Father God, thank you for these men. Thank you for this time that we're able to come together and seek you, Lord God. Thank you for Mondays. Yes, Lord God. I should just come in this room, Lord God. We just welcome you, Holy Spirit. Just welcome you in this place. Jesus name I pray. Amen.

I ask everybody, everybody's doing, but the reality is like I'm sure it's about 50/50, right? Uh it's Monday and Mondays are always always something, you know, not the day itself, but it's just getting back into the rhythm of it, right? Uh I believe I, you know, I got to go up and I got to meet with the pastor of Victory Church. Uh his name, they call him Pastor Spider. Uh, Victory has a program about the same size, maybe a little bit bigger, uh, than ours, but not too much bigger. And like what God put has put on my heart, like over the over the time, over maturing, is to be able to give away everything that we do, how we do it away for free, and to be able to uh, and then to decrease so that there's not a competing theology, right? to get it to where we've talked about the apostles creed where it's just that's the focus that's the basis that's the one thing that we have to absolutely agree on and everything else is okay if we don't fully agree right revelation and geographic area takes us different places and has a different thing bubble up into us and I can get a revelation from one scripture that you read and you'll think I'm a lunatic cuz you don't get anything like that from it you know what I mean and so uh so that's why like when you look at the this book it only lists the scriptures ures. It doesn't it doesn't list theological opinion. It's literally you have a topic and then you have the scriptures that identify or try to focus on what it is to bring that to light. And then what we're going we trust is we we trust the uh testimony and the experience of whoever's teaching to be able to articulate God's vision and passion for that topic. So in reality, if you've been here about four months, you should be able to teach anything in this book. That make sense?

Now, to be anointed to teach it and being able to teach it is two different things, right? Anointing comes through the crushing. Anointing comes through the type of life that you've lived up to this point and then full surrender to God. And then as you become more anointed and you mature more and you're able to carry more weight and you're able to persevere through things, uh that that it has more impact. Today we're going to talk about power of the tongue, power of words. It's on page 36. Not in yours, Jake. You'll have to find yours. Find it in that one because it's different. It is in there, but I It's just not page 36. Uh the truth of like the power of the tongue of words. Like everybody knows that like you can come in, you can walk into a room and if uh somebody you care about's in that room and and the first thing they say is negative, it will shift and change your the entire trajectory of your day. Uh I had that happen this weekend. Uh, you know, we went up there on Saturday and everything was great, man. We listened to a great message on the drive. We had fun. We got snacks. Snacks are always fun. Uh, and uh, and so we enjoyed our trip up there and we I we were running a little bit late. We get in the hotel, I get everything upstairs, right? And this is just me sharing the testimony. For me, the testimony is so important whenever you're articulating what God speaks about you. And to know that you have a testimony today is very, very, very important. And so, I get everything up there. I get everything up in the room. I have notes. I have all this print out of all the stuff. It's pretty for me it's a pretty big meeting. You know, just the fact that I'm I I was invited to come and meet and share everything that we're wanting to to try to do to create this network of many ministries that are thoroughly connected together. And uh it was a big deal. And so I went to this meeting and it went very very very well. I was able just to share my heart and the vision and the overall vision of creating this network for men because we want to go into the prisons, right? It's not, and this is the truth, like I don't have a a real passion, like I have a passion for men being made whole and brought back to their family. I don't have an overwhelming passion to go in the prison, but I have an overwhelming passion to be obedient to the Lord. And he said, I need you to do this so that this can be in the prison and facilitate this afterwards. And so to be able to articulate that part of it is like if we don't create a network that can house several hundred men, we can never go into the prison. We're maxed out now. How am I going to go into the prison to make it available for men to come out if we don't have any beds available today? We're going to have to create unity in the faith.

So anyway, I go and I'm sharing this and it goes really well. And I go back to the hotel and as soon as I walk through the door, I'd taken all the snacks, everything up, credit cards on file with the hotel. There's cups, there's coffee, and there's water in the room. And whenever I get up there, Lupy's like, "How dare you leave us with nothing? You didn't even bring our drinks up. You left us here without anything to drink." And I'm like, there's a cup with and there's water. What do you mean? And and and and I'm like, you have plenty I said, my credit card is on down. And and then so the whole thing is like then I go down with Olivia. We walk up to the thing, you know, has little store in the hotels. And I'm like, hey, can you add this to our room? And I'm like, you see, and I So then I'm, you know, cuz it's all about words. If in that moment when she said that I was expecting her to ask how it went and instead she there was this accusation which just so you know anytime there's an accusation it's of the devil right there's one accuser of the brethren and it's the enemy and so and if any of us choose us in any circumstance you have the spirit of the antichrist in that moment. It's just what it is because the spirit of the antichrist would be anti what Christ looks like right? It would be the opposite of Christ. And so her word instantly sets in motion this thing that's like I'm all I always do for you. How could you accuse me of leaving you here? Do you see what I'm saying? And that one word set a thing in motion that lasted about four or five hours. And it wasn't an intense argument. It was just an absolute disconnect from one another whenever we finally after weeks and weeks and weeks of real hardships have time to spend together. But it was her word then my words and our words that created this. We got to process it this morning really, really well. She was like, "At first I was mad at you and I can't really I can't really say exactly why I was that mad at you." She said, "But then whenever you didn't apologize, it made me even more mad." And then whenever I went to apologize, you pulled away from me and almost got hit by a car. That's a whole another story. And uh and then I was like, but I wasn't really pulling away. You see what I mean? And it just creates this element. So what we say in certain moments are so very, very important. By the way, being sober, Griffs is no longer good. Griffs. Everybody eat burgers at Griffs. It ain't that good when you ain't using. Not good. Just so we went I was like, let's go get Griff. I don't know why it seems so good to me until I sat down and took a bite and I was like, it's filth. I repeat this. Anyway, so that's just a testimony like a a right now testimony of how words and the and the inability to see words for what they are sometimes can create it. The responsibility was on me. No matter what she said to me, I knew as soon as she said it, all I had to do is say, "I'm so sorry. I didn't I didn't mean to, right? What can we go do?" So hard. But sometimes it's like it's so it is so hard. And and and in that I begin to operate in that spirit because that disconnected spirit is so selfish. That thing that says you didn't respond to me how you should have so I'm just going to be over here by myself. That absolutely is selfish and childish.

