During hard times we learn that God is in all things.

James Greer (00:00):
Good morning Journey Church. Well, what a wonderful testimony and what a great praise team this morning. Amen? We've had a verse every week we start out. The first week we said in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God hadn't given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. Second week we said Isaiah 40:1, it said, comfort. Yes, comfort my people, says the Lord. And boy did we need comfort. And then this week, it's a verse that we use often and it's Isaiah 40:10 says, fear not for I'm with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I'll strengthen you. Yes, I'm going to help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

James Greer (01:08):
The reason that's so important this week. I know that we had one friend that's a member of our church and he had to go to Houston, have chemo treatment and what he wanted so bad, he wanted his wife to be able to sit in there with him and hold his right hand and she couldn't with the Corona and everything. They said nobody could come in. And I thought this verse was so appropriate, and I sent it to her and sent it to him and I said, Hey God, hold their right hand for them, since they can't be there. We had another one, that his daughter has Corona and they want to be in there with her so bad, but they can't. They got to look in at her and I thought, boy, they want to hold her hand so bad. And when we can't be there physically, I think that verse is so appropriate, that God said, I'll hold them with his hand. Man, when God holds you with his hand, he can comfort you like nothing else.

James Greer (01:56):
You know, 2000 years ago, families met in the house. They just met house to house, and here we are again, meeting from house to house. 2000 years ago, the enemy tried to persecute the church and instead of stopping the church, the church multiplied. And where the enemy today is trying to persecute the church or God's trying to get our attention, I can tell you one thing to turn back to him before his return. The church will multiply. In fact, we're seeing the church multiply. In fact, every single Sunday when we get to preach online. Now when we get opportunity to preach to the people again, I cannot wait. I'm going to be like the preacher that somebody sent me this week that runs up and down the aisle and hugs everybody. I can't wait. But, until then, but until then, but until then, we're reaching people by the multitudes.

James Greer (02:46):
Sometimes we have three, four, five times as many people watching online as we would here in any service. I want you to say, interact online. Say Amen online. Say who's online. Say, where you are from online. Because, I mean, I love it. I go back and watch the whole service again. It could be that Jesus is wanting us to know that he's fixing to come. I mean in Matthew 24 it tells about before Jesus returned, there'll be famines and pestles and diseases, earthquakes in various places. And we've never seen diseases like this. So, for whatever the reason God wants us to be ready, he wants us to go to him for protection and security.

James Greer (03:44):
I want you to know that the church is going to multiply. In fact, Acts 2:17, it said, I'm going to pour out my spirit on all the flesh. He said in the last days, what is God going to do? I'm going to pour out my spirit on all the flesh. In other words, what God's saying, and one of the wonderful things about this, God's getting ready for his son to come back. I want to be a part of the great outpouring of the Holy spirit. There's going to be people who need to get saved and we want to be a part of it, Journey Church. Amen? And if you're here and you're watching online, and you've never given your heart to Jesus Christ, man there's no better time than to do it right now. And so we want you to be a part of that. How can you find security during a time like this? And what do you do when there is a crisis? We're going to talk about that this morning.

James Greer (04:38):
We're going to be in Psalms 91 and we'll stay there part of the time, most of the time. It's believed, maybe that David wrote this during a crisis. It's pretty possible that Saul was tracking him down trying to kill him. What David needed was comfort during the crisis. He needed security. David knew what it was like to hide into caves. And for that to be his rescue and his place of comfort. When you're really running, when you're hiding, when you're thirsty, you need shade and shelter and water, and Christ offers every bit of that. I'm going to start on Psalms 9. I'm going to read verse one and two, and I'm going to read it from two different translations. I'm going to read it from the New Century version, because we're in a new century. And then I'm going to read it in the New King James version, in the new century. So, those who go to the most high though, remember that those who go to the most high for safety, will find protection by the almighty. I will say, that's going to be important later on, to the Lord.

