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- [00:04]
Pastor Robert
Go ahead.
- [00:08]
MJ
I was a little concerned that I was too old for Social Dallas, but I see that God has me here for a reason.
- [00:15]
Kadeen
There's not an area of my life that God hasn't used social to impact. I met my wife and even proposed at Social.
- [00:22]
Pastor Taylor
Before Social, we were just living in.
- [00:24]
Addison
The world day to day, without a purpose.
- [00:27]
Britney
We thought that was it for life. Just going out, partying, drinking, and there was much more to that. I don't know that our marriage would even survive. It wouldn't have survived.
- [00:38]
Addison
I remember walking down to a Toyota, nervous out of my mind. I remember sitting down and Pastor Robert said, you never know who's gonna be on the last day. Every Sunday was my last day.
- [00:51]
Omar
The doctor told us we had a 1% chance of conceiving naturally, and that was devastating. We went to Connect Group and they just loved on us and they prayed for. It wasn't just that one time. It was multiple times. One day we were walking into Social Dallas and they gave us these papers. You know, I will believe in faith that one day. And I decided to write down, we will conceive a child naturally. And today is that one day we were able to conceive naturally. No treatments, no iui, no ivf. And we're so grateful for the prayers of our Connect group at Social Dallas for this miracle.
- [01:32]
MJ
Social Kids has been super important in our family. My youngest grandson, Isaiah, is on the spectrum. He's learning so much in kids church to the point of now where he wants to carry his Bible to school, and he's inviting kids from his class to church all the time.
- [01:49]
Britney
We were desperate for community. We were desperate to have a relationship with God. Social was a place where we began to serve and we began to get plugged into the church, meeting new people. And that's where our lives changed.
- [02:04]
Addison
Our marriage has been the strongest that we've ever had.
- [02:07]
Britney
Yeah.
- [02:07]
Addison
And we have purpose now. October 2022, I made my fourth attempt at suicide. It's now March of 2024. God has freed me from suicide, freed from depression, anxiety. I've never been so loved, though I am now. I became the person I dreamed I could be.
- [02:35]
Kadeen
Because of Social and the ministry of what we're doing, seeing how we are actually impacting Dallas, seeing the lives and the stories that we hear. I'm like, oh, my goodness. Like, we truly are doing something here. It's about loving people.
- [02:54]
Pastor Robert
Do you see what we've got? An unshakable kingdom. And do you see how thankful we must be? Thankful but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God. For God is not an indifferent bystander. He is actively cleaning house, torching all that needs to burn, and he won't quit until it's all cleansed. God himself is fire.
- [03:30]
Pastor Taylor
Give Jesus a praise today. Oh, come on. If you're unshakable, you can do better than that. Do you see what we've got? And do you see how thankful we must be? Come on. I wish somebody would give God some praise like that. Was your sister or your cousin or your friend on the screen giving testimony of the faithfulness, of the goodness of the miraculous. Transforming power of our. Oh, God. You see what we got? We see what we got. You can be seated. You can be seated. Wow, wow, wow. What I love about that video is those are just some of the stories of life change that has happened within our church. And I'm willing to bet anything that I could pass this mic around and so many of you would give testimony of how God has transformed your life here at social. And I was telling PT this earlier. The day that we stop having stories of Jesus changing people's lives is the day that we will just close our doors. This is what it's all about. And never underestimate the power of your story, the power of your testimony. And so today's gonna be an incredible, incredible day. I'm glad that you're here. Welcome. Welcome to Vision Sunday.
- [04:53]
Pastor T
Yes, welcome to Vision Sunday. As PR just mentioned, when the stories stop, we should close our doors because there's power in our stories. And this is. Jesus is the reason that we are here and that we choose to continue to plow and pave way for people to encounter Christ. Because I know that I was once extremely lost and broken and confused. And it was Jesus that met me and the local church that provided space for me. And now I stand as a living testimony of the freedom and the power of who God is. And so the stories, it's the gift that keeps on giving. And so when you look at. And you hear these stories, they don't just stop there. We actually. You hear about. Addison. Addison, where you at? I know you're in the room with the front row. There you go. Addison, you see that? He. He. I wish you could even hear the layers to that story. But, Addison, you see the trucks. God loves Dallas. You see the. The chairs are set up today, and. And the envelopes are on every chair. Addison actually has been faithful behind the scenes, setting up the church, tearing it down. And no truly round applause. The big deal. And you hear that Addison was once suicidal. And now we celebrate because he's on staff at Social Dallas. Hey. As our facility care director, he makes sure the trucks are good and all the things are good. And so to hear that, we were able to provide a space for him to be set free from suicidal thoughts. Four attempts. What are we talking about? Look at the goodness and the faithfulness of God.
- [06:32]
Pastor Taylor
Absolutely. It's incredible. The stories keep going. That's what I love about that video. With God, it's always to be continued and. Mj? Mj, are you here? Come on. There she is. I love your story, mj. Cause she said she thought she was too old for Social Dallas, which is a lie.
- [06:49]
Pastor T
It's a lie.
