Experiencing God: Life with God at the Center

Jan 02, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Things Have Shifted: Step Into Breakthrough

Beloved, the Father has already moved the furniture of your life—things have shifted. You don’t have to force a door open; you’re being invited to walk through it with worship on your lips and gratitude in your heart. Let the evidence of His presence steady you while your eyes and ears are opened in fresh ways. As you agree with His movement, your heart will begin to burn again with holy desire. This is not hype; it’s a gentle summons into His service for this breakthrough season. [56:26]

Luke 24:32: Walking together, they realized later that their hearts had been set ablaze while He spoke with them on the road, opening the Scriptures in a way that made God’s purposes vivid and near.

Reflection: Where do you quietly sense that “things have shifted” in your life, and what simple act of worship or gratitude will you offer today to agree with what God is already doing?

Day 2: Seek First: Freedom From Worry’s Grip

Jesus doesn’t minimize your real needs; He relocates them under the care of the Father. Worry drains strength but adds nothing; seeking first the kingdom reorders everything. You are more valuable than birds and lilies, and your Father knows what you need before you ask. As you choose His way of life first, the weight of tomorrow lifts and today becomes a place of trust. Seek first does not ignore responsibilities; it places them in God’s hands and finds rest in His provision. [01:42:21]

Matthew 6:25–34: Don’t be consumed with anxiety about life—food, drink, or clothing. Look at the birds; they don’t plant or store, yet your Father cares for them—and you are worth more. Consider the flowers; without effort they are more splendid than a king’s wardrobe. If God dresses grass that soon fades, He will surely care for you as your faith matures. So don’t chase what everyone else chases; your Father knows your needs. Aim first for God’s rule and His way of living, and the rest will be supplied. Each day has enough trouble of its own—don’t borrow tomorrow’s.

Reflection: What is one specific worry you repeatedly rehearse, and what “seek first” replacement practice (prayer, Scripture meditation, or worship) will you use the next time it resurfaces?

Day 3: Reorder Your Life Around God’s Presence

God is not asking to be fit into the margins; He is asking to be first. “Seek first” is not a suggestion—it’s an invitation to rebuild the whole house around His presence. This often requires courageous adjustments in schedules, commitments, and even good things that have become ultimate things. As you trust Him with your whole heart, He straightens what feels tangled and shows the next step. Obedience may stretch you, but it will also anchor you in His faithful guidance. [01:49:27]

Proverbs 3:5–6: Place your full confidence in the Lord rather than your own insight. In every part of your journey, turn toward Him, and He will make the path clear and direct beneath your feet.

Reflection: Which commitment currently outranks time with God, and what exact adjustment will you make this week (in calendar, budget, or priorities) to put Him unmistakably first?

Day 4: Wait With Him: Waiting That Beckons God

Waiting is not passivity; it is worshipful readiness. The early disciples were told to wait together, and their waiting became the runway for the Spirit’s arrival. Linger in God’s presence long enough for your hurried soul to quiet down and your ears to open. Worship and waiting belong together, softening the heart and sharpening the hearing. As you wait, your expectancy grows, and heaven’s timing begins to shape your own. [01:05:32]

Acts 1:4–5: He instructed them not to leave the city but to remain until the Father’s promised gift arrived. John immersed people in water, but in a few days they would be immersed in the Holy Spirit.

Reflection: Choose one day this week to set aside twenty unhurried minutes simply to wait on the Lord—where will you do this, and how will you remove distractions so you can linger?

Day 5: God Still Speaks: Obedience Deepens Intimacy

God speaks through Scripture, prayer, circumstances, and His people—not to overwhelm you, but to invite you. Often His invitation brings a crisis of belief where faith must become action. Delayed obedience keeps the heart crowded; timely obedience makes room for deeper knowing. As you say yes, you come to know God not only by information, but by experience. In that journey, your heart begins to burn again and your steps align with His redemptive work. [02:02:26]

Jeremiah 29:13: When you look for Me with your whole heart—holding nothing back—you will find that I have been ready to be found.

Reflection: What recent nudge from the Holy Spirit (through Scripture, prayer, circumstances, or the church) have you sensed, and what specific act of obedience will you take within the next 48 hours?

