Move Toward Your Miracle
Rev. Scotty Slaydon Preached on 9/6/2026
Loading…
0:00
45:50
Summary
Rev. Scotty Slaydon uses the story of Moses at the burning bush to challenge believers to stop passively waiting for miracles and to start moving toward God's presence through preparation, repentance, and active faith.
Key points
- •Moses' encounter at the burning bush highlights that a miracle often requires 'turning aside' from our normal routine to investigate what God is doing.
- •God commanded Moses to remove his shoes to eliminate man-made barriers and human philosophy, seeking a direct, unfiltered connection with His presence.
- •Faith involves active preparation, such as buying a truck radio before owning the truck, because preparation positions us for what God has promised.
- •Miracles are not limited to international mission fields; the same God who works in El Salvador and Ukraine is ready to move in the local church today.
- •The greatest miracle is the transformation of a soul, as evidenced by a former gang member becoming a missionary and district superintendent.
Scripture
Faith
Miracles
Holy Spirit
Restoration
Purpose
Life application
Identify one area where you are 'waiting' for God to move and take a concrete step of preparation this week to show you are moving toward that miracle. Evaluate if there are any 'man-made shoes' (human logic or past hurts) you need to set aside to experience God's presence more directly.
Reflection questions
- What 'burning bushes' or abnormal signs has God placed in your life recently that you might be ignoring?
- In what ways are you trying to 'filter' God through your own understanding or abilities rather than approaching Him on holy ground?
- Is there a specific miracle you have stopped pursuing because you felt unworthy or not 'good enough'?
- How can our church better support those who are currently 'in the desert' waiting for their encounter with God?
Have a question about this sermon?
Ask our AI and get an answer with citations.
Full transcript
0:00today. The Lord bless you and it's great
0:00to be here in worship. Amen.
0:01>> Praise God. Um
0:05stand with me if you would. Uh want to
0:07read a couple of verses of scripture. I
0:10don't plan on preaching terribly long.
0:13Couple of hours maybe.
0:16Just kidding. Um,
0:19I don't know what I would do with
0:22preaching that long. Um I want to read
0:25Genesis 3:es 1-5
0:28and um
0:34as I said earlier uh in in the first
0:36service let me say the Lord can work and
0:40do and if at any time throughout while
0:43I'm preaching if anytime you feel the
0:46Lord move on you to worship to stand to
0:49praise to clap to lift your hands to
0:52come to the front, you will not bother
0:54me. I preached where bottles were thrown
0:57at me. I preached where people were
0:58cursing at me. I preached where clowns
1:01were doing a show next to me, sort of
1:02like a circus. I preached where the
1:04witch doctor was next to me and they
1:07were doing things and snakes, but not
1:09good things with snakes. And anyway,
1:11I've and and I preached through all of
1:13that. So, you praising or worshiping or
1:16clapping is not going to bother me.
1:18>> I'll be all right with that. Um, so, uh,
1:22just to to put that out there and
1:24there'll be a time, uh, when I'm done
1:26that I'm I'm going to invite people to
1:27come, but you can come at any time. And
1:30some people can't physically come. Never
1:33feel pressure
1:34>> if and when I say, "Hey, if you can,
1:36some people physically can't. And some
1:38people just don't want to.
1:40>> This is not holy. This is not special,
1:44more special than where you're sitting.
1:45God can move anywhere in this building."
1:48So, I I just want to put that out there.
1:51I'm not going to say it again or
1:52reference it again, but I know that God
1:54can work. And a lot of times, don't take
1:57me the wrong way, but God works in spite
1:59of us.
2:03>> Not because of us, but in spite of us.
2:08>> That gives me hope.
2:11Okay. Exodus 3:es 1-5.
2:17You know the story. I'm not a deep
2:20preacher. You're going to have to wait
2:21for somebody else to come for that.
2:24Moses kept the flock of Jethro, his
2:26father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And
2:28he led the flock to the backside of the
2:29desert and came to the mountain of God,
2:31even to Horeb.
2:33The angel of the Lord appeared unto him
2:35in a flame of fire out of the midst of a
2:37bush. And he looked, and behold, the
2:39fire the bush burned with fire, and the
2:41bush was not consumed. Then Moses said,
2:43"I will now turn aside and see this
2:45great sight, why the bush is not burnt."
2:48Verse four, this is important. When the
2:52Lord saw that he turned aside to see,
2:55God called unto him out of the midst of
2:56the bush and said, "Moses, Moses." And
2:58he said, "Here am I." And he said, "Draw
3:00not draw not nigh hither. Put off thy
3:03shoes from off thy feet, for the place
3:05where on thou standest is holy ground."
3:08I want to preach this real quickly this
3:10morning. Move toward your miracle.
3:14Move toward your miracle.
3:17>> You can be seated.
3:20>> Moses is in the desert and the Bible
3:22says he comes to the mount of God, the
3:24place of God. He comes to Horeb. Now, I
3:29won't get on to into the details of what
3:31that means and everything, but it does
3:33mean that God was there. And and and
3:35that's that's really key to what we what
3:37we what we want to want to talk about
3:40today. And I believe Moses thought today
3:42is like any other day. He's leading the
3:44sheep. He's a shepherd. He's a pastor.