So I just wanted to say that our first scripture says this. From the fruit of their mouth a person's stomach is filled with the harvest of their lips. They are satisfied. The tongue has the power of life and death and those who love it will eat its fruit. For me like the those words of encouragement. I'm not I'm not uh I don't know that I'm the best encourager in certain environments. That's just my truth. Uh as far as like uh an employer, uh I don't I don't cut much slack for that. I get it right most of the time. And I'm like, well, I pay you to get it right all of the time. So unless you want me to dock what you I'm paying you based on when you fail, you need to start getting it right all the time. And I believe that's a fair response. So, not the most encouraging response, right? Because whenever we fall short, we want somebody to say, "And you'll get it next time." Yeah. And I'm like, I don't give you credit for the times you did what you were supposed to do. I believe you're supposed to do what you're supposed to do all the time. You know what I mean? And so, uh, I say that because I believe one-on-one individually whenever a man comes up to me and he asks a question or he's going through something, I think in that moment I have the ability to be a great encourager cuz I I a lot of times what God will do is he'll show me myself or show me myself in that moment and I'm able to I know what would help me in that moment and so I I'm able to give that out and and it's always rooted in part of my testimony like this is how I know what to do because I have scars from not doing the right thing in that moment. Anybody got anything? What you got? Chadwick. Talk to me about it. It's deep. I believe killed my brother with it. You know what I mean? Tear him down. I felt bad for uh for jumping on the train whenever we're talking about him not being able to do 20 push-ups and this and that, but it's like I felt bad after like I should have done I should have should not down like Fair enough. Fair enough. You know, the the best way to overcome something like that whenever we do fall short like me being defined like my maturity as a man of God isn't because I don't ever mess up again. It's because how quick my amends process begins. Like like I I wish instantaneously I would have made amends with my wife and asked for but I let it ride for like you know 4 hours until we were back to normal you know. So it's like in that moment if that's how you felt then you get with them as soon as you can one-on-one and say hey I didn't mean to jump on the bandwagon and you make whatever amends it is like hey if you need help you need somebody to work out with you need some you know whatever that amends looks like for you. So, you know, I in a place like this, it really is life or death because if somebody begins to complain about the program, if they start complaining about the living conditions, and if they start complaining about the food and they start complaining about the laundry and they start complaining about the showers, they can start complaining about the broken toilets or the toilet paper and they start only seeing this negative thing, it can come, it can influence the newest man. And then the newest man is coming off the streets, which I promise you this is better than the streets. Or they're coming out of jail and I promise you this is better than being in jail. But in the midst of a complaint, you get somebody fresh out of the prison that'll start comparing this to prison and say it's worse. You'all ever hear somebody do that? Oh yeah, you do. I'd rather be in jail than go back, fool. Get out of here. Quit taking up space, sucking in the good air. But that say that same person is the first one to grab a piece of fresh fruit when it comes out. And I know you can't do that in jail. It's like the power of what you say. Somebody's always listening to you. Somebody's always going to hear what it is that you're talking about. And so your level of encouragement, like it's so it's so crazy how comfortable people can get here. People get so comfortable so quick that they begin to forget the desperation that brought them in the door. The hardest thing for us to watch as staff is you get your phones. That's the hardest thing for us to watch. At six months, you will separate yourself from this place. When you get that phone, it's gonna happen because you're gonna have to truly choose. I would recommend no one get back on social media in any form or fashion cuz if you do, it ain't going to go well. I The most invasive thing that you need is is YouTube. You're going to go through a season where you're watching movies. It is what it is. You're going to go through a season whenever you purchase your little Netflix account or or Amazon account or whatever it is. so you can watch whatever show it is. But you better guard your eyes and your ears and your and and what it is you're bringing into your body. You better have some parameters on what it is that you're watching because even what they're saying, especially the music you're listening. Especially the music you're listening to because music is so tied to emotions. For me, emotions are part of the fallen man. You hear somebody saying something at some specific time and some specific moment and it takes you back to that one girlfriend and that good time y'all had or that one friend that's now dead and that experience that y'all had. And then you're going to be living in the past trying to get back to it. And that's why vomit tastes like food sometimes. That's right. 1 Peter 3:10 says, "For whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech." If I'm going to listen, I'm going to start reproducing everything I'm hearing. I'm not going to be able to guard what I say if I'm not guarding what I hear. You understand? If I'm get if I'm hanging around with two knuckleheads that are always talking about the world, guess what I'm going to start talking about? And those two knuckleheads are always going to have the greatest opinion of leadership. They're going to have the greatest opinion of authority. And they're going to always be trying to break down why somebody shouldn't tell them what to do. And the reality is, if you listen to what people told you to do, you probably wouldn't have ended up in this place.

