Our text today is from the fifth vision given to Zecharia about rebuilding the temple. This vision would bring the most lasting impact. The angel noticed that Zechariah had disconnected and had to get him reengaged. Zechariah’s job was to see and hear, but he had temporarily lost focus and was not seeing and hearing. Is it possible we have lived so long for God that we have turned some things out? Things that used to stir and move us have become commonplace. Brother Hughes lists four things that need to reawakened in us.

We need to awaken the wind of God to blow the junk out of our lives

We need to awaken our song of praise for all His blessings and mercies

We need to awaken to the goodness of God’s provision and protection in our lives

We need to awaken to the new thing that God wants to do in our lives.

Far too many believe that living for God will insulate us from struggles and strife. Nothing could be further from the truth. Paul lived with a thorn in his side. All of the disciples suffered greatly and died horrible deaths. God never abandons or forsakes us. Jesus said he would be with us, even to the end of the world. We try very hard to avoid struggle, but no one can escape it. We have become so accustomed to avoiding struggle that we wonder if God is mad at us when struggles show up. The garment of salvation cannot be formed without a struggle. When struggles come, it does not mean that God is mad at us. We cannot measure our lives by whether things are going well. The greatest victory is not to avoid a battle but to fight that battle and win. God will equip us to fight any battle that comes against us. Our text tells us that He will perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle us after we have struggled a while. A while is a short time. God will give us what we need to sustain the struggle for a while, stabilize us, provide us with strength, and then settle us. When the struggle shows up, it is an opportunity to discover God's greatness.

Far too many believe that living for God will insulate us from struggles and strife. Nothing could be further from the truth. Paul lived with a thorn in his side. All of the disciples suffered greatly and died horrible deaths. God never abandons or forsakes us. Jesus said he would be with us, even to the end of the world. We try very hard to avoid struggle, but no one can escape it. We have become so accustomed to avoiding struggle that we wonder if God is mad at us when struggles show up. The garment of salvation cannot be formed without a struggle. When struggles come, it does not mean that God is mad at us. We cannot measure our lives by whether things are going well. The greatest victory is not to avoid a battle but to fight that battle and win. God will equip us to fight any battle that comes against us. Our text tells us that He will perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle us after we have struggled a while. A while is a short time. God will give us what we need to sustain the struggle for a while, stabilize us, provide us with strength, and then settle us. When the struggle shows up, it is an opportunity to discover God's greatness.

Far too many believe that living for God will insulate us from struggles and strife. Nothing could be further from the truth. Paul lived with a thorn in his side. All of the disciples suffered greatly and died horrible deaths. God never abandons or forsakes us. Jesus said he would be with us, even to the end of the world. We try very hard to avoid struggle, but no one can escape it. We have become so accustomed to avoiding struggle that we wonder if God is mad at us when struggles show up. The garment of salvation cannot be formed without a struggle. When struggles come, it does not mean that God is mad at us. We cannot measure our lives by whether things are going well. The greatest victory is not to avoid a battle but to fight that battle and win. God will equip us to fight any battle that comes against us. Our text tells us that He will perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle us after we have struggled a while. A while is a short time. God will give us what we need to sustain the struggle for a while, stabilize us, provide us with strength, and then settle us. When the struggle shows up, it is an opportunity to discover God's greatness.

Self-help programs and efforts permeate our society. Bookstores are full of books that promise results. There are many twelve-step organizations with the mission to help people gain victory over their addictions. The problem with most of these programs and organizations is that they have the right intentions, but they have the wrong who. These programs focus on accountability and support, but they do not look to the right source for that accountability or support. The bible is clear that Jesus is the supplier of all of our needs.

Self-help programs and efforts permeate our society. Bookstores are full of books that promise results. There are many twelve-step organizations with the mission to help people gain victory over their addictions. The problem with most of these programs and organizations is that they have the right intentions, but they have the wrong who. These programs focus on accountability and support, but they do not look to the right source for that accountability or support. The bible is clear that Jesus is the supplier of all of our needs.

Self-help programs and efforts permeate our society. Bookstores are full of books that promise results. There are many twelve-step organizations with the mission to help people gain victory over their addictions. The problem with most of these programs and organizations is that they have the right intentions, but they have the wrong who. These programs focus on accountability and support, but they do not look to the right source for that accountability or support. The bible is clear that Jesus is the supplier of all of our needs.

The story in our text is trivial, but everything in the bible is there for a purpose. This story is here so that we can realize that God is concerned with the most trivial of losses in our lives. God sees what is lost in our lives and wants to help us get it back. He will overcome the laws of physics and nature to help us recover what is lost. No matter what we have lost, God has the power to restore it.

The story in our text is trivial, but everything in the bible is there for a purpose. This story is here so that we can realize that God is concerned with the most trivial of losses in our lives. God sees what is lost in our lives and wants to help us get it back. He will overcome the laws of physics and nature to help us recover what is lost. No matter what we have lost, God has the power to restore it.

The story in our text is trivial, but everything in the bible is there for a purpose. This story is here so that we can realize that God is concerned with the most trivial of losses in our lives. God sees what is lost in our lives and wants to help us get it back. He will overcome the laws of physics and nature to help us recover what is lost. No matter what we have lost, God has the power to restore it.