The David Alliance

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman 10 Ways the Accuser Attacks Faith 1. Rehearsing Your Past He whispers your worst moment on repeat — the affair, the addiction, the abortion, the thing you did at 19 — long after God has already forgiven it, hoping shame will convince you that grace has an expiration date. (Revelation 12:10 — he accuses "day and night") 2. Redefining God's Character "Did God really say...?" He doesn't usually deny God exists — he reframes who God is: distant, disappointed, keeping score. (Genesis 3:1) 3. Comparison He points you at someone else's marriage, ministry, body, or blessing, and lets envy do the rest of the work — convincing you God has been unfair specifically to you. 4. Isolation Disguised as Privacy He convinces you that no one can know the real struggle — that if your small group or spouse knew, they'd walk away. Isolation is where accusation grows unchecked, because it's never tested against truth spoken by someone else. 5. Weaponizing Other Believers' Words He takes a real hurt — something someone at church actually said or did — and repeats it in your mind until it becomes "this is who the church really is" or "this is who God really is." 6. Delayed Answers as Proof of Abandonment When prayer isn't answered on your timeline, he suggests silence means absence — that unanswered prayer is proof you're not really heard, rather than proof you're being asked to trust. (Compare Job's friends' theology vs. God's actual response in Job 38-42) 7. Perfectionism Disguised as Conviction Real conviction from the Spirit is specific and leads to repentance and freedom (2 Corinthians 7:10). Accusation is vague, global, and leads to paralysis — "you'll never get this right," "you're always like this." One brings you to the cross; the other just buries you. 8. Identity Theft He tries to get you to answer to a label — addict, failure, fraud, unworthy — instead of the one Scripture actually gives you: forgiven, adopted, righteous in Christ (Romans 8:1, Ephesians 1:5). Whoever answers the accusation has already accepted the label. 9. Success as a Trapdoor Ironically, he accuses through pride too — convincing gifted, "successful" believers (especially leaders) that their platform, growth, or following is proof of their own righteousness, setting up a fall through self-sufficiency rather than obvious sin. (1 Timothy 3:6 — the danger of being "puffed up with conceit") 10. Truth Without Grace This might be the subtlest one: he loves using real Scripture, real truth, real standards — just stripped of the gospel's grace and hope, so truth becomes crushing weight instead of a path to freedom. (This is actually what he tried on Jesus in the wilderness — quoting real Scripture, Matthew 4:6, but twisting its application.)

The David Alliance  [email protected] Garth Heckman Accuser   Do you inhale or exhale when you putt?    THE ACCUSER - THE RATT  START WITH A WARNING… **If you do not understand how the accuser works you will be used by him and for his purpose without even knowing it.   Here is how it works:  People play the VICTIM - Why me, me oh my, waaa waaa waaa, poor me.   Then they turn into the VILLIAN - They attack people who they feel have it made, had it easy, they think they are arrogant simply because they are successful in some area of life.   They they become Victors and they fight on behalf of the other “VICTIMS”… Jeff Karow “I shudder thinking about the 11 year old little girl who could not get an abortion after being brutally raped.    The worst thing about being deceived is you do not know you are deceived. You operate in the mindset of fact, but its not fact at all. Remember when cigarettes did not cause cancer.    John 8 Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2 but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. 3 As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. 4 “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” 6 They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 7 They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” 8 Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. 9 When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10 Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” 11 “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”   The historical background of this passage—traditionally known as the Pericope Adulterae—is shaped by a clever political trap, a clash between competing legal systems, and a fascinating journey through ancient manuscripts. [1, 2, 3, 4]    peh-RIK-oh-pee - It’s from Greek, meaning "a cutting out" or "a selected passage,” Adulterae = ah-dul-TAIR-eye   1. The Legal Trap: Roman Law vs. Jewish Law The religious leaders weren't just asking Jesus for a theological opinion; they were trying to force Him into a dangerous political and legal corner: [3, 5]    The Roman Constraint: Under Roman occupation, the Jewish authorities (the Sanhedrin) were stripped of their power to officially execute anyone. If Jesus agreed that the woman should be stoned to death, He would be encouraging an illegal vigilante execution, breaking Roman law and setting Himself up as a rebel leader against Rome. The Mosaic Constraint: If Jesus said she should go free, He would appear to be breaking the Law of Moses(Leviticus 20:10), which prescribed the death penalty for adultery. This would instantly ruin His credibility as a Rabbi among the Jewish people.    What is really going on here? Judging Jesus response - while they themselves do not hold themselves accountable to the same standard.    *they are not willing to make a call on this - but judging Jesus on his response.   People will call you out - all the while never talk about their own lack of character in the same manner.   Where was the man? The Mosaic law explicitly stated that both the man and the woman caught in adultery were to be put to death. **Missing information: Accusers will never share the whole story.    2. The Location: The Temple Courts The text explicitly states this encounter took place in the Temple courts (John 8:2).     The sprawling courts of Herod’s Temple were not dirt roads or sandy paths; they were grand, public plazas paved with massive, polished stone tiles. If there was loose dust blown onto the stones, Jesus could have been writing in the dirt. However, if He was pressing His finger directly against the smooth, hard flagstones of the Temple floor, a mere human finger would leave no mark. For Him to "engrave" or "write" a visible record there would require a miracle. [7, 8]    3. The Theological Parallel: The Finger of God By highlighting that Jesus wrote "with his finger," John uses a very rare phrasing that immediately points a Jewish reader back to the Old Testament. [7, 9]      In the entire Bible, there are only a few times where God is described as physically writing something. The most famous is Exodus 31:18: "He gave Moses the two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God."   Jesus was silently saying: "You are trying to lecture Me on the Law? I am the one who carved it in stone in the first place." [1, 10]    OOOOOOO   The phrase "the finger of God" appears only a handful of times in the entire Bible. Each instance represents an irresistible, sovereign display of divine authority and judgment on those who try to play God.  When you connect these other passages to Jesus in the Temple courts, they paint a staggering picture of who He was claiming to be.     1. The Plagues of Egypt (Exodus 8:19)   The Context: During the ten plagues, Pharaoh's court sorcerers try to replicate the miracles Moses performs. When God turns the dust of the earth into swarms of gnats, the magicians fail to copy it. Terrified, they tell Pharaoh: "This is the finger of God."   2. The Ten Commandments (Exodus 31:18 & Deuteronomy 9:10)   The Context: God delivers the moral law to humanity not by dictating it to Moses, but by physically carving it Himself. The text notes the tablets were "written with the finger of God" on stone.   3. The Writing on the Wall (Daniel 5:5)   The Context: King Belshazzar of Babylon throws a blasphemous feast, drinking out of the sacred gold cups stolen from God’s Temple. Suddenly, the fingers of a human hand appear and scratch a mysterious message into the plaster of the wall (Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin). Daniel interprets the writing: God has weighed the king's deeds, found him wanting, and his kingdom is finished.   4. Jesus Driving Out Demons (Luke 11:20)   The Context: Jesus is accused by His critics of using the power of Satan to cast out demons. He fires back: "But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you."   This is a great teaching device — pastors use this "voice of the accuser" framing often to expose the enemy's tactics. Here's a biblically-grounded list, treating it as an exposé of strategy rather than actually voicing that persona.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Accuser Do you inhale or exhale when you putt?  THE ACCUSER - THE RATT    START WITH A WARNING… **If you do not understand how the accuser works you will be used by him and for his purpose without even knowing it.   Here is how it works:  People play the VICTIM - Why me, me oh my, waaa waaa waaa, poor me. Then they turn into the VILLIAN - They attack people who they feel have it made, had it easy, they think they are arrogant simply because they are successful in some area of life.   They they become Victors and they fight on behalf of the other “VICTIMS”… Jeff Karow “I shudder thinking about the 11 year old little girl who could not get an abortion after being brutally raped.    The worst thing about being deceived is you do not know you are deceived. You operate in the mindset of fact, but its not fact at all. Remember when cigarettes did not cause cancer. 

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Luke 11

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman ASK   John F. Kennedy - ask not what your country can do for you, but rather what can you do for your country…. Great line, too bad it wasn’t his… but it still screams the idea of asking….   JFK’s head schoolmaster in catholic chapel actually came up with that line… and JFK modified it.    Title Idea: "The Divine Exchange: What Asking Reveals”   Im going somewhere with this question…   A simple question: What is your theology? Simple answer: I believe in Jesus as the son of God. I believe he died for my sins. I believe He rose again. I believe I am a sinner, I have asked him to forgive me of my sins, and I have chosen to live my life for him. My Basic theology: Right?     NOT EXACTLY what your theology is based on…. ITS IN THE QUESTIONS YOU ASK AND THE QUESTIONS YOU ANSWER?     The tension in scripture is in the questions: BUT NOT IN WHAT YOU ask, BUT IN HOW YOU ACT!     QUESTIONS - “ASK” - DEMAND BEHAVIOR!    Gods questions to us demand alliance Our Questions to God reveal compliance    How far is too far… ahhhh that question reveals your lack of compliance and your lack of heart for alliance.  The real question is “What is the best way to honor this person in you and in their future marriage?”       CFNI - PINK ELEPHANTS  Special speaker - asks again and again =who is in rebellion, refusing to repent and be used by God.       We wait….. Finally a man in his 30’s stands up - its me. We pray for him. The speaker says you have a word for someone - The man says yes - someone here is afraid of pink elephants      We wait…. A young man bursts out of his seat.. it’s me, it’s me   IT WAS… A SERIES OF UNCOMFORTABLE QUESTIONS!      Jesus asks impossible things ("you feed them"),    -  and people ask Him impossible things (water-walking).       Jesus asks us uncomfortable questions (Why give to the dogs what was meant for the children)    -  We ask him questions we can rationalize (God I know you understand, I know you are a forgiving God)   Jesus asks improbable questions: (Why would you call me good?, do you want to get well?)    -  We ask self serving questions (Isn’t everybody doing it? But isn’t it just easier this way)     Pose the question: What if the way we ask, and the way we respond to being asked, exposes our actual theology—not our stated one?   Because it does.          THOUGHT: Jesus's Questions Expose What We Believe, Not What We Know     LUKE 5     Jesus first ask of a disciple - makes no sense. Peter objects but obliges.   **What Jesus exemplified - He stood in the boat and preached, and it drew a multitude of fish to him.  APPLICATION: Jesus: “Follow my ask and watch what I can do.”       5 YEARS AGO I WAS FILLING OUT PAPER WORK FOR PATENTS… GOD SAID GO FOR IT.     Now understand everything that I want to go after will cost me a lot of money. I was explaining to God why this is a dumb idea - I don’t have the money… but he said “be greedy, go for it”. I objected, but obliged… it paid off!          12,000 HAPPY MEALS Text: Matthew 14:16 — "You give them something to eat.”   This isn't a logistics question. Jesus already knew what He was going to do (John 6:6 says as much—He asked "to test" Philip, "for he himself knew what he was going to do"). The command wasn't functional; it was diagnostic. He's not asking the disciples to solve a math problem (5 loaves ÷ 5,000 people); He's asking them to locate their trust.   Theological insight: When God gives an "impossible" instruction, He's rarely asking you to be sufficient. He's asking you to bring what's insufficient to Him. The miracle happens in the disciples' hands, not before them—they distribute what they don't yet have enough of, and it multiplies in the giving, not before it.   Application: Every "you feed them" moment in our lives (a marriage we can't fix, a ministry we can't sustain, a grief we can't carry) is less about capability and more about direction—will we hoard the five loaves in fear, or hand them over in obedience?     A young man comes to Christ. He was a fun, crazy partying teenager, then 20 year old… now 25 and he comes to Christ. He slept around… but now knew if he was going to call him self a Christian he had to practice abstinence… no excuses -  But he was admittedly unsure - to him it seemed impossible. He could do it for a few dates…but then what. I EXPLAINED TO HIM - you bring your 3% and God will cover the other 97%.      To most people - especially the 15-30 year olds that seems like an impossible ask:      Point 2: "Why So Little Faith?" — The Question That Isn't Really a Question   Text: Matthew 8:26 The storm, Jesus asks this three times in Matthew, always after the disciples have witnessed power but respond in fear or doubt   Oli-GO-pistos - “you do realize I have the power if you have the faith”.    Application: The question isn't accusatory—it's an invitation to memory. When we're afraid, Jesus isn't asking us to defend our fear; He's asking us to recall what we already know about Him.   HE IS ASKING SO WE REMEMBER!      Point 3: When People Ask Jesus — The Syrophoenician Woman's Bold Request - what about the crumbs!    Text: Mark 7:24–30 / Matthew 15:21–28     Jesus Is Testing/Drawing Out Her Faith, Not Insulting Her     Her response wins the exchange trusting in his character and goodness with humility and cleverness.   She asks - and does not get the answer she wants. She asks - again with humility and candor

The David Alliance   THOUGHT: Jesus's Questions Expose What We Believe, Not What We Know     LUKE 5     Jesus first ask of a disciple - makes no sense. Peter objects but obliges.   **What Jesus exemplified - He stood in the boat and preached, and it drew a multitude of fish to him.  APPLICATION: Jesus: “Follow my ask and watch what I can do.”       5 YEARS AGO I WAS FILLING OUT PAPER WORK FOR PATENTS… GOD SAID GO FOR IT.     Now understand everything that I want to go after will cost me a lot of money. I was explaining to God why this is a dumb idea - I don’t have the money… but he said “be greedy, go for it”. I objected, but obliged… it paid off!          12,000 HAPPY MEALS Text: Matthew 14:16 — "You give them something to eat.”   This isn't a logistics question. Jesus already knew what He was going to do (John 6:6 says as much—He asked "to test" Philip, "for he himself knew what he was going to do"). The command wasn't functional; it was diagnostic. He's not asking the disciples to solve a math problem (5 loaves ÷ 5,000 people); He's asking them to locate their trust.   Theological insight: When God gives an "impossible" instruction, He's rarely asking you to be sufficient. He's asking you to bring what's insufficient to Him. The miracle happens in the disciples' hands, not before them—they distribute what they don't yet have enough of, and it multiplies in the giving, not before it.   Application: Every "you feed them" moment in our lives (a marriage we can't fix, a ministry we can't sustain, a grief we can't carry) is less about capability and more about direction—will we hoard the five loaves in fear, or hand them over in obedience?     A young man comes to Christ. He was a fun, crazy partying teenager, then 20 year old… now 25 and he comes to Christ. He slept around… but now knew if he was going to call him self a Christian he had to practice abstinence… no excuses -  But he was admittedly unsure - to him it seemed impossible. He could do it for a few dates…but then what. I EXPLAINED TO HIM - you bring your 3% and God will cover the other 97%.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman IT WAS… A SERIES OF UNCOMFORTABLE QUESTIONS!    Jesus asks impossible things ("you feed them"),    -  and people ask Him impossible things (water-walking).       Jesus asks us uncomfortable questions (Why give to the dogs what was meant for the children)    -  We ask him questions we can rationalize (God I know you understand, I know you are a forgiving God)   Jesus asks improbable questions: (Why would you call me good?, do you want to get well?)    -  We ask self serving questions (Isn’t everybody doing it? But isn’t it just easier this way)     Pose the question: What if the way we ask, and the way we respond to being asked, exposes our actual theology—not our stated one?   Because it does.          THOUGHT: Jesus's Questions Expose What We Believe, Not What We Know     LUKE 5     Jesus first ask of a disciple - makes no sense. Peter objects but obliges.   **What Jesus exemplified - He stood in the boat and preached, and it drew a multitude of fish to him.  APPLICATION: Jesus: “Follow my ask and watch what I can do.”

