Before You Quit, Hear This

0:00:00 – (Steve Gray): Are you going through some trials, some testing, some difficult times? Listen, I'll give you a shortcut, a Bible shortcut that can get you on your feet the fastest way possible. On the next More Faith, More Life podcast. 

0:00:14 – (Steve Gray): You were made for more than the status quo. I'm Pastor Steve Gray and this is the More Faith, More Life podcast. This podcast is for Christians with an ambitious heart who want to be more for their family, do more with their career, and see more of God's promises in their life. I've spent many years as a worship artist, minister, non-profit leader, bold truth speaker, and most importantly, father and spouse. 

0:00:39 – (Steve Gray): When I was in my early 40s, I was craving more, more from God and more from life. I'd done everything I was supposed to do. My life was good, but it wasn't good enough. So I spent the following years diving into the word of God and searching for the biblical principles that would bring me closer to God and help my purpose and life flourish. That's what I want to share with you. In every episode, you'll get practical tools based on real life experiences that you can put into action to redefine your faith and ultimately your life. 

0:01:14 – (Steve Gray): So if you're ready to do more, subscribe to More Faith, More Life More and hear an unfiltered biblical truth every week. It's time to be and experience more. 

0:01:25 – (Steve Gray): Hello everyone and welcome to another More Faith, More Life podcast. Your voice of revival. And of course, when I say that voice of revival. 

0:01:35 – (Steve Gray): I know revivals. I'm getting up there enough years that there's not that many people still alive on the face of the earth that actually led real moves of God. And also if you say the voice of revival, a lot of people say, well, I am too because we had a really a three day meeting last week or in the fall, we have our spring meeting, we have a revival, we invite a guest evangelist in, we have three extra meetings and then we go back to regular. 

0:02:01 – (Steve Gray): But the revival we're talking about has been like they had in, in history where it overtook everything and they be and God began to move every day and they did it. I know a church that had in the 1950s church, seven days a week for five years. Wow. They were open 24 hours. 

0:02:20 – (Zion Vierra): That's wow. 

0:02:21 – (Steve Gray): And people just came and came and came and yeah, 24 hours for five years, seven days a week. So now that's revival. And for us to try to imagine what that would be like, it's hard. But then we did, you know, in the, that small town which has Been written about many times and in our books too is five days a week for three and a half years. Right. Where thousands and thousands of people came from around the world every single day of those five days. 

0:02:50 – (Steve Gray): And we preached and sang. Unknown town to an unknown town in the middle of nowhere. It was called the Cornfield Revival because you had to go through past so many cornfields to find it. But anyway, and so that made history. Now that's. You do five services a week for three and a half years. And not only just you and a handful of people, but a packed out place and people coming from all nations all over the world every week for three and a half years. 

0:03:14 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:03:15 – (Steve Gray): And. And I let it. And I preached all the sermons. Yeah. I. We didn't. We didn't bunch it up. We didn't have guests, nothing. And then in 2008, again, Kansas City revival was four days a week, I think it was four services a week, I think, and broadcast in 200 nations. And. And people came again from all over the world. And that lasted three and a half years on tv. About three years, but three and a half years total from the beginning to when we. Just when it started to settle a little bit for other reasons. But anyway, so when I say the voice of revival. I've been in some church services and preached all over the world at the same time, service after service and preached all the sermons. 

0:03:53 – (Zion Vierra): I don't think there's very many people in history who have led two revivals, multiple revivals. Right. I mean, I might be wrong, but I. Yeah. 

0:03:59 – (Steve Gray): From what I've read and studied, not the same people. Because the Welsh Revival had three, I think. But. Sure. But they were spaced apart where they were new folks, which is what we'd like to see today here or someplace. A fresh revival is why we talk in the voice revival. But that's true. And also it's true that, you know, when you're alive there's a lot of jealousy and questioning and suspicions and stuff. So people. They try to downplay it, the two revival thing like that. 

0:04:29 – (Steve Gray): But when I'm no longer on this earth, then it'll come up. 

0:04:32 – (Zion Vierra): You'll almost be bigger then than you are now. Yeah? 

0:04:35 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. 

0:04:36 – (Zion Vierra): Isn't that wild how that works? 

0:04:37 – (Steve Gray): It's. Yeah. 

0:04:37 – (Zion Vierra): That's funny. 

0:04:38 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. 

0:04:39 – (Zion Vierra): Strange. 

0:04:39 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. Dead people make good reading, you know, so. Yeah. 

0:04:43 – (Zion Vierra): So they can't. They can't say anything back. 

