We don't know anybody. You know, my husband and I, once in a while, we like to go out to dinner. Do you think any one of your daughters would babysit for us? And, you know, we'll pay her? And my mother said, oh, yeah, Debbie will babysit for you, but you don't have to pay her, you know. Cause, like, you know, we're neighbors, you know. And so I thought, oh, geez, Mother, I don't want to go. I want to go to some stranger's house. And, you know, and so my mother would say, no, no, she'll babysit, you know, well, okay, you know, we're going to go Friday and whatever. But my mother, before I went over there, my mother said to me, now you're going into these people's house. They're strangers. You don't know them, so you behave yourself. She says, they are asking you to do a job. She says, so if you're babysitting, you're not on the phone. If you're babysitting, you're not sitting in front of that television. And she said, let me tell you something. You don't go into other people's rooms. You don't open drawers. That's their house. But if you see dishes in the sink that need to be washed, wash them. You need. You see laundry somewhere that needs to be folded, fold it, you know. And I'm looking at my mother like what she says. She said, because if you do that, you'll always have a job. They'll want to ask you to do it again. And of course, they did pay me. You know, I thought to myself, well, I don't want them to ask me to do it again. But anyway, so. But that's the way my mother was. And, you know, that was in the foundation of my upbringing, my thinking, my mentality. And so when I got saved, there were a lot of things that were not a temptation to me that people have stumbled over because of my foundation, my upbringing, my mother. The company, in the early days, before it became a corporate company, it experienced a fire in one of the plants. And so for a time, I don't know exactly what time, I tried to ask my mother, but it was supposed to be something that nobody really knew about, although we knew in the family. And my sister who did work at the company, said it was true. There was a time when the company had a fire, and before they could get the plant redone and ready to go again, I think they leased another plant. And really, because it was a small company starting, they weren't as big as they ended up being. For a time, they couldn't pay some of the employees. And so they asked people that if they could work until they got everything going. And my mother volunteered and she worked for free. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a year or whatever, but she did for a time because she felt like, you know, this company has been good to me. Why can't I return? But again, she was for the company. If I help them get back on their feet, I'm going to have a job here. What my mother didn't know is that she put in about. I think 36 years. And then she retired, and only because my father had open heart surgery and he was going to retire, and she just felt like, you know, we're young enough to still, you know, enjoy our lives together and, you know, slow down a bit. So right before she retired, a few years before she retired, everything had switched and everything had been very, you know, automized. And now they were doing things by charts and graphs. Sales, it all went like that. So there were a lot of more educated people coming in to be your superintendents and your supervisors and all of that. And so my mom realized it's changing, and it's time for me to step aside to let these young people do what they do best. So. So she asked them, you know, if she could transfer to do something easier. And so they gave her a position. My mom worked nights for 36 years, which is like, you know, midnight till, you know, nine or ten in the morning. And she loved that shift. And so what they did, because they thought this would be a benefit to her, they put her on days. And so she almost kind of got, like, her feelings hurt a little bit. Like, oh, you know, you know, I wanted something easier, but, you know, you know, maybe they're upset with me. They put me on days because that was not her preferred shift. So she went to one of the bosses there, and most of those bosses, she trained him. So she asked him, she says, have I done something wrong? And he said, no. And she says, well, you put me on day shift. And he said, are you kidding? And she said, no. She goes, he said, we thought that would be a benefit to you. You work normal hours. We weren't doing it because it was kind of a reprimand because you wanted to step down. We thought it would be easier for you and you would enjoy it. And she says, no, I like my shift. And then he told her something that she did not know. He says, I don't know that you know this or not, but the owner of the company that actually had hands on when she got hired, the owner of the company, when he turned it over to his sons, he left a stipulation that you were unfirable and your salary could never be brought down. So whatever you wanted to do until you decided to leave, we were going to have to find a place for you and never cut your salary in doing it. So my mother taught me that faithfulness and loyalty in the end paid off. And my mother was very loyal to the company that she worked for. If you decided to say something against that company, Those were fighting words with my mother. And if you complained about the job that