Keion Henderson - Forced to Fight

Today, I want to talk about this subject, and this is not the subject you’re going to know until I tell you. I didn’t want to do this; I didn’t try this, but because they tried me, I was forced to fight. How many of you don’t bother anybody, but if they push you, you fight? Spirit of the Living God, fall fresh upon me. Eternal Spirit, once again I come asking for your permission to preach. Preach, Bread of Heaven, feed us until we want no more. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. You may be seated in the presence of the Lord. Touch somebody on your way down to your seat and say, «I was forced into this fight. I was forced.»

So, once again, Moses and Israel are confronted with more trouble. I don’t even have an introduction; I’m just going to start preaching. I had one, but I’m going to skip it because, it’s like when you read the Bible-no sooner is one trial over for them than another one begins. How many of your lives have taken on that cyclical pattern where it’s just one win followed by a loss, one loss followed by a win? You don’t know how to feel because as soon as you lift yourself up, something brings you down. As soon as you think you’ve found a friend, somebody shows you they are not a friend. As soon as you think you 've found your career, you find out it was just a stop between a rock and a hard place, between history and destiny, between good times and bad times, between up and down. Somewhere between «God is good» and «I’m about to jump off a bridge,» somewhere between «I love my home» but «I don’t want to go there,» somewhere between «I’m glad that they are my children,» but «if I could go back 20 years, I’m not sure I would have chosen the same path.» It’s not that I don’t love them, but I just hate what’s happening to me. No pain will make you want to change and alter every decision that you’ve made in your entire life, especially when it’s cyclical and one thing follows another, especially when you’re looking at other people who don’t have the gifts, talents, or relationships with God that you have. You look at them, and their lives seem like they’re going well, while here you are tithing, praying, singing, and attending worship services like, «Lord, what in the world is going on here?»

I thought that when I joined this organization you call a church, my life would get better. But let me tell you, it always gets worse before it gets better. And the reason why is because we walk by faith and not by sight. God knows that if He gave you a membership number and you got benefits from day one, you would not be in the club because you love the owner; you’d be in it for the benefits. So sometimes He allows you to join the army without giving you a helmet to see if you’ll trust Him to cover your head. That 's right; it’s interesting online and in this room how many fighters are present. You don’t get it; see, church is where we give our presentation, but you are sitting next to someone who is literally walking through hell and high water at this very moment. The reason we don’t see it is that lipstick can cover it up; suits can dress it down. We come into church with our chests up because we feel good about what we wear, but if you take off the façade, Clark Kent emerges. Your vision begins to wane, and you cannot see clearly. You don’t know who a friend is, and you cannot leap a building in a single bound. You can’t be more powerful than a locomotive; you’re just lucky to get through the day.

And that’s the real reality for all of us who talk tough and act tough. The truth is we feel so vulnerable that we pretend to be strong because we don’t want anyone to know how weak we really are. So we bring gravitas and gravity, when the truth is that on the inside we feel weakness, inadequacy, and insecurity. This is where Israel is. Can you imagine how they lack confidence? They have spent the last 400 years being told they have no names, that they don’t have a home, and that they will be slaves for the rest of their lives. They have been beaten and told to build houses out of straw and stone. They don’t have a food supply system other than what has been supplied to them by the slave owner, which means they only receive food when they perform.

Is anyone tired of being in relationships where you’re only given sustenance because you performed? That you 're only respected because you performed for them, that you 're only honored because you built something for them? If you 're not building, you’re not respected. If you’re not giving, you’re not respected. If you’re not doing what they want you to do, then you’re not respected. This is where they are: they feel insecure. They have been changed from names like Azariah, Mishael, and Hananiah to names like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And if nobody told you, their names were Misha, Azariah, and Hananiah.