How to Get Through a Hard Time

0:00 Not everything bad that happens to you is God trying to form himself inside of you. Too many Christians, they're actually just reaping the harvest off of their own bad decisions. No, a lot of stuff that happens to people is not at all from God. It's a consequence of their own decisions, or it's a demonic attack, and that should be withstood. Not tools that God uses to perfect you. Heaven is not so bankrupt that it must rely on the tools and resources of hell to perfect the saints. Welcome to the CityLight Church Podcast. Thanks for joining us today as we look into God's Word and discover the hope and truth that he has for us. If you want to connect with CityLight Church, feel free to visit us at CityLightNYC .com.

0:41 That's CityLightNYC.com. Pastor Boyan Jancic and his team believe that the power of the Holy Spirit is already working in our hearts and minds. As you listen to today's teaching, remember that you are deeply loved by God, that you are surrounded by his grace, and that he has a real hope and a future for you. I want to just pray for what's happening in Iran because it's the Christian thing to do. It's what we're commanded to do in the Bible, and so we're to pray. What does the Bible say? To pray for kings, for rulers, for all who are in authority, and there's a reason why we're supposed to pray.

1:22 The Bible says that we could live a peaceable life, go about in Godliness, and most importantly, that the Word of God would have free course. Hallelujah, but I just got to say that I don't love that we're there. He said, why do you got to say that? Just preach because I hear this. You'd be surprised how much gets back to me. Why doesn't Pastor just preach the gospel? That's what he's supposed to do because it's all intertwined. You don't want to hear what I have to say, but you listen to every meme that Algo feeds you. You develop your worldview from a bunch of memes, and that's how you form your opinion on what's happening.

2:06 Some of you don't even have an opinion until you're told what your opinion should be. Look what happened. We're bombing Iran. Quick, let me see how I should feel about this. What does my tribe say I ought to feel about this? Come on, you know it's true, and if we're to go to war, I think it's a fair question to ask, how does this benefit me? How does this benefit the average? I mean, we're going to war. Of course, it's not called a formal war, but you know what I mean. We've had many wars that weren't called wars with no formal declaration of war, but how does this benefit the average citizen? It doesn't, and then, of course, you should not like being lied to, and so one of the main reasons we were told we're doing this in Iran is because of an imminent nuclear threat, right?

2:56 That wasn't just me who saw that. It was repeated over and over again, yet it wasn't even that long ago in the summertime. Remember when we sent that bunker buster, and the next day, all the news and government officials were reporting that we sent their nuclear program back decades, but then six months later, it's an imminent threat. God, it's either you're wondering what I'm saying or a lot of people want to go to war here. It's so quiet. Hallelujah, but what we want to pray is that in the midst of a great mess, God would still bless, that he would get in there and somehow behind the scenes work it out for his glory.

3:37 Amen. Hallelujah, but we shouldn't get excited. I mean, we're not defending anything. We're not being invaded, and lives are being lost, so what's our responsibility? Our responsibility is to pray. Hallelujah. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, you are infinitely wise. You are altogether mighty, and we pray that your plans and your purposes would be wrought forth, that you would arrange it and change it and organize it so that this is good for the kingdom, and this is good for the propagation of the gospel, and this is good for the king's reign and for righteousness.

4:32 Father, we pray that you would move upon governmental leaders here and abroad, that they would be swayed and moved by the Holy Spirit, and we plead the blood of Jesus. Father, that we would have a peaceable life, that we would be able to walk with you in Godliness, and that the word of God would have free course. In Jesus' name, amen. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. I mean, on the bright side, if you were looking for maybe a little pierre-de -tierre one-bedroom condo in Dubai, now is the time. I've had my eye on one for a while.

5:14 And I hear it's up to 70% off right now. So, last week, during that terrible, terrible blizzard, I was so proud of you. This place was packed, second service, last week. Y'all said, blizzard, schmizzard. I'm going to church. You know, I was saying, I'm preparing a message on the sons of Ishakar, who had an understanding and discernment of the times and seasons that they lived in. And I'd like to announce to you this morning that I'm still preparing it.

5:55 And when I finally do preach it one day, and I pray that day would be next Sunday, you'll understand why. Because it will challenge all of us. And my goal is for us to be an awakened and alert people, and to know what's happening in this world around us, to know what forces are pushing us and manipulating us. And the sad reality is that not too many people are awakened, and they're not alert. You know, media is lying nonstop. So, where do you get your news information from? Well, it's a lot harder. You've got to get it from all different sources.

6:36 You have to know the overarching agenda. And then you've got to take it by piecemeal and figure it out yourself. But most people are too passive and lazy, frankly, to do that. So, they just go feed me and tell me what I should know and how I should feel about it. And then they wonder why their life is stuck, and why it seems like they're constantly in a swirl, and they can't figure out what's happening. And they just get angry. It's for us to know, and to have an understanding of the times and the seasons that we're with. And once again, too many people, they get their entire global lens, their entire worldview, they may not even be aware of it from a collection of memes. You know why memes are so powerful? That always was powerful. If you go back hundreds of years, I mean, this country used memes, but just not digital ones.

7:19 It was satire cartoons to rebel to form this nation and to rebel against Britain. That war was won through memes. Amen. So, you can look them up, you can see little satire cartoons, those illustrators back then. So, that's my long way of saying I won't be preaching what I promised I'd be preaching. But the good news is, I have a message for you. And I was wrestling this week, oh, what should I do? And then finally, the Lord spoke through my wife. He did. And she said, you know, people are really hurting. And I'm very aware of that.

8:00 And I want to minister to those who are in a place of pain. Maybe you're hurting so much, you're like, I don't want to have an understanding of the times and the seasons and just I'm in the pit. And I want some hope that I'm going to get out of the pit. Good news, you came to the right Sunday service. Because I'm preaching on how to get through a hard time. And that's just like my PG version of the title. I mean, really, what I should call it is how to overcome a crisis that feels like it's gonna kill you. How to get through a hard time. Amen. Number one.

