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Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Nicholas Drozé Weekend

Nicholas Droze

When “Bad” is Good: Trusting God’s Plan?

Heavenly Father, Lord, you know each 1 of our lives.

You know the things that we are struggling with.

Know the things that we need to cooperate with you in.

I just pray, Father, that tonight you would speak for me and through me, that you'd hide me behind the blood of the cross, and that self would be put away.

Please open our hearts and our minds to you and you alone.

Help me to have a good cadence and speak clearly, Lord.

I pray and ask these things in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ.

So my message today is entitled, God's arm, oh, sorry, When Bad is Good, Trusting God's Plan.

I don't know if you've ever heard this story, but a farmer once had a horse and used it to plow his fields.

And 1 day the horse ran away, and his neighbors came to him to console him, and they said to him, such bad luck.

A few days later, the horse returned, bringing with it several wild horses.

The neighbors came to celebrate and said, what good fortune.

The farmer's son tried to tame 1 of the wild horses, but fell off and broke his leg.

Again, the neighbors came and said, how unfortunate?

Not long after, soldiers came to the village to recruit all the young men for war.

However, the farmer's son was spared because of his broken leg.

God's objective in this story, I believe, was to keep the son from war.

And God oftentimes has objectives that we don't see.

4 events needed to take place before God's main objective was completed.

Because of sin, our life is like a roller coaster, ups and downs, but God is the builder and he's also the conductor.

Who in the Bible do you know of has some really extreme highs and lows?

There's a bunch of people, but the 1 that pops out for me is Joseph, right?

Romans 8.28 says, And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose.

Joseph, for me, was 1 of the most beloved men in the Bible.

Matter of fact, I don't remember a single instance where the Bible felt it was necessary to speak upon a sin that he had.

Now, we know that we've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, but the Bible never specifically speaks about a specific sin that Joseph had.

So on all accounts, in my opinion, this is a man who has a pretty good relationship with God.

His father had a wonderful relationship with God.

And so It blows my mind that even Joseph had these extreme highs and lows.

He had a high of God-given dreams, but then he was hated by his brothers because of those.

A low sold into slavery, a high treated like a son by Potiphar and given authority over his household.

At this point, he probably thought, you know what, life is turning around.

Only then to have a low of being falsely accused and imprisoned.

A high trusted in prison, a low forgotten in prison.

A high elevated to power, a high reunion with his brothers, a high reunited with his father, a high, a legacy of faith.

When you're riding high, forces are already set in motion to bring you low.

And when you're riding low, forces are already set in motion to bring you back up again.

As much as we dislike our low moments, We have to all agree that they're often necessary.

There's a story that reflects this that I really like.

There was a traveler named Elias, and he stood at the edge of a great valley.

Beyond it, perched atop a high mountain, lay a city of gold.

He longed to reach this city, but as he gazed at the winding path, he realized that the only way forward was to descend into the dark valley.

The valley was cold and shadowed, filled with brambles, and it tore at his clothes and stones bruised his feet.

Each step felt heavier than the last, and doubt gnawed at him.

1 night, in the depths of the valley, Elias stumbled upon an old hermit sitting by a fire.

The hermit, wrapped in a tattered cloak, looked up and smiled.

I seek the city on the mountain, Elias replied, his voice trembling with exhaustion, but the valley feels endless.

The valley tests you, but it also teaches.

Every scar, every fall strengthens you for the climb ahead.

Elias pondered these words and continued his journey.

As the days passed, he learned to navigate the thorns, find nourishment, and endure the cold.

He grew stronger, his spirit resilient, until 1 day the valley ended and the mountain rose before him.

The ascent was steep, but now each step felt lighter.

When he reached the golden gates of the city, the people welcomed him as 1 of their own.

Standing at the summit, Elias looked back at the valley with gratitude.

He realized that the valley, with all of its hardships, had not been a curse but a gift, a necessary path to the heights he had now reached.

And so Elias understood, the way to the summit must begin in the valley.

The hermit equals God's source of information and encouragement.

In the midst of our trials, the hermit, in the midst of the trials, the hermit helped Elias.

In the midst of our trials, God's word is our guide and our encouragement through this valley.

Open with me to 1 Peter 4, verse 12 and 13.

And it reads, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing has happened to you.

But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be also glad with exceeding joy.