James Greer (05:39):
I will say, that's going to be important later on, to the Lord. You are my place of safety and protection. You are my God. I'm going to trust in you. And let me give you the New King James version. It says, he who dwells in the secret places. Whoa, we're learning about dwelling. I mean we're learning about dwelling in the house like never before. I mean I thought, I knew it was like to dwell in my own home, but I really didn't. What I really knew what it's like to work all day and come home, and stay at the house and leave the next day. I didn't know what it's like the dwell in the house all day long, but I mean it's great. I mean, but to dwell 24 seven, seven days a week. My wife cooked spaghetti the other night. It was great. I was glad to have it the next day at lunch. It's okay that we're going to have it in a few days. We're going to have sandwiches out of it too. I mean, she cooked chicken. Then we have chicken sandwich. I mean everything goes like, I mean even toilet paper even goes, I mean, you dwell in the house like never before. We're learning to dwell.

James Greer (06:47):
So, dwell and secret places of the most high, abide under the shadow of almighty. I'm going to say to the Lord, he is my refuge. He is my fortress. He's my God. In him, I'm going to trust. So, the first thing we've got to learn to do during a crisis of course, is one of the translations says, to go to God. Ellen says to dwell in his place, find him as a secret place. So whether it's to go to him or learn to dwell, where to go to God, we need to remember the God is the most high. He's high above everything. He sees the beginning, and God sees the end. Because he's the most high, you and I, we can relax. He's not only the most high, he's the God almighty. He's the God almighty. He's the one we can go to. Nothing can get past God. Nothing is stronger. Nothing is mightier than God himself.

James Greer (07:15):
So, it has to go through him before it can ever go to us. But can I tell you that's why it's so important to dwell with God. Don't just come in and out of the house. I mean, when we're going through times like this, we need to dwell with him like never before. God wants to look to him. Nothing could get to me and you, when we're dwelling with God, without first going to him, he is our safety. He is our protection. He doesn't want us to go to pieces. He doesn't want us to panic. He wants to go to him for protection. So, one of the first things we do during a crisis is, we go to God or we dwell with him.

James Greer (08:06):
Second of all, it's also important, we need to do this during a crisis. We need to say the right things to the right person, and the right person's usually yourself. The Psalmist said in Psalms 91:2 it says, I will say to the Lord, if you read the other translation, it says, I will say to the Lord. Now you need to make sure you're saying the right things to yourself. You need to make sure, during this time, you're having the right self-talk. This is so important. What I'm fixing to tell you, you need to write it down. I will say what we confess, we possess. what we confess, we possess. I know a very few things that are more powerful that can help you more. That's more practical than confessing God's word and God's promises back to him.

James Greer (09:02):
I mean, you just said, God, you're my place of safety. You're, you're my protection. Should you be safe. Of course you should. Should we do what the medical people and the government tell us? Of course we should. Before I even came this morning, now I'm sending out notes saying, Hey, are you sanitized? Are you sterilized? I mean, I want everything to be as safe as possible. There's times I hadn't been out of the house in a week. I believe in medicine and I believe in miracles go hand in hand. I'm going to do all I can do with what the medical people tell me, but my ultimate trust is going to be in the Lord. Now, I do believe that the Lord uses medical people.

James Greer (09:42):
So, first we go to the Lord, and second of all, we learn to confess God's promises and God's word back to him. The reason that's so important, listen to me, it has to work. We have God's word on it. If you understood Isaiah 55:1, I mean, you would just change your whole thinking. I have it written in the front of my Bible. I have Isaiah 55 11,12 written in my Bible because before I preach, I know what it means. It's says, so shall my words be that goes forth from my mouth. Of course, I know it's God's word that goes forth, but how about the words that you speak that go forth from your mouth? If it's God's word, it shall not return to me void. God's word is not going to return to me void. It's going to accomplish what it pleases, and it shall prosper in all things for which I sent it. Now, then it tells you what's going to happen. It's going to tell you how you can respond. It's going to tell you what can happen in your life.

James Greer (11:12):
You should go out with joy, because you have taken God's word and you spoke it out loud and you confessed it and be led out with peace. The mountains and the hills shall break out with singing before you. In other words, what used to be a problem, what used to be a hindrance, is now nothing. The trees in the field shall clap with their hands. You understand what I'm trying to tell you? What you confess, you possess. And so during a crisis, one of the greatest things you can do is learn to cry out to God. When we call upon him, he answers us, delivers from our troubles and rescues us. When we learn to cry out to God it is so important. We confess his problems back to him.