Like, what does it mean? What does it mean uh somebody to keep my to keep my tongue from evil? What would it mean? I mean, that's a Yeah, don't we speak bad about people? What else? What? What about something super simple? Like we we I look for whenever it says evil, you look for sinister, right? Something somebody that's doing something like I'm tearing somebody down. What if it's just coming into agreement with someone's folly? What if it's as simple as coming into agreement with that dude that's blaming his girlfriend for calling the police on him when he beat her ass? And so you're coming in. Yeah, that she that she should have never done that. That wasn't right. Is that evil to come in agreement with those things? We want to say it's what it, but what if it's literally the best thing you can do is not come into agreement for someone next to you. Say, "Man, I think you got it wrong, man. You're going to have to dig on that." What do you got, Matt? Gossip and uh manipulation. Absolutely. Absolutely. And this is the truth. We don't even know how much of a manipulator we are. Not in the first 90 days. Because we'll come in here thinking that we were the ones done wrong all the time and not see ourselves in anything. And and the truth is we'll manipulate everything to get what we want when we want it. Whether it be a phone call, an orange, the the uh that good comforter, that better pillow. You know what I'm saying? You I love my brothers and steal their pillow. Switch them for that flat one. Y'all know what I'm talking about. What? Yeah, though. Yeah, absolutely. It's even it's just coming into agreement even with the worst stories. And look, don't think I'm above it. I fall into folly all the time cuz I think certain things are funny and then I feel like I'm kind of funny and then I get up there with Dell in them and then I'm like, we can't talk about this stuff cuz it'll be it'll be a whole thing and it'll be just crazy. So, it's it's something you're going to have to always guard against. You know what I mean? We'll be talking about Jesus, too. And then this will be funny and this will be funny and this will be funny and there'll be funny funny folly. This is what it looks like. Ephesians 4:29 says, "Do not let any unh wholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." This is what I'll tell you about this scripture. Who you're talking to may not be the people that are listening to you. It may be the people that you aren't talking to that's listening to what you're saying. Not everybody in this room's a talker. There's a lot of dudes in here that are just listeners. And whenever they're listening, they're watching and they're measuring. And and and they'll place a value on what you say by how your actions line up to what it is you're talking about. You understand? The unh wholesome thing is all kinds of stuff, man. anything like anything that doesn't build up, anything that doesn't edify, anything that doesn't glorify God, right? Any of those things can be unh wholesome and they can seem like not look, one of my the most amazing things that happened out of the last four weeks of tribulation that we went through is my wife is over there with their families and it's hard, bro. They're all smoking. They're all drinking, right? They're it's going down over there and it's like and but it's he passed away and the funeral's seven days later and so it was like seven days of her being right in the midst of it. And one of the things she said is she said, 'You know what I've realized? She said, 'I don't have anything to talk about unless it ends up being about Jesus. She's like, I just don't have anything to talk about clothes or get my nails done. No, she's like, I just don't have anything to talk about. And my truth is this, like all of those things. I I used to like cars. I don't even talk about cars anymore. I used to like other I don't even I used to like guns and all kinds of stuff and I still have some, you know what I mean? But it's like they don't dominate any kind of process in my life. The most dominant thing in my life right now is a four-year-old. She is something else, bro. She's something else. She tried to tell me the other day, "If you don't like it, you can get out of this house." I was like I was like, "Did you hear what she just said?" She's like, "I don't know where she got it." I was like, "Oh, just something else." And then, but she'll worship. She'll see. It's just the whole deal, right? I would rather be those are the things that I'm talking about. Her and what she's doing and the church, the you know the the the ministry and how we're trying to grow and our friends that we pray about that are going through. Listen, all of the people right now are going through it. You're not going through alone. Every single believer is being shaken right now. There's a scripture that said if if God didn't relent, even the elect would die. And I believe we're in the midst of that season right now because everybody I know, every believer I know, every lover of Christ, their marriage is being tested. Their resolve is being tested. Their finances are being tested. They are being pushed to the very breaking point. So that the only thing that come out of their name is Jesus in the midst of it. I'm watching it over and over and over. And it's happening in my life. And it's happening in everyone I care about's life right now, just like it's happening in your life. You're in a little more sheltered place though because you have no responsibilities. But even in that there's a shaking because the pressing is go take care of them. You can got to go do this, right? I'm not saying you don't have any responsibilities. I'm saying the weight of those responsibilities aren't on you. Who raised their hand? What? Yeah, I was just going to say the same thing like right now that's exactly what's happening, you know, with finances, with marriage, with baby, with everything, everything everything every almost like every conversation gets more twisted or something or more hard or more like so I was praying on the way here like really show me how to love without anything like no word, no nothing, no you know like and then boom this comes out and it's I don't know. It's real hard to explain, but that's exactly what I'm I'm facing every day. It doesn't go away, you know what I mean? And then the next day happens and it reoccurs again. It's like a constant thing of just sitting, you know, constant.