you had and your boss, my mother would tell you find another job. But you're not bringing that mess in my kitchen and talking about your boss. Somebody else could have your job that appreciate it. So why don't you just find another job? If you're not happy there, go someplace else. But don't talk about the person that's helping you when they're giving you providing a salary for you. Now this foundation of thinking that I was raised in, it didn't have to be uprooted when I got born again because I just brought that right in to serving God. I realized that I had to respect authority. I understood that I would need to be loyal to my church and faithful and loyal to my pastor because he was the pastor. I think sometimes we don't see the value in our foundation. We have a spiritual foundation and when your foundation is made right, you can build upon it. In fact, let's go to First Corinthians. First Corinthians, chapter 3. Starting in verse 10, I'm going to read out of the passion translation. I like the way this reads. God has given me unique gifts as a skilled master builder who lays a good foundation. Afterwards another craftsman comes and builds on it. So builders beware. Let every builder do his work carefully according to, to God's standards. He said, I've been gifted to lay a good foundation. Now those that are gonna build on it, they need to be careful that it meets God's standards. You know, really what the spirit of God has been emphasizing to me in my church, and really it's confirming here, is that we need to look and make sure that we are refreshed in our foundational truths to go on with God. Make sure you still, you're still firm footed on that original foundation of the Word. Make sure that you're still on that firm foundation of worship and fellowship with God. Because we've heard it's easy to let things slip. But the foundation that sure it lasts, it lasts. What my mother and father both put in us, what was good, lasted what was right. It passed the test of time. See, we ought to make sure in cooperating with the Spirit for revival is that we're still on the same foundation that God placed us and planted us on. So Pastor Nancy been telling us about, you know, really fellowship with God. Worship is part of fellowship. I had been telling, talking to my congregation and I know I talked to Pastor Nancy a little bit and I said I'm concerned with younger people that they know all the language, they know the scriptures to, you know, to refute our suggestions, but they don't have that foundation of intimacy with God that can put you on track in an instant. See, that's what I'm concerned with. So really, I've gone back and I began to refresh the congregation on these foundations that we should be firm on. One of the things that I started teaching sometime in November was, do you realize that once you're born again, the plan of God for your life should be important? You understand that when you get born again, God has a plan for your life. And it's important that you find out what that plan is and that you move to fulfill that plan. Because if not, your life will be empty. It will not be satisfied. You can never be satisfied until you're doing exactly what. What God has ordained for you to do. Whatever it is, There is a fulfillment that comes when we are doing what we are born to do. And I said, you know, I'm concerned about this generation, that they don't know how to get through some difficult things because they don't know how to, you know, get off of their phones or their games long enough to shut that mind down. You understand that those games occupy the mind, keeps that mind in a direction. I'm not against them. I play. What do I play? Word cookie. What is it? Word cookie. Because I heard someone say that if you try to get your mind to do something that it's never done before, you know, it stays fresher. So, you know, I try to do Word cookie. Of course, I don't really do it. Like, what do those alph. What could those alphabets make? No, I try every combination. I didn't even know that was a word. Hey, it hit the. But you understand when you're filling your time with all these things and then you're trying to sit in the presence of God and have that intimate moments with him where he can tell you in an instant why something's not working. You're doing things, and it's not producing the fruit that the Word says it should produce. But why? Because there's something. There's something that's a little bit off. And when you get in his presence, it's easy for God to say, what about this? You know, the spirit of God? Recently, you know, as I'm making my, you know, my faith confessions and thanking God for the things that I have petitioned, you know, he said to me about some verses of scripture, he says, you know, you have used those Verses a lot in taking up offerings. And the first part of it you qualify for. But he said, the part that it talks about receiving, he said, you don't have that in you as well as you think you do, or it would be producing more. I said, all right. Some of you know when God says something to you, he knows what he's talking about. And, you know, I didn't feel condemned because he told me that I'm looking at something. I've preached it, I've used it for offerings many times. But I only have half of it. I only have half of it in me to the degree that I need for it to produce. And half will not work. I got to have the