3:46He's leading the sheep. And you know,
3:50it's any other day. I'm leading the
3:52sheep. And I'm going to take the sheep.
3:54And he comes to a place and he sees
3:56something different.
3:59He sees a bush that is on fire.
4:03That's not what was different.
4:06There is in the desert spontaneous
4:09combustion. It happens. There are
4:11certain um plants,
4:15classes of shrubs and things. They will
4:18spontaneously burst into flames in the
4:20desert.
4:22That's not what was different.
4:25Moses said, "The bush is burning,
4:29>> but it's not being consumed.
4:33>> I'm seeing it on fire. I'm seeing it.
4:35I'm seeing the flame and that's normal.
4:38That's okay. But what's abnormal is it's
4:41not being consumed.
4:43>> It's not, you know, there's always the
4:45argument, did the house burn down or did
4:47the house burn up?
4:49Well, I I mean, you could talk to an
4:51arson professional. It just burned. I
4:53don't know. But it burned. It burned.
4:56Fire went up. The house went down. It
4:58burned up. Down. I don't know what
4:59happened, but he didn't see the bush
5:02that was consumed.
5:04THERE'S JUST FIRE ON THIS BUSH, but it's
5:07not being BURNED. I'M GOING TO TELL YOU,
5:08IF I saw that, I would probably be a
5:10little freaked out.
5:13>> They could probably do. There's probably
5:15something in Hollywood where they can
5:17burn stuff and it doesn't actually
5:19consume. It probably exists. Trust me,
5:22this was not Hollywood
5:25because it was in the desert.
5:28Moses saw it and the BIBLE SAYS HE
5:32DIDN'T know what to think about it. It
5:35was a strange sight and it arrested his
5:38attention.
5:39>> What I want you to understand and get
5:41today is this. As long as Moses stayed
5:45where he was,
5:48as long as he watched the bush burning,
5:52as long as he was just an observer to
5:55what was happening and to what to him
5:59was abnormal, it wasn't average. It was
6:02out of the ordinary. It caught his
6:04attention.
6:06But as long as he stayed where he was,
6:09and I believe if he would have walked by
6:13this encounter would not have happened.
6:16>> BUT MOSES SAID THIS, I will turn aside
6:21and see this great sight.
6:25>> What he MEANT BY SEE WAS NOT JUST
6:27OBSERVE. I'm going to investigate.
6:30>> I'm going to find out why it's burning,
6:33but it's not consumed.
6:35>> I've seen a lot. He's a man of the
6:37desert. He's seen stuff. He's seen
6:39bushes on fire.
6:41That's no big deal. But this one is not
6:44burning up. AND THE BIBLE SAYS WHEN HE
6:47TURNED ASIDE to see the bush, THEN THE
6:51LORD SPOKE to him and said, "Moses,
6:54Moses." And they have this miraculous
6:57encounter that changes Moses's destiny
7:01for the rest of his life. He's a pillar
7:05of faith, a hero of faith. in the book
7:08of of of Hebrews as the heroes of faith.
7:11This great Moses, this great man, this
7:14this one that appeared
7:16>> on the mount of transfiguration,
7:20>> RIGHT? THIS GUY THAT'S PRETTY IMPORTANT
7:24in the history of Israel and actually
7:25the history of the church because of
7:28what he means. It happened because he
7:31said, "I'm going to turn aside and I'm
7:34going to see." And as he drew NEAR TO
7:37WHAT WAS HAPPENING, TO THE SUPERNATURAL,
7:40THEN GOD spoke to Moses. I'M GOING TO
7:44CHALLENGE YOU TODAY. DON'T JUST keep
7:46sitting where you are.
7:49>> Too many people are waiting on a
7:51miracle.
7:54>> Let that sink in. Some of you will catch
7:55it tomorrow. Some of you will catch it
7:57next week. You're waiting on a miracle.
8:01>> YOU'RE JUST WAITING FOR GOD TO DO IT.
8:04You're just God, YOU'RE GOING TO DO IT.
8:06I'm just going to wait for it to happen.
8:10>> YOU WILL PROBABLY STILL BE WAITING ON A
8:12MIRACLE five years from now.
8:15>> YOU WILL PROBABLY STILL BE WAITING ON A
8:17MIRACLE A DECADE from now. I'M GOING TO
8:20CHALLENGE YOU THIS MORNING TO MOVE
8:22towards your miracle.
8:24>> To don't just SIT AND WAIT. GOD, YOU DO
8:28THE WORK. YOU do this.
8:31>> I know you know it, BUT I'VE GOT TO SAY
8:33IT. YOU DON'T BUILD YOUR CHURCH BY
8:35WAITING ON GOD TO send people.
8:42>> WE HAVE CONFERENCES IN EL SALVADOR. WE
8:44HAVE OUR national convention. 30 to
8:4740,000 people in the soccer stadium, THE
8:50LARGEST ONE IN the country. WE HAVE TWO,
8:53THREE, I'VE SEEN OVER 4,000 PEOPLE
8:55receive the Holy Ghost in one service.
