The living archive is loading.
Continue exploring
Connected by scripture or shared themes.
Continue exploring
Connected by scripture or shared themes.
I can't do this by myself. What I'm carrying is too valuable. This dream is too big.
Let me tell you about a time when my pride almost cost me. I was juggling carpools for four kids at different schools—two in elementary, one in middle school, one in high school. Every weekday, I'm spending what feels like eternity in the carline. One day, rushing from a meeting across town, my gas light came on. Someone in the car with me said, "You're not going to get gas?" I said, "No, I know my car. I got a couple more miles in this thing."
But I didn't know my car like I thought I did. While driving on 280 during rush hour, my car died. I had passed at least 51 gas stations, but my pride kept me from stopping. You don't know pain until you run out of gas, pass multiple gas stations, and let your pride keep you stuck.
Sitting there in my broken-down car, everyone was driving by, being nosy, looking at me like I was crazy. I was trying to cover my face and act like everything was fine. But after a while, I realized sitting there wasn't going to solve anything. So I got out and started pushing my car to the nearest gas station.
Here's what I realized: as long as I sat there, everyone passed me by. But once I started pushing, people started stopping and got out of their working cars to help me push what wasn't working for me.
Might I suggest to some of you that your help is coming, but the problem is help can't find you because you're too prideful to get out of the car and start pushing. Some of you aren't getting any divine partner that you need because you're comfortable sitting and you don't want to allow anyone to see you struggle.
But do I have anybody in the room that says, "I don't care what you say about me. I'm going to struggle. And once people see my struggle, they'll say, 'What do I have to do to help you get to your next destination?'" Is there anybody in the room who's not ashamed of your struggling seasons? Because you don't really know who's with you until you have to push.
Everybody shows up when it's time to celebrate, but who shows up when it's time to fight?
This is so important because in today's text, what we see is the enemy's true target. If he's after anything in our life, he's not after your money. He's not after your family. He's not even after your faith or your favor. He's after your unity.
One of the greatest weapons the enemy uses to destroy the potential of believers today is a disease called division. Families are divided. Friends who were besties don't even talk anymore. Business partners who started building something together and loved what it was are now suing each other in court. Why? Because what was once on the same page went separate ways because division snuck in the camp.
Do I have anybody in the room today who knows the pain of losing someone you love but no longer being on the same page? And sometimes you don't lose people you're not on the same page with. There's nothing worse than being in the same place but not on the same page.
What do you do when you're married and you still feel lonely? What do you do when you're in a room full of people at church but you still don't feel any support? When you're surrounded but not supported?
Sometimes we can't blame other people for not helping us. We have to be careful: if we're too silent about what we need, how can people know how to help you?
Write this down in your notes: If the enemy cannot defeat us, he will attempt to divide us. This is why the pain of your past was never about your past. It was about damaging your ability to trust people in the future. Pain was never about your past. Pain was always about affecting your trust in people in the future.
You cannot receive all that God has for you with only you. We live in a culture that pushes hyperindividualism: "I'll get it by myself. I'll grind by myself. I built this by myself. I'll do it by myself." If someone asks if you need help, your first natural response might be, "I got it."
But could it be that your next breakthrough is going to be in your ability to say, "We is greater than me"?
Even in the beginning, when God created His greatest creation, He didn't say, "I will make man." He said, "Let us make man in our image." In other words, His greatest creation was a result of collaboration. What will you create when you begin to collaborate with the right people?
Have you ever loved somebody so much but just could not get on the same page? Psalms 133 says:
How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity. It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down to the beard, down Aaron's beard, down the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were fallen from Mount Zion. For the Lord bestows or commands his blessing there.
Do you know what oil means? Oil represents the anointing. It represents supernatural ability. Where does He command the blessing? Where there's unity. In other words, wherever there's unity, you don't have to request a blessing. God starts commanding a blessing.
I'm speaking over your life that God is raising up people who will show up for you and you don't have to struggle to get them on the same page. God is about to send you people. You've been there for everybody else. Now He's about to send some people that are going to be there for you—people who are going to pray for you, pour back into you, and want nothing else in return.
If you don't praise God for nothing else, praise God that He's raising up the right people that can push you into your promise.
You act like you praise God over your enemies and people that walked out of your life. I dare you to praise God even harder for Him sending the right people walking into your life. Because whenever God wants to change your life, he'll send a person. The problem is: whenever the devil wants to ruin your life, he'll also send a person.