- [06:49]
Pastor Taylor
It's a lie. Sometimes people come and they're like, I don't know. Have you noticed? The enemy will always try to tell you some type of story. You too old. No. You too young. You too this. You too that. No. We truly want a church that is a preview of heaven. And to see, mj, the impact of your life in this community. And not only that, your son and your grandson getting baptized, that is what it's all about. Legacy and generations are being changed. So thank you for being a part of this community. I mean, the stories keep on going. I know that you saw on there Kadeen and Britney Lions are y'all. I think they're gonna be in the service. Come on. They're Miracle baby. Come on. When we filmed that video, she was pregnant, but come on. Can we see? Beautiful baby. Allora, y'all, that's Miracle baby. I wish you would give God praise like you saw a miracle. It's incredible. The story always.
- [07:45]
Pastor T
It is incredible. And it's actually not uncommon here at Social Dallas. I've heard story after story of individuals that were walking through infertility and just believing God for a miracle baby. And I've heard story after story of God actually doing just that in this house. Even Omar and Jen, they're expecting.
- [08:05]
Pastor Taylor
Come on.
- [08:06]
Pastor Robert
Hello, love.
- [08:11]
Pastor T
Very special Omar. He pulled me to the side a few weeks ago and just let. Let me know and almost tackled him. I was so happy. That's weird, right? But I was so excited. And they've actually been believing the Lord and been on a journey of having a baby. And so they're, I think, headed into their third trimester. And so we just once again celebrate the goodness of God and our another miracle, Social Baby.
- [08:37]
Pastor Taylor
Absolutely. So many miracles. And so this is Vision Sunday. Do me a favor. Look at your neighbor, Whichever one you like the best. And just tell them, neighbor. Come on, tell them, neighbor is Vision Sunday. Now, look at the neighbor you ignored. Come on, say other neighbor. You're my second option. But you got to know, it's Vision Sunday. What in the world does that mean? Well, first of all, this is something that we started within our community to pause and first of all, reflect on the goodness of God, but also look with anticipation for what God has ahead of us. And so that's why it's so important that we have Vision Sunday. Now, every Sunday at social is incredible, but today, as you've noticed, is gonna feel a little bit different. That's why we have this set up here today, because it's gonna feel more like a family talk today. It's a family talk today. And I just believe that the church is not supposed to feel like a country club that you join. It's actually supposed to feel like a family where you belong. And so you picked a good day to come to social on Vision Sunday, because we are going to reflect on all that God has done, not just this year, but within the history of our church, and we are going to look ahead to what God has for us. Now, I know some of y'all. I know some of y'all. I know some of y'all. You're like, pastor, I didn't come here for all that. Okay? I came to get a word from God. Don't you got a scripture or something? Well, yes, I do. And I'm going to show you why. What we're doing today is not only necessary, but it is biblical. And I want to kind of set the tone and look at the book of Habakkuk. Come on. We're going to go all the way to the Old Testament. Look at the book of Habakkuk. And I want us to look at chapter number two and look at verses one through three. And this is why we're doing Vision Sunday, because there's a biblical precedent for it. Habakkuk, chapter two. Now, before I even read it, let me give you a little context of the book of Habakkuk. This. This is a culture that's hard for us to relate to. Habakkuk's day was completely different. There was political tension and division. There was. There was economic turmoil. There was moral decline and decay. So it's just a different day than we have today. And Habakkuk says, lord, if you're so good, why don't you do something about this? Why don't you change it? And so he Starts having a conversation with the Lord. And look at what he says. He says, I will take my stand at my watch post and station myself on the tower. And look, vision, look out to see what he will say to me and what I will answer concerning my complaint. And the Lord answered me, how many thankful that God answers. He says, write the vision. Make it plain on tablets so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time. It hastens to the end. It will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it. It will surely come, it will not delay. Anybody who's ever been waiting on something that come to pass ought to take that verse right there. Because God gives habakkuk a word and says, hey, first of all, write the vision down and make it plain. And the vision is not for now. The vision is for next. The vision will come to pass. And so we're gonna talk about the vision of social Dallas. But I hope you get this verse in your spirit and you take this day into your heart to know that you need a vision. You need a vision for your life. You need a vision for your family. You need a vision for your future. You need a vision that guides and directs your life. A vision is critical and necessary. There's a scripture in proverbs that says where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint. And one version says, they perish. In other words, there's something about a vision that actually will restrict what I do. There's something about a vision that will restrict where I go, what I say, because I'm being led by a vision. I think we shared with you that we stepped out and we are homeschooling this year. You're looking at two homeschool teachers on this stage. And it just so happens, leading up to vision Sunday, our son is studying the life of Helen Keller. And Helen Keller said something about vision. She said, the only thing worse than being blind is having sight with no vision. To not know where you're going to not have a vision. The enemy would love for you to just have acceleration in your life, but not be going anywhere. But you need a vision. A vision is necessary. And we're going to talk about the vision of social Dallas. Before we even get into that, I want you to elbow the person next to you one more time and say, you need a vision. Now here's a more important question. Where are you getting your vision? Are you getting it from TikTok? No wonder you're about to have a nervous breakdown. Are you getting the vision for your Life from Instagram, from what was modeled in your home, from what you see on tv. Where are you getting your vision? I want to argue you should get your vision from where Habakkuk got his vision. From God. Get your vision from the Lord. And since Social Dallas inception, this has always been God's vision. Let me tell you something. This was not our idea or our vision. This was God's. And here's what I've learned about vision, especially how God gives it. You ready? I got inspired because we have this beautiful setup. How many know God does not give vision like Restoration Hardware. He gives vision like ikea. I wish God gave vision like Restoration Hardware. Have you ever been to Restoration Hardware? If you haven't, ask one of your bougie friends. I wish. I wish God gave vision like Restoration Hardware because this place is incredible. I mean, you walk in there, they have this incredible setup, incredible living areas and spaces. You will be inspired when you see the space. And all you gotta do at Restoration Hardware, when you get a vision of the space, if you want that in your life, you go, I want it. You gotta pay like, a million dollars. You say, I want that. You can even go upstairs to the restaurant and have charcuterie. And they will deliver it to your house, the same setup you saw. They will deliver it, white glove delivery to your house set up. That is not how God gives vision. I know that's how you want it. Like, oh, my God, look at their marriage. I want that. Oh, my goodness, look at that incredible life. God just. Just white glove delivery. God doesn't do it like that. He does at ikea. Have you been to ikea? Beautiful setup. They don't do the delivery service. You got to go to the aisle, find where it is, grab all those boxes, put it in your car, and then open the directions. They don't even got words. It's just pictures of people setting up stuff. And you're trying to figure out, where does this go and does this go with this? This don't even look like it's a part of the box. And here you are struggling because God will not allow you not to partner with him for the vision that he's going to accomplish in your life. There's something in the building. There's something in the. I don't get page three. And they should have put an extra screw in this. Lord, please help me. There's something in that process that God cultivates a dependency on him. And so that's been the story of our church. And so don't Ever get it twisted? See, people come to Social and they see this. Show that picture. Whoo.