whole thing. And so I began to write it out. I began to write it out in different translations. I began to look at it. I began to meditate on it. Why? Because in that moment when you're with God, he has the ability to correct you, put you on track. And I said to my congregation, I'm concerned that some of our young people, they're making decisions, but they're making them out of the soulish realm. And they might tag a scripture or two on at the end to make it sound spiritual, But it's not the path of God for them. And of course, you know, it's like Dr. Frank said, when someone says, well, God said, you know, you know, it's like, period, the end. I'm not listening to anything else you say. Then you just finally have to say, well, just go on with your bad self. What I'd like to say is what my father said. You don't show me anything. Amen. So it says here, God has given me unique gifts as a skilled master builder who lays a good foundation. Afterwards, another craftsman comes and builds on it. So builders beware, lay. Let every builder do his work carefully according to God's standards. For no one is empowered to lay an alternative foundation other than the good foundation that exists, which is in Jesus Christ. The quality of materials used by anyone building on this foundation will soon be made apparent. Whether it has been built with gold, silver and costly stones or wood, hay and straw, their work will soon become evident. For the day will make it clear because it will be revealing by blazing fire. And the fire will test and prove the workmanship of each builder. If his work stands the test of fire, he will be rewarded. If his work is consumed by the fire, he will suffer great loss. Yet he himself will barely escape destruction like one being rescued out of a burning house. Now, I understand you're just talking about, you know, when you. On the day of Judgment. But let's not be ignorant in thinking that what we do here on earth, if it's right, it will produce. If it's not right, you just keep going on and missing and not producing what the word says it can produce. If what we are building on the foundation, if it's not up to God's standards, it won't pass the test. Or let me put it this way, it won't help you stand in the time of adversity. It's not going to help you get through what's going to come at you. Only when you have a right foundation will it help you get through in the times when the enemy comes to attack. That's why it's important that, that we have true worship. You know, contemporary music, just because it has words in it, you know, that are from the scripture, doesn't mean that it's worship. But worship assists you in getting in the presence of God. Worship assists you in really just laying down all the cares of the day or whatever. When you get into worship, it takes you somewhere. But if we build something that's not up to God's standard on the foundation of Christ, and now we've got contemporary music, people are not getting helped by that. And people think, well, that's not so bad. Well, You know, it's not evil in itself. It just doesn't produce the power. That's the key. It doesn't produce the power. If it's not according to God's standard, it won't do what it's supposed to do. And so that's why we have to be careful what we build upon. But in this era, to cooperate with it, we have to refresh ourselves on the foundation, make sure we're on it the way we once were, make sure that we're still believing the way we believe when we first, you know, receive the good news. And I realize that we progress in our revelation, but we have to hold true to that because it's the endurance race, it's the long haul, where it's going to show up. And that's why I'm so thankful I started thinking about this, about really the foundation that I had in my upbringing. It helped me in the things of God. Now I realize not everybody may have been raised in a home like I was. I understand that in my congregation I have a lot of people like that. But when you understand how important foundation is, when you come into the things of God, you try to. You grab hold of that foundation and get it on the inside of you. You come in hungry and you get it, and then you stay on it. You keep with it. Because there is a fight of faith, and we do have to resist the devil. But if you don't have that firm foundation, you're not going to be able to do it. And this is what the spirit of God has been saying to me. Go back and refresh the congregation in those foundations. Begin to talk more about getting into God's presence. Begin to change even things in music where you begin to really exalt the father. You know, worship exalts the father. When you see him big, your situation is small. When you see your situation big, you're seeing him small. And one thing about true worship, it sees you see God big and it assists us. And so that's why as I was meditating on this, I thought, you know, I am thankful for the things that my parent put in us. They taught us not to be disrespectful to elders. My mother really taught us not to judge. My father was. They got married when they were very young. I think my mom might have been 13, my father 17, somewhere around there, maybe she was 15. And, you know, she wasn't very old at all. But back then, people got married because there were hard times. You know, it's like you just have one less mouth to feed. You know, go ahead. You know, it