So we should start asking people not "who are you?" but "who sent you?" Because based on whoever sent you, I understand your assignment in my life. If the enemy sent you, I'm about to wreak chaos, frustration, and drama. But when God sends a person, he's sending provision. Because provision is not just in the form of possessions. Provision also comes in the form of people.
How good and pleasant it is for God's people to live together in unity. It is like oil flowing from Aaron's beard.
This is talking about what we call a corporate anointing. We often hear about personal anointing, but the devil is afraid of corporate anointing—not just when one person is anointed, but when a people is anointed.
There's a scripture in the Bible that talks about people who were such on one accord. At one point when Jesus showed up, everybody got healed and no one had to get a touch from Jesus. They just had to get in the right place. Are y'all hearing me? Because when the corporate anointing flows, God's presence falls.
In the text we see how Moses and the children of Israel have been under attack. They just escaped slavery after 400 years. God parted the Red Sea. They walked across on what I call a sovereign sidewalk. After He parts the Red Sea, Pharaoh and his army try to follow their path and they begin to drown in the Red Sea, thinking they can do what the Israelites did. Because you always drown when you try to walk in the word that God didn't give you.
Do I have anybody in the room today who knows what it's like for people to try to do what you did, but they didn't get the word that you received? Look at your neighbor and say, "Neighbor, I love you. But what God told me to do may not be what He's telling you to do. Don't mimic my motion. Don't imitate my obedience."
So they're drowning in the Red Sea. Then God pulls them through and they start shouting, "God did it!" His mom has a tambourine shouting, "God did it. He gave us victory." But in one moment they're shouting and the next moment they're complaining: "We thirsty. Moses done brought us all this way and ain't got us nothing to drink."
God tells Moses, "What's in your hand?" He raises his staff, puts it in the water, makes bitter water sweet. This is where we get the name Jehovah Rafa—God the healer. See, it's not just His name. It's His promise. He's not saying, "I am the God who heals." He said, "I am the God that promises to heal."
If you're sick or something is broke, you don't have to ask, "Is it God's will?" He said, "I want to—I wish you would let me do this for you."
But here's what they didn't know: while they're winning, the enemy was watching. They came across the Red Sea and the Amalekites were watching. Bitter water sweet and the Amalekites were watching.
We often trip over the enemies who are loud. But I've learned how to be alert for enemies who are watching. They're not saying nothing, but they're watching.
In this season of my life, I'm going to be like the Israelites. You're not just going to watch me win. You're going to have to also watch me worship. Do I have anybody in the room that's telling the enemy, "I know one way I can give God praise and confuse you at the same time"?
When I lift up my hands and open up my mouth, I'm not just praising God. I'm also going to war with you. I wonder, do I have at least 30 praisers in the room that can confuse the enemy and begin to praise God in spite of what you're going through?
Everybody wants to praise God while you're winning. But why don't you worship God while you're in the wilderness? Because you don't know what enemy is watching you and ready to attack you. My praise is a weapon. So when I praise God, I'm not just praising God. I'm also fighting for enemies that I don't even see coming my way.
You would be praising God better than that if you knew your praise was a reflection of your promise. Little promise, little praise. Average promise, average praise. But great promise, great praise. I wonder, do I have some people in the room that can give a 60-second praise break and forget about who's sitting on your row? Say, "I didn't come to see you. I have a promise in my future. Hold my Bible while I praise God. Look at me crazy all you want to. I'm fighting for my future. I'm fighting for my children."
See, praise is not just about something coming out of your mouth. Praise is also a reflection of the posture of your hands. When I lift my hands, it's not just a physical exercise. It's a spiritual implication. Every time I lift my hands to God, I'm telling my flesh, "You sit down. Holy Spirit, you raise up."
Because I have some stuff in my flesh that keeps making me doubt myself. But when I lift my hands, my flesh has to shut up. And the Holy Spirit starts speaking.
I dare you to throw your hands up, throw your head back, and begin to praise God. You know in fighting, you can win a fight, but the fight is not official. The victory is not official until a referee comes and throws their hands up. In fighting, you don't raise your hand until after you win. But with God, I can throw my hands up before I win.
Grandmama said, "Don't wait until the battle is over." You better learn how to shout right now with no money in your pocket. Throw your hands up. With no food on the table? Throw your hands up. Frustration in your family? Throw your hands up. Don't know where your next check is coming from? Throw your hands up. I'm just confusing the enemy because I should be sad, but when I think about the goodness of Jesus and all that he's done for me, why shouldn't we praise God like that?
