I'm going through the valley of the shadow of death. I'm not camping out, not buying real estate in the valley. I am going through it. I'm on the move. And I came to tell somebody: opposition sometimes comes in multiplication, but you got to know that God is going to get you out of it.
Why? Because your story can't end in defeat. You are a child of God. Hello, and thanks for stopping by for today's Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepard.
Well, the valley of the shadow of death is something we're supposed to move through, but sometimes we allow fear to keep us from moving on. Today, you'll be reminded that opposition can come at us from all sides, including some of the people closest to us. It has a way of paralyzing us and keeping us from pursuing our destiny in Christ. Stay with us now to find out how to turn your fear into faith. Online, you'll find us at pastorpaul.net, where you can hear any recent Destined for Victory message on demand, including today's.
That's pastorpaul.net.
Now let's listen closely to today's message. When opposition comes, I see these people.
Now you got children getting trophies, and they didn't win anything. Y'all gotta help me. What you get a trophy for?
Now, okay, if it's participation.
Okay, got it. Everybody participated. Great. But that should be different than the winners. Participation, that's a nice little thing with a little cup on it.
And now one, I get the big thing, I got to hold two hands. That's what I like. Yeah, me too. Thank you. I got some help down here.
God is not into everybody get the same thing. The Bible is real clear. If you do what I told you to do. Here are the blessings that come with obedience. And if you don't do them, don't expect the blessing of the obedient.
Amen. And so you got to understand when opposition comes against you, you have to be prepared to deal with the fact that it might be hard for a season. A night can be a whole season. Night can be years sometimes. But what does God do?
He gives you grace. to get through it.
Some of y'all can't testify right now that I'm out. Of my trouble, but you can testify, but I got grace. Oh, God has given me grace, and I'm going on through. I'm going through the valley of the shadow of death. I'm not camping out, not buying real estate in the valley.
I am going through it. I'm on the move. And I know That I'm going to a prepared table. And I came to tell somebody: opposition sometimes comes in multiplication, but you got to know that God is going to get you out of it. Why?
Because your story can't end in defeat. You are a child of God, your story is going to end in victory.
Somebody needs to grab that word and just tell it to yourself. I'll know when it's over because I will have one. I will have won. I am not going to be defeated. And so the word of the Lord to them was: by this time, tomorrow, this will all be taken care of.
Your tomorrow is coming. It's not necessarily a 24-hour event, but it is a reality. God's going to bring you through. One more point, and I'll let you go. Number three: sometimes opposition comes from people you've only been good to.
I came to tell somebody who is trying to figure out how people I took good care of. Are treating me like I'm garbage. Like, in fact, sometimes they'll treat you like you did something wrong. And if you don't think this is a Bible-based point, I dare you to read the story of David. David did nothing but serve Saul well.
In fact, he started serving Saul before he was in his service. His father sent him out to the battle line to bring supplies for his brothers who were in the army. David was too young to be in the army. He went out there with supplies, and while he gives them to his brothers, he looks out and he sees this giant named Goliath standing out there defying the army of the Lord, cussing and swearing. He's cussing God out and all of these people.
And David is standing there, he's giving them his supplies, and now he's just standing there looking at Goliath, listening to him, and then look at these folk over here. A whole army of them. All of them scared. All um skirt. You know, sometimes ignorance is when you get the most truth.
because you don't know enough to let fear grab you. And David said, Wait. He just cussed God. And he just calls all of y'all mammas something. And none of y'all are moving.
He like I don't understand this His brother and them had to be like, just shut up, go on back home. Don't you have something sheep to take care of? But he's standing there saying, no, no. And he was so troubled by it. He said to the king.
To Saul. Tell you what. I need to go out there and fight that giant.
Now, in the natural, that's just dumb. But how many know when you're walking in the Spirit When you're listening to God and not listening to your feelings, not listening to people, not listening to conventional wisdom, sometimes the God will say something that sounds dumb to you, but because it came out of the mouth of God, it is full of wisdom and power. And he said to the king, I need to go fight. And the king said, No, you're too young. I can't send you out there.