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman ASK   John F. Kennedy - ask not what your country can do for you, but rather what can you do for your country…. Great line, too bad it wasn’t his… but it still screams the idea of asking….   JFK’s head schoolmaster in catholic chapel actually came up with that line… and JFK modified it.    Title Idea: "The Divine Exchange: What Asking Reveals”   Im going somewhere with this question…   A simple question: What is your theology? Simple answer: I believe in Jesus as the son of God. I believe he died for my sins. I believe He rose again. I believe I am a sinner, I have asked him to forgive me of my sins, and I have chosen to live my life for him. My Basic theology: Right?     NOT EXACTLY what your theology is based on…. ITS IN THE QUESTIONS YOU ASK AND THE QUESTIONS YOU ANSWER?     The tension in scripture is in the questions: BUT NOT IN WHAT YOU ask, BUT IN HOW YOU ACT!     QUESTIONS - “ASK” - DEMAND BEHAVIOR!    Gods questions to us demand alliance Our Questions to God reveal compliance    How far is too far… ahhhh that question reveals your lack of compliance and your lack of heart for alliance.  The real question is “What is the best way to honor this person in you and in their future marriage?”

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The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman EVERYONE WANTS TO MAKE THEIR DAD PROUD. How? By being creative in how we perform.    John 1:3 and Colossians 1:16 both identify Christ as the one through whom all things were created. This connects creative imagination directly to the person of Jesus, not just an abstract "God"   Quit thinking “I’m not creative”. As a follower of Jesus you have THEEEE creator living inside you. Everything that God has created… that force is in YOU.    Every kid who's ever built a blanket fort, drawn a picture of a purple dinosaur riding a skateboard, or invented a game with rules that make sense to absolutely no one but them — is doing something profoundly theological. They're being and acting and operating in exactly who they were made to be.     Point 3: God's Creativity Is Extravagant, Not Efficient   GOD’S MIRACLES WERE ALWAYS ABUNDANT. Fish and Bread - more Peter catches the fish in the net - more Creative Miracles are always MORE!      Psalm 104 is an extended poem celebrating creation, and verse 24 is the summary line: "How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.”   Here's what's easy to miss: God didn't need this much variety. He could have made one kind of tree, one kind of bird, one kind of fish, and called it "sufficient."  THATS WHY…. there are over 350,000 known species of beetles alone — and that's before you get to everything else crawling, swimming, and flying on this planet. Every snowflake that's ever fallen has had a unique crystalline structure. No two fingerprints on earth are identical. God didn't design creation efficiently. He designed it abundantly.   Here’s a brain drop… he wants your creativity to produce abundance!    GOD DOES NOT ASK US TO CREATE PERFECTLY OR EFFICIENTLY - JUST CREATE AND WATCH HIM MAKE IT ABUNDANT WHEN IT IS TO SHOW OFF HIM! 

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman CREATE   We see the success, but I think we all enjoy the “early create” stage. Any success starts with creation.    BE LIKE DAD Humanity is made in God's image, including creative capacity Genesis 1:27 — being made in God's image includes reflecting His nature, and part of that nature is creativity itself.  humans build, invent, compose, and imagine because we're stamped with the image of a Creator God.     It runs through out the bible. Gen. 1 Creation / Curse John 1 Jesus is the creator / came to break the curse The REZ is framed as a “Re-creation” not just resuscitation  2 Cor. 5:17 anyone in him is a new creation The curse and redemption are bookend in OT-NT Rev. 21,22 speak of a New Heaven and New Earth   CREATION IS STAMPED ALL OVER THE BIBLE!      …And we are called to emulate that trait of our Father!    HOW DID DAD CREATE God creates through His word, not raw material (ex nihilo creation) Genesis 1 repeatedly uses "and God said" — He speaks reality into existence       Proverbs 8:30 describes wisdom as being beside God "like a craftsman" (or "constantly" depending on translation), rejoicing in His presence and rejoicing in the inhabited world. Some translations render this as wisdom being God's "delight" day by day. This has strong creative/imaginative overtones — a Creator who delights in the process of creating, not just the outcome.     Psalm 104: 24 "How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." The sheer variety of creation (over 350,000 known species of beetles alone, if you want a modern illustration)     God does not expect perfection - just creation!  THERE IS NO 1 PERFECT BEETLE     True creativity does not focus on one perfect solution… one perfect beetle. But rather numerous solutions   **How to get great ideas by Jack Foster:  They asked students to come up with on great idea for a Swiss knife, they had all week to do it. They stumbled, its hard, its frustrating… they wrecked seeking perfection. So they changed their strategy. You have to come up with at least 10 and you only have your lunch break to do it. THEY ENJOYED IT MORE CREATIVE  MANY CAME UP WITH WAY MORE THAN 10 IDEAS     HOW DO WE CREATE - AS SEEN IN SCRIPTURE We create what’s in us… **Remember when people hate you - they don’t hate you, that just what’s in them.   When people gossip When people attack your character When people steal When people posture above you When people feel insecure around you When people judge you ITS NOT YOU - THAT IS WHATS IN THEM   When we create - we create what is in us.  So make sure you are IN CHRIST!    The most successful people are not the smartest - they are the most creative… proven!    YOU DON’T NEED ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE HOLY SPIRIT.    WHY DO WE CREATE Its what we were made for…   In any activity that we find ourselves aligned/focused/flow **it is because we are operating something we were created for. AND WHEN WE CREATE - IT IS A DOUBLE BONUS - because we are creating - which is what we were created for.      NOW WATCH THIS Exodus 31:1-5 — God tells Moses He has called a man named Bezalel by name, and then says this: "I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge, and with all kinds of skills — to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.”   Stop and let that sink in. The first time scripture explicitly says someone was "filled with the Spirit of God," it's not a prophet, a king, It's not a warrior. It's a craftsman. An artist. A designer. God fills a man with His Spirit specifically to carve, engrave, and build beautiful things for the tabernacle.     NOW - here is the trifecta: We were created to create to bring attention to the creator!      **Lou Little, a football coach at Georgetown and later Columbia University tells the story of a young player. Not very gifted, but always tried hard. He sat on the bench most every game, but the coach was fond of him. This young mans father came to every game… one day the coach gets a telegram that this young mans father had passed away in the night. He tells the young man to take that game off - The boy refuses. Their team in the middle of the 3rd quarter is getting killed, the boy kept asking to go in, at this point the coach says… what can it hurt. The young man goes in and plays like he is an NFL superstar. After the game the coach asked him the difference. The young man said even though my dad came to every game he was blind - so today was the first day my dad could actually see me play.    What if we looked at creativity this way: God is watching us create so that we can bring him attention.   In business In art In technology In agriculture In social sciences In finance In music In sport What if we looked at it as if we are creating attention to the father.     EVERYONE WANTS TO MAKE THEIR DAD PROUD. How? By being creative in how we perform.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman CREATE   We see the success, but I think we all enjoy the “early create” stage. Any success starts with creation.    BE LIKE DAD Humanity is made in God's image, including creative capacity Genesis 1:27 — being made in God's image includes reflecting His nature, and part of that nature is creativity itself.  humans build, invent, compose, and imagine because we're stamped with the image of a Creator God.     It runs through out the bible. Gen. 1 Creation / Curse John 1 Jesus is the creator / came to break the curse The REZ is framed as a “Re-creation” not just resuscitation  2 Cor. 5:17 anyone in him is a new creation The curse and redemption are bookend in OT-NT Rev. 21,22 speak of a New Heaven and New Earth   CREATION IS STAMPED ALL OVER THE BIBLE!      …And we are called to emulate that trait of our Father!    HOW DID DAD CREATE God creates through His word, not raw material (ex nihilo creation) Genesis 1 repeatedly uses "and God said" — He speaks reality into existence       Proverbs 8:30 describes wisdom as being beside God "like a craftsman" (or "constantly" depending on translation), rejoicing in His presence and rejoicing in the inhabited world. Some translations render this as wisdom being God's "delight" day by day. This has strong creative/imaginative overtones — a Creator who delights in the process of creating, not just the outcome.     Psalm 104: 24 "How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." The sheer variety of creation (over 350,000 known species of beetles alone, if you want a modern illustration)     God does not expect perfection - just creation!  THERE IS NO 1 PERFECT BEETLE     True creativity does not focus on one perfect solution… one perfect beetle. But rather numerous solutions   **How to get great ideas by Jack Foster:  They asked students to come up with on great idea for a Swiss knife, they had all week to do it. They stumbled, its hard, its frustrating… they wrecked seeking perfection. So they changed their strategy. You have to come up with at least 10 and you only have your lunch break to do it. THEY ENJOYED IT MORE CREATIVE  MANY CAME UP WITH WAY MORE THAN 10 IDEAS     HOW DO WE CREATE - AS SEEN IN SCRIPTURE We create what’s in us… **Remember when people hate you - they don’t hate you, that just what’s in them.   When people gossip When people attack your character When people steal When people posture above you When people feel insecure around you When people judge you ITS NOT YOU - THAT IS WHATS IN THEM   When we create - we create what is in us.  So make sure you are IN CHRIST!    The most successful people are not the smartest - they are the most creative… proven!    YOU DON’T NEED ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE HOLY SPIRIT.    WHY DO WE CREATE Its what we were made for…   In any activity that we find ourselves aligned/focused/flow **it is because we are operating something we were created for. AND WHEN WE CREATE - IT IS A DOUBLE BONUS - because we are creating - which is what we were created for. 

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman CREATE   We see the success, but I think we all enjoy the “early create” stage. Any success starts with creation.    BE LIKE DAD Humanity is made in God's image, including creative capacity Genesis 1:27 — being made in God's image includes reflecting His nature, and part of that nature is creativity itself.  humans build, invent, compose, and imagine because we're stamped with the image of a Creator God.     It runs through out the bible. Gen. 1 Creation / Curse John 1 Jesus is the creator / came to break the curse The REZ is framed as a “Re-creation” not just resuscitation  2 Cor. 5:17 anyone in him is a new creation The curse and redemption are bookend in OT-NT Rev. 21,22 speak of a New Heaven and New Earth   CREATION IS STAMPED ALL OVER THE BIBLE!      …And we are called to emulate that trait of our Father!    HOW DID DAD CREATE God creates through His word, not raw material (ex nihilo creation) Genesis 1 repeatedly uses "and God said" — He speaks reality into existence       Proverbs 8:30 describes wisdom as being beside God "like a craftsman" (or "constantly" depending on translation), rejoicing in His presence and rejoicing in the inhabited world. Some translations render this as wisdom being God's "delight" day by day. This has strong creative/imaginative overtones — a Creator who delights in the process of creating, not just the outcome.     Psalm 104: 24 "How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." The sheer variety of creation (over 350,000 known species of beetles alone, if you want a modern illustration)     God does not expect perfection - just creation!  THERE IS NO 1 PERFECT BEETLE

