The Rebuilt Life - II

The following message from Pastor Greg Laurie is made possible by some special friends of this ministry.

Pastor Greg wanted to see a special word of thanks to the harvest partners who make this ministry possible next time your online check out Pastor Greg's personal blog@blog.greglaurie.com nobody likes to win money. Not many people choose to walk away from money which their view. Pastor Greg Laurie, Susan, you have $5.8 billion in gift cards ago one claim, the reader, all gift cards fun playing all the money not so here's the Bible with cards if you will cards because the Bible is filled with promises and all you want to do them in. You take some of it and put it in your pocket you take it all when you file your tax bill the Irish to keep the tax refund for themselves. Probably not.

If something belongs to us will take today a new beginning.

Pastor Greg Laurie points out, the blessings and promises. God is made available to many of us should never take it vantage of we don't even know what they are today.

Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the king Artaxerxes. It was the leader of the Medo Persian said to be a man, that the king could trust actually had to be a man, that the king liked because he spent a lot of time with them because whenever food was served of the king.

Nehemiah either first and basically Nehemiah die the king without a vote, and it would be the cupbearer a new one. Rather, he would drink of the cup before the king would drink about. But in time he became the confidant of the king, he became the counselor to the king in many ways, he was the second most powerful man in all of the nation at this point so very successful job and is super cushy one at that. And you would want to jeopardize it but despite this luxurious life. Nehemiah was concerned about others. That's where his heart was in a perfect world, he didn't want to be in the palace.

He wanted to be in the temple.

In other words, he had the finances world has to offer what he wanted to be with God and with God's people, and he cared about them. So he asks about them. So were in Nehemiah chapter 1 starting the verse one by the way I'm reading from the new living translation late autumn in the 20th year of king Artaxerxes rain. I was at the fortress of Susa not I want to.

My brothers came to visit me with some other men would just arrived from Judah. I asked him about the Jews would return there from captivity and how things were going in Jerusalem. They said to me, things are not going well for those who return to the province of Judah are in great trouble and disgrace the wall of Jerusalem is been torn down and the gates have been destroyed by fire truck on verse seven. When I heard this I sat down and I wept in fact for days. They mourned and fasted and prayed to the God of heaven. Then I said, oh Lord God of heaven. The great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing love with those who love him and obey his commands. Listen to my prayer look down now and see me prayed day and night for your people Israel. I confess that we have sinned against you.

Yes, even my own family and I have sinned. We've sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees and regulations. You gave us dear servant Moses.

There.here are some principles on how to pray from Nehemiah principle number one of your taking the because God answered this prayer you want your prayers answered. Pray Nehemiah's way.

Principle number one you acknowledge the greatness of God. You acknowledge the greatness of God.

The diverse five again. Oh Lord God of heaven. The great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing love with those who love him and keep his commands. Oh great and awesome God I love that word awesome is still very popular is meant.

I just thought that wasn't awesome. Berger wasn't in all that was an awesome movie. Oh, you look awesome. Today we throw the word around a lot. You want to get real technical only God is completely awesome and that's what he says your awesome Lord is awesome mean to Meijer on aspiring nine I'm speechless. Lord and consider this when you see God in his greatness. You will see your problems in the relative smallness I'm not diminishing your problems because you might be here today with big problem. A big challenge something that's kinda scary, even.

But your God's bigger your God's way bigger than your problem so that's something that you should always remind yourself so you approach God the Lord hear the Almighty God give the great God, the creator God. You're the sovereign God. Why do I say that I'm just getting things in perspective. Before I even start and is this not what Jesus taught us in what we call the Lord's prayer, the disciples came to him and they didn't say Lord, teach us a killer prayer the prayer to pray in case of emergency. Give us the big one, Lord know they said, Lord, teach us to pray, that teaches a prayer.

Teach us to pray. Jesus said after this manner therefore you should prayer another way of putting it. Follow this template or pattern of prayer our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, so that prayer that Jesus taught us to pray the model for all prayer does not start with my needs. I don't say our father warning heaven. Give me this day my daily bread. No I say my father warning heaven. How would set apart be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So I'm contemplating God in his greatness. Number two. Nehemiah reminded God of his promises. He says in verse five the God who keeps his covenant did Nehemiah need to jog God's memory. Does God forget stuff know he does so what grade the Bible says God speaking your sins and iniquities will I remember no more. So he forgets our sins. Yeah, but is it different between literally forgetting things and choosing to not remember things you know so when God says he forgives our sins and forgets them doesn't mean he has you know a lapse of memory.