wasn't kind of like the thinking isn't like today. Somehow they were more mature in those days. My father actually got into the military at 17 because he lied on his birth certificate or something. And so. But he went into the military really, so that they could eat, so that he could get a job where there were meals. I mean, that's the background that they came out of. But my parents, you know, they taught us that you respect positions and authorities. My father, he was young and, you know, he was a partier. And sometimes, you know, when he went partying, he'd forget to come home at dinner time, might not come home until late. And my mother would never allow us to think that we had the right to look down on my father or to disrespect him just because maybe what he was doing didn't look right or wasn't right. Because my mother used to say, you have to answer for your life, and he will answer for his. But here's the thing that is true. He's your father and you are going to respect him. And that taught me something I might not have in those days, agreed with Everything he did, but it didn't give me the right to disrespect him because he was my father. So when I came into the church, the pastor didn't have to do everything the way I liked it for him to have my respect and my regard. I didn't have to understand everything that every decision that he was making. Because my mother had trained us. When someone has a position, you regard that position because you don't know everything. You don't know the whole story. You don't know what causes people to do what they're going to do. So my mother really helped us in trying to keep us from thinking that we had the right to judge someone and then to mistreat them because their behavior, you know, wasn't to our liking. That didn't hurt me when I got saved. That helped me. It helped me to learn that God, you know, put me in a place. And he put me in a place to be under a shepherd that was going to deal with me the way I needed to be dealt with. And so a lot of things that were temptations for people, they might come to my mind. But I always remember, well, my mom always taught me, it's none of your business. It's not your business. I remember this one time, the pastor was a visionary and he wanted to. He was getting ready to pioneer some churches in another city, Northern California. So he was going to have a big conference and he actually had some speakers come in, very well known, that were really contemporary in that day, in the 90s, early 90s. It was going to be a big conference and it was going to be a real, real stretch for a church our size. But he wanted to do that because he was going to launch the church. So he wanted to gather some people with a meeting and then from there let them know, we're starting a church in this city. And, you know, and that's what he was doing. And so of course, you know, it was a huge budget and I was the bookkeeper. So of course, you know, we had never brought that kind of money in our church ever. That was going to have to. That was going to cover the cost of this. And so you're just believing that the people will come and that that will help cover the cost. And so I remember coming into the hotel. Cause we had so many, you know, so many issues to get in and all that. And I came in and, you know, I just thought, you know, I would do a little, what would you say, like, reconnaissance with God. I just thought, I'm gonna Just make sure I'm okay with him so that this thing goes well. Cause in my mind, I'm thinking, I just don't even know how we're gonna do all this. So I said to the Lord, I said, I'm walking in the hotel, you know, I have to make all the room arrangements for all the speakers and travel and all that. I said, now, God, you know I wouldn't do this. Meaning I'm asking for your mercy that everything gets covered. Because the responsible person that I am now, I didn't say that. That's what I'm thinking. I would not do this. Size of our church, the amount of all that. And I was surprised at what God said to me. He said, that's right. You wouldn't do this. That's why he's the pastor and you're not. And he said to me, what good will it do if the bills are not paid? He said, why don't you just get into agreement with him and see everything covered right away. God checked my thinking. That was not in unity with the man that he had put over my life. Because what he's saying is, at the end of the day, if it's a flop, who is going to have to try to figure out how to pay these bills? You? I mean, I'm the one that's doing the books. I'm the one that's going to be taking the phone calls or whatever. So what good would it do for me to be right? I wouldn't have done this. Why don't you agree with him, get it taken care of? I mean, isn't it better for everybody? And, you know, God would check my thinking like that, but I know that he did because I had a foundation of a mother that said, you know, your thinking isn't always right. And so I said, lord, forgive me, I am in agreement with this. You know. And you know what? Everything got done. I mean, it was a miracle. But I learned something there. You have to get your thinking in line when someone's moving forward. Because if you're not in the head position, God's honoring what they're doing, and it'd be better for you if you were just in line with it. And again, I would hear things a certain way because of the foundation. How