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman   1 Samuel 18:10-11 (Uncontrolled Rage): Saul’s jealousy quickly escalated into murderous anger. While David was playing the lyre to soothe him, Saul was overcome by an evil spirit and his own rage, throwing his spear at David twice in an attempt to pin him to the wall.   Emotional volatility becomes a discipleship excuse instead of a growth area.  "I just felt led" or  "I couldn't help how I reacted"  “We are in Love”.  “She started it”. “It was Tuesday”    The flesh wether in a high or a low is meant to be cultivated by the fruits of the Spirit!    I love what Socrates said “any virtue in and of itself is a danger, it must be balanced with another virtue. i.e. if you are generous but do not balance that with wisdom, you will give all your money away and your family will starve. This is what the fruits of the Spirit do for us when in the midst of great emotion.     (Galatians 5:22-23) — Living by emotion trains a man to treat every strong feeling as a legitimate directive rather than something to bring under Christ's authority (2 Corinthians 10:5).     1 Samuel 22:7-8 (Paranoia and Self-Pity): Gripped by paranoia, Saul accused his own servants of conspiring against him. His emotional outburst was steeped in self-pity as he complained, "Is there no one of you who is sorry for me?"—a delusion that directly led to the slaughter of the priests of Nob.   It destabilizes relationships and leadership. A man who leads his home, church, or business based on how he feels that day becomes unpredictable — and unpredictability erodes trust. Proverbs repeatedly contrasts the "fool" who is ruled by impulse with the wise man who exercises restraint (Proverbs 14:29, 29:11).     What if someone outshines you?    **Here is an example… what if you get asked to leave your church and then it explodes with growth and miracles?        The flesh - what?  The Spirit - Great!  You will respond according to which one you have trained the most under the leading of the Holy Spirit!          Emotions are NOT bad or that Christians should suppress them.  Jesus wept, felt righteous anger, questioned authority, expressed anguish.    ****The danger isn't having emotions — it's letting emotion replace truth as the authority governing belief and action. The healthy target is emotions submitted to and informed by truth, not emotions eliminated or truth stripped of feeling.     Saul’s ultimate downfall was not a lack of talent or opportunity; it was a fundamental flaw in his internal compass. Saul lived a life governed by feelings rather than character. Character does what is right regardless of how it feels, whereas emotion demands immediate gratification and acts on impulse. When pressure mounted, Saul allowed fear, impatience, jealousy, and pride to dictate his choices.       To build a life of character rather than emotion:     Surrender your impulses to God’s Word: Do what God says even when your feelings resist.   Value obedience over appearance: Do not let the fear of what others think pull you into partial obedience.   Anchor your heart in trial: When panic, jealousy, or insecurity arise, name the emotion, but let God’s truth guide your next step.       A well-known psychological metaphor (popularized by Dr. Steven Hayes in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) describes appeasing internal pain or anxiety: "If you feed a pet tiger meat to keep it quiet, it only grows larger and 

The David Alliance  [email protected] Garth Heckman Urge   INTRO: Its a strange memory at best: A young man at church - my sister Renee’s friend. HS stud athlete, great looking, always jumping in and out of bed with whomever he could. Now in his early 30’s he came to church and Renee said one night after church… he better hurry up and figure out life - his hair is getting thinner and his glasses are getting thicker.  Funny, sad, but telling of his life falling apart. He lived his life by his emotions… his “URGES” if you will.    the phrase "a piece of work" originated as a high compliment before evolving over centuries into a sarcastic insult. The Literary Origin Its earliest famous usage comes from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet (around 1601). In Act II, Scene 2, Prince Hamlet marvels at the creation of humanity: "What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty..."       He’s a piece of work ISRAELS FIRST KING!  King Saul had it all but lost his call as a know it all only to fall.      Saul’s ultimate downfall was not a lack of talent or opportunity; it was a fundamental flaw in his internal compass. Saul lived a life governed by feelings rather than character.     Have you ever met someone who lives by their emotions/feelings/the wind?     I used to say to my boys… “dad is in a bad mood today, so don’t push it”. WHAT I WAS REALLY SAYING WAS DAD IS IN THE FLESH… LIVING BY HIS URGES!        Romans 8:5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. 7 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. 8 That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. 9 But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)         King Saul highlights critical decisions based on fear, jealousy, and impulsivity rather than steadfast character and obedience.     1 Samuel 13:8-12 (Impatience and Panic): When the prophet Samuel delayed his arrival and the Israelite army began to scatter out of fear, Saul panicked. Instead of trusting God and waiting, his anxiety drove him to unlawfully offer the burnt offering himself. Emotions make God's Word feel optional rather than authoritative. When feelings become the filter for truth, scripture gets reduced to "does this resonate with me" instead of "is this what God said." Jeremiah 17:9 warns that the heart is deceitful above all things — not evil in a cartoonish sense, but genuinely unreliable as a final authority. A Christian who only obeys when it feels right isn't actually submitted to Christ's lordship; they're submitted to their own emotional state, with God's Word as an occasional consultant rather than the authority.   Abortion, adultery, fornication, bitterness, gossip… emotions muddy up the water.   Anterior Midcingulate Cortex it behaves like a muscle, shrinking when underused and expanding physically when you engage in effortful, resistance-heavy activities.   Anatomy of the aMCC The Friction Requirement: The aMCC only grows when you face friction or internal resistance. Pushing through a workout you love doesn't trigger the same growth as forcing yourself to do a workout—or a task—that you genuinely do not want to do     The Battle of Sarx (The Flesh): Paul describes the "flesh" not merely as the physical body, but as the path of least resistance—primal drives, comfort-seeking, and self-preservation.    The body only wants to eat, sleep be tickled and have sex!      In Galatians 5:17, he notes: "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other." The subjective internal friction you feel when forcing yourself to do a hard task is the exact experiential battleground Paul describes. Mortification (Nekroo): In Colossians 3:5 and Romans 8:13, the New Testament commands believers to "put to death" or "mortify" lower impulses. This is not a passive event; it is an active, effortful override of natural inclination—the exact stimulus that drives aMCC hypertrophy.     How do you put to death the desires of the flesh? Lets put this misconception to bed for good! You do the opposite of the flesh according to scripture.       1 Samuel 14:24, 43-44 (Rashness and Impulsivity): Driven by the heat of battle, Saul made a foolish, impulsive oath binding his army to fast until evening. This emotional decision left his men exhausted and nearly resulted in the execution of his own son, Jonathan, who had unknowingly eaten honey.   Emotional highs get mistaken for spiritual maturity. Feeling moved during worship, feeling peace after a decision, feeling conviction in the moment — these can be real and God-given, but they can also be manufactured by music, social pressure, or just brain chemistry. The danger is building a faith that needs a constant emotional high to feel "real," which sets people up to crash hard when the feelings fade — and many walk away from faith entirely when the emotional experience stops delivering, mistaking the absence of feeling for the absence of God.   **When emotions supersede logic or common sense, they will typically supersede Gods best as well.     MANY/MOST times God will ask you to do something that goes against your emotions!    1 Samuel 15:24 (Fear of Man over Integrity): After failing to completely destroy the Amalekites as God commanded, Saul shifted the blame. He finally confessed to Samuel that his lack of character stemmed from insecurity, stating: "I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them.” Remember… He’s the King! And he is afraid of the men? It makes obedience conditional instead of covenantal.  Abraham didn't feel like sacrificing Isaac.  Jesus, didn't feel like going to the cross —    Obeying when you feel like it is not obedience its convenience!    men: leading a family, staying faithful in a hard marriage, disciplining kids, showing up to serve when you're exhausted — none of that runs on feelings. It runs on covenant commitment that outlasts emotion.   *If I win the lottery I will definitely tithe and even give more than 10%.  NOPE! If you can’t give $10 out of $100 you won’t give 1 Million out of 100 Million.      1 Samuel 18:10-11 (Uncontrolled Rage): Saul’s jealousy quickly escalated into murderous anger. While David was playing the lyre to soothe him, Saul was overcome by an evil spirit and his own rage, throwing his spear at David twice in an attempt to pin him to the wall.   Emotional volatility becomes a discipleship excuse instead of a growth area.  "I just felt led" or  "I couldn't help how I reacted"  “We are in Love”.  “She started it”. “It was Tuesday”    The flesh wether in a high or a low is meant to be cultivated by the fruits of the Spirit!    I love what Socrates said “any virtue in and of itself is a danger, it must be balanced with another virtue. i.e. if you are generous but do not balance that with wisdom, you will give all your money away and your family will starve. This is what the fruits of the Spirit do for us when in the midst of great emotion.

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman   INTRO: Its a strange memory at best: A young man at church - my sister Renee’s friend. HS stud athlete, great looking, always jumping in and out of bed with whomever he could. Now in his early 30’s he came to church and Renee said one night after church… he better hurry up and figure out life - his hair is getting thinner and his glasses are getting thicker.  Funny, sad, but telling of his life falling apart. He lived his life by his emotions… his “URGES” if you will.    the phrase "a piece of work" originated as a high compliment before evolving over centuries into a sarcastic insult. The Literary Origin Its earliest famous usage comes from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet (around 1601). In Act II, Scene 2, Prince Hamlet marvels at the creation of humanity: "What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty..."       He’s a piece of work ISRAELS FIRST KING!  King Saul had it all but lost his call as a know it all only to fall.      Saul’s ultimate downfall was not a lack of talent or opportunity; it was a fundamental flaw in his internal compass. Saul lived a life governed by feelings rather than character.     Have you ever met someone who lives by their emotions/feelings/the wind?     I used to say to my boys… “dad is in a bad mood today, so don’t push it”. WHAT I WAS REALLY SAYING WAS DAD IS IN THE FLESH… LIVING BY HIS URGES!        Romans 8:5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. 7 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. 8 That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. 9 But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)         King Saul highlights critical decisions based on fear, jealousy, and impulsivity rather than steadfast character and obedience.     1 Samuel 13:8-12 (Impatience and Panic): When the prophet Samuel delayed his arrival and the Israelite army began to scatter out of fear, Saul panicked. Instead of trusting God and waiting, his anxiety drove him to unlawfully offer the burnt offering himself. Emotions make God's Word feel optional rather than authoritative. When feelings become the filter for truth, scripture gets reduced to "does this resonate with me" instead of "is this what God said." Jeremiah 17:9 warns that the heart is deceitful above all things — not evil in a cartoonish sense, but genuinely unreliable as a final authority. A Christian who only obeys when it feels right isn't actually submitted to Christ's lordship; they're submitted to their own emotional state, with God's Word as an occasional consultant rather than the authority.   Abortion, adultery, fornication, bitterness, gossip… emotions muddy up the water.   Anterior Midcingulate Cortex it behaves like a muscle, shrinking when underused and expanding physically when you engage in effortful, resistance-heavy activities.   Anatomy of the aMCC The Friction Requirement: The aMCC only grows when you face friction or internal resistance. Pushing through a workout you love doesn't trigger the same growth as forcing yourself to do a workout—or a task—that you genuinely do not want to do     The Battle of Sarx (The Flesh): Paul describes the "flesh" not merely as the physical body, but as the path of least resistance—primal drives, comfort-seeking, and self-preservation.    The body only wants to eat, sleep be tickled and have sex!      In Galatians 5:17, he notes: "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other." The subjective internal friction you feel when forcing yourself to do a hard task is the exact experiential battleground Paul describes. Mortification (Nekroo): In Colossians 3:5 and Romans 8:13, the New Testament commands believers to "put to death" or "mortify" lower impulses. This is not a passive event; it is an active, effortful override of natural inclination—the exact stimulus that drives aMCC hypertrophy.     How do you put to death the desires of the flesh? Lets put this misconception to bed for good! You do the opposite of the flesh according to scripture.       1 Samuel 14:24, 43-44 (Rashness and Impulsivity): Driven by the heat of battle, Saul made a foolish, impulsive oath binding his army to fast until evening. This emotional decision left his men exhausted and nearly resulted in the execution of his own son, Jonathan, who had unknowingly eaten honey.   Emotional highs get mistaken for spiritual maturity. Feeling moved during worship, feeling peace after a decision, feeling conviction in the moment — these can be real and God-given, but they can also be manufactured by music, social pressure, or just brain chemistry. The danger is building a faith that needs a constant emotional high to feel "real," which sets people up to crash hard when the feelings fade — and many walk away from faith entirely when the emotional experience stops delivering, mistaking the absence of feeling for the absence of God.   **When emotions supersede logic or common sense, they will typically supersede Gods best as well.     MANY/MOST times God will ask you to do something that goes against your emotions! 

