### Quotes for Outreach

1. "That's all you've ever gotten from life. Was a plate of problems. Oh. Some of you feel like. That's all life has handed you. Was a plate full of problems. And so it has set your expectation. Even in Christ. That all I'm ever going to get from God. Is problems. But rise up and awaken. Because the God you serve. Has more and better for you. He is with you when it rains. He is with you in the storm. He said if you go through a desert. I'm with you. If you ride through a flood. Baby I'm a walk with you. If you go through a fire. I'm a be right there with you. God is gangster. Pray for me please. God is gangster. What do I mean by that? God will ride up with you. God will ride up on your enemies. God will put a hedge of protection around you. God will stand up against your enemy. God will send you a promise. And be like what? She mine. Yeah. He mines what? Yeah I know he didn't do what he was supposed to do. Five years ago. Two years ago. But he mines. The blood of Jesus has washed. Washed them. Roll up on my people. You going to have something to contend with. Some of my people. And if they go through a flood. I'm going to be with them. If they make a bad decision. They may have to walk it out. But out of that going to come a fruit of righteousness. These people. Belong to me." [01:05:08](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

2. "See I. We're not supposed to worry about anything. But we can talk to God about everything. Some of y'all don't talk to God. Unless it's only about your spiritual life. I talk to God about everything. God I need a new computer. God. I'm telling you me. Me I'm going to use me as an example. I pray about my hair. I pray about my eyesight. When my eyes started growing dim. I said Lord. You said Moses eyes didn't go dim. Why is mine going like this? No I'm serious. Y'all laughing. What I'm trying to do is tell you. I pray about everything. I pray about dental work. Or just go to the dentist. But what I'm telling you is that. There's nothing that you don't have to carry on your own. You can pray to God about anything. I pray about grace. I pray about grades. Listen recently we had that state test. The G mass. On my back. I was carrying that. Let me tell you how much so I was carrying that. My blood pressure went up. I've never had blood pressure problems. I was carrying that. In the wrong way. And my body responded. By my pressure going up. I felt bad for about two to three days. I said I feel good. I told my mother who was here. Be careful of that. Be careful of that. So I began to contend with God in prayer. About those state results. I was going in and out. In and out. Doing the best I could this year. With those students who didn't want to read. And do their homework and all of that. And yet my evaluation. My job performance was going to be. Of the results of these. Undisciplined children. On a TikTok. All day long. And my state. My job evaluation. Is on you. I was stressed. This was the first time I've ever been. My content area would be tested. And so you know. Yeah. Anyway. Guess what. I kept praying. I kept believing." [01:08:24](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

3. "When my principle came. To me. He said. Williams. My test results came in first. I took the test last. My content went last. My results came first. He said. Williams. Phenomenal. said what? He said phenomenal. What God had done for me. What I was stressing out so much about. My preliminary scores came in. They have been the highest. In this school in years. So much so. The academic coach said. You might need to get ready. District may be asking you to come down for a job. Nobody but Jesus. So what are you worrying about? Worry about. Woo. We gonna live one day at a time. Tomorrow is taking care of itself. It's taking care of itself. It's already worked out. Number two. We gonna pray about. Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table. Anything that come to mind. Pray about it. My fingernail hurt. My God pray about it. You say God care about that? Absolutely yes. God cares about anything you care about. That's the kind of relationship you have with the Father. That's the kind of relationship you have with the Father. Woo. You mean to tell me I can pray about my retirement? Absolutely. I got a living witness up here in my mom. Raised three children. On a single mama's income. On And now she's one of the most wealthier women I know. I'm not. Now don't go up there asking my mama for no money. Don't do that. I can. You can't do that. Hold a couple dollars. Listen. We're going to pray about everything. We're going to pray about everything. The Bible says don't worry about tomorrow. But it didn't say don't plan for tomorrow. But You still can make plans. But we're not going to be worried. But Because if we worry about tomorrow. It shows that we kind of." [01:11:21](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

4. "Oh it was bad. Real bad. there was something that was going to be taken from us. And I was praying. Man I prayed about that thing so much. I prayed, prayed, prayed. It was like God said. I'm not going to work it out the way you expect. But I'm going to give you some peace. It was almost as if. Peace had came over me. I didn't even care how it turned out. That's what I'm. That's what God is saying. Once you pray. Make your supplication. That personal specific prayer request. Make known unto him. With thanksgiving. Release it. And leave that outcome up to him. I'm talking about. I didn't care how that thing turned out. Why? Because the peace of God that guards my heart and mind. Had come all over me. Worry not. Number two. Pray about everything. Number three. Cast all your cares on him. Because he cares for who? You. He cares. God cares. Number three. Think about the right things. When you're up against your stresses. The first thing I told you. That imagination will go all the way down the street. Man you get a bad report on your health. You done put yourself in the grave. You picking out a dress. What you going to. Get my dress ready for the funeral. No. But we do that. Am I right? Oh they say they going to start cutting people. You got your name on the chopping block. Ten times. But even God covers our mistakes sometimes. He will cover. He give us grace. But you'll put yourself on the chopping block. Soon as they say okay. Budget cuts. Budget cuts. I'm the first to go. No. No. And if you are. God got something else better. Think about the. Right things. Philippians 4 and 8 say. Finally brothers. Finally brothers. Talking to us. Whatever is. True. Whatever is noble. Whatever is right. Whatever is pure. Whatever is lovely. Whatever is admirable. If anything is excellent or praise worthy." [01:16:22](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