You're not even a warrior. He said, No, no, I need to go. I can take care of this giant because of the God we serve. He said, Furthermore, you need to let me go, 'cause none of your army gonna go. It's not like you have a choice.
And Saul figured out, you know, he got a point. And he tried to give him his armor. You got to learn from this part, too. He put on the king's armor. He said, No, no, I can't go with this.
This is your armor. This is not mine. You got to learn to faith in what God gives you. You gotta learn to stop trying to be somebody you're not.
Some of y'all haven't gone further in your life to this point because you're busy trying to imitate instead of be an originator of that which God wants to do through and in your life. Just because you never saw it before doesn't mean it can't be done. It just means you're going to be the first person you know who did it. And David said, I'm going, but I'm going with what I'm used to. I'm going with my slingshot.
Now that sounds real sophisticated, but in his day, it was probably more like a rag and a rock. Just wind it up. And let it go. Could have been some little nice, real simple sling, but it could have been a rag and a rock. Whatever it was, he said, this is the way God uses me.
He said, let me give you my track record. I was taking care of my daddy's sheep. And a bear came. After the sheep. Killed it.
A lion came. After the sheep. Killed it. He says, So I ain't worried about no giant. He's just the next on the list.
You know, he had that kind of ignorance. He's too stupid to not have faith. I love that. I'm trying to ask God, Lord, let me have a faith that sometimes looks like reckless abandon, but I'm doing this. Listen to what he said.
He said to Goliath, I'm going to kill you. And I'm doing it in the name of the God you just got through cussing. You're going to meet who that God is because he's getting ready to take you out. And he's going to use a little boy to do it. Because Goliath got insulted.
He said, Y'all didn't send this. Please. I don't believe what y'all just did. This is insulting, and he cussed some more. And David said, I'm going to take your head off your shoulders.
That's faith. Y'all got to quit walking in fear because faith has a language. That you wouldn't believe, but when you walk by faith, when you're rooted in believing God, God has a way of showing up. And you know the story. He killed Goliath.
Now, I say that just to tell you, from there, he goes into the king's service and he ministers to the king. I love the fact that God didn't make David the king of Israel until he was a servant of the king of Israel. I love that about God. God takes us the right route. To promotion, some of y'all are sweating where you are now.
Some of you all do the work, and your supervisor gets the credit, but don't sweat it. Because God is seeing what you're doing. See, see, the Lord sees you.
So I'm bleeding, people. See, I'm going to take a stand. That's fine. If it's a justice issue and you feel like you should take a stand, that's fine. But I just came to tell you: there are times when God says, no, this isn't your battle.
You just keep being faithful. I've got this battle. I got this one covered. And so, what does David do? He serves the king, and because of the anointing on his life, then he becomes a warrior for the king and all of that.
And eventually, the anointing on David got recognized by the other people.
So, one time he's coming back from a battle, and the young women watching them come back from the battle start singing a song they made up. Saul has killed his thousands, but David his tens of thousands. Saw Lake, huh? Y'all singing about him and I'm the king? And you compare, I only killed a thousand and he killing tens of thousands.
Oh no, that won't fly. And a spirit of jealousy. And envy got a hold of that man. And refused to let him go. He set his eyes on the young man who had served him well.
When he was overtaken by an evil spirit and would be in all kinds of torment, David would grab his heart and begin to strum and minister in music and sing the songs of the Lord and calm the king down. And for all that, It got to the place where the king said, I gotta kill it. Still ahead, the second half of today's Destined for Victory message, featuring the teaching ministry of Pastor Paul Shepard. As always, you can hear any of our recent messages on demand at pastorpaul.net. Listen and subscribe to the podcast at Spotify or at Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
And we'd like to thank all of you who sustained Destined for Victory with your prayers and financial support. These are gifts that help us share the gospel all over the world. To give a generous gift now, please visit pastorpaul.net. That's pastorpaul.net or call 855-339-5500. Of all the weapons of mass destruction out there, the human tongue might be the most deadly of all.
Here's Pastor Paul with the second half of today's message: when opposition comes. You know there are some people who would rather see you dead. Than to give you what's your due. And if they can't kill you physically, they'll kill your influence. You ever had your influence killed on a job?
