Led and Fed

The title is, Lead and Fed. Lead and Fed. This church is to be led by the Holy Spirit. Now, what do you think of when you see the word lead? I think of a cow, because I grew up on a farm.

I didn't have a red rope like this, but I did have ropes, and I did have the ability to make halters. Hope halters. Just like this one I made ever since I was a freshman in high school. It was something I learned how to make, and it helped when you were showing cattle or really you wanted to eat horses. But one thing it did, it allowed us to lead a cow. I never had much luck, I would say, leading a horse. My horse had a mind of its own, and it only came in if there was a bucket there. But with this, cattle are easily led when they know they are going to be fed. I had dairy cows, and so I never had beef cows, as this is a beef cow. As long as they knew they were going to get something to eat, they would follow you around. I guess the old thing, Mary had a little lamb. I guess lambs would follow you too. We had goats that followed us on our farm. I so remember the cows because it's easier to move a 900-pound steer if you could lead it than to try to drive it. They have their own mind and so forth. Well, are we similar to that? One must be led by the Spirit in the Church of God, not only privately, but also as a church collectively. We should all be, hopefully, led down the same road if we're all reading the same book. We all agree that this book will give us our instructions on where we're to go, how we're to get there, and then what it's going to be like when we get to where God is leading us. Not only in this life, but also as Christ talks about the coming Kingdom of God. Because ultimately, as he says in Matthew 6, 33, seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and that's what we hopefully are doing collectively and individually. I bring this up because a mentor-type minister of mine, he was actually Mary's minister when I first started dating her, made a statement to me just a couple years ago. He said, many in the church have the Spirit of God, but they're not led by the Spirit of God.

So many of us may have the Spirit, but are we really being led by the Spirit of God? Is it something that we desire to be led? And also, do we want to be fed? Led and fed, it's something that we should desire. Because if we're willing to be led by God, He will feed us. What did Christ say? Sitting on that mountain when He hadn't eaten in a while, and the adversary came to Him. Ah, look at these stones turned into bread, and doesn't that smell good? Nothing smells better than fresh baked bread. And I'm sure that bread would have smelled good if it was turned into from those stones. And Christ said, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. So He desired that we, as He was in the flesh, feed on the Word. So led and fed. I'd like us to go, if you will go with me now, to the book of Romans. Romans is one of my favorite chapters. I think a lot of people's chapters. Chapter 8, chapter 8 and verse 14. Chapter 8 and verse 14, mine says in the New King James Version, for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons or children of God. Are we? Do we want to be led? L-A-D, led. Three-letter word. But it's a big one. It's a big one for most of us because we all have this mindset sometimes is we think we know where we need to go. And we also think we know how to get there. We also think we know what's going to be there when we get there. Not always true. We find that out in life. I have. Maybe many of you have not had the independent mind that I've had. Growing up, I guess that's why my dad had to give me so many weapons with his leather belt. Because I just had my own mind. And some things are worth a whipping. I was doing things my own way until I finally had enough of them. And then I decide I don't have to do this, do I?

Well, with God sometimes we desire to do things our own way even though we know it's probably not the best way. I think all of us reach that. The older we get, the more mature we get, the more we kind of see. Wisdom tells me this is not the best way to do things or to go. In the Romans 8.14 being led by the Spirit, it's interesting because the Greek word for led is ego. A go. It's simple. A go. And ego means to drive or to lead.

God hopes to lead us. He hopes this word leads us down the right path.

Hope it leads us to be lights to the world instead of darkness.

But sometimes He has to drive me to do something. The Spirit actually has to drive me where it convicts me to where I can't do anything else.

I hope that you study God's word by the Spirit and that the Spirit leads you when it needs to, but also drives you to God's word when you need to be driven. Because we can get tied up in so many things into this world. And people, people can take our time and we want to give people, but also it can begin to draw us away from the spiritual into the physical realm.