- [16:29]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
Wow.
- [16:31]
Pastor Taylor
That's crazy, y'all. That is Texas Trust. Over 3,000 of y'all that showed up at Texas Trust, our 12th venue in three years, and people look at that. I posted that picture too. You know how preachers do. We'll post the right angle. All my pastor friends was like, how many people was that? 8,000. I was like, look like it, don't it? But that's not how it started. That's not how it started. That's 2024. Can we go back to 2019? You can't see the crowd, but not much in there. That's. That's where it started. And it was taking a step of faith and saying, God, I trust the vision that you've placed in our hearts. And so I think a lot of people don't even know the story or they stepped in towards the end. But, babe, could you take us back to those moments? Even just Social, night before our church ever launched in 2021, what it was like at the beginning? What do you remember from this?
- [17:37]
Pastor T
Well, that's loaded. I'm like, do we have an hour to. Or no, no. But. No. It was actually, I would say, the most beautiful journey I love with God, right? When you feel like you've mastered faith or hope, all of a sudden, he now stretches you. Takes you into deeper waters, and it stretches your faith and takes you to new levels. And I would say we were very comfortable on the road, right? You were evangelizing, traveling the world, seeing the world, and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, God says, I want you to start a church in Dallas. But we kept wrestling with that, like, surely not, Not. We're good on the road. Lord, we love evangelizing, sharing the gospel across the world, across the oceans, highways, and byways. We'll just stick there. And he continued to speak and make it evident over time that we were called to plant a church in Social in the heart of the city. So as far as what that looked like, I think, to summarize it, it was us being faithful. Even though it was hard, it was scary. We didn't know where the money was going to come from. Let's start there. We actually funded Social Dallas as a family, which is amazing. No one knows that. And I don't say that in a bragging way. I say that. And truly, it was uncomfortable. And often God calls us to do things when he calls us. It's not always comfortable. And I think we're looking for something comfortable. And that's not always the case when it to God's call. And so we were funding Social Dallas. I think we stepped out with like 2,000 plus dollars. And the Granada Theater cost us 8,000. And so we were like, what is happening? We didn't have insurance in these streets. Okay, I'm going to get real with it because you think that we just got here overnight. But I believe that as leaders, what makes good leaders and healthy leaders is actually humble leaders. And God allowed us to go first, go first with our time, go first with our heart, go first with our giving, go first in doing the hard thing. So me and my kids were the in n out truck. I would load up my gmc. My kids, I'm like, get that camera. I charged the cameras for production. They used to call me and be like, hey, P.T. it is 10 minutes before service. We need the batteries for the cameras. I'm like, on my way. And so it was interesting and it wasn't always super easy or I would say it definitely had its challenges. But I would also say it's been the most beautiful adventure. And I love who we have become because of those hard days. I don't think we would be who we are or that God could trust us with where we are if we had not done the hard thing early on.