8:41 And I got 10 of these with 10 corresponding scriptures. Number one, here's a starting point. Accept in your heart that it's part of your calling. Amen. It's part of the call. First Peter 4.12. We got to stop being shocked by difficulty. Amen. Fire is not foreign to faith. Fire is formative to faith. And first Peter, I mean, Peter wrote in first Peter, not knowing that there would be a second Peter, but he wrote, Beloved, do not think it's strange.

9:23 I wonder why he said that. He said that because many of us think it's strange. Whenever it's not easy street. Whenever we don't feel like we're on vacation when it's difficult. We go, I wonder why, you know, and that's right then where you go on social media and everybody's throwing their top picks. You go, man, everybody's got it so easy and nobody's hurting and nobody's suffering by me. I can barely get up out of the morning. And what's wrong. Don't think it's strange. And don't believe the hype you see on social media. All that glitters is not gold. In fact, the more positive someone's social media is, the more I get concerned, right?

10:04 Pastor Mo. Cause it's usually the couple that's incessantly posting. Oh, we're here. We're here. Oh, now we're here. Look at us. We're just having a, and then we got a call. We're getting divorced. Amen. But anyway, keep your eyes off of others. Someone's like, pastor, your social media is pretty positive. I know I'm crying out for help. Somebody come and minister to me. You don't know what we're going through. Do not think it's strange concerning the fiery trial, which is to try you as though some strange thing happened to you.

10:48 Now, very important to distinguish. Most suffering is not from God. We got, not everything bad that happens to you is God trying to form himself inside of you. That's reality. And too many Christians, they're actually just reaping the harvest off of their own bad decisions. And then they go, God is, you know, pushing me through the fire to get me refined as gold. No, a lot of stuff that happens to people is not at all from God. It's the consequence of their own decisions or it's a demonic attack. And that should be withstood. Amen. Sickness, disease, not tools that God uses, freak accidents, devastation, not tools that God uses to perfect you.

11:32 Amen. Heaven is not so bankrupt that it must rely on the tools and resources of hell to perfect the saints. But there are trials. There are tribulations. There are difficult times. Jesus said in this world, you will have tribulations, but fear not for I have overcome the world. So at times we will feel like we're getting squeezed. At times we will feel like it's just difficult to put one foot in front of the other. And when that happens, number one, don't think it's strange. Don't think that you're weird. What did you do to deserve this? But understand that there is a formation from the Lord and you really will come out better once you get through it.

12:20 Probably the most difficult season of my life, at least top three, was the first five to seven years of CityLight Church. So we're going over 24 years ago. Actually, it'll only be 24. I keep rounding up to 25 because quarter of a century has a nice ring to it. But I've been in full-time ministry nearly 26 years, 25 years presently, but CityLight will be 24 March the 17th. We'll be 24. That means like in human terms, we just came out of college and are wondering like how to make sense of this world. Just trying to get our bearings at 24. But that was a difficult season.

13:01 You say, how did you feel? This is what I tell people. I felt all the time like my intestines were coming out of my nostrils. That's how I felt. I felt like I was pressed on every side. And did I still find pleasure in some situations? Yeah, I had those times. But my default state was, God help me because I feel like I'm perishing. Very uncomfortable. But now I've learned so much through that agonizing season. And I've allowed him through that season to do a spiritual formation in me that now certain things that would normally bother me don't bother me at all.

13:44 And he uses these seasons to get you to a place where you can actually grow and withstand the magnitude of the blessing that he wants to put on you. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. You know his way is glory to glory. His way is promotion to promotion. God is… Can we just agree on that? There's a lot of people who think that God is just like… He's content to put a seedling in the ground and then just watch it stand still. That's not how he built this earth. That's not how he built this universe. That seedling will grow and grow and out of an acorn will become a mighty oak tree.

14:26 Amen. His way is progress. His way is growth. His way is abundance and prosperity. He wants you growing. He wants you expanding. There's just one problem. A wise philosopher, an ancient man by the name of Biggie Smalls, he really hit the bullseye when he said, "'Mo' money, mo' problems.'" I found that to be true. Mo' fame, mo' problems. Mo' influence, mo' problems. Mo' of anything, mo' problems. So, what is a Christian to do?

15:08 When you embrace the process, it won't be mo' problems. He will work himself out in you so that you can withstand and carry the magnitude of the blessing he wants to bring your way. Hallelujah. How many of you… You know what I'm talking about. Look back on a past trial. Now you're through. If I asked you, hey, if you could hit a button and make that trial never to have happened, would you hit that button? Say louder. You wouldn't hit that button because you know you're better having come through. Your capacity is larger. Capacity is an important thing. Solomon is… I don't preach about Solomon as enough. Solomon is awesome.

15:49 Solomon did great things for the Lord, but before he did any of those things, the Bible says that God gave him largeness of heart. What is that? His internal capacity. You know, some people don't have a big capacity. They're content to just go sit in a cubicle and say, don't overwhelm me with anything more. But God wants to stretch your capacity so he can give you more and do more through you. And so, before Solomon went on and became king and built a temple and his empire was vast, God gave him largeness of heart. He stretched out his inward capacity. You look at… Maybe you have heroes who are entrepreneurs and billionaires. You know, they're not chilling out playing Xbox all day.

16:32 They're like living the life of eight people in one life. They have a huge inward capacity. And you're not going to get that from a book. You're going to get it from the Lord. Amen. You can pray that prayer. Lord, what you did in Solomon, do in me. Give me largeness of heart. Hallelujah. Number two, you've got to fix your eyes. You can't fix your circumstances. You've got to fix your eyes. Hebrews 12.12. Hebrews 12.12.2, excuse me. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was said before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

17:19 The key part of that verse in this context is looking unto Jesus, because what you behold, you will become. And I've been around the world now, over 50 nations. And I've heard this when I was in Bible school. And I thought, I wonder if that's true. And I found it to be true. That people groups, like we were just up in the Mayan mountains, not normal Guatemala, indigenous, direct descendants of the Mayans, Yeshiel people, they have a different physiognomy. They look different. I heard it said that people who worship idols, who worship false Gods over time, they begin to actually look and resemble like the idols that they worship.