important is it? Is our foundation in Christ? Brother Copeland was talking about the covenant, and I was listening to the services back in the room, and he's talking about, you know, Jesus is standing with us when we release that word. I mean, it's part of the Covenant. And if we had a greater revelation of that, we'd be producing more. And that's what God is saying, get back in and get that truth in you bigger and you'll produce more. And that's what God has been saying to me. Because we're getting ready to go to purchase land and to build a building. And the first thing when I realized it was the time, and that was several years ago, I realized my faith has to now be increased. And to increase it, I've got to start hearing more. And so I told my congregation in preparation for moving forward, I am making a point to hear even more than what I've been doing before, because it's going to take more to go forward. And isn't really that's what God's saying to us. It's gonna take more to go forward. And so this is why I am so thankful in just meditating on the foundation that I had in my upbringing. And it makes me realize how important it is to get the foundation of the principles of the Word so strong in me now that no matter what, we don't veer from them, that once we know what God has said, we move out after what he said. Doesn't matter what it looks like so many times we want it to look right before we're, you know, at ease. And you got to learn to be at ease when it doesn't look right. But that's part of our foundation. And if what we're putting, meeting God's standard, it won't produce the power that we need. It won't produce the results in the lives being changed that's so necessary for them. Because there's coming a time when people are going to be looking for a place that's got the power that will deliver the power that will heal. I mean, people are going to get, you know, with all of this, the medical issue and everything, people are going to get more desperate for healings. They're going to get more desperate for soundness of mind. Because you understand anytime you have any kind of area in your life where you don't want to harness your flesh, they're trying to give you a pill for it. They're trying to call it a disease instead of a lack of restraint. So you understand, people are being medicated a lot more than they've ever been before. At some point, people are going to realize that that system is not working. And the only system that's going to work is the power of God. It's flowing in our churches that when somebody walks in the power is moving in such a level that they get healed, that they get set free, because that's what it's all about. I told our congregation, I said, you know, we've been comfortable in this building too long. I said, but let me tell you something. This church is not just about you getting your bills paid. That's part of the promise. But a church is about getting people saved. A church is about reaching out to other people. Now, let me. I told my congregation, you need to understand the reason that we move forward is because there's more lives that God wants touched. So when you come in just to get your bills paid, you're missing something. And listen, we do believe in prosperity, but that can't be the only reason why we're here, because I don't think there's any more prosperous place than heaven. So if we got saved and we were going to be prosperous, why don't we just go to heaven? We are here to touch people. And I realize people come in with needs and they get their needs met. But it's like, you can't stop there. Once you learn how to get your needs met, you need to think about somebody else that needs their needs met. That's why I believe that God is saying to us, refresh yourself with the foundations so that you can go forward. Because people are hurting and they don't have the answers. We have the answer, and we need to be producing the answer. It's what we are living that is speaking to others. When I got saved in 1982, and I got to the local church that my husband and I pastor right now, in 1983. So for one year, I went to a community church. And in that community church, it felt good because I'd never been in a church where they preached to you. So it felt good. I felt loved. But in a year of being there, I realized I wasn't changing like I should be or like I thought I should be. Then I get to a church where the Word's being preached, and all of a sudden I'm learning I've got to renew my mind. I'm learning that I have to keep my words right. It wasn't just the message of love, and I'm not minimizing that message, but it was. The community church was telling me how much Jesus loved me. And I'm not minimizing that. But I wasn't changing because I kept hearing that I had to go somewhere where they said, this is what you do. This is what you do with those thoughts. Your Words are going to produce something in your life, so make sure your words are right. When I got to a church where they began to train me as to what to do, my life began to change. So you understand that that's the church, that God is going to bring the precious fruit of the earth to the church that's still on that firm foundation. But when we got to Church in 1983, people were inviting people all the time. We knew this, that when we invited somebody, no matter who they were, somehow, no matter what the pastor was preaching, the Holy Ghost