- [20:18]
Pastor Taylor
Come on. And I say that because this is my prayer on this vision Sunday that you would see your story in our story. Because a lot of people see your beginning, but they have no idea what it took to get it started. Let's be honest. No sonogram picture looks cute when it starts. You're like, where's the baby at? You can't tell. But that's how God bursts things. And that's how our church began. And it's been three years. And I just want to show you we started with those stories because stories are powerful. There's one writer that says, if you tell me a fact, I'll learn. If you tell me a truth, I'll believe. But if you tell me a story, it'll live in my heart forever. And so I wanted to start with the stories before I show you some stats, because you need to know that behind every one of these stats is somebody's story. But I just want to show you on this vision Sunday, the miracle that you are sitting in and shout out to our incredible stats team and our amazing CFO that was able to put all this together. But I just want to show you we'll take those six claps See how y'all care about the statistics. Wow. But no, I want you to see numerically the miracle that you're sitting in. Let's just start with baptisms. Make some noise. If you've been baptized at Social Dallas since Social Dallas launched in 2021, y'all, we are glad to celebrate that 1,307 people have been baptized, y'all. This year alone, 608 people at Strauss Square with people in the high rises going, what in the world is happening down there? Got baptized. And it's such an amazing testimony of people going public with their faith and saying, I'm going from death to life. Y'all want some more? Come on. Check this out. Since Social Dallas has started, 9,357 people have said yes to Jesus. I'm gonna a chance to shout, like, you know what that means? 9,357 people have said yes to Jesus. And I'm telling you, we're going to spend the rest of our life standing at the gateway of hell and redirecting Traffic to heaven. 9,357 people. Just this year alone, 2,647 people have said yes to Jesus. And y'all, that's just counted in the room. That's not even counting people online. But check this out. How many, you know, Social is on Pando? Do y'all have that Pando? Let me explain what Pando is. To me, this is one of the greatest things our church does. Every single one of our services are able to go on the Pando app, and inmates are able to watch our services every single week. I believe Social's in the top 10 of all churches on Pando app. And y'all, 2,217 people who have watched that are incarcerated have given their life to Jesus.
- [23:32]
Pastor T
I love it. Because people will literally get out of prison. And they've been watching Social on the Pando app, and they literally show up on Sunday, like, ready to go. We're their first stop once they get out of prison.
- [23:43]
Pastor Taylor
Absolutely.
- [23:44]
Pastor T
It's just beautiful.
- [23:45]
Pastor Taylor
And we get letters every week. Can I tell you, I don't look at the little basement theologians that try to break down your sermon because they didn't even watch the whole thing, but they just saw one clip. I don't look at those comments, but I'm telling you, I read the letters that we get from so many different people who are in prison just saying, thank you for being a church that's bringing us the gospel. And I want to thank you for your Generosity that makes that possible. So, so much to celebrate. What else? What else? Yeah. Global views, y'all. You thought you were the only one in the room. 10,850 people this year alone, on average are watching church every Sunday. That's why you ought to smile. Some of y'all don't know the camp. We do camera shots, so you better fake it and look spiritual. Some of y'all, like, don't look like you love Jesus in your face, but 10,000 people. 10,000 people are watching. It's just unbelievable to see. Look. 275 when we started. Despise not the day of small.
- [24:47]
Pastor T
No, no. Take it back to 2020.
- [24:49]
Pastor Taylor
Take it back to 2020.
- [24:50]
Pastor T
There were two people watching.
- [24:51]
Pastor Taylor
About two people.
- [24:52]
Pastor T
I was one, I was the other. And I was the other because I had a cell phone and I also had an iPad. For real. That was one Sunday. It was pretty discouraging, but we were like, no, the Lord's called us to do it. So we pressed through. I'm proud of you for pressing through.
- [25:04]
Pastor Taylor
I'm proud of you for pressing through. We still here.
- [25:06]
Pastor T
Yeah. We did it.
- [25:09]
Pastor Taylor
Come on, let's go. What? First time guest. You can see there. Come on. If it's your first time, would you stand up one more time? We so glad that you.
- [25:17]
Pastor T
We want to celebrate you. We just keep celebrating, you know. Look at y'all.
- [25:25]
Pastor Taylor
I love it. I love it. I know you got somebody that smiled at you when you walked in. If they didn't, they don't go here. What else? What else? Social kids. Shout out social kids. Happening right now. Every single Sunday. 136. And it ain't babysitters club. We are imparting life to the next generation.
- [25:46]
Pastor T
And we cap at fourth grade because we need more space.
- [25:49]
Pastor Taylor
We need more space.
- [25:50]
Pastor T
It's 130 because we have to cap. If we didn't cap, we'd have just. Very true them all over the campus, you know?
- [25:57]
Pastor Taylor
Gotcha so good. What else? Sunday attendance, y'all. 3,098 people call social Dallas home. On average. It's pretty incredible. Pretty incredible. What else? What else? Keep going. Come on, stat, man. You know, I'm running out of time. Look at this. I want you to see the power of generosity. One of our core values is that we operate in generosity. We are constantly looking for opportunities to go first in giving. We know God has been so good to us, so it's our joy to give. I want you to see all the different organizations that we have been able As a church to be a blessing to because of your generosity. A lot of those are even churches who need buildings and spaces. And we hadn't even had one. But we said, you know what? We're sowing where we're going. So we're sowing into you. From churches in Nigeria to here to different ministries. It's been pretty incredible to see all that God has done. Let's keep going. Watch this is it changing. Watch this stat, man. Come on. I want you to see how our generosity has grown. Back in Granada Theater, I would say by faith. You ever said something about faith, and you're like, I'm saying it, but is it gonna happen? I said this church will give away millions of dollars. And I am so happy to say that since we started, Social, Dallas has given away $2,084,824, y'all. That is a miracle. It's a miracle. And you can see it started in 2021. We didn't wait till the budget got bigger to start giving. We started when the church started operating in generosity. You can go to the next slide. I just wanted you to see just the growth. So our general tithes and offerings have increased 494% since we started. Thank you for being a generous church. Our number of givers has increased since we started. 182%. Thank you for being a generous church. Our Sunday attendance, y'all, has increased 338%. Now hold up, some of y'all clapping like you understand what that is. 338%. Any business people in the room, any business people, okay, you smart business people would know that in the business world, what they would deem chaotic growth would be 15 to 20% per year. 15 to 20. Our church has increased 338. That's beyond chaotic growth. So if you've ever been on, when they gonna get that? And how come they didn't do that? Why didn't they tell us? Building the plane while we fly in it, y'all.
