Presence Centered // A Presence Centered Life // Pastor Keenen Worrell

And I'm not talking about ignoring reality or acting like things aren't having, but I'm saying that we're so centered in the presence of God that if the economy crashes, if life doesn't go my way, if I get a diagnosis that I didn't wanna hear or I didn't think I would get, my peace doesn't crash with it. My identity doesn't crumble. My faith doesn't evaporate. Why? Because my peace was never built on circumstances. It was built on the presence of God. [00:39:41] (34 seconds)  #peaceFromGodsPresence

Everything in this world is fighting to be at the center of your life. Everything in this world is fighting to be at the center of your life. Your phone is fighting to be at the center of your life. Your job is fighting to be at the center of your life. Your schedule, your finances, your relationships, your desires are fighting to be at the center of your life. But can I tell you that they are all counterfeit centers, and leaning on them will cause you to fall? Leaning on them will cause you to fall, and they will fail you. But God's presence will never fail you. [00:25:21] (56 seconds)  #notYourPhoneNotYourJob

Presence center said I'm moving from being based on my situation to being based on the presence of God. Listen. The most powerful thing that you can do in a distracted world is to be present to the presence of God. The most powerful thing you can do in this distracted world is being present to the presence of God. Everything flows from intimacy. Everything flows from intimacy. So the question again today is what is your life centered on? [00:11:24] (43 seconds)  #presenceOverSituation

Fear centeredness steers steals our peace, and it paralyzes our witness. And you have to be careful on this one. Pastor, I'm not fear centered. I would ask that you challenge that. The decisions that you're making, are they based in faith, or are they based in fear? The things that you say, the way that you live, is it based in faith, or is it based in fear? Because if it is not based in faith, then it is based in fear. There's no either or. [00:14:43] (39 seconds)  #chooseFaithNotFear

Culture on the right, ideology on the left, fear on the right, security in your bank account, validation on your phone, and every single one of them are designed to throw you off. But there is one position right in the middle. There's one position right in the center, in the presence of God where you stay balanced no matter what comes. What is your life centered on? [00:41:08] (39 seconds)  #centeredInGodsPresence

And the Holy Spirit's job is to remind you of your new identity. So what does he do? Every time you act, every single time, you act outside of your identity, he right there. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. What you what you doing? What you doing? Yeah. We don't do that no more. No. Why you do that? Go apologize. Go apologize. Go Now you know you ain't supposed to be talking like that. You know you ain't supposed to do that. Why is you even in this house? You're not even supposed to be here. Get out and go home. [00:31:53] (41 seconds)  #holySpiritReminds

When I would skate to school every morning, I didn't stay centered on the skateboard because the road was smooth I'm front of hood. The roads were not smooth. I stay centered because that's the only way to stay on the board. Whether the pavement was was good or whether the pavement was cracked, whether it was rough or whether it was smooth, the center is still the center. Amen. And right now, this world is offering us a thousand different sides to lean on. [00:40:30] (38 seconds)  #stayCenteredLikeSkateboard

Our first question isn't what does my politics say. My question is what does the presence of God directing me on? Our security isn't found on how the world is doing and how the Nasdaq is doing. Our security is found as who is within me. Our guidance doesn't come from what we feel is right. Our guidance doesn't come from algorithms or trending ideologies. It comes from the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. [00:06:53] (33 seconds)  #guidanceFromHolySpirit

Can I tell you that our political affiliations will change? Our ideologies will evolve. Fears can multiply, but his presence is constant. It is unchanging, and it is infinitely more powerful than any earthly circumstance that we will face. As believers, as children of God, we are called to live a life that is centered on the presence of God. [00:15:30] (29 seconds)  #constantOverCircumstance

Political centeredness creates division in the body of Christ. And I gotta say it because this third service, I am so tired. Go ahead. I am so tired of the division that politics has created. It is frustrating when I see believers not acting like believers because they have centered their life on their politics instead of centering their life on God. [00:12:11] (34 seconds)  #politicsDivideFaith

Our life must be centered on and led by the presence of God. Our life must be centered on and led by the presence of God. Very quickly, how do we practically walk that out? I hear what you're saying, but what does that look like for me tomorrow? First thing you gotta do is decide that he's enough. I don't need to chase other things. I don't need to look for affirmation in other people and other things. I don't need to chase anything. The only thing that I need to rest in is that I am his and that he is enough for me. [00:26:17] (44 seconds)  #decideHesEnough

When we say when we say, hey. You know what? I am I am making Jesus. When when when I'm saying that the the presence of God is genuinely the center of my life, when we make that decision, what we're saying is, God, I trust you more than I trust my abilities. I trust you more than I trust my bank account. I trust you more than I trust my anxieties. I trust you more than I trust my tradition. I trust you more than I trust my ideology. I trust you more. [00:19:05] (35 seconds)  #trustGodOverSelf

In a world screaming for our attention, learning to hear a still small voice requires deliberate and sustained quiet. This world is yelling as loud as they can in every way that they can. You have to be attuned to be able to hear his voice. You have to be able to recognize his voice. [00:28:05] (36 seconds)  #quietToHearGod

Now centering our lives on his presence doesn't mean that we float around in robes everywhere that we go, and we just ignore everything that's going on, and when we walk past people, it's like, ah. No. No. No. No. What it means is that our whole entire life is reoriented based on what the Lord desires. Based on what the Lord desires, every decision, every expenditure, everything that we hold as truth is based on him. [00:06:14] (39 seconds)  #lifeReorientedToGod

And if we're here today and we take an honest evaluation, if you're looking over your finances, if you're looking over your decisions, if you're looking over your calendar and you say, hey, I understand and I recognize that my life is not centered on the presence of God, then today, it is up to us to begin radically reorienting our life until he is the center. [00:17:53] (27 seconds)  #radicallyReorientToday

I gotta I gotta erase the calendar. I I gotta reassess my finances. I gotta reassess my living. I gotta I gotta look at some of these people that's in my life. I gotta look at some of these people that I'm hanging out with. Why? Because now I am reorienting my life so that he can be the center. And that includes every decision that I make. [00:18:20] (25 seconds)  #reassessAndRecenter

Why? Because that's not you no more. You don't live there anymore. That that that's the you're a diff you you're a new identity. So what is happening? He's reminding you who you are. And as he reminds you who you are, you know, you get that feeling and you that feeling is called conviction. That's what that feeling is. People are like, oh, the Holy Spirit convicts. No. The Holy Spirit reminds. You get convicted when he reminds. [00:32:35] (26 seconds)  #convictionFromReminder

So this is what our life looks like when he is not the center. And then people see us, and they can't figure, like, is we saved or not? Because you said you were saved, but your mouth is telling another, your actions tell another, your finances tell another, your browser history tells another, your social media tells an we're called to live as the center, and that is our life when we begin to chase the emptiness that the world has. [00:23:38] (41 seconds)  #showNotJustSay

We spent thirteen years married to one another. We talk all the time, sometimes too much. We talk a lot. I know her voice. She knows my voice. I recognize her voice. Whether it's loud or whether it's quiet, I recognize her voice. How do I recognize the voice of God? It comes from when you spend time with him. You can learn to recognize train yourself to recognize the voice of God. How do I do that? Well, here's one place you can start right here. [00:29:38] (35 seconds)  #recognizeHisVoice

Our peace isn't contingent on outcomes. It is rooted in our proximity to him. These are examples of a life that's centered on the presence of God. And why is this important? Because in his presence is everything we need. In his presence is everything we need. [00:07:25] (30 seconds)  #peaceRootedInProximity