Sermon Summary

A strong call rang out: things have already shifted. Not “will shift,” but “have shifted.” This is a breakthrough season for sons and daughters summoned into God’s service, and the right response is worship, waiting, and readiness. Waiting here is not passivity; it’s attentive love—like the upper room—where hearts are kindled and ears are tuned. From the start, the focus is relational nearness to the living God who still speaks, moves, and leads His people.

The new series, Experiencing God, draws on Scripture and a historic move in the 1990s that awakened this church to a daily walk with Jesus. God is always at work; He pursues a love relationship; He invites us to join Him; He speaks by the Spirit through Scripture, prayer, circumstances, and the church; His invitation brings a crisis of belief that demands faith; real obedience requires real-life adjustments; and those who obey come to know Him more deeply. This is not a study to admire but a life to live.

Matthew 6:25–34 anchors the call. Jesus addressed worry not as the main point but as the obstacle blocking us from the Father’s business. He removed the training wheels of religious predictability and re-centered life around the Kingdom. Birds and lilies are not a nature lesson but a reminder of value, care, and an invitation to grow from “undeveloped faith” into trusting dependence. The hinge is clear: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” That is not suggestion, but command—reorder life so everything flows from God at the center, not God squeezed in at the margins.

God’s will is not a puzzle to solve; it is a Person to stay near. “Trust Me, and I’ll direct you.” Expect a crisis of belief that will require timely obedience—because delayed obedience is disobedience. To shepherd this way of life, the church is prioritizing extended worship, altar ministry, prayer and fasting, intentional teaching and equipping, and renewed life groups. The invitation is simple and costly: no more delay, no more fitting God in. Encircle the Presence. Let hearts burn. Walk in what has already shifted, with Jesus at the center.

Key Takeaways

1. Things have already shifted God has moved; the invitation is to align, not to wait for conditions to change. Expect evidence of His work in days and months ahead, but begin walking now. Faith responds before sight, because the shift precedes our understanding. This is a summons to readiness and courage. [62:11]
2. Seek first, not manage worry Jesus addressed worry because it blocks obedience, not because worry is the main subject. “Seek first” reframes life from self-preservation to Kingdom participation. When God is first—not merely important—needs are reordered under His care. The heart finds rest by moving into His purpose. [102:21]
3. Move from fitting God in Many value God, but few build around Him. The command to “seek first” means re-planning calendars, budgets, and commitments so Jesus defines the center. This shift will surface absolutes we’ve made—“I won’t,” “I can’t”—and replace them with “Yes, Lord.” Love puts God before preference. [106:36]
4. Obedience requires real-life adjustments Invitation leads to a crisis of belief where theory must become practice. Trust grows as we act, and action often means costly change—location, vocation, habits, or relationships. God leaves room for a choice, but love answers quickly. Transformation follows alignment, not comfort. [88:33]
5. Know God’s will by nearness The will of God is not hidden from His friends. Draw near to Him, and He directs steps in His time and way. Revelation follows relationship; clarity often comes while obeying the last thing He said. Seek Him, and you will see His path unfold. [113:30]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[36:54] - Worship and awe
[56:26] - “Things have shifted”
[65:08] - Called to wait with God
[65:53] - Experiencing God: series kickoff
[76:08] - Why this series, why now
[84:36] - The seven realities overview
[90:26] - Matthew 6: life without worry
[102:21] - Seek first the Kingdom
[109:27] - From fitting God in to first
[112:25] - God’s will through relationship
[115:22] - Vision and spiritual environments
[121:22] - Life groups and discipleship
[125:08] - Centered lives; commissioning prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading

- Matthew 6:25–34

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Observation questions

In Matthew 6:25–34, what command does Jesus repeat several times, and what everyday concerns is He addressing when He says it?
What two pictures from creation does Jesus use (birds and lilies), and how do those pictures help the listener understand the Father’s care?
What is the central command in verse 33, and how was “righteousness” explained as a “way of life” rather than a theory (“seek first … and his righteousness”)? [01:42:21]
“Waiting is not inactivity … like the disciples in the upper room.” What does that kind of waiting look like according to the teaching? [01:05:08]

Interpretation questions

If worry isn’t the main subject but the obstacle, why would Jesus confront it first before calling people into the Father’s business (“so that we can go on with the Father’s business”)? [01:35:14]
The phrase “O you of little faith” was explained as “undeveloped faith” that can grow. How does that reshape the way a disciple views their current anxieties and limitations? [01:40:45]
“Seek first” was presented as an imperative—a command, not a suggestion. What does that imply about Jesus’ authority over daily priorities, calendars, and plans? [01:49:27]
If God’s will is known by nearness, how does “Trust me, and I’ll direct you” change the way decisions are made—especially when clarity isn’t immediate? [01:53:05]