8:58within a matter of three to FOUR
9:00MINUTES BOOM PEOPLE THOUSANDS
9:02RECEIVING THE HOLY GHOST. It It's It's
9:04KIND OF CRAZY. YOU GO TO PRAY AND
9:06THEY'RE ALREADY SPEAKING. YOU CAN'T FIND
9:08ANYBODY TO PRAY AND PUT YOUR HAND ON.
9:10GOD'S ALREADY FILLED THEM WITH the Holy
9:12Ghost.
9:13>> THOSE VISITORS DON'T JUST SHOW UP OFF
9:16THE STREET. THEY DON'T JUST COME INTO
9:18THE STADIUM BECAUSE WE GAVE THEM FREE
9:20FOOD. We don't give them free food. THEY
9:22WERE BROUGHT BY SOMEBODY. SOMEBODY. And
9:25where you said we went, we probably went
9:27to a place called Hokot Dulce. It's it's
9:30way up in the mountains yet. They
9:31actually have a road there now, but they
9:33didn't for years. It was only what we
9:35call taxi 2.
9:39That's the only taxi that gets you up
9:41there.
9:43That's probably where we took it to
9:45Hokot Dulce. BUT THOSE PEOPLE BROUGHT
9:48people to THE EVENT. THEY BROUGHT THEM.
9:51IT WAS A CONNECTION ALREADY. THEY DIDN'T
9:54JUST WE DON'T JUST GET TO THE SOCCER
9:55STADIUM. I HOPE GOD SENDS SOME PEOPLE. I
9:58HOPE GOD BRINGS PEOPLE INTO THIS EVENT.
10:01THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKSH.
10:06You're going to do it. I'm going to
10:08wait.
10:09>> I'm not going to do anything to move
10:11toward this. I'm not going to do
10:13anything to prepare myself. People ask
10:15me all the time, "How can I be a
10:17missionary? How can I get involved IN
10:19THE WORK OF GOD? HOW CAN I DO THIS?" AND
10:21I TELL THEM, "PREPARE. Do everything you
10:23can where you are. You're not where you
10:26want to be, but preparation WILL GET YOU
10:29WHERE GOD WANTS YOU to be. But if YOU
10:32DON'T PREPARE NOW, WHEN GOD SAYS, "I
10:35NEED YOU," YOU'RE UNPREPARED. He can't
10:37use you. YOU NEED TO GET YOURSELF
10:39PLUGGED INTO WHAT GOD IS DOING. DO
10:42EVERYTHING YOU can do. BE USED OF GOD
10:45ANY WAY THAT YOU CAN.
10:49HALLELUJAH.
10:49>> I'M GOING TO CHALLENGE YOU TO MOVE
10:51TOWARD YOUR MIRACLE.
10:54>> UNDERSTAND ME. GOD TOLD MOSES, "TAKE
10:57YOUR SHOES OFF.
10:58>> You're on holy ground.
11:00>> IT'S NOT HOLY BECAUSE THERE'S A BURNING
11:03bush there. It's not holy because Moses
11:06came there and he's such a sanctified
11:08dude.
11:10>> IT'S HOLY BECAUSE GOD'S PRESENCE IS
11:12THERE."
11:14AND GOD SAID, "TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF,
11:16MOSES."
11:17I'm going to tell you why I think God
11:19told him to take his shoes off. You can
11:21disagree and you may be right. WHAT I
11:23THINK GOD WAS saying was, "Moses, I'm
11:26about to speak into your life. I'M ABOUT
11:29TO CHANGE and transform your future.
11:32This is you. You You've been in the
11:34desert 40 years. You were in Egypt. This
11:37is about to be a lifechanging moment for
11:40you like nothing else has been. I don't
11:43want anything manmade
11:45>> between you and me.
11:47>> I made you, Moses. I made this dirt. I
11:50made this sand. I made this ground. I'm
11:53here, Moses. I want a direct connection
11:56with you. I don't want your man-made
11:58philosophy. I don't want your MAN-MADE
12:00TALENTS. I DON'T WANT YOUR MAN-MADE
12:03ABILITIES. WHEN GOD TOLD MOSES TO BUILD
12:06THE TABERNACLE, HE SAID, "DO IT AFTER
12:08THE PATTERN THAT I GAVE YOU. DON'T BRING
12:11THAT EGYPTIAN JUNK INTO THE TABERNACLE.
12:14I DON'T WANT IT BUILT LIKE THE EGYPTIANS
12:17BUILD THEIR BUILDINGS. I'M NOT
12:19INTERESTED in what the Egyptians do. I
12:22want you to do it because HEBREWS SAID
12:24THAT THE TABERNACLE WAS MADE FROM THE
12:27TABERNACLE IN HEAVEN.
12:31>> AND GOD IS ABOUT TO HAVE THIS MIRACULOUS
12:33ENCOUNTER WITH MOSES. MOSES, I DON'T
12:36WANT YOUR HUMAN STUFF BETWEEN US. I'M
12:40HERE TO TELL SOMEBODY TODAY, you need to
12:42get rid of some of your thinking. You
12:44need to put off some of the stuff that's
12:47between YOU AND GOD. YOU'RE TRYING TO
12:49FILTER GOD THROUGH YOUR UNDERSTANDING.