5. "Matters. Think about the right things. Be content. With your own things. Philippians 4 11 saying. I'm not saying this because I am in need. Paul says. For I have learned to be content. In whatever the circumstance. Is. Philippians 4 and 12. Says it like this. I know what it is. To be in need. This is Paul talking. He said I know what it is when you don't have enough. I know what it means. I know what it feels like. He says I know what it means to have plenty. You got no worries in the bank. The bank account is stacked. He says I have learned. The secret of being content. In any. And every situation. Whether I am well fed. Or hungry. Whether I am living in plenty. Or I am in want. He says I learned. How to. Trust God so much so. That whatever the status of my life is. I'm content. Somebody say we got some growing to do. Cause we not always content. In those kind of circumstances. Am I right? 1 Timothy 6 and 6 says this. But godliness. With contentment. Is great gain. I would like to challenge us. Let us. When we face. Stressors. That come our way. This is for me too. Let us respond first. By giving God thanks. Let's see what he'll do. When we say God. I don't like what's going on. Matter of fact I really hate it. But I want to trust that. You told me to give you thanks in this. And in return. You will give me peace. So I'm going to thank you. In your own way you do it. Whether it's the lifting. Of your hands. Or if it's the folding of your hands. You give God the thanks from the heart. When you get that stressful situation. And let's see. What God will do. Somebody say Christ. Is enough for me. My first point." [01:21:02](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

### Quotes for Members

1. "When we talk about responding and dealing with stress, how should I biblically deal with the stress that comes in all of our lives? When we're looking at this, I want you to go to Philippians 4 and 4. Philippians 4 and 4. The first thing we're going to do when we get the bad news. Sometimes bad news come out the blue. I wasn't even expecting that, Lord. I had known it in my mailbox. And went around it seven times. I declared and decreed a check. And a bill came. Some people at that church done told me wrong. We didn't. The first thing we do according to Philippians is we should rejoice in the Lord. Always. And again, I say what? First Thessalonians tells us this. It is the will of God. In Christ Jesus. That we give him thanksgiving in everything. Like that's God's known will. You get something unexpected. First thing you do. You may not rejoice. Let's be real and human in here. You're not going to rejoice first when you get no bad news. It all depends on the severity of the news. I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news. That's not going to really be my response. We going to work on that together. But I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news. But the one thing I am going to do is according to God's will. I know that's the known will of God. He said give him thanks in all things. That's in first Thessalonians. Give what? Thanks in what? Now righteous people. This is for you. This is instructions for us. We get the bad news. The first thing I want you to do after you've had your human response. Because you are human. You get up. And you say thank you God. Thank you. I don't understand it but. Thank you. I know I'm carrying out the known will of God. In this circumstance. One thing that stresses believers and people out is the thing called uncertainty. How is it going to turn out? Can I help us all out today? Charles Stanley. The beloved pastor in Atlanta. Who has gone on to be with the Lord. He has a saying. Obey God. And leave all the consequences up to him. I come to tell you this morning. That no matter what it is. You may be up against. Stressed out about. Leave the outcome. Up to God." [57:57](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

2. "Because I think we underestimate. What we really have in Christ. You know Pastor David. Said something up here. When God's spirit was moving amongst us. This morning. He said the same power. That raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Dwells. In your mortal body. That's hard to digest isn't it. Some of y'all are looking at me like. Say that again. Biblically. In context. The same power. That raised Jesus. From the dead. Dwells. In every last person. Who belongs to him. And we underestimate the power. That we're working with. And that's where growth comes in. He told us. Don't worry. Worry about nothing. He said because who of you. By the way of worry. Can change anything in your life. Worrying. Stressed out. Hair thinning. Stomach upset. Eye twitching. All because of stress. Biting your nails. Anxiety. Can't sleep. Insomnia. All of these are responses to our body. To stress. When we've carried it way too wrong. And probably way too long. Matthew 6 and 34 says. I want us to read that. Therefore. Do not worry about what? Don't worry about what's ahead. Because why? Tomorrow will what? Tomorrow got its own problems. Some of you all have used your imagination. Because the mind goes there. Let your children not come home. By the time they said they was coming home. You done put those children in the grave. In your imagination. How many? Be honest. You waiting on the police. To call you any moment. Little Bobo went to jail. Why? Because your imagination took you what? How come our imagination think the worst. Before we think the best. Help us with that. Oh God. Because some of you feel like." [01:02:24](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