You ever had somebody talk against you? And they grin when they with you? But in the other meetings they're talking against you. And the fact of the matter is, you've got to learn to give that to God because you serve Him. And so here's the king trying to kill him.
And to the point where eventually David is on the run. He's a fugitive from a man he did no wrong to.
So I came with a word for those of you who are finding that opposition is coming from people you've been nothing but good to. Don't sweat it.
Okay, I'll put it in commandments language. Thou shalt not sweat it. Because God is watching you. And it got to the place where there were times when David could have killed Saul. You ever read it?
Read First Samuel. David could have killed Saul on two different occasions. Saul's armor bearers, his secret service, Sleep on the job. David could have walked right up and killed him. Both times can look at the man's nobility.
He said, I dare not touch the Lord's anointed. What does he mean, the Lord? Did he not act in anointed? No, he was anointed to be king. even though he's acting like the devil.
And I have to respect the anointing. And he said, I won't touch him. And when Saul found out he could have been killed, because David told him, you know, I could have killed you, right? And at first, Saul would be, oh, bless you, my son. Oh, I've been so horrible to you.
Oh, please, please, please. Before too long, I'm going to kill him. God took him through all of that? Only to get to the place where he had to actually, for a time, David had to work for the Philistines. You'll read about it in 1 Samuel beginning at verse at chapter 27.
He aligns himself with the Philistines and I tell them I'm not coming against Israel with y'all. But if you fight any of your other enemies, I'll help you. All you have to do is give me refuge. And King Achis, read it when you get a chance, gave him a place in Ziglag. Said, I'll give that to you.
And your men. All you have to do is fight with us against our other enemies besides Israel. Did that for a while, and then some of the Philistine princes said, wait a minute, we don't like him. Being on our side. Because it's only mad time he's gonna turn on us and he's gonna kill us.
And they force Achish to force David out.
So by the time you get to 1 Samuel 29, Agus is saying, Man, you got to go. Appreciate all you've done, but you're out of here. Peace, deuces. That's right in your Bible, right in your Bible.
So, First Samuel chapter thirty. David and his six hundred men come back. to zigzag which they've been given. And they get back to find Their wives and children. have been carted off, The city has been burned.
Their supplies, their stuff has been taken, and their families have been taken.
Now here's why I'm bringing this up. You got to understand that the enemy Can become close to you when circumstances go wrong. His 600 men who were his warriors, his fighters. They came back and along with David, they all have lost their kids and and their and their wives. They're all crying.
The Bible says there in 1 Samuel 30, they cried so hard until they had no more strength to cry. They cried themselves literally out of strength. But when you get to that place of being that depleted emotionally, you have to be careful. Because that's when the raw stuff comes to the surface.
Now David lost everything that y'all lost. But when they got through crying, they said, Well, you know what? This is David's fault. He's the one to have us out here fighting all these people. We could have stayed here protecting our families if it wasn't for him.
Left Kelly. You ever had people who love you? Trying to take you out. He said, bad enough that the Philistines don't trust us. At least I get that.
But now the people I've been going, I've been fighting the wars with. They're talking about killing me. And David is, I mean, talk about at the point of utter despair. His feelings could have easily had him there, but. I want you to see one verse and then I'm done.
Verse 6 of 1 Samuel 30. But David strengthened himself. And the Lord his God. Yeah. He strengthened him.
What does that even mean? That means that I can't find strength in y'all. I can't find strength in my circumstances. My wives and kids are gone. There is nothing that'll strengthen me that I can look around and see.
But my God. Is faithful and he is available for me, and he strengthened himself in the Lord. That's what Ephesians 6 says: Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. When you can't find strength anywhere else, find it in the Lord. How do I strengthen myself in the Lord?
I pray in the Holy Spirit. I pray until I remind myself of the goodness of God. I pray until I remind myself of the promises of God. I pray until I remember who God is. My circumstances aren't very good, but my God is a good God.
He's a good, good father. That's who He is. I'm loved by Him. That's who I am. You got to tell yourself that when you're going through hell.
