Peaceful Pursuit

CityLight NYC - Weekly Podcast EP-149 - Full Master 1 (0:00 - 0:25) Show me a Christian who has a faith goal list, but isn't ruled by that list, but is just happy with their relationship with the Lord, and is happy with the clothes on their back and the breath that He's put in their nostrils, happy that their sins are completely forgiven. They've been made the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit. Can it get any better than this, Lord? Also, I have that list, but I'm so happy, so filled with joy. (0:26 - 4:20) 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. 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. We just got back last Monday. We had a really special vacation for two weeks in Belize. I highly recommend Belize. If you want fancy, don't go to Belize. But if you like adventure and the best snorkeling and scuba diving and spearfishing and just jumping off docks with stray dogs, you're going to find that in Belize. There are no resorts there. I like it that way. People are like, "'Antigua is better. Aruba is better." I'm like, "'I don't want to stay on the 30th floor of a Marriott.'" Like a bunch of drunk Americans in the pool going, "'These days of freedom is all I've ever had.'" I'm like, "'I don't want to see that person. I want to see Belizeans. Amen.'" It was just so much fun. Our kids are 11 and 7 now, so it's nonstop comedy hour. We got back late Monday night, and for whatever reason, I woke up at 5 a.m. No alarm. It was 5 a.m. Tuesday morning. There's so much to do when you first get back. I first wanted to just get with the Lord. You know how you have your favorite playlist of worship songs? No one's looking at me. You have a playlist, right? Okay. I have my favorite playlist, but sometimes you play your favorite playlist so much that you've kind of sucked all the anointing off of all those songs, and now they don't do it for you anymore. I'm like, "'What haven't I listened to in a while? That's awesome. That has an anointing on it.'" I thought, "'Oh, Jason Upton.'" I put him on a shelf just long enough to where if I listen to it again, it'll be fresh to me. I asked Alexa to play my favorite Jason Upton album, which is Jacob's Dream. Alexa, play Jacob's Dream. She doesn't start the album. She thinks I'm talking about the song, also by that same name, and she puts on the song. About 30 seconds into the song… See, I'm just fresh from a two-week vacation. JFK is like, "'What a rude and rough welcome back home.'" We crawl in. The fridge is empty. We don't know up or down. Kids had school that same morning. All the unwashed laundry. Jacob's Dream comes on, and I didn't expect it. I love it when the Lord does this. I wish he'd do it 10 times a day. He smashes me. I'm listening to the song, and I'm crumbling, laugh-crying, cry-laughing in my home office. I'm coming undone. I'm and I get the download for us as a church. This is kind of like my New Year's sermon that I should have preached last Sunday. I know Nathaniel St. Eloi did a fantastic job, but this is what the Lord put on my heart. I want you to just check out the lyrics to this song, Jacob's Dream, by Jason Upton. (4:50 - 5:57) Hallelujah. You see, one of my pledges to the Lord for 2026 was to be much kinder and gentler, especially to the media team. He said, "'Son, this is the final boss in your life. Once I work this out of you, you will have arrived.'" So the old me would be… Because in the first service, it came right up. Right when I said the song, but something got lost in translation, which is okay, because perhaps you're new. Maybe you didn't see it. No pressure. There were a lot more of these lull moments back in the day before everything had to be timed to the second. Let me tell you what he's singing about, and then the lyrics will come up. (5:59 - 6:16) He's singing about Jacob. Abraham had Isaac. Isaac begat Jacob. Jacob had the 12 tribes of Israel. Jacob, the very name means schemer or scoundrel. Jacob was the quintessential New Yorker. (6:17 - 8:02) He was very prone to NYC 2026 hustle culture. He sharpened his elbows. His motto, along with many New Yorkers' motto, is, if it's to be, it's up to me. I'm ambitious. I'm going to be successful. I'm going to get mine. I'm going to make it happen. I'm going to take it. I'm going to grab it. I'm going to do whatever it takes. That is not God's way. People who are believers are just going to end up very frustrated. People who are unbelievers may achieve what's on their list. However, they too will end up very, very frustrated, and it'll feel like sand in their mouth. Here's the song. Then we'll read the Scripture. Jacob really longed to be a hero, and then God is saying, All I really wanted was a friend. Do you know that God didn't create you to be successful? He created you to have a relationship with him. When you do that, you will be successful. Amen. When you put his kingdom first and seek God and his kingdom, all those other things… Things. God is not against things. God is not against success. He just wants you to put him