18:00 And if you look at Mayan idols, they look a lot square heads, short in stature. I just say things like it's 1982. I don't care. But it'll help you. You become like what you behold. And so Satan's job is to get you to look at the circumstances. When Jesus was walking on the water, Peter, he was the only one so bold. He said, I want to walk on water. Master, tell me to. Peter was smart.

18:41 He knew that if you got the word of the Lord, he could stand on the word of the Lord. He said, bid me to come. And Jesus, he just gave him one word. And Peter leaps out of the boat. I know in the paintings, they showed like a little canoe, all 12 of them. It wasn't a canoe on that giant lake, which is really a sea. It was a large boat. It was high. Peter could have jumped anywhere from 10 to 15 feet off to land on the water. And he didn't think he stood. What was he standing on? Not really the water. He was standing on Jesus's word. Come. And whenever you do something, whenever you're standing supernaturally, you'll be standing on the word of the Lord for your life. That's why the word of the Lord is key. That's why we got scriptures for every single point.

19:21 That's why we admonish you to know the word. Be biblically literate because the word is what upholds you and sustains you. Amen. Nothing to really do with this sermon, but it's a good thing to interject anytime. But Peter is now standing, right? There's a storm. Peter's standing on the word, Jesus come. So he's walking on water. And then the Bible says something interesting. It says that when he saw the wind boisterous. So you picture Jesus and Peter and Peter's walking toward Jesus. And as long as he's looking at Jesus walking towards him, he's walking supernaturally on water. But then the wind started to whip past his head. It started to howl.

20:02 And he saw the height of the waves and he took his eyes off of Jesus. And he saw the wind boisterous. And instantly he began to sink because he took his eyes off of Jesus. And Jesus being Jesus, of course, so loving grabbed his arm, hoisted him back up. But the lesson in there is to look at Jesus. And the devil will try to get you to look at the problem. Look at the problem. What is anxiety? It is a constant meditation on the problem. But look at Jesus. So how do you do that? You got to figure out for yourself how that works for you. I can share what works for me. There's several things that work for me.

20:43 One thing that I found is when I'm going through it, we're not talking about your normal walk with the Lord. We're talking about when you feel like your back is against the wall. I will come and I will just be before the Lord for 5-10 minutes. If you can go longer, congratulations. I can go longer. I'm just saying 5-10 minutes. You can do many of those sets. You can do in a day 10 sets of 10. You go to pray and you just behold him. Yeah. Just behold him. Just look at him. Now when I say look at him, I'm not imagining, I'm not picturing Catholic Jesus. I'm not imagining a white man with a brown beard, long flowing hair.

21:29 Who are you imagining? I don't know. I don't know what he looked like. But you know what I'm talking about if you've done it. You're still beholding him. You're beholding his beauty. You're beholding his history with you. His nature is revealed in the scriptures. His character is revealed in the scriptures. You just go to pray and you're thinking to him. You're meditating on him. You're the one who saved me. You're the one who came from heaven to earth. You're the one who bled for me. You're the one who made all these promises in the Old Testament and then fulfilled every single one. Not one of your words has fallen to the ground. You are faithful and you'll be faithful to me. Yes, you're that one. You're the one who knows the end from the beginning. You're the one who holds the universe in your hand and you hold me in your hand.

22:11 Oh, I behold you. I look at you. I behold you. I'm looking unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of my faith. Can you do that? Yes, you can. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Beholding him. Glance at your problems. Stare at him. Hallelujah. Number three. This is important. Guard your mind ruthlessly. Your mind is where the battle is. Consequently, your mind has to become like a steel trap. You ever seen a bear trap?

22:52 You know the word… Anyway, I won't get into that. It's another sermon. You see a bear trap. That's how your mind has to be. Like a steel trap because truly the battle is in the mind. Isaiah 26.3. Peace is not random. It is guarded focus. Your mind cannot be parked on fear all week and expect peace on Sunday. So, you got to discipline your thoughts or they will dominate you. The Bible says, you will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts in you.

23:34 So, it was exactly two years ago, two years ago and a month ago. It was January going into early February, right before Guatemala, but all of January of 2024. I've shared this before. I'm amazed at how much I share and people keep coming and the church keeps growing. Isn't that amazing? They still care about what I have to preach. It's amazing. But I shared two years ago. I started getting hit in my mind and in my emotions. I don't mean a little. I mean a lot. How many of you remember where for the whole month of January, Nathaniel, three weeks, three Sundays in a row, Nathaniel was preaching here?

24:17 I got to say this with love. He did that not because I love to hear him preach three Sundays in a row. He did that because in my brain, it was jambalaya soup. Because all I heard like an incessant broken record on repeat was, you're going to fail, you're going to fail. And what was happening was, you guys know this investment that I had gotten heavily in. I was down 50% on it. And all I kept hearing in my head was, you are going to wreck your whole family financially. So it was so incessant that as Nathaniel was preaching, and I told him this. As soon as he was done, I said, this is what I was thinking about the whole time. I'm trying to get it out of my head.

24:58 All I was doing was math in my head. Literally, you know how they in the movies, they show the genius, except I'm not a genius. And I was doing that. I was going, okay, I can make it to March and then April. And then by May, all right, that's when it's going to get ugly. And then I started thinking, I'll have to give up the house in Long Island. So we'll go to the cabin in the woods that we have in the Poconos. And then half an hour away from there in the town of Homesdale is a super Walmart, and I'll work in the Walmart. I'm so glad you're laughing. So that was Satan's idea, right? And it's hilarious, but for me, it was a good idea. Come on, anybody can relate. For me, it was a good idea at the time. I thought I actually was thinking that.