Because I don't know who's watching me. The enemy is looking for a window of opportunity to attack. Every time I choose to complain, I'm not worshiping God. I'm worshiping my problem. And the enemy is saying, "Got him."
Here's what has me tripping. The Amalekites aren't waiting for them to struggle. They're not waiting for them to lose. Amalekites attack after a big win. Have you ever celebrated a win and in the middle of celebrating, you got bad news? Have you ever got a blessing that made you paranoid—where you say, "I'm not going to get excited about this"?
They are showing up while they're winning. Because most people talk about how exhausting it is to lose. But I want to talk about how much exhaustion it takes to win. Winning is hard work. And the enemy knows when you win, that is an opportunity to attack because you're not at your full strength.
This is why you have to be careful of who you surround yourself with—not just when you're struggling, but also when you're winning.
Look at Deuteronomy 25:17:
Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind.
People who keep slowing you down don't even realize they're opening the door for the enemy to attack. Be careful when you're unequally yoked.
See, this is not just in romantic relationships. He says, "Believers, be careful. Don't be unequally yoked with people who don't share the same values as you." So if you're saved, but they don't believe in what you believe in, that's unequally yoked.
What does that mean? The picture of being unequally yoked is like putting a yoke on two different animals that cannot move at the same pace. You have one animal trying to plow, but it's yoked to a donkey that's trying to play. One is trying to push while the other one is trying to pull. What happens? You start choking the life out of each other. Many people are holding on to unequal yokes, not realizing you're strangling your purpose. You're strangling your potential, holding on to the wrong partner.
Being equally yoked is not just about romantic. Watch this: it's about pace. Some of us are not where we used to be, but we're not where we're supposed to be.
So Moses calls Joshua, Aaron, and Hur. He says, "Hey, we're not going to panic. Here's what we're going to do. Joshua, you grab some men. You go and fight in the valley. Aaron and Hur, we're going up on the mountain. We're going to intercede at the top while they're fighting in the valley."
This is where most people lose their vision. This is where most dreams die. Because people who were used to being close to you, when you assign them to work at a distance, they get in their feelings. They don't understand that in the kingdom, you don't operate by what you want to do. You operate by what you were assigned to do.
Some of us right now are going to have to assign people to the right places in our life because everyone we love don't need access.
So he says, "I need you to go and fight in the valley. I need you to come up with me." And here it is: when we're in the midst of an attack, you cannot panic. You need to start planning because a lack of strategy will always lead to unnecessary injuries.
Who's suffering right now because you overreacted instead of overcoming? There are people doing life in prison right now because they overreacted. There are marriages that fell apart in a split second because of a overreaction.
Moses could have been emotional and ready to clap back, but he says, "Hey, let's talk about this because strategy helps you focus on tomorrow by talking about it today."
My question is this: when you're under attack, are you reacting or responding? What do you do when you're under attack? What comes out of you? Because if we have time to be in our feelings, some people we lost are not coming back. Some things we lost, they're not coming back. And so we're going to have to be cerebral and kind of talk through how we're going to overcome it.
But I am clear about this: I can't do this by myself. See, I want to talk to some people who can be honest and say some of the fights that I'm fighting, I've been fighting by myself long enough. I need God to send me some help because I've been fighting this long enough. But I'm going to have to overcome this with the right people. And do I have anybody in the room that's saying, "God, I need some help"?
When you're under attack, the question isn't just about your circumstances—it's about who you have standing with you. Moses discovered this truth at a critical moment. As he held his hands up in intercession for the Israelites fighting in the valley, he reached a breaking point. His arms grew heavy. The weight became unbearable. But God didn't leave him alone in that moment.
Aaron and Hur stepped in. They didn't wait for Moses to ask. They found a rock, sat him on it, and held his hands up until the sun set—12 to 15 hours of sustained effort. This is the picture of what the church is meant to be.
What Moses was doing on the mountain for Israel, Jesus did on the cross for us. He lifted His hands in intercession. Even with nails piercing them, even with a crown of thorns pressed into His head, He didn't let His hands fall. Jesus didn't get tired. He completed the work of salvation for all of us.
But notice something crucial in the text: nowhere does it say Moses had to ask for help. When the right people come into your life, they won't watch you struggle by yourself. They recognize the assignment is bigger than any one person, and they step in.
The first thing Aaron and Hur did wasn't just raise Moses's hands—they set him on a rock. That rock wasn't random. The rock represents something solid, something you can trust. The rock is a metaphor for Jesus Himself. He is the foundation. He said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
This reveals an important principle: stability precedes prosperity. God doesn't test our opportunities; He tests our stability. He doesn't pour prosperity into inconsistent vessels. Before blessing flows, there must be a solid foundation to hold it.