first. Then all those other things will be added unto you. But he didn't create you to be successful. He created you to have a relationship with you. Amen. Jacob really longed to be somebody. The moment you try or you stop trying to be somebody is the moment God will promote you. (8:03 - 8:18) You ever get around somebody and it's just emanating from them? They want to be somebody. Yeah. Everybody should know their name, and they're pre-insta-famous on their way. (8:19 - 10:04) It emanates from them, and it smells bad, doesn't it? You're smelling them in the Spirit. It's really the opposite of what God wants for us. Jacob really longed to be a hero. God is saying, all I really wanted was a friend. I'm the way, the life, the truth. So tell me, Jacob, when will the lying end? Because he was always lying, probably telling himself they were white lies just to get ahead. The question from God then is, does the striving make you strong? Because when I came to love on you… See, Jacob, when he came to Bethel and he made camp there and lied down, and God came to him, what does Jacob do? He's so full of strife. He's so full of the hustle. He's sharpened his elbows so much that he begins to wrestle with God. Jesus visits him in the person of the angel of the Lord, and he wrestling fights God until God dislocates his hip. Why did God dislocate his hip? To show him that he needed a crutch. He wasn't strong in himself. He needed to lean on God. You know how some people go, oh, Christianity is just a crutch for you. I say, thank you very much. Do you have another compliment for me? Because I know what your crutch is. You're high half the time. You party your brains out. That's your crutch. You doom scroll 12 hours a day. That's your crutch. You've got all these addictions in your life. That's your crutch. We as humans, we need help. We need a crutch. I'm very proud to say that Jesus Christ, the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the maker of heaven and earth is my crutch. So Jacob had to learn that lesson the hard way. (10:04 - 11:26) Got his hip dislocated, but God didn't come down there to dislocate his hip. He came to bless him. Jacob immediately does what's natural to him. Let me fight, full of strife, because when I came to love on you, you fought me till the dawn. It was that verse. I wasn't even fully in worship. I just asked Alexa to play the song. I'm still from the trip. I'm organizing the things at my desk, and I hear that verse. It was like a waterfall of the Holy Ghost. You fought me till the dawn. Finally, Jacob is lying down. That's where God had to come to him when he was at rest. Do you know Aaron's rod? It budded when Aaron took it and threw it down on the floor. What was it doing? Nothing. It was just being. That's when it produced fruit. There is a consistent theme throughout all 66 books of the Bible that God is a God of rest. This is the antithesis to everything you're hearing, to every motivational expert right now. This is the word of the Lord for our church. Typically, to start 2026, the word is something like to encourage and inspire and whip people a little bit. (11:26 - 12:00) This is going to be a great year. You can't be lazy. You have to be disciplined. Six ways to procrastinate. You have to go. When I look back on my life, everything worth mentioning that I received from the Lord actually came when I got to the end of myself, collapsed by force, got into a place of rest, and then it came to me. (12:00 - 12:11) My pastor was so fond of saying this. He said it for years when I was with him at random times. He said, The moment you quit struggling to get what you want, God will give it to you. (12:11 - 12:25) The moment you quit… He would be like, Hey, would you pass that word? The moment you quit struggling… Just all the time. I knew he was onto something, but I didn't have a revelation of it. But through the years and through some of my stubbornness, God taught me. (12:29 - 14:17) You fought me till the dawn. Finally, Jacob's lying down, and while he sleeps, I will dream of a generation not known for their crowns or success but a king who was not so much as interested in crowds or pleasing men but knowing me. Hallelujah. Let's read that. Psalm 127. I want to give you a Scripture. Have you ever read a Scripture that meant so much to you that you remember exactly where you were when you read it? I read this Scripture. It was sophomore year of college. I was in my dorm room. The first time I stumbled upon this. When I read it, I couldn't believe it was in the Bible, because it was something the Lord was trying to teach me I could sense in prayer. I just didn't have Scripture. In the beginning, everything is new, so I hadn't come across this. I'm like, I know this is how God operates, but it's actually in the Word. I was going to a church, a good church. I still have a great relationship. He ministered here. Pastor Tom Holland. Love Christian Assembly in Long Island. It was a great church, but they hadn't had this revelation yet. He would be the first to say that today. So, everything was whipping and striving. Everything was prodding the people trying to get them to do more. Here's what the Bible says. Unless the Lord builds the house… What house? The house of our life. For me, part of the house of my life is the house of the Lord. Unless the Lord is actually building it, they labor in vain who build it. (14:18 - 15:23) Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. Next verse. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows, for so he gives his beloved sleep. In the Hebrew, this is stunning. It literally says God gives to his loved ones while they sleep. Say that. God gives to his loved ones while they sleep, while they're at rest. Provision flows most freely when the anxiety stops. The amplified really amplifies it quite a bit. It is vain for you to rise up early. You know when I said I woke up at 5 a.m.? It's not because I set my alarm. When you're listening to the motivational experts… First, it was, get up at 6. Then it's, get up at 5. Now they're getting up at 3. I get up at 3 through an alarm? I will be the most unpastoral pastor you've ever met. (15:25 - 15:43) When I say I got up at 5, it's because my body woke up then. I really believe this is a life message for me, because everything he has done in my life, especially recently, I don't deserve, and I did not hustle for, I did not work for. He just gave it to me in a place of rest. (15:46 - 18:29) It is vain for you to rise up early, to take rest late, to eat the bread of anxious toil, for he gives blessings when you're sleeping, when you're at rest. What does it mean to be at rest? It means that you have ceased from your own striving. It means there's a rest in your soul because you do not trust yourself. You've done everything you need to do in the natural, but ultimately you know that God is the one who will bring it to fruition, and now you're resting in that. The highest level of faith is rest. When you see somebody whose brow is furrowed and they're still fighting in prayer, good, but don't spend forever there. Eventually, get to the place where you believe you have received, and now you're at a place of gratitude and rest. I have seen this in our church over and over and over again. When we first started CityLight, I remember I would be alone in that basement at 121 East 7th Street. I had a folding table every morning. By 8.59, I had that folding table opened up, the laptop on, and I'd be working and working. There's not even that much work when you first start a church, but I had to be busy eight hours a day, otherwise I'd be a lazy preacher. I don't want to be one of those lazy preachers. I've got to make it happen. I ran myself ragged, and there was no growth. Then you know what happened? I collapsed. I said, "'Forget this.'" At nearly 30 years old, living in that basement, I went, "'Mom, can I crash on your couch for a while? I'm done with this.'" She said, "'Sure, you crash.'" I'm crashing on the couch for days and days and days. She said, "'What are you doing?' "'Nothing.'" I was so tired. I had adrenal fatigue. I was doing nothing, and I was like, "'Lord, you've got to…' Somehow I felt a strange peace as I was doing nothing. I'm waiting for the Lord to say, "'You lazy ting, you. Get up off.' He never came. Then everything I was fighting for he just began to do. By the way, here's my history. I did not own a TV from 1994 until 2009. Why? Because that'd be distracting in the evenings you read. I really tried to do everything by the book, which I'm not saying that's bad. That's a good thing, but you know what I did when I moved back to my mom? I hadn't played video games in over a decade. I moved back to my mom. This was like 2004, 2005. (18:30 - 21:47) I got an Xbox. It was 2006. I got an Xbox. So now I'm like the completely backslidden pastor. I'm playing this game that was brand new then, Halo, and I'm reliving what I should have been doing when I was 18. I had no video games in my life. I'm like… And the Lord starts blessing waves of new people start coming. You can't stay on the couch, but the Lord was teaching me a lesson, and that's that when I work, he rests. When I rest, he works. This is not an exhortation to be passive. No. This is an exhortation to be aggressive. This is not an exhortation to be lazy, but this is an exhortation to once you've done what you need to do in the natural, you've got to back off. You've got to trust the Lord to do it in your life. This is how CityLight Church operates. We won't do anything unless the Lord breathes on it first. There have been times when we've missed it. There have been times where sometimes as you're waiting between the waves of the Lord, you want to make sure you haven't gone to sleep. I remember one year, a while ago, we had this Bring Your Friend to Church Sunday. The staff, all of us, we obsessed over it. We planned about it. We organized. For months, it was this Sunday where everybody was supposed to bring their friend, but the announcement, the graphics, the promotions, and then that Sunday finally comes. Nobody