- [28:48]
Pastor T
Grace.
- [28:48]
Pastor Taylor
Sometimes people say they want a miracle. They don't know Sometimes the chaos that comes with a miracle. It's like when Jesus says, throw your nets on the other side. Yay. We caught the fish. But the disciples nets started breaking and their boats started sinking. And we're not sure all of them could swim. Y'all miracles have a burden. I talked about that last week. So I want you to see that. It increased 338%, y'all. This is a. A miracle. But with every miracle comes something else. Venue and production rentals have increased 2,979%. I appreciate those three woos because y'all, that. That's the woo that keeps me up at night. Because I don't know how many times we prayed and said, God, you've done this miracle, but we need a space. We need a home. Our church has always been a house of prayer, a house of presence and a house for people. But our prayer has been, God, you're doing that, but we need a home. And so we've prayed like it depends on God, because it does. And we've worked and sought out like it depended on us, because you need both. So y'all want to see something? You know, hold up, hold up, hold up. How many know? How many know? Like, how many know, like, a church. A church that. That. That has something that's more than a slogan? God loves Dallas. It feels like it's almost like it should be in the heart of the city, you know, it's what we thought. It's what we thought. We thought.
- [30:41]
Pastor T
Put that picture what we thought.
- [30:42]
Pastor Taylor
It's what we thought. That is the ymca.
- [30:45]
Pastor T
We've been on a journey, y'all. We've been on a journey.
- [30:47]
Pastor Taylor
That's the ymca. That's not our building. But behind the scenes, we thought it was. Yeah, I will never forget when that building was available and they were talking that it was available for sale, and we got excited, and then all of a sudden it was off the market. And we said, oh, that wasn't it. Then it went back on the market, y'all. We were in a board meeting with the people from the ymca, and we're like, this is it. We had architects getting plans. And then once they got all the plans, they said, yeah, you could probably fit about 1300 people in there. I said, well, Lord, that's the first service. And then they said, well, yeah, parking. You probably have maybe 400 parking spots. I said, do you know what the line is right now? I've seen some of the words that come out of yalls mouth when y'all. And I said, we gotta do more than that on parking. So that was one of those things where it's like, is that it? And all of a sudden, it. It fell through, though. The vision tarries. Wait for it. Then. Then there was another building right down the street from our headquarters called the Andrews Building. This is where they used to distribute all the beer in Dallas. And, y'all, I was about to preach that thing. Isn't it incredible that a place that used to Distribute beer is now distributed the gospel of Jesus Christ. Oh, I was ready for it, y'all. We got drone footage. Cause I almost showed this drone footage birthday this year, but I was like, well, let me wait till the deal is even close. And thank God I didn't show y'all that footage, because y'all would have been looking at me like, what happened to that one building? I'm like, well, what had happened was that was in a flood zone.
- [32:32]
Pastor T
But also, you gotta. You gotta show them we got our hopes up.
- [32:35]
Pastor Taylor
We got our hopes up.
- [32:36]
Pastor T
Okay, okay. Because we were even walking through that building. And look what was what.
- [32:40]
Pastor Taylor
Yeah, tell the story.
- [32:41]
Pastor T
Yeah, look what was what? That was. They had old. Old school mailboxes and names, and all of them had been torn off. Except that one.
- [32:47]
Pastor Taylor
Except that one.
- [32:48]
Pastor T
I'm like, did they plant this? Is this the devil? What's happening right now?
- [32:51]
Pastor Taylor
You ever had those moments where it's like, God, give me a sign. And you look all the mailboxes and we saw Robert Taylor. We're like, oh, this is it.
- [32:58]
Pastor T
We're like.
- [33:00]
Pastor Taylor
But that fell through.
- [33:01]
Pastor T
Fell through. Fell. Fell through.
- [33:04]
Pastor Taylor
Fell through. That wasn't it. And we kept praying. We kept seeking, though the vision Terries wait for. And now we stand at a moment with an opportunity to look what could be? Should we show them a picture?
- [33:25]
Pastor T
A picture, not.
- [33:27]
Pastor Taylor
A picture's not good.
- [33:27]
Pastor T
I don't think a picture.
- [33:28]
Pastor Taylor
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but I'm wondering what a video is worth. Maybe like a million. Social Dallas Fam in the room. Social Global Watching online. I want you to lean in and look at what could be.
- [33:59]
Social Dallas Team
Let's look back, shall we? Social Dallas. What started as a monthly gathering quickly turned. Turned into something more. A mobile church on a mission to let everyone know that God loves Dallas. Year after year, 12 different venues. Always looking for a place to call home. Until now.
- [34:37]
Pastor Taylor
Can you see it?
- [34:45]
Social Dallas Team
Look what could be?
- [34:57]
Pastor Taylor
Somebody give Jesus the best praise that you got.