25:43 By the way, two months after that, I wasn't down minus 50%. It had gone into the multiple seven figures. God completely, completely redeemed it. But amen. But I was going for, we would go on many walks. That was one, because I can't sit still. Right? If you sit still, if you're not, you got to move when the enemy's attacking your mind. You don't want to be ruminating. You don't want, you know what a ruminating thought is? It's a thought that just goes around and around in a circle. And comes back to you, doesn't go anywhere. So I had to keep moving and thank God my wife was always game. Babe can go for a walk. It's the 17th walk today. Sure. Just go walk and pray. Lord, thank you that you're with me. Lord, thank you. I won't fail. Lord, you're going to see this out for the good.

26:24 But as I'm walking, I'm picturing myself with the vest, you know, the yellow vest and Walmart vest. Cause I'm thinking, and I'm thinking to myself, I'm not, you know, I'm getting up in years. I'm not going to be a stock guy. I'm a pastor, but I can be the greeter. I'll be pastor Walmart and I'll be, I'll be extra like kind. And I'll just wish everybody a happy Tuesday. And maybe I'll get in with some, I can share the gospel, but I'm going to give him my all. And that's just the final season. That's, that's what God had in mind when he created me. It sounds ridiculous. But in that moment, that was my reality. What did I have to do? I had to train my mind, focus my mind.

27:06 How do you stop these negative thoughts? Why did I go for walks? You cannot stop a negative thought with a positive thought impossible. If I can get one thing concerning guarding your mind, knowing the battlefield is in the mind. If I can get one truth to you, it's that so many people think if I have a negative thought, I'll have a one 80 of that positive thought you're losing. Aren't you? It's impossible. What works? I'll show you what works. Count to 10 in your head. Starting now, go now say your name out loud. What's your name?

27:47 What happened to your account? It got messed up. You cannot stop negative thoughts with positive thoughts. You can only stop negative thoughts with the words that come out of your mouth. You have to start speaking. You have to start speaking God's truth because the negative thought is actually Satan's lie. How do you combat Satan's lie with God's truth? Satan came lying to Jesus. Jesus' response was, it is written. It is written. It is written. Hallelujah. And your life will go in the direction of your most dominant thought. I'll say it again. Your life, even where you are right now, is pretty much going in direction with your most dominant thought.

28:31 And so your mind has to become like a steel trap and you've got to be speaking. Hallelujah. Four. I kind of went into my fourth point early. Speak before fear finishes its sentence. Psalm 107 too. The Bible says, let the redeemed of the Lord. All right. One more time. Let the redeemed of the Lord. Yeah, that's the exhortation. Say something. That's why we sing that song. Let the poor say, amen.

29:14 Let the weak say, let the ugly say. He shouted, I look like Pastor Mo. That's actually, I don't know if you got that by the gift of the spirit, but that is my confession in the mornings. I will look more like Pastor Mo. I will look. Hallelujah. Sometimes I repeat some things so much in my mind. I think, boy, people must be tired of hearing this. But then, then I talked to you guys and I realized you haven't really heard me.

29:55 So I should keep repeating myself. And Paul said to repeat myself is not burdensome, but for you it is necessary. And this is the thing that I've repeated so many times with illustrations, with this is the thing. It's this crazy glue demon, the gorilla glue, crazy glue, super glue, whatever kind of glue you use at home. The one that really works. There is a demon with that kind of glue. And you'll notice whenever you get hit, whenever you're going through a hard time, he likes to put that on your lips and say, why? Because the power is in your mouth and on your tongue. The Bible says death and life are in the power of the tongue. And they that love it will eat the fruit of it.

30:35 Your very salvation is voice activated. It's half in your heart, half in your mouth. Even the prescription for how to receive salvation. It's that if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth, the Lord Jesus, you will be saved. So you have to be speaking. But when people are going through it, what's the first thing you notice? They're downcast. They're morose. Hey, what's wrong? Well, how do you feel? They're not saying anything. And if you're not saying, you're not creating because you're not agreeing with the word of God. You have to start speaking. You have to, you'll feel like you're crazy.

31:19 The enemy will tell you you're being silly and crazy, but you're going to do it and you're going to make it through. The good news is you live in New York City. So if you're muttering on the subway, there's enough crazy people. They'll just think you're part of the NYC. Amen. No one's going to look at you. Strangely, you might have half the car all to yourself. There's benefits to talking to yourself. But when I'm going through it, I am not quiet. And you know what a secret is, is that when you're not going through it, still don't be quiet. But now, now you're not defensive. Now you're actually offensive and you're speaking and actually making headway.

31:59 But you got to be like David who encouraged himself in the Lord when they were about to stone him. Now this is something I got to, this is something that practically I don't see too many Christians doing, but you got to be one of those that does. You got to be a speaking spirit. Hallelujah. You know why I said specifically speaking spirit? Because when you look into the Hebrew, when God made Adam and the Bible says he made him a living soul in the Hebrew, there's the connotation speaking spirit because God is a speaking spirit. And he created the entire universe with God said, God said, God said he created with his words.

32:43 And then he didn't do it this with any of the animals or the angels, but he made man a speaking spirit with the divine image on him and the divine ability to co-create with him with the words of his mouth. So don't start, don't stop speaking. Number five, do not refuse isolation. Ecclesiastes chapter four, verse nine through 10. And I think it doesn't matter whether you're an introvert or an extrovert when the going really gets tough. People like to isolate like a fox or a cat. There's other animals, but I know a fox or a cat in particular, when they're wounded, when they're hurting, they just move away.

33:30 They isolate, they go into a bush, lie down, either heal up or pass. And people are a lot of times like that. You know, you guys, those of you who aren't actually Christians and involved in other Christians lives. And you'll notice when somebody starts going through it, all of a sudden, we're so-and -so I don't know. Well, they missed a Sunday. Oh, it could be nothing. Then they missed two Sundays. Then are they, did they come to life group? No. Oh, what's going on? And then, and then, and then it's always the weirdest answer. The same answer. Well, I was really going through it. So I just wanted to be alone. Well, how did that work out for you? Well, not so good. That's why I'm back telling you about the decision of how it doesn't work.