3. "Don't kind of trust God. I also want to say this. Watch how you move. Model. Biblical truths. Before your family. And your children. If they see you respond to stress. In a crazy manner. With anxiety. With you biting your nails. Cussing everybody out. They're going to respond like that. They're going to respond like that. When they get an affliction. We want to be careful that we respond. In a biblical manner. I'm not saying that you won't hurt. You won't cry. You won't feel frustrated. But be mindful as a believer. Model. How you are supposed to handle. Your stressful days. Especially before your family. And your children. Philippians 4 says in everything. By prayer. And what? Supplication. Now on the screen it says petition. Let me tell you the difference. Between prayer. And supplication. Prayer is our father. This is an example of prayer. Our father which art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. You know the Lord's prayer. That is a what? Type of prayer. But a supplication. Is your personal. Specific request. Unto God. Heal my husband. Billy. Save my daughter. Shanika. It ain't in the book. Salvation is in the book. But that is your personal prayer. Request to God. That's called supplication. So once we made our prayer. And what? Specific request to God. He said I want you to top it off like this. With thanksgiving. Tell him thank you. And release that to him. The spirit of peace comes. And it garrisons your mind. Where your stress out at. And your heart. There was a time in my life. Me and my husband. When we first got married. We was having some real bad financial problems." [01:13:53](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

4. "But the Lord, the Lord himself delivers us out of every single one. There's not a battle you'll go through when you're righteous that the Lord won't deliver you from. For every affliction, there's a victory. Every single time. Come on, somebody. Amen. When we talk about responding and dealing with stress, how should I biblically deal with the stress that comes in all of our lives? When we're looking at this, I want you to go to Philippians 4 and 4. Philippians 4 and 4. The first thing we're going to do when we get the bad news. Sometimes bad news come out the blue. I wasn't even expecting that, Lord. I had known it in my mailbox. And went around it seven times. I declared and decreed a check. And a bill came. Some people at that church done told me wrong. We didn't. The first thing we do according to Philippians is we should rejoice in the Lord. Always. And again, I say what? First Thessalonians tells us this. It is the will of God. In Christ Jesus. That we give him thanksgiving in everything. Like that's God's known will. You get something unexpected. First thing you do. You may not rejoice. Let's be real and human in here. You're not going to rejoice first when you get no bad news. It all depends on the severity of the news. I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news. That's not going to really be my response. We going to work on that together. But I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news. But the one thing I am going to do is according to God's will. I know that's the known will of God. He said give him thanks in all things. That's in first Thessalonians. Give what? Thanks in what? Now righteous people. This is for you. This is instructions for us. We get the bad news. The first thing I want you to do after you've had your human response. Because you are human. You get up. And you say thank you God. Thank you. I don't understand it but. Thank you. I know I'm carrying out the known will of God. In this circumstance. One thing that stresses believers and people out is the thing called uncertainty. How is it going to turn out? Can I help us all out today? Charles Stanley. The beloved pastor in Atlanta. Who has gone on to be with the Lord. He has a saying. Obey God. And leave all the consequences up to him. I come to tell you this morning. That no matter what it is. You may be up against. Stressed out about. Leave the outcome. Up to God." [56:57](Download raw clip | Download cropped clip | Download vertical captioned clip)

5. "I want you to think on what. We got to get those minds together. Cause Proverbs 23 and 7. Says. For as we think in our hearts. Your heart is the deepest part. Of who you are. As you think in your heart. That's who you're going to be. Doubter. It started in the mind. Worrier. In the mind. Manipulator. Some of us manipulate. Who are my manipulators? You try to fix it up. So it don't go bad. Before it try to go down south. Yeah. Thank you for being honest. to manipulate it. That's fear. That's speaking forth. He says. Cast all your anxiety on him. Cause he cares for you. He says. Think on the things that are true. Your thinking will

I know this is off the script, Pastor David.

And we believe in order. Stay up here, Pastor David. We believe in order in this church and excellence.

But I want those altar workers, those ones who pray, come back up here. I feel like—I sense it. Some of you all are not assured of your salvation. You come to church, but you're not assured of your relationship with God.

This is you. By no means of shame. I don't care if you serve in this church. If you're not assured of your relationship with Jesus, I want you to come and get prayer. I want you to come up here and have these prayer workers, these altar workers, as we call them, intercessors, to stand with you this morning.

I want you to get your relationship with Christ right. That's the first foundation. You can't build anything else on shaky grounds. You need a relationship with Jesus—something that's truthful in the day that we live in.

Come get it right. Ask Him to change you, to save you, to raise you, to fill you with His Spirit. You need a relationship. Come up here. I don't care if you serve. Come on up here. Get it right. Get it right with Him.

I sense that if you are online, reach out. Type, "I need to be saved. I need to be born again." That's what we call it scripturally.

Take the music down some. Online, we have people waiting. We have people that will pray with you just the same. Tell them, type it in the little chat box, "I need to give my life over to God. I don't have a relationship with God. I don't have a relationship with Jesus—not for real. I just come to church to get out of trouble."

Get that relationship going. I'm talking to you. Now is the time. Don't harden your heart. Now is the time.

Congregation, pray. You feel like you're far from God? Come. You feel like you've broken God's heart? Come. You can be restored. God will help you. Come. He will help you.

