Hiccups and hang ups

Devotional

Day 1: Releasing the Fruit to Walk Free

When we cling to past hurts or failures, we trap ourselves like the monkey gripping fruit in a jar. Freedom comes not through force but surrender—opening our hands to receive what God is doing now. The past may hold real pain, but resurrection begins when we stop defining ourselves by what’s behind us. God’s new work often feels vulnerable, like loosening a fist, but it’s the only path to unhindered purpose. What weight are you carrying that Christ already bore? [29:15]

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:18-19, ESV)

Reflection: What specific hurt or regret have you been gripping like the monkey’s fruit? How might opening your hands to God’s new work shift your focus from survival to freedom?

Day 2: Dry Land in the Red Sea Moment

God specializes in impossible roads—parting seas, creating streams in deserts, resurrecting dead dreams. Like the Israelites trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea, our panic often blinds us to the miracle already in motion. Wilderness seasons don’t mean God’s absence but His invitation to watch Him fight. The way forward isn’t about avoiding storms but walking through them on ground He solidifies. [50:55]

“Moses answered the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.’” (Exodus 14:13-14, ESV)

Reflection: Where are you staring at an impassable “Red Sea” instead of anticipating God’s path? What practical step could “standing still” in trust look like today?

Day 3: Bell Peppers and God’s Timetable

New growth often hides underground before breaking through. Like waiting for bell peppers to sprout after planting seeds, God’s timing requires patience with the process. His “now” doesn’t always mean instant fixes but assured momentum—roots deepening before harvest. Delays aren’t denials. Every trial watered with perseverance grows resilience. [39:12]

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9, ESV)

Reflection: What “seed” have you planted that feels buried? How might trusting God’s growth timetable change your frustration into expectancy?

Day 4: From Hired Servant to Beloved Son

The prodigal son returned expecting punishment but received a feast. Like him, we often approach God as employees earning wages rather than children embraced. Our past mistakes shrink when we accept our identity as heirs, not hired help. Grace isn’t a paycheck—it’s the Father running to meet us in rags and clothing us in dignity. [01:05:20]

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” (Luke 15:20, ESV)

Reflection: Where do you still relate to God like a nervous employee instead of a confident child? How might embracing sonship shift your prayers from bargaining to resting?

Day 5: Straining Forward, Not Staring Back

Paul’s past as a persecutor didn’t disqualify him—it showcased grace. Like an athlete leaning into the finish line, spiritual growth requires straining toward Christ’s call, not rehearsing old failures. Forward motion happens when we release yesterday’s weights and fix our eyes on the “prize” of knowing Him. The rearview mirror makes a poor compass. [01:07:36]

“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14, ESV)

Reflection: What “old identity” tape plays in your mind? What one action today could embody “straining forward” instead of backward?

Sermon Summary

Isaiah 43 tells God’s people, “Forget the former things. Do not dwell in the past.” The text does not pretend the past never happened, but it refuses to let the past become a place where a person builds a house and stays. A hiccup or a hangup can be a hurt, a failure, a betrayal, a fear, or some old wound that keeps grabbing at the present. The 100-foot extension cord may have the ability to go the whole distance, but if it gets hung up at 50 feet, it cannot reach where it was meant to go until that hangup is dealt with.

John 10:10 shows the enemy’s work plainly. The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy, and he steals peace, joy, freedom, and even the future God has for a life. Christ comes so a person may have life, and not just life, but life to the full. Between empty and full there is a big difference, and God wants his people free enough to walk in that fullness.

The monkey with his hand in the jar shows how bondage can work. The fruit in the hand keeps the monkey trapped, but the trap only holds as long as he refuses to let go. Hurts, anger, guilt, and fear can be held the same way. A person may have the right to be angry, but anger and happiness cannot rule the heart at the same time.

Isaiah 43 also says, “See, I am doing a new thing.” God does not say he might work one day. God says, “I am,” meaning he is working right now, even when nothing can be seen yet. Like a seed that springs up before fruit appears, God’s work has a timetable that does not always match human impatience.

Israel at the Red Sea shows that God can make a way where there is no way. Pharaoh stood behind them, the sea stood before them, and fear made Egypt look safer than freedom. Moses told them, “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm.” God did not always remove the wilderness, but God made a way through it.

The prodigal son shows that failure does not have to become identity. The son expected servant treatment, but the father restored him as a son. Paul also refused to let yesterday control today’s obedience. Freedom requires releasing pain, guilt, and fear, because God is still restoring, still healing, still opening doors, and still writing the story.

