James Greer: 00:00 Good morning Journey Church. Amen? What a wonderful testimony. What a wonderful place to grow in the Lord, is in small groups. Some people call them Sunday school groups, sometimes they meet on Sunday mornings. Sometimes we have groups on Wednesday night, sometimes we have them on Thursday night. But I think there always comes a time in your life and my life that we need other people in our life, and that’s a great place to have it. Well, we’re starting a new series called follow the filling, and it’s so important what we fill our life with. 2020 is going to be the best year ever. The question is this, do you want 2020 to be the best year ever in your life?

James Greer: 00:44 It can, but you have to make the choice. We can’t make it for you. It’s more than simply trying. I’ll tell you, I’ve gone through so many years with people say, I’m trying to be better. You don’t change and you don’t have a better year by simply trying, you have the best year ever by trusting and training, and that that’s what we’re going to try and do the next 21 days. You’ll get a 21 day devotion and we’ll be talking about that, how to use it. And if you’ll commit to doing and follow the filling, 2020 will be the best year ever. Not might be, it will be. When you learn to follow the filling, there’s nothing, I mean, nothing that can stop 2020 from being the best year ever. In other words, we’re going to eventually say, where the filling leads, we will follow. So the question is, are you ready for that Pineville? And how about Alexandra? Amen? Woo.

James Greer: 01:48 Ephesians 5:18 will kind of be a key verse and we’ll come back and look at that. Be not drunk with wine wherein it’s excess, but be filled with the Holy spirit. What God word says, we just got to believe it. So, what I want to do is I want to say, we’re going to follow the filling. Don’t follow your feelings, but the filling. And where the filling leads, we’re going to follow. Again, Ephesians 5:18 says, don’t be drunk with wine. When you’re talking about, don’t be drunk with wine. Some people can drink one or two glasses and get kind of silly, don’t they? Some people take the bottle. Some people, it takes two or three bottles, but it says, don’t be drunk with wine. So, if you’re not going to be drunk with wine, one of the things you have to do is just stop drinking too much wine. Amen? And you won’t get drunk. But it says on the other way, it says to do something, excuse me. It says to be filled with the Holy spirit. Don’t keep getting drunk with wine, but do keep being filled with the Holy spirit. So, in other words, it’s really giving you an analogy. It’s trying to tell you, understand, anybody understands how to get drunk with wine. Amen?

James Greer: 03:14 But, not everybody understands how to get filled with the Holy Spirit. But if you say, in a picture speaking, if you just keep drinking wine, you’ll get drunk. If you’ll keep taking in God’s word and by the Holy spirit on a regular basis, you’re learning to be filled with the Holy spirit. When you’re drunk with wine, I can just tell you. I mean, the big boys told me this, when you’re drunk with wine and if you do it long enough, you’ll do something and say something that you normally don’t. Amen? And a lot of times you’ll wish you hadn’t had done it. A matter of fact, I can tell you, if you get drunk too many times, you’ll eventually say something you wish you hadn’t said. Amen? Some of you all know it, too. Now, don’t say Amen because you give it away. but on the other hand, when you’re filled with the Holy spirit, you ready? You’ll also do things and say things that you normally won’t do, but it’s the right things. It’ll bring you a new joy and new power that you’ve never experienced in your life.

James Greer: 04:29 It was written though in the context of being continually filled with the Holy Spirit. Now, when we get saved, the Holy spirit comes and lives in us. But, to be filled with the Holy Spirit is a continual process. It’s not a onetime thing. It’s a continual process of being filled with that. Thank you. So, it’s saying we have to continue to be filled with the Holy spirit and the reason we have to continually be filled, because the world is pressing us on every side and we leak. I mean it just squeezes, there’s pressure and there’s problems and there’s tribulation, all during the week. The world is just trying to squeeze the life out of us, or it’s trying to squeeze the spirit out of us. So, we’ve got to continue to bring the spirit back in. I mean, it’s like a press. I mean, if there’s a coin to be made, whether it’s penny or a nickel or dime, they put the material in and then there’s this big press that just squeezes it together and it molds it into whatever shape it wants it to be. That’s what the world is trying to do to me and you.

James Greer: 05:44 Romans 12:2 puts it this way. Don’t be conformed, don’t be molded to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you might prove, what is a good, acceptable and perfect will of God. In other words, continue to be filled with the spirit where you would not be molded into the world. Man, I’m sorry. 2020 is going to be the best year ever for journey church. You’re the church. It can be the best year for you. You have to choose it. What it does not mean, that you won’t face trials and tribulations and temptations and problems, but how you respond. You ready? How you respond to the problems of pressures and the stress is greatly determined by what you’re filled with.