And that's one of the greatest tools to break down our spiritual life is to get busy, isn't it? We get so busy doing things. We get so busy with people. We get so busy with even our jobs or even our homes or even relatives or even things that come up that are issues and problems, that it takes our focus away from where God wants us to be. And that's close to Him, looking to Him instead of to ourselves and those that take that time. But there's also a point where God wants us to be around people. God wants us to set the exam. We're not called to be hermits to go up into the mountains and just stay away or live in your condo and stay away from everybody. That's not God's purpose. He wants us to be with people, to be the light. I mean, why does He need a light if we're just going to go hide out? He talks about a basket over the light. Brother, we have the opportunity to make a difference in this community, in your communities, and in your families. And we can do that. So I ask the question, how can you tell that you're being led by the Spirit? That's what the Scripture says. Can you tell? And then, if not, can you change? How do you change? What are you doing? Is it important? Scripture tends to point that way, doesn't it? That to be children of God, we have to be led by the Holy Spirit. God uses water as a symbol all through the Bible of the Holy Spirit, mostly in the New Testament. We all have it here. In South Florida, we have sometimes more than we want, don't we? And if you have plants and vegetables or even trees, flowers, down here, because we have a dry season, you want to keep them alive, I've found that I've had to go out and water mine. Now, for the last week, I hadn't had to water much of you. I need to. And my plants will grow, and my grass that I'm trying to get in the backyard to look like a yard that didn't when we got there as much. It's important. So, you give your plants flowers. Are these real? They are real. Wow, that's nice. I thought those have got to be fake. And not fake, they're real. That felt good. Well, to let these flowers grow, it takes moisture, takes rain, I mean water, rain if it's outside. But, what if it doesn't get it? My mango trees that I'm watering, they're not going to bear fruit, right? Most people like mangoes. But, it will require moisture, just like we require God's Spirit to live our lives daily. Now, can we go without God's Word daily? Yes, we actually can. I've known people go weeks or months, years without reading it. Yeah, I would want to be living their life. And that's where they usually come to me because there are issues and problems.

Because God wants us to water ourselves and feed ourselves with His Word. He wants us to bear fruit. We see parables about bearing fruit. I won't go through them today, that's not my purpose. But, we all should want to bear fruit. You want to bear more fruit. Be watered with the Holy Spirit more.

Can these survive heat? If I set these flowers out in the sun all day and no watering or anything else, I'm amazed because Mary's got some planters in the back and she puts flowers.

You know, if I miss watering those for a few days, if it doesn't rain, those things just turn just like that. Right, Maria? I'm like, wait a minute, that thing was just like that and now it's like that. How could that be? Just one or two days?

You ever picture yourself as that? Have you ever felt, oh, I have. And usually I can lead the trail back to my lack of letting the Spirit lead me.

And being fed, I need to be led and fed daily.

Can I prosper? You know, my grass I've sown there since I've been there. When I watered it, it would grow, grow.

And I've seen it, but I have to water it in the dry times.

Do you have dry times? Dry spells? Where nothing seems to go right? You have a week that just like one thing after another. I had our deacon, Maurice Lavender, that you may know. He gave a sermonette this morning. And it's air conditioner went out of his truck this week. And it's hot in Miami.

And then he got it fixed and his transmission went out. All in the same week.

He needed to be watered. And he knew he did. And we, when we have these issues and problems in our lives, we need to be watered. Where do we get that water? It's the Holy Spirit. That's why it's symbolic.

And Jesus Christ talked on this, so I've talked about before.

Lead and fed, brethren.

That's why he said, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst. I gave a series on that here. Hunger and thirst. We should hunger for this word and we should have a thirst.

You have that thirst when you're fed and you're led by God's Holy Spirit. You're going to want to feed it. We're not blessed like Christ was blessed. Remember John 3 and verse 34, a new living translation.

Said that Christ was given the Holy Spirit without measure or limit.

Boy, wouldn't that have been nice? We're still working on growing. We're still working as Paul told the vessel and I can... Don't quench the Spirit.

So we're not blessed as Christ, but he says that we can be like Christ.

That's a challenge to us. To live by the Spirit, even him with all his power and what he was doing. He said, of myself I can do nothing.

