7-9-23 Setlist: Breakthrough Came To My Rescue I'm Listening Holy Spirit Sermon Notes: Key Verse: I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 Key Verse: So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 Key Passage: Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with My victorious right hand. For I hold you by your right hand— I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you. Isaiah 41:10,13 Key Passage: About noontime Elijah began mocking them. “You’ll have to shout louder,” he scoffed, “for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is daydreaming, or is relieving himself. Or maybe he is away on a trip, or is asleep and needs to be wakened!” So they shouted louder, and following their normal custom, they cut themselves with knives and swords until the blood gushed out. They raved all afternoon until the time of the evening sacrifice, but still there was no sound, no reply, no response. 1 Kings 18:27-29 3 Truths of His Presence: 1. God does not leave us when it’s hard. Key Verse: Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. Psalm 23:4a Key Passage: Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:35, 37-39 3 Truths of His Presence: 2. God never leaves us even when we feel we’ve disqualified ourselves from His Presence. Key Verse: Surely I am with you always, now and to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:20 Key Verse: I will be your God throughout your lifetime— until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you. Isaiah 46:4 Key Passage: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And My ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9 3 Truths of His Presence: 3. God doesn’t leave us when we can’t understand. Key Verse: The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed. Psalms 34:18 Key Verse: They triumphed over him (the enemy) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; Revelation 12:11a Key Passage: Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead), behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will take hold of me. Psalm 139:7-10 Discussion Questions: 1. What do you feel like God is saying to you through this message? 2. What can you work on this Summer to get closer to God? 3. Which truth about God's Presence really spoke to you during this message? How can you apply it to your life?