brought their friend to church. Do we have the loneliest group of people coming here or what? But then a few months later, without us doing a thing, all of a sudden waves of friends are coming to church. What's the difference? One was in our own strength, not blessed. The other was from a place of rest. God breathed and blessed. Amen. This is the year where the Lord will teach us to a greater degree how to fall back and rest in him. When we rest, he works. When we work and strive and push and schmitz and sweat and labor, he rests. You can't do both at the same time. Hallelujah. Let's go to Matthew 11. This is the case for ceasing from religious striving. Let me back up a little bit. For 2026, I hope you have a vision list. Call it a prayer list, a vision list. You have five things you want the Lord to do in your life. That is good. That is healthy. (21:47 - 21:51) Without a vision, the people perish. They cast off restraint. You need faith goals. (21:52 - 22:01) If you want to be married, you're not married. Bam! That should be number one on your list. You're not happy with your job? You want another job or promotion? Boom! Put it on your list. (22:01 - 22:24) Increase in finances? Put it on your list. Have a list. If you don't have a list, where is your faith directed at? But here is the tension few Christians have learned how to navigate. You're at point A. That's your current life. Point B, all the way over here, is the fulfillment of that list. That's point B. But you're at point A, and you're looking at your list. (22:25 - 22:51) Probably in the back of your mind you're going, How in the world is the Lord going to fulfill this list? As long as you're obsessing over the list, as long as the list is a priority in your life, for some the list becomes their God, the list will never be fulfilled. The tension is in… Okay, that's one side of the spectrum. Let me backtrack even more. (22:52 - 23:07) The other side is some people are saying, I don't have a list. Hakuna Matata. No worries. Whatever will be, will be. I just kind of go with the flow, man. Do you ever see someone talk like that? Do you want to emulate their life? Not me. (23:12 - 24:23) So, the tension is in you have the list, but the list doesn't rule you. The list is something external that's going to make your life better that you believe is bringing you into your God. But while you're at point A, have the list. You can talk about the list to the Lord every day. Feel free to do so. But your peace, your contentment, your rest is apart from the fulfillment of that list. That's the tension. That's what I believe the Lord will teach us quickly this year how to walk into, because that's exactly where the promises are fulfilled. Show me a Christian who has a faith goal list, but isn't ruled by that list, but is just happy with their relationship with the Lord, and is happy with the clothes on their back and the breath that he's put in their nostrils, happy that their sins are completely forgiven. They've been made the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit. Can it get any better than this, Lord? Also, I have that list, but I'm so happy, so filled with joy. And then you praise the Lord, and you go, Oh, you did that. And you did that. And look at that. You did that. (24:25 - 24:37) I'm trying to condense, really, what the Lord has been teaching me since 1992 in one sermon. More than anything, I've seen… I study. Why do some people get answers to prayers? Others don't. (24:38 - 25:15) Why do some people's lives change? Others, it's like they're the Lord. They change that. What is the difference? This is the difference. Hallelujah. Matthew 11, 28. So, we cease from our striving. We do everything we can in the natural. Also, the rest of God is ceasing from trying to be perfect before God apart from the blood of Jesus. We are really in and of ourselves completely unimpressive, and that's an understatement to the Lord. (25:16 - 26:02) He's not impressed with my religiosity and my law-keeping. I have no ability to dot every T and cross every I. Jesus said, "'Come to me, all you who labor.'" Who was he talking to? Factory workers? No. I've heard that verse often. Are you tired this week? Have you had a long time at the job? Jesus says, "'Come to me, all you who labor.'" He's not talking about that kind of labor. He's talking about religious laboring. Do you know what Judaism was like in Jesus' day was not like the Judaism that was around in Moses' day? It had warped while they were in Babylon. (26:02 - 26:11) They didn't have the Word of God with them. They didn't have the temple, and they began writing outside of the Word of God in the Talmud. Talmudic Judaism had crept in. (26:11 - 28:23) That's why Jesus was rebuking the Pharisees, saying, "'You whitewashed tombs. You brood of vipers. Because of your traditions, you're manmade stuff. You make the power of God of no effect. How will you avoid the condemnation of hell?' He was talking to people who added to the Word of God, and add they did, so much so… Can you imagine every time you