Love Church | Audio Podcast

We all know the feeling — looking around, seeing what everyone else has, and quietly thinking, “I want that.” In 1 Samuel 7 and 8, the people of Israel did exactly that. They had God as their King. They had miracle after miracle in their rearview mirror. And they still asked for a human king “like all the other nations have.”

In this message at Love Church Omaha, Luke Reelfs walks through the danger of getting what you think you want when it’s outside of God’s best — and gives a three-step path back: turn from idols, trust God’s leadership, talk to Him before you chase what everyone else is chasing.

What if your biggest obstacle is not fear — but the choice to hold back? In Judges 6, God calls Gideon a mighty hero while he is literally hiding in a wine press. That disconnect is the whole point. In Why You Keep Holding Back, Pastor Mike O'Connell unpacks the Greek word deilía from 2 Timothy 1:7 — often translated "timidity" — and reveals that it is not describing an emotion. It is describing a posture: the decision to shrink back when courage is already available to you.

God did not just call Gideon out of hiding. He stripped away every safety net — shrinking an army of 32,000 down to 300 — so there would be no question about who deserved the credit. If there is a decision you keep deferring, a conversation you keep avoiding, or a calling you keep softening to make it more comfortable, this message will challenge you. What God sees in you is not what your circumstances are telling you. And the step He is asking you to take might be the very thing that unlocks everything else.