Well, with God all things are possible. Do we look at that and say, you know, guess what, God? I kind of know where my issue was this week.

Now I need your help.

My father would sometimes... He was alive and I was younger. He would always be there to pick up the pieces after I was working on something and messed it up. Or would be there for so long a time working on this bicycle that I... That he said, you want me to help him? No, I got this.

And then I'd, after being frustrated, knock the skin off my knuckles and everything else working on a bike, I'd come crawling back.

You know, my dad, he didn't enjoy it. Just say, I told you so. He enjoyed it because he wanted to help and he wanted to show me. This is what God does. And he does it with his Holy Spirit.

How many times have you... You were frustrated with the problem and all of a sudden the problem's over. And you realize it didn't have anything to do with use. Some unknown force. We know where it's from. You got us out of this mess. Are we able to solve it? I think it's important. Because how we are led by the Holy Spirit is important.

In the New Testament, the Greek calls the church the ekklesia. Eklesia. Called out ones. And I've seen so many people frustrated in their lives.

Even in the church. Frustrated because they're not being led by the Spirit. And so, as I thought about this, I wanted to put this sermon together because, hey, I need it too, boy. Don't we need a reminder? Because it's amazing how we can be when things are going well. I'm kind of like, I walk a little taller. I feel like, man, everything's going right. I had no problems.

And we get a little cocky. Even in our spiritual lives, don't we? And God wants to see us humble.

Because we usually depend on Him a little more.

So, I want to give you some things now. The time I have left. About being fed and led. How and why. It's not good enough for somebody to stand up and say, Well, you need to be led by the Holy Spirit. You need to be fed by God's Word. That's all fine, but tell me how and tell me why.

How? How about first thing in the morning? How about first thing in the morning? What's your thoughts when you wake up? Is it, what have I got to do today? Oh, man, it's morning already?

Oh, all these problems I've got today. Man, I felt a lot better when I went to bed. Man, my back sore. I thought, oh, I'm supposed to get excited? Yes. Yes. What if before you even get out of bed, your eyes get awake? You think, thank God, thanks for blessing me through the night. I get to see another day. There's people I want to see tomorrow. See the next day. Do we put God first in our day as we think? Does that mean we need to, oh, yeah, well, I need to spend the next three hours laying in bed, praying to God?

No, I'm not saying that. There's a balance in everything. See, my scripture tells us not to be too religious. We'll go through that at another time. But first thing in the morning, is it too much? Did you say thank you? Thank God I'll hear it. Now, let me ask you this. Out of 7.87 billion people that is on earth, how many thank yous first in the morning do you think he gets?

You want to go down to a percent? How many do you think he appreciates? Every single one. Every single one. For you people that have kids or grandkids, you ever get tired of thank you? I don't think so. Fearing thank you, Grandpa, thank you, Grandma. Thank you. Thank you for feeding me. Thank you for breakfast. No. Because most of you don't hear it. I think being led by the Spirit is your first thing in the morning.

Why don't I get this day off right while I'm still laying in bed? Laying in bed, go. Thank you, God. Bless this day. Let me be a blessing to you on this day. I'm going to read something that small. Get your day started off right. Speak to God. What about the last thing?

Last thing of the day. What about at night? Doesn't it feel good sometimes? Ooh, it feels so good. You've had a very rough day. You've been beat up, or you're physically tired. You're just drained. You're like, oh, so glad this day is over with. You go, I'm just going to go to bed. And you hit the sheets, and you're sound asleep. Do you want to be led? How about spending a few minutes that you did in that bed earlier in the morning and go, and you're going to be a good guy?

Brought me through a good day. I made it through another day. I still have two arms, all my fingers. I have a family, and I have you that loves me, and you'll protect me through the night. Might make a lot of people in Miami tomorrow morning think about that if they live in a condo about two blocks down from the one that collapsed. I don't know how well I would sleep if I was somewhere near that.