Last Wednesday at 2:00 in the afternoon, I got to marry my oldest daughter and a dude that she's been with for seven or eight years. And it's just this, it was me marrying him so that they would be put in order even though there's a ceremony coming in September. And my best advice to him was this. Shut up. Yeah. Just shut up. Don't try to win. Don't try to be right. Don't try to Why does she treat me like this? Don't do any of that. Like if you can just trust me for two years, you can trust me for two years and just shut up. Then God will use you from the cross to heal everything that men broke in her. And it's a real thing because we'll think things are unfair. And it's it's unfair to me. I me my I shouldn't be treated like this. I shouldn't I'm just telling you like like in the midst of it to be the greatest peacemaker. And I'm not saying shut up with arrogance. Y'all know what I'm talking about. Like you know not I'm just not going to say nothing. It's just like you you have that ability just to to not be right. Like forgive me. I ain't got nothing to say. I'm not gonna I don't have anything to defend. Just want to love you. Period. They're going to talk crazy. They're going to throw stuff. At least in my family, they might swing on you. That's fact. See, that's what it is. Just shut up. It's the hardest thing. So hard. so hard. Matthew 15:11 says, "What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them." You know, I used to use that scripture to defend smoking. Anyway, whole thing. Anybody got anything? Y'all seem just You got something, mustache? Yes, sir. Let's hear it. You got something, man. I just I know I face every excited the question always is do you It's always a question what uh to phase two. Yes, sir. Oh, there you go. You've arrived. Look at that. Ah, sorry. Well, I'm glad you've I'm glad that you get to face up. Anybody got anything? Come on. What? What do you got, Cooper? You were talking about the music earlier, right? Yeah, for sure. I like that because it's it's kind of crazy how something you think is minuscule and small as listening to a two-minute song and just like that throw you off your track. Yeah. There's a reason why we don't allow you to listen to second music. Like I saw Look, this is my truth. How How old are you? How much? 18. Holy crap. I need an older example. Uh, I'll use you. If for 18 years you've done what you wanted and you got to where you're at, you're going to have to change everything you've been doing to get something new. What we do as addicts a lot of times is we'll change what we think is bad and not listen to people that have some freedom and that we'll hang on to a few things like our music or like I was never a drug addict so whenever I get done I could probably have a beer with my family and the the reality is none of that stuff that none of that stuff's going to work. It when it describes Lucifer in scripture it it says he was the angel in charge of worship. I always wondered if the angel angels were fully subject to God, how did how did Lucifer rebel? Yeah. The only way is if it was real worship. He had a choice to worship. That's the only way. He had he was the angel that had a choice. I don't know that he had full free will like humans do, but he had to have a choice if he chose to oppose God. And so in that when they describe him, it says he had harps built into his body and he's an influencer. Listen, he he he he's outside of time and wants to distract you and kill you, right? Steal, kill, and destroy. But he needs you in order to do it. And so if he's in charge of worshiping God and now the spirit of the antichrist is I, me, and my, it means every bit of music is going to point back to you. It means emotions are part of the fallen man. So whenever I listen to that song and it makes me happy or I listen that song and it makes me sad or listen that song it makes me horny, you know what I'm saying? It makes it points it back at me. And so that's why you got to guard against it because now you're not about you anymore. You're about glorifying a real and living God. You're about having unity. And so you've got to guard against those things. And the reason why they can be it influences all of culture. thing about the the clicks whenever you were in school. All of them were based off what type of music they listened to really is what influenced them. Wow. So you look at that and then you start thinking, okay, if I want something new, should I guard against some things? If I'm supposed to be present and available right now in this season of my life, should I listen to things that help me be present and available? Check this out. Worship and praise are the only songs that don't keep you focused. Think about it. Every other song you listen to, you're focused on that song, right? But in worship and praise, you start listening to it and everything tries to take your focus. That should be a sign. That should show you there's something that's trying to oppose you in that moment. Does that make sense? Do y'all see what I'm talking about? Oh, come on. Mustache. What do you got? Even even just doing certain things like it'll take me back to whenever I was doing Yeah. I got used to doing sober just like Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. For sure. Uh, okay. So, I'm going to read James 3 1 through 3 1-2. Says this, "Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that We who teach will be judged more strictly. So for me, the reason why that what that means is it's not a judgment that comes later. It's a judgment that comes right now. He said everything I say gets twisted. Listen, it says we'll be judged on every out of word. As I'm up here teaching about words, my I'm going to be sifted today to keep my words in check to be edifying and build and to continue to build up because there'll be something that gets to automatically moved based off what it is that I teach or speak about. Does that make sense? Yeah. It says we all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. That's a that's you literally him talking trash. You know that, right? Like it's literally Paul saying there's no way. But yeah, we know you're perfect cuz people will do that, right? I never Oh, I'm always I always thought it was funny how a lot of people that are were were super religious that judge people for cussing or smoking always end up falling to sexual immorality and there's no scripture directly about smoking or cussing but a thousand of them about sexual immorality. It always surprised me just you know what right now I just I was able to see well this is what it spoke to me and not many of you should become teachers my fellow believers but not just teachers in front of people but teachers in your marriage you know what I'm saying like I'm seeing it like people like you try to teach your wife something all day long on it like you know what I'm saying well this is what this is what and this is what I'll tell you is I I realized very early on and in your marriage you need to realize very early on that she may not be able to receive from you. It doesn't. It calls you to wash her in the word, not teach her and not correct her. But a lot of time in church, they'll teach you that you need to be teaching her and correcting her. And it's not that. It's you lead her and then you wash her in the word and and and and there's a difference there and it mean and then you love her. And then we find the definition of love in first Corinthians where it says it never seeks its own. It never has to be right. It's never jealous or envious or anything else. And so when any interaction you have with your wife, if you hit any one of those markers, you're wrong. And if you think she's wrong, you're automatically wrong because it says we never re rejoice with anyone else being wrong. So I would say there's a season whenever she will approach you and she'll say, "I want to know