Here's what many of us miss: not everyone is called to be Moses. Some of us are called to be Aaron. This is the theology of decrease—embracing a lesser role in order to develop a larger soul and accomplish a greater goal.
At Rock City, my assignment isn't to be the main character. My assignment is to be faithful to what God has called me to do while others rise up and fulfill their callings. Every single day when I wake up, I'm saying, "It's bigger than me." The work God wants to do in this city and beyond is larger than any one leader.
You may be struggling because you're trying to be number one when God anointed you to be number two. That's not failure—that's alignment with God's design. When you stop fighting for prominence and start fighting for purpose, everything changes.
When the right people are in your life, they do several things:
First, the right people remove chaos. They bring stability. They are reliable. They are solid—not just in talent or spiritual gifts, but in character and commitment. How many gifted people do you know who aren't solid? They may have incredible abilities, but you can't trust them with your hands because they haven't given you a rock to stand on.
Second, the right people restore strength. Try holding your own hands up. At a certain point, you'll reach a limit. You'll feel weak. But when the right people come alongside you, something shifts. You feel stronger, not because the burden disappeared, but because you're no longer carrying it alone.
So ask yourself: When you're around certain people, do you feel weaker or stronger? There are people in my life I call intentionally because after we talk, I feel stronger. Their exposure leads to my expansion. Their example pushes me toward what God has for my life.
Third, the right people reveal possibilities. They show you what you didn't think was possible. Remember Peter on the boat during the storm? When he saw Jesus walking on water, something shifted. He saw a picture of possibility. He said, "Lord, if that's you, tell me to come." Why? Because he glimpsed something he didn't know was possible—that ordinary people could do extraordinary things through faith.
Who are you that picture of possibility for? What if your faithfulness, your obedience, your breakthrough is what someone else needs to see to believe God for their own?
There's a cost to being close to the anointing. Some of us try to get as close as possible to leadership without realizing the spiritual warfare that comes with that proximity. The pressure of saying "yes" to big dreams, of holding steady when the vision is under attack, of believing when everything looks impossible—this isn't for everyone, and that's okay.
Maybe God is saying, "You're not ready to be that close yet because you can't handle what comes with it." Instead of resenting that, trust it. God knows what you can carry.
But here's the promise: when you're faithful in holding someone else's hands, God sees your faithfulness. He'll send people to hold yours.
You have to be married to the bus, not your seat on it. Some people are so consumed with being close to the leader that they miss the actual work. They're not willing to get low, to get in the trenches, to do the hard work when nobody's watching.
Everybody wants to be in the photo after the victory. But who's willing to be there in the process? Who's willing to hold hands when it's heavy? Who's willing to say, "I'm not getting comfortable in my pew. The moment I do, I'm letting the hands fall. The moment I get easily offended, I'm backing away. The moment I decide this is too hard, I'm quitting"—that's when you're no longer part of the solution.
Family knows how to reconcile differences. When you're fighting to win, sometimes you say things you don't mean. That doesn't mean you break covenant. That means you work through it because the assignment is bigger than the conflict.
Here's what I need to say to the house: what you make happen for other people while you're holding their hands, God sees. He'll start sending people to hold your hands.
This is the power of the church. Everybody holding each other up. And when you fall down, somebody picks you up. But here's the issue many of us face: we're busy allowing everybody to use us except God.
If you come to church and receive the word but you're not serving God's people, that's parasitic. At some point, you have to say, "Because of what God did for me, I want to make what He did for me happen for others."
When God pours something into your life—healing, breakthrough, wisdom, strength—it's not just for you. It's meant to flow through you to bless others. That's the assignment.
So my question for you is simple: Whose hands are you holding?
We're often looking for that perfect friend, that perfect partner, that perfect person to stand with us. But the Bible says, "Whoever first shows themselves friendly will receive a friend." You'll receive what you reflect. Maybe you keep getting what you're getting because that's what you're giving.
You don't need a main character moment. You need to embrace this principle: What I am a part of is bigger than the part I play.
That's not diminishing your value. That's positioning you properly. When you understand that the vision is bigger than you, the mission is bigger than you, the church is bigger than you—then you stop fighting for your seat and start fighting for the victory.
The question isn't whether you're important. The question is: Are you walking out on your assignment? Are you sitting on your assignment? Are you too busy to help us get better? Are you too busy to raise up the next generation?