If Christ had to walk through the valley, shall we not follow him?

If Christ had these things happen in life that we've read about that we wouldn't have been able to handle or stand up against, but he asks us to follow him because he's given everything for us, shall we not?

If Joseph had to walk through the valley, will we not have to?

I do find it interesting how we tend to complain about things that happen to us that are bad, Myself included.

How shameful would it be if you were to find out that this bad thing that happened to you was necessary in order to bring about the good that God had been preparing for you?

And in the midst of it, you're grumbling and murmuring.

Your guardian angel watching you, listening.

1 of the keys to endure trials is perspective.

1 of the keys to endure trials is your perspective.

Perspective is determined by our knowledge in combination with our character.

God’s Arm or Man’s Arm: Where Do You Find Support?

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for this Sabbath day and another opportunity to draw nearer to you.

I pray, Lord, that you would open our hearts and our minds to you and you alone, that you would hide me behind the blood of the cross, and that you would speak for and through me.

I pray that she would put self away and help me, Lord, to just focus on the message at hand, Lord.

All right, George Mueller is 1 of my favorite men in history.

And he was a Christian evangelist and a missionary remembered for his unwavering faith in God and his commitment to caring for orphans in the 19th century England.

George Mueller never asked people directly for help, but trusted God to provide for the needs of the orphans.

When I had first heard about him, it was a story that I heard about.

He was on a ship and he was heading to a destination and the fog got so bad that the ship was drawn to a halt and the captain said, you know, we're going to be here for a while.

And George Mueller comes down and he says, this will not do.

I have a place to be to and we must get there on time.

Come down to, I forget what it's called, but let's go down and pray.

So George Mueller gets on his knees and he prays.

And after he prays, he gets up and the captain begins to pray.

And that's kind of what started me to look at a lot of his stories in his life.

But 1 famous moment I want to focus on today was when there was no food for breakfast.

He set the table, put all of the silverware out, everything as if the food was already there.

And then he gathered hands of the children and he prayed to God and he said, Lord, thank you for the food that you are going to give us.

I mean, you could just gloss through that, but these little children were hungry and George fully believed that food was coming.

So just after he finished his praying, there's a knock on the door.

And he said, I was up all night and God put it on my heart that I need to bake bread for your orphanage.

So he takes the bread, thank you very much, closes the door.

Right when he closes the door, another knock.

And his cart broke down right in front of the orphanage, and he said, I don't want this milk to spoil.

I know you have orphans, please take this milk.

You know, God, in my life and in yours, I'm sure, has desired to give us that type of experience where we're fully dependent upon him.

I can't speak for you, but I haven't always depended on God in that way.

Oftentimes, I lean on myself or men for support, women too.

What makes someone a good resource for help?

In this story, it seemed impossible that food would be provided, but George leaned on God.

There are 4 characteristics that we recognize that make someone a good resource for help.

Knowledge to help, power to help, a willingness to help, and we have access to them for help.

If you go to the car mechanic, the car mechanic has knowledge to fix your vehicle.

He has power in the resources and the tools to get the job done.

And he has a willingness if you have the money.

If we know that these are the 4 criteria we need for help, let's analyze the differences between God and man.

On the point of knowledge, God knows all things.

In contrast, James tells mankind in chapter 4 verse 14 that we don't even know what will happen tomorrow.

On the point of power, Jeremiah 32, 27, behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh.

Is there anything too hard for me, he says.

So here we hear these declarations of this great power, but how many of us have ever truly leaned on that?

And so we miss opportunities like George Mueller.

We miss these experiences that would grow our faith so tremendously that other people would be able to feed off of it because we don't step out in faith.

The Bible tells us in 1 John 4, verse 16, that God is love.

And 1 Corinthians tells us that Love does not seek its own interests.

And the ultimate evidence that God is willing to help you is that he gave his only son.

While we were enemies, he gave his only son.

God gave his son in our behalf, so we see that God always has the interest of others in mind.

But we know that man is inherently selfish.

He speaks every language, understands our every thought, and knows the desires of our heart.

Conclusion, God has all knowledge, all power, and he stands willing to help.

And is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, why then do we choose man over God?

1 of the reasons is instant gratification, the lack of patience.

My grandfather always said that we go to God with a question, but then we turn to man for the answer.

We go to God with a question, Lord, I need you.