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Key Takeaways

1. The past is not prison. Isaiah’s command not to dwell in the past means the past cannot become a permanent residence. Pain may have been real, and failure may have been serious, but neither one has the right to define the whole future. God calls a person to live in the day he has made, not to keep renting a room in yesterday. [32:44]
2. God works before it appears. The words “I am doing a new thing” put God’s work in the present tense. A believer may not see the fruit yet, just like a seed may spring up before the bell pepper ever shows up. Faith trusts God’s process while impatience keeps demanding instant proof. [37:25]
3. Fear can pull backward. Israel wanted freedom, but fear at the Red Sea made slavery sound safe again. The unknown future can feel scarier than a painful past simply because the painful past is familiar. God’s people must notice when fear is trying to make Egypt look like home. [48:28]
4. God makes roads through wilderness. God does not always remove the wilderness before leading his people forward. Sometimes the wilderness becomes the place where only God can get the credit, because no human strength can split the sea or dry the ground. The hard place is not proof that God left, but often the place where his presence becomes undeniable. [54:08]
5. Release what Christ forgave. Guilt keeps trying to make a person pay for what Jesus has already paid for. True repentance turns away from sin, but condemnation keeps dragging a forgiven person back to the old label. If God is faithful and just to forgive, then self-punishment is not humility, it is unbelief dressed up as sorrow.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[19:06] - Bible Proclamation and Children Dismissed
[20:59] - Hiccups and Hangups Part Two
[25:02] - The Extension Cord Hangup
[26:07] - The Thief Steals Full Life
[27:30] - Forget the Former Things
[37:25] - God Is Doing a New Thing
[40:05] - God Makes a Way
[44:11] - Israel Faces the Red Sea
[49:50] - Stand Firm and Be Still
[54:08] - God Leads Through Wilderness
[56:26] - Seeing the New Thing
[62:13] - The Prodigal Son Restored
[66:23] - Freedom Requires Moving Forward
[69:57] - Release Pain, Guilt, and Fear

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Isaiah 43:18-19
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” [27:30]

John 10:10
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” [26:07]

Exodus 14:10-14
“When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, 'Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, "Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians"? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.' And Moses said to the people, 'Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.'” [44:32]

Philippians 3:13-14
“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” [01:07:18]

Luke 15:17-20
“But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' And he arose and came to his father.” [01:03:13]

Observation questions

In Isaiah 43:18-19, what commands and promises appear side by side, and what “new thing” does God say he is doing? [37:25]
In Exodus 14:10-14, what were the Israelites looking at, what did they say out of fear, and how did Moses respond to them? [49:50]
In John 10:10, what two very different missions are described for the thief and for Christ? [26:07]
In Luke 15:17-20, how did the younger son describe himself before returning home, and what kind of treatment was he expecting from his father? [01:05:20]

Interpretation questions

Isaiah says, “Remember not the former things,” while Paul says, “forgetting what lies behind.” How can a person remember the past as something real without letting it become the place where identity and future get stuck? [32:44]
God says, “I am doing a new thing.” What does that present-tense promise mean for a person who cannot yet see any visible change in the middle of a hard season? [38:04]
Israel had prayed for freedom, yet fear made slavery sound safer than the wilderness. Why does the familiar past sometimes feel safer than the freedom God is leading a person into? [48:28]
The prodigal son expected servant treatment, yet the father received him as a son. What does that show about the difference between how failure sees a person and how grace sees a person? [01:05:24]

Application questions

What is one “hangup” that may still be catching on your life right now—an old hurt, a failure, a fear, or a bitter memory? How is it affecting the way you respond to people or situations today? [25:02]
Is there a place where anger feels justified, but it is also keeping joy and peace from growing? What would it look like to loosen your grip instead of holding that offense tighter? [33:48]
Where does fear make the past look safer than obedience? Is there an area where the heart is tempted to go back to “Egypt” simply because it feels familiar? [49:25]
What wilderness are you walking through right now? Instead of only asking for immediate escape, how might God be inviting you to trust him for a way through it? [54:08]
If Christ has already forgiven what was confessed and repented of, where does self-punishment still keep showing up? What would it look like to stop trying to pay a debt Jesus already paid? [01:11:49]
Is there a closed door, disappointment, or painful ending that has made it hard to notice the new thing God may be opening now? What helps a person refocus and “perceive it”? [57:47]
Paul pressed forward instead of letting yesterday control today’s obedience. What is one simple step of obedience God may be putting in front of you this week, even if you still feel the strain of moving forward? [01:09:05]

Sermon Clips

72s

#WayThroughWilderness

“But sometimes god doesn't remove the wilderness. He makes a way through it. And again, your wilderness that you're going through is not proof that God isn't there. It's actually the total opposite. It's the proof that he will be there, that he has not abandoned you. It's the very place where you discover that God never leaves you. Right? So the Egyptians were saying, break, you brought us here to die. And look, I'm guilty of it too. Sometimes when we're getting the middle of something and it's so overwhelming, you I could scream out, god, where are you? I feel abandoned, god, where are you? But just because I feel that way doesn't mean it is that way. You hear me? Just because you feel a certain way doesn't mean it is that way. When they were in the desert, when they were between the Red Sea and Pharaoh's army, they were screaming out, God, where are you? We feel abandoned, but God was always there, and God moved in his timing.”

38s

#NoPastPrison

“God does not want your past to become your prison. Something in something happened to you in the past that hurt hurt you or you you failed in some way, fell short in some way, but God doesn't want you to build a permanent residence in a temporary season in your life. Don't stay stuck. The scripture says, don't dwell on the past. And that word dwell actually means to stay in. Don't build a permanent residence in the past where God has already taken you from and wanting to take you from.”

64s

#FreedomRequiresDecision

“So some of us need to stop seeing ourselves exclusively through what we did and start seeing ourselves the way God sees us. God's doing a new thing. He still brought the Israelites to the promised land even after they struggled, even after they fell short. So number six is this, freedom requires a decision to move forward. For me to be free, I have to, like the little monkey, let it go. To move forward, I need to make the decision, the conscious decision to let something go even as hard as it is. There's a time in our life when we have to stop saying, This is what happened to me, and quit living in the past, and we begin saying, this is where God is taking me. It's not saying that the past didn't happen to you, but you can't keep don't dwell in the past.”

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Christian Fellowship Church🔹Pastor Scott Cheramie This sermon · AI assistant

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