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman   King Saul highlights critical decisions based on fear, jealousy, and impulsivity rather than steadfast character and obedience.   1 Samuel 13:8-12 (Impatience and Panic): When the prophet Samuel delayed his arrival and the Israelite army began to scatter out of fear, Saul panicked. Instead of trusting God and waiting, his anxiety drove him to unlawfully offer the burnt offering himself. Emotions make God's Word feel optional rather than authoritative. When feelings become the filter for truth, scripture gets reduced to "does this resonate with me" instead of "is this what God said." Jeremiah 17:9 warns that the heart is deceitful above all things — not evil in a cartoonish sense, but genuinely unreliable as a final authority. A Christian who only obeys when it feels right isn't actually submitted to Christ's lordship; they're submitted to their own emotional state, with God's Word as an occasional consultant rather than the authority.   Abortion, adultery, fornication, bitterness, gossip… emotions muddy up the water.   Anterior Midcingulate Cortex it behaves like a muscle, shrinking when underused and expanding physically when you engage in effortful, resistance-heavy activities.   Anatomy of the aMCC The Friction Requirement: The aMCC only grows when you face friction or internal resistance. Pushing through a workout you love doesn't trigger the same growth as forcing yourself to do a workout—or a task—that you genuinely do not want to do     The Battle of Sarx (The Flesh): Paul describes the "flesh" not merely as the physical body, but as the path of least resistance—primal drives, comfort-seeking, and self-preservation.    The body only wants to eat, sleep be tickled and have sex!      In Galatians 5:17, he notes: "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other." The subjective internal friction you feel when forcing yourself to do a hard task is the exact experiential battleground Paul describes. Mortification (Nekroo): In Colossians 3:5 and Romans 8:13, the New Testament commands believers to "put to death" or "mortify" lower impulses. This is not a passive event; it is an active, effortful override of natural inclination—the exact stimulus that drives aMCC hypertrophy.     How do you put to death the desires of the flesh? Lets put this misconception to bed for good! You do the opposite of the flesh according to scripture.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman INTRO: Its a strange memory at best: A young man at church - my sister Renee’s friend. HS stud athlete, great looking, always jumping in and out of bed with whomever he could. Now in his early 30’s he came to church and Renee said one night after church… he better hurry up and figure out life - his hair is getting thinner and his glasses are getting thicker.  Funny, sad, but telling of his life falling apart. He lived his life by his emotions… his “URGES” if you will.    the phrase "a piece of work" originated as a high compliment before evolving over centuries into a sarcastic insult. The Literary Origin Its earliest famous usage comes from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet (around 1601). In Act II, Scene 2, Prince Hamlet marvels at the creation of humanity: "What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty..."       He’s a piece of work ISRAELS FIRST KING!  King Saul had it all but lost his call as a know it all only to fall.      Saul’s ultimate downfall was not a lack of talent or opportunity; it was a fundamental flaw in his internal compass. Saul lived a life governed by feelings rather than character.     Have you ever met someone who lives by their emotions/feelings/the wind?     I used to say to my boys… “dad is in a bad mood today, so don’t push it”. WHAT I WAS REALLY SAYING WAS DAD IS IN THE FLESH… LIVING BY HIS URGES!        Romans 8:5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. 7 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. 8 That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. 9 But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)         King Saul highlights critical decisions based on fear, jealousy, and impulsivity rather than steadfast character and obedience.     1 Samuel 13:8-12 (Impatience and Panic): When the prophet Samuel delayed his arrival and the Israelite army began to scatter out of fear, Saul panicked. Instead of trusting God and waiting, his anxiety drove him to unlawfully offer the burnt offering himself. Emotions make God's Word feel optional rather than authoritative. When feelings become the filter for truth, scripture gets reduced to "does this resonate with me" instead of "is this what God said." Jeremiah 17:9 warns that the heart is deceitful above all things — not evil in a cartoonish sense, but genuinely unreliable as a final authority. A Christian who only obeys when it feels right isn't actually submitted to Christ's lordship; they're submitted to their own emotional state, with God's Word as an occasional consultant rather than the authority.   Abortion, adultery, fornication, bitterness, gossip… emotions muddy up the water.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Spud Webb 5’7 In Junior high he went to try out and his coach told him to sit in the stands…. You are too short.  Cut from his Junior year of BB and had to talk his coach into keeping him. He scored 20 points his first game.  No Div. 1 college would even look at him. So he had to play at Midland College- lead them to a national JR league Championship, then got a scholarship to NC state.  Every NBA scout scoffed. They said maybe he could play overseas or if he was lucky he could play with the Harlem Globetrotters. Every NBA team passed on him multiple times… He fell to the fifth round and was drafted by the Detroit pistons… and cut before the season ever started.  He was “lucky” enough to be signed as an undrafted free agent by the Atlanta Hawks… At that time his star teammate Dominique Williams was the Slam dunk Champion… spud entered the contest and Dominique said he thought it was a joke and he would do layups… Spud won with numerous 360 slams, dunks off the backboard and Reverse slam dunks…. People laughed at him! He credits his belief in knowing God gave him that talent for a reason, and that dream for a purpose.    My question today is: How will you respond when people laugh at your dream?       Gen 18:1  And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2  He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3  and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.4  Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,5  while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.”6  And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.7  And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly.8  Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.9  They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.”10  The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.11  Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.12  So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”13  The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’14  Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”15  But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”         Rather than just "inappropriate" or "disrespectful," biblical scholars and linguists often look at Sarah’s reaction in Genesis 18:12 through a few distinct lenses:   1. Incredulous Incredulity captures a mix of disbelief, shock, and impossibility. Sarah was roughly 90 years old, well past childbearing age, and had dealt with a lifetime of infertility. Hearing a stranger tell Abraham she would have a baby by the following year sounded biologically absurd.   Abraham lives in a Spiritual and Theological worldview… Sarah lives in a physical biological world view…     2. Sarcastic (or Cynical) In Hebrew, Sarah’s inner monologue reads as a self-deprecating scoff: "After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?" Describing her reaction as sarcastic or cynical highlights the defense mechanism of a woman who had likely given up hope decades prior and saw the statement as a cruel taunt or bad joke.   3. Human Her reaction was deeply human. It wasn't necessarily a malicious rebellion against God; it was an involuntary emotional slip—a defense mechanism triggered by years of grief, trauma, and disappointment over her barrenness.   The Nuance: Her laugh isn't scoffing insolence; it's a reflex against emotional re-traumatization. When a deep, long-buried desire is suddenly brought up by a stranger, cynicism acts as armor to protect the heart from being broken one more time. The Insight: Faith doesn't require instantaneous emotional compliance. God engages directly with her reaction rather than striking her down, recognizing the pain behind her defense.   4. Prophetic In the broader arc of Genesis, her laughter is viewed as prophetic or foreshadowing. The Hebrew root for laugh (tzachaq) is the exact root used for the name of the child God promises: Isaac (Yitzchak), which literally means "he laughs" or "laughter". What began as the laugh of doubt in Genesis 18 transforms into the laugh of joy and wonder when Isaac is born in Genesis 21: "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me".   Key takeaway: While her response is often labeled as "disbelief," calling it incredulous or sarcastic better captures her emotional reality, while calling it prophetic reveals the literary wordplay embedded in the text.     MAYBE OUR REACTION SHOULD MATCH *TO SOME DEGREE …SARAHS… WHY? WHY WOULD GOD USE ABRAHAM A MAN OF MANY FAULTS?      Failure 1: Deception in Egypt Age ~75 (Gen 12:10–20) The Misstep: When a severe famine strikes Canaan, Abram migrates to Egypt without seeking divine direction. Fearing the Egyptians will kill him for his beautiful wife, he asks Sarai to lie and say she is his sister.   The Fallout: Pharaoh takes Sarai into his royal palace as a concubine while enriching Abram. God strikes Pharaoh’s household with severe plagues. Upon discovering the truth, Pharaoh rebukes Abram for his deceit and expels his family from Egypt.       Separation from Lot & Rescue Age ~75–80 (Gen 13–14) As their livestock herds grow too large for the land to support both of them, quarreling breaks out between Abram's and Lot's herdsmen. Abram generously gives Lot first pick WITHOUT SEEKING GOD - Lot gets captured.      The Unconditional Covenant Age ~85 (Gen 15) Abram voices concern that he remains childless and his servant Eliezer will inherit his house. God reassures Abram that a biological son will be his heir and cuts a formal covenant with him, promising descendants as numerous as the stars.       Failure 2: Scheming with Hagar Age 85–86 (Gen 16) The Misstep: After living in Canaan for ten years without a child, Sarai proposes that Abram take her Egyptian servant, Hagar, as a surrogate mother. Abram agrees without seeking God's guidance, taking matters into his own hands to force the fulfillment of the promise.   The Fallout: Once Hagar becomes pregnant, domestic conflict erupts. Hagar despises Sarai, Sarai mistreats Hagar, and Abram washes his hands of the dispute. Hagar flees into the wilderness before an angel instructs her to return. She gives birth to Ishmael when Abram is 86.       The Covenant of Circumcision & Abraham's Internal Doubt Age 99 (Gen 17) The Moment of Disbelief: After 13 years of silence, God appears, renames Abram to Abraham ("Father of a Multitude") and Sarai to Sarah ("Princess"), and institutes circumcision as the covenant sign. When God explicitly states that Sarah herself will bear a son within a year, Abraham falls face down and laughs to himself, asking mentally: "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at ninety?" (Gen 17:17).     The Three Visitors at Mamre & Sarah's Laugh Age 99 (Gen 18:1–15) Three divine visitors visit Abraham under the oaks of Mamre. The Lord repeats the divine pledge: "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son."   Overhearing this from inside the tent entrance, Sarah laughs to herself, thinking about her advanced age and physical state. When the Lord asks why she laughed and whether anything is too hard for God, Sarah denies it out of fear, but the Lord responds: "No, you did laugh."     MAYBE SARAH IS LAUGHING KNOWING WHO HER HUSBAND REALLY IS?       BECAUSE EVEN AFTER THIS VISITATION FROM GOD….   King Abimelech (Genesis 20:1–18) The Outcome: Abimelech takes Sarah into his harem. However, God appears to Abimelech in a dream, warning him that Sarah is married and that he will die if he touches her. Abimelech protests that he acted in good faith, returns Sarah untouched, gives Abraham restitution, and asks why Abraham did this.     Pattern in Abraham's Failures Across these 24 years, Abraham's missteps shared a common theme: self-preservation and impatience.     BUT LETS ASK OURSELVES A QUESTION: Regardless of how Sarah saw her husband Abraham - regardless of how we see him… How did God see him?      Names and Titles Given to Abraham   Abraham ("Father of a Multitude"): Originally named Abram ("Exalted Father"), God personally renamed him in Genesis 17:5 to reflect his ultimate destiny: "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations." "My Friend": God personally refers to Abraham as His friend in Isaiah 41:8 ("Abraham My friend"), a title affirmed throughout Scripture (2 Chronicles 20:7, James 2:23). Prophet: In Genesis 20:7, God speaks to King Abimelech regarding Abraham, stating, "Restore the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live." "My Servant": God repeatedly refers to Abraham with honor as His servant (Genesis 26:24, Psalm 105:6), marking him as a trusted agent of the Divine will. The Promises and Blessings Spoken Over Him Divine Shield and Great Reward: Infinite Descendants: Royal Lineage and Multiplied Nations: Universal Blessing for All Humanity: Divine Protection: An Everlasting Land Covenant:     SARAH MAY HAVE LAUGHED AT FIRST IN DISBELIEF - BUT   3. Sarah's later reversal is the untold "second half" of the story. But Genesis 21:6 gives Sarah's own commentary once Isaac is born: "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me." She takes the very word she used in doubt and reclaims it in worship. Isaac's name literally means "he laughs." This is a remarkable narrative arc — cynical laughter transformed into worshipful laughter —          FINAL THOUGHT: WHY DID GOD CHOOSE ABRAHAM?  IN SPITE OF ALL HIS FLAWS HE PRACTICED GODS HEART AND DESIGN FOR PRAYER.   What do I mean? Gen. 18 later in the chapter God tells Abraham I am going to destroy Sodom and Gomorra and Abraham does something very familiar according to Luke 11.       Luke 11 tells us how to pray - AFTER SHARING THE LORDS PRAYER JESUS SAYS SOMETHING AWKWARD ABOUT PRAYER - A parable.  A man goes to his friends house - he needs 3 loaves of bread… he will not give up asking.    If you ask seek knock - out of sheer perseverance I will answer!   Abraham here in Gen. 18 does just that for Sodom and Gomorra - showing Gods heart for the lost. 50 45 40 30 20 10!   I believe one of the greatest clues is given in these two stories in scripture about who God uses!   The one that will not give up asking God to fulfill his purpose!     WHAT IF WE UNDERSTOOD THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LIKE THIS: Yes he was a heap of missteps, failures, a massive example of weak humanity….    But in all his mistakes and failures he never quit asking God for that son!  FOR THAT ANSWERED PRAYER.      WILL YOU BE THE ONE WHO P.U.S.H.es into God. P - pray U - until S - something H - happens?