12:52YOU'RE TRYING TO FILTER GOD THROUGH YOUR
12:54ABILITIES. YOU'RE TRYING TO FILTER GOD
12:57THROUGH YOUR THOUGHTS. BUT THAT'S NOT
12:59HOW IT WORKS. YOU NEED TO GET RID OF ALL
13:01THAT and get into THE WORD OF GOD. LORD,
13:04I'M GOING TO REMOVE THOSE SHOES. I'm
13:06going to remove anything
13:08that can come between you and me.
13:13God wants to do miracles today. God's
13:16already doing miracles, I believe, in
13:18this place today.
13:20>> I remember brother, my wife would
13:21remember, brother um Isa Lovato,
13:26he he's passed away, but brother Lovato,
13:29he didn't have a vehicle. Most when I
13:31went to El Salvador, my first trip was
13:331987. Then I went in 1989 and stayed
13:36until 2006.
13:38And um
13:40most people in the church didn't have
13:42cars. No, we had a church of uh 1300
13:45people when we left. And uh in 2006 and
13:49even back then there might have been 10
13:52or 12 people that had cars. People just
13:55didn't have cars. And brother Lovato, he
13:57didn't have a car, but he wanted a
13:59truck.
14:01So, Brother Lovato went and bought a
14:02radio for his truck.
14:06He bought a truck, a radio, the little
14:08radios you stick into the truck. He
14:11didn't have a truck, but he bought a
14:13radio for his truck.
14:16>> Now, some of you are laughing. Well,
14:18that's kind of dumb.
14:20That's faith.
14:22>> THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
14:24>> HE MOVED TOWARD HIS MIRACLE.
14:28>> GOD, I I DON'T HAVE
14:30I DON'T HAVE A TRUCK, BUT I'M GOING TO
14:31GET A RADIO CUZ I BELIEVE YOU'RE GOING
14:33TO GIVE ME A TRUCK.
14:35>> AND GOD GAVE HIM A TRUCK.
14:36>> HALLELUJAH.
14:40>> I see some of you, you're thinking THE
14:42MIRACLE IS, OH, THEY HAD A CANCER FALL
14:45OFF THEIR HEAD. WOO, THAT'S IT THAT is
14:46awesome.
14:48>> But brother Lovato's MIRACLE WAS AWESOME
14:50AS WELL.
14:51>> But he didn't WAIT FOR IT TO HAPPEN. HE
14:53WASN'T JUST SITTING BACK. GOD, WHEN I'M
14:56HERE, FEED ME.
15:02Not here, but I've been to other
15:03churches, Pastor Elms, where people come
15:06to church
15:08and they don't give of themselves.
15:11>> ALL THEY DO IS GOD,
15:14>> lay it on me, BIG DADDY. LAY what you
15:16got? Lay it on me.
15:17>> That was a lame service. IF A SERVICE IS
15:20EVER LAME, you get OUT OF IT WHAT YOU
15:23PUT INTO IT.
15:25And if it's ever lame, you did not touch
15:28God. And that's not God. That's on you.
15:32>> And that's on me if I do the SAME THING.
15:35>> IF GOD IS THERE,
15:38>> IT DOESN'T MATTER IF THERE'S THREE OF US
15:40OR EIGHT OF US OR 8,000 OF US.
15:43>> IT IS POWERFUL. THERE ARE MIRACLES. IT'S
15:46THE PRESENCE OF GOD. WE HAVE STEPPED
15:49INTO HOLY GROUND.
15:52>> HALLELUJAH. AGAIN,
15:56not here, but I've seen in other places,
16:00people just wait
16:02for God to do.
16:06Look at what he did for Woo, look at
16:07what he did for them. Whoa, look at what
16:09he did for them. LOOK AT WHAT GOD IS
16:10DOING FOR EVERYBODY. OKAY, GOD,
16:14I'm just waiting. It It'll happen at
16:16some point. And we don't move toward
16:19what we believe God has told us. Now,
16:22when I say that, don't don't
16:23misunderstand me. I'm not talking about
16:26uh I'm sick, so I'm going to stop taking
16:28my medications. I'm not talking about
16:30that. I'm talking about a faith that
16:32says, I'm going to prepare, and if God
16:35has this for me, I'm going to believe
16:37God. I'm going to thank him every day.
16:39I'm going to pray about it.
16:44>> I went to El Salvador, I told you, I
16:46went in '89 as an AMR. It was the middle
16:48of the Civil War. They had this thing
16:50called the final offensive November
16:5211th, 1989. Never forget it. That's a
16:55whole another I could talk for an hour,
16:57but I'm not going to about that
16:59situation. Um, when I was there, I man,
17:02I was an AMR. I didn't have my my budget
17:04was $300 a month. I didn't always have
17:07$300 a month. Um, so I ate at the Bible
17:10school a lot.
17:12I didn't have a vehicle. I rode buses. I
17:15used taxi do taxi 2 uh a lot.
17:20Um, I I just that's that's all I had. I
17:22didn't I didn't have anything else.
17:24Finally, the Lord blessed me and a man
17:27in my church gave me a vehicle.
