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Welcome to Redemption Church in Plano Tx. My name is Chris Fluitt and I am thrilled to share the Word of God with you today. I believe what we talk about today will change your life.
Game Changer Title
We all want to win, but sometimes the game gets away from us. When you find yourself down in the 4th quarter, you need a game changer.
A game changer is a play that changes the momentum and ultimately the outcome of the game.
In the year 2019, I think we could use a game changer.
Serving is a Game Changer
Last we told you that Service is a game changer. We told you about well known people and businesses who achieved world changing success through the concept of serving others. This game changing idea is an idea straight from God’s Word.
Let me give you examples of real life people who followed the game changing plan we are going to discuss today.
Albert Einstein
- He didn’t speak until he was 4 years old.
- He was considered developmentally delayed.
- He failed entrance exams at the age of 16 to enter a technical school.
- After eventually graduating college he worked as an insurance salesman
- He failed at that job as well… but we are all thankful that Albert Einstein never gave up. He changed the world as a theoretical physicist.
Henry Ford
- His first
business went bankrupt. - His second business had to file for bankruptcy.
- Henry Ford persevered and his third company was and is still called Ford Motor Company.
JK Rowling
- She was a single mother living on welfare, trying desperately to support her daughter.
- She bounced around from job to job, but during all that bouncing she wrote a book over the course of 7 years.
- All 12 major publishers rejected her book, but JK Rowling didn’t give up.
- She found a small publishing company that was willing to publish “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
Sylvester Stallone
- At one point, he was homeless for three weeks, living in the New Jersey Port Authority bus station.
- He was rejected by talent scouts over 1,500 times.
- At another time he was so broke that while writing a script, his electricity was turned off and he was forced to sell his dog for $25 just to turn the lights back on.
- Those lights turned back on and Sylvester Stallone finished the script for “Rocky.”
The Beatles
- On New Year’s Eve, in 1961, this fledgling group of musicians drove in a snowstorm to audition at Decca Recording Studios, they were
told - They didn’t listen, and 5 months later they met a record producer named George Martine and together they made Rock & Roll History.
Walt Disney
He was fired from his Kansas City Star newspaper job. His editor said, he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.” He then created a film studio named Laugh-O-Gram and it quickly failed. He struggled for 5 more years until Walt Disney gave the world Mickey Mouse.
There are countless examples I could give you… the truth is that EVERYONE who has ever found success has had to learn this game changing play.
Perseverance is a game changer
Perseverance is a persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.
Every person you look up to.. every person who became a champion… every person who brought a break through to the world… they all would tell you that perseverance is a game changer.
Perseverance is the difference between success & failure! Perseverance is the difference between life & death.
In World War 2 the entire world hung in the balance as Germany was committing genocide within their country and mowing down nation after nation in Europe. England braced for the German attack. They printed these posters…
Keep Calm & Carry On
The German attack came as England was bombed frequently from 1940-1945. Over 40,000 were killed in the continued onslaught, but England persisted. During an 8 month span they were bombed daily, yet they kept calm and they carried on.
They would pray to survive the bombings in the night and in the morning they would get up and go to work like it were any other day. They would take their kids to school. They would go to their jobs. They did not give up…
A year after 8 month span of daily bombings the Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill spoke at a commencement at Harrow School. He said…
“Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. We stood all alone a year ago, and to many countries it seemed that our account was closed, we were finished… But instead our country stood in the gap. There was no flinching and no thought of giving in; and by what seemed almost a miracle to those outside these Islands, though we ourselves never doubted it, we now find ourselves in a position where I say that we can be sure that we have only to persevere to conquer.”
There are times where we persevere to have some amount of success, but there are times where we must persevere in order for others to be saved. We must persevere in the face of a deadly foe. But as Winston says “ We have only persevere to conquer.”
Perseverance is a game changer
But perseverance is more than a quote from someone who experienced success. Perseverance is a plan straight from God’s Word.
James 1:12 (NIV2011) Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
Matthew 24:13 (NIV2011) but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
Luke 21:19 (NIV2011) Stand firm, and you will win life.
Not giving up. Standing firm. That is a plan from God’s Word.
Faithfully remaining committed. That is a plan from God’s Word.
Endurance. Patience. Perseverance. This is a plan from God’s Word.