34:14 I'm an only child. That would explain a lot of my personality. You're like, I knew there was something there. Now I know. So I'm used to going at it alone. Not only I'm an only child, but raised in Forest Hills, Queens. And by second grade, I was a latchkey kid with my own keys. I'd come in. I was hours alone before my parents came. So I'm used to being alone. I have no problem being alone. Then I became a Christian. And when I would go through it, I would try to do it alone. Secretly, there was pride there. Because, you know, my teenage mind, I kind of saw myself probably with this pride, like, I'm like another Moses.

34:59 I'm going to ascend the mountain of the Lord by myself. And when I come off that mountain, of course, God, you'll get all the glory, but I'm going to get some too. It'll be me and you. I helped you out, but it never worked. Every single one of my, I came through it stories. There's a whole cast of characters, whether you hear about a whole cast of characters that helped me get through it. Do not isolate yourself. We saw what isolation does back in 2020, when people became very mentally and emotionally unhealthy when they were isolating during COVID. And I say that, that's my pastoral polite way.

35:41 They became emotionally and mentally unhealthy. What really happened is they done lost their minds. Do not disappear when you're bleeding. A lot of times people disappear because they feel unlovely. Just get around people, the right kind of people, though, not the unsaved people. The Bible says that you won't prosper. You won't be blessed when you're in the council of the unGodly, but get around people who believe that Jesus is Lord. People who've given their lives to him. You're not going to find quote unquote perfect people, but they're people who named the name of Christ.

36:25 Get around them, just being around them. It'll strengthen you. That's why we have these home groups, these life groups that have just begun. If you're not a part of a life group, you have to make, be a part of one. Hallelujah. Learn to love people. All right. We all have different personalities and we all know, this is okay to say, we all know some Christians are weird. Church is a hospital. All right. And so you can't get upset. Hey, there's some patients in the hospital.

37:09 There's some like people who still seem like they're work in progress in the hospital. Yeah. So not only, but listen to this though, not only are we a church of weirdos, but we've got over 50 nations represented at CityLight Church. So we got people from different cultures, different countries, different jobs, all. So you're not going to instantly be besties with every single person in your life group is what I'm saying. That shouldn't matter. Will there be some weird people? It wouldn't be a life group if they're not. And that, no, but I'm saying this because that used to bother me. Right.

37:49 I used to be like, Oh Lord, how are we going to grow? When in this life group, there's so-and -so in that life group, they're going to like everybody that I pray for days for you to bring to us five new people and they run them out faster than you're bringing them in. Lord heal that person, please. Or I will. And the Lord, the Lord had to just, I got, I got, don't worry about the cosmetics. Don't worry about how you appear. And you just love people. You love them where they're at and actually accept people. So you're not going to get perfection anywhere you go, but what you're going to get at least nine out of 10 times is a Christian.

38:29 Cause not everybody who comes to CityLight, by the way, is a Christian. It would be terrible if everybody was, how would we get everybody saved or anybody saved? A healthy church has people who are looking, who are lost. We're trying to figure it out. They'll be at life group too. You're welcome to come. You should come, but be around believers. They will strengthen you. Don't do it alone. Amen. Number six, surrender control completely. This is a big step. Proverbs 16, nine, stop focusing on just the outcome. You're not responsible for the outcome. You're responsible to be obedient, not the outcome.

39:14 Part of the reason why you may be exhausted is that control is very exhausting. If you're fatigued, can I, can I do a little confession here as is my custom? Cause it seems like the more I say things that are embarrassing to me, the better the church does. So I am naturally prone to control because I was an only child. I watch how my kids are growing up. You know what I used to do? I used to have Star Wars figures. I liked Star Wars. I GI Joe figures didn't like him as much, but Star Wars, Transformers, later Legos. And when I would play with them, you know, I'd create a story in my head.

39:56 My parents still remind me of this and tease me about it. I'd create, you know, a story and then I would leave them. Let's say I'm being called for lunch. I would leave them and go for hours and come back and then continue the story. Like there was a commercial break. Sometimes I would leave them for days and come back and they were just there. But what I'm saying is the figures were just how I left them. You know why? Cause I didn't have a brother or sister to come and go, or just start playing and continue my story. And I look at my kids, even though they're four years apart, one's a boy, one's a girl. There's no way they're doing that. And I didn't even have my own. I didn't have my own room till the fifth grade.

40:36 Slept on the floor on a mattress next to my parents. But I still had that. I'd find a corner in the house. They have their own rooms. Doesn't matter. And kids, you got to respect each other. It doesn't matter. One is playing the other one. And they will mess up the story. So because of that, because I had this control over my environment, I've been told by some that I could, I could tend, tend to be a little controlling. You know, I'm just, I like, I like my T's not just crossed, but crossed how I like to cross them. And early on, you know, the Lord came to me and said, you can, you can have a church where you have total control.

41:18 It'll be very, very small and you'll have total control. Or you can have a large growing church and be out of control pick. And I went, ah, okay. But it's this way. It's this way in life. There has to be a part where you give up control. You start small. You got to start small because you don't trust him enough to do it all at once. But as you see that he's trustworthy, you will then give more and more control over to him. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. And he did this work. That's why when we went through COVID, I was able to make it through COVID with a smile. Because if you were like bent on controlling everything, you ended up in a mental asylum during COVID.

42:03 You had no control. Especially as I'm speaking specifically in New York city. I could elaborate more on that, but let's not go there again. Control is exhausting, but trust is stabilizing. And when you, when you release the focus on the outcome, that anxiety, it loses its oxygen. Number seven, this is important. Remember who you are. Yes. Second Corinthians 4.16. In 2009, November of 2009, I went through one of the most difficult seasons of my life.

42:44 My former pastor, Pastor Tom Hollahan, the pastor I had while I was in college in Long Island, he came and lived with me for a month. It was very, very difficult. I could not preach. You say, it seems like you always like take off when you're having a difficult time. You have no idea how many times I've preached during difficult times. Amen. But I mean, I could not preach. I could not eat. I could not anything. I was flatlining. And he spent, he loved me enough to live with me during the saddest, sorriest state of my life. And he's just like a natural encourager. And on the 30th day, when he had to go back to Florida, he called me broski.