0:04:45 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. So we try to talk about revival, but today I'm going to sort of switch it a little bit around the other side of real life. So I picked this scripture from James. Consider it pur. Pure joy. Brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds of. Okay, let's just stop there. That's a rough one. 

0:05:05 – (Steve Gray): Pure joy. That's a lot. Joy is pure joy. And I'd have to look up the Greek word to see where they came up with pure. How far does that go? But anyway, anyway, it says in Niv. Pure joy when you face trials of many kinds. Okay, let's back up in James time. I read it yesterday, did a little more study, and there's still a lot of. Lot a lot of scholars that believe that this James is the brother of Jesus. James. 

0:05:36 – (Zion Vierra): Okay. 

0:05:36 – (Steve Gray): We call him half-brother. Right. But, you know, you get it is the James, though, that Jesus grew up with. So it's pretty substantiated that this is pretty good information. Now there's others that now are starting to talk about, well, it could have been somebody else, but a different James. But most still say that. So, you know, it's worth listening to. Well, in that time, then that James, if who. Or whatever James it was, but probably that James was ministering to people who are under persecution. 

0:06:07 – (Steve Gray): These are mostly Jewish believers, because if it is the brother of Jesus, the Jewish audience would be applicable. And so anyway, so they're mostly Jewish and they were. So they were facing persecution at that time from Rome, because Rome, you know, the history of Rome, there were persecutions at that time. And though they were getting persecuted by other Jews because they believed in Jesus and. And James did. So their trials of many kinds was many, but it was real persecution trouble. And so they. Because of it, they weren't making a lot of money. So now they have the trial of poverty or hardships. 

0:06:49 – (Steve Gray): Life is hard, persecution is tough, and then money is short, and then housing is hard. You know, all the things that you expect to go with that. Yeah, so that's. That's the reference. It's not just. And just out of the clear blue sky, you know, James is saying, hey, you know, by the way, if you ever go through some trials, you know, flat tire. Yeah. It's like this is. He's talking to people who are real. It's really happening too. 

0:07:14 – (Steve Gray): And this is what he says then, because, you know, the testing of your faith or the trial of your faith produces perseverance. And as a Christian in America, when life is so easy compared to other Christians in other countries. Well, just people being an American is easier than most being in most. I mean, there's Some tough times in our country. But there's some countries being bombed. Yeah. And. Yeah. And like starvation is everywhere. You know, that's a whole different thing. 

0:07:46 – (Steve Gray): Water shortages and stuff. You still, if you're in poverty, you probably have a faucet and a bathtub and a bathroom, you know, so. Okay, yeah, something so. But, but still. I get it. But anyway, in, in America for us, it says. I don't. We don't like that word. Okay. I want you to go through something. You're going to have to go through something that. Testing your faith because I want it to produce perseverance. I'm going like, nah, I'm not sure I really need. I don't know if I want perseverance. You know, perseverance has to be produced and it's produced by tough times or trials or testing or whatever. Is it good for me? 

0:08:21 – (Steve Gray): Yeah, it's good for me, but so is broccoli, you know, and maybe I'll just mash potatoes instead. So it's like, do I really. But, but the, the truth of it is even in our lifetime, in our things, we do go through stuff. Sure. Ours might be emotional, it might be relational. Relationships really can put you through some trials. It's tough. People are not financial. It's tough. 

0:08:50 – (Steve Gray): A lot of times it's financial because we do it to ourselves. 

0:08:53 – (Zion Vierra): Self-inflicted. 

0:08:53 – (Steve Gray): Self-inflicted. But nevertheless, it's still a trial if you're in it. And you have to use your faith. So it says, you know, that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Okay, so that doesn't sound so good to me. Like if I said to you, listen, I'm going to pray Zion. Oh yeah, by the way, this is Zion beer. I'm going to pray for you because I think you need to learn perseverance. So get ready, get ready, get ready, get ready. Get hardships. 

0:09:24 – (Steve Gray): But. So it sounds bad, but if you continue to read what James is trying to tell him where, Where God wants to put him. Yeah. So he says. So then once you get perseverance going, there's a finished perseverance. Perseverance doesn't go on forever. Right. Let perseverance finish. So don't give up before perseverance is finished. It's easy to. It doesn't sound fun, but let's stay with it. Perseverance finish its work and here's where. 

0:09:51 – (Steve Gray): So that you may be mature. And that means mature faith. Yes, Full faith. Mature and complete. Well, who doesn't want to be that? And then the final one. Great. Yeah. Not Lacking anything. So you start. They're starting off facing trials of many kinds, and they don't. Money short, housing short, popularity doesn't exist because they're being persecuted. But if you. If you can go through this, get through this, survive through this by faith. 