Lord, something's going on at work and I need your help.

Lord, I'm having something, an ailment, I'm having some type of trouble with family.

I need you, help me." Should have stopped right there.

10, 20 minutes later, Satan's whispering in your ear.

Oh man, now you start to feel that you have to take things into your own hands because God hasn't answered yet.

You call my friend, you call...and you start depending upon people, trying to gain access to information that you should have just left the prayer with God.

I should have just left the prayer with God.

So the first reason is instant gratification.

The second reason, there are different requirements that we may not be willing to meet because of some cherished sin.

But in regards to letting go of sin, man oftentimes has no requirement of this in order to give you help.

So we go to man because we know that there's some glaring things in our life.

And Even though God would love for us to come to Him, even in that condition, oftentimes, like Adam and Eve, we hide ourselves, whether consciously or subconsciously.

And the third reason, Sometimes we go to man because the thing we're pursuing is contrary to God.

In this scenario, God is no longer a good resource for help because our desires are not aligned with his will.

When Jonah was fleeing to Tarshish, God was not a good resource to get him there.

1 reason why we favor leaning on man for help instead of God is because of access.

More specifically, the means by which we access.

It feels more tangible to us because we access man through our 5 senses.

God, however, must be accessed by faith, trusting in what we cannot immediately see or hear.

Seriously, Does God feel like a real option to you?

Seriously, does God feel like a real option to you?

Through the Eyes of Our Beholder

Father, I thank you so much, Lord, for a great Sabbath.

I just pray, Father, that you would speak for me and through me this last message and that you would open our hearts to you, Lord.

And I just pray, Father, that these words would be ingrained upon our mind.

We ask and pray these things in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ.

The Lord put it on my heart to share 2 testimonies, and hopefully at the end we'll be able to come to a conclusion.

And yeah, I've never shared a testimony before, ever.

The first story I want to tell you is easily the reason why I don't doubt God anymore.

This testimony, this story, it removed all doubt for me.

For me now, because it's his personal story.

But this is the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me.

Yeah, so I'll give you a little rundown of it.

I came to the Lord when I was about 23, 24.

And like most of us, I was very excited about what I was learning.

And I was like, ooh, I want to share this.

But my mom, She wasn't as excited as I was, let me just say that.

And I definitely, I just felt like, I'll tell you the story, you can tell me what you think.

So 1 day, I had, in 2011 I think, I had hurt my knee.

And so I was working and I had tore some cartilage from behind my kneecap and my knee was really messed up.

And so I was bedridden and I went to go stay with my mom.

And it was a really difficult time just being bedridden in the house.

And I was studying, just came to God, fervent, and I remember studying about Proverbs chapter 3, verse 5 and 6.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path.

So I felt so strongly that my mother needed this passage.

I mean, I just knew that if I was gonna tell her this, it would change everything, her life would just be better.

And so I went about telling her this passage the entire day.

And we went back and forth, back and forth, and I honestly wasn't being a good son.

On top of that, I probably wasn't following that passage myself.

And my mom got so tired of hearing me talk about it that she went in her room and stayed in there.

And I haven't told this story in a really long time to a friend or anything, let alone people.

I know this sounds crazy, but I have to have them.

I mean, I like the ones that are strong, like I don't want it to bend too much.

So when I was downstairs, when I was downstairs, my ears started to itch.

And I was like, oh man, I need some Q-tips.

Now mind you, At this time, this is when TiVo was popular.

I don't know if you remember TiVo, but you could record shows and watch shows at the same time.

Now, if you record 6, there's 1 slot open for whoever else is in the house to watch something.

Unfortunately, my mother had to record 7.

Now, this is how much of a knucklehead I was being at that time.

There is a main remote for the controls, all of that.

My mom happened to leave it in the kitchen.

But when my ear was itching, I had to go get the Q-tip, and it was in my mama's room.

So I hobbled upstairs with my knee, and see if people want to see.

I go and I sit down, now the remote's in my pocket, and I go and I sit down by her door like this.

So I'm angled towards the corner of the door and I'm knocking on the door.

And it was at that moment that I felt a very strong impression of God, almost that I could hear the words, not audibly, but I could feel it so strong that I could feel the words.

And he said to me, all day long you have done what was contrary to me.

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Nicholas Drozé Weekend

When “Bad” is Good: Trusting God’s Plan?

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