would work it around. And though the pastor didn't know the situation of the person that we brought, the Holy Ghost knew. And they came in and they got their answers. They were shocked, and we were thrilled. Like, oh, my God, did you see that? Did you hear what he said? And then, you know, whoever you brought, did you talk? No, no, no. Haven't talked to my pastor about you. But the minute he start preaching, the. There'd be a little rabbit trail. That rabbit trail would go, and they would answer what that person was struggling with. Or the pastor would call them out. Can I pray for you? Come up here. The word of wisdom and the word of knowledge would start operating. And these people knew that they came to a place where God was moving. Church was exciting. You couldn't wait to get there because you didn't know what the Holy Ghost was gonna do, who he was gonna minister to. And so you know what? You were inviting people all the time. I don't see people inviting people as much as they used to, because sometimes we just let things just become normal or were casual with them. But I'll tell you, in those days, it was so exciting. But you understand, everybody, you know, in that camp, they were having services where, I mean, things were happening and people were coming. And we have to refresh ourselves on those foundational truths. Telling somebody, when you come to church, God's gonna answer that question. God's gonna give you direction. We would boldly tell people that, listen, if you just come to my church one time, just one time, just one time. That's all I need. One time. That's what we did. And you know what? The Holy Ghost never failed us. Never, ever, ever, ever failed us. And I mean, I'm telling you what, listen, they may have gotten ministered to, but we were so excited. Did you hear what he said? Did you see what scripture he went to? Oh, my God. That's the way church is supposed to continue to go on that we are so excited about what God is doing. And you know what? When we're on that foundation and we take time to get in his presence and to fellowship with him, it all works together. That's why each one of us is individually go back and say, am I still on those same principles? Am I stirring myself up to keep them strong in me so that I can boldly tell someone, you know, if you came to church just one time, God would meet you. Now, you know, it doesn't mean that they have to stay there. You understand? I mean, yes, if they're supposed to find. But here's the thing. They had an encounter with the power of God. You know, one plants, one waters, God gives the increase. This is what we need to do to cooperate with this next era. And listen, this is what God's been saying to us in these services. I mean, the blood covenant, how much more foundational is that? We need to know that in a greater way. And then getting in God's presence last night, the service was so awesome. I mean, really, it just. It just took me back. You know, when you just would get in God's presence and it didn't matter what you were facing that moment in his presence, you walked out. And you know, in his presence is what fullness of joy. You walked out knowing that problem was not a problem because you had been in the presence with God. And whether God said something or not, sometimes just his presence, but sometimes God would say something. He might give you a verse of scripture or give you something, and you knew, this is going to take me. I got this. And again, it wasn't always that you heard something, but that you were in his presence and you knew he was there. You knew he's got this. And like I'm saying, there's a younger generation that has not experienced this, not like they should, and we need them to. And that's why I have really determined to start talking about these things in my church. Because I need that younger generation that are hungry to know. Because, you know, once they get hungry, they become a target. I mean, they're always a target, but you understand when they really start to want to move towards the things of God. And there's a sincerity, the enemy works hard to get them out. And they need to know that there's a place where they can go any 24 hours a day. It's open and that's in God's presence. And you can make yourself more sensitive to his presence through worship. You know, you can worship him. You can come with a heart full of gratitude. There's all kinds of ways that you position yourself to get into God's presence and be more sensitive to what he's saying. And then we walk more accurately. And then it's like Dr. Efrain used to say, you know why people are using other vices in their services? Because they're not full. You don't need anything else when you're full, the Word is enough when you're full. The preaching of the Word in a service is enough. When you're full, your worship service is enough when you're full. You don't have to, you know, entertain people when we're all full. Because I'm gonna tell you something. Not being disrespectful, but when we come full, the Holy Spirit entertains us. How he moves, you understand? I'm not trying to, you know, be disrespectful, but how he moves, you're just, like, going, oh, my God, this is wonderful. And that's why we need to go back. Because a good foundation lasts. And if we build it on something that's not lasting, we're not going to complete the course that God has for us. Amen. Amen. Thank you.