But you can, right? You can if you lay it in God's lap. I think Kenny Rogers had a song about the gambler, whatever. The best you can hope for is to die in your sleep. With God, He'll take care of you. And that's how, even if your day goes really bad, you've got a chance to go, about another one. Give me another one. Let me try this one again tomorrow, God. Sound childish? We're His children. We're His child.

Just like little Santos back there, his parents and grandparents are going to help Him grow up. Hopefully not make mistakes, be there to protect Him. This is what God wants from us. And He's connected. He's so connected to us. And He's connected to us through the Holy Spirit. So what's your first thought in the morning? What's your last thought in the evening? You determine that. I know what God would like.

We're back in Romans. Romans 8. Romans 8 and verse 16. It says, The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. That should feel really good. We're not orphans. We're children of God.

And it talks about the Spirit bears witness. What it bears witness that the Spirit abides in us. The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. Why? Because it shows we will bear the fruits that show we're not controlled or live for the world. We bear some fruit. There's some kindness going on around here. I want to see some kindness. I want to see some agape. I want to see people having peace in their life because I'm in the center is what God wants.

Because my spirit will give them and grant them peace. In Psalm 17, it says, He just elevated everybody in this room to joint heirs with God. Jesus Christ God and flesh. He just elevated us. Realize that? I have one brother and two sisters. So my mother has her will already worked out to us what everybody's going to get. She did that the last trip I was up there.

And so, I get the same as my brothers and sisters. My brother and I share the farm and acreage and sisters get the houses and the money's all split. And all this, which is nice. But we're equal. Nobody's better than the other one. She wanted to be fair to everybody. God, here is, He's being fair with us. More than fair in my view because He's elevated me from this puny piece of dirt. And He went from dirt to divine in my life, in your life.

So He's taking us from here and He says, Here's, I gave you that example. I gave you my son. He's your elder brother. Your joint heirs with Him. And everything. What is everything? Everything. The universe, as far as you could see, we can't even get to the end of it. They think it's maybe 250 billion light years this way and it's like 700 billion years that way.

But they don't know. They just know it's so big you can't measure. Except God can. And He says it's all my children's. Isn't that amazing? It almost sounds stupid. Why would I look at myself and I look at this and I pray to God, Why would you give? Doesn't matter. You're my children because you possess the Spirit. That's the beauty.

Joint heirs with Christ if indeed we suffer with Him. Well, wait a minute. I don't want to suffer. Yeah, well, I don't mind this test but I don't want that trial.

So, no. It comes with the package. That we also may be glorified together. Is God glorified? Christ glorified? Only two I know. Yet He's saying here it ain't going to stay that way because my children. The kingdom comes. You're all going to be glorified. Oh, and you know what's scary about that? That's why we have to work on this humble thing. Work on it? Because if you look up glorified, one of the words, one of the phrases that relates to that, especially in the New Testament, is to be worshipped.

We have a lot of people in America today that love to be worshipped. But it ain't for the right reason. I've got a long way to go before I'm ready to handle that one. But it doesn't matter because He said that's what it is about. So, who leads? You or God? The question we must ask ourselves, who leads? You or God? Was Monday led by God or you? How about Tuesday? How about Wednesday? Because I can guarantee you if it's like my life, there was a day or two Chuck Smith led, and he shouldn't have.

And I have to work on it. We all have to work on it. This coming week, will we practice His fruits or the other fruits? And everybody knows, Galatians 5, it's the fruits of the Spirit. Everybody knows that. Galatians 5, 22, there's love, joy, peace, and God. We all know that. And we all look at it and go, well, what about the few verses before it? Where there are actually fruits of the flesh.

How many of those do we want to look at and go, oh, well that was me. There's Mary. There's Bill. This is the life we've chosen to live. And God said, I want you to live it that way. I want you to look at the Word. I don't want you to sharpen yourselves, but I also want to empower you. That's what Galatians 5, 22 is. Show these. And then you won't have to worry about the others. Just look at those fruits. And if you work on those, it basically replaces the others that come before it. Verses 18 and 19.

20. So let's move on down. How? Why? Lead and fed. How? Do we know how to be lead and why we need to be lead? In 1 Corinthians 2, verse 10. Oh, wow! Is this ever big? Because I know, and I said it, if you've ever been around me, you know 1 Corinthians 2.9.