want to drink some water, you have to put a bunch of nets as you pour the water? You have to strain for gnats. He said, "'You strain for gnats, but you swallow camels. You have to strain for a little gnat or mosquito lest it go into the water you're about to drink, and it be unkosher and unclean.'" That's tedious. That's religious labor. When Jesus said this, they wouldn't wear sandals on the Sabbath day lest they accidentally step on a kernel of corn and the husk break, and it be considered work, and it be considered a breaking of the Sabbath. Who wants to live that way? That's not how God wanted them to live. So what is he saying? He's saying you're working for God too much. You're trying to do stuff to win his favor. No, no, no, no. Come to me. You labor, and you're under a heavy burden. You're heavy laden. Come unto me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. In the next verse, he says, "'For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.'" Hallelujah. So, what does that look like as you're pursuing the Lord and the destiny he has for you in 2026? You're in a place of rest. Here's how I would define rest if I haven't already. I don't know if I did in the first or second. It's you doing whatever the Lord puts in your heart, in your spirit, but no more and no less. When it comes to relating to him, to a degree, you will always feel like you're not enough. You know why? Because you're not. (28:24 - 29:29) See, your ability to keep God's law sucks. If you turned to me and said, "'Pastor, your ability to keep God's law sucks,' I'd say, "'I know.'" I cannot impress God with my own self-effort. If I spent the rest of my life giving stuff away, reading his Word every waking hour, selling everything I have, traveling to the poorest place in the world, washing their feet… My own effort means nothing to him. He says, "'All your righteousness is as a filthy rag.' Eventually you must collapse and go, "'Jesus, my trust is in you. Because of the blood, because of the finished, completed work of the cross, I am squeaky clean to you. I am without sin, without spot, without wrinkle. You accept me as you do Jesus Christ himself.'" That's how the Father accepts you. Isn't that good news? So you get that kind of a rest. Hallelujah. (29:32 - 29:47) Oh, hallelujah. Hebrews 4.10. Is this blessing you today? Thank you, Lord. For he who has entered his rest… Yeah. (29:50 - 30:36) This sermon, by the way… You shouldn't just listen… Unless you've been around for a long time and the Lord has already begun this process in you, this sermon may be a little frustrating, because it's paradoxical. It's mysterious, and I'm not trying to be paradoxical to appear sophisticated and lofty. It just is. It's mind-numbing. Wait, I've got to work, but not work too much. I've got to labor, but I've got to labor not how I think I've got to labor. I've actually got to labor to enter into his rest. What does that mean? I've got to work to rest. Yeah, because when we're programmed to just work in the natural, it actually takes some work to go, yeah, I'm going to do what you're telling me I need to do, but no more, no less. You know what? Keep that up there. I'm going to tell you a story. It's story time in the house of the Lord. (30:37 - 30:54) The only thing that can actually drive this point home is a story. When I graduated college in 1998… I'm 22 years old. I did college just, frankly, because my parents said, you're going to college, but I couldn't wait to go to Bible school of some kind. (30:55 - 31:06) I graduated college, and now it's time for Bible school. In August, it was actually August 12. I remember that because August 14 is when I got saved. (31:06 - 33:51) August 12… I mean, this was six years later, but it was all in August in that same week. August 12, I landed in Tampa. I didn't know anybody except one person, Carl Brown, and I only knew him from the phone. He said he would take me in for a few days. He had a wife. He had two kids. He didn't need a 22-year-old beau fighting his way on his couch. He said, you can stay on our couch for a few days, and I'll help you get started. I had a goal of three things. One, get a car. I need a car. No buses. I mean buses, but Tampa buses. I didn't get my license until a few months before I went to Tampa, because I'm a New Yorker. I didn't need it. I need a car, I need a job, and I need an apartment. Day one, we go to get a car. By the way, I have almost no money. All of this had to do with under $2,000. I remember I had a friend who I had led to the Lord who later came to the River Bible Institute. Her mother worked for TWA. Kids, that's an airline that used to exist back in the day. You know how you go to the terminal with a JetBlue and there's that awesome building all architectural and wavy like? It was actually in that terminal. I had to go through that, because her mother got me standby tickets real cheap. So, I'm tight on money. I land. Day one, I have to get a car. He takes me to several used car lots. All of these cars are like $3,000, $4,000. The final car