what it is you learned at that place. I want to know why it is that you feel this way about this. Why are you so passionate about this or this or this? And in that season, you'll begin to be able to pour out. It's only been within since my wife got sick that we now do Oswald together. After five years of marriage, seven years being saved, I've known her since I was 11 years old. Literally only within the last 30, 45 days have we begun to do an actual where she's getting up early in the morning to do let allow me to lead her in a devotion. But I've never tried to press it. I've always prayed scripture over her every day before I left. I've always left my Bible and my devotion open so if she came in the kitchen after me, she would know exactly where God was leading and teaching me. But I had to wait on her to be ready to receive. And she said, and I I had led her down that path so long. The path was clear. She just don't know exactly what cut it. And that's why she's saying, "Okay, I want to know what you're teaching the men." And she's heard me speak, I don't know, a thousand times. And she loves to hear me speak. She didn't always because she didn't always receive from me. When we put bits in the mouth of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships in an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. Listen, if you're not whole, if you're not healed, that's why you shouldn't teach anyone because you're going to steer people to you. You're going to lead them to you, not Jesus. You're going to look around to see who's getting it. You're going to look around to see who's receiving from you. And then you're going to live and die by their approval instead of knowing in confidence what it is you're called to be, say, and do. You're going to be leading them to Jesus, to the feet of Jesus, guiding and credit, like careful what you're saying. Look, if we believe that everything is supernatural, if we believe everything is spiritual and in this place, I think most of us do, then I would caution you about the things that you speak because it will create circumstances and environments. If we're created in his image and he spoke the world in existence, how great do you think the words that you speak are? It means we have the ability to create. It means as I speak these things of of positivity or negativity, it creates an environment. We have the ability to shift every environment. That's why whenever you get home, it's up to you to change it from a negative environment to a positive. Because you're the one that creates an environment, not your wife, your family, your kids, they're waiting on you to create an environment that only the presence of their dad can do. And they're going to resist it just like we resist it. We resist God doing what he's going to do because we get have a lack of focus. We we get uncomfortable. We have to go pee. We get hungry. Our butt itches. Whatever it is, and we're not focused on, Lord, just come into the room. Just come into the room. We're available. We want you. We want you. We want you. Why would we expect anything else from anyone else? Who was it that uh wanted to sing in their room last week? Who was it that was talking about that? Which one of y'all it was you? Was it you talking about singing in the room in the morning? Did you start doing it? No. Chicken. He can rap. Christian rap. Hey, he can rap though. Hey, for real. For real. Are you the same one that said Cooper could rap? That wasn't me. That wasn't me. Somebody laugh. I don't know if I don't know for a fact that was pretty hard though. Do what? This is where the encouragement falls short. Yes, Cooper. I mean, yes. Uh yes, gunner, you did so good at a boy like this. It says the tongue is also fire, a word of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one's life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind. But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord Lord and Father and with it we curse human beings. We have been made in God's likeness. We who who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives or a grape vine bear frigs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. This is going to be a process. So, this is what I want to add in there. Listen, be quick with your amends. Don't try to be perfect with everything. You're going to have a minute where you say something that's not right. You're going to have, look, in this season, you're going to have a minute where you exaggerate something. You're going to have a moment where you tell a small lie. What will change and shape your maturity and your character is to instantly to whoever that is have a confession and have a moment of repentance with that person. If you're the one snapping at them, if you're the one exaggerating or you're the one lying, just if you want to change, if you want to do something different, then you're going to have to do it right now. It's not going to be some magical thing that shifts and changes you over time. It's going to be you having to have action in your own faith. And by taking action in your faith, something can change. Does that make sense? What? Uh I think it two things. I think it's interesting the metaphors they use and to describe the stuff and fire. Fire that corrupts the whole body. Well, then it also says a rudder and a bit. Yeah. So, Some good, some bad. But I also talking about like lying and small lies. I hate how easy it is for me just to slightly lie slightly the truth and and I'll catch myself, why why did they even lie about something that doesn't even matter, but I know like I'm the only one who will ever know it's that slight of a lie, but I know. And it's like, why did I even say that? And it happens happens a weird amount. It's all So most of that is all rooted in identity, right? We begin a pattern of deceit. Not most of the time because we're trying to deceive people about something negative to take advantage of them, but because we're trying to hide the boy that's wounded, the one that was cast away, the one that was given away, the one that feels like nobody cares about him. So, we create an aura or we create an identity that's acceptable to other people. And if it's not our real identity, how do we build it? How do we reinforce it? And so then over 20 years or however old you are, you now have this pattern of constantly reinforcing this dam that's going to going to come down anyway, right? And so that's why so it takes me saying I I want to know who I I want to love me enough to love everybody else and be okay with certain people not liking me. And that's why more often than not, that's why at little kids you'll still so I mean we'll not still we'll lie about something so we don't get in trouble but more often than not people in this circle we begin to lie because we don't want we're afraid if anybody really knows us they're not going to want us. And maybe that may be something too big for everybody to accept but that's the real truth. Who's got anything? What do you got? It says the tongue is firing with just wondering if I really really hurt somebody that I said yes I apologize and I say I'm sorry how do I repair that? So the the thing about making an amends, you ask, "Is there anything I can do to make this right?" And sometimes it's what I found more often than not is they'll go into what you did and how it made them feel. And as long as you end that with I'm so sorry. And you don't put a butt or I was or in that time like I was you. No, if you don't if you just end it with I'm so sorry. I didn't I didn't mean to, right? What can we go do? So hard. But sometimes it's like it's so it is so hard. And and and in that I begin to operate in that spirit because that disconnected spirit is so selfish. That thing that says you didn't respond to me how you should have so I'm just going to be over here by myself. That absolutely is selfish and childish.