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman   Gen 18:1  And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2  He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3  and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.4  Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,5  while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.”6  And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.7  And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly.8  Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.9  They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.”10  The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.11  Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.12  So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”13  The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’14  Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”15  But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”         Rather than just "inappropriate" or "disrespectful," biblical scholars and linguists often look at Sarah’s reaction in Genesis 18:12 through a few distinct lenses:   1. Incredulous Incredulity captures a mix of disbelief, shock, and impossibility. Sarah was roughly 90 years old, well past childbearing age, and had dealt with a lifetime of infertility. Hearing a stranger tell Abraham she would have a baby by the following year sounded biologically absurd.   Abraham lives in a Spiritual and Theological worldview… Sarah lives in a physical biological world view…     2. Sarcastic (or Cynical) In Hebrew, Sarah’s inner monologue reads as a self-deprecating scoff: "After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?" Describing her reaction as sarcastic or cynical highlights the defense mechanism of a woman who had likely given up hope decades prior and saw the statement as a cruel taunt or bad joke.   3. Human Her reaction was deeply human. It wasn't necessarily a malicious rebellion against God; it was an involuntary emotional slip—a defense mechanism triggered by years of grief, trauma, and disappointment over her barrenness.   The Nuance: Her laugh isn't scoffing insolence; it's a reflex against emotional re-traumatization. When a deep, long-buried desire is suddenly brought up by a stranger, cynicism acts as armor to protect the heart from being broken one more time. The Insight: Faith doesn't require instantaneous emotional compliance. God engages directly with her reaction rather than striking her down, recognizing the pain behind her defense.   4. Prophetic In the broader arc of Genesis, her laughter is viewed as prophetic or foreshadowing. The Hebrew root for laugh (tzachaq) is the exact root used for the name of the child God promises: Isaac (Yitzchak), which literally means "he laughs" or "laughter". What began as the laugh of doubt in Genesis 18 transforms into the laugh of joy and wonder when Isaac is born in Genesis 21: "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me".   Key takeaway: While her response is often labeled as "disbelief," calling it incredulous or sarcastic better captures her emotional reality, while calling it prophetic reveals the literary wordplay embedded in the text.     MAYBE OUR REACTION SHOULD MATCH *TO SOME DEGREE …SARAHS… WHY? WHY WOULD GOD USE ABRAHAM A MAN OF MANY FAULTS?      Failure 1: Deception in Egypt Age ~75 (Gen 12:10–20) The Misstep: When a severe famine strikes Canaan, Abram migrates to Egypt without seeking divine direction. Fearing the Egyptians will kill him for his beautiful wife, he asks Sarai to lie and say she is his sister.   The Fallout: Pharaoh takes Sarai into his royal palace as a concubine while enriching Abram. God strikes Pharaoh’s household with severe plagues. Upon discovering the truth, Pharaoh rebukes Abram for his deceit and expels his family from Egypt.       Separation from Lot & Rescue Age ~75–80 (Gen 13–14) As their livestock herds grow too large for the land to support both of them, quarreling breaks out between Abram's and Lot's herdsmen. Abram generously gives Lot first pick WITHOUT SEEKING GOD - Lot gets captured.      The Unconditional Covenant Age ~85 (Gen 15) Abram voices concern that he remains childless and his servant Eliezer will inherit his house. God reassures Abram that a biological son will be his heir and cuts a formal covenant with him, promising descendants as numerous as the stars.       Failure 2: Scheming with Hagar Age 85–86 (Gen 16) The Misstep: After living in Canaan for ten years without a child, Sarai proposes that Abram take her Egyptian servant, Hagar, as a surrogate mother. Abram agrees without seeking God's guidance, taking matters into his own hands to force the fulfillment of the promise.   The Fallout: Once Hagar becomes pregnant, domestic conflict erupts. Hagar despises Sarai, Sarai mistreats Hagar, and Abram washes his hands of the dispute. Hagar flees into the wilderness before an angel instructs her to return. She gives birth to Ishmael when Abram is 86.       The Covenant of Circumcision & Abraham's Internal Doubt Age 99 (Gen 17) The Moment of Disbelief: After 13 years of silence, God appears, renames Abram to Abraham ("Father of a Multitude") and Sarai to Sarah ("Princess"), and institutes circumcision as the covenant sign. When God explicitly states that Sarah herself will bear a son within a year, Abraham falls face down and laughs to himself, asking mentally: "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at ninety?" (Gen 17:17).     The Three Visitors at Mamre & Sarah's Laugh Age 99 (Gen 18:1–15) Three divine visitors visit Abraham under the oaks of Mamre. The Lord repeats the divine pledge: "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son."   Overhearing this from inside the tent entrance, Sarah laughs to herself, thinking about her advanced age and physical state. When the Lord asks why she laughed and whether anything is too hard for God, Sarah denies it out of fear, but the Lord responds: "No, you did laugh."     MAYBE SARAH IS LAUGHING KNOWING WHO HER HUSBAND REALLY IS?       BECAUSE EVEN AFTER THIS VISITATION FROM GOD….   King Abimelech (Genesis 20:1–18) The Outcome: Abimelech takes Sarah into his harem. However, God appears to Abimelech in a dream, warning him that Sarah is married and that he will die if he touches her. Abimelech protests that he acted in good faith, returns Sarah untouched, gives Abraham restitution, and asks why Abraham did this.     Pattern in Abraham's Failures Across these 24 years, Abraham's missteps shared a common theme: self-preservation and impatience.     BUT LETS ASK OURSELVES A QUESTION: Regardless of how Sarah saw her husband Abraham - regardless of how we see him… How did God see him? 

The David Alliance  [email protected] Garth Heckman Gen 18:1  And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2  He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3  and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.4  Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,5  while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.”6  And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.7  And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly.8  Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.9  They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.”10  The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.11  Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.12  So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”13  The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’14  Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”15  But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”         Rather than just "inappropriate" or "disrespectful," biblical scholars and linguists often look at Sarah’s reaction in Genesis 18:12 through a few distinct lenses:   1. Incredulous Incredulity captures a mix of disbelief, shock, and impossibility. Sarah was roughly 90 years old, well past childbearing age, and had dealt with a lifetime of infertility. Hearing a stranger tell Abraham she would have a baby by the following year sounded biologically absurd.   Abraham lives in a Spiritual and Theological worldview… Sarah lives in a physical biological world view…     2. Sarcastic (or Cynical) In Hebrew, Sarah’s inner monologue reads as a self-deprecating scoff: "After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?" Describing her reaction as sarcastic or cynical highlights the defense mechanism of a woman who had likely given up hope decades prior and saw the statement as a cruel taunt or bad joke.   3. Human Her reaction was deeply human. It wasn't necessarily a malicious rebellion against God; it was an involuntary emotional slip—a defense mechanism triggered by years of grief, trauma, and disappointment over her barrenness.   The Nuance: Her laugh isn't scoffing insolence; it's a reflex against emotional re-traumatization. When a deep, long-buried desire is suddenly brought up by a stranger, cynicism acts as armor to protect the heart from being broken one more time. The Insight: Faith doesn't require instantaneous emotional compliance. God engages directly with her reaction rather than striking her down, recognizing the pain behind her defense.   4. Prophetic In the broader arc of Genesis, her laughter is viewed as prophetic or foreshadowing. The Hebrew root for laugh (tzachaq) is the exact root used for the name of the child God promises: Isaac (Yitzchak), which literally means "he laughs" or "laughter". What began as the laugh of doubt in Genesis 18 transforms into the laugh of joy and wonder when Isaac is born in Genesis 21: "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me".   Key takeaway: While her response is often labeled as "disbelief," calling it incredulous or sarcastic better captures her emotional reality, while calling it prophetic reveals the literary wordplay embedded in the text.

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman Spud Webb 5’7 In Junior high he went to try out and his coach told him to sit in the stands…. You are too short.  Cut from his Junior year of BB and had to talk his coach into keeping him. He scored 20 points his first game.  No Div. 1 college would even look at him. So he had to play at Midland College- lead them to a national JR league Championship, then got a scholarship to NC state.  Every NBA scout scoffed. They said maybe he could play overseas or if he was lucky he could play with the Harlem Globetrotters. Every NBA team passed on him multiple times… He fell to the fifth round and was drafted by the Detroit pistons… and cut before the season ever started.  He was “lucky” enough to be signed as an undrafted free agent by the Atlanta Hawks… At that time his star teammate Dominique Williams was the Slam dunk Champion… spud entered the contest and Dominique said he thought it was a joke and he would do layups… Spud won with numerous 360 slams, dunks off the backboard and Reverse slam dunks…. People laughed at him! He credits his belief in knowing God gave him that talent for a reason, and that dream for a purpose.    My question today is: How will you respond when people laugh at your dream?       Gen 18:1  And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2  He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3  and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.4  Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,5  while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.”6  And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.7  And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly.8  Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.9  They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.”10  The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.11  Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.12  So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”13  The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’14  Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”15  But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”    

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman   Joy is best served with friends. Go to an amusement park with no one??? Why?    Isolation kills joy     Your joy affects others   Are you the one who people love to see walk into a room?   The joy experienced by Paul and Silas freed the other prisoners.      Joy preceded their deliverance   They did not rejoice because they were free - they rejoiced and that is what freed them!      James 1:2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.   Consider" — ἡγέομαι (hēgeomai) think, regard, or deliberately account something as true through a mental, reasoned process — it's actually the root behind Judgement    he's calling for a conscious, deliberate act of the mind: “BOY I WONDER HOW THIS WILL TURN OUT” said with joy!      PURE "Pure" / "All" — πᾶσαν (pasan) This word (from pas, "all") is often translated "pure" but more literally means all, entire, or complete Experienced as joy in every area of your life.      Trial - peirasmos ("trials") not random or meaningless suffering, but hardship with a purpose and a goal built into it.     The verb "consider" (hēgēsasthe) is in the aorist imperative — a decisive, one-time-decision kind of command in Greek grammar, - “it will always turn out for the good”        Why This Matters for Your Whole Joy Series This gives you a clean, important corrective point for the sermon: James is not commanding an emotion — he's commanding a decision about how to interpret what's happening.     Joy Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered to us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. C.S. Lewis.   -  Might I add to this: We spend our time foolishly running after happiness… when Joy is right in front of us.        Nehemiah 8:10 — "the joy of the Lord is your strength." This is a foundational verse for teaching on this topic because it reverses the usual order people expect: joy isn't the result of strength or good circumstances — it's the source of strength to face hard circumstances.     1 Peter 1:6-8 — Peter writes to believers facing real suffering and trials, describing a joy that is "inexpressible and filled with glory" specifically in the middle of grief, not after it resolves. The Greek word here for "inexpressible" (aneklalētos) means literally beyond the capacity of words — joy so deep it can't be articulated.     The Theological Throughline Worth Preaching   Every one of these passages makes the same structural claim: biblical joy is not the absence of pain — its the understanding that God will use it for your good. 

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman Joy Unshakeable    Acts 16 Paul and Silas   Read story and highlight: Military city,  MOB RULES:did not want to hear what they had to say… the crowd was blind with rage… they should not have been beaten until trial as Roman citizens.    *Joy starts with focus not feelings.   Happiness depends on what happens… so you have to do the work to make good things happen. *YOU BECOME A SLAVE TO PERFORMING, AND CIRCUMSTANCES.      Falsely accused (Emotionally abused), Beaten (Physically abused in public to humiliate)  Locked away from everyone in the deepest part of the dungeon… Most likely where the raw sewage flowed. (Socially abused) Chained (Mentally abused and in stocks) Archaeological evidence from sites like the gladiator barracks at Pompeii - torture racks.  **AND AT MIDNIGHT: Why Midnight Singing Is Even More Remarkable Than It First Appears   Put the whole picture together: Paul and Silas had been publicly stripped, beaten with rods by state lictors, thrown into the inner prison (the most secure, likely darkest and most miserable section), and their legs forced into a device specifically designed to maximize ongoing physical suffering. And at midnight — the point of deepest exhaustion and vulnerability — "they were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them" (v. 25).   THESE WERE NOT QUIET MURMURINGS - The Greek word for "singing hymns" here is hymneō — the same root behind our English "hymn" — meaning they weren't just murmuring quiet comfort to themselves; they were audibly, deliberately worshiping, loud enough that the entire prison population was listening.     **Look at all that is HAPPENING to them. Happiness is based on what Happens. It is called “happenstance”.     But Spiritually they still knew where they stood. They still experienced joy.    *Joy starts with focus not feelings.   Happiness depends on what happens… so you have to do the work to make good things happen. *YOU BECOME A SLAVE TO PERFORMING, AND CIRCUMSTANCES.    Vs. joy which focuses on the outcome not the current circumstances.     Joy is best served with friends. Go to an amusement park with no one??? Why?    Isolation kills joy     Your joy affects others   Are you the one who people love to see walk into a room?   The joy experienced by Paul and Silas freed the other prisoners.      Joy preceded their deliverance   They did not rejoice because they were free - they rejoiced and that is what freed them! 

The David Alliance  [email protected]  Garth Heckman  *Joy starts with focus not feelings. Happiness depends on what happens… so you have to do the work to make good things happen. *YOU BECOME A SLAVE TO PERFORMING, AND CIRCUMSTANCES.      Falsely accused (Emotionally abused), Beaten (Physically abused in public to humiliate)  Locked away from everyone in the deepest part of the dungeon… Most likely where the raw sewage flowed. (Socially abused) Chained (Mentally abused and in stocks) Archaeological evidence from sites like the gladiator barracks at Pompeii - torture racks.  **AND AT MIDNIGHT: Why Midnight Singing Is Even More Remarkable Than It First Appears   Put the whole picture together: Paul and Silas had been publicly stripped, beaten with rods by state lictors, thrown into the inner prison (the most secure, likely darkest and most miserable section), and their legs forced into a device specifically designed to maximize ongoing physical suffering. And at midnight — the point of deepest exhaustion and vulnerability — "they were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them" (v. 25).   THESE WERE NOT QUIET MURMURINGS - The Greek word for "singing hymns" here is hymneō — the same root behind our English "hymn" — meaning they weren't just murmuring quiet comfort to themselves; they were audibly, deliberately worshiping, loud enough that the entire prison population was listening.     **Look at all that is HAPPENING to them. Happiness is based on what Happens. It is called “happenstance”.   But Spiritually they still knew where they stood. They still experienced joy.  *Joy starts with focus not feelings. Happiness depends on what happens… so you have to do the work to make good things happen. *YOU BECOME A SLAVE TO PERFORMING, AND CIRCUMSTANCES.  Vs. joy which focuses on the outcome not the current circumstances.   Joy is best served with friends. Go to an amusement park with no one??? Why?    Isolation kills joy

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Military city,  MOB RULES:did not want to hear what they had to say… the crowd was blind with rage… they should not have been beaten until trial as Roman citizens.    *Joy starts with focus not feelings.   Happiness depends on what happens… so you have to do the work to make good things happen. *YOU BECOME A SLAVE TO PERFORMING, AND CIRCUMSTANCES.      Falsely accused (Emotionally abused), Beaten (Physically abused in public to humiliate)  Locked away from everyone in the deepest part of the dungeon… Most likely where the raw sewage flowed. (Socially abused) Chained (Mentally abused and in stocks) Archaeological evidence from sites like the gladiator barracks at Pompeii - torture racks.  **AND AT MIDNIGHT: Why Midnight Singing Is Even More Remarkable Than It First Appears   Put the whole picture together: Paul and Silas had been publicly stripped, beaten with rods by state lictors, thrown into the inner prison (the most secure, likely darkest and most miserable section), and their legs forced into a device specifically designed to maximize ongoing physical suffering. And at midnight — the point of deepest exhaustion and vulnerability — "they were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them" (v. 25).