James Greer: 06:38 John 16:33 says this, these things I have spoken to you. Jesus is speaking to me and to Journey Church. That in me, in Jesus Christ, if you’d be filled with me, you’re going to have peace. In the world you’re going to have tribulation. That means problems, stress, trouble, pressure, be of good cheer. I’ve overcome the world. Amen? Two containers. Amen? You notice I got clear ones. I was going to get diet seven up. I’m getting ready for the 21 day fast and during lunch we’re going to just drink liquids, preferably water. But, I want to get some diet seven up for me. So I’m going to do that too. But, but, but this, these containers are like earthling vessels. The Bible calls Christians, earthling vessels. And what we put in these vessels greatly determines what goes out.

James Greer: 07:58 If I shake these up, what’s on the inside greatly determines what comes out, right? Whoa. You haven’t seen nothing yet. Yeah. Hey, this one right here is filled with the spirit, man. By the way, if you do not know it. In John it talks about water being a type of the Holy spirit. There’s a woman that came to the well, she had been married five times by the way. And Jesus said, I can give you a drink where you will not thirst anymore. And she said, Jesus, give me that drink. And he said, go tell your husband. She said, I don’t have one. She said, yeah. I know you’ve been married five times. The one you live with right now, he’s not the husband either. She said, I perceive you’re a prophet. No joke, honey. What he was telling her is you’ve been bringing the wrong things into your life trying to find happiness and contentment. You’ve been filling your life with the wrong thing, and so what’s in your life when problems come greatly determine how you respond, I’m going to have tribulations. You’re going to have tribulations. We all have tribulations and trials. Amen? If it’s filled with the world, that’s one thing you were supposed to, uh oh. If it’s filled with the spirit, not like that. If it’s filled with the world, you all might have to get something else on this table.

James Greer: 09:31 Have you ever known people, every time a problem comes up in their life, this is what they look like. They just blow up, man, I cannot believe it, they’re about stressed out, they blow up, they overreact. It’s worse than nothing, and then there’s other people have the same problems. Everyone know what the difference is? Same problem. The difference is this person never got filled with the spirit. The world was greatly controlled by what was going on in their life. And so every time a problem came, they erupted. They never had peace. This person had the same exact problems, the same tribulations, the same financial problem, the same marriage problems. And look how calm they were. You see how important it is 2020 that you learn to be filled with the spirit and you follow the what? The filling.

James Greer: 10:32 So, we’re the filling leads, we shall follow. Amen? And so that’s what it means. So you’re going to go into 2020 you’re going to have trials, you’re going to have tribulations. But, you’re going to go in with a new confidence, a new piece, a new power, because you say, Hey man, because right now, because I’m filled with the power and the presence of God, I can overcome it because Jesus said so and because I’m filled with the spirit. God wants us to commit to that.

James Greer: 11:17 Number one, what if you committed to follow the filling, what would happen to you? What would happen? See the greatest problem in America today, the greatest problem even with Christians today, the greatest problem in your marriage today is really not your mate. If I were to ask you if you already have a lot of marriage problems, you would say, I’ve done it for 35 years. I quit doing it because I’m a terrible counselor. If you want to stop coming to church, just come to me for counseling. I do it all the time. They come to me one time. Then I even, they just stop coming to church. But, the greatest problem in America, including Christians, including the church today, is you’re trying to follow your feelings instead of the filling of the Holy spirit.

James Greer: 12:11 If you would really take this lesson and the next 21 days, and you would apply it, there would absolutely be nothing that could stop you from having the best 2020 in your whole entire life. It would radically change every area of your life. It’ll change your marriage, you’ll change your finances, it’ll change your emotional state, it’ll change your job. You will start experiencing a peace that surpasses all understanding, in spite of your circumstances, in spite of the situation. Both people had the same situation, both people had the same circumstances. One kept blowing up, one kept overreacting. The other one had perfect peace, because the difference is what was filled inside the container. You are the container that God wants to fill. Amen, brother James. That is good, man. Philippians 4 says, don’t worry about a few things, so don’t worry about anything. Pray about everything with a faithful heart. Offer up your prayers and your requests to God. You know why then? Because you belong to Christ. Because if you’re here today and you’re not sure if you belong to Christ, that’s the beginning state.