- [36:12]
Pastor Robert
Thank you. Thank you. Anything is possible. Anything is possible Anything is possible. Who am I to deny what the law can do? Anything, Anything is possible Anything is possible. Who am I to deny what the Lord can do? You're your kingdom. Unshakable Fire God, the living God, your king. Unshakable Fire untameable. Do you see what we've got? A living God, your kingdom. Unshakable. Fire untable. Do you see what we got? Your kingdom what shall fire? Do you see what we done living by? Your kingdom? Untable, untable. Do you see what we got coming? Through ages, he faithful Jesus, we're grateful to you sweet we through trial, through victory. I know who is with me. Do you see what we.
- [39:07]
Pastor Taylor
Thank you, Lord, to God be the glory for. For the miracle that we stand on the edge of. Look what could be. Look what could be. Could you do me one favor? I want you to just take your seat if you can. I promise. We're about to dismiss, but I. I stand in awe. The faithfulness of God to lead us to this moment. And you need to know the heart of your pastors as we really embark on a journey. It is our heart that God's led us to this moment. I know he's going to take care of every detail, but I also want to just operate in clarity and integrity. Now, here's what's incredible. In 2022, when we were looking for offices, we walked this property. Just so you know, this is what was the Look Theater on Technology Boulevard in Northwest Dallas. To the left is what used to be the Gas Monkey Event Center. And so when we were looking for offices, I got a call and they said, hey, there's this event center that might work for you guys. Come look at it. So PT And I got in the car like Batman and drove and we walked. That building that's to the left, that was just the event center. And it's about 30,000 square feet. Feet. And as we walked in, I said, this is good, but I don't think this is big enough. Like, I love this parking. And I looked to the left and I said, if that movie theater would just shut down. Got to speak some things. I say that movie theater was shut down. That would work. Well, about a month and a half ago, we got word that movie theater wouldn't be in operation anymore. And it was not even for sale. It was for lease. So we started praying and putting in offers going back and forth. We've agreed on an offer that was accepted. Come on, somebody. Come on, somebody. Though the vision tarries. Wait for it. It wasn't for Sal. It was Felice.
- [41:46]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
Look at what God did.
- [41:50]
Pastor Taylor
Our offer was accepted and we went back and forth. And by the grace of God, we will be under contract next week. Let me tell you, this space in this place and the potential of what God can do in this area. I won't bore you with all the details that I've been nerding out on, but that used to be the AMC Grand. It's on record as one of the largest. It was the largest cineplex in the history of the United States. 1995 was its opening day. And their tag was it's gonna be big. And they didn't even know then they were putting them screens that it would be our church home one day. And we have an opportunity. Have an opportunity. And because it costs nothing to dream. Babe, come over here with me. I just want to show you some. Some of the things. Did you get different? Did you show all the pictures of it? Yeah.
- [42:56]
Pastor T
This will be the lobby.
- [42:57]
Pastor Taylor
This is what we're dreaming for, the lobby space.
- [42:59]
Pastor T
We've never had a lobby.
- [43:00]
Pastor Taylor
Y'all.
- [43:01]
Pastor T
Are y'all excited about a lobby? Not just any lobby, a heavenly lobby.
- [43:08]
Pastor Taylor
We're dreaming about the future and being able to not stop at fourth grade. But y'all go all the way up.
- [43:14]
Pastor T
Social kids, to social youth for our.
- [43:17]
Pastor Taylor
Babies, to young adults to have spaces and classes. And we're dreaming big. We're dreaming big, and we've already engaged. Here's what you need to know about your pastors. We gonna do our due diligence, and we gonna keep asking questions. We're gonna make sure that this is done right. We already have architecture architects that are drawing up plans, because this. It's a movie theater, y'all. So we would have to make it a sanctuary. And so Beck architecture is already drawing up plans, and this is what they just kind of preliminarily put out. That would be the space and how it works. 2,000 seats, plenty of parking. All y'all that try to hurry up and get out, you can chill. It's the parking lot for me. It's the parking lot for me. But that's what it. That's what it could be. But here's the thing. We. We have to put our feet in the Jordan river. And when I tell you, we got to put our feet all the way in and watch the miracle take place. So I want you to know, as we're continuing to get details and we'll get more information about what it's going to be to make this space a sanctuary. But here's where we are right now. The miracle is loading just to be. And I don't want to. I don't want to belittle that in any way. The fact that we are here, it is only the hand of God. It's only the hand of God.
- [44:45]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
I told you.
- [44:45]
Pastor Taylor
I've been nerding out behind the scenes. More details coming. But the people that own this property, they acquired it not just the month. The weekend that our church launched is the same weekend they Acquired this property. And if you would have showed us that building when we first started, I would have been like, hey, you need to stop smoking. There's no way big enough. But, but. But God knows what he's doing. He's led us to this point. So I just want to show you where we are and where our faith needs to be. Actually, you share this about this area real quick. Yeah.