Because somewhere, someone is about to throw in the towel. And God might be sending you to hold their hands up. Will you show up?
I can't do this by myself. What I'm carrying is too valuable. This dream is too big.
Let me tell you about a time when my pride almost cost me. I was juggling carpools for four kids at different schools—two in elementary, one in middle school, one in high school. Every weekday, I'm spending what feels like eternity in the carline. One day, rushing from a meeting across town, my gas light came on. Someone in the car with me said, "You're not going to get gas?" I said, "No, I know my car. I got a couple more miles in this thing."
But I didn't know my car like I thought I did. While driving on 280 during rush hour, my car died. I had passed at least 51 gas stations, but my pride kept me from stopping. You don't know pain until you run out of gas, pass multiple gas stations, and let your pride keep you stuck.
Sitting there in my broken-down car, everyone was driving by, being nosy, looking at me like I was crazy. I was trying to cover my face and act like everything was fine. But after a while, I realized sitting there wasn't going to solve anything. So I got out and started pushing my car to the nearest gas station.
Here's what I realized: as long as I sat there, everyone passed me by. But once I started pushing, people started stopping and got out of their working cars to help me push what wasn't working for me.
Might I suggest to some of you that your help is coming, but the problem is help can't find you because you're too prideful to get out of the car and start pushing. Some of you aren't getting any divine partner that you need because you're comfortable sitting and you don't want to allow anyone to see you struggle.
But do I have anybody in the room that says, "I don't care what you say about me. I'm going to struggle. And once people see my struggle, they'll say, 'What do I have to do to help you get to your next destination?'" Is there anybody in the room who's not ashamed of your struggling seasons? Because you don't really know who's with you until you have to push.
Everybody shows up when it's time to celebrate, but who shows up when it's time to fight?
This is so important because in today's text, what we see is the enemy's true target. If he's after anything in our life, he's not after your money. He's not after your family. He's not even after your faith or your favor. He's after your unity.
One of the greatest weapons the enemy uses to destroy the potential of believers today is a disease called division. Families are divided. Friends who were besties don't even talk anymore. Business partners who started building something together and loved what it was are now suing each other in court. Why? Because what was once on the same page went separate ways because division snuck in the camp.
Do I have anybody in the room today who knows the pain of losing someone you love but no longer being on the same page? And sometimes you don't lose people you're not on the same page with. There's nothing worse than being in the same place but not on the same page.
What do you do when you're married and you still feel lonely? What do you do when you're in a room full of people at church but you still don't feel any support? When you're surrounded but not supported?
Sometimes we can't blame other people for not helping us. We have to be careful: if we're too silent about what we need, how can people know how to help you?
Write this down in your notes: If the enemy cannot defeat us, he will attempt to divide us. This is why the pain of your past was never about your past. It was about damaging your ability to trust people in the future. Pain was never about your past. Pain was always about affecting your trust in people in the future.
You cannot receive all that God has for you with only you. We live in a culture that pushes hyperindividualism: "I'll get it by myself. I'll grind by myself. I built this by myself. I'll do it by myself." If someone asks if you need help, your first natural response might be, "I got it."
But could it be that your next breakthrough is going to be in your ability to say, "We is greater than me"?
Even in the beginning, when God created His greatest creation, He didn't say, "I will make man." He said, "Let us make man in our image." In other words, His greatest creation was a result of collaboration. What will you create when you begin to collaborate with the right people?
Have you ever loved somebody so much but just could not get on the same page? Psalms 133 says:
How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity. It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down to the beard, down Aaron's beard, down the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were fallen from Mount Zion. For the Lord bestows or commands his blessing there.
Do you know what oil means? Oil represents the anointing. It represents supernatural ability. Where does He command the blessing? Where there's unity. In other words, wherever there's unity, you don't have to request a blessing. God starts commanding a blessing.
I'm speaking over your life that God is raising up people who will show up for you and you don't have to struggle to get them on the same page. God is about to send you people. You've been there for everybody else. Now He's about to send some people that are going to be there for you—people who are going to pray for you, pour back into you, and want nothing else in return.
If you don't praise God for nothing else, praise God that He's raising up the right people that can push you into your promise.
You act like you praise God over your enemies and people that walked out of your life. I dare you to praise God even harder for Him sending the right people walking into your life. Because whenever God wants to change your life, he'll send a person. The problem is: whenever the devil wants to ruin your life, he'll also send a person.
So we should start asking people not "who are you?" but "who sent you?" Because based on whoever sent you, I understand your assignment in my life. If the enemy sent you, I'm about to wreak chaos, frustration, and drama. But when God sends a person, he's sending provision. Because provision is not just in the form of possessions. Provision also comes in the form of people.