It means I choose to not hold that against you any longer. But he still remembers technical detail. He remembers everything I forget stuff all the time I lose my keys, I lose my wallet.

I lose I lost my phone the other day.

Look for like all day where's my phone where's my phone we lose things we forget things. God never loses anything. He never forgets anything. He is omniscient, which means he is all-knowing, so why would you remind God of something when you pray will in a way you're reminding yourself as much is your reminding God. God you promise to provide us for all of our needs. So were praying in light of that, like when a teacher gives an exam and they find that the students have learned the material that's very pleasing to the teacher and sometimes people come up to me after I spoke in safe great sermon pastor normal thank you very much one in the message spoke to your heart will great sermon pastor and there's one thing you know you're listening. I appreciate the gesture, but you say no. It's when you made this one point really spoke to me to that that brings me joy is Okies got through right half the time he know I work on a message for a long time and I love the analogy about a dog and the guy love the dog story really is that all this with dog stories.

All you remember what something I guess. But the dog story in this or but the point is is that when someone hears what you say that's wonderful and so what we say Lord I been reading your promises. And I remember your promises and I'm reminding you of your promises. That's a good thing.

See the remind us that we don't just read through the Bible we pray through the Bible because the Bible is filled with promises. Someone estimated there are 3000 promises to believers found in the pages of Scripture 3000 I don't know if the numbers accurate. If you want to go check this week and get a new number to me on my use your number for a while. Then I read the other day that there are $5.8 billion in gift cards that go unclaimed every year you know about that view of gift cards. You cannot claim tell many of you unclaimed gift cards. I have a feeling around. Think of all those gift cards unclaimed all that money not utilized.

So here's the Bible filled with gift cards if you will give cards. Geordie prayed for you to see the Same in there so many promises God has given you say, what are they won't just give you four quick points number one God says you'll never be alone in life will never be alone in life. Isaiah 4110 the Lord says don't be afraid I'm with you. Don't be dismayed.

I am the Lord your God.

I will strengthen you and I hope you will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Jesus said I will never leave you or forsake you.

Number two God will get you through whatever you're facing. Isaiah 43 to God says when you go to deep waters.

I'll be with you when you go through rivers of difficulty. You will not drown when he walked to the fire of oppression. You'll not be burned up in the flames will not consume you and pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message just a moment. It's reassuring when we read letters and emails from listeners who been helped by the ministry of Greg Loring and a new beginning pastor Greg every morning on my way home from dropping my husband at work helped me to my hardest times. I am a little boy with moderate and I lost my mom's cancer unit. My soul has been so heavy every day you help me realize that God is claiming more than anything and he will take care of the rest has been and send now let's listen to in the car. Thank you for helping millions of people just like us were so grateful to hear how pastor Greg's teachings help this young long if you have a story to tell. I hope you will contact us today. Email Pastor Greg and craig@harvest.org again, that's great@harvest.org pastor Greg is highlighting some of the rich promises of God available to believers promises we often overlook today's message is titled the rebuild life there's another one God will provide for your needs.

Give financial needs right now. Here's what God says Jesus speaking.

Matthew 633 seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added on to you and all these things is a reference to an earlier statement he made when he said don't be like nonbelievers who obsess about what they're going to wear what they going to drink and what the getting eat. Jesus is saying put God first seek him first, that all these things will be added to you. Malachi 310 God says in all the tithes into the storehouse, and though be enough food in my Temple. And if you do I'll open the windows of heaven for you brought a blessing so great you won't have room enough to take it in triumph ported to the test were put God to the test and tithing so I don't believe in tithing. While God does and everyone should talk. That's what we start as it will. I don't want to type. We don't have to talk about today what God promises that were faithful in our giving to him, he will provide for us and he even says put me to the test on this one. That's very interesting, because he doesn't say that anywhere else and also God will forgive us of all of our sins for someone needs is a book confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Okay that's for promises there's 2966 more to go claim them. And speaking of confession of sin. That's with BMI did not split verse seven. I confess that we have sinned against you.

Yes me in my own family.