Application questions

“Things have shifted … this is a breakthrough season.” Where do you sense a shift in your life right now? What is one first step of obedience you will take this week to align with what has already shifted? [01:02:11]
“Waiting is not inactivity … go there and wait.” When and where will you practice attentive waiting with God this week (time, place, length)? What will you do during that time to keep your heart engaged (Scripture, worship, silence)? [01:05:08]
“Seek first the kingdom … and his righteousness [way of life].” Name one concrete worry you’re carrying. What would seeking first look like with that worry—what action or choice would put the Kingdom before self-preservation? [01:42:21]
“For many believers, God is important, but not first … we fit Him in rather than build around Him.” Identify one area (calendar, budget, commitments) where you’ve been fitting God in. What specific adjustment will you make in the next 30 days to build around Jesus instead? [01:46:36]
“Delayed obedience is disobedience.” Where have you been hesitating? What is one clear, small act of obedience you can take in the next 48 hours to move from delay to action? [01:21:43]
“You do not need to find God’s will; experience God and He will show you His will.” What rhythms will you lean into this month to draw near—Scripture, prayer, listening, community—and what is the last thing you sensed God asked you to do that you can obey now? [01:53:30]
Our church is prioritizing extended worship, altar ministry, prayer and fasting, and life groups. Which one will you step into next, and when? What help do you need from your group to follow through? [01:56:07]

Sermon Clips

39s

“And this is the command, beloved, and it's the command that you'll be hearing in your hearts today. The command is, son, daughter, I need you to reorder your life so that everything flows out of our relationship one with another. I am no longer interested in being fit into your life. I want to be first. I want to be first.”

from 01:49:38

#MakeGodFirst

35s

“Seek first. For many believers, God is important, but not first. God is important, but he's not first. I'm gonna man, I'm a tell you. We we could take two or three weeks just right here. God is important, and I wanna emphasize that word important. He is important. We would say that he's important to me, but he's not first.”

from 01:44:54

#SeekGodFirst

34s

“You must make major life adjustments to join God in what he's doing. Once he rattles your cage, once he shakes your world up, you got a choice to make. And that's the amazing thing about God. He always leaves us a choice, But we must make a choice, and the choice that we're praying for is that we'll make all the necessary adjustments in our life to rally around what God is wanting us to do.”

from 01:28:24

#AlignWithGod

43s

“You know, when Jesus said, follow me, he gave no more explanation. Are you with me? I haven't started yet, so you might have to give me a few extra minutes today. But when he said, follow me, there was no more instructions. He just said, follow me. You know, I and I know they had questions just like we have questions, but his command to follow him still continues today. And he says nothing more.”

from 01:08:23

#FollowMe

46s

“but it came from this unhurried time hanging out in god's presence and a willingness to say yes. You see, when when God comes and when he envelops envelops us with his holy presence, it's not just to make us feel good. It's to spur us on to faith and obedience. What he's looking for, he's looking for your yes without question, without reservation, and immediate.”

from 01:20:59

#SayYesToGod

40s

“Well, what it is is what we wanna enter into today. And in this series, we want to enter into that place where all of our hearts are burning. You remember Jeremiah's testimony. Do you remember? He said there was like a fire inside of him. He equated it to a fire that was so deep that it was like in his very bones, And then his testimony is that he could not sit still.”

from 01:07:22

#FireInMyBones

43s

“Experiencing God begins right here today with seeking him above everything else. God's will, beloved, is not a mystery to solve. His will is found in relationship with him. Many Christians spend years trying to find God's will as though it were hidden or lost, but God has never say never. He has never hidden his heart from his people. God wants to be known. He wants to be known.”

from 01:52:06

#GodsWillIsRelational

42s

“We are always ready to move on to the next thing. But this morning when I was worshiping, I just kept hearing the holy spirit speak to me about waiting, waiting with him, waiting. You know, even in our emotions, we we get in there and we get out of there. But he's calling us into a season of waiting. Waiting is not inactivity. It's it's looking to him like the disciples looked to him when they were in the upper room. And he says, go there and wait because waiting beckons him to come.”