How good and pleasant it is for God's people to live together in unity. It is like oil flowing from Aaron's beard.
This is talking about what we call a corporate anointing. We often hear about personal anointing, but the devil is afraid of corporate anointing—not just when one person is anointed, but when a people is anointed.
There's a scripture in the Bible that talks about people who were such on one accord. At one point when Jesus showed up, everybody got healed and no one had to get a touch from Jesus. They just had to get in the right place. Are y'all hearing me? Because when the corporate anointing flows, God's presence falls.
In the text we see how Moses and the children of Israel have been under attack. They just escaped slavery after 400 years. God parted the Red Sea. They walked across on what I call a sovereign sidewalk. After He parts the Red Sea, Pharaoh and his army try to follow their path and they begin to drown in the Red Sea, thinking they can do what the Israelites did. Because you always drown when you try to walk in the word that God didn't give you.
Do I have anybody in the room today who knows what it's like for people to try to do what you did, but they didn't get the word that you received? Look at your neighbor and say, "Neighbor, I love you. But what God told me to do may not be what He's telling you to do. Don't mimic my motion. Don't imitate my obedience."
So they're drowning in the Red Sea. Then God pulls them through and they start shouting, "God did it!" His mom has a tambourine shouting, "God did it. He gave us victory." But in one moment they're shouting and the next moment they're complaining: "We thirsty. Moses done brought us all this way and ain't got us nothing to drink."
God tells Moses, "What's in your hand?" He raises his staff, puts it in the water, makes bitter water sweet. This is where we get the name Jehovah Rafa—God the healer. See, it's not just His name. It's His promise. He's not saying, "I am the God who heals." He said, "I am the God that promises to heal."
If you're sick or something is broke, you don't have to ask, "Is it God's will?" He said, "I want to—I wish you would let me do this for you."
But here's what they didn't know: while they're winning, the enemy was watching. They came across the Red Sea and the Amalekites were watching. Bitter water sweet and the Amalekites were watching.
We often trip over the enemies who are loud. But I've learned how to be alert for enemies who are watching. They're not saying nothing, but they're watching.
In this season of my life, I'm going to be like the Israelites. You're not just going to watch me win. You're going to have to also watch me worship. Do I have anybody in the room that's telling the enemy, "I know one way I can give God praise and confuse you at the same time"?
When I lift up my hands and open up my mouth, I'm not just praising God. I'm also going to war with you. I wonder, do I have at least 30 praisers in the room that can confuse the enemy and begin to praise God in spite of what you're going through?
Everybody wants to praise God while you're winning. But why don't you worship God while you're in the wilderness? Because you don't know what enemy is watching you and ready to attack you. My praise is a weapon. So when I praise God, I'm not just praising God. I'm also fighting for enemies that I don't even see coming my way.
You would be praising God better than that if you knew your praise was a reflection of your promise. Little promise, little praise. Average promise, average praise. But great promise, great praise. I wonder, do I have some people in the room that can give a 60-second praise break and forget about who's sitting on your row? Say, "I didn't come to see you. I have a promise in my future. Hold my Bible while I praise God. Look at me crazy all you want to. I'm fighting for my future. I'm fighting for my children."
See, praise is not just about something coming out of your mouth. Praise is also a reflection of the posture of your hands. When I lift my hands, it's not just a physical exercise. It's a spiritual implication. Every time I lift my hands to God, I'm telling my flesh, "You sit down. Holy Spirit, you raise up."
Because I have some stuff in my flesh that keeps making me doubt myself. But when I lift my hands, my flesh has to shut up. And the Holy Spirit starts speaking.
I dare you to throw your hands up, throw your head back, and begin to praise God. You know in fighting, you can win a fight, but the fight is not official. The victory is not official until a referee comes and throws their hands up. In fighting, you don't raise your hand until after you win. But with God, I can throw my hands up before I win.
Grandmama said, "Don't wait until the battle is over." You better learn how to shout right now with no money in your pocket. Throw your hands up. With no food on the table? Throw your hands up. Frustration in your family? Throw your hands up. Don't know where your next check is coming from? Throw your hands up. I'm just confusing the enemy because I should be sad, but when I think about the goodness of Jesus and all that he's done for me, why shouldn't we praise God like that?
Because I don't know who's watching me. The enemy is looking for a window of opportunity to attack. Every time I choose to complain, I'm not worshiping God. I'm worshiping my problem. And the enemy is saying, "Got him."