This is the time. Ask Him to fill you with His Spirit that you may know that you are His. I can't do that for you. No one in this room can do that for you. But God's Spirit can confirm that you belong to Him.

Come. Come. Come. That's right. Young people, come. The fact you want to give your heart—that's God moving in your life right now.

Come. Come. Ask Him to forgive you. Ask Him to forgive you for your sins. He wants to. Ask Him. He paid the price for you.

That's right, young man. Come. Come on. Come on, son. That's right. Come look at these young people. Come to the Lord while you still have time.

Come. We're going to put you in disciple classes and disciple you through so that you may grow up to be strong young men who love God.

Come. Pastor David, pray for them. Yes, he got it. Come. Come. Come. He's in the room.

What we're seeing is the manifested presence of God right now.

Oh, ready to preach. You all can have your seats. Good morning.

You are faithful, God, and His house shall be called a house of prayer for the saving of many. We might as well get ready, Hope City. Our church is marked for this kind of activity.

And I can tell you that it's not just one woman or one man that will be able to carry the weight of what shall be. So He is saving you because you need to be saved, and He's going to cleanse you.

You, and then He's going to use you. So get ready. He's going to use you. He's going to use your story. He's going to use your bruises, your bumps, things you've gone through. He's going to use you.

So get ready because if He's using me, He's going to use you.

I want to say thank you, first and foremost, to every person that serves in this church. Whether you serve in the parking lot, security, ushering, music, production, first responders—whatever you do in this church, whatever you have put your hands to the plow to do, thank you.

We don't do this on our own, so we want to say thank you to all of those who rise up early, those of you who administrate, those of you who serve on our elders board—all of you all who have put your hands to this plow and are serving in this community and in this region.

I want to say thank you from me and Pastor Corey both. Thank you so very much. We want you to know that it does not go unnoticed, and neither does it go unnoticed by God. Your labor is not in vain. He shall reward you. He shall reward you well.

I'm full. I could tell you that very full. I almost wanted to give this over to Pastor David and just render my notes and just let him go because my heart is full to see so many people coming to give their lives to Christ.

Like, that's what we've been praying for—coming to give their lives to Jesus. So welcome to Pentecost Sunday. God is faithful, guys.

These are things me and my family, me and my intercessory team, who've been with me for well over five years now, this is what we pray for. We pray for moments like this.

So look what the Lord has done. Online, we want to say welcome. Thank you. We really do have order. We really do. Like, our pastor is a guy of order and excellence.

But sometimes what you have to do is just step aside when you sense the moment in the room. And I sensed what was going on and what needed to be said, and we thank God for that.

And we hope that the Holy Spirit is with us in these times to help us to navigate what should be done and what's on the Father's heart. So that's an awesome thing.

So let's give it up and give God praise for everyone, yeah, that came up here to get it right with God, to get it right with Him.

And if you will, we're going to jump right into our mental health series. This is part three of our mental health series.

And if I had to ask a question this morning to you all, my friends, I would say, what's causing you stress?

You think about what's stressing you right now. Is it financial? Is it relational? Is it physical? Is it emotional? Is it inner turmoil? What's causing you stress?

My second question would be, what is your go-to when you are stressed? How do you handle it when you are stressed? What is your default button? Everybody has one—your default button.

Let's talk about it. Your default button can be when you get stressed, like bad news, or you're frustrated, or you're overwhelmed. Do you pick up a drink? Do you reach for a cigarette? Or do you reach for something to smoke?

"I just need to calm my nerves down." What do you reach for? Do you go off? Do you pop off? Are you cussing everybody out? What do you do? Are you kicking the dog?

You don't kick your dog. You know, it's in Proverbs that there's a scripture in Proverbs that tells us about how you're supposed to treat your animal. Like, it's in Proverbs, really. You can pull out your phone and Google it. I promise you it's in there.

But my thing is, what is your go-to when you are stressed? Like I said, we all have a default button. We all have a go-to button.

When we look at what is stress, the definition of it according to the National Institute of Mental Health is that stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause, such as having a lot of homework or having an illness.

A stressor may be a one-time or a short-term occurrence or a long time. Look at your neighbor and ask them, "Say, friend, what's stressing you?"

What's stressing you? When they start telling you, then you're, "Well, you got time. Do you have time?"

"Girl, my boss is stressing me. These children are stressing me."

But there is a biblical response for us who call ourselves believers to the way in which we are supposed to respond to stress.

Remember I said that we all have a default button? That default button was given to you, given to I. It was probably passed down from how we saw our parents or the authority figures in our life, how they handled stress.

If they were not born again or they were not Christian believers, they probably cussed and carried on and acted the fool up in here.

That's what DMX said. Y'all gonna make me—we just got the people saved. Play too much.

But we all have that default button, and we gotta realize that there is a biblical way that we, as the people of God, are supposed to respond to stress.

This morning, we're going to delve into that biblical response and how we should respond and act according to stressors that come into our lives.

When I think about Jesus in Matthew 26, Jesus was under stress in this moment. In Matthew 26, Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane.