43:28 That's why now, I just thought it was like, you know, I'm like in my early thirties. He's in his mid fifties and he's from Long Island. Right. And he calls me broski. I thought it was the weirdest, most antiquated thing to call someone. So now if I ever call you broski, it's because I really like you, because I think it's such a hilarious term. And he puts his hand on my shoulder and says, listen, broski, you're forgetting who you are. Don't forget who you are. And it's true. Cause I could just see myself in light of my failure. I could just see myself in light of my present situation. And he, he saw it. He, he would pump me up all the time.

44:09 I thought, you know, he'd be like, you are anointed. You got a gift to preach. You got, you know, God has done a deep work in you. I thought, you know how, when you have kids, and sometimes, you know, you give them a compliment, but you know, you're hamming it up a little bit. Are we allowed to say that we should be allowed to, you know, like they draw something and it's, it's a good drawing, but you act like it's a Rembrandt. Oh, this is, this is going right on my refrigerator forever. This is awesome. I thought he was doing that to me, but he was actually now in retrospect, he was serious, but I couldn't see it. I could just see myself in light of my situation. And then when he left, that's what echoed in my head. Don't forget who you are. What did he mean by that?

44:50 I know who I am. I didn't forget who I am, but I did. I did not even my accomplishments. That's nothing, but who we are something we all share in common. When you're going through it, you tend to see yourself in light of your situation, in light of the crisis, your crisis, your situation, your hard time does not define you. It is not who you are. You are a child of God. First and foremost, you are beloved of the father. You are holy and accepted in the beloved. You have been made perfect in him. You are a saint of God. You have an inheritance with God. Remind yourself who you are and don't forget who you are.

45:31 It's the same way when you fall in sin. Oh, I lied. The devil says you're a liar. No, I'm not a liar. I'm a Christian who lied. You can apply that with any sin. You are not, don't make your identity around the sin. Don't make your identity around the crisis. Hallelujah. Therefore, we do not lose heart even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. So hard seasons will attack your identity, but you are not your fatigue. You are not your setback. You are not your current weakness. The inward man can still thrive and be strong while the outward situation shakes.

46:14 Can you say amen? Amen. Number eight. The point is found in James chapters 1 verses 2 through 3. Now let me just say this and confess to you that of all the encouraging things that Christians tell you when you're really going through it and suffering, this one was my least favorite. In fact, this one would make me angry because it starts off good, right? My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials and you're like, yeah, yeah. What good thing am I going to get out of this dump truck fest of excrement that I'm going through right now?

46:57 Count it all joy. Really? What do I get out of it? Show me. What's in verse three? Knowing that the testing of your faith produces what? Patience. That never got me excited. If it got you excited, congratulations. You're a very holy, very, very just eternity minded individual. But when you feel like your intestines are coming out of your nostrils and the promises, hey, you'll have more patience afterwards. That was never that exciting for me. But that's because I didn't understand what biblical patience is.

47:38 Because my only introduction to the word patience was like, I'm like, mom, are the cookies ready? Patience. Are the cookies ready? Patience. Patience, biblical patience is not the ability to wait. Hallelujah. Patience equals a steady, immovable endurance under pressure. Patience is the spirit, the Holy Spirit formed ability to remain steady, faithful, and unshaken under prolonged pressure without quitting, collapsing, or compromising. So why does one need this supernatural ability to not compromise, not cave in?

48:21 Because what God wants to get to you will require broad shoulders. Hallelujah. I feel CityLight is alive. I feel the anointing right now. I see him moving in our church. I know he has plans for us. What's he waiting on? For something else to be formed in us. Our job is not to just be like, okay, we're waiting on you, Lord. No, he's waiting on us to get with the program. And as we give way to his molding, his shaping, we're going to enter more and more into our destiny. But I've never been as convinced as I am right now that we are in the perfect center of his perfect will. And there's going to be some things that he does that really surprise us, but we're right on schedule.

49:03 Amen. That's not really how I say schedule. I felt extra fancy. Hallelujah. So embrace, embrace the trial and embrace what he's forming in you. If you're going through it right now, you probably want to throw your shoe at me. You're half encouraged and half angry at this point. But you'll know what I mean once you're out. Amen.

49:43 Number nine, this is a very important point. I say that like the other eight weren't really. Number nine is found in Ephesians 6, verse 13. Here's the number nine. Just stand. Yes, God is a God of movement. God is a God of promotion. God is a God of increase. That's what he wants to do in your life. But there are seasons when you're under the gun, when you're suffering, where you're not going to make any progress. So what's the victory? The victory in those times is just to not regress, not to retreat, not to go backwards.

50:26 Just stand. Hallelujah. So if you're going through and you're like, I don't feel like anything's happening. My question to you is, are you standing? Yes, you're winning. You're winning in that you're not retreating. Just stand. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand an evil day. And having done all just stand. Amen. Sometimes victory is not advancing. It's just not moving backward. Hallelujah. And number 10. And we're going to be closing up and receiving communion shortly after this. Number 10 is believe that glory is on the other side.

51:07 Romans 8.18. Here's what the Apostle Paul says. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. We also read in Hebrews, we just read that as point number one, that Jesus endured the cross for the joy that was set before him. What was the pain of the cross? Have you ever read one of those medical accounts of crucifixion? You should. I read those, you know, when you were a teenager in the faith in the 90s, at some point in youth group, some youth pastor was going to go through the whole crucifixion from a physical perspective.

51:49 And from a physical perspective, it's one of the most gruesome. All right, guys, just when I said that, I didn't mean like, right, you're scaring me. I feel like the end time soldiers are going, oh, I appreciate the militancy. Man, you guys are good and efficient. Just hang on. Communion was ready. I wasn't even prepping you. I was just letting the people know like there's going to be communion. Thank you, Jesus. Where was I? The crucifixion, the crucifixion, the physical pain is immense.