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman The story of Moses is one of the most honest depictions of human insecurity in ancient literature. Despite leading a nation out of slavery and receiving the Ten Commandments, Moses spent much of his life convinced he was the wrong person for the job.   His story offers powerful insights into how inadequacy works, how purpose unfolds, and what it actually means to lead.   Key Lessons from Moses’ Insecurity   Inadequacy Is Often a Skill Issue Overestimated, and a Calling Underestimated   When you overestimate the skill needed in comparison to the calling underestimated you will never feel adequate.    When God called Moses at the burning bush in Exodus 3, Moses immediately pushed back with five distinct excuses:   "Who am I?" (Identity/Worthiness) Im seen as an enemy to many as I grew up under Pharaoh and in his house. I am seen as a murderer I am seen as a person who ran away   Past Failures do not disqualify you from your future mission.   "What shall I say?" (Lack of Knowledge)     "What if they don't believe me?" (Fear of Rejection)     "I am slow of speech and tongue." (Perceived Physical Limitations)     "Please send someone else." (Pure Resistance)     Thoughts:  Moses focused entirely on his own inventory of skills, while God was focused on His own capacity.      The lesson is that calling rarely demands pre-existing perfection; it demands willingness.     **You might say “why not me God” - He most times will answer… you said No.   Your perceived disqualifications are often just the baseline from which growth happens.       The Lesson: Growth doesn't eliminate feelings of overwhelm— Feeling inadequate at a new level of responsibility isn't a sign that you failed; it's a sign that you're operating outside your comfort zone, which is where real impact occurs.   3. Isolation Amplifies Insecurity; Community Relieves It When Moses felt isolated he was given Aaron When overwhelmed he was given Jethro      5. You Can Finish Well Without Seeing the Final Result MOSES SAW THE PROMISE LAND - BUT WAS NOT ALLOWED TO ENTER IT.    You might just be the great set up for someone else’s future mission.      Do you want to feel adequate - or more than enough? To feel more than enough:  Learn something new in Christ every day.  Test God out in new situations every day. Focus on the end game. Remember who you are is who you attract, so become like Christ and attract people like Jesus into it.

The David Alliance  [email protected] Garth Heckman *****If you don’t have control over your thoughts, then you don’t have control over your feelingsDr Richard Bander founder of NLP     2. His Grace Overcomes Your Weakness When you feel inadequate, scripture teaches that your insufficiency is actually the canvas for God's power. Paul asked God to take away a deep struggle, but God answered:   "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." — 2 Corinthians 12:9   "there's a well-known story, often told about…" Ignacy Jan Paderewski — the famous Polish concert pianist. A little boy who just started taking piano lessons is taken to his concert by his mother… he sneaks up on stage and begins to play chopsticks… the crowd aghast - But Paderewski sneaks up behind him and says keep playing and then weaves a beautiful song behind it.    THE INSIGHT - YOU GOTTA BE WILLING TO GET UP AND PLAY.

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman It is easy to feel inadequate when we measure ourselves by our own strengths, skills, lifestyle or limitations. The Bible directly tackles this feeling by shifting the focus from our own sufficiency to Christ’s completeness in us.   Scripture never promises that we will be enough on our own, but it repeatedly promises that Christ in us makes us more than enough.   The Bible expresses this truth across four primary themes:   1. You Are "More Than Conquerors" "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." — Romans 8:37   The Greek word used here is hupernikaō, which literally translates to “super-overcomers"   We win in the end… Heaven, eternity with God.     THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM **You might secretly think - yeah but I want to be superabundant NOW -  There is nothing wrong with that… but also realize it does not make you happy. REFRIGERATOR BOX     2 Peter 1:3 — God's divine power has granted us everything required for life and godliness. 3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. From epithumeo; a longing (especially for what is forbidden) -- concupiscence, desire, lust (after). epithymía (from 1909 /epí, "focused on" and 2372 /thymós, "passionate desire") – properly, passion built on strong feelings (urges). These can be positive or negative, depending on whether the desire is inspired by faith (God's inbirthed persuasion)   *****If you don’t have control over your thoughts, then you don’t have control over your feelingsDr Richard Bander founder of NLP

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Facebook - Faceblah Instagram - InstaSHAM actual filters that show reality TikTok - Ticked off    INTERESTING INSIGHT TO THE SEEDS PARABLE: Luke 8:14 The cares of the world choke out Gods seed and you quickly no longer believe    Cares GK - Mer-im-nah  what the world holds as important.  Choke GK Soom-pnee-go  choked off by having the wrong identifications…  Imagine straining your neck looking at everything the world has in front of you… you strain your neck so twisted you choke yourself to death.    A woman had an epiphany standing in her 4.5 million dollar home… IT’S JUST A REFRIGERATOR BOX. HERE IS THE TRUE INSIGHT - WHEN WE FEEL LIKE WE DON’T HAVE ENOUGH (TO COMPLETE US), THEN WE TELL OURSELVES “WE ARE NOT ENOUGH” - WE FEEL LIKE WE ARE ILL EQUIPPED TO DO WHAT GOD HAS CALLED US TO DO.    It is easy to feel inadequate when we measure ourselves by our own strengths, skills, lifestyle or limitations. The Bible directly tackles this feeling by shifting the focus from our own sufficiency to Christ’s completeness in us.

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman Excess    On a scale of 1-10 regarding your abilities…  Do you have enough of what it takes to live a fulfilling life? 10 being the perfect life 1 being a complete and utter debacle. BUT HERE IS THE REAL TEST… WHAT WAS YOUR SCALE YOU JUDGED YOURSELF BY?    You are more than enough - you have excess in your abilities.    THE PROBLEM?  In a culture fueled by highlight reels, endless scrolling, and the quiet fear that everyone else has life figured out, feeling "not enough" is practically the modern default.   How to never feel like you are enough!  - 1 Constantly compare yourself to other people's highlight reels  - 2 Base your entire worth on external validation  - 3 Chase perfectionism, especially online  - 4 Isolate yourself with your struggles  - 5 Let one bad moment define your whole identity

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman   Point 4:  Pain Trains, It Doesn't Just Test Greek: γυμνάζω (gymnazo) — Hebrews 12:11: "no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness for those who have been trained (gymnazo) by it."    Samuel 30 - David has been on the run for 14 years from King Saul… now they get sent packing from the Philistines… “not good enough”. They get back to camp and all of their wives, children, goods, food everything was taken by the Amakelites.  His men have had it… they want to stone him. V. 6 But David found strength in the LORD THIS IS DAVID IN TRAINING -  HE found strength   And he wrote Psalm 13 Psalm 13: 1 O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? 2 How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? 3 Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. 4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!” Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall. 5 But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. 6 I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me   This verse is from David in the midst of his final crushing painful experience running from Saul…   He is ready to give up… his life. Literally… I’ll just let them kill me!    But he goes to God… seeks his guidance. - what should I learn from this pain… They go and kill the Amalekites and not only get everything back but more….   HERE IS THE POINT HE WAS ONLY MONTHS AWAY FROM BEING KING!     What is around your corner of pain?

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Point 4:  You get a candle as a gift… you could care less until the electricity goes out and you need it… its a seemingly useless gift until you realize it’s not… it gives you light… the lights actually go on!   That’s pain… it seems useless until it allows the lights to go on.    God Redeems Pain He Didn't Cause Greek: πάθημα (pathema) — general word for suffering (Romans 8:18, 2 Corinthians 1:5) — often used for suffering that simply happens to someone, not suffering they chose.   But God will use it for his Glory in and through us.    Joseph  Joseph was  Last - youngest Loathed - hated by his brothers Lied about - Dad he was eaten by a lion Labored as a slave Lured - by Bathsheba  Libeled - accused by Bathsheba  Labeled - still just a prisoner  Lost - Lost in the system  Lapsed -  forgotten by the Butler in prison Left -  left for dead… until Pharaoh had a dream LIVING - LIVING THE DREAM - LITERALLY!      THE JOSEPH PRINCIPLE — "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20).     METHOD MAN WHEN SOMEONE SAYS TO YOU “IM GONNA BRING THE PAIN” - laugh and say “yeah, and I can’t wait to see what God does with it!” 

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman PAIN REVEALS WHAT IS INSIDE US!   When you are attacked, Embarrassed Mistreated Diseased Falsely accused Persecuted Afflicted THIS IS HEAT TO SEE WHAT YOU ARE MADE OF… IT IS THE ONLY THING THAT CAN PROVE YOU!      There is a well known story… that is probably more myth than fact but proves a great point. The greeks would carve out statues… if they cracked or chipped they would cover them up with marble dust and wax… the problem was when it got to hot the wax would melt and you might end up with a grotesque looking statue…. how many people have been in that situation. They looked great until the heat came… and then.  Ugly!        Point 3:  Pain Builds What Only Struggle Can Build Greek: ὑπομονή (hupomone) — not passive waiting, but active endurance — literally "remaining under." It's the word for a marathon runner in the middle miles, not the person sitting quietly in a waiting room.   You choose to go through the pain.  -  Abraham is told to sacrifice Isaac. He gets up early in the morning to do this. Are you willing to get up early for pain?    -  Can God trust you with pain?    God may call you to do something and you know it will cost you pain.     -  Can God trust you with pain?

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman   SHAD SHACK BENNY  You may not understand the pressure… but you can trust God to use it to produce something amazing. THE GREATEST STATEMENT OF FAITH UNDER PRESSURE WAS DAN. 3:18 -  Oh King our God can save us… but even if He doesn’t we will not bow… TO THE PAIN   Point 2 Pain Proves What's Genuine Greek: δοκίμιον (dokimion) — James 1:3 says "the testing (dokimion) of your faith produces perseverance." The word comes from the world of metalworking: when a shopkeeper "proofs" gold, he's establishing whether it's genuine — not creating value, but revealing value already present, or exposing what was fake.   Illustration: Stradivarius violins are prized in part because of the dense, slow-growth wood used to build them — wood that grew during an unusually cold, harsh period in Italian and Bavarian Alps. Trees that struggled through decades of brutal winters produced tighter growth rings and denser wood, which is part of why those violins carry a tone modern instruments still can't replicate. The hardship in the wood's history is literally inside the sound. THE SOUND THE VIOLIN MAKES PROVES THAT IT HAS BEEN THROUGH THE PRESSURE AND STRESS! When you are looking for a true friend, mentor, marriage partner etc… ask them what pain have you been through? What did you learn… and if it is about the situation, or the person who caused it… be careful. BUT IF THEY TELL YOU WHAT THEY LEARNED ABOUT THEMSELVES… THAT MEANS THE PAIN WAS GOOD FOR THEM. 

The David Alliance [email protected]  Garth Heckman  OUR WORLD IS BUILT ON ONE PREMISE AND ONE PREMISE ALONE: HOW TO AVOID PAIN! EVERY ADVERTISEMENT, POST, SPEECH, BLURB, NEWSCAST… Bottom line its about avoiding pain.  A life without pain is not joy… it is numb.    "We think the goal is a life with no pain. But a life with no pain isn't joy — it's just numbness wearing a smile.”   When I busted my toe… went in to the doctor joking…  When they started stabbing my toe with a red hot needle I was quiet… the nurse said “well it must not hurt that much for you”.  My wife quickly replied “oh no, it hurts… when my husband is in pain he doesn’t say anything”.    IS THAT YOU TODAY? When I’m in pain I don’t say much.   -  How long has this been going on?  Well your friend with their fancy persuasion Don’t admit that its part of the scheme I Can’t help but have my suspicions  Cuz I aint quite as dumb as I seen     -  When Ryan was born I almost lost Kim and Ryan… just nights before on a Sunday I was at the altar giving God everything… no matter what - even my unborn son… that night in the hospital I went out in the hallway and prayed… God I didn’t really mean it.    Pain isn't just endured — it's productive, when surrendered to God.   Big Idea Pain is not evidence God has abandoned you — it's often the very mechanism He uses to complete you. Point 1: Pain is Pressure, Not Punishment Rom. 5:3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.   Pile of leaves at the cottage…  “Eddy call the fire department”   Greek: θλῖψις (thlipsis) — translated tribulation, trouble, affliction, anguish, persecution, burdened — the word literally carries the image of being pressed or squeezed under weight. Paul uses this exact word in Romans 5:3 — "we also exult in our tribulations (thlipsis), knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance." Thlipsis isn't God's disappointment in you; it's pressure applied toward something, not punishment for something.   Illustration: Diamonds form under extreme pressure and heat, deep in the earth, over millions of years — carbon that never faced that pressure stays soft graphite, useful for pencils, never for jewelry. The pressure isn't the interruption of the diamond's story. It is the diamond's story.   **No girl swoons over a boy kneeling down and proposing with a pencil. 

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman Insight C: The Necessity of Falling and Dying (Kokkos) In John 12:24, Jesus states: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain (kokkos) of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." The Sermon Point: Burial is not the end; it is the beginning. The Greek Nuance: A kokkos is a singular, isolated kernel. Unbroken, it has a shelf life of years but remains entirely alone. Only by being "buried" in the dark, breaking open, and surrendering its structure can its inner life be released. Application: This is Jesus predicting His death, but it's also a template for discipleship. Our greatest impact doesn't come from protecting our lives, but from our willingness to lay them down. What feels like "burial" in our lives is often God "planting" us for a harvest.   WE HAVE A DREAM - a seed - we don’t just let it die… we understand the process. In the real world, we get the seed, we find fertile ground, we dig a hole, we bury it, we water it, we expose it so sun, we keep bugs away, we fertilize it…  but in that process is still death - it has to die! The seed surrenders unto death - it must die. We must die to ourselves. We must be willing to say “ok God I have done everything I can, plant, water, fertilize, weed… but I also trust you to do whatever you want… if it dies, I trust you”.     Deep inside the Arctic Circle, carved into a frozen mountain on a remote Norwegian island, sits the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. It is built to withstand earthquakes, nuclear war, and rising sea levels. Inside, there are over a million seed samples from every corner of the earth. They are kept in airtight, triple-ply foil packets at a constant temperature of minus 18 degrees Celsius. Why? To keep them perfectly safe. To keep them from changing. To keep them from dying. It is a masterpiece of human preservation. But here is the paradox of a seed: As long as a seed is kept safe, dry, and preserved, it is completely useless. A seed is not designed for a high-tech vault. It is designed to be thrown into the dirt, rained on, broken open, and utterly destroyed. Its safety is its starvation; its burial is its birth. The Transition: "Many of us live our lives like spiritual seed vaults. We spend all our energy keeping ourselves safe, comfortable, and controlled. We avoid the dirt of sacrifice, the darkness of suffering, and the pain of breaking. But Jesus did not call us to be preserved; He called us to be planted. Today, we are going to look at why God often takes what we love most and buries it—not to destroy it, but to unlock its true potential..." You can’t just simply hang on to a seed, a dream, a goal, a vision and just expect God to use it. You have to take a step of faith, plant it and hope it dies so that only God can make it grow! 