And when He was in that garden, what happened was He was carrying the weight of the responsibility of getting ready to go to the cross. As He was carrying that weight, it says He began to pray.

And as He was praying, you can tell He was under stress because look at the language that He spoke. He said, "Father, if this cup can pass me by."

We never saw Jesus let nothing that was assigned to His life pass Him by. Everything that was on His life assignment, He carried it out.

And here it is, He is at the apex and the climax of the reason why He was brought into this world. And now He's stressing out about it.

He said, "If it can be found another way for this to be done, can we find another way? I need to get from under this stress. Is there an easier way for me to do this?"

And then He says, "Nevertheless, I'm going to do it your way."

But while He's praying, stress got so much on Jesus that He began to drop sweats—blood. His sweat was like bloody sweat.

Have you ever? That was His response of taking on what He was getting ready to take on. It was a stressor for Him.

When I look at Daniel, Daniel was a young man in a foreign land. And he was having to adjust to the customs of that land in Babylon. He was not familiar with that land or their food.

He had to make up in his mind how he was going to handle his time of living in Babylon. Stressful, stressful, stressful.

So there is a biblical way that we can what? Respond to the stress that is in our lives.

If you will, go with me to John 16 and 33. John 16. I'm actually going to start up in 25.

And it says, "These things," this is Jesus speaking, "These things I have spoken to you in figures of speech. An hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father.

On that day, you will ask in my name. And I'm not saying to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf, for the Father Himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came forth from the Father.

I came forth from the Father and have come into this world. Again, I'm leaving the world and I'm getting ready to go back to the Father."

And then He says, His disciples said to Him, "See, now you are speaking plainly and are not using any figure of speech. Now we know that you know all things."

Look at that. Jesus knows what? So if He knows all things, then there is nothing that He won't release to you.

You need answers? Go to Him. You need answers? Go to Him because He knows timelines too. He knows timelines too.

So He tells them, He says, "You know, we know that you know all things." These are His disciples.

Jesus replied. He says, "Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming and has already come for you to be scattered, each to your own home, and leave and to leave me alone. And yet I'm not alone because the Father is with me."

He says, "These things I have spoken to you so that in me—in who? In Christ, in Jesus—not in money. It's not bad to have it. Now money answers it all things, right? Need that bill paid? You need some—look at y'all.

But Jesus said, when you have these stressors, I was speaking these things to you so that in me, you will have what? Peace.

The first response to God wants us to know is we, when we come to Him and because we are in Him, have accessibility to peace, no matter what—peace.

He says, "I told you all these things so that in me you will have peace because what? In this world—are y'all reading with me? What did He say? In this world, you're going to have what? You're going to have some troubles.

Your word may say tribulation; it means the same thing. You're gonna have some problems. And just because you are born again, saved, filled with God's Spirit, it rains on the just as well as the unjust.

So for my newbies in Christ, the word "just" means those who've been justified by Jesus Christ's blood, meaning our sins have been washed away. The sin debt has been taken care of.

The problems that we created on our— that problem, the root of it has been taken care of by Jesus's blood. You ought to give Him praise for that. That's off your back. That's off your back.

He says that in this world, you're gonna have some problems. You're gonna have some troubles. There's some things that's gonna happen. It's gonna be some unfair things that come your way.

He says, but this is Jesus telling us this. He says, "But take heart." That means be encouraged. Have the utmost confidence that I have overcome the world, and you will too because you're in me.

You can overcome the world. What is the world? The lust of the flesh, the pride of life, the lust of the eye—anything that has created us problems.

He said you can overcome it too because you are in me. And He says, as a byproduct of you being in me, I'm gonna leave you peace while you deal with the situation.

I'm telling you, you're gonna have trouble. I'm telling you, you're gonna have stressors. But you're also gonna have overcoming power and peace.

Psalms 34 and 19 says this. Go there for us. "Many are the afflictions of the unsaved, of those who do what they want to do."

No, what is it saying? "Many are the afflictions of the righteous." All of y'all who gave yourselves over to Christ, you are the righteous.

Welcome to the world of affliction. Now, don't be like, "Oh, excuse me. Let me tip." It comes with a promise.

See, listen, many are the afflictions of the righteous. But here's the difference. See, in this world, humans are going to have problems.

Whether you just—just being a human, you're going to experience some problems. But He says this: here's the difference between the just and the unjust.

While we all may have problems, while we all may have rain fall in our life here and there, baby, the righteous got an umbrella that shows up out of nowhere.

Well, my affliction works out differently from your affliction because I am in Christ. Christ Jesus.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous. I wish David didn't put that in there because I just didn't like that.

Because it should say many are the blessings of the righteous. And we are blessed. But why you had to put the word affliction, David? Dog, make it hard for people to preach about God when you got that kind of scripture in the Bible.

Stay with me. But many are the afflictions. We go through some things of the righteous—righteous people, people who walk with God.

But the Lord—the Lord Himself delivers us out of every single one. There's not a battle you'll go through when you're righteous that the Lord won't deliver you from.

For every affliction, there's a victory. Every single time. Come on, somebody. Amen.