For I has not seen nor heard nor heard nor heard of the heart of man things that God has planned for them. That's great! I use that. I know that. I revel in that. But here's what most people miss. But God has revealed them to who? Us through what? The Spirit. For the Spirit searches all the things. Yes, even the deep things of God.

Are you ready for the deep things of God? Half the time I want to go, no, no, no, no, no, that's all right. I'm happy with where these things are. He wants to take us through the deep things of God. And He can only do it through your Spirit, through the Holy Spirit.

Your Spirit that He gave to you. See, it's His. He gives it. It's a gift. Just like eternal life. He gives it. You can take it away. But isn't that amazing? How much of that comes through the Word of God? Where do we find out about God? Where do we find out we don't know what we thought we know about God?

You want to be like Job? Where were you when I laid the foundations of the world? You're so smart. And we'll read something. I don't understand what God's talking about. We need that. We need to say, God, I want to know as much about you as I possibly can. Frank sent me something just last night or yesterday or whatever. It's just incredible not bragging on you, Frank. That's not why. You know, you're a sinner just like the rest of us.

But he got into some deep things of God. And I appreciate because I'm usually the one throwing it out at Mary and she goes, where'd you get that from? Where's that coming from? I like that. And we should like that. It challenges us sometimes because I don't have all the answers.

I don't need to until it's time. Then God will give me that. He'll give you that. How? How? Let's go to John 6, verse 63. John 6 and verse 63. It is the Spirit which gives life, the flesh, prophets, nothing. Nothing. What does it say then? The words that I speak. Which are what? God's words. The words that I speak to you are Spirit and they are life. These words are Spirit. They feed that Spirit. They're life. When we pray to God, we talk to Him.

When we read His word, He talks to us. And He can do that. Can you, can you, hold on, let me grab this. I'm still in the camera. Hopefully nobody will freak out. That He disappeared. The rapture. He's gone. So I'm back in camera now. Because I hear that from different people. You disappeared. I know not to go over here anymore. So if I want to disappear, I can disappear. John 6, 63. Understanding Scripture. The plan of God.

Your future. Do you? Do you read it and realize where you fit in this thing? How you fit? Why you fit? Well, you can. Through the Holy Spirit. Teaching you. I'm trying to teach you all things. All things you need to know. It's not going to teach you who killed JFK.

It's not going to teach you all these things. What it's going to teach you is what you need to know to fulfill your destiny as a child of God. What's your future? Are you worried about it? Are you really worried? Because I know some people just, all they want to do is talk prophecy because they're scared. You know, we're all in the same boat. That boat is called Titanic, and it is planet Earth.

It's going down. Read your Bibles. It is. The only difference between us and the rest of the world is we're in the first-class cabins right now, aren't we? We live in America. We're in the first-class cabins. But this Earth, we're all going to be in this thing together. It doesn't take much Scripture before you see it's not going to get any better.

So should we have fear? That's us. No. This thing is going to be a mess. It's Revelation, which we're going to get into in the month of August. We're going to go through, and we're going to see what's going to happen to this planet Earth just before Christ returns and after.

But right now, we're just sailing along. Here we go.

Amazing because they didn't know all the rich people who were on that boat, all the first-class cabin people in Titanic, which were some of the richest people on Earth at that time. The Cabot, the various people. Who? Astor. You're right. Astor was there. And the husband and wife that actually started Macy's. They started Macy's. Husband and wife, they were an older couple, and they were taking this great cruise on a boat, that ship that not even God himself could sink, as they kept it said.

God didn't have to. He just sent an iceberg to do it.

But when it came down to the time the Macy's there, those ones started Macy's, it was time for her to get on the lifeboats. The women were all to get on. She refused.

She said, everything we've been together. Her husband, she said, no, I'm not going to go. We've been through this whole thing together.

We've been through the best of times and the worst of times. I'm with you to the end. And of course, she died.