17:30Wow. He gave me a little Nissan
17:35um
17:36forget what it was. It was a little It
17:38was a little diesel. Nissan,
17:41like a Sentra. This is 80s. It was a
17:43little diesel. I traveled all over the
17:46US trying to raise some money. got a few
17:48thousand dollars to get me back to El
17:49Salvador. And uh as brother Elm said, I
17:52I didn't know people and went preach for
17:54these guys and they don't know me, etc.,
17:56etc. I will say your dad was
17:58instrumental. North Carolina came down.
18:00All those guys had me go to the
18:02district. They all gave me offerings and
18:04helped me. Um it was it was it was
18:06instrumental in getting me back as an a
18:09Salvador. And so, uh I finally had that
18:12little car. And just as I was ending
18:14deputation, I was in Alabama and this
18:16young guy from a church, he goes, "Man,
18:18I like your little car." I was like,
18:19"Man, it's been great." He goes, "Would
18:21you want to trade for my truck?" And I'm
18:23like, "What kind of truck?" He said,
18:25"Well, I have a little," it was a Nissan
18:28Dodson. Some of you don't know what that
18:30means.
18:31>> People my age know what that means. So,
18:33it was a Nissan Dodson,
18:36right? It was a twodoor. It's a little
18:38bitty black truck. And I said, "Yeah."
18:40So, we just switched titles. There we
18:42go. We got it. We're good. I drove it to
18:44El Salvador. The roads in El Salvador
18:46are not great. They're better today. In
18:49the early 90s, they were not great at
18:52all. And so I went through tires like
18:55craziness. I don't have money for tires.
18:59I would buy used tires.
19:01Well, I mean, it's you get what you get.
19:06And and that's what I did. And one day I
19:09was helping at the Bible school. We were
19:10trying to to raise some We didn't have
19:12money for the Bible school. So, I was
19:14going around the country. The churches
19:16were donating food for the Bible school.
19:19They'd give sacks of corn and beans and
19:21oil and some eggs. So, we would travel
19:23all through the country, brother
19:24Castanos and I. And and we would pick up
19:27all the food and bring it back to El
19:29Salvador. And so, we're traveling one
19:31day. We're near a city called Sonate.
19:33Very hot. It's on the coast. It's a city
19:35of the palm trees and coconuts, but it
19:37is hot, hot, hot in Sonate, El Salvador.
19:43Had a blowout.
19:45That's no problem. We're going to fix
19:46this. Fix the tire.
19:50The spare is flat.
19:53Okay. So, we go and uh
19:57Okay. So, we flagged the car down. I
19:59stayed with the truck. whether Castanos
20:01went to a tire repair place and uh they
20:03repaired the tire, came back, put it on,
20:06got down the road, pop, it popped again.
20:10So, we don't have money for tires and we
20:11go and do the same thing again. And I'm
20:13running out of money and I don't have
20:15much gas left. Anyway, it was a
20:16beautiful thing. And so, on the side of
20:18the road, Brother Castanos and I was
20:20like, you know, God,
20:24I think you see us. Um
20:28I'm not This isn't my food. But I'm not
20:30getting this food for me. Like this
20:32isn't for so the AMR can eat. I mean, I
20:35do eat at the Bible school, but that's
20:37this is for the students because they
20:38come and they don't have any money and
20:40we don't have any money and it's tight.
20:42It's a civil war. It's it's it's a
20:44terrible time in El Salvador. And I
20:46said, God, just I'm paraphrasing, but I
20:48just said, God,
20:50can you give me good tires?
20:54Just just need some good tires.
20:58Okay, we finally made it home and
21:00everything and it's a mess.
21:04Two days later,
21:05there was a check in the mail.
21:08Just understand that the mail in the
21:10late 80s, early 90s, getting to El
21:12Salvador was not quick. It's like a
21:16month turnaround. It's a mess. Write a
21:19letter home and you get it a couple of
21:20months later.
21:22I had a letter from a man in my church
21:26with the check for $300.
21:29He said, "I had you on my heart. The
21:31Lord told me to send this."
21:34He sent it weeks ago.
21:37It came right on time.
21:41I bought brand new tires. They were the
21:44hardest,
21:45not radials,
21:47knobbybiest,
21:49roughest tires I could buy, but they
21:53lasted. They were rough on the roads.
21:56They wind when you went down the road.
21:58They were loud, but they lasted.
22:03>> I believe that was a miracle from God.
22:08>> And here's the thing that I want you to
22:10understand.
22:12We're trying to get food. We're trying
22:14to do we're AND WE PRAYED, "GOD, WE NEED
22:16SOME TIRES."
22:18GOD HAD ALREADY SENT THE TIRE MONEY
22:21WEEKS BEFORE.
22:23>> I want to encourage you today. YOU MAY
22:26BE HERE TODAY THINKING, "WELL, GOD MAY
22:28OR MAY NOT UNDERSTAND OR I JUST FELT
22:30LIKE SOMETHING HAPPENED TODAY." GOD HAS
22:33BEEN WORKING ON YOUR BEHALF for days,
22:37for weeks, for months, for years. GOD
22:41HAS BEEN DOING IT. WHEN ABRAHAM TOOK
22:44ISAAC UP THE MOUNTAIN, YOU KNOW THE
22:46STORY. HE GETS THERE, HE'S GOT THE
22:47KNIFE. STOP. THERE'S A RAM. THE RAM CAME
22:50UP THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. THE
22:52WHOLE TIME THEY'RE CLIMBING UP, UH,
22:55GOD'S SENDING SOMETHING. GOD'S GOT THE
22:57ANSWER COMING ON THE OTHER SIDE.
