From Starting to Staying

Beltway Park Church

From Starting to Staying

July 23, 2023 • Jake Mills • Haggai 2:3–5, Haggai 1:13–14, Galatians 6:9, Ephesians 1:19–20

Week 2 of the Sermon Series: Step by Step covers the importance of perseverance and staying the course, rather than just starting strong. Staying focused and consistent is crucial in various aspects of life, such as faith, marriage, and parenting. Jake Mills references the book of Haggai in the Bible, where God calls the people to rebuild the temple. As they begin to build, they also begin to compare their start to another’s finish, and become discouraged and give up. The quickest way to destroy something is to compare it to something else. Another discouragement that’s mentioned is small beginnings, thinking you’re taking two steps forward and then three steps backwards. Because of critical comparisons and small beginnings, they were discouraged. Hear how God responds and encourages them to move forward, by relying on the power of the Holy Spirit within believers to be strong and do the work, brick by brick, to achieve their goals and glorify God.

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July 9, 2023 • Jake Mills • Haggai 1

Have you ever worked hard for a long time at something that was good and right, but it just didn’t pan out like you thought it would? You thought things would be better by now, but they’re not. We have this tendency to expect big and fast results, especially when we’re doing the good thing, the God thing. And when we don’t see the expected results, it can cause disappointment and make us question if it was God’s will to begin with. Often we think if God is calling me to do something, He’ll make it easy. But what we need to understand is that the closer we get to doing something that matters to the heart of God, the more likely we are to face opposition. When we’re trying to follow God’s will, difficulty isn't a sign that God's against us. Often, it's a sign that we’re on the right track. When opposition comes, ask God to enable you, empower you, and lead you to choose the difficult right over the comfortable wrong. But what if it doesn’t work? Results are God's responsibility, but obedience is ours. We’re not responsible for the results, but we are responsible for the obedience. This is what’s happening in the Book of Haggai, a story of re-building the temple of God. Listen as Jake Mills discusses the hardships that unfold in this book, where the Jews are trying to do what God has called them to do, but they face many challenges and even give up for 14 years. The prophet Haggai is going to help empower the people to do the difficult right over the comfortable wrong and move back into obedience, living in God’s will.