The David Alliance  [email protected] Garth Heckman   The Singular Seed of Promise (Sperma) In Galatians 3:16, Paul makes a massive grammatical and theological argument based on a singular noun: "The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say 'and to seeds,' meaning many people, but 'and to your seed,' meaning one person, who is Christ." The Sermon Point: The Old Testament was not pointing to a demographic, but a Deliverer. The Greek Nuance: Paul uses the singular sperma. In Hebrew, zera (seed) can be collective (like "sheep" or "hair"), but Paul utilizes the Greek singular to show that the entire covenant of Abraham was funneled into a single focal point: Jesus. ONE PERSON - ONE SEED - ONE DEATH - “ONE MULTIPLICATION” = FOR ALL Application: Because we are "in Christ," we inherit the promises not by genetic pedigree, but by being joined to the ultimate Sperma. Furthermore, 1 John 3:9 says God’s sperma (divine seed/DNA) now abides in us, meaning we carry the family likeness of heaven. The Hook: If you’ve ever stood at the base of a Giant Sequoia in California, you know it is a humbling experience. These trees can grow to be nearly 300 feet tall, 30 feet wide, and can live for over 3,000 years. They are absolute titans—so massive that a single branch can be larger than the trunk of a standard city tree. But if you were to hold the seed of a Giant Sequoia in your hand, you would be shocked. It looks like a tiny, papery flake of oatmeal. It is about a quarter of an inch long, and it weighs a fraction of a gram. It is almost weightless. If you dropped it on the ground, you would never find it. Yet, wrapped inside that microscopic, fragile speck of dust is the genetic blueprint for a giant that can withstand wildfires, outlast empires, and tower over the landscape. The Transition: "The Kingdom of God works on the exact same principle. God loves to hide massive, landscape-changing futures inside microscopic, easily overlooked packages. Today, you might feel small, unnoticed, or insignificant. But you need to understand that the power of your future is not determined by the size of your current starting point, but by the design of the Seed inside you..."

The David Alliance Garth Heckman [email protected]   In the Parable of the Sower (Luke 8) and the lesser-known Parable of the Growing Seed (Mark 4:26-29), Jesus uses sporos. The Sermon Point: The power is in the seed, not the dirt. The Greek Nuance: In Mark 4:28, Jesus says the earth produces crops "by itself". The Greek word used there is automati, from which we get our word automatic. Application: The farmer’s job is simply to plant and get out of the way. We often exhaust ourselves trying to "produce" spiritual growth, but spiritual transformation is an automatic, organic result of God's Word being allowed to dwell in a healthy heart. Some seed was eaten, some burned up, some choked out, some on good soil. It’s not your job to choose which soil… its your job to plant.  And point 2…  THE DIRT DOESN’T CARE WHAT YOU PLANT.   In the 1960s, archaeologists excavating Masada—the ancient mountaintop fortress in Israel—discovered a small jar containing a handful of date palm seeds. Carbon dating revealed they were 2,000 years old. They had survived the Roman siege, the fall of Jerusalem, and two millennia of scorching desert heat. They looked like shriveled, dusty, dead pebbles. In 2005, scientists decided to do an experiment. They took those ancient seeds, hydrated them, treated them with organic fertilizer, and planted them in the soil. To the amazement of the scientific world, one of those seeds sprouted. Today, that plant—named "Methuselah"—is a thriving, fruit-bearing palm tree. For 2,000 years, the life inside that seed didn't rot, didn't evaporate, and didn't expire. It was just waiting for the right soil. The Transition: "When Peter says we are born of 'incorruptible seed' through the living and enduring Word of God, he is telling us that God’s truth has an eternal shelf life. It doesn't matter how dry your life feels, or how many years you think you’ve wasted. When the living Word of God finally hits the soil of a receptive heart, life willbreak through

Garth Heckman The David Alliance [email protected]  The seed is the Process   Working for Harold Busse at Busse flowers… Hyacinths bulb… I did what he said and it actually grew. When I told him a few weeks later he looked at me as if I was the dumb kid!    Harold Busse THERE IS ALWAYS A PROCESS YEAR AFTER YEAR   A process is simply a predictable, repeatable series of steps designed to achieve a specific outcome.   The Bible talks about processes… there is always a process behind biblical principles.    But we can miss the idea behind process when we read scripture because it uses words like SEEDS. SEEDS IN SCRIPTURE are seen as The word of God - planted Faith  The Kingdom Giving and Tithing The Covenant of Christ body Our personal body and spirit AND THERE IS GOOD SEED AND BAD SEED     3 Types of Greek words used for Seed Sporo - the actual physical seed Sperma - the actual DNA of a seed as in the lineage Koh-Kos - The single seed with massive potential    2. Three Deep Theological Insights for Your Sermon Insight A: The Mystery of Automatic Growth (Sporos)   18th and 19th centuries, wooden sailing ships left European ports to pick up heavy cargo (like tobacco, cotton, or sugar) from the Americas. To keep the empty ships stable on the journey to America, sailors filled the hulls with "ballast"—tons of local soil, gravel, and river stones dug up from European riverbanks. When the ships arrived in ports like Philadelphia, Boston, or Portland, sailors dumped the ballast onto the waterfront to make room for the cargo. Hidden inside that soil were millions of European seeds. This accidental conveyor belt introduced famous weeds like the Common Dandelion, 

TDA The David Alliance Garth Heckman   The transition to adulthood has changed dramatically. Between the rapid rise of digital technology—which often replaces face-to-face community with screens—and the shifting structures of family and labor, the traditional "scripts" for how to grow up as a man have largely been dismantled. To build a healthy, successful, and purposeful life today, young men should focus on five critical areas of awareness, backed by sociology, psychology, and modern research. 1. Redefining Purpose Beyond the "Sole Provider" Role For generations, the default script for masculinity was simple: be the primary financial provider and protector. As women have rightfully achieved rapid economic and educational progress, that old script has evolved. Many young men now struggle with feeling obsolete or "optional" when they are no longer expected to be the sole breadwinner. Young men need to understand that their value in a family and in a relationship is deeply personal, emotional, and cooperative—not just a paycheck. "The state of feeling unneeded is literally fatal. The best protector against despair is realizing that the world needs you." — Richard Reeves, President of the American Institute for Boys and Men (AIBM) Modern success means learning to be an equal, emotionally present partner and co-creator of a stable home, rather than holding onto an outdated, isolating provider model. 2. Transitioning from "Digital Retreat" to Real-World Agency With the rise of smartphones, immersive video games, online pornography, and social media, it has never been easier to escape the discomfort of real life. Researchers note that while young women struggling with mental health often report higher rates of internal anxiety, young men are more prone to "checking out" entirely—retreating into virtual worlds where they feel a false sense of control. To combat this, young adults must cultivate a mindful, active relationship with technology. The Wise Use Tech Plandeveloped by mental health professionals suggests the Three T's for managing tech: Tracking: Consciously observing how much you use your devices and how you feel afterward. Telling: Sharing your habits and feelings with trusted friends or mentors to build real-world accountability. Tuning In: Asking yourself if you are using screens to escape boredom, social anxiety, or the hard work of building a life. Success in the physical world requires stepping outside the screen, embracing the discomfort of real-world interactions, and taking active ownership of your daily life.

THE DAVID ALLIANCE [email protected] Garth Heckman CATCH THIS:  Because the Holy Spirit indwells the believer, you become the mobile temple of God. The cosmic river of life no longer flows from a building in Jerusalem; it flows out of the deepest, most central part of your converted being.     Rheousin (ῥεύσουσιν) – "Will Flow" The Literal Meaning: This is a continuous active verb meaning to stream, to gush, or to flood heavily… ALWAYS FLOWING ALWAYS FRESH       The theology here is clear: Believers are not meant to be reservoirs that store up grace; we are meant to be pipelines that distribute it.   4. Practical Applications: Living the Outflow If the koilia (the core) is filled with the Spirit, it must result in a rheousin (a gushing flow) into our everyday environments. Here is how that applies practically:     WHAT THIS MEANS 1. Shift from "Consuming" to "Overflowing"   2. Radical Environmental Transformation (The Ezekiel Effect) WHERE EVER WE GO THINGS ARE GONNA GET WET!    3. Cultivating Emotional Integrity at the Core (Koilia) Because the river flows from the koilia—the seat of our emotions and deepest hidden spaces—it means our inner world matters immensely. If our inner core is clogged with bitterness, unexpressed anger, or anxiety, the outflow gets restricted.         James 3:11,12 can bitterness and fresh water come    Inconsistency reveals a problem - not with the source, but within the choice of which source to work from.  Its all about control - not the source The tongue… the mind - must be renewed. The river of life …the inner being of a man.    So we see two things at work in us… We can block the River - choosing to not obey We can poison the River - thought life   How to poison a river? Satan can’t read your mind…  I can… every time. - you are going to think about chocolate ice cream…  NOW: I bet you are thinking about chocolate ice cream!  THEN: I attack you for thinking of chocolate ice cream. That’s how satan works.        Practical Application from Scripture To keep the River flowing freely: - Walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16, 25). - Be filled with the Spirit continually (Ephesians 5:18). - Obey His leading, pursue holiness, and fan into flame the gift of God (2 Timothy 1:6). - Repent quickly when we grieve or quench Him.

[email protected]  The David Alliance Garth Heckman The New Testament / Messianic Connection In Christian theology, Jesus directly applies this imagery to himself and the Holy Spirit. In John 7:37-38, he stands up at the Feast of Tabernacles—a festival focused heavily on water rituals—and cries out: "Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." The ultimate fulfillment is seen as the Gospel and the Holy Spirit starting as a small movement in Jerusalem and swelling to bring spiritual life to the "dead" places of the entire world.     John 7:38 reads: “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” To fully capture the weight of this verse, we have to look at the explosive cultural context in which Jesus said it, the radical imagery of the original Greek, and what it actually looks like when this "living water" breaks out into daily life.   1. The Theological Context: The Water Libation Ritual Jesus doesn’t whisper this statement in private; he shouts it on the final, greatest day of the Feast of Tabernacles(Sukkot). During this 7-day festival, the High Priest led a massive procession down to the Pool of Siloam, filled a golden pitcher with water, and marched back to the Temple. As the crowds waved palm branches and sang the Hallel (Psalms 113–118), the priest poured the water out onto the altar.   On the eighth day, the water pouring stopped—symbolizing that the desert wanderings were over and they had reached the Promised Land. It is precisely at this moment of silence, when the water ritual ends, that Jesus stands up and shouts that He is the true source of that water. He is claiming to be the rock in the desert, the fulfillment of Ezekiel’s temple, and the source of the prophetic river.   2. Deep Dive Into the Greek Text Two specific words in the original Greek completely change how we visualize this verse. Koilia (κοιλία) – "From Within Them" The Literal Meaning: In older translations (like the KJV), this is translated as "out of his belly." Koilia literally refers to the abdomen, the womb, the innermost core, or the seat of human appetite and emotion.   IT WILL CHANGE YOU DEEPLY FROM THE INSIDE OUT… **The man who hit his thumb with a hammer who was filled with joy “I didn’t swear… I didn’t swear..!    The Theological Depth: Jesus is making a startling anatomical shift. In Ezekiel's vision, the river flowed from the physical threshold of the Temple. Jesus says that for the believer, the river flows from their koilia—their absolute innermost core.     CATCH THIS:  Because the Holy Spirit indwells the believer, you become the mobile temple of God. The cosmic river of life no longer flows from a building in Jerusalem; it flows out of the deepest, most central part of your converted being.

GARTH Heckman [email protected] The David Alliance  1. The Message in a Bottle from the Canadian Wilderness In the early 2000s, a young boy living near a small, unnamed tributary stream in the remote wilderness of northern Alberta, Canada, dropped a plastic bottle containing a note into the water. The River Highway: The small stream trickled into the Athabasca River. From there, the current carried it into Lake Athabasca, which feeds into the Slave River. The Slave River then flows into the massive Mackenzie River—the longest river system in Canada. The Ocean Arrival: The Mackenzie River emptied the bottle into the Arctic Ocean, thousands of miles north of where it started. The Final Twist: But the journey didn't stop there. Caught in the Arctic's churning currents and shifting pack ice, the bottle traveled through the Northwest Passage, drifted down past Greenland, and entered the Atlantic Ocean. The Discovery: Nearly 15 years later, the heavily weathered bottle washed ashore on a rugged beach in Scotland, roughly 4,000 miles away from the quiet Canadian stream where it began.       Ezekiel’s temple river vision, found in Ezekiel 47:1–12, is one of the most powerful and visually vivid passages in Hebrew prophecy. Writing while exiled in Babylon after the destruction of Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple, Ezekiel is given a visionary tour of a magnificent, restored future temple. The climax of this tour isn't a piece of furniture or a ritual, but a miraculous, life-giving river that alters the geography of the land.   1. The Trickle from the Threshold Ezekiel sees water trickling out from under the south side of the temple threshold, flowing eastward past the altar. It starts as a mere trickle, an unlikely source for a massive body of water. 2. The Supernatural Expansion The divine guide leads Ezekiel eastward alongside the water, measuring the distance and checking the depth at four distinct intervals: 1,000 cubits (~1,500 feet): The water is ankle-deep. 2,000 cubits: The water reaches the knees. 3,000 cubits: The water is up to the waist. 4,000 cubits: It has become a massive, deep river that cannot be crossed on foot—a river deep enough to swim in. THOUGHT: The MORE the River grows the more it is in control. The River is going to go where the River wants to go… you ain’t going to stop it.    The Miracle: What makes this expansion supernatural is that no tributaries or feeding streams are mentioned. The river grows exponentially entirely on its own, flowing straight out from the presence of God.