James Greer (12:17):
Some of you will get to experience God in a personal, powerful, practical way like you never have before. Say, some of you are going to come to God in a panic. But you're going to start confessing God's promises back to him, and you're going to start experience peace and you're going to experience it like immediately. It's like God's speaking to you, because he is. Some of you have been in pity. Poor me. Why is all this happening? And it's not. You're never going to understand all of what, I mean all the why, but what? What can I do? And so you go from poor me, pity me, to the power of God upon your life. You're going to go from fear to experience a new faith. I'm telling you what you do, what you confess you possess, is one of the most powerful and practical things you can ever learn.

James Greer (13:01):
Third, third. believe Christ is going to deliver us because he is. He always has and always will. Focus your faith on Christ, not the Corona virus. With all the media and everything going on. It's very easy to focus more on Corona than it is Christ. Corona is real. Corona is contagious. Christ is real, and he need to be more contagious. Amen? Corona attacks the lungs for the bad. Christ attacks the heart for the good. Let it be contagious like never before. That's what's happening right now. Christ wants to be what? Contagious. Psalms 91:3, surely he shall deliver you from the snares of the foul and from the perilous pestilence. The other translations, which I really love, the New Century translation says this, God will save you. He'll save you from the hidden traps and he's going to save you from deadly diseases. God's going to save us from hidden traps and from deadly diseases. It must be okay to confess that back and claim it to God or he wouldn't have put it in his word. So, pray it back to God. I'm not sure why we have Corona, but I'm sure that God wants our undivided attention and our priorities and that's what he's doing. You're seeing the whole world turn to God like never before.

James Greer (14:43):
Hosea had a prayer that he led his people in and he was leading his people to turn back to God, and I want to lead our people and do that. It says, come let us return to the Lord. Everybody who's watching, I want you to know, so let's, let's all return to God. Amen? It is he who has torn us. There's nothing come to us apart from God allowing it. God's ultimately in control of everything, but he's going to heal us. He is wounded. He can bind us up. See, it is not over yet, in just a couple of days or three at the most. Now, in our case, it might not be two days. It might be three weeks, it might be three months, but I can tell you, the situation is going to change. He's going to set us up on our feet again. What's he going to do? Set us up on our feet again. Why? To live in his kindness. We're never going to be the same again. When this is over, we're going to turn to God like never before. That we might know the Lord. Let us press on to know him. This is a time to press on to know God. And he's going to respond to us and then when we press on and know God, when we search for him with all our heart, we will find him and he'll respond to us.

James Greer (16:03):
Surely as a coming of the dawn in the rain in the early day. Oh, I love that verse. I mean we're going to be back on our feet. God's going to raise us up. We're going to be kinder than we've ever been in our life. Pursued. No God in the meantime for bore. Don't believe everything you hear. Just simply don't believe everything you hear. I mean, God's truth is what brings protection. Verse four says, he will cover you with his feathers and under his wings you can hide. His truth is what? His truth, not everybody else's truth. His truth will bring you shield and protection. If during times like this, our emotions can run away with us and we start listening to everyone everybody else has to say and what they're thinking and what they're doing, but it's God's truth that brings a shield and protection, not peoples. Don't believe what everybody else says, but you ready but believe everything that God says. Amen? Fifth. Yeah, stop fearing danger before it happens. Just stop fearing it before it happens. The next few verses that I want to read are really great verses to learn to confess back to God. Verse five says this, I will not fear any danger by night. If you're not careful by nature, your mind can run away with you, and instead you're not going to fear. Don't fear danger before it happens. I will not fear any danger by night or arrows by the day.

James Greer (17:54):
Verse six, I'm not going to be afraid of disease that comes in dark or sickness that strikes at noon. See and you're just telling God all these things. Yeah, at your side when thousand people may die, already have. It can even be 10,000 could die, could happen. You're not going to be hurt.
James Greer (18:18):
What great verses to start confessing back to God, that brings a new piece of new power that just can surpass all the understanding. Then stronger than anything else that you're going through. Instead of listening to media all the time, begin to confess God's word back, where you can possess it in a new and a practical, and a powerful way. Some of you never had God speak to you. He will speak to you now like never before. The Psalm says it 34:4, I sought the Lord and he heard me and he delivered me from all my fears. What kind of fears? All of them. Not some of them. All of them. We're going to begin to close already.