lot, I find a car for $1,000, and it's a stick shift. I can barely drive stick shift, so I learned…grinding gears. Day one, I get the car. Flintstone Mobile with a stick shift. It cost $1,000. Day two already, an apartment comes. He actually called up the ministry and said, is there anybody who's renting an apartment? They said no. We didn't even have Craigslist back then. This was like the beginning of the internet. So, he hangs up. Two hours later, the ministry calls back and says, you know, somebody just called us and said they have this apartment to see. So, I come in. It's $400 a month, fully furnished, what they call a mother-in-law setup, which is where you turn the garage into like a room and a kitchenette. It was perfect. So, day one, car. Day two, the apartment. Now, it's time to get a job to pay for all these things. The whole time since I landed, I'm sending out resumes, and I'm determined I'm not going to be passive. I'm not going to be lazy. I'm not going to fail at this because I didn't do something. So, that's good, and that's healthy, but this is where the tension is. Very quickly, you can forget about God and make it all about what you can accomplish. (33:52 - 34:30) This whole time, I'm absolutely terrified. Everything is new for me, and every time I sit in that car to drive it, I'm going, Lord, please make sure I don't die. So, after several days of handing out resumes, driving by…resume to everybody, like day five or six, I wake up, and I'm thinking, another day I'm going to hit it, and the Lord speaks to me. When I say the Lord speaks to me, I want to be very specific. He speaks to me stronger and louder than typical. The Lord speaks to us all through the still, small voice, the wisdom that he gives us, the quiet, gentle nudges of our shepherd. (34:31 - 34:46) This was louder. This was more authoritative. This is how I remember it to this day. He said, Go to the beach. It's almost a week, and you haven't even touched clear water. St. Petersburg. (34:46 - 34:52) Go to the beach. That would be the most irresponsible thing I can do. I have no job. (34:53 - 37:08) I'm going to go have a day at the beach? Who does that? He said, You're going to do that. So, I do as the Lord says. I go to the beach. I'm walking around Clearwater Beach, going for a swim, all alone, saying hallelujah. I even saw a restaurant the only time I ever saw my own name, and it was either Clearwater or St. Petersburg. It was a giant sign, and they pronounced Boyan Bojan, and it was called Bojan Steakhouse. I asked someone on the beach, What is that place? They said, Oh, some Canadian guy. I said, He's not Canadian. I know where that guy is from. He started in 1978. I have a great day at the beach. I get some sun on my face. I go back to the mother-in-law's setup, and as I'm coming in, I look at the answering machine. Many of you don't know what an answering machine is. Watch a few Seinfeld episodes, especially the one about the answering machine. Before visual voicemail, virtual voicemail, whatever, there were answering machines. I look, and the light is blinking. Who could it be? Nobody has my number except Carl Brown, but I quickly hit, and it was Franklin Templeton, one of the dozens of places that I sent my resume to, asking me to come in for an interview. I got that job with Franklin Templeton, and that job is what sustained me that first year of Bible school. To me, that was a life lesson. That was what he wanted me to use as a grid, as a blueprint for my life and for my ministry, which is, do what you need to do in the natural, but if you overdo it… Some of you, overdoing it doesn't actually mean you're doing anything. You're just in your bed obsessing over it. Now you're not in a place of rest. You're agonizing. You're worrying. You're stressing. You're talking to everyone about it because of your own anxiety. Now you're working. Guess what God has to do. He has to back up and rest. But when you're going to rest, go for a walk on the beach. I emphasize again. After you've done the normal things you need to do in the natural, that's when he comes and puts his super over your natural. (37:09 - 37:27) Can we shout a big hallelujah? Amen. I want to give you a bunch of verses that echo this theme. Isaiah 30.15. If you're into taking notes, memorize these verses. (37:28 - 37:49) Isaiah 30.15. The Bible says, In returning and rest, I believe the King James says, In repentance and rest shall be your salvation. In returning and rest you shall be saved. In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. (37:49 - 38:43) Israel wanted activity and alliances, but God said salvation and strength only come through rest and trust. Hallelujah. Not frantic effort. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. I just want to go on record. The Lord spoke this to me just driving here. It probably won't be used, so don't get excited, but I want to give that Maybach away this year. I want to give it away. That's it. I want to say to go on record, to be held accountable, because there's something the Lord… And this is okay today. I said, In order for me to do that, you have to do this other thing here. (38:44 - 38:48) He said, That's nothing for me. I go, Then it'll be nothing for me. Amen. (38:50 - 39:49) I believe God wants to do some preposterous, hilarious… Do you know the Bible says God loves a cheerful giver? Do you know what that word in the Greek is? Hilario. It's where we get the word hilarious from. See, I go to the cigar lounge. Did you all know I go to a cigar lounge? I told a lot of people. You don't know? I like cigars. I like them a lot. You say, You religious, religious thing. You ate fast food three times last weekend. I need more unbelievers in my life. Where am I going to meet unbelievers? And my wife keeps calling it a cigar bar. I'm like, Babe, it's not a cigar bar. There's no alcohol there. It's a cigar lounge. A bunch of Long Island men. And cigars, in case you're wondering… Because there's like Bonnie Andrews. (39:50 - 40:12) He knows, and he said, You know, if you do this in India to them, that's like the ultimate sin. I'm going, That's so weird. Because a cigar is not dangerous. You're not inhaling. You're doing a Bill Clinton. I didn't inhale. Cigarettes are bad. There are a lot of things that are bad. Look at any picture of Charles Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers, and he's got his trusty cigar. (40:16 - 40:36) So there. If you're aggrieved that your pastor goes to a cigar lounge, you need to find out what some other pastors are up to. I'm okay. Amen. Don't drink alcohol. Love my family. Amen. Porn free. Just that. (40:37 - 40:43) It's really how weird the energy shifts when you say that. Porn free. Amen. (40:47 - 41:35) I can take the service in a whole other direction if I talk more about that. May that deliverance, which has been for years and years… I have to say, because someone's going, Oh, he's porn free as of last month. No. Years and years and years and years. But it is a major temptation when you carry the smut of the world in your back pocket in the form of a phone. So I do take this moment. How did the Lord do that? He just… He did it. It was a supernatural deliverance. Whoever needs that may come upon you. Boy, that was a rabbit trail for somebody. But anyway, all that to say, I go to a cigar lounge. Now it doesn't sound so bad, does it? They ask about my life, because I started going two years ago. (41:36 - 41:46) So they've seen the transformation in my life. To an unbeliever, it makes no sense, because they push me. First, they didn't like that I got these things. (41:47 - 42:39) Then I explained to them, Hey, I gave $2.1 million to the church. They just don't… Huh? How does that even work? So I believe the Lord is going to make a hilarious display out of us. We're doing things that are so confounding to the natural mind that the world will go… Yeah. Just like they looked at Jesus' ministry and it was like, does not compute, error five, whatever it is, five, three, seven, eight, B. Hallelujah. Judges 7-2. The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against me. (42:39 - 44:44) Can you imagine that? The Lord is saying, Hey, your army is too strong. If I let you win like this, you're going to think it's you. So you've got to thin that out a little bit so I get all the glory. That's a good hint. On your vision list, it should be far enough, wild enough, hilarious enough that when it comes to pass, you can't pat yourself on the back thinking you did it. It's got to be so out there that unless the Lord comes through, you're sunk, saying, my own hand has saved me. God intentionally removed Gideon's ability to win by human strength so the miracle could only be credited to him. 1 Kings 19, 7-8. Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you. This is for Elijah. So he arose and ate and drank. And when he went in the strength of that food 40 days and 40 nights, as far as Horeb, the mountain of God, Elijah was exhausted. He was so exhausted. This was probably some level, this was right after he called down fire on the prophets of Baal, probably a spirit, that spirit of Jezebel, along with some kind of bad adrenal fatigue, because he went literally from that mountaintop to whimpering underneath a tree, depressed and suicidal. I shared with you how I had two major bouts of not feeling the blues or sadness, debilitating depression. And as I was coming out of it, after I was hospitalized, I still needed lots of sleep. Now I go on five hours of sleep just fine. Five, six hours is amazing. I'm not kidding. I was sleeping 12, 13 hours a day. And again, the way I'm wired, I don't like to do that. I like to be productive. I'll wake up at 9 a.m. and fall back asleep. Wake up again at 10.30, look at my watch on my phone. (44:45 - 44:58) Lord, I'm so sorry. I'd be like, don't worry. And I'm like, Lord, I'm just so tired. And the Lord would say, so sleep. My head didn't want to receive that. My head is condemning me. (44:59 - 45:51) What kind of a pastor are you? What kind of a leader are you? You should already have been to the gym and