James Greer: 13:00 God’s going to bless you with what peace, huh? That no one, you can’t even understand it. And this peace will control the way you think and the way you feel. Do you understand that when you’re a Christian and you are filled with the power and the presence of the Holy spirit, they’ll be a peace that will come across your life, you’re not even going to completely understand it, because it comes from God. You don’t have to be able to explain it. You can just enjoy it and thank God for it. So, it says in another translation, it puts it this way, the peace of God surpasses all understanding because it guards your heart and your mind through Jesus Christ. See, this is what you got to come to believe. If God’s word, says it, we can have it, if we simply believe it and obey it.

James Greer: 13:56 Now, what’s fantastic is starting the 30th which is tomorrow through the 19th of January, you should have a devotion. Everybody should’ve gotten the devotion, the 21 day devotion. Right? Follow the fillings. They follow the what? Where the filling leads we shall follow. You got it. Read it. Believe it and experience it. Now, I’m going to tell you what our staff did. Of course, part of it, they’re helping editing it. They read the whole thing first, and then I can remember Darryl when he was at Alexandria campus. When Daryl was reading it, he was kind of helping edit it. He kept saying, wow man, this is great, this is exciting. He started getting so excited reading it. He couldn’t wait until it was there. I would suggest you read it, but don’t put it down. Then Monday during lunch, you fast and you read this and you ask God, God would fill me with your spirit where I could follow.

James Greer: 14:53 See, most people pray to God and they say, God, they think he’s Santa Claus. We just had Christmas, he’s not Santa Claus. He gives you what you need, not always what you want. And the great thing about this, if you say, God, fill me with your spirit where I could follow. You’re going to find out what you really wanted might not have been what you thought. Because when you follow the spirit of God, you’re going to be filled like you’ve never been filled before. So, what do you do for 21 days? You fast for lunch. You can still have liquid, clear liquids or whatever liquid, right? But during that time you ask God to fill you. You pray. Pray, God, I pray Journey Church has the best year ever. I pray that people get saved. I pray that prodigals return home. I pray for my finances. I pray for my marriage. But most of all, you pray every single day. God, would you fill me with your spirit so I could follow you.

James Greer: 16:00 You have to start learning how to surrender. At that time. The word surrender is you become preoccupied. You become completely dependent upon Christ. When you become preoccupied and dependent upon Christ, your behavior changes. It reflects in your behavior. See, surrender leads to the supernatural. Here’s some things you’ll experience. You’ll have a new power in God’s word. Souls will be saved. You’ll be a part of fellowship like never before. Wonders and amazement, unbelievable unity, generosity instead of selfishness. One of the greatest problems in America today and in your family is selfishness. You’ll have a new meaning to small groups. You’ll do life together and gladness and joy unspeakable. The church will be unstoppable, unbelievable, united and unique. As I say, I personally believe that we can still have what the church in Acts had. I believe what the church in Acts had, was a picture of what God wants us to have today.

James Greer: 17:14 In fact, I’m going to read you a note that I wrote to our staff even before we kicked this off. I was getting ready for 2020 and I got up one morning. I wrote the staff this, Haggai 2:8-9 and it says, the silver is mine, God speaking. He said, the silver is mine. The gold is mine, says the Lord of hosts. God is speaking and he’s writing us a note. Amen? He said, the gold is mine and the silver’s mine. Then he says, the glory of the latter temple shall be greater than the former. He said, the gold is mine. The silver is mine. I want the latter. Half the temple be better, and then he says, the Lord of hosts. God says, I want you to know who’s writing the note, and in this place I shall give peace, says the Lord of hosts.

James Greer: 18:07 That is the third time, I think he’s trying to make it clear who’s writing the letter. They said, this is the Lord of the armies of heaven, the King of Kings, the one, the old powerful one, the Lord who’s over all the armies of heaven, the one that can command all the angels. I said, you know, why would 2020 not be the best year ever? God says the silvers his, the gold is his. It all belongs to him. I said, let’s ask him for some. Amen? Let’s ask you for a little more silver, little more gold. Not only can we ask him for some silver and gold, it all belongs to him anyway. Amen? And he put it in my, he put it in your, it’s just not in our pockets. We’ve got to go out and ask for it, but it’s all his. Amen? He said the latter should be greater and he said, he’s the Lord of hosts. Basically God was saying, he has all the money, he has all the power. He could do it with peace beyond our imagination and he says, I got the power again. What would you like the Lord of hosts do in your life? What would you like for him to do in your family? I believe if you followed your filling, he would do it. God begins to answer, true story.