We have sin we send terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses noticed the use of the word we in my own family and I have said interesting as we look at the life of Nehemiah. I don't really read of any notable sin. He had not worshiped false gods.

Like many of his fellow Israelites, but yet he says I have sin I am responsible. You know it's easy to point fingers at everyone else and say that they are the problem is that the whole world against me. I don't know why everyone dislikes me. I don't know why everyone is getting angry at me.

There also wrong. Did it ever occur to you is you that comes as a revelation to some people could be you. Why is everyone upside down with you. Why are so many people hurt by you.

Maybe if you so wanted to stop pointing the finger does. Have you ever noticed if you point one finger up three or pointing back at you say say Lord my marriage is in trouble, this lousy husband he needs to repent OR defend grateful.

Why doesn't know how hard I work with these miserable children Lord is that they want so many things to change them, change them change everyone.

Did you ever stop and say Lord change me her story about a little boy, he was sent to his room for misbehaving. He told his mom he thought it over and said a prayer.

She said very good. You should pray that God will help you not to misbehave.

He said oh I didn't ask God to help me not to misbehave. I asked him to help you put up with me. What about you changing some complaining about your wife and pray that God will help you to be a more godly husband some complaining about your husband and pray that God will help you to be a more godly wife and better parents and on it goes. Start with you. It's you and then it's we listen folks were all in this together were all in this together. Heard about two old ladies who had never flown before. They're afraid of jet plane so they found a prop plane flying to where they wanted to go in and they took their seat. There were a little nervous and suddenly they heard a loud noise. One of the ladies looked out the window.

On the other side of the plane and saw the engine had stopped. She turned to her friend and said what do we do in her friends, and I wouldn't worry about that. That's their side of the plane. Well, it will affect you to so it's very easy to say, will so-and-so would do this. Everything would be better okay so and so maybe needs to do that, but you can't control so-and-so.

So let's just start with you, we see the nation needs a spiritual awakening. True, we say the church needs a revival again true, but listen revival starts with you.

Revival is personally say what you mean by revival I mean restoring to original condition. So I am that man of that woman that God wants me to be. Yes, it's good to pray for someone else to change. Pray that God would change you prayer does changes things.

That's also true that prayer changes you and sometimes prayer changes you and you change thing so some Nigel pray Lord is actually I want you to do this job and Nehemiah prayed and God said good job buddy because you are going to be the one to bring the change through you going to be the man who will make a difference and so he called out to the Lord and we need to do the same. One would state your life is in right now you know we talk about these walls of Israel walls matter back in those days they were defensive. Of course that the Enemies out and especially the gate of the city was were commerce was done.

It was also where the elders would need to and they would make important decisions there were. They were placed of authority so they meant a lot and in our life. We have wall sort of gold around us that sometimes those walls start breaking down, you know, we compromise a little here, we compromise a little there and then the weeds start growing and then the problems start developing.

Maybe we need to go about rebuilding our own walls. Personally, maybe it needs to start with a prayer.

We just see yourself as we really are.

Listen, if you're not a Christian, let me tell your gear to state before God, you're a sinner in need of a Savior because there's nothing you can do to earn your way in the heaven. But the good news is, as God loved you so much. He sent his son Jesus Christ 2000 years ago on a rescue mission to die on the cross for your sin and to pay the price for all the wrongs you've done, then the rise again three days later you need Jesus to and even after you've known the Lord for months and years and then decades, you still need Jesus. Any Jesus every day and every night and every month and every year from your first year to your last and sometimes we start well and we just get off track and we need to recommit ourselves to Christ, and we need to rebuild broken down walls and that might be some of you now, so the closing prayer and I meant to extend an invitation for some of you to believe in Jesus for the first time and also an invitation for some of you to recommit your life to him because well the walls in your marriage. The walls in your life. The walls in your testimony there there broken down and in some cases there in rubble. But God can help you to rebuild those walls again but it starts with seeing God and his greatness.

Confessing my sin, calling out to him. Let's pray father, thank you for your word to us today and I pray for anyone hear anyone watching wherever they might be, who does not know you yet. Lord, help them to see that with a really long from life is you. They long for Jesus I pray that your Holy Spirit will convict and convince them of their need for you help them become to you and believe in Jesus name I pray for Greg Lord important prayer and if you want to make a change today in your relationship with the Lord.

