Throwing in the towel

Philippians 2:13 NLT "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him."

Fighters use this term to call a fight to say they surrender.

I’ve had enough and will not be able to continue.

I quit.

1.                  You have to have something to quit, in wanting to quit. Most people I know who have successful ministries/lives struggle with quitting because they have the option to quit.

a.                  You can’t quit something you are not doing.

i.If you desire to do anything in this life you will receive the option at some point in your life to throw in the towel.

b.                  You are either involved in something great or on your way to greatness if you’ve ever wanted to quit.

ii. If you are never tempted to throw in the towel then chances are you aren’t attempting anything with any amount of significance.

iii.                Only champions are presented with the option of throwing in the towel.

c. Champions have a strong desire to quit. Only winners want to quit.

i.Peter wanted to quit, the bible said he went back to fishing when he betrayed Christ.

ii. John the Baptist wanted to quit he was like look should we look for another messiah or are you the One?

iii.                King David almost quit after the transgressions of his life.

iv.                Samson threw in the towel to Delilah and ruined some great opportunities but his hair was growing back.

v.                  Jesus Himself wanted to quit when He said let this cup pass from me Father yet not my will but yours be done.

1.                  Wanting to throw in the towel means your life has value.

2.                  Your future has value, your marriage has value, your career has value, and your destiny has value.

2.                  Don’t quit.

a.                  Never throw in the towel of life.

b.                  Never throw in the towel in your marriage.

c. Refuse to throw in the towel in your dreams for God.

Philippians 2:5 “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though he was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

**Philippians 2:13 “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”**

d.                  In your future don’t fail, fight.

e.                  If Moses would have quit when things got difficult where would an estimated 2 million Israelites be?

f.   Where would the city of Nineveh be if Jonah would have continued to run from God?

g.                  Where would Jeremiah be cause he wanted to quit but instead he turned his desire to quit into a rallying towel and an explosive desire to keep on keeping on.

i.The bible said that locked up inside of Jeremiah was a fire and God wanted the fire released and the devil wanted the fire quenched.

ii. Jeremiah decided to fan those flames and begin to wave the rally towel for a victory.

iii.                When the going gets tough start a I can’t quit because speech…”I can’t quit cause my TK is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Alec is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Chase is counting on me, I can’t quit cause Madi is counting on me, I can’t quit cause…

3.                  Always serve.

a.                  One thing about all of you is that you serve.

i.Never lose that investment.

ii. Die to yourself as you plant the seed of service. Never get selfish.

iii.                Never lose that awesome, awe inspiring, God living, life altering privilege of serving. 

b.                  Throw in the towel of service into the lives of others.

i.Jesus used a towel.

ii. Jesus selected a towel as His weapon of choice.

iii.                I have truly found myself in serving others.

1.                  I am blessed cause I throw in the towel of service.

2.                  I am honored to, I am called to, I am privileged to, just like Christ it’s in my DNA.

John 13:1 “Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. 2 It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God.4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist,5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples' feet, drying them with the towel he had around him. 6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" 7 Jesus replied, "You don't understand now what I am doing, but someday you will." 8 "No," Peter protested, "you will never ever wash my feet!" Jesus replied, "Unless I wash you, you won't belong to me." 9 Simon Peter exclaimed, "Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!" 10 Jesus replied, "A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet,* to be entirely clean. And you disciples are clean, but not all of you."11 For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, "Not all of you are clean." 12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, "Do you understand what I was doing?13 You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and you are right, because that's what I am.14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet.15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.”

4.                  One question from the disciples continued to burn in their hearts…who was gonna have the Chief office in the Kingdom?

a.                  Jesus finally had to get onto His hands and knees to wash their feet, the menial service of a slave, to burn into their minds that He had called them to serve and not to rule.

b.                  Oh how the church has suffered in centuries before because we have been consumed with the passion to be great.

i.Instead of humbly serving Christ we use Christ’s name to serve ourselves.

c. And He poured out the water on their feet and girded Himself the scripture said with a towel.

d.                  He tied around Him a towel.

e.                  Do you understand He could have girded Himself with a legion of angels as a symbol of His authority?

ii. He could have girded Himself with a sword as a symbol of His authority but He girded Himself with a towel.

iii.                And poured out water and washed their feet.

1.                  Christ’s weapon of choice, a towel.

2.                  A symbol of servant hood.

3.                  A core value of my life. 

Why Disney is the happiest place on earth and the church isn’t.