But isn't it amazing that God tells us basically the same thing? I will never leave you nor forsake you. He's there for the good times and the bad times.

And He gives us His Spirit so that we can go, thank you, I can do more.

And then, go with me to Philippians 2 and verse 13.

Philippians 2 and verse 13. For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Hmm. Are we? Or is it about us? Or is it about His good pleasure?

Anybody know what this is?

Pipe? You should know. Yes? Yeah?

It is a pipe. It's typically used as a conduit.

If I want to run a wire from here to there, I may have to stick a piece of conduit in and you can run the wire through and it'll come out on the other side.

Amazing.

God's Holy Spirit is the conduit. It's how God delivers to us. It's how God gets stuff to us.

And it's how we get stuff to God. God's Holy Spirit is just like this conduit. If you've ever been on a job, it's amazing because it protects the wire when somebody's digging because the wire was put in conduit. This Holy Spirit that God's given us is there to protect us. It's there to warn us. It's there to help us.

And it's there for us to use to get the stuff we need from God because it's spiritual.

That's what He really, really wants from us.

But do we use it?

The little story of the guy going in in the 60s, this hand saw comes in and buys a chainsaw.

The guy says, you can cut ten times the amount of wood with this thing.

I go, that's great! He comes back and brings it back. He says, I couldn't cut half the amount of wood.

He goes, what do you mean? He goes, it wouldn't work.

The guy reaches, pulls the chain, and he goes, wow, what is that?

It comes on?

That's kind of us sometimes when the light doesn't come on because we're not using it and then we're wondering why.

Oh, God, you're not helping me. God, I'm not understanding this when we didn't turn it on. We didn't use it.

Will we? You want to help people? You want to help yourself? You want to help the church?

We need to use it. Be that. Be that incredible conduit.

Let's move on as I wrap this up today.

Because one of the why's, why we need to use Holy Spirit, why God gives it to us, one of the big why's is it sharpens our awareness of Satan.

It sharpens our awareness of Satan.

Remember, as I was talking earlier, where he was on the mountain in Matthew 4?

And he confronted, he was confronted by Satan after fasting, 40 days and nights.

Lucifer knew he was weak, but he wasn't that weak.

And spiritually he was strong. He was just weak physically. How many of us have been that way?

The adversary got to us because we're physically weak, not because we're spiritually weak.

But he looked at it like a weakness because sometimes it is.

Haven't you ever been so drained? You say, I just don't want to hear any more about anything. I'm just too tired even to read.

And somebody's going, oh yeah, oh yeah.

We need, we need that spirit. We need God to work with us.

And to determine evil, because I have worked in the prison and I can tell you evil, because I have seen evil.

I can, and you probably could too, spot evil when you see it, if you were in there.

But it's not so apparent in this old world, is it?

In prison, you know, they got these orange suits. It kind of is like a light that should go off.

Oh, they may not be good people. But how about in this old world?

You may have a neighbor just looks, oh wow. Don't you like those, well, I hope you don't like it, but you see it on TV, where when you have one of these guys that have abducted people or killed people and everything else, and he's held people in his house and all this kind of, and lived there for years, all of a sudden the people go out and interview the neighbors.

Well, he was such a nice guy, right? I never suspected a thing.

You know, with people like that, we all need help.

Haven't we all been fooled before? Maybe it was at a job, that nice person who came over and was going to do this.

Maybe it was someone else, maybe it was a neighbor, you found that. Really ain't that good a neighbor.

The Holy Spirit helps us detect evil.

And you know what else it does? And I'm so glad of it.

It helps us to detect negativity.

It shines light on negativity because that's one good sign.

And that you're going down the wrong road. It's people who are just so negative.

Haven't you met them? Maybe you live with one.

Maybe you used to be one.

We have to make sure that we're not one.

And so the Holy Spirit, it sharpens our senses.

If we use it like the guy putting gas in and cranking it, the chainsaw, and goes, Oh wow! Maybe we need to have some oh wow moments that we haven't had in a while.

Maybe we need to say, God, I want more.

You know, Elisha never had a problem with what do you want?