smashed through your to-do list. But listen. You know, back then I thought, the way this is going, I'm going to be an abject failure. Like you look up failure in a dictionary, that'll be my picture. And then what the Lord has done in the last few years, he's sending a message. It's hard for me to even articulate it. I hope you're catching what I'm pitching. We're sometimes a lot harder on ourselves and condemning ourselves. And the Lord would come to me morning after morning and be like, Lord, I can't get out of bed. And he would say to me, you need rest. Let your body heal. I'm healing it as you rest. (45:53 - 46:28) And I'm going, but if I continue like this, Lord, I'm going to just… It'll be bad. And do you know what? I spent a few more weeks like that, linking my wounds. And then all of a sudden the strength returned more and more. And then with a few other weeks, I was back to my normal self. Hallelujah. Elijah was in that place. Some of you, you need to rest. Do what you know to do in the natural, but then rest if you need to. That's how you'll know God is doing it supernaturally behind the scenes. (46:29 - 46:56) And what'll really mess you up… I could not… Do not get on social media. Do not let seven different… I've never seen so many… Everybody's like a life coach and a motivational expert. Everybody's going to teach you. Get their course. You're going to 100X it, baby. I'll teach you how to 100X. What you've got to do is you've got to wake up at 3 a.m., all right? You can't eat anything but red meat. Only eat red meat, and you'll 100X it, baby. 100X it. (46:58 - 47:58) And you'll run yourself ragged, baby. And you'll be miserable, baby. Your dreams won't come true. You'll just think, I failed even at 100Xing it. I just failed at everything. Let God shock you. He is good. His way is from glory to glory to glory to glory. His way is increase. His way is promotion. It's what he wants. Hallelujah. Mark 6.31. Here's what Jesus said. Oh, I love it. Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place… He's telling his disciples, and rest a little while. Hallelujah. Jesus taught that spiritual fruitfulness requires intentional withdrawal, not nonstop output. Worship team, you can come on up. (48:00 - 48:34) Luke 10.41-42. This is famous. I've preached entire sermons on this. Jesus answered her and said to Martha, Martha, Martha… What was Martha doing? She was cooking, cleaning, serving, doing what was good for a host to do. But Jesus rebuked her. He said, You're too busy, busy, busy, busy. You know how people love to stay busy? Pastors especially. How's it going? Busy. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry you're that busy. (48:34 - 51:34) He said, Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. Verse 42. But one thing… Everybody shout one thing. Shout one thing. I said one thing. A little bit louder now. A little bit louder now. One thing. How many things? One thing. I said one thing. How many things? One thing. One thing is necessary. I said not two things, not three things, not four things. One thing. Jesus really breaks it down. He really causes us to focus. One thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her. What's the one thing? To sit at my feet, a posture of rest. Sit at my feet and hear my word. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. God is looking for the person who hasn't forgotten the one thing. Oh, he will multiply the efforts of the one thing, Christian. Zechariah 4.6. I'll close with this. Not by might nor by power. Do you know this verse eluded me for years as a young Christian? I didn't know what that meant, because I thought, what do you mean not by might? Your spirit is might. What do you mean not by power? Your spirit is powerful. This is like a contradiction. Not by might, not by power, but by my spirit. You know, sometimes you can just have a brick in your head from the enemy, and then the Lord took it away. I went, oh, not by human might, not by human power, not by self-effort, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Hallelujah. Let's pray right now. Heavenly Father, we're looking forward to 2026. May this be the year of resting in you. Teach us by the Holy Ghost how to rest, how to do those things that you tell us to do, no more, no less. Give us practical wisdom. Sometimes what we think is necessary really doesn't make a difference. You'll tell us to do something that seems unrelated, but that's actually the important part. Teach us to hold your hand, to hear your voice. Teach us to do the right thing at the right time and then to fall back on you, not trusting in our own strength, our own cleverness, but trusting in you and you alone. We bless you. We bless you. We're excited for the best year we're ever going to have in Jesus' name. Amen. (51:44 - 51:58) Pastor Bojan Jancic and CityLight Church. Visit us at CityLightNYC.com. That's CityLightNYC.com. Feel free to visit us online or in person anytime. We would love to connect with you. (51:59 - 52:14) 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.