Perseverance is a game changer. Are you living by God’s plan of perseverance?
We know perseverance is required… but there are 3 things that will suck the life right out of you and cause you to give up. Here are 3 things that suck..
Stalling sucks
We want to do some work and then see the immediate results of the work. But life often does not work that way. Sometimes our achievements are delayed… The farmer plows the ground, plants the seed, waters the seed… and then what? There is no immediate harvest? No the farmer has to be patient. The farmer has to persevere and keep working until the proper time to reap the harvest comes.
Galatians 6:9 (NIV2011) Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
We want to do good one time and then reap a harvest…
We want to do 1 sit up and have six pack abs…
We want to save money by skipping eating out one time and suddenly have wealth…
We want to study one time a semester and receive an A+…
God doesn’t want you to do good one time… He wants to continually do good. He wants you to not grow weary in doing good.
If you will keep doing good, the proper time will come.
You have been working hard… the proper time is coming.
You have been praying and worshipping… the proper time is coming.
You have been studying and preparing… the proper time is coming.
When the proper time comes you will reap. When the proper time comes you will realize that you weren’t ever stalled… you were waiting for the right timing.
Stalling reveals the right timing
Struggling sucks
There are times where it is so difficult to achieve. There are times where you are working your guts out but accomplishing little. There are days where you try to solve a problem only to uncover 3 more problems. There are instances where things happen to you that you don’t deserve… people lie about you, people unfairly judge, circumstances out of your control wreck everything… The struggle sucks… but God Word says this…
James 1:2 (NIV2011) Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
You need to reconsider your struggle. Consider it pure joy… why?
James 1:3 (NIV2011) because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.
The struggle is not easy, but the struggle produces.
Struggling produces
Why did you decide to go to school? To produce an education.
Why did you decide to apply for the promotion? To produce a career.
You are working in order to produce. Well guess what!? The struggle you hate so much and try to avoid… the struggle you pray for God to remove… The struggle produces perseverance.
The struggle is good for you!
James 1:4 (NIV2011) Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
If you will just let perseverance finish it’s work… you will be lacking less on the other side of your struggle.
Struggling produces.
Suffering sucks
We can’t stand pain. It is built within us to avoid pain & suffering. It is easy to give up during times of suffering, but God’s words says this…
Romans 5:3 (NIV2011) …we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
Romans 5:4 (NIV2011) perseverance, character; and character, hope.
Suffering produces perseverance. Perseverance produces character.
There is a better you, a stronger you, a wiser you, a more talented and equipped you on the other side of your suffering. Let your perseverance produce character.
Then let this Godly character produce hope.
When you are in the suffering, hope is one thing you feel like you don’t have… but if you will persevere in the suffering you will end up with hope.
Suffering gives way to character & hope
Perseverance is a game changer.
- It doesn’t matter what your new year resolution is if you don’t have the perseverance to see it through.
- It doesn’t matter the calling of God on your life if you don’t have the perseverance to walk in the calling.
- It doesn’t matter what your strengths and abilities are if you don’t have the perseverance to continue when times grow difficult.
It came to pass
It came to pass is a phrase that is uttered of 1000 times in your Bible. There was a time that came… and then it passed. I know this may not seem like a huge revelation but here it is… Every moment comes to pass.
There are difficult moments. But those moments come to pass.
Through God’s strength, the moment will have come and will have passed, but you will still be standing. Not only will you be standing… but a better you will be standing after it comes to pass. BUT YOU MUST PERSEVERE!
Perseverance is a Kingdom concept. Who better than Jesus showed us how to persevere.
Hebrews 12:1 (NIV2011) Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,
Hebrews 12:2 (NIV2011) fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:3 (NIV2011) Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Consider Him…
- In our stalling we don’t consider Him enough… in our struggle… in our suffering.
- If you are growing weary and losing heart I think you may not be considering Jesus.
- What if Jesus had not persevered in the garden?
- What if Jesus had given up as He was being beaten?
- It would have been so much easier to just given up before Pilate, Herod, or the Sanhedrin.
- What if He didn’t carry that cross.. What if he didn’t refuse the pain numbing drink..
- What if He didn’t lay down His life for us? What if He didn’t shed His blood for us?
- consider Him who endured…
Is Jesus your rally cry? We can do this. Jesus did this.