Keion Henderson - How Did I Get Here?

After we finish this message, you’re going to be so blessed that you’ll ask yourself the question, which is why I named this sermon, «How Did I Get Here?» How did I get here? I want you all to just-somebody just prophesy to your purse and say, «How did we get here?» Just speak to it, speak to your wallet, speak to your pocket, speak to your heart, speak to your mind. How did I get this peaceful? How did I get this happy? How did I get this tranquil? How did I get here? I was just depressed six weeks ago; how did I get here? You may be seated in the presence of the Lord. The book of Deuteronomy is written by Moses, and Deuteronomy is, according to some theologians, his farewell speech before he dies. Some refer to Moses as the «Escape Artist.» If you look at his life, he’s always getting out of something. He was born to a mother who couldn’t nurse him because Pharaoh wanted him dead; she put him in the water, Pharaoh’s daughter got him out of the water, and raised him in the house. Escape artist, escape artist-he’s always getting out of trouble. He writes Deuteronomy as his farewell speech, and God gives him the brush, and Deuteronomy is what he paints. As we look at this, one theologian says that this text, this chapter, should actually be called-it’s called Deuteronomy, but one author said it should be called «As I Really Am.» Come on! He goes on to say in this book that the reason why we should call this book «As I Really Am» is that when Moses paints the picture of Israel on the tapestry of Deuteronomy, he does it with all of the pimples, all of the freckles, and all of the crooks and all of the impurities. You cannot give an actual portrait and leave out the blemishes. He goes on to say that the reason why Deuteronomy wouldn’t work in 2023 is that most people never post pictures of how they really look. Come on, y’all, talk to me! When my wife and I were on the way to Africa, there was a lady sitting in front of me. When I tell you she took at least 37 selfies of herself, I thought to myself, «Now, it’s you. It ain’t going to change.» I mean, come on, how many of y’all ever said, «Why is it taking you so long to find your angle? You 've been with you all day long; you should know your angle!» She 's snapping and snapping, and then the picture she took, she put in an app to retouch it because most of us don’t want images of ourselves right out there that haven’t been retouched. Yeah, which is why God allowed Moses to write the story about Israel. The photographer 's job is to capture you in the best image; however, as he presents this to God, he says for the first time, " I can’t cover up the blemishes.» Because when you get where you’re going, I need you to remember where you came from. Come on, Pastor, come on, Pastor! How many people in here are always trying to erase the parts of your past that you don’t want anybody to remember? Yeah, man, you sanitize and bleach where you are without letting anybody know where you came from, but the most important thing about you is not where you ended up; it’s where you came from. How many of y’all, if you look over your life, ought to be shocked that you made it this far? Come on! I mean, how many of y’all can think of at least two times you almost went crazy, three times you almost killed somebody, four times you almost killed yourself? Now, the beauty of your life is that you never gave up; you never quit. The truth is, you have seen people buckle under the same pressure that you carry. How many of y’all have ever been through some hard stuff? I just want to know if I’m in the right place: hard stuff! I don’t care if you’re 18 or 88; you’ve been through some hard things. One of-and write this down if you don’t hear anything else I say-one of the first steps toward maturity is accepting reality. I’m going to say it again because that’s the best I got today: one of the first steps toward maturity is accepting reality. If you cannot accept where you are, you don’t deserve to go where you want to go. If I’m not good with money, I have to accept that so God can bless me with something to take care of. If I’m not good with patience, I’ve got to accept that. If I’m not good at tranquility, I’ve got to accept that. You know, some people recharge in noise; some people recharge in stillness. Everybody 's different, no matter what it is, and I’m not saying either is right or wrong, but I have to accept where I am. I have to accept who I am. I have to accept the way my mind works. I have to accept all of the trauma that brings me to the place that I’m at. So, the first step toward maturity is not forgetting where I’ve been; it’s accepting where I am and believing in the reality of where I am. Now, there are three essential elements that were crucial to Israel’s success in their conquest of the promised land, which I believe, ladies and gentlemen, are the same three things that God is requiring from us.