52:38 Jesus was never, I believe, concerned about the physical pain when he actually, the moment had anxiety about it. And he cried out, if it's possible, let this cup pass for me. Because the spiritual pain was way greater than the physical pain. You say, what spiritual pain? That he would, for the first time in history, be separated from God the Father. You say he was separated from God the Father? Yes. He who knew no sin was made sin for us. God the Son, Jesus Christ was made into sin. He took on the nature of Satan. He took on the nature of sin. He became a cursed thing. You know, I've had people go, how could you call my Lord, really, Lord and Savior cursed?

53:22 I'm not calling him that. The Bible says cursed is anyone who hangs on a tree. He became a curse so you could be blessed. Some people, they view everything through emotions. Oh, that makes me feel uncomfortable. I'm so glad the Bible really doesn't care how you feel. The Bible cares about what's true. This emotional person, how could you call my Lord and Savior a curse? I'm not saying present day. He became that. He became a curse. And he cried out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? He's not forsaken now, but in that moment as he became sin, what was previously consistent fellowship, consistent connection to the Father was severed so that your connection to the Father would never be severed.

54:11 He became cursed so you could be blessed. He became sin so you could be the righteousness of God. Hallelujah. But that's what the pain was. That's what he dreaded in that moment in the garden. But the Bible says for the joy set before him, he endured the cross. So he saw, you know what he saw? He saw you. He saw your face. He knew that you would come to the faith, that you would be born again, that you would join him in heaven. And for the joy of the family of God being drawn from all four corners of the earth, he gave his life a ransom for many. Hallelujah. So know that what you're going through, there actually is a prize at the end.

54:52 Amen. There is. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. And you must know that it's not a freight train. It's sunshine. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. I just like every head bowed, every eye closed.

55:33 I want you to know the present pain what you're going through. It may not feel like it's temporary, but it's temporary. And your future assured glory is permanent. This hard time is just a chapter in your book, but victory is your destiny. But right now with every head bowed, every eye closed, I want to give everyone an opportunity to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. I want to ask you a question. If you were to die today, God forbid, but if you were to die, do you know for certain, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you would go to heaven? The Bible says you can know. I want to lead you in a prayer where you make Jesus your Lord and Savior.

56:15 You trust in him for his righteousness and you ask him to forgive you your sins. The can't answer with a resounding, confident yes, I want you to lift your hand up at the count of three. So the question is, do you know for certain if you were to die today that you would go to heaven? If you want your sins forgiven and you want to know Jesus on the count of three, raise your hand. One, two, three, lift up your hand. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Who else? Yeah. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you. Anybody else?

56:56 All right. We're all going to pray together now. What we're going to pray is a prayer where you acknowledge his Lordship over your life and you acknowledge his crucifixion and resurrection and eternal life is your portion. You say, what must I do? What must I do? It's not, what must I do? It's what I must believe. So let's all pray this prayer together. Those of you who raised your hands, though, I want you to be extra loud. Sometimes people who raise their hands are really feeling it and then they're silent. Say it extra loud. Say this, dear Lord Jesus, I believe in you. I believe you died on the cross in my place.

57:38 I repent of my sin. I receive you as my Lord and Savior. I am cleansed by the blood of Jesus. I'm adopted into the family of God and I am a friend of God. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. Be my Lord and lead me in the way I should go. In Jesus name, amen. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Now, those of you who raised your hands, fill out a connection card and let us know. You say, I was coming back to the Lord.

58:19 Let us know. Ask some questions. We don't have, we're not Jehovah's witnesses. We don't have a team of unpaid elders that we're going to send to your house now. Because they have to work 20 hours a week or they don't make heaven. So great. I got to tell you, our staff budget would be halved if we had that system. Really nice system to save money. But no, we have a biblical system. And so, and also we don't believe in control and manipulation. So, in other words, we can't run after you. You have to meet us halfway. You have to let us know, hey, I exist. I'm alive. My name is Susie and I was in that service. And then we can reach out.

59:00 And we're not going to, we're actually almost too careful to not invade your life. We'll reach out to how much you open the door. So, if you want us to help, open the door wide. If you want us to help a little, you know, you keep the chain on the door. You'll be like, hey, I have two questions, then that's it. Keep the granny chain on the door, you know. But fill out a card. You say, what should I do next? Be a part of a life group. Keep coming every Sunday. Make some Christian friends. May the second, get baptized. I'm already excited about May. That's the first Saturday in May. We're having baptisms. I'm excited about our baby girl who at just seven years old can't stop talking about baptisms. She loves Jesus so much.

59:43 So, make a decision to get baptized. You say, but I just got saved. Exactly. You're late to get baptized if you're getting baptized May the second. Sorry, pardon our lateness. Let's hand out communion. When you receive communion, hang on to the elements and we'll all receive the elements together. I'm going to do my 1990s and 2000s talk show. How you do that, I'm going to record it and that's going to be in a training video for all communion handing out. All right, somebody tell me what happens during communion.

1:00:24 What should be happening? Any takers? Like what are we thinking about? What is the point? You can just say a sentence or shout it out if you don't want me to shove a microphone in your face. The blood of Jesus. We're focusing on the blood of Jesus. What else? What is the benefit? You know, that song, I think it's from the 80s. What have you done for me lately? Seems like an ugly, carnal, selfish song, but it is a fair question to ask. Since secretly, that's what you're all thinking about.

1:01:04 Like I need to teach. I haven't taught on finances in ages. I need to teach on finances and there's always one or two people who get upset. Why do you talk about money? Well, I'm sorry. You spend 99% of your time chasing this thing so you cannot die on planet earth. This thing called money. And I want to give you a biblical perspective. You get upset. Yet you spend 99% of your life chasing it in one form or another. Amen. So it's important. So what else is important is understanding what is the benefit. You got it. It's not selfish. The scripture says, bless the Lord. Oh, my soul. And don't forget about any of benefits. And when you see a Christian struggling, oftentimes they haven't read the fine print.

