Building a House for God’s Glory Through Generations

God calls His people back to the altar before He leads them into a new season. The altar asks the same question it asked thirty years ago: does God still have an unconditional yes? God met that surrendered yes with a simple mandate: “Build a house for my glory, keep it simple, and get busy.” That mandate gave birth to a house marked by spiritual freedom, salvation, generosity, young leaders, cities being impacted, and people far from God finding a seat at the table.

Exodus 33:15 has remained the line in the sand: “If your presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.” God’s presence is not a nice addition to church life. The cloud brings protection, provision, direction, and favor. The fire of the Holy Spirit leads God’s people through places they have never been before. God has proven faithful through thirty years of miracles, growth, campuses, provision, and open doors that human planning could not have created.

Acts 13 gives the pattern for every major move: worship, fast, pray, and listen until the Holy Spirit speaks. The Holy Spirit does not lead by recycled plans or human wisdom. The Holy Spirit orders the steps of a church and the steps of individual lives when they pursue Him. The transition from lead pastors to founding pastors has come through that same slow, prayerful process, not through pressure, scandal, ambition, or a corporate ladder.

God has called Joseph and Tash into a role they did not chase. Their yes came through wrestling, fasting, confirmation, and a shared burden for revival. The next generation carries the same DNA: presence first, worship at the center, and a hunger for living water to flow into broken lives, homes, cities, and generations. Ezekiel’s river pictures the future: everything the water touches finds healing, restoration, and strength.

The transition does not mean an ending. The transition means the same family in different roles, with a fresh grace for what is ahead. God’s plans are generational, and the passion for His house must be guarded from becoming old and crunchy. The future calls for unity, maturity, prayer, and clear eyes against the enemy’s schemes. The empty seat at the table still matters, because sons, daughters, neighbors, and people far from God still need an encounter with Jesus.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Keep life on the altar [02:42] The altar is not only for a first surrender. The altar becomes necessary whenever weariness, frustration, or uncertainty starts trying to make major decisions. God often waits for a fresh yes before revealing the next assignment. [02:42]
• 2. Follow the cloud, not formulas [09:09] The Holy Spirit does not merely bless familiar strategies. God leads through fresh direction, even when a previous path seemed successful. Prayer and fasting keep a heart from assuming that yesterday’s word is enough for today’s step. [09:09]
• 3. A reluctant yes can be holy [17:08] God’s call does not always arrive as personal ambition or instant excitement. Fear, wrestling, and hesitation can become the place where a deeper surrender is formed. A life that says yes to God’s call finds fulfillment that self-directed plans cannot produce. [17:08]
• 4. Living water must reach generations [20:17] Ezekiel’s river carries healing wherever it flows. God’s presence is meant to move beyond a room and into children, communities, and broken places. The next generation needs more than inherited language about God; it needs a real encounter with the living water of Jesus. [20:17]
• 5. Guard unity during the handoff [36:19] A baton pass can become a vulnerable moment if division, suspicion, and rumor are allowed to take root. Unity requires deliberate humility, patience, and love. Prayer protects the future by refusing the enemy’s chatter and seeking God’s purpose for His people.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:02] - A Life Placed Back on the Altar
• [03:23] - The Vision for a Different Kind of Church
• [04:54] - Build a House for God’s Glory
• [06:31] - The Presence Must Go With Us
• [08:39] - Worship, Fasting, and Hearing the Spirit
• [10:51] - Announcing New Lead Pastors
• [13:21] - Joseph and Tash’s Call to Say Yes
• [17:08] - A Generational Legacy of Faithfulness
• [20:17] - The Vision of Living Water
• [22:07] - There Is More Ahead
• [26:22] - Same Family, Different Roles
• [29:00] - The Real Story Behind the Transition
• [34:33] - Key Dates for the Transition
• [35:41] - Guard Unity and Pray for the Future

Bible Reading

Exodus 33:15
“And he said to him, ‘If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.’” [06:31]

Acts 13:1-3
“Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.” [08:39]

Ezekiel 47:1-12
“Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and behold, the water was trickling out on the south side. Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured a thousand cubits, and then led me through the water, and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was waist-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. And he said to me, ‘Son of man, have you seen this?’ Then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, ‘This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.’” [20:17]

Ephesians 4:1-3
“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” [36:19]

Observation questions

1. In Exodus 33:15, what does Moses refuse to do if God’s presence does not go with the people? What does he identify as the distinguishing mark of God’s people? [06:31]
2. In Acts 13:1-3, what were the believers doing before the Holy Spirit gave direction about Barnabas and Saul, and what did they do after He spoke? [08:39]
3. What progression does Ezekiel experience as he walks farther into the river, and what results appear wherever the river flows? [20:17]
4. Which attitudes does Paul name in Ephesians 4:1-3 as necessary for maintaining unity, especially during a significant season of change? [36:19]

Interpretation questions

1. Moses treats God’s presence as essential rather than optional. What does this reveal about the difference between religious activity that looks successful and a people genuinely led by God? [06:31]
2. In Acts 13, the Holy Spirit speaks in the context of worship, fasting, and prayer. Why might this kind of seeking guard a church or an individual from simply repeating an old plan or following personal ambition? [09:09]
3. Ezekiel’s river begins at the sanctuary but moves outward until it brings life and healing to broken places. What does this picture suggest about how God’s presence is meant to affect homes, neighborhoods, cities, and the next generation? [20:23]
4. Ephesians 4 says believers must be “eager to maintain” unity. Why does unity require intentional effort, and how can humility, gentleness, patience, and love respond to suspicion or rumor during a transition? [36:07]

Application questions

1. The altar asks whether God still has an unconditional yes. Is there a decision, disappointment, fear, or area of weariness that may be influencing your choices right now? What would it look like to place that area back before God rather than making a decision out of frustration or exhaustion? [01:14]
2. God’s presence is not an addition to life; it is the direction for life. Where are you most tempted to move ahead with your own plans without first asking, “Will Your presence go with me?” What is one practical way you can slow down and seek God this week? [22:22]
3. Worship, fasting, prayer, and listening create space to hear the Holy Spirit. What practice could help you become more attentive to God’s direction in this season—setting aside time for worship, fasting a meal, praying with others, or writing down what God is speaking? [09:37]
4. A reluctant yes can still be a holy yes. Have you sensed God inviting you into something that feels beyond your comfort, experience, or personal plan? What fears need to be honestly brought to Him, and what confirmation or wise counsel might help you respond faithfully? [15:21]
5. Living water is meant to bring healing beyond the walls of the church. Who in your family, workplace, school, neighborhood, or friend group needs an encounter with Jesus’ restoring presence? How could you make room for that person at the table through prayer, invitation, generosity, or simple care? [21:19]
6. Unity is guarded through mature words and actions. When you hear speculation, criticism, or anxious conversation about church leadership or change, how can you respond in a way that protects peace rather than spreads chatter? [36:47]