The message opened with the reminder that everything depends on the Lord’s presence — without Him, all our efforts are empty — and Brother Jessie reflected on growing up watching services transform the moment God moved in. From Isaiah 55, he emphasized that God’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours, then returned to Joshua and the conquest of Canaan to show how the Christian life mirrors that journey: salvation brings us into the land, but growth requires battles, obedience, and trust. Joshua, a seasoned warrior, faced Jericho not with swords but with a strange strategy from God — priests with ram’s horns, silent marches, and a shout on the seventh day. It made no earthly sense, yet God’s ways rarely do, and victory only comes by following His plan. Brother Jessie reminded the church that God prepares His people ahead of their trials, leads them straight through battles rather than around them, and calls them to trust even when His instructions seem irrational. Whether it’s anointing the sick, believing for healing, or facing impossible walls, the Lord’s strategy still works when His people obey. The Christian walk may look foolish to the world, but God has chosen the “foolish things” to confound the wise, and if we follow Him — step by step, shout by shout — He will bring us through.

Whitwell, Tennessee — Fairview Union Church