My Mess My Messiah || Pastor Mike Stansberry || 09-20-2026 || 9:15AM

Devotional

Day 1: The Worm in Good Soil – Missing the Point of God’s Provision

A child misunderstands jars of smoke, alcohol, and dirt as warnings about worms rather than invitations to thrive. Like the lame man begging for coins at the temple gate, we often fixate on surface-level needs while God prepares to rewrite our story. His provision digs deeper than temporary fixes, planting us where roots can grow. What looks like ordinary soil becomes holy ground when we receive what we truly need rather than what we think we want. [01:01:34]

They said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” (Acts 3:4-6, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you been asking God for “coins” when He wants to give you legs? What makes it hard to recognize His deeper invitations beneath surface requests?

Day 2: Chains Too Loose to Hold a Four-Year-Old’s Hand

A preschooler’s raised fist breaks darkness’ grip before he understands theology. Salvation arrives not as a theological treatise but as a rescue mission to a boy drowning in family brokenness. The kingdom comes through childlike urgency – no eloquence required, just hands reaching through smoke. Redemption slips past adult complications, finding the one who simply says “yes.” [01:08:40]

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14, ESV)

Reflection: What childlike instinct toward God might you need to recover? When did you last feel salvation’s simplicity with that much raw hope?

Day 3: Praying Deliverance Over Ketchup Sandwiches

Groceries appear on porches. Engines restart under stranger’s hands. A mother’s desperation becomes a backdoor for miracles. God infiltrates poverty not with lectures about budgeting but with surprise feasts. The prayer “give us this day our daily bread” takes flesh in mayonnaise jars and mismatched cans. Provision wears work boots and leaves no return address. [01:13:36]

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (Matthew 6:11-13, ESV)

Reflection: Where has God shown up anonymously in your lack? How does scarcity sharpen your eyes for secret deliveries of grace?

Day 4: Anointed Desks and Prophetic Rebukes in Sixth Grade

Oil seeps into particleboard as a teacher battles for a troublemaker’s destiny. A gruff prophet’s warning about leadership becomes lifeline to a boy playing class clown. Heaven’s interruptions come through substitute teachers and awkward altar calls. God hijacks detention to rewrite futures, using the unqualified to qualify the rebels. [01:20:47]

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7, ESV)

Reflection: Who fought for your potential when you least deserved it? Where might God be asking you to anoint unlikely “desks” today?

Day 5: Bulletproof Pastors and the Towel That Never Came

Ministry masks crack as leaders discover their own need for a church basement’s tears. A boxer hears cheers from the mat – not from stadium crowds but from scarred comrades. Restoration comes through popcorn ceilings and folding chairs where broken shepherds become sheep again. The house of mercy trades trophies for tear-stained carpet. [01:36:44]

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:1-2, ESV)

Reflection: When has community carried you back to your knees? Who needs you to stand in their corner when they can’t rise alone?

Sermon Summary

God’s faithfulness stands at the center of every testimony. Testimony means God wants to do it again, not by copying somebody else’s story, but by showing His goodness in another life. God sometimes answers the request beneath the request, like the lame man asking for alms while Peter and John gave him what he truly needed. God gives more than silver and gold when He gives healing, restoration, and new life.

Colossians says Christ rescues people from the domain of darkness and transfers them into the kingdom of His beloved Son. That rescue reached a four-year-old boy in Vacation Bible School, when the chains were not too tight to stop a hand from going up for Jesus. God remained faithful to the covenant long after that child failed to remain faithful in return. The Father to the fatherless showed Himself through quiet nighttime comfort, through men worshiping in church, and through people who never knew how much their faithfulness mattered.

God’s provision showed up in grocery bags on the porch, in enough food for a struggling family, and even in a broken-down yellow Matador that started after a stranger touched the engine and disappeared. God’s protection also broke patterns that had surrounded a family for generations. Alcoholism was all around, pornography became a battle far too early, and yet Christ gave a key in the simple prayer: “Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from the evil one.”

God’s call corrected a young leader who had learned to say, “I don’t care.” Teachers, prayer, a desk anointed with oil, and a sharp prophetic word turned a destructive kind of leadership toward the right direction. Water baptism then marked a real change from the inside out. The old music, old pursuits, and old desires no longer fit. The Spirit gave boldness, then Christ softened that boldness into a burden for lost people rather than a desire to win arguments.

Grace met failure when a “bulletproof” youth pastor finally cracked. The lie of being bulletproof left no room for honesty, but a house of restoration made room for brokenness, repentance, rest, and healing. God did not throw in the towel. God put people in the corner who said, “Get up.”

God continued to lead through boarding school ministry, children’s ministry, a call to plant in Skagit Valley, and even a twenty-day notice to leave a building. The testimony is still in the middle of the story. God’s favor is not proven by having every answer already in hand. God’s faithfulness remains sure when the building is gone, the next step is unclear, and His people are still waiting to see what He will do.