Here's what has me tripping. The Amalekites aren't waiting for them to struggle. They're not waiting for them to lose. Amalekites attack after a big win. Have you ever celebrated a win and in the middle of celebrating, you got bad news? Have you ever got a blessing that made you paranoid—where you say, "I'm not going to get excited about this"?
They are showing up while they're winning. Because most people talk about how exhausting it is to lose. But I want to talk about how much exhaustion it takes to win. Winning is hard work. And the enemy knows when you win, that is an opportunity to attack because you're not at your full strength.
This is why you have to be careful of who you surround yourself with—not just when you're struggling, but also when you're winning.
Look at Deuteronomy 25:17:
Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind.
People who keep slowing you down don't even realize they're opening the door for the enemy to attack. Be careful when you're unequally yoked.
See, this is not just in romantic relationships. He says, "Believers, be careful. Don't be unequally yoked with people who don't share the same values as you." So if you're saved, but they don't believe in what you believe in, that's unequally yoked.
What does that mean? The picture of being unequally yoked is like putting a yoke on two different animals that cannot move at the same pace. You have one animal trying to plow, but it's yoked to a donkey that's trying to play. One is trying to push while the other one is trying to pull. What happens? You start choking the life out of each other. Many people are holding on to unequal yokes, not realizing you're strangling your purpose. You're strangling your potential, holding on to the wrong partner.
Being equally yoked is not just about romantic. Watch this: it's about pace. Some of us are not where we used to be, but we're not where we're supposed to be.
So Moses calls Joshua, Aaron, and Hur. He says, "Hey, we're not going to panic. Here's what we're going to do. Joshua, you grab some men. You go and fight in the valley. Aaron and Hur, we're going up on the mountain. We're going to intercede at the top while they're fighting in the valley."
This is where most people lose their vision. This is where most dreams die. Because people who were used to being close to you, when you assign them to work at a distance, they get in their feelings. They don't understand that in the kingdom, you don't operate by what you want to do. You operate by what you were assigned to do.
Some of us right now are going to have to assign people to the right places in our life because everyone we love don't need access.
So he says, "I need you to go and fight in the valley. I need you to come up with me." And here it is: when we're in the midst of an attack, you cannot panic. You need to start planning because a lack of strategy will always lead to unnecessary injuries.
Who's suffering right now because you overreacted instead of overcoming? There are people doing life in prison right now because they overreacted. There are marriages that fell apart in a split second because of a overreaction.
Moses could have been emotional and ready to clap back, but he says, "Hey, let's talk about this because strategy helps you focus on tomorrow by talking about it today."
My question is this: when you're under attack, are you reacting or responding? What do you do when you're under attack? What comes out of you? Because if we have time to be in our feelings, some people we lost are not coming back. Some things we lost, they're not coming back. And so we're going to have to be cerebral and kind of talk through how we're going to overcome it.
But I am clear about this: I can't do this by myself. See, I want to talk to some people who can be honest and say some of the fights that I'm fighting, I've been fighting by myself long enough. I need God to send me some help because I've been fighting this long enough. But I'm going to have to overcome this with the right people. And do I have anybody in the room that's saying, "God, I need some help"?
When you're under attack, the question isn't just about your circumstances—it's about who you have standing with you. Moses discovered this truth at a critical moment. As he held his hands up in intercession for the Israelites fighting in the valley, he reached a breaking point. His arms grew heavy. The weight became unbearable. But God didn't leave him alone in that moment.
Aaron and Hur stepped in. They didn't wait for Moses to ask. They found a rock, sat him on it, and held his hands up until the sun set—12 to 15 hours of sustained effort. This is the picture of what the church is meant to be.
What Moses was doing on the mountain for Israel, Jesus did on the cross for us. He lifted His hands in intercession. Even with nails piercing them, even with a crown of thorns pressed into His head, He didn't let His hands fall. Jesus didn't get tired. He completed the work of salvation for all of us.
But notice something crucial in the text: nowhere does it say Moses had to ask for help. When the right people come into your life, they won't watch you struggle by yourself. They recognize the assignment is bigger than any one person, and they step in.
The first thing Aaron and Hur did wasn't just raise Moses's hands—they set him on a rock. That rock wasn't random. The rock represents something solid, something you can trust. The rock is a metaphor for Jesus Himself. He is the foundation. He said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
This reveals an important principle: stability precedes prosperity. God doesn't test our opportunities; He tests our stability. He doesn't pour prosperity into inconsistent vessels. Before blessing flows, there must be a solid foundation to hold it.