When we talk about responding and dealing with stress, how should I biblically deal with the stress that comes in all of our lives?

When we're looking at this, I want you to go to Philippians 4 and 4. Philippians 4 and 4.

The first thing we're going to do when we get the bad news—sometimes bad news comes out the blue. I wasn't even expecting that, Lord. I had known it in my mailbox and went around it seven times. I declared and decreed a check. And a bill came.

Some people at that church done told me wrong. We didn't.

The first thing we do according to Philippians is we should rejoice in the Lord always. And again, I say what?

First Thessalonians tells us this: it is the will of God in Christ Jesus that we give Him thanksgiving in everything. Like, that's God's known will.

You get something unexpected. First thing you do—you may not rejoice. Let's be real and human in here. You're not going to rejoice first when you get no bad news.

It all depends on the severity of the news. I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news.

That's not going to really be my response. We're going to work on that together.

But I'm not going to really rejoice if I was expecting something good to come my way and I got bad news. But the one thing I am going to do is, according to God's will, I know that's the known will of God.

He said give Him thanks in all things. That's in First Thessalonians. Give what? Thanks in what?

Now, righteous people, this is for you. This is instructions for us. We get the bad news. The first thing I want you to do after you've had your human response—because you are human—you get up and you say, "Thank you, God. Thank you. I don't understand it, but thank you."

I know I'm carrying out the known will of God in this circumstance.

One thing that stresses believers and people out is the thing called uncertainty. How is it going to turn out?

Can I help us all out today? Charles Stanley, the beloved pastor in Atlanta, who has gone on to be with the Lord, he has a saying: "Obey God and leave all the consequences up to Him."

I come to tell you this morning that no matter what it is you may be up against, stressed out about, leave the outcome up to God and back off of it.

Sometimes what we do, we carry the weight of how the situation is going to work out on our backs, on our mind and our heart. Your stomach all upset, turned upside down because you are trying to figure out how is it going to work out.

You got migraine. Oh, somebody got migraines in here. You never had them before because you have been stressing out.

And some of you have developed heart disease in your older age because you stressed yourself out in your younger days. May the Lord be with you.

And praise—that is the known will of God in Christ Jesus. Find a way to rejoice when the time is right.

Kind of get that rejoicing in there and definitely leave outcomes to Him.

How many fixers I have in here? People who like to fix. I am going to fix it before it is a problem. The fixers.

Oh, look at that—two hands up there. If you are online, say, "I am a fixer." I am going to try to fix this before it becomes a problem.

Oh, y'all fixers know y'all stress yourself out, don't you? Are worried about a lot of stuff.

Listen, my first point is about nothing. Now that is hard to do. Let's be honest. Can we talk family? Worry about nothing.

So I am just supposed to be walking around, bill doing this? No, you are not. But you are not supposed to carry it.

Listen at this. Go with me to Philippians 4 and 6. Let's find out why we shouldn't worry about nothing.

Philippians 4 and 6 says, "Do not be anxious. Worry about what? Anything."

Don't be worried about anything. He says here in Matthew 6 and 27, "Who of you, by all that worrying, can add one single hour to their life?"

This is Jesus talking to us because I think we underestimate what we really have in Christ.

You know Pastor David said something up here when God's Spirit was moving amongst us this morning. He said, "The same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead dwells in your mortal body."

That's hard to digest, isn't it? Some of y'all are looking at me like, "Say that again."

Biblically, in context, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in every last person who belongs to Him.

And we underestimate the power that we're working with. And that's where growth comes in.

He told us, "Don't worry. Worry about nothing." He said because who of you, by the way of worry, can change anything in your life?

Worrying, stressed out, hair thinning, stomach upset, eye twitching—all because of stress. Biting your nails, anxiety, can't sleep, insomnia—all of these are responses to our body to stress when we've carried it way too wrong and probably way too long.

Matthew 6 and 34 says, "I want us to read that. Therefore, do not worry about what? Don't worry about what's ahead because why? Tomorrow will what? Tomorrow got its own problems."

Some of you all have used your imagination because the mind goes there.

Let your children not come home by the time they said they was coming home. You done put those children in the grave in your imagination.

How many? Be honest. You waiting on the police to call you any moment. Little Bobo went to jail.

Why? Because your imagination took you what? How come our imagination thinks the worst before we think the best?

Help us with that, oh God. Because some of you feel like that's all you've ever gotten from life was a plate of problems.

Oh, some of you feel like that's all life has handed you was a plate full of problems. And so it has set your expectation, even in Christ, that all I'm ever going to get from God is problems.

But rise up and awaken because the God you serve has more and better for you.

He is with you when it rains. He is with you in the storm. He said if you go through a desert, I'm with you.

If you ride through a flood, baby, I'ma walk with you. If you go through a fire, I'ma be right there with you.

God is gangster. Pray for me, please. God is gangster.

What do I mean by that? God will ride up with you. God will ride up on your enemies. God will put a hedge of protection around you.

God will stand up against your enemy. God will send you a promise and be like, "What? She mine."