Anyone ever gone through hell? I'm talking about a hellish experience. I'm talking about there have been times I walked through hell with gasoline drawers. Come on, I'm not by myself.
Sometimes it's like this can't get worse. Oh but But even When you're going through hell, you gotta know there is a God. Who, if it wasn't for him. I would have been taken out by now, but because of my God, I'm still standing. Yeah.
Sometimes the one thing you have to do is tell yourself and tell the devil, I'm still standing. I know you want me to be cussing God by now, but you see, I'm still here, don't you? I'm not going anywhere. My God. is going to get me through this.
And he strengthened his hands in the Lord. And because he strengthened his hand in the Lord, God was able to say, All right, tell you what I'm going to do. He asked the Lord, Should we pursue the enemy? The Amalekites came and took our wives and kids. What are we supposed to do?
Should we pursue? I'm glad he asked God. He didn't just pursue in flesh. He said, I want to see what God wants to do about this. And the Lord said, pursue.
And they took off. He told those folk who were trying to kill him: tell you what, if you want to see your wife and your kids again, you better come with me and quit talking about killing me because I got the anointing on my life. And you follow me, we all gonna get a recovery. And they quit talking about killing him and got back in sync. And they went and pursued.
And look at what the Bible says: 1 Samuel 30 says, and they recovered all. Why? Because God was with them. And if God be with them, You he is more than whoever is against you. If God is with you, He's more than the circumstances coming against you, He's more than the enemies coming against you, He's more than the stuff that's trying to hinder you.
God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or even imagine, and He's gonna give you the victory. if you'll strengthen yourself in the Lord. Thanks so much for being here with us for today's Destined for Victory message when opposition comes. Always glad to have you with us.
Well, as you know, summer is always a tough time for ministries like Destined for Victory. Donations tend to plunge during these summer months, and our faith is tested from time to time. I had the privilege of asking Pastor Paul his thoughts on the subject, and here's what he said: It would be great if your mortgage company or whoever you pay your housing bill to would say, Hey, it's summer, and I know you got things you want to do.
So that's not going to happen for you and your family life, and it doesn't happen for those of us who are broadcasters of the Word of God. The stations we broadcast, the platforms that we use, they require that we support them financially every month. And for that reason, we need our listeners to be supportive of us. We don't have the ability. to broadcast without Thinking about paying the bills.
That's where our listeners, that's where our donors come in. As you consider the fact that. Twelve months. Every month without fail, we need your support. We appreciate the fact that you'll think of us during the summer and realize that the bills are still coming and the word of God still needs to go out.
And thankfully, we're able to reach some people on vacation or wherever they happen to be, even some of those who aren't normally listeners, and we're able to reach them with the word of God.
So, thank you to those who help us. And I want to challenge more and more listeners: would you become partners with us? And would you remember us, even if you're not a monthly partner in the summer, think about us and drop us a line and put a check in there or contact us with the online platform of giving and say, We want to make sure that you continue throughout the year, including in these summer months. Thanks for thinking of us this year. We're so grateful for friends like you who support a media ministry with your prayers and charitable giving.
As you give generously today, We have an outstanding resource to share with you as our way of saying thanks. It's our new booklet, Overcoming Bitterness. Based on some of Pastor Paul Shepard's best sermons, this message will show you some key strategies to removing bitterness from your heart. As you follow along, you'll gain strategic insight into ways to cultivate hope and reclaim the joy of your salvation. Again, that's Overcoming Bitterness, a helpful booklet for anyone who still struggles to let go of past wounds and press on toward his or her victory in Christ.
Request your copy today for your generous gift to Destined for Victory. You can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-5500. Or visit pastorpaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, post office box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538.
I came to speak to folk who fear. like life has dealt you a raw deal. I came to talk to people who feel like I don't know why other people are having it good. I don't know how this happened to me. I must be cursed.
Must be something wrong with me. I came to tell you: the Bible isn't just for the up and in, the Bible is for the down and out. That's next time in our message. Pay it forward. Until then, though, remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion.
In Christ, you are destined for victory.