0:10:20 – (Steve Gray): Because in this podcast we talk about more faith produces more life. But usually we put, where you and I in this podcast, we put it on the positive side. It's going to produce more life, which is great. Yeah. 

0:10:31 – (Zion Vierra): It's going to help you. Yeah. 

0:10:32 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. And it's still true. But here your faith is producing perseverance and, and producing that. Like we don't. 

0:10:39 – (Zion Vierra): Doesn't always feel good. 

0:10:40 – (Steve Gray): No. And we don't always talk about that. But it still produces more life. Sure. But not in the fun way. But look what it does. Not lacking anything. So that's these people who are lacking really everything, and it's the real thing. And, and it's saying, but God can take you by faith through perseverance until you don't lack anything. 

0:11:00 – (Zion Vierra): Mature, not liking anything. 

0:11:01 – (Steve Gray): Yes. 

0:11:02 – (Zion Vierra): That's so good. 

0:11:02 – (Steve Gray): And you know, Paul went through a lot of trials and tribulations, trouble beatings and sometimes floggings where they may have left him for dead once too, you know. Yeah. And somehow he got back to life again, all that kind of stuff. But then this is a guy. You're talking when you talk to him, when you read about him, as though you're talking to him when you read about him. This is a guy whose attitude is, I don't lack anything. 

0:11:28 – (Steve Gray): And you know, and he said that I. I've been. I'm at peace or whatever. I. When I have much, when I have little, you know, not that I'm lacking a gift. He tells them, you need to give offerings, guys, gals, you need to give. You need to be generous and give even though you're going through tough times too, because. But I'm not asking you to give for me. Not that I lack a gift, but this is for you. 

0:11:51 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:11:52 – (Steve Gray): And that's. Oh, it's so tough in church to convince people. I'm saying this for you, you know. 

0:11:57 – (Zion Vierra): I'm not manipulating you. 

0:11:58 – (Steve Gray): I'm saying this for you. Yeah. I think you need to be a tither. Why I think it's for you. And Paul said, because I've learned to be content not lacking. Yeah. If it's, if it's not so much, if I don't have as much, if I've had plenty, I've had less. But, you know, in long run, I Don't lack anything. 

0:12:16 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:12:16 – (Steve Gray): So he was a great example of that. So anyway, so then we. So that's the setup. Okay. That's the setup of what they're going through and how he tells them to get through and stay with it. Okay. And if this is the brother of Jesus, it's really just the thoughts of getting those words from him who grew up with Jesus. And remember, you know, for a little while, you remember, the brothers didn't believe in him for a little while. 

0:12:43 – (Steve Gray): He went through some trials of persecution, if we can call it that. But dis. Unbelief. And I get it. I get you grow up with somebody. Yeah. 

0:12:53 – (Zion Vierra): Okay, buddy. 

0:12:53 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. Who? You know. You know, you saw them in and out, you know, and you were a regular guy. 

0:13:00 – (Zion Vierra): Right. 

0:13:00 – (Steve Gray): Okay. And then all of a sudden, this is the Son of God, and you're, like, down here and he's up there. Maybe you need to bow down and worship. What? I don't think so. 

0:13:09 – (Zion Vierra): Was Jesus older than James? 

0:13:11 – (Steve Gray): I think, yeah, he's the first. So. 

0:13:13 – (Zion Vierra): Okay. 

0:13:13 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. Yeah. 

0:13:13 – (Zion Vierra): Okay. 

0:13:14 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. And imagine them sharing a bedroom. And then James says, I don't think so. But anyway, the brothers came around. Mary questioned it, others questioned it, but they all came around. Mary came around, too, and I love it. The idea that James, almost 100% James was there on the day of Pentecost and spoke in tongues, but the one I really like is Mary, because, you know, the. Especially the Catholic Church and that. Which. I'm not here to criticize them, but they really elevate Mary differently than I do. Let's just say that. 

0:13:46 – (Steve Gray): But they never have her speaking in tongues because read about it, there were women there, too. Yes. They always invited the Mary and the Mary and the other Mary. 

0:13:56 – (Zion Vierra): All the Marys. 

0:13:57 – (Steve Gray): All the Marys were always there. Yeah. Of course, Jesus. Mother would have been there in prayer, and the brothers would have been there in prayer. And so I. I get a new vision of Mary. You know, I see all the Halo pictures and all that. 

0:14:10 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:14:10 – (Steve Gray): But I. I get her. I get a picture. I said, what was that? What night? What'd you just say? Oh, she's speaking in tongues. That's it. Just. Yeah. Mother Mary speak in tongues over me. 