- [55:45]
A
Hallelujah. You know, whenever you go to buy a house, the bank will order, if they're going to finance you, a foundation inspection. Because it's not about whether the windows need replacing. It's not whether the decor needs replacing. It's all about the foundation. And based on the condition of that foundation, determines what they'll fund. God funds those whose foundation is in place to where his message can be furthered. Amen. Hallelujah. I think the thing we have to understand is in this revival, because Ed said when he saw that wave, he saw years ago, he saw this, had a vision of this wave. And he said in the wave, he saw buildings, he saw equipment, he saw everything that was needed. That if we stayed in the wave and God is to going. Going to use very, I think, very dramatic ways of getting us things that we thought that they're going to bypass the normal process. And I said this. I made this statement last night. I said, when God told me to do something, and then the devil bombarded me for about a day and a half. God said, if you would stay in my presence, you wouldn't even have to listen to that. And then he made this statement. I'm going to instruct you to do things in the future that the devil's going to try to trouble your mind with. Get that? Why? Because God will tell you to do something. And the mind can't calculate it, the mind can't figure it out. And the devil would like to take that word and try to, to trouble you with it instead of you acting on it. But he said, if you will stay in my presence, what I tell you won't, the devil can't trouble you about that. Because I believe God is going to, as we say, bypass the normal process to get us things, to get us buildings, to get us lands. And if our foundation isn't sure, we won't move with him in these things that bypass processes. I mean, when Jesus turned the water into wine, what was bypassed? The process of growing grapes, the process of that growth period, the process of processing the grape. Every process was bypassed to turn, to turn what was water into wine. And we need to have in our foundation enough confidence. Like she was saying, don't question the leadership, don't question, question the pastor. If the pastor gets up with 25 people and says, we're getting ready to buy this 500 acres over here, that you don't go, what God is going to bypass processes in this era. And if we are not willing to have in our foundation the confidence to just do what we're told, just do what we're told. Because I was telling previously about how when Charles Parham, God sent him to Topeka, Kansas to start a Bible school, this was, you know, the infancy of the Azusa street revival. This preceded all of that. And he said, I want you to go to Topeka, Kansas and start a Bible school. And because they didn't have the kind of communication facilities that we have, you know, with all the Facebook or the advertising, they had some, of course, but it wasn't as quick. And he said that when God told him that he went to Topeka, Kansas and when he got there, he was looking for a building to have it in. He couldn't find a building. And somebody told him, there's a place outside on the edge of town that is available. And he went out and looked at it and it's as fabulous, opulent home. I mean it looked like a three story home and with all the intricate detail, I mean it was really elaborate. And he's standing in front of this house and the word of the Lord came to him and said, I'm going to give you this place. He didn't have a Bible, he didn't have a student, he didn't have anything set in place. And God said to him, I'm going to give you this house for the Bible school. And while he's Standing there looking at the house, a man walks up to him and says, do you like this house? He said, God just spoke to me and told me he's going to give me this house for my Bible school. And the man reached into his pocket, pulled out a key and said, here, it's yours. That was the owner. He bypassed all the regular processes. But see, if in your foundation is not this absolute, whatever God says, I'm just going to do it. I'm not going to question, I'm not going to argue, I'm not going to debate, I'm not going to give a rebuttal you'll miss because you'll be used to looking for the processes that are naturally known to you. Amen. And then God said to him, after he got this house, God would say to him, go down to the train station today. And he'd go down there and when he'd be on the train station, there'd be several people that would get off the train station at the train, get off the train at that station, and they would walk up to him and said, are you the one having the Bible school? Because God would speak to people in different cities, there's going to be a Bible school. I want you to go to Topeka, Kansas. And he would be there to pick up students he didn't know were arriving. Bypassing normal process. And in this, in this revival, God is going to bypass normal processes. And we've got to quit thinking and limiting God to what we calculate in the normal process of things. Amen. God's going to do it. God's going to do it. I said, God's going to do it. Because nobody could stand back and take, take any credit when these kinds of things happen. One guy, one precious pastor, pastoring now. But he wasn't, he didn't have a church at the time. But God said to him, I want you to start a church in this city. And it was, if I could say this, a lower income community. And there was not a lot of, you know, flourishing type, large businesses that generated a lot of income. It was a smaller community and lower income. But he started in that city just going and ministering to the youth in that city. And he would set up certain things to minister to the youth. And after a period of time of doing that, he went into the restaurant one day and ate lunch and paid his bill and walked out. And as he was walking out, the owner of the restaurant came chasing him and said, here, he says, I've seen what you've been doing in Our community for the youth. And I just wanted you to know I appreciate and I want to help you with it. And he handed him a check. Well, he handed him an envelope. He said, well, thank you very much. And so he got in his car and he opened the envelope and when he did, he opened it up and he saw a hundred thousand dollar check and he put it in his pocket. Just somebody, he didn't even know the man. And he put it in his pocket and God said, look at the check again. He pulled it out. It wasn't 100,000, it was a million dollar check. He just wasn't used to seeing and reading. And with that one million dollar check, without a congregation, went and bought a building and started a church. God bypassed the normal process of fundraising and, you know, getting the people on board. Nothing wrong with that process, but God's not limited to that process. Pastor Dave, I want you to come up here if you would share with this congregation about what God did with you for your building. This precious pastor and his wife, come on up. They are in Warner Robbins, Georgia and they. I don't know how long you've been pastoring altogether, but let them know about that. Sure.