Yeah, He mine. What? Yeah, I know he didn't do what he was supposed to do five years ago, two years ago, but he mine.

The blood of Jesus has washed them. Roll up on my people. You're going to have something to contend with, some of my people.

And if they go through a flood, I'm going to be with them. If they make a bad decision, they may have to walk it out, but out of that is going to come a fruit of righteousness.

These people belong to me. Back up, devil. Back that devil up.

Back up, devil. You're going to have to back up. The hedge of protection around this church and your families.

Don't you worry about nothing. You stressing out? Don't you worry about it. Hair balling in the middle—unless that's just hereditary. I can't do nothing about that for you.

Get you—you going to go bald. Just going to cut it off, child. Don't worry about that.

Okay? Going to get you a little razor, cut it into a bob if you have to.

See, what I think we do is underestimate what we work with.

With God, see, we're not supposed to worry about anything, but we can talk to God about everything.

Some of y'all don't talk to God unless it's only about your spiritual life. I talk to God about everything.

God, I need a new computer. God, I'm telling you, me—me, I'm going to use me as an example.

I pray about my hair. I pray about my eyesight. When my eyes started growing dim, I said, "Lord, You said Moses' eyes didn't go dim. Why is mine going like this?"

No, I'm serious. Y'all laughing. What I'm trying to do is tell you I pray about everything.

I pray about dental work or just go to the dentist. But what I'm telling you is that there's nothing that you don't have to carry on your own.

You can pray to God about anything. I pray about grace. I pray about grades.

Listen, recently we had that state test, the GMAS. On my back, I was carrying that.

Let me tell you how much so I was carrying that. My blood pressure went up. I've never had blood pressure problems.

I was carrying that in the wrong way. And my body responded by my pressure going up.

I felt bad for about two to three days. I said, "I feel good." I told my mother, who was here, "Be careful of that. Be careful of that."

So I began to contend with God in prayer about those state results. I was going in and out, in and out, doing the best I could this year with those students who didn't want to read and do their homework and all of that.

And yet my evaluation, my job performance was going to be of the results of these undisciplined children on a TikTok all day long.

And my state, my job evaluation is on you. I was stressed. This was the first time I've ever been—my content area would be tested.

And so you know. Yeah, anyway. Guess what? I kept praying. I kept believing.

When my principal came to me, he said, "Williams, my test results came in first. I took the test last. My content went last. My results came first."

He said, "Williams, phenomenal." I said, "What?" He said, "Phenomenal."

What God had done for me, what I was stressing out so much about, my preliminary scores came in. They have been the highest in this school in years.

So much so, the academic coach said, "You might need to get ready. District may be asking you to come down for a job."

Nobody but Jesus. So what are you worrying about?

Worry about—woo! We're going to live one day at a time. Tomorrow is taking care of itself. It's taking care of itself. It's already worked out.

Number two, we're going to pray about—don't leave nothing off the table.

Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table. Don't leave nothing off the table.

Anything that comes to mind, pray about it. "My fingernail hurt." My God, pray about it.

You say, "God care about that?" Absolutely, yes. God cares about anything you care about.

That's the kind of relationship you have with the Father. That's the kind of relationship you have with the Father.

Woo! You mean to tell me I can pray about my retirement? Absolutely.

I got a living witness up here in my mom. Raised three children on a single mama's income.

And now she's one of the most wealthier women I know. I'm not—now don't go up there asking my mama for no money. Don't do that.

I can—you can't do that. Hold a couple dollars.

Listen, we're going to pray about everything. We're going to pray about everything.

The Bible says don't worry about tomorrow, but it didn't say don't plan for tomorrow.

But you still can make plans, but we're not going to be worried.

But because if we worry about tomorrow, it shows that we kind of don't trust God.

I also want to say this: watch how you move. Model biblical truths before your family and your children.

If they see you respond to stress in a crazy manner, with anxiety, with you biting your nails, cussing everybody out, they're going to respond like that.

They're going to respond like that when they get an affliction.

We want to be careful that we respond in a biblical manner. I'm not saying that you won't hurt, you won't cry, you won't feel frustrated.

But be mindful as a believer. Model how you are supposed to handle your stressful days, especially before your family and your children.

Philippians 4 says, "In everything by prayer and what?" Supplication.

Now on the screen it says petition. Let me tell you the difference between prayer and supplication.

Prayer is our Father. This is an example of prayer: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. You know the Lord's prayer. That is a what? Type of prayer.

But a supplication is your personal, specific request unto God. Heal my husband, Billy. Save my daughter, Shanika.

It ain't in the book. Salvation is in the book, but that is your personal prayer request to God. That's called supplication.

So once we made our prayer and what? Specific request to God, He said, "I want you to top it off like this with thanksgiving."

Tell Him thank you and release that to Him. The spirit of peace comes and it garrisons your mind where you're stressed out at and your heart.

There was a time in my life, me and my husband, when we first got married, we was having some real bad financial problems.

Oh, it was bad. Real bad. There was something that was going to be taken from us. And I was praying. Man, I prayed about that thing so much.