5 reasons why Disney is the happiest place on earth and the church isn’t.

People say, “We are judgmental, critical, and everyone is going to hell we have we don’t love people, we stereotype everyone as bad.”

Our goal as the church should be to keep customers coming back not just attracting them.

About 70% of Disney’s customers are repeat visitors. Amazing accomplishment.

1.  Disney understands first impressions may be last impressions.

“Research shows that people who are visiting a church for the first time make up their mind in the first 12 minutes whether they will be back.” Biblical records New Journal, February 2003

In her book, The Four-Minute Sell, Janet Elsea says you have just 7 to 15 seconds to make a good first impression.

5 First Impression Touch Points

1. How you dress.

2. Your body language. 55% of what you say is through body language.

3. Facial expressions.

4. What you say and how you say it.

5. Appropriate physical contact.

2. Disney is clear on who their competition is.

“Your competition is anyone who raises customer expectations, because if someone else satisfies customers better than you, no matter what type of business, you suffer by comparison. Disney gets thousands of calls everyday. Many of them are the same people who also call FedEx and count on their responsiveness and reliability.”
Inside the Magic Kingdom, by Tom Connellan

Matt.5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

 This doesn’t cost us a dime!

3. Disney pays fantastic attention to small things.

•     The high wear points on the 37 horse-head hitching posts on Main Street in Disney World are stripped down and repainted every night.

•     How many custodians does Disney World in Orlando employ? You might guess 300-400. The answer is actually 45,000! Why? From the CEO to the manager of Frontierland to Mickey Mouse himself, nobody walks past a piece of trash without picking it up. It’s policy.

Matthew 25:23 "The master said, `Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

4. Disney puts on their mouse ears everyday.

•     There is a reason why God gave us twice as many ears as He did tongues.

•     Be listening posts.

Proverbs 18:15 “Intelligent people are always ready to learn. Their ears are open for knowledge.”

Churches and ministries don’t grow and do better unless leaders have the knowledge to make necessary changes and adjustments.

•     We might not like the feedback, it might even hurt our feelings but we must make those hard and difficult decisions to become relevant and effective. Make the necessary adjustments that we can grow and reach others.

Ways you can help your leadership:

1. Notice distinctive impressions people have of the church.

2. Solicit people/others for their thoughts and impressions.

3. Never make promises that you can’t fulfill.

4. Thank people for constructive input and tell them you will forward the information.

5. Diffuse any philosophical or doctrinal differences with a soft answer.

Proverbs 15:1 “A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.”

              6. Pass on in writing or e-mail information deemed worthy of consideration to your leadership.

5. Disney excels at making every one-on-one contact a magical moment.

1 Corinthians 12:28 “And God has appointed these in the church:

…. helps,”

The Ministry of Helps is one of the most valuable spiritual giftings in the Body of Christ. 

When God appoints you to help, He also anoints you to help.

The helps ministry prepares every person to hear the Word of God in an environment charged with the peace and love of God.

Here’s how to help the church to be “THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH.”

HELLO

Make a practice of boldly greeting people you come into contact with.

Sample greetings to try:

“Hi there!”

“Good Morning, Good evening etc.”

“How are you doing today?”

“We’re glad you’re here!”

 ENGAGE

If time permits, ask them a simple question to identify possible assistance opportunities.

Sample questions to try:

“Are you a guest with us today?”

“Is this your first time here?”

“Have you heard about our ____?____ ministry?” (Visually identify area.)

“What is your name?”

LEARN

As you receive responses from your engaging questions, be perceptive to ways you can help them take the next step for them in church life.

Do they need to go through discipleship? Is there a ministry function they would enjoy?

POINT

Point them in the direction they need with specific information is both simple and helpful.

Disney teaches their employees to use two fingers, not one when pointing

SMILE

A smile communicates warmth, love, and acceptance.

Research has proven it takes twice as many muscles to frown as it does to smile

Put a “smile sandwich” on every contact you make.

Initiate

Initiate-cause an action or process to begin

To cause an action or a process to begin.

I.       Initiate a challenge.

A.     Initiate a challenge in yourself.

B.     Initiate a change and start it with you.

1.      Initiate a move a God through a hunger for God in your own life.

2.      Cause others around you to be jealous of your relationship with Him.

a)     Jealous of the closeness, the blessing, the time you spend together, and the strength of relationship you have with one another.