- [64:03]
C
Talk about bypassing the normal process. We've been pastoring for about 10 years or so, 11 years, and started out in like a community center, just renting week to week, and then moved into another building, paying rent, using all the faith we had just to pay the rent, forget the building program. There was no money to put in a building program. And so we would just keep sewing. And then in 2000, 2017, we were going to have a church celebration, our 10th anniversary, and put on a big dinner and do all that and spend a bunch of money on that. We said, you know, we need a building. And so we told everybody, look, we're going to believe God. We're going to raise $10,000 and sow it into missions. And amazingly, because we had, you know, done similar things before, but like in a month's time, $10,000 came in. So did the missions. Seven months later, on my birthday or. And this is in all, in that time, we had been searching the city, driving around outlying communities, looking, looking. There was nothing that was even remotely suitable for us. We had outgrown where we were where. I mean, I was looking for just even, just a little glimmer of something that we could put our faith on. It was nothing. Finally I said to Kendall, I said, look, I'm not even look anymore. I'm done looking, you know, and so on my birthday, a pastor there who'd been pastoring for a number of years called me. And he's retired air force major, and he'd been pastoring this church. He said, lord told me, I'm done. He's about 80 years old. Do you need a building? And I'm like, really? And so we met and he said, it's yours. And so right in the middle of the city area, right there. Well, just where the, you know, housing area is. Nice area, 10 acres of really the best property. I mean, good property, because, you know, you pastors know when you get. You can buy a piece of land, but you can spend 10 times the money in improving that land to build on it. Right?
- [66:33]
A
Perfect.
- [66:34]
C
Just nice. Gave it to us. 10 acres, 14,000 square foot building. You know, we just. We met, we got an attorney, drew up the papers and everything, just signed it and gave us. And so we had no building program. No. All the money came in. Hallelujah. Glory to God.
- [66:57]
B
Hallelujah.
- [66:59]
C
And so it catapulted us financially 20 to 30 years ahead from where we were. When you consider, you know, building payments and. And, you know, all the processes that you would go through to acquire land and build a building and all that, one phone call. One phone call and you're there. Hallelujah.
- [67:25]
A
Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Now, can I tell you this? Some people would want that just so it's easier on them. If you got that mentality, God won't use that approach with you. God's not trying to make it easy on your faith. God's going to do what's best for your faith. But you understand this for 10 years of faithfulness, for 10 years of when it looked like it wasn't reaching things that were in their heart. You know, Dr. Sumrall made this statement, and it's so true. A church is not a church until it's at least 10 years old. Why? Because you have to weed out the quitters. You have to weed out the pastors that are quitters. You have to weed out the leadership in your church. That's quitters. You just have to weed out the quitters. Not to say you can't advance during those 10 years, but don't become disheartened early on because God is proving people. Amen.
- [68:31]
B
And.
- [68:34]
A
You can be seated. The thing I want you. I want you to understand, when you hear these things of bypassing processes, it's not just so you won't have to use your faith. If you take that mentality, God it's not about welfare mentality. Hand me something. Hand me something free. God won't. God's not. God's not feeding that. Amen. But let's not limit God. We're going to see God do some things that are only things that he could do. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. But if we in our foundation is not these things that she's talking about, we're not holding to them, we won't be in position to take hold of these things he offers us in this era. Hallelujah. I tell you what, check your foundation all the time. Check your foundation. Go back, fortify it. That's one thing that we so appreciate about dad Hagin. He was always feeding us things that would help us tend to our foundation so that we could go further. Amen. Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. Well, we want to be a blessing to our guest ministers this week. So let's go ahead and let's prepare to give an offering this morning. We want to honor what we have received this morning. Amen. Hallelujah. When we say check your foundation, can we say this? Look at what. What we've let slip. What have we not been emphasizing that we need to pick it back up. And as dad Hagin would say, he said, sometimes we step in, then we step out. We step in and we step out. We're going to have to just step in and stay in. Amen. Hallelujah. We trust you've enjoyed this message. Visit us at defrainministries.org to learn of our upcoming meetings, share your testimony, become a partner, or visit our online store. This program has been made possible by the friends and partners of Dufresne Ministries.