James Greer (19:16):
Be sure you shelter in Christ, as you shelter in place. Shelter in Christ, as you shelter in place. I started thinking about sheltering in Christ and sheltering in place. I thought about when the plagues came upon Egypt and Pharaoh, and Pharaoh wouldn't let God's people go. What you might not understand. At first, when the plagues came, and the pestilite came in, the frogs came. God's people had to suffer, too. They were all suffering, but it was part of a bigger plan that God had for his people. And right now, some of God's people are suffering too, but God has a bigger plan for God's people. It eventually came, God told his people that you all shelter, you all go to your place of shelter. You take a lamb and you take the blood and you put it over the doorpost of your place. You all shelter down under the lamb, under the blood. And they did that. And as they dwelled in their shelter and the judgment came upon the land, it had to bypass because they were sheltered under the blood of God. Their firstborn weren't killed and they were safe.

James Greer (20:25):
John 1:29 says this, you ready? When John saw Jesus coming towards him, he said, behold the lamb of God, he takes away the sins of the world. He's our blood. He's our doorpost. He's our shelter. He's our place of refuge. He's our protection. He's our comfort. So today, I beg you if you've never put your faith in Jesus Christ as your savior, put it under the blood.

James Greer (21:03):
If you have sins you need to confess. It said, Hey, the blood will cleanse you from all your sins. If you're having fears and uncertainty, run to your shelter. We've got a lamb that paid the price. Just like it was a picture of them running into their shelters and putting the blood on their doorposts and everything else. The devil defeat, despair, disease, everything else had to pass the shelter dwell in the shelter of the most high. It's the safest place in the world today. Jesus our blood, he's a shelter and he is our lamb.

James Greer (21:44):
God, I just thank you that you're the lamb, that you sent your lamb, that he shed his blood for me and you and God for those that are watching online and may want to give their heart to Jesus Christ, today would be a day. God, you know, no boundaries. Your word knows those boundaries. You said your word would not return void. God there's some that feel conviction and need to give their heart to Jesus Christ. There's some that maybe want to join the church. They can join online, some that need to be baptized. We'll still baptize you. Some that need somebody to pray with them to pray for you. We'll do that right now. Some that need to start tithing and giving. They can do that right now. Some of you have a burden. He says, come onto me that all their heavy laden and I'll give you rest. God, we pray for those that are heavy laden. We pray for those that are sick. We pray for those that have the Corona right now. We pray that you would comfort them, that you had guide and direct the doctors in a supernatural way. We pray for all those that are on the front line. We pray that your angels station around them and about them and keep them safe. I pray for those that are online right now, God, that they could feel your power and your presence in a supernatural way. I thank you for today. God, it's in your name. I pray. Amen.

James Greer (23:11):
Hey guys, on behalf of pastor James, thanks so much for tuning in today. Before we go, I want to take a moment to talk to you about next steps. You know, here at Journey we emphasize the next steps because we know that's how we continue to grow in the Lord. Right now you should be seeing some links pop up in your comment section. If at any point during the service you felt the Lord pulling you to surrender your life to him and make him Lord and savior of your life, just simply click the link to find out more about salvation. Maybe you like to make Journey church your home and you'd like to become a member here. Simply click that link. You know here at journey, we know this that we can't out give God. So, if you'd like to give your time and offering, simply click the link and you can follow the instructions there.

James Greer (23:59):
Another one of our core values here at journey is you can't do life alone. You know, it's imperative during these times that we stay connected. And one of the ways that you can do that, is by joining an online community group. Simply click that link and then follow the instructions and find the group that's right for you. One last thing, if you have children, they can also stay connected. We have online kids services as well. Just go to jcpineville.com/children to find our interactive services for your kids. One last thing before we go. You know, pastor James often encourages us not to just come to church, but to learn to be the church. We can still be the church. And one of the ways that we can do that, is by encouraging people to join us on these live stream messages. We live stream every Sunday at 8:30, 10, and 11:30. So, be sure and tell your friends and family that we livestream on Facebook and also live on jcpineville.com. We look forward to seeing you again next Sunday.



Recorded in Pineville, Louisiana.