23:00GOD IS WORKING ON YOUR BEHALF. BUT I
23:04WANT TO CHALLENGE YOU TODAY. MOVE
23:06towards your miracle.
23:09GET ENGAGED IN WHAT GOD IS DOING. GET
23:12ENGAGED IN WHAT GOD WANTS TO DO. DON'T
23:15BE SATISFIED WITH WATCHING WHAT HE'S
23:18DOING FOR OTHERS. UH WITH SITTING ON THE
23:20SIDELINES TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS.
23:23>> GOD WANTS TO TRANSFORM TODAY. GOD WANTS
23:26TO move in YOUR LIFE TODAY. GOD WANTS TO
23:29SAVE SOMEBODY.
23:34He took Moses
23:36from leading sheep in the desert to
23:39become the deliverer of a nation.
23:44I can tell you in the Civil War, we had
23:47so many crazy things happen. Man, we
23:50were going one day in my little black
23:53Nissan/Dodson.
23:56We were They had just opened a Wendy's
23:59in El Salvador.
24:02When they opened the first Eso gas
24:04station,
24:06we used to go and get hot dogs and
24:09nachos.
24:11The gas stations in El Salvador. Now
24:12today, they got everything. Food.
24:16Come la vista is um it's like uh like a
24:21cafeteria style. They have you go in and
24:23there's food. Just pick and eat and all
24:24that stuff. They didn't have that in
24:261989, 1990. They had none of that stuff.
24:30So when the Wendy's open, we were like,
24:33"This is awesome.
24:35It's a little expensive, but we're going
24:36to splurge."
24:38So me and two other AMRs are riding in
24:42the cab of my truck.
24:48It's tight.
24:49We pull up to the stop sign.
24:52It's a four-way.
24:55There's the Wendy's.
24:57This was the headquarters of a political
24:59party. And as we got there, I heard
25:08right in front. Two guys with machine
25:12guns were just It was an assassination.
25:16Political leader had come out. They just
25:18killed him. So I did what of course I
25:22should have done.
25:24I jumped out of the truck. I left the
25:27two ladies there
25:31and I went and hid behind a tree.
25:36I laid down.
25:40So what I was doing was I was making a
25:42way of escape so that they could get
25:43out.
25:46>> Right? All the all the above.
25:50When when when when when the machine gun
25:52is right there, you can make yourself
25:54very very very very very flat. I was
25:58trying to flatten as much as I could,
26:02but I believe God protected us.
26:04>> If we would have been two seconds
26:06sooner, we would have been right there
26:09in the midst of all of that. And back in
26:12those days, they would kill everybody.
26:14They didn't care of killing any,
26:15especially Americans. They would, it
26:17really didn't matter. But God God knew.
26:20God knew the timing. God knew everything
26:22that was going to take place. I'm
26:25talking about the miracles that God
26:28does. I'm talking about us moving in the
26:31spirit and us pursuing the miracles that
26:33God has for us.
26:36>> We were in Ukraine several years ago. Uh
26:38we had gone um we were doing some other
26:41stuff. We were in Ukraine and I forget
26:42where we went after Ukraine, but we were
26:44there and it was the European Youth
26:46Congress thing they had and and it was
26:49great because they sang in English and
26:52Spanish and French
26:54and Ukraine. Uh uh they they it was it
26:57was amazing. Great conference and all
26:59that stuff. Brother Chris Green was
27:01there. He was preaching evangelist in
27:03our organization. Um, and brother Green,
27:07he he just felt like there's miracles
27:10here and this. And my daughter wore
27:12glasses and she had some problems with
27:14her eyes. And he prayed for her that
27:16night in Ukraine.
27:19She's never wore glasses again. God
27:20healed her that night.
27:24>> Now,
27:27she also responded when he said, "If you
27:30need a healing, I want you to come up
27:31here and I'm going to pray for you.
27:33God's going to heal you.
27:35But again, sometimes we set back. It's
27:40not for me. I'm not worthy. I'm not good
27:43enough. I don't deserve it.
27:45>> Those are all lies.
27:47>> Well, they're sort of true. You don't
27:48deserve it and you're not good enough.
27:51>> That is true.
27:53>> I don't deserve it and I'm NOT GOOD
27:55ENOUGH. THAT IS definitely true.
27:58But God,
28:02>> he paid the price.
28:06>> Hallelujah.
28:08>> HE WAS ON THE CROSS OF CALVARY.
28:11>> He didn't worry about the shame. HE
28:13DIDN'T WORRY ABOUT ALL THE STUFF THEY
28:15PUT ON HIM FOR THE JOY THAT WAS SET
28:18BEFORE HIM. THE JOY OF A CHURCH, the joy
28:22of a bloodbought body that could
28:25worship, that could praise him, that
28:28could come to him with a need, that
28:30could pray, THAT COULD LAY OURSELVES ON
28:32THE GROUND, UH THAT COULD KNEEL BEFORE
28:34his presence, UH THAT COULD SAY, "OH
28:36GOD, YOU'RE IN THIS PLACE. UH miracles
28:39are going to happen. Uh miracles are
28:42going to happen because we're on holy
28:44ground. UH WE'RE ON THE MIRACULOUS.