0:14:25 – (Steve Gray): So, you know. But she did. I just like that. But anyway, let's get back to the subject. So that's the setup of this. All right. With James. Okay. Then the next one, though, is not disconnected. And we mostly disconnected. It says if any. Any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives it generously. Well, you can do it because that's a true, it's a, this is a true statement that, that scripture is true. 

0:14:50 – (Steve Gray): So you can take it out if you want to, but I think it makes it stronger when you realize what James is saying is you're going through all these troubles now. You need perseverance, but you're also going to need wisdom. And God's going to give you wisdom if you ask. And it says you should ask God for wisdom, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. So you want, you, you want to get that in you. And it's just a great mercy scripture because it's without finding fault, because at least with us, a lot of the situations we're in, it is our fault. Sure. 

0:15:31 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:15:32 – (Steve Gray): Could be in their case, sort of not their fault. But still, he's not saying, but okay, I'd like to help you here and give you some wisdom, but, you know, you really don't deserve it. You haven't been that great. And so it's important that we realize wisdom comes from God. First of all, God gives wisdom. Secondly, God gives wisdom, and he gives it just generously and he gives it without fault finding. 

0:15:57 – (Steve Gray): Okay, so when we talk about wisdom, though. I know I had the idea that wisdom was, well, just tell me what to do. Give me a wise saying or something like that. Yeah, something. Yeah, right. Yeah, yeah. Don't you hate it when you're at a, you're at a Chinese restaurant, somebody opens a fortune cooking. Oh, here, this one's about you. 

0:16:21 – (Steve Gray): So anyway, but the wisdom that they're talking about has to go back to the, obviously who James is, if that's him, back to the Jewish roots and Jewish thought. And Jewish thought was, God will give you wisdom on how to be covenantly loyal. So the wisdom is to walk in. He's going to show you how to get out of this through the covenant, not through anything you've done, but through everything that he's done. 

0:16:47 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:16:47 – (Steve Gray): Wow. And so the wisdom he gives is so interesting. And you still could get, okay, maybe fortune cookie, but you still, you still could get wisdom of this is what you should do. This is the answer, because that's part of it. But the wisdom that comes is the wisdom starts coming to us that he would bring us. All right, as you're asking for wisdom, let's include now the covenant of God. That's wise. 

0:17:11 – (Zion Vierra): That's good. 

0:17:12 – (Steve Gray): And so first, we want you to include loyalty. 

0:17:15 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:17:16 – (Steve Gray): Okay. Loyalty, you're going to be check your loyalty. Because I'm giving you the wisdom to say, check your loyalty. Yeah, that's the wisdom, like you say, oh, check my. Okay, check your loyalty. Because the answer for this wisdom and the help you need to not lack anything is because I have an agreement with not just you, but with the people. All the people. All the believers now, but the Jewish people at the time that were believers, they were Jewish believers. I have a covenant with you. 

0:17:43 – (Steve Gray): So you want to check yourself. How loyal have you been? How loyal can you be? What can you be to show your loyalty? So all of a sudden that's a wisdom, that here's the problem and the wisdom comes over here and you go, how, how are these. What loyalty? How's that connected to that? Well, if the loyalty will spark, then the covenant which comes back. The covenant promises that get you till you don't lack anything. 

0:18:07 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. And so in a way, when I talked about revival, this is revival. The reason is anytime anybody gets struck with the wisdom, I need to be more loyal to God. And also another one that come up is love the Lord. They said the Shema, you know, hero Israel, the Lord is one God, and love the Lord your God with all your heart. Okay, so pop wisdom and you go, okay, so loyalty and loving God. So in order to get out of this problem over here, if I could check my loyalty, check my love level. 

0:18:45 – (Steve Gray): And God's given me wisdom to other things, maybe other things too. I don't want to cut the list too short, but other things that he might say, catch this. Notice this. Notice your timeframe, notice how you spend your time and all that. But if you'll take my wisdom and now just do what I've called you to do for thousands of years, start that. Then it gets connected to the problem because it ignites the covenant, which in the covenant then are the answers to your problems. Right? 

0:19:15 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah, that's good. 

0:19:15 – (Steve Gray): Rather than just say, give me an answer how to solve this problem. 

0:19:18 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:19:19 – (Steve Gray): And he goes, okay, snap. You know, you just, you're very. Yeah, just go downtown and there's going to be. And you'll see a man with a red beard and he's going to hand you the money you need, you know, like, okay, well, I better get downtown. 

0:19:31 – (Zion Vierra): That'd be nice. 