Last Wednesday at 2:00 in the afternoon, I got to marry my oldest daughter and a dude that she's been with for seven or eight years. And it's just this, it was me marrying him so that they would be put in order even though there's a ceremony coming in September. And my best advice to him was this. Shut up. Yeah. Just shut up. Don't try to win. Don't try to be right. Don't try to Why does she treat me like this? Don't do any of that. Like if you can just trust me for two years, you can trust me for two years and just shut up. Then God will use you from the cross to heal everything that men broke in her. And it's a real thing because we'll think things are unfair. And it's it's unfair to me. I me my I shouldn't be treated like this. I shouldn't I'm just telling you like like in the midst of it to be the greatest peacemaker. And I'm not saying shut up with arrogance. Y'all know what I'm talking about. Like you know not I'm just not going to say nothing. It's just like you you have that ability just to to not be right. Like forgive me. I ain't got nothing to say. I'm not gonna I don't have anything to defend. Just want to love you. Period. They're going to talk crazy. They're going to throw stuff. At least in my family, they might swing on you. That's fact. See, that's what it is. Just shut up. It's the hardest thing. So hard. so hard. Matthew 15:11 says, "What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them." You know, I used to use that scripture to defend smoking. Anyway, whole thing. Anybody got anything? Y'all seem just You got something, mustache? Yes, sir. Let's hear it. You got something, man. I just I know I face every excited the question always is do you It's always a question what uh to phase two. Yes, sir. Oh, there you go. You've arrived. Look at that. Ah, sorry. Well, I'm glad you've I'm glad that you get to face up. Anybody got anything? Come on. What? What do you got, Cooper? You were talking about the music earlier, right? Yeah, for sure. I like that because it's it's kind of crazy how something you think is minuscule and small as listening to a two-minute song and just like that throw you off your track. Yeah. There's a reason why we don't allow you to listen to second music. Like I saw Look, this is my truth. How How old are you? How much? 18. Holy crap. I need an older example. Uh, I'll use you. If for 18 years you've done what you wanted and you got to where you're at, you're going to have to change everything you've been doing to get something new. What we do as addicts a lot of times is we'll change what we think is bad and not listen to people that have some freedom and that we'll hang on to a few things like our music or like I was never a drug addict so whenever I get done I could probably have a beer with my family and the the reality is none of that stuff that none of that stuff's going to work. It when it describes Lucifer in scripture it it says he was the angel in charge of worship. I always wondered if the angel angels were fully subject to God, how did how did Lucifer rebel? Yeah. The only way is if it was real worship. He had a choice to worship. That's the only way. He had he was the angel that had a choice. I don't know that he had full free will like humans do, but he had to have a choice if he chose to oppose God. And so in that when they describe him, it says he had harps built into his body and he's an influencer. Listen, he he he he's outside of time and wants to distract you and kill you, right? Steal, kill, and destroy. But he needs you in order to do it. And so if he's in charge of worshiping God and now the spirit of the antichrist is I, me, and my, it means every bit of music is going to point back to you. It means emotions are part of the fallen man. So whenever I listen to that song and it makes me happy or I listen that song and it makes me sad or listen that song it makes me horny, you know what I'm saying? It makes it points it back at me. And so that's why you got to guard against it because now you're not about you anymore. You're about glorifying a real and living God. You're about having unity. And so you've got to guard against those things. And the reason why they can be it influences all of culture. thing about the the clicks whenever you were in school. All of them were based off what type of music they listened to really is what influenced them. Wow. So you look at that and then you start thinking, okay, if I want something new, should I guard against some things? If I'm supposed to be present and available right now in this season of my life, should I listen to things that help me be present and available? Check this out. Worship and praise are the only songs that don't keep you focused. Think about it. Every other song you listen to, you're focused on that song, right? But in worship and praise, you start listening to it and everything tries to take your focus. That should be a sign. That should show you there's something that's trying to oppose you in that moment. Does that make sense? Do y'all see what I'm talking about? Oh, come on. Mustache. What do you got? Even even just doing certain things like it'll take me back to whenever I was doing Yeah. I got used to doing sober just like Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. For sure. Uh, okay. So, I'm going to read James 3 1 through 3 1-2. Says this, "Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that We who teach will be judged more strictly. So for me, the reason why that what that means is it's not a judgment that comes later. It's a judgment that comes right now. He said everything I say gets twisted. Listen, it says we'll be judged on every out of word. As I'm up here teaching about words, my I'm going to be sifted today to keep my words in check to be edifying and build and to continue to build up because there'll be something that gets to automatically moved based off what it is that I teach or speak about. Does that make sense? Yeah. It says we all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. That's a that's you literally him talking trash. You know that, right? Like it's literally Paul saying there's no way. But yeah, we know you're perfect cuz people will do that, right? I never Oh, I'm always I always thought it was funny how a lot of people that are were were super religious that judge people for cussing or smoking always end up falling to sexual immorality and there's no scripture directly about smoking or cussing but a thousand of them about sexual immorality. It always surprised me just you know what right now I just I was able to see well this is what it spoke to me and not many of you should become teachers my fellow believers but not just teachers in front of people but teachers in your marriage you know what I'm saying like I'm seeing it