3.      Cause others to initiate a worship encounter with Him because they see yours.

a)     If our lives are a testimony, what is your saying?

b)     Stop being so passive and initiate a difference.

II.   Initiate a change.

A.     Initiate a change in your attitude.

1.      People who have amazingly horrible and destructive attitudes generally have no friends or at most a few.

2.      Don't you get tired of having no friends?

3.      Don't you get tired of trying to make things always go your way?

4.      Initiate a change.

a)     Start with you, go ahead press the button!

Numbers 14:19-24 NLT "[19] In keeping with your magnificent, unfailing love, please pardon the sins of this people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt." [20] Then the Lord said, "I will pardon them as you have requested. [21] But as surely as I live, and as surely as the earth is filled with the Lord's glory, [22] not one of these people will ever enter that land. They have all seen my glorious presence and the miraculous signs I performed both in Egypt and in the wilderness, but again and again they have tested me by refusing to listen to my voice. [23] They will never even see the land I swore to give their ancestors. None of those who have treated me with contempt will ever see it. [24] But my servant Caleb has a different attitude than the others have. He has remained loyal to me, so I will bring him into the land he explored. His descendants will possess their full share of that land."

B.     Caleb the bible says, "initiated, and lived with a different attitude."

1.      God chose to bring Caleb into the land because he has been faithful but it's his descendants that will posses their full share of the land.

2.      They got to reap the benefits of what their father, grandfather, planted. 

3.      What will you plant that your children will inherit, your children's children?

a)     My son Alec serves about 17 hours a weekend, God is gonna bless his service, his attitude, his loyalty to the Kingdom, and his initiation into the lives of so many.

b)     My son Chase, initiated a mission to at the age of 16 raise $3600 for an 11 day missions trip that will alter him forever, alter a nation forever, alter a people forever.

c)      Brooke, Hannah, Sydney, Madison, Amber, Chase, Kassie, Mark, Mike, Kristen, Chad, Stacy, Lindsey. 

C.     Initiate a change in your work ethic.

D.    Initiate a change in your words.

E.      Initiate a change in your actions.

III.   Initiate a challenge in the lives of others.

A.     Cause a chain reaction of events to take place that will forever change you, those around you, and those you come in contact with forever.

1.      Hunger for God is a process, passion for God is a process, discipleship is a process initiate a change.

2.      Initiate growth, initiate spiritual growth, initiate discipleship, initiate change! Press the start button.

a)     You press it!

Hebrews 12:1-4 NLT "[1] Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. [2] We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne. [3] Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won't become weary and give up. [4] After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin."

IV. Become nothing to become everything.

A.     Strip off every weight, initiate growth in God by letting go of the past, letting go of your current sin, and let go of the stress of the future.

B.     Jesus our champion who initiates our faith and He perfects our faith.

1.      Faith is a complete trust or confidence in someone or something.

2.      He initiated our faith and He will finish our faith.

a)     What will you do with Him?

C.     A lot of people start well with Jesus but finish off weak, disinterested, dysfunctional, and disappointed.

D.    Then you have the group that goes back and forth between their faith and their sin.

1.      Back and forth from shame to joy shame to joy shame to joy and never really finding true freedom because the bible teaches that whom the Son hath set free is free indeed.

E.      Then you have that group that might not have initiated strong, they might not have pressed the trigger but realized that through a daily walk in God, a consistency of prayer, a habit of bible reading, a life of serving that they have encountered a faith that has overtaken them.

1.      Listen I have a confidence in God so strong that no matter what I've faced, what I'm facing, or what I will ever face I choose to trust God!

a)     I will initiate a mission.

b)     Initiate a cause.

c)      Initiate a change.

d)     Initiate love.

e)     Initiate joy.

f)        Initiate long suffering.

g)     Initiate life change.

h)     Initiate training.

i)        Initiate an iserve project.

j)        Initiate a revolution.

k)     Initiate a rebellion against culture, against hell, and the Devil!

(1) C'mon initiate a revival.

(2) Initiate an awakening.

(3) Initiate a Spirit filling.

(a) Go ahead I dare you, pull the trigger, do it now what are you waiting on?

(b) God is always waiting on you, you are never waiting on Him.

i)        He is waiting on your step of faith.

ii)      He is waiting on your simple prayer.

iii)   He is waiting on your worship encounter with Him.

iv)   He is waiting for you to connect with Him through His word! He wants to speak to you.

v)     He wants you to initiate an encounter!