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Key Takeaways

1. Testimony expects God to act again Testimony is more than remembering what happened back then. God’s past faithfulness becomes fuel for present faith because His character has not changed. The point is not to borrow another person’s outcome, but to trust the same God in the middle of a different mess. [62:40]
2. God gives more than requested The lame man asked for alms, but God gave strength to walk. Human prayers can get fixed on immediate needs while God reaches for deeper healing and fuller restoration. God does not despise the smaller request, but He is never limited by it. [63:42]
3. Grace breaks patterns and strongholds Family history, addiction, and early wounds can feel like they have the final word. Christ rescues people from darkness and gives them real weapons against temptation. The prayer for deliverance is not empty repetition when it becomes a daily cry for God’s keeping power. [77:36]
4. Failure does not cancel God’s calling The pressure to look bulletproof can keep broken people isolated and silent. Grace creates a place where confession becomes the beginning of restoration rather than the end of usefulness. God’s corner does not throw in the towel on those who fall. [96:21]
5. Faithfulness holds in the unfinished middle Testimonies are often told after every loose end has been tied up. Faith can also testify while the building is lost, the future is unclear, and the answer has not arrived yet. God remains good in the middle because His faithfulness is not dependent on a finished outcome.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[60:47] - The Worm Object Lesson
[62:08] - Testimony Means God Wants To Do It Again
[63:09] - God Gives What Is Truly Needed
[65:14] - What If He Was Never Born Again
[68:58] - Rescued From the Domain of Darkness
[70:50] - The Father to the Fatherless
[73:00] - God’s Provision in Poverty
[75:42] - Delivered From Generational Patterns
[77:05] - Lead Me Not Into Temptation
[78:57] - A Leader Turned in the Right Direction
[82:34] - Baptism and a Changed Life
[88:27] - Leaving the American Dream
[92:15] - When Bulletproof Began to Crack
[94:41] - Sunrise as a House of Restoration
[99:37] - Called to the Skagit Valley
[100:47] - A Testimony in the Middle

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Colossians 1:13-14
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” [01:09:12]

Acts 3:1-10
“Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, ‘Look at us.’ And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, ‘I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!’ And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.” [01:03:15]

Matthew 6:13
“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” [01:17:36]

Observation questions

In Acts 3, what was the lame man expecting from Peter and John, and what did Jesus give him instead? [01:03:42]
What words does Colossians 1:13-14 use to describe what Christ has done for believers: delivered, transferred, redeemed, and forgiven? What do those words show about the change Jesus brings?
What specific kinds of faithfulness and provision were seen during a difficult childhood, including through the church community and unexpected groceries? [01:11:36]
In Matthew 6:13, what are the two requests Jesus teaches His people to pray when facing temptation and evil? [01:17:54]

Interpretation questions

The man at the Beautiful Gate asked for money because that was the need he could see. What does his healing reveal about God’s ability to answer the deeper need beneath a person’s immediate request? [01:03:42]
Colossians says that salvation is a transfer from the domain of darkness into Christ’s kingdom. How does this language help explain why a person’s past, family patterns, wounds, or sins do not have the final word? [01:09:12]
Jesus teaches His followers to pray for deliverance from evil. What does this suggest about temptation: is it something believers are meant to face alone, or something they are meant to bring honestly and repeatedly before God? [01:18:11]
A person who believed he had to appear “bulletproof” became isolated when he struggled. Why can the pressure to look strong make repentance and restoration harder, and what kind of church community helps people get back up? [01:36:41]

Application questions

Is there a request that has been repeated before God—perhaps for provision, direction, healing, or a changed situation? How might God be inviting trust that He sees not only the request, but also the deeper need? [01:04:18]
Christ delivers people from darkness and brings them into His kingdom. What part of your story most clearly reminds you that God has been faithful, even when you were not faithful to Him?
Are there patterns in your family, habits, or past that sometimes feel stronger than your hope? What would it look like to name that struggle before God and pray, “Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil,” each day this week? [01:18:16]
Who has quietly shown you something of God’s fatherly care, provision, or faithfulness—perhaps through prayer, generosity, presence, or a faithful example? Is there a way you could thank or encourage that person?
Where might you be trying to look “bulletproof” right now? What is one honest step you could take toward trusted Christian community, confession, rest, or asking for help? [01:33:07]
God’s faithfulness is still true when the story is unfinished and the next step is unclear. What unfinished area of life do you need to place before God, and how can this group stand with you in faith rather than rushing to easy answers? [01:41:36]

Sermon Clips

37s

“And we don't know what God looks like. And you know what's so funny? About a year ago, was like, god, I wanna give a testimony in the middle of it. You know, see, we give testimonies at the end, don't we? And then god did this, and everybody cheers. But I'm like, god, wanna give a testimony in the middle of it. And so this is my testimony in the middle of it. God's gonna do something. I don't know what it is, but God's gonna do something.”

43s

“But God did a miracle in my life on that day in flowing lake out in Snomish. All of a sudden, the music I listened to, the people I hung out with, I said, I don't wanna listen to these things anymore. No more Beastie Boys for me. I just kept looking at these things, I kept saying, this isn't for me anymore. I don't want that anymore. The goals that I had in life, the things that I was trying to pursue, I didn't want those things anymore. And the only thing I can look back on and say is, I was baptized in water and things changed.”

35s

“And I remember thinking, I don't even wanna do that. But the truth is I was so glad that I don't believe in luck. I I believe in grace. And you're in a house of restoration. This is a place of restoration, a place of hope, a place that lifts people up and says, there's something more in your life. I can relate to your story. So I was listening to you preach and tell your mess my messiah. Was like, yeah. You found the right place.”

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