like people like you try to teach your wife something all day long on it like you know what I'm saying well this is what this is what and this is what I'll tell you is I I realized very early on and in your marriage you need to realize very early on that she may not be able to receive from you. It doesn't. It calls you to wash her in the word, not teach her and not correct her. But a lot of time in church, they'll teach you that you need to be teaching her and correcting her. And it's not that. It's you lead her and then you wash her in the word and and and and there's a difference there and it mean and then you love her. And then we find the definition of love in first Corinthians where it says it never seeks its own. It never has to be right. It's never jealous or envious or anything else. And so when any interaction you have with your wife, if you hit any one of those markers, you're wrong. And if you think she's wrong, you're automatically wrong because it says we never re rejoice with anyone else being wrong. So I would say there's a season whenever she will approach you and she'll say, "I want to know what it is you learned at that place. I want to know why it is that you feel this way about this. Why are you so passionate about this or this or this? And in that season, you'll begin to be able to pour out. It's only been within since my wife got sick that we now do Oswald together. After five years of marriage, seven years being saved, I've known her since I was 11 years old. Literally only within the last 30, 45 days have we begun to do an actual where she's getting up early in the morning to do let allow me to lead her in a devotion. But I've never tried to press it. I've always prayed scripture over her every day before I left. I've always left my Bible and my devotion open so if she came in the kitchen after me, she would know exactly where God was leading and teaching me. But I had to wait on her to be ready to receive. And she said, and I I had led her down that path so long. The path was clear. She just don't know exactly what cut it. And that's why she's saying, "Okay, I want to know what you're teaching the men." And she's heard me speak, I don't know, a thousand times. And she loves to hear me speak. She didn't always because she didn't always receive from me. When we put bits in the mouth of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships in an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. Listen, if you're not whole, if you're not healed, that's why you shouldn't teach anyone because you're going to steer people to you. You're going to lead them to you, not Jesus. You're going to look around to see who's getting it. You're going to look around to see who's receiving from you. And then you're going to live and die by their approval instead of knowing in confidence what it is you're called to be, say, and do. You're going to be leading them to Jesus, to the feet of Jesus, guiding and credit, like careful what you're saying. Look, if we believe that everything is supernatural, if we believe everything is spiritual and in this place, I think most of us do, then I would caution you about the things that you speak because it will create circumstances and environments. If we're created in his image and he spoke the world in existence, how great do you think the words that you speak are? It means we have the ability to create. It means as I speak these things of of positivity or negativity, it creates an environment. We have the ability to shift every environment. That's why whenever you get home, it's up to you to change it from a negative environment to a positive. Because you're the one that creates an environment, not your wife, your family, your kids, they're waiting on you to create an environment that only the presence of their dad can do. And they're going to resist it just like we resist it. We resist God doing what he's going to do because we get have a lack of focus. We we get uncomfortable. We have to go pee. We get hungry. Our butt itches. Whatever it is, and we're not focused on, Lord, just come into the room. Just come into the room. We're available. We want you. We want you. We want you. Why would we expect anything else from anyone else? Who was it that uh wanted to sing in their room last week? Who was it that was talking about that? Which one of y'all it was you? Was it you talking about singing in the room in the morning? Did you start doing it? No. Chicken. He can rap. Christian rap. Hey, he can rap though. Hey, for real. For real. Are you the same one that said Cooper could rap? That wasn't me. That wasn't me. Somebody laugh. I don't know if I don't know for a fact that was pretty hard though. Do what? This is where the encouragement falls short. Yes, Cooper. I mean, yes. Uh yes, gunner, you did so good at a boy like this. It says the tongue is also fire, a word of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one's life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind. But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord Lord and Father and with it we curse human beings. We have been made in God's likeness. We who who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives or a grape vine bear frigs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. This is going to be a process. So, this is what I want to add in there. Listen, be quick with your amends. Don't try to be perfect with everything. You're going to have a minute where you say something that's not right. You're going to have, look, in this season, you're going to have a minute where you exaggerate something. You're going to have a moment where you tell a small lie. What will change and shape your maturity and your character is to instantly to whoever that is have a confession and have a moment of repentance with that person. If you're the one snapping at them, if you're the one exaggerating or you're the one lying, just if you want to change, if you want to do something different, then you're going to have to do it right now. It's not going to be some magical thing that shifts and changes you over time. It's going to be you having to have action in your own faith. And by taking action in your faith, something can change. Does that make sense? What? Uh I think it two things. I think it's interesting the metaphors they use and to describe the stuff and fire. Fire that corrupts the whole body. Well, then it also says a rudder and a bit. Yeah. So, Some good, some bad. But I also talking about like lying and small lies. I hate how easy it is for me just to slightly lie slightly the truth and and I'll catch myself, why why did they even lie about something that doesn't even matter, but I know like I'm the only one who will ever know it's that slight of a lie, but I know. And