- [45:21]
Pastor T
Yes, the area. The area we. We walked two years ago. And honestly, I wasn't excited about it because I was like, nah, I don't think that we should be here. But even revisiting it back about two months ago, the Holy Spirit just began to increase my joy and my faith and my grit for light in the darkness. And I think if any church can go and truly be light in the darkness, it's social doubt. Dallas, if I can say this in the most humble way, we're just different. We're different. We move differently. We set up, we tear down differently. And I think that the Lord has, as he prepared us as leaders to lead this space, this house. I think in the same way he's been preparing the people, all of you, for us to set the table for those that are going to come whenever the sound. So from day one, we've been declaring that the sound that comes from this house is a sound of freedom and salvation and restoration for the broken, for the lost, for the addicts, for. Go down the list. And so I actually had a friend and I reached out and said, hey, tell me more about the zip code. She said, congratulations, my friend, you're in the number one zip code for drugs, for prostitution, for human trafficking. God is sending you there to save a city. And so we've been declaring, God loves Dallas. God loves Dallas. And now we're moving and God has taken us to a place to declare, to transform an area for his name. There's someone there that is waiting on us to come. Hope is on the way. Hope is on the way. Not the forgotten. You're not forgotten. You're not forsaken. But we are coming as a house, rallying as not just a house, as the army of the Lord to take back territory that belongs to the kingdom of heaven, not the kingdom of hell. The kingdom of hell, I declare right now, have no power, has no authority, because social Dallas is on the way.
- [47:28]
Pastor Robert
In Jesus name.
- [47:37]
Pastor Taylor
Hope is on the way. Hope is on the way. Again, if you could just. Just be seated, I promise. We're about to get out of here, but we're at a. We're at A critical juncture where it's going to take all of us, all of us doing our part. All of us doing our part. So I want you to see. I want you to. To see what could be. What could be. As I said, we're still getting details of what it's going to be to make this space a sanctuary. But to acquire what was the look theater. We are looking at $15.5 million for this property, which is really incredible for the space. That's the realtors clapping right there. One for 89. They know it's going to be 15.5 million for us to acquire this property. This next number I want you to see is what we need to close on this property. $3.1 million. Nothing is impossible for our God. 3.1 million is what we need to close. Now, here's the number I'm. I'm really excited about, because like I said, I'm even just coming up here and sharing the vision of this. I'm aware of the climate of our culture and leadership. And that's why I say we're a church that operates with clarity, with transparency, with integrity. And here's what I'm so proud of. Because of your generosity and because of this church's stewardship, we already have 1.3 billion ready to go towards this building.
- [49:11]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
That's a big deal, y'all.
- [49:13]
Pastor Taylor
Thank you for being a church that operates in generosity and trusting us have 1.3 million already ready to go. And then this is our goal for the next 60 days, that we would raise $1.8 million so that we could secure this space for the glory of God. Hear me. This is bigger than a building. This is bigger than a building. This is just a tool that God is going to use to reach more people and to give us our own space in our own place. And I'm just believing that God is going to do incredible things. Here's what I want you to do. I'm going to ask you to do what our family is doing. I'm going to ask you to do two things. I'm going to ask you to pray, and I'm going to ask you to prepare what the Lord would have you do. There's a pamphlet that if you scan the QR code in front of your seat, it just kind of shows. It shows the look theater. It shows just kind of some of the things that we were able to do this year. Y'all, if you want to pull up, our staff has been for the last eight weeks praying in that parking lot. To the point that the people in the hotel next door are like, what are y'all, a cult? We're like, nah, we just got faith. We've been in the parking lot praying. If you want a physical copy of this, our ushers will give you one, too. Come on. We got digital and physical. Come on. That's how we roll. We reach Jake Paul and Mike Tyson. No matter what your generation is, we got you. We got you. If you want a physical copy.
- [50:46]
Pastor Robert
I'm.
- [50:46]
Pastor Taylor
Gonna ask you to pray and I'm gonna ask you to prepare. If you've been around Social Dallas, you know that we end the year with a year end gift. The first year of the church, we gave it all away. But this year we're coming to end the year saying, everybody do something towards Social Dallas securing our first home. And that's what we're doing. It's going to take a whole lot of sacrifice and a whole lot of people saying, hey, Lord, we're going to obey what you tell us to do. If there's some of you, which I've talked to some people, they're like, hey, Pastor, December 8th is going to be the day that we're actually going to receive this year and give towards this. It's going to be the official day. But there's some people like, pastor, I've been waiting for this. I'm not waiting until no. December 8th. Appreciate you. You're able to do that. You can scan the QR code and you'll see future home of social Dallas. But maybe just to break it down in a practical way, I want to show you what this 1.8. Because sometimes that looks so big. I want to show you what that could look like and what we got faith for. It would look like four gifts of 50,000, eight gifts of 25,000, 20 gifts of 10, 40 gifts of five. But that's just a practical way that maybe you could look and say, God, what are you asking me? What are you asking me to do? And that's all I'll ever ask you to do, is what we're going to do. I know we are praying and preparing to do something significant and the largest gift that we've ever done because we believe in what God is setting up our church, y'all. And we've been doing this mobile for 12 different venues. Can you imagine what God is going to do when we have our own space in our own home? I just know that the best is yet to come. Were you about to say something?