28:46WE'RE WHERE THAT BEGINS TO TAKE PLACE. I
28:49want you to stand with me if you would
28:51today. I'm going to be done in just a
28:53few moments, BUT I'M CHALLENGING YOU
28:55RIGHT NOW. Some of you need to move away
28:58from your will. You need to move away
29:01from your designs. You need to move away
29:04from your own personal plans. You need
29:07to MOVE AWAY FROM YOUR philosophies
29:13and move toward your miracle.
29:18I told it in the first service, but I'll
29:20I'll mention it again here.
29:24We had a lady in our church, um, Elder
29:27Sister Sarita, Erana Sarita, was raised
29:30from the dead twice. God raised her from
29:33the dead. She was amazing.
29:36She was a soul winner like you cannot
29:39believe. She would talk to anybody
29:42anywhere and did she had she's died
29:44twice. She ain't afraid of nothing.
29:47She was the most wrinkly crinkly
29:52old lady you ever I mean it it it was
29:54wrinkly and crinkly.
29:57She was rugged looking.
30:00She was about weighed about as much as
30:02this bottle of water. thin as a rail,
30:07skin all saggy. We still don't know. We
30:09thought she was CLOSE TO 90. NOBODY KNEW
30:11how old she was.
30:16If I could show you a picture, it's
30:18beautiful.
30:19For them, she would preach on the buses.
30:22She would preach in the streets.
30:24She would get guys and ladies in the
30:26church, people that said, "I'm not going
30:28to the altar. I don't need it." Big old
30:30tatted gang guys.
30:33She would wag that old crinkly wrinkly
30:35finger in their face.
30:38They would say, "No, you're going to go
30:40to hell."
30:42But Jesus loves you
30:44>> and you can find him today. Pretty soon
30:47she's got him by the hand.
30:50This is what I loved.
30:52If I was preaching or or whatever, if I
30:54was up on the altar, people are starting
30:55to come,
30:59she would bring the person and then she
31:02would look at the pastor, get them, and
31:05she's going to get somebody else.
31:11I was preaching in the park one day and
31:14this gang banger wanted to come to
31:16church.
31:17Okay? So, he came to church with us. We
31:20would go to the park at noon. We bring
31:22them back to church. Of course, you
31:25know, um we can be harmless as doves,
31:29but wise as serpents. And so I assigned
31:32some of the young people, keep an eye on
31:34him,
31:35cuz later he told me he came to rob the
31:38church. That's why he came. Either I'm
31:40going to get in that church, these a
31:41bunch of dumb people. I'mma rob some
31:42stuff and I'm going to go sell it. Okay.
31:45Right. Well, before church was over,
31:49he was in the altar.
31:52repenting of his sins. God filled him
31:54with the Holy Ghost.
31:56>> Brother Bruce Howell baptized him in
31:58Jesus name. And that would be an amazing
32:02story. But it didn't stop there. He was
32:04one of my best Bible school students
32:06ever. Like almost perfect hundreds on
32:09everything. Amazing. Very smart.
32:14Hair down to here, tattoos, drugs, all
32:17that stuff.
32:20He became a pastor.
32:24It's even more amazing. He became a
32:26district superintendent.
32:29He was the first missionary El Salvador
32:31sent sponsored for, paid for by El
32:34Salvador to the country of Honduras to a
32:37part that bordered us and they didn't
32:39have anybody there.
32:43The gangbanger,
32:44the long-haired, tatted drug dude.
32:49THE GREATEST MIRACLE GOD CAN DO
32:54>> IS TO SAVE OUR SOUL, FILL US WITH HIS
32:57SPIRIT,
32:58>> WASH AWAY OUR SINS,
33:01TRANSFORM US, AND CHANGE US.
33:08>> I've seen a thousand receive the Holy
33:10Ghost. I've seen 2,000, 3,000, 4,000
33:13receive the Holy Ghost. I've seen 200
33:15and 300 baptized in an instant. just
33:19non-stop lines.
33:22I've seen piles of crutches and
33:25wheelchairs
33:26when conference was over.
33:31Brother Elms, one of the most impactful
33:34things ever. It was general conference
33:35in St. Louis several years ago.
33:39And um my daughter and I were up and and
33:42and we were praying. We were kind of by
33:45the baptismal tank. is over to the left
33:46of the platform that year. And this
33:49person was in a wheelchair and they were
33:50baptizing people and started praying for
33:53the person in the wheelchair.
33:56I told my daughter, "Let's stay. We're
33:57going to pray." And we prayed and
33:59prayed. It was I don't know. I don't
34:00even know who was there. People kept
34:01praying and praying and praying and we
34:03stayed and we prayed and we prayed and
34:07that person walked out of the St. Louis
34:09General Conference pushing their
34:12wheelchair.
34:14They couldn't stand. They couldn't walk.
34:18What's the point of that? The point of
34:19that is God doesn't just do miracles in
34:22El Salvador.
34:24>> He doesn't just do miracles in China.
34:28>> He doesn't just do miracles in Jordan.