it's like, why did I even say that? And it happens happens a weird amount. It's all So most of that is all rooted in identity, right? We begin a pattern of deceit. Not most of the time because we're trying to deceive people about something negative to take advantage of them, but because we're trying to hide the boy that's wounded, the one that was cast away, the one that was given away, the one that feels like nobody cares about him. So, we create an aura or we create an identity that's acceptable to other people. And if it's not our real identity, how do we build it? How do we reinforce it? And so then over 20 years or however old you are, you now have this pattern of constantly reinforcing this dam that's going to going to come down anyway, right? And so that's why so it takes me saying I I want to know who I I want to love me enough to love everybody else and be okay with certain people not liking me. And that's why more often than not, that's why at little kids you'll still so I mean we'll not still we'll lie about something so we don't get in trouble but more often than not people in this circle we begin to lie because we don't want we're afraid if anybody really knows us they're not going to want us. And maybe that may be something too big for everybody to accept but that's the real truth. Who's got anything? What do you got? It says the tongue is firing with just wondering if I really really hurt somebody that I said yes I apologize and I say I'm sorry how do I repair that? So the the thing about making an amends, you ask, "Is there anything I can do to make this right?" And sometimes it's what I found more often than not is they'll go into what you did and how it made them feel. And as long as you end that with I'm so sorry. And you don't put a butt or I was or in that time like I was you. No, if you don't if you just end it with I'm so sorry. I did that. I'm so sorry. I made whether you're right or wrong or other circumstances or whatever. A lot of times that will do more than you can ever imagine because you acknowledge that they were hurt. Anytime there's a butt or well, you know, I was in my addiction, it makes an excuse for you to hurt them. I read this in my pastor book. He said, "When you don't know who you are, he'll do anything to fit in with you. And if you don't know who you are, he'll give himself Anybody recovery is knowing who and who's I am. It's an identity crisis. What you got? So this is the thing. So that you got wounded then, but you're the one reounding now because the bitter roots of unforgiveness are what keep us in our addiction. You, this is the truth. In that moment, they said it, but you've let it play over and over and over because you haven't forgiven them. Does that make sense? And so sometimes you got to choose to forgive them based off who you now know. So, I don't for it's I don't have the ability to be like I just forgive them. Let them keep being a-holes. But I have the ability to imagine it like this. If they knew who I knew, they couldn't do what they're doing because I know there's no way I could do that now. Does that make sense? And so, I choose to forgive that person. And in that moment, I'm praying that they have the same miraculous encounter that I had. So, it's my best. It's the best I got. Who uh what? Uh oh. Make it quick. Yes, sir. Uh I told uh Antoine this morning, man. This morning I got hit with the guard. You know that red key? My wife drives just like that red kill. And I was like, dang, it was driving. I seen another kid. I was like, no, I refuse that. I mean, I refuse. It wasn't that. The enemy was like, "You need to get out of this every night." This weekend was heavy. Big spiritual work. And uh man, I was just sleeping. I was just better sleeping. Like this is going to be my last night. I said, "But I trust you." So I seen a Kia this morning at 5 in the morning. Ain't no Kia just driving around. But I seen one and then I see another Kia. And I said, "If I see one more guy, are you telling me to go home?" And I see another one. And I rebuke that. And then by the time I got to the house, man, I was just crying and crying. Had to make breakfast. I heard God said, "Son, I'm let me share a testimony with you. Whenever I heard an audible voice to walk to Colorado, I took off, right? I left Nehemiah in Dallas and I started walking. And I walk for I get on the highway. He has me walking the highway. It's like 8:00 in the morning, right? It's all crazy." And then I get off the highway and this is how crazy we are. I'm just trying to relate to you right now. I got up to a stop light and you know how there's the green man that says walk and the red hand that says don't. I was like, Lord, cuz I didn't know how to get to Denver. I'm like, Lord, and I had no phone, no technology, no nothing. Every time I see green, I'mma follow it cuz I know that's you. Can you hear me? Three miles later, I'm at the same damn stoplight and I'm like, Lord, I don't think this is you. Just saying. I'm just No, we're good. I'm just telling you. So, so what I learned is that's not how God talks. He actually talks. He actually speaks. It'll be still. It'll be small. And it'll be undeniable. And if he's not speaking about this, it means keep doing what he already said to do. So, because that's just that's just where it's at. Somebody else raised their hand over there. No, somebody anybody going one time. What do you got, Chad? I had a good dream last night that I was I was finally the man that I was supposed to be. I was uh I don't know. It was a great dream. I kind of remember it, but it was like, you know, my daughter, she finally, it was like when she was seven years old. She's already 15 now, but she was like, it was like I was sitting there, you know, just with her and like she felt comfortable to fall asleep in my arms. It was like it was like she was like I was like she said um like she fell asleep and I laid down her she said I miss you and I woke up I woke up saying I miss you. I miss you and I woke up and I could go back to sleep but I miss you. You need a writer. You know what I I love when I wake up worshiping. I wake up and it's coming out of my mouth and it's like because it doesn't happen all the time. It happens sometimes and it doesn't matter how intentional I'm being in my walk. I think it's just a touch from the Holy Ghost sometimes. And so, so I would write her. When was the last time you wrote her? Uh, last time I was here. I would write her. I believe that that was they said they want to see consistency. Yeah. Yeah. Just write her again. It is what it is. Uh, I'm going to pray for us. Father God, thank you for these men. Thank you for Mondays. uh in Jesus name I pray. Amen.

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Lee's Class 6-30-25

Transcription