TDA The David Alliance Garth Heckman What’s the best fighting advice you have ever been given… mine?… Avoid confrontation at all costs even if it means running away. Better to be out of breath and look foolish then out of breath because your dead.  the second best piece of advice Practice responding to an attack more than practicing how to attack back   We have been talking about hagah - or focus, attention and meditating. As the scripture says its chewing on something until you absorb it deep into your actions. Not just your mind, but your actions…  And why is it so important? Because we are at war… and a good soldier knows you practice warfare until it becomes who you are.    If you face just one opponent and you doubt yourself, you are already outnumbered. Dan Milman     There are more people with no training whatsoever who successfully defend themselves through sheer Will and indignation- than there ever will be trained martial artists, who get attacked and successfully defend themselves. Tony Blauer self defense legend

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman  The 10-Minute Hagah Protocol Phase 1: The Setup & Intercept (Minutes 0–2) Before you can fill your mind, you have to cut off the digital firehose. This phase applies the "cognitive friction" principle to lower your brain's baseline stimulation. Step 1: Leave your phone in a completely separate room. Sit at a clean desk or chair with zero digital screens in your line of sight. Step 2: Use a physical Bible or a single piece of paper with your chosen verse written on it. Do not use a phone app—the temptation to switch tasks is too high. Step 3: Close your eyes and take three deep, slow breaths (inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 6). This activates the parasympathetic nervous system, slowing your heart rate and preparing the prefrontal cortex for sustained focus. Phase 2: Selection & The First Taste (Minutes 2–3) Pick a single, high-impact verse. Do not try to read a whole chapter. You want a single "morsel" to ruminate on. Good focus options: Proverbs 4:25, Psalm 46:10, Philippians 4:8, or Joshua 1:8. Step 4: Read the verse out loud, slowly, three times. Pay close attention to punctuation and the natural rhythm of the words. Phase 3: The "Muttering" & Deep Encoding (Minutes 3–7) This is the core of Hagah—the active rumination. You are going to verbally and mentally circle the text. Step 5 (The Accent Shift): Repeat the verse out loud under your breath (literally muttering it), but shift the emphasis to a different word each time. Example with Psalm 46:10: "BE still, and know that I am God." (Focus on the command to halt movement) "Be STILL, and know that I am God." (Focus on the internal quiet) "Be still, and KNOW that I am God." (Focus on deep, unshakeable certainty) Step 6 (Deconstruction): Pick 1 or 2 core words from the verse and dissect them. Ask yourself: What is the exact opposite of this word? What does this word look like in action on a stressful Tuesday afternoon? Phase 4: Intercepting the Wander (Continuous) Your mind will wander during Phase 3. This is normal and is actually the precise moment your attention is trained. Step 7 (The Catch and Release): The moment you realize you are thinking about an email, a project, or a notification, do not get frustrated. Frustration triggers cortisol, which breaks focus. Acknowledge the thought, mentally say "Not right now," and immediately speak the verse out loud to pull your attention back to the anchor. Phase 5: Personal Integration & Close (Minutes 7–10) True Hagah must translate from intellectual processing into real-world application. Step 8 (The Bridge): Formulate one concrete sentence tracking how this specific verse applies to the rest of your day. Example: "Because I know to 'be still,' I will not check my notifications between my 2:00 PM and 3:00 PM deep-work blocks today." Step 9 (The Seal): Speak the verse out loud one final time from memory, close your notebook, and transition directly into your primary task for the day while your brain is operating at peak focus. Why This Works Scientifically By speaking the text under your breath (muttering), you are engaging dual-coding theory. You aren't just processing the text visually; you are processing it auditorily and kinesthetically (through the physical movement of your vocal cords). This drastically increases the cognitive workload dedicated to that single truth, effectively starving peripheral distractions of the mental energy they need to pull you away.

Garth Heckman [email protected] The David Alliance  To understand how to train your mind using these two approaches, we have to look at their fundamental mechanics. While modern secular mindfulness and Biblical meditation (Hagah) both aim to quiet a scattered mind, they achieve it through completely opposite movements: one focuses on emptying, while the other focuses on filling. Here is how the ancient Hebrew concept of Hagah works and how it contrasts with today’s popular mindfulness practices for building cognitive focus. The Root of Hagah: Active Rumination In Western culture, the word "meditation" often conjures images of complete silence, stillness, and clearing the mind of all thoughts. The biblical Hebrew concept is entirely different. The Translation: The Hebrew word הָגָה (Hagah) literally translates to "to mutter," "to growl," "to chew," or "to ruminate." The Imagery: It is famously used in Isaiah 31:4 to describe a young lion growling over its prey. It is also the word-picture of a cow chewing its cud—swallowing food, bringing it back up, and chewing on it again to extract every ounce of nutrient. The Practice: In Joshua 1:8, when God commands Joshua to "meditate (Hagah) on this Book of the Law day and night," he isn't telling him to sit in silent contemplation. He is telling him to under-the-breath mutter, speak, and mentally chew on the text continuously throughout the day so that it shapes his immediate actions. Hagah vs. Secular Mindfulness: The Core Differences While both practices strengthen the prefrontal cortex and improve attention regulation, they navigate the internal world through different frameworks:

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman The digital world is explicitly engineered to capture and fragment our attention. Dr. Gloria Mark, a leading informatics researcher at the University of California, Irvine, tracked digital behavior and found that the average attention span on a single screen has plummeted from 2.5 minutes in 2004 to just 47 seconds today. When your focus breaks, it doesn’t just snap back. It takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to fully return to a deep focus state after a single interruption because your brain gets caught in "intervening tasks." To train your brain to resist this friction and rebuild sustained focus, apply these three science-backed strategies:     Yes, absolutely. While the ancient world didn't have smartphones, the human struggle with a scattered mind, anxiety, and competing priorities is timeless. The Bible addresses the concept of focus extensively, using ancient terminology like singleness of heart, guarding the gates of the mind, and fixing one’s eyes. Scriptural wisdom aligns remarkably well with modern cognitive science, framing focus not just as a productivity tool, but as a discipline of the mind and spirit. Here are three distinct clues and frameworks the Bible provides on how to focus. 1. The Principle of the "Single Eye" (Eliminating Divided Attention) In the New Testament, Jesus explicitly addresses the danger of a divided mind. The ancient concept of focus was often tied to vision—what you allow your eyes to linger on dictates your internal state. The Scripture: In Luke 11:34, Jesus states: "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy [single/focused], your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy [bad/divided], your body also is full of darkness." The Clue: The original Greek word used for "healthy" or "good" in many translations is haplous, which literally means single, uncomplicated, or unfolded. Conversely, the word for "unhealthy" or "bad" (poneros) in this context implies being double or divided. The Takeaway: The Bible warns that if your vision is fragmented by too many competing inputs, your internal world becomes chaotic. It tells us that true focus requires a single, undivided gaze. 2. Guarding the Gates of the Mind (Active Filtering) Just as modern psychology tells us to limit notifications to protect our working memory, Biblical wisdom commands us to set up strict boundaries around what we allow into our consciousness. The Scripture: Proverbs 4:25–27 provides direct, actionable instructions on attentional control: "Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left..." The Clue: This is a classic Stoic-like scriptural command for attentional filtering. The Bible recognizes that distractions ("the right or the left") are constantly pulling at us. Proverbs 4:23 pairs this with the ultimate reason for focus: "Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life." In ancient Hebrew psychology, the "heart" (lev) represented the mind, will, and intellect. The Takeaway: Focus is a defensive act. You must actively filter out the noise of the periphery to protect the trajectory of your life. 3. Capturing Thought Loops (Taking Cognitive Control) A major enemy of focus in a digital age is the endless loop of mental chatter, comparison, and anxiety. The New Testament provides a aggressive model for dealing with rogue thoughts rather than letting them run wild. The Scripture: In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul writes about the mental discipline required in leadership and faith: "...we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." The Clue: The phrase "take captive" (aichmalotizo) is a military term meaning to capture at sword-point or take as a prisoner of war. The Takeaway: The Bible instructs us not to be passive consumers of our own thoughts or digital feeds. When a distracting, anxious, or irrelevant thought enters your mind, you are told to arrest it immediately, evaluate it, and intentionally redirect your mental energy back to what matters. The Ultimate Biblical Focus Filter: If you want a modern-day checklist for what should pass through your attentional filter, Philippians 4:8 lays it out perfectly. It tells us exactly where to anchor a scattered mind: "...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

The David Alliance [email protected] Garth Heckman   Here are ten things most people don't know about the real Colonel Sanders: 1. He was not a military colonel The title "Colonel" was strictly honorary. It was bestowed upon him twice by the Governor of Kentucky—first in 1935 and again in 1950—as a recognition of his contributions to the state's cuisine. He took the title seriously, though, eventually bleaching his beard white and adopting the iconic string tie and white suit full-time.   2. He got into a fatal shootout with a business rival While running a standard gas station in Corbin, Kentucky, Sanders got into a fierce dispute with Matt Stewart, a rival station owner who kept painting over Sanders' highway signs. When Sanders caught him in the act, a shootout commenced. Stewart shot and killed a Shell gas company executive who was with Sanders. Sanders shot Stewart in the shoulder. Stewart was convicted of murder, effectively eliminating Sanders' local competition.   3. He was fired from a dozen different careers first Before finding success with chicken, Sanders had a chaotic resume. He was a railroad blacksmith, a steam engine stoker, an insurance salesman, a ferry boat operator, and even practiced law in Arkansas. He was ultimately barred from his own legal practice after getting into a physical fistfight with his own client inside the courtroom.   4. His first restaurant success was ruined by an interstate highway By the 1940s, Sanders had built a highly successful physical restaurant and motel concept in Corbin. However, in the early 1950s, a new interstate highway bypassed the town entirely, obliterating his customer traffic. He sold the property at a massive loss, was left broke, and lived off his 105-dollar monthly Social Security check while reinventing his business.   5. The pressure cooker was his secret weapon In the 1930s, pan-frying chicken took about 30 minutes—far too slow for a restaurant service. Deep frying dried it out. When the commercial pressure cooker was invented to cook vegetables, Sanders brilliantly modified it to fry chicken using oil under pressure. This reduced the cook time to just 9 minutes while keeping the meat incredibly juicy.   6. He was legendary for his explosive profanity Despite his grandfatherly appearance, Sanders had a notoriously fiery temper and a mouth like a sailor. He was known to unleash massive, incredibly creative streams of swear words if things weren't done to his standards. He once admitted, "I used to cuss something terrible. I was a master at it.”   7. He fiercely sued KFC after selling the company Sanders sold the American operations of KFC in 1964 for 2 million dollars but stayed on as a brand ambassador. As corporate executives began tweaking the menu to cut costs, Sanders grew furious. He famously went on late-night talk shows calling the new gravy "wallpaper paste" and the chicken "a damn fried dough ball." When he tried to open a competing restaurant named after himself, corporate sued him, and he countersued them for 122 million dollars. They eventually settled out of court.   8. He delivered his first child himself During his early, cash-strapped marriage to his first wife, Josephine, they could not afford a doctor when she went into labor. Sanders successfully delivered his firstborn child himself at home.   9. He wore the white wool suit year-round Once he adopted his famous look, he committed to it entirely. He wore a heavy white wool suit in the winter and a lighter white cotton suit in the summer. He refused to be seen in public wearing anything else for the last 20 years of his life.   10. He was a massive philanthropist who gave away his fortune Because he knew what it was like to be destitute, Sanders spent his later years giving away the vast majority of his wealth. He funded massive scholarships, bought medical equipment for hospitals, and adopted dozens of orphaned children overseas through charities, right up until his death at age 90 in 1980.           Sermon: Unfinished Business Text: Joshua 14:6–14 Focus: The life of Caleb Introduction: The Tragedy of the Settled Life There is a massive difference between finishing a task and quitting out of exhaustion. Too many people wrap up their lives, their careers, their callings, and even their faith long before God ever intended them to stop. They settle into a comfortable valley because the mountain looks too steep. They trade their calling for a couch, confusing the end of a season with the end of their purpose. But the Kingdom of God has no retirement plan. It only has a graduation plan.   Dog Impetuous is an adjective describing someone who acts quickly and impulsively, without thinking carefully about the consequences. It refers to rash, spur-of-the-moment actions often driven by sudden emotion rather than thoughtful planning. In a more literal or literary sense, it can also describe something moving with great force or violence     Numbers 13: (the first half of this chapter is all true… even the part about the enemies… its all true - But why does God say about their report?    29The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.” 30Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “We must go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly conquer it!” 31But the men who had gone up with him replied, “We cannot go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are!”…       How do you maintain that kind of raw, kinetic power after forty-five years of hardship?   Numbers 14:24 But my servant Caleb has a different SPIRIT/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.   DIFFERENT = HB Ak-aihr - follower of the Lord, “other mans spirit” They gave a bad report… it was the truth..   STAY HEALTHY… THE BEST IS YET TO COME AND YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO FIGHT.