1:01:45 They don't know the Benny package. You get a job, you check out those benefits. Ooh, look, they pay for my gym membership. Ooh, health insurance. Wow. And so many people don't know the benefits of Christianity. They don't know the benefits of communion. There is a purpose. That's why Satan has attacked communion and oftentimes made it the most depressing time during a church service. But it's not supposed to bring depression and sadness. This is God's medicine. This is God's victory. Communion is us partaking is the phrase Paul used. We're partaking of Christ. What does that mean? We're partaking of his victory. We're reaffirming the covenant and the covenant says he is with you.

1:02:31 The covenant says all your sins are forgiven. The covenant says you have victory. The covenant says you are healed. You're not the sick trying to get healed. You are the healed of the Lord. You are the prosperous of the Lord. So examine yourself. What do I examine myself? What part of your life does not look like the reality of what Jesus did for your life? So the reality is your cup is so overflowing. You're blessed. You're healthy. You're whole. That's what your life should look like. And if it doesn't examine yourself. Oh, look, there's a gap between where I'm at right now and what the Lord promised me.

1:03:12 And trust as you receive communion, he closes that gap. Is this making sense? Hallelujah. He will fill up whatever is lacking on your part. So if you need healing in your body, go ahead and eat to your healing. If you need healing in your bank account, go ahead and eat to your prosperity. You need healing in your emotions. Receive soul restoration as you partake of Jesus. This is not an empty rote religious thing. This is the power of God. So go ahead and partake of the body of Jesus that was bruised for you. And go ahead and partake of the blood of Jesus that was shed for you and receive all of the benefits of the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

1:04:09 Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Man, he has made me glad. He has made me glad. I will rejoice for he has made me glad. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.

1:04:52 Thank you, Lord. Well, we're going to honor the Lord with our tithes and offerings. Thank you, Jesus. I was just watching a service where I saw something I haven't seen in many years. The buckets were being passed out. And it's only been like six, seven years that we haven't had buckets. But it reminded me of, wow, we used to do the bucket thing. And I guess the bucket thing is for people who want to give cash because most people give digitally now. Of course, COVID expedited that with contactless giving.

1:05:32 But then I thought about how funny that was. I told my dad, by the way, who hates the offering. He's got a long way to go. But my dad was the offering. He was like the demons. I said, we got rid of the buckets. Oh, good. I always hated those buckets. Right? Because it is a weird thing. And then, like, let's say you're giving digitally. People set up automatic giving. People have given on the way to service because you can give at any time, really, now that it's so easy. And then maybe you don't, you always pass the bucket. And you're like, man, maybe everyone thinks, maybe pastors staring right at me, thinking I never give.

1:06:14 Meanwhile, I'm one of the biggest givers in the church, but I give anonymously and digitally. What's the point of anything that I'm saying? My point is that you're giving unto the Lord. And you're giving with no strings attached. But always have your faith that your harvest is coming and that your giving creates prosperity in your life. I feel like that old psalmist who said, I once was young and now I'm old, but I've never seen the righteous forsaken or their seed begging bread. It's fun being 50. You have a lot more history to draw from. Now I'm 50 and I can go back. Oh, nearly four decades of serving the Lord.

1:06:57 And so what have I learned? Well, here's what I've learned, that the most generous people I know are the most blessed people I know. They're the most alive people I know. They have the most of the Zoe abundant life of God. I've shared with you my testimony. Oh, for those of you willing and who care enough to listen over and over again, I've given things that at the time I thought I was insane. I should be locked up for giving only to have the Lord show me that I cannot give him that he will always get me back. So I just, because I love you. I want to say this. Don't be a scrawny Christian. Don't be someone who's as a scrawny spirit was always looking to see what they can get.

1:07:43 When you start looking to see who you can bless and how you can give, there'll be such, such an overwhelming, overwhelming harvest. Hallelujah. You know, it was actually for me, I had to shake this off for me. It was getting a little embarrassing in the last few months because for me, in my head, there was always gifts for me here. I was walking away. I felt like, well, this is like one of those weird church. I'm always going with boxes and bags and, and then I thought for the first 20 years, I never got any gifts, never got a bag, hardly a card, nothing never talked about it, but I didn't even notice it until I started going back to my car with bags and boxes to her.

1:08:38 Mom was thinking, man, Pastor Mo, can you get me an armor bearer to carry the bags? Right, babe, you were a part of that. It was just hardly a slap on the back. And then without me saying a word, people just started blessing me. And I went to the Lord about it. And he said, well, you've sown when you were getting no bags, no cards, no gifts, no Pentecostal handshakes, you kept giving, you kept giving. And now your harvest is here. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. And I just say that as just as an anecdotal thing.

1:09:20 I pray for you that God will multiply every seed sown, that your cup would overflow. And that no matter what happens in the world, you would financially increase more and more and more. And if you want prayer for anything at all, the ministry team is in that blue lit section. And they would love to pray with you and for you. We're going to worship God with one more song. Let's all stand. And if you want prayer, once again, go now to that blue lit section. And the ministry team will love on you. They will pray with you and for you. The whole process can just take a couple of minutes.

1:10:02 You might be, well, what should I expect? I'm going for it. Not the regular customers. Now I'm going for that person who's heard about this ministry team four times and has never gone over there. Go. You won't regret it. Go and have somebody else just lay hands on you and pray with you. There's an anointing and a power released through the laying out of hands. Have a blessed week. Shout one more time with me a big hallelujah to Jesus. Hallelujah. Be blessed CityLight. This is the CityLight Church podcast. If you've missed any part of today's message, or if you would like to find out more about Pastor Boyan Jancic and CityLight Church, visit us at CityLightNYC.com.

1:10:45 That's CityLightNYC.com. Feel free to visit us online or in person anytime. We would love to connect with you. We pray that you have been encouraged today, that you have been reminded how much God loves you and that you are surrounded by grace. Thank you for listening. Make sure that you subscribe to CityLight Church podcast, wherever you find your favorite podcasts worldwide.