I want twice the amount of Spirit of Elijah! God didn't say, how? You ungrateful person. Did he get it? Yeah.

All in case he got it.

Christ said you don't have because you... what? Don't ask.

If we need more of the Spirit, we need to ask for it.

If we think we can... He's the one that's... He has the juice. You know, like electricity, there's juice flowing through it. He has the juice.

If we can handle more than 110, send me 220.

We need to ask.

Finally, why? John 14 and verse 26.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father, which the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to remembrance all things. What?

That I said to you.

So He was telling them, they're going to get this, Pentecost, and it will teach you all things.

What will it do for you, brethren? Why?

Because it's going to stimulate your memory. It's going to stimulate your memory.

Because He said, my words are spirit, so wait a minute. I've got words, spirit, God, spirit, conduit into this somewhat shallow brain sometimes.

We need it up here, and sometimes we need it right there, don't we?

You know the beautiful thing about this thing, brethren? He knows whether you need it here, here, or both.

And sometimes He's waiting for us to ask.

Because that's incredible power to give you, to give me.

There was a book. You have my time.

There was a book. Well, it wasn't really a book, it was a short story.

Many of you might have read, and I do see just as many gray hairs out there as I have.

Well, not as many, but you have them.

Let's call the book, the short story, by Jack London, called To Build a Fire.

Anybody remember that? Whoa, I've got nobody.

Man, I read this when I was 12 or 14 years old.

The short story about To Build a Fire that London wrote, and it was about being in Alaska.

And this man didn't take, he was out and he wanted to go from one town to another.

And it was so cold, snowing a little bit, but it was so cold, it was 50 degrees below zero.

And he said, I'm going to go over 10 miles and visit these people before I get snowed in.

And this older man told him, don't go.

And he went anyway.

And when he got out, he realized, man, it is extremely cold.

And he had mittens, he had all this kind of stuff, but he started just still getting cold.

And then he wondered, oh, I want to see this down here.

And then he wandered back and his fingers wouldn't hardly work.

And then he realized, I've got to build a fire, because it's cold.

And the old man told him, if you get stuck somewhere, build a fire.

And don't leave it. Build it and get through this through the night. He built it. And he wandered off.

And he came back. And he needed to build a fire.

And his dog, Buck, was with him.

And the dog had more sense than the man.

But the thing kept going through the man's mind was what the old man had said, the old wise guy.

Why didn't he listen? Because now his fingers wouldn't work.

And he had to put the matches in his mouth just to be able to light them.

And he got the second fire started.

And because he was in a hurry, he didn't realize it was under a tree. And snow fell off when it got warm and put the fire out.

He no longer had anything to build a fire.

And the dog left.

Because the dog knew in the lead he was going to die.

And in the story, the man dies.

To build a fire, and as the man was dying, he remembered the old man's words.

Don't let the fire go out.

If you build a fire, don't let it go out.

Brethren, we should have a fire in us, like the Holy Spirit.

Don't let it go out.

Don't let it be put out by the spiritual snow that can head your way.

It's what we need to do.

So remember that story. Because it wasn't a good one.

It kind of left you a little depressed.

But it left such an impression that nature is brutal.

Life can be brutal. We need to prepare for it.

And have the fire. There's no better way than God's fire to help us.

Last thing here.

When did you last refuel your car? Anybody?

I did mine yesterday. Did anybody?

Thursday? A week ago, Thursday.

Where? Monday? Why?

How'd it get empty? Right. Right.

We can refuel a vehicle, but yet do we refuel the Holy Spirit?

It's that important. We don't forget usually. I don't see a bunch of cars down here on the interstate, or 95, or a turnpike, that they're pull us out because they're empty.

Ran out of gas. It doesn't happen that often.

After me twice in my life, and I made sure after that it never happened again.

Walking four or five miles. Right? But, brethren, we need to refuel.

We need to refuel daily with the Holy Spirit.

I hope you will.

You. You. Every single one of you. And those watching us on the webcast, all of us will be lit and fed by something and someone.

Just who will lead and feed you next week?