from 01:04:54

#WaitWithGod

39s

“God speaks by the holy spirit through scripture, prayer, circumstances and the church and we get to discover how that works. Reality five, God's invitation leads to a crisis of belief that requires faith and trust. In other words, we get to a point in this journey where our mind is blown, our world is shaken, and we gotta make some choices.”

from 01:27:09

#FaithThroughCrisis

43s

“Now, it's important to know because this work that he's doing that he's inviting us into is is predicated on love. It's not because we have to. It's because we what? We what? We want to. There is a difference between having to do something and wanting to do something. And as we take this journey, that dynamic is very, very important because he wants to move some from a have to to a want to.”

from 01:25:46

#ServeFromLove

48s

“you're worrying. I see it. How's that working for you? How's it working for you? And we all know worry does not do anything but tear us up. First on the inside, ulcers, all kinds of things. Body starts acting up all because of worry. Verse 28. So why do you worry about clothing? I mean, he keeps going, consider the lilies of the field. How they grow, they neither toil nor spin, and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all of his glories was not arrayed like one of these. He said, look at those flowers.”

from 01:38:10

#ConsiderTheLilies

42s

“And you might be saying, well, yeah. Don't I live in a natural world? And the answer is yes. But who are they talking to? They're talking to a supernatural god. And so when you put natural folk with a supernatural god, by inheritance, by birthright, it puts us in the realm of living a supernatural life, and that's what he was trying to get across to them.”

from 01:41:39

#LiveSupernaturally

46s

“That's really that's an important distinction because it doesn't mean that we don't leave live principled. It doesn't mean that we don't have principles that guide our life. It means that our life is guided by a living active relationship with God himself in which he could speak anytime in any way to us at any time. He'll never violate his own principles. That's why you can trust him. And it's a different way of living. It's a different way of living that he's calling us into.”

from 01:29:40

#RelationshipGuidesLife

33s

“This is an invitation into a way of life. A way of life. Now brace yourself. Brace yourself. Hold on to the pew because when God starts shaking your life up I'm just telling you, this is what's coming, and it's not like we can stop it. Because as soon as it's released, we then become accountable to what God is doing and saying.”

from 01:23:16

#BraceForGodsWork

35s

“Reality three, god invites you to join him in his work. So as he's nurturing that love relationship, he then gives you an invitation, and the invite comes in all kinds of ways. It could come in email, snail mail, platform, IC, you know, all these different acronyms. It can come in multiple ways, but make no mistake about it, he will let it be known to you that you've been invited.”

from 01:26:31

#JoinGodsWork

41s

“No more delay. No more hesitation. No more fear. No more fitting God in. We're going to wrap our lives just as the children of Israel, their tents encircle the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, because God wanted to visually show them that I will always be at the center of all you are.”

from 02:04:34

#GodAtTheCenter

31s

“Alright. Here we go. For many believers, God is important, but he's not first. He's appreciated, but he's not the priority. We fit him in, but we don't wanna build our lives around him, and there is a difference. Fitting God in is different than building a life around him.”

from 01:46:11

#BuildLifeAroundGod

27s

“You see, this is the implications of when we decide that we are no longer going to fit God in, but we're gonna literally reorder our entire lives around God. Why in the world would he want us to do that? It's because he's got serious plans that are part of his redemptive program that includes you.”

from 01:51:08

#IncludedInHisPlan

34s

“the first reality is God is always at work around you. Powerful phenomena. God is always, say always, at work around you. He doesn't wait to start work when you get up. He doesn't wait to start work when you show up. He's already working. Whether you participate or not, he's at work.”

from 01:25:04

#GodIsAlwaysWorking

27s

“And Jesus lovingly confronts these disciples in verse 33 and he says, seek first. In the Greek, we would call this phrase an imperative which means it's an actual command. It's not a suggestion. He is commanding the disciples into a different way of life.”

from 01:49:11

#SeekFirstAlways

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Experiencing God: Life with God at the Center

Devotional

Day 1: Things Have Shifted: Step Into Breakthrough

Day 2: Seek First: Freedom From Worry’s Grip

Day 3: Reorder Your Life Around God’s Presence

Day 4: Wait With Him: Waiting That Beckons God

Day 5: God Still Speaks: Obedience Deepens Intimacy

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Experiencing God: Life with God at the Center

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