- [52:32]
Pastor T
Yeah, I was just thinking. You Know, if you're a guest, we get it. Thank you for being here. We're so honored that you're here. And there's absolutely no pressure. If you feel in your heart you're moved to give, great. But this like. Like PR mentioned earlier, this is really us gathering around the table right now. So as a visitor, you're on the couch, you're just watching us talk. And. But we often gather our kids around the table and we first start with what we're grateful for. And it's always opportunity for conversation. And so really we just wanted to keep you up to date with what God has done and what he's doing in the house. But also we're going to build this thing together. And so if you consider social home, y'all, the best is yet to come. And we need a home. It's like we've been living, going from hotel to hotel in a suitcase. And you know that there's no place like home. Right. And so we want discipleship classes. We want to be able to have celebrate recovery for the addicts and the people that just got out of prison and need help. But we need a home to do that. We need a space for classes. We need a space to continue to build the next generation. Our social kids team, they set up and tear down faithfully. I mean, we got toys broken and we need new toys and we need all the things. But it's like, that's the reality of Mobile Church. But I am confident, confident that the Lord is going to provide 1.8 is no nothing for him. It really isn't. Like, that's the part that I'm not even stressed about. I'm not even stressed about it. I'm like, I know I'm still waiting on that million dollar check. I told you, I said that. What? Two years ago, I said, someone's going to write a million dollar check. I don't know, maybe it's me. I don't know, do I have a million dollars? I ain't even got that. But maybe the Lord's gonna send it my way. Who knows?
- [54:02]
Pastor Taylor
If you got it somewhere, we need a conversation.
- [54:04]
Pastor T
Yes, exactly. I'm like, that's my faith. That's where my faith is at, you know? But I just say I know that what is ahead is great and God is going to continue to blow our minds. And so just thank you for being in the room today.
- [54:17]
Pastor Taylor
Absolutely. And like I said, no pressure in this moment. I really do want you to pray and ask the Holy Spirit what you should do and December 8th is going to be the day that we're all going to bring our gifts to the Lord and believe by faith. This is our space and here's how we're going to include. If you want to give today, you're more than welcome. We have given kiosk station throughout. You can scan the QR code, but I want somebody who is a hero to me and to me personifies walking by faith. To be honest, we're all sitting in his obedience. That is my father, Pastor Robert Madu Sr. And I want him to come because you stepping out in faith and coming from Nigeria to the United States of America. And even though I'm taller than you, I still look up to you because I am who I am because of your leadership and because of the man that you are. So I just want you to pray over us today. Can we all stand all over this place today and if you want to share something, you can, but would you just close us out in prayer?
- [55:27]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
You know, I thank God for the vision that has been shared with us this morning. You know, for every vision there's a journey to the vision. I'm reminded of the children of Israel in the wilderness going to the promised land on their way to the promised land. Moses prayed a promise prayer. And the prayer he prayed was, lord, if you don't go with us, we're not going to go. We will not move take a step unless you go with us. That is my heartbeat this morning. That is the heartbeat of this church. We do not want to go any further unless he goes with us. So for join me, let's gluten pepper prayer. Father, we give you glory, we give you praise. Lord, we refuse to go any further unless you go with us, oh God. So Father, we ask you to visit us, oh God, with your presence, guide every step, oh God, in this journey. So that when it said and done, Lord, your name will be glorified, your name will be honored. Oh God, thank you for what you are doing here at social. Oh God, thank you for what you have done the past three years. Oh God, thank you for the blessings, oh God, thank you for the challenges, oh God. But Father, we know, God, that is in your strength, O God, this is you are doing, oh God, in your strength, we will accomplish that which you have desired, that which you purpose before the foundation of the world. For this church, for this body of believers called social Dallas. So Father, I release this morning, O God, release unity in your body. Release unity and social Dallas so that our mind, our spirit will be united. Oh God, as we go on, Father, Release the spirit of generosity, oh God, over your church. Release the spirit of obedience, O God, so that we hear your voice, so that you will obey your will. Release the desire to fulfill your purpose, the desire to do your will, to accomplish your purpose. Thank you for what you are going to do with this body.
- [57:53]
Pastor Taylor
Thank you.
- [57:54]
Pastor Robert Madu Sr.
That so the souls that will be run to this place because of social Dallas, because of the ministry of this church, oh God, the prodigal will come home. The blind will see, oh God. Souls will be drawn to the kingdom, oh God. Families will be reunited, glorifying your name. This will be a place of unity, a place where the name of Jesus will be lifted up and souls will be drawn to the kingdom. A place where souls will be drawn. The prodigals will come home. Fathers reunited with their children, fathers families bound together for the glory, for the honor, because of the ministry. Let social Dallas, O God, continue to be a place that will be a blessing, O God, to this community, to this city of Dallas, oh God, that people will see the light of the living God shining through the ministry of this church. Father, we pray for the leadership of this church, oh God. The leadership of our church, O God. The pastors, oh God. All the people in the decision making capacity, Father. Release wisdom, release knowledge, release insight, release power. So that, Father, they will be sensitive to your calling, they will be sensitive to your promptings. So that Jesus Christ, oh God, you will be honored. You'll be glorified. Using us, oh God. Use us, oh God. Use this church as an instrument of praise. An instrument to be used to fulfill your purpose, to honor your name, oh God, Father, thank you. Because you are faithful, because you are gracious, because you are merciful, because you are loving, you will receive all the glory. You will receive all the praise. You will receive all the glory. Honor. For you are a faithful father. You are a merciful Father. Your faithfulness, oh God, endures forever. Their faithful love endures forever. Thank you, Father. Because you will build your church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. So thank you for allowing us to participate, allowing us to be partners with you, oh God, to fulfill this purpose. For that we say, may your name forever be glorified in Jesus, mighty name. We pray and everybody says amen. Thank you.
- [60:16]
Pastor Taylor
Amen. Amen. Amen.