0:19:31 – (Steve Gray): Yeah. But instead it gives you wisdom in long term. Long term wisdom that connects you back to the loyalty covenant, which ignites the covenant, which brings us back to not just solving today's problem, but to bringing you to not lacking anything. And that's going to take some time. So in the meantime, we want to solve this problem. Let's say you keep saying financial, which is a big one. Okay, we want to solve that, but we don't want to stop there. 

0:20:01 – (Steve Gray): If the promise is not lacking anything. 

0:20:03 – (Zion Vierra): It'S not break even. 

0:20:04 – (Steve Gray): Whether it be. Yeah. Whether it be in relationships, emotional, you need help. In your past, you, you get, you have anxiety attacks, you know, I don't know, physical to where you're not lacking anything, then you need. You've got to get over here. To not just trying to solve the immediate problem, but to solve the long-term problem, which is the, the low standard of loyalty. You lowered the bar. And not just you, but anybody. 

0:20:28 – (Steve Gray): Churches today lower the bar instead of raising it. They want to make everybody good. So they lower the bar so it's easier to jump over. 

0:20:35 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah, seriously. 

0:20:35 – (Steve Gray): And so we're trying to answer today's problem. We'll put it in church now. We'll take it away from James. We'll put it in the church world. We're trying to solve the problems of church people by lowering the bar. Make things easier. Take perseverance away and say, just hold on on the level you are and be who you are. And did you hear what I did hear? That you said about the turkey joke. Right, I did. I said that already. 

0:21:03 – (Steve Gray): Well, I tell you, I don't know if it was here, maybe I said this last week. If I did, I'm repeating my jokes. You know, it was Thanksgiving, so Thanksgiving time, everybody's talking turkeys, you know, and stuff like that. And I went in the store, I don't go to the store very often, but I saw turkey jerky, turkey baloney, turkey hot dogs and all that. And I said, I need to sit down with this turkey. Come on, turkey, get with it. Just be yourself. Just be a turkey. Yeah. 

0:21:28 – (Steve Gray): Yes. But, but we, we get into all this to where the church is trying to lower the bar and make us something. We're are saying, just be beef, just be turkey jerky. It's okay. You could be. Be a turkey hot dog. Just be one. You know, instead of just be, you know, instead, just be yourself. Well, no, be somebody different. And so the, the, the way to freedom and revival. 

0:21:54 – (Steve Gray): Is Okay, I get it. The wisdom is saying to me, more loyalty, more generosity, more love, more commitment, maybe more prayer, but just more focus on him. Look to him. 

0:22:05 – (Zion Vierra): Which, to get to that spot is perseverance. 

0:22:07 – (Steve Gray): For a lot of people, it's perseverance. 

0:22:09 – (Zion Vierra): That is the perseverance that he's mentioning ahead. 

0:22:10 – (Steve Gray): Exactly. And what you do you ignite and spark the covenant that's already in place? We're not asking God to do right, really to do something else right. We're asking what he's done to be ignited in my life and the blessings of the covenant and the promises that are already there and the biblical promises that are already in force now are activated in my life, which is the wisdom says now do it that way and it's going to take care of the big, the immediate problem. 

0:22:42 – (Steve Gray): And if you keep doing it that way, it's going to bring you to maturity and completeness, to where you don't lack anything that's really good. Isn't that so good? 

0:22:50 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah, there's. And you start here much out of just that little bit. 

0:22:54 – (Steve Gray): And you start here. I know. And I, and, and I haven't really ever heard it preached anything like that. So it's really. I hope these people get it. Sometimes I say that I wish more people, maybe they do. I don't know how many watch this, but just more people would tell more people because you hear things here that are so simple, so practical and do spark, whether it be a church revival. If the church, everybody in church would do this, it was spark revival. But if not, just you do it and it'll spark revival in your home and your heart with your friends or whatever. 

0:23:22 – (Steve Gray): And it's going to solve like so many of life's problems where we really can say more faith that through perseverance it's going to bring more life. 

0:23:31 – (Zion Vierra): Yeah. 

0:23:32 – (Steve Gray): So that's why you should go to https://stevegrayministries.com so you can get more of this, get more acquainted with me. We don't really ever bring up gifts, generosity, but I don't know why I just get so busy like this.  But maybe consider stretching yourself a little bit. Maybe you give to everybody in the world, you know, and you're generous, you're giving t all these ministries, but this might be one you want to consider because you can get things here you can't get anywhere else—and it really is life changing. So we appreciate that. Tell your friends and subscribe and get this wisdom. If you're going through a time of trouble, this is wisdom to get you out. Right? 

0:24:07 – (Steve Gray): Till next time. Bye-bye.