Pastor Greg will help you do that before today's addition of a new beginning wraps up so please stay with us if you missed any part of today's study called the rebuilt life.

You can get an instant replay by going to harvest.org. There you can stream the program by your online or download an MP3 to hear later, or even order a permanent copy on CD again go to harvest.org or call us at 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 West Greg we have some special guests on the program today at wanted to introduce them.

Yes a good day with this are Catherine NJ Wolf and they have a brand-new book out. That is called suffer strong subtitled how to survive anything by redefining everything Jay writes our stories are glorious.

There also painful, unfair, scary, and almost always quite different from what we thought that they would be yet it seems that these parts might be the very means to which the glory is most revealed more than a decade ago on an ordinary day. Life as we knew it changed. J maybe you could tell us how life changed for you shortly were 26 at the time living in Malibu.

I was going to Pepperdine Law school. We had a six-month-old baby in discovery dream right in front of us.

Right within our grasp. It seemed to have me graduating law school and Catherine was in the entertainment industry.

We had this new baby and out of the blue. I came home for lunch kind of just so happen to come home from a little 45 minute window and during that time Catherine collapsed soup was totally healthy. No symptoms.

No family history and was rushed to the hospital and they found out she was having a massive brain stem stroke and we would soon learn that it was most likely she would not survive the day. Because of this incredible bleed happening in her brain and again there was no warning. The symptoms and family history. It was caused by very rare congenital defect called an EVM that she had had her whole life but had no warning of until that day when it ruptured and enforcing was largely insane for aneurysms on top of it around her brain stem unit was just every worst case scenario and the doctor on call. I believe I was a lawyer lawsuit in the time and not wasn't great for helping the case for him to even try to operate, you know, when I was a lawyer and yet I think the Holy Spirit just impress on his heart that he needed to get this mom a second chance to live and he did and I'm 16 hours later she came out of surgery and they have removed part of the brain they had done a lot of damage around her brain stem and her and her cranial nerves and yet they said And lift and to this day I was in 2008 and in sorghum, celebrating 12 years. Second chance at life and you know, little did we know it would change our stories forever for not just Catherine but her whole family -like design is not book is about Deborah's dog is about redefining how we see everything in it is game changing. Of course, because we know it isn't about what happens to us that really matters. It's about how we think about how we remember and how we wake up to what God is doing in the story. He's writing in our lives. Well, it's a powerful story and the way the wolves have coped and adjusted, and more than that, grown and developed through this hardship is truly inspiring.

What better encouragement for the times we're facing right now again is the book suffer strong by Catherine NJ Wolf and would like to send it to you to thank you for your investment in this daily outreach bringing hope to those who desperately needed effect. We recently saw this social media post dear Pastor Greg, I love listening to you preach and love taking notes on them to.

I'm disabled by severe pain but I'm praying to be able to be in church someday shown in orange county. I've been faithfully attending the noon service from my living room on Roku for five years is that great in your investment helps us bring hope to so many just like that who needed so thank you for your donation today. You can write a new beginning.

Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org yesterday we were talking about the importance of having a personal relationship with Christ today. Yeah, no Dr. somebody listening right now I would like to have that kind of relationship and just needs to take the next step.

Can you help them. Yes, I would be delighted to you that want to make this commitment or recommitment to Christ.

I want you to pray right now and if you mean this prayer from your heart. God will hear you. The Bible says draw near to God and he'll draw near to you. That's a step you be taking now pray this after me God. I know that I'm a sinner and I'm sorry for my sin but I thank you for sending Jesus Christ your son to die on the cross in my place though I turn from my sin and I choose to follow you this day forward as your disciple. Thank you for accepting me. Thank you for forgiving me in Jesus name I pray, amen. If you prayed that prayer and minute from your heart. God is hurt you and he is forgiven you. We have some materials that we would like to send to you at no charge that will encourage you in this commitment you've made to Jesus Christ and it's right. We call this resource collection are new believers growth packet. It'll help you get started in walking each day with the Lord to get in touch and ask for your free new believers growth packet. You can write us at a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org and click know God. Next time as we continue our study in the book of Nehemiah.

Pastor Greg brings insight on the vital role of prayer life of the believer to the next time you begin and possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God sign up for pastor greats free daily email, devotions@harvest.org