Here's what many of us miss: not everyone is called to be Moses. Some of us are called to be Aaron. This is the theology of decrease—embracing a lesser role in order to develop a larger soul and accomplish a greater goal.
At Rock City, my assignment isn't to be the main character. My assignment is to be faithful to what God has called me to do while others rise up and fulfill their callings. Every single day when I wake up, I'm saying, "It's bigger than me." The work God wants to do in this city and beyond is larger than any one leader.
You may be struggling because you're trying to be number one when God anointed you to be number two. That's not failure—that's alignment with God's design. When you stop fighting for prominence and start fighting for purpose, everything changes.
When the right people are in your life, they do several things:
First, the right people remove chaos. They bring stability. They are reliable. They are solid—not just in talent or spiritual gifts, but in character and commitment. How many gifted people do you know who aren't solid? They may have incredible abilities, but you can't trust them with your hands because they haven't given you a rock to stand on.
Second, the right people restore strength. Try holding your own hands up. At a certain point, you'll reach a limit. You'll feel weak. But when the right people come alongside you, something shifts. You feel stronger, not because the burden disappeared, but because you're no longer carrying it alone.
So ask yourself: When you're around certain people, do you feel weaker or stronger? There are people in my life I call intentionally because after we talk, I feel stronger. Their exposure leads to my expansion. Their example pushes me toward what God has for my life.
Third, the right people reveal possibilities. They show you what you didn't think was possible. Remember Peter on the boat during the storm? When he saw Jesus walking on water, something shifted. He saw a picture of possibility. He said, "Lord, if that's you, tell me to come." Why? Because he glimpsed something he didn't know was possible—that ordinary people could do extraordinary things through faith.
Who are you that picture of possibility for? What if your faithfulness, your obedience, your breakthrough is what someone else needs to see to believe God for their own?
There's a cost to being close to the anointing. Some of us try to get as close as possible to leadership without realizing the spiritual warfare that comes with that proximity. The pressure of saying "yes" to big dreams, of holding steady when the vision is under attack, of believing when everything looks impossible—this isn't for everyone, and that's okay.
Maybe God is saying, "You're not ready to be that close yet because you can't handle what comes with it." Instead of resenting that, trust it. God knows what you can carry.
But here's the promise: when you're faithful in holding someone else's hands, God sees your faithfulness. He'll send people to hold yours.
You have to be married to the bus, not your seat on it. Some people are so consumed with being close to the leader that they miss the actual work. They're not willing to get low, to get in the trenches, to do the hard work when nobody's watching.
Everybody wants to be in the photo after the victory. But who's willing to be there in the process? Who's willing to hold hands when it's heavy? Who's willing to say, "I'm not getting comfortable in my pew. The moment I do, I'm letting the hands fall. The moment I get easily offended, I'm backing away. The moment I decide this is too hard, I'm quitting"—that's when you're no longer part of the solution.
Family knows how to reconcile differences. When you're fighting to win, sometimes you say things you don't mean. That doesn't mean you break covenant. That means you work through it because the assignment is bigger than the conflict.
Here's what I need to say to the house: what you make happen for other people while you're holding their hands, God sees. He'll start sending people to hold your hands.
This is the power of the church. Everybody holding each other up. And when you fall down, somebody picks you up. But here's the issue many of us face: we're busy allowing everybody to use us except God.
If you come to church and receive the word but you're not serving God's people, that's parasitic. At some point, you have to say, "Because of what God did for me, I want to make what He did for me happen for others."
When God pours something into your life—healing, breakthrough, wisdom, strength—it's not just for you. It's meant to flow through you to bless others. That's the assignment.
So my question for you is simple: Whose hands are you holding?
We're often looking for that perfect friend, that perfect partner, that perfect person to stand with us. But the Bible says, "Whoever first shows themselves friendly will receive a friend." You'll receive what you reflect. Maybe you keep getting what you're getting because that's what you're giving.
You don't need a main character moment. You need to embrace this principle: What I am a part of is bigger than the part I play.
That's not diminishing your value. That's positioning you properly. When you understand that the vision is bigger than you, the mission is bigger than you, the church is bigger than you—then you stop fighting for your seat and start fighting for the victory.
The question isn't whether you're important. The question is: Are you walking out on your assignment? Are you sitting on your assignment? Are you too busy to help us get better? Are you too busy to raise up the next generation?
Because somewhere, someone is about to throw in the towel. And God might be sending you to hold their hands up. Will you show up?