I prayed, prayed, prayed. It was like God said, "I'm not going to work it out the way you expect, but I'm going to give you some peace."

It was almost as if peace had come over me. I didn't even care how it turned out.

That's what I'm—that's what God is saying. Once you pray, make your supplication, that personal specific prayer request, make known unto Him with thanksgiving.

Release it and leave that outcome up to Him. I'm talking about I didn't care how that thing turned out.

Why? Because the peace of God that guards my heart and mind had come all over me.

Worry not. Number two, pray about everything. Number three, cast all your cares on Him because He cares for who? You.

He cares. God cares. Number three, think about the right things.

When you're up against your stresses, the first thing I told you, that imagination will go all the way down the street.

Man, you get a bad report on your health, you done put yourself in the grave. You picking out a dress.

What you going to—get my dress ready for the funeral? No, but we do that. Am I right?

Oh, they say they going to start cutting people. You got your name on the chopping block ten times.

But even God covers our mistakes sometimes. He will cover. He gives us grace.

But you'll put yourself on the chopping block soon as they say, "Okay, budget cuts. Budget cuts. I'm the first to go."

No, no. And if you are, God got something else better.

Think about the right things. Philippians 4 and 8 say, "Finally, brothers."

Finally, brothers, talking to us. "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, I want you to think on what?"

We got to get those minds together because Proverbs 23 and 7 says, "For as we think in our hearts."

Your heart is the deepest part of who you are. As you think in your heart, that's who you're going to be.

Doubter? It started in the mind. Worrier? In the mind. Manipulator? Some of us manipulate.

Who are my manipulators? You try to fix it up so it don't go bad before it try to go down south.

Yeah. Thank you for being honest. To manipulate it, that's fear. That's speaking forth.

He says, "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

He says, "Think on the things that are true." Your thinking will shape your life.

Thinking—your bad thinking or your good thinking will shape your life.

Listen, there is a story about—I think some of y'all know it. It's a wonderful life. One of my favorite stories.

And the gentleman wants to get out the town, right? He wants to get out the town. He got big dreams.

He wants to go and do big great things. And it seemed like one thing after another kept coming in his way.

And he had lost hope. He had lost heart to ever leave the little town that he was in.

What he didn't know was God had purpose for him right where he was. He was an integral part of that community.

Even though he was trying his best, "I want to get out of here. I'm going." His brother went ahead of him.

You know, all his friends went to college and they was doing so well. And here he is back in this hometown dealing with the old loan and bank company that was failing.

But little did he know it took him morning to end things for him, the angel to come and save him and show him, "Your life matters. Your life matters."

Think about the right things. Be content with your own things.

Philippians 4:11 saying, "I'm not saying this because I am in need." Paul says, "For I have learned to be content in whatever the circumstance is."

Philippians 4:12 says it like this: "I know what it is to be in need." This is Paul talking.

He said, "I know what it is when you don't have enough. I know what it means. I know what it feels like."

He says, "I know what it means to have plenty. You got no worries in the bank. The bank account is stacked."

He says, "I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether I am well fed or hungry, whether I am living in plenty or I am in want."

He says, "I learned how to trust God so much so that whatever the status of my life is, I'm content."

Somebody say, "We got some growing to do." Because we're not always content in those kind of circumstances. Am I right?

1 Timothy 6:6 says this: "But godliness with contentment is great gain."

I would like to challenge us. Let us, when we face stressors that come our way—this is for me too—let us respond first by giving God thanks.

Let's see what He'll do when we say, "God, I don't like what's going on. Matter of fact, I really hate it. But I want to trust that You told me to give You thanks in this.

And in return, You will give me peace. So I'm going to thank You."

In your own way, you do it. Whether it's the lifting of your hands or if it's the folding of your hands, you give God the thanks from the heart when you get that stressful situation.

And let's see what God will do.

Somebody say, "Christ is enough for me."

My first point was worry about nothing. Pray about what? Everything.

Think about the—you guys got it. Number four, be content with my own things.

And number five, trust God for what? All things.

It is through Him that He will give us the strength. There is a single mama in here. You may be up against some things, but you're not in that by yourself.

God is going to come through for you. He's going to do a Philippians 4:19.

"And your God and my God will meet all our needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

Now all things means all things—physically, emotionally, financially, inner turmoil. All things means all things.

God's going to meet the need. Look at your neighbor next to you. Say, "God, our God is going to meet all of our needs."

No, no, say that like you mean it. And stand on your feet. You got to get in their face.

Y'all ain't gangsta enough on me. Come on, stand on your feet.

Now for those of you who are mamas, you know we have a stance. What's the stance?

Come on, is the hand on the hip in there? Some of y'all are like this. Some of y'all are like that, right?

Get that mama stance on them. Get that daddy stance. Get that coach stance.

And I want you to tell that person next to them, "According to Philippians 4:19, our God—"

All—say it again, all. The thing they're stressing about—say all. Tell them it includes that too.

He's going to meet our needs according to His glorious riches—the all-breasted one, El Shaddai, El Rohi, Jehovah Tsidkenu, our righteousness.

Give Him a praise.