34:31>> He does miracles wherever somebody says,
34:34>> "I'm going to move
34:36>> toward the presence of God.
34:39I see something that is abnormal. I see
34:42something that is wow. Now it's blowing
34:45my mind. I HAVEN'T SEEN THIS BEFORE.
34:47THIS IS HOLY GROUND. I'M GOING TO MOVE
34:49TOWARD WHAT GOD IS DOING. And when you
34:52do, God will respond. I don't know what
34:57God wants to say to you today. I don't
34:59know what God wants to do for you today,
35:02but I do know that God wants to do a
35:05miracle in your life. I'm going to ask
35:08you something a little different. I'm
35:10not going to put pressure. I'm only
35:11going to ask once.
35:13Um I I don't pressure people. It's not
35:16how I work. Um but
35:20if you need Nobody move yet, please. If
35:24you need a miracle of healing,
35:27physical healing, spiritual, emotional,
35:30you've been wounded, somebody hurt you.
35:33So some somebody maybe somebody in the
35:35church had some harsh words. Maybe it's
35:37a misunderstanding. I don't know. You
35:40have a wounded spirit. you need a
35:43physical healing. Or maybe you want to
35:45stand in the gap for a child or a spouse
35:49or a friend or someone that's not here
35:53and they need healing
36:03for the elms.
36:05You and I were talking last night
36:09about some of the
36:13things from my childhood and my family.
36:22My my my mom died when I was young. My
36:25dad remarried. They got divorced. My
36:27stepmother married again. Um, she has a
36:29son
36:31who has been drugs and alcohol and just
36:38just just terrible, terrible stuff.
36:45I got a text from him
36:48between services.
36:52He said, "Can I talk to you about how to
36:57get
36:58deliverance.
37:04I've never received a text from him.
37:06We're not close. I was an adult. I was
37:08overseas when he was a child. I know
37:11him. I won't say his name. I know him.
37:13Uh I've met him. We We've had a little
37:15bit. I like We don't talk.
37:22He text me this morning.
37:27Can you help me with deliverance?
37:31Yes, I can.
37:34I can point you in the right direction.
37:39You can say what you want. That's a
37:40miracle for me.
37:44Miracles are not always the lightning
37:46bolt. It can be, but it's it's it's what
37:49God does that we cannot do.
37:54If you're here today
37:57and you need a miracle of any kind of
37:59healing, in just a moment, I'm going to
38:01ask you to come to this side. Not that
38:04this side is special, but I want other
38:07people on this side. You may have
38:09multiple needs and we can pray for all
38:11of that. But if you need healing, I want
38:14you just a minute. I want you to come on
38:15this side. I like to pray specific. I
38:19like to pray. I want to these people
38:20need healing. I want to pray for them.
38:24If you need any type of miracle,
38:26financial, a job, direction, restoration
38:30of a family, a relationship, any
38:33anything like that, just a minute. I
38:36want you to come to this side. Now, if
38:39you need both, just pick the side and
38:41we'll pray.
38:42God knows
38:45if you're here today,
38:48you've never repented of your sins.
38:52You've never said, "Lord, I need you to
38:54forgive me.
38:56I need you to cleanse me, and I want to
38:57change my direction.
39:00I want to follow you instead of going
39:03away from it's a 180." Repentance is a
39:05180.
39:07If you've never done that, you can do
39:09that today.
39:10If you've never received the infilling
39:13of God's Holy Spirit,
39:16the initial evidence is speaking with
39:18other tongues. You don't pray for
39:21tongues.
39:22Tonesues is simply a sign when God's
39:25spirit takes control.
39:28>> You don't even pray for tongues. Well, I
39:30want to speak in tonesues. You will
39:31speak in tonesues when the spirit takes
39:33control. So, don't don't focus on
39:35tonesues. But if you've never received
39:39the spirit, if you've never been
39:41baptized in Jesus name, if you've never
39:43repented of your sins,
39:46you can do that today.
39:48And I want that group in just a minute
39:52to come right up here in the front.
39:53Again, I don't want to embarrass
39:55anybody. If you don't want to come,
39:56that's okay. But I'm a preacher of the
39:59gospel.
40:01I would be remiss if I did not give this
40:04opportunity.
40:07If you need healing of any kind in just
40:09a moment, come to this side. If you need
40:12a miracle of finance, of job, of
40:15restoration, any type of miracle, you
40:17just need God to work some things out
40:19that we can't do, I want you to come to
40:22this side. If you need to repent, if you
40:24need the infilling of God's Holy Spirit,
40:26if you need to get baptized in Jesus
40:28name for the forgiveness of those sins,
40:31then I want you to come right here.
40:34Okay? I'm going to ask once. I'm not
40:36going to pressure. We're going to pray
40:38with whoever's here. If nobody's here,
40:40we'll dismiss and go have lunch. But if
40:42you need any of those things, I want you
40:45to make your way now. And I believe that
40:47God is going to do the miraculous.
40:53Praise God. Thank you to our musicians
40:55for helping us.
41:16Heat.
41:36Heat.
41:41Heat. Heat.
42:20Heat. Heat.
42:28Heat. Heat.
43:08Heat. Heat.
43:14Heat.
43:31Heat.
43:51Heat up here.
44:27Heat.
44:44Heat.