James Greer: 19:25 We get a call. Josh gets called, he calls. He says, Hey, there’s a doctor, doesn’t go to church. We don’t know him. He wants to donate some maybe some land in an older house to our church, probably $20,000, $25,000 just for free. I said, yeah, we take God’s silver. Amen? Pretty good donation to start off with. I said, yeah, I thank God for that. The very next Sunday we have a member that had kind of been holding on to some of his tithes and he said, Hey, I think this is a Sunday to do it, and gave another $27,000. So God, I said, God, man. I said, God, this must be the gold. God said, no, that’s just the silver. I said Amen, God, you’re kicking in. We get 27,000, we’ve got another 20,000 I said, man, I’ve never seen it in my life. I said, God said you never asked for it. I am asking now. Amen?

James Greer: 20:24 What I’m trying to tell you though, I said we need to follow the what? Filling. See, I want us to follow the filling. I want us to do what God calls me to do. I went to church, so much of my time and I would try to do something out of guilt and regret. I don’t want to do it out of guilt and regret. I want to do it out of love and expectation of what God has in store.

James Greer: 20:52 I’m going to read Acts 2:41-47, you ready? And I want you to see what I believe that we could experience if we followed the filling. It says, then those who gladly received the word, first of all, one of the things you need to do when you come to church is gladly received the word, amen? And you know they were baptized in that day. There’s about 3000 souls added to the church. Not too bad a day. Amen? Can I tell you something? We’ve had about 116 souls baptized this year. Amen? Woo. Journey Church is blessed from being in the one, top 1% of the churches in the whole state the fastest growing church. Pineville, Journey Church, from my understanding, the records we just got, was the number one fastest growing church and Pineville total. Amen? That’s great. Amen? That’s wonderful. Let’s praise God. Listen, I want to be a part of seeing 3000 people saved, wouldn’t that be great? Amen? That’s what happened to them in the new Testament church. That’s what you could be a part of. Verse 42 says, and they continue steadfast in the Apostle’s doctrine and fellowship and breaking bread and their prayer. You’ve got the opportunity.

James Greer: 21:47 You’ve got 21 days of fasting and prayer, every single day, go all in. Skip your lunch. That isn’t going to hurt any of us. Amen? We’re not doing it to lose weight. We’re doing have a spiritual relationship with God. Get into a small group fellowship. Verse 43, then fear came upon every soul. Listen to this, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Guess what? I know something. I know something’s going to happen. Surrender always leads to the supernatural.

James Greer: 22:27 If you participate, you will get to experience wonders like you’ve never experienced in your entire life. 44, now all who believe were together and they had all things in common. Man, I love that. One, this means unity. You can experience a supernatural unity. Selfishness is natural. Unselfishness is supernatural. You can only have unselfishness in your life and in your family, if you practice following the feeling they sold their possessions and their goods and they divided them on themselves. Nobody had any need. I mean, I’m telling you, like I said, being selfish is natural. Unselfish is not. Some of you are going to so surrender. You’re going to start tithing for the first time in your life instead of tipping. I mean, you ought to be ashamed. You come to God’s house and you tip God, you should tithe the first 10% of your income should go to God and God’s house. Amen, brother James. I don’t care if you’re a tipper or not. You should be a tither. Yes, brother James, you should. Generosity and tithing is the only thing and the only way you can fight greed. In fact, I’m so excited. November, just way down, November, November is going to be our miracle month. We’re going to have miracle month. We’re going to pray that month for healing, for finances, for prodigals and jobs.

James Greer: 23:42 But, we’re going to have a miracle month. That’s a month you start praying right now for November, we’re going to have a one- time gift in November. Let’s go be the most generous, gracious, unselfish gift you ever give. That’s November, right now I just want you to surrender. Verse 46 they continued daily with what? One accord. Unity in the temple. They wanted to come to church. They were breaking bread from house to house. They were in small groups. They ate their food and they did it with gladness and simplicity of heart. I love that they had unity and they had gladness instead of sadness. And another translation said, and day to day they met together in the temple. They broke bread together in different homes. They shared the food and they were happy.

James Greer: 24:53 You want to come to church. You wish you could come more. You want to be into small groups. Small groups is where you grow together. You care together. You eat together, you share together. Verse 47 they were praising God, having favor with all people and the Lord added to the church daily. Those who are being saved. Man, I’d love that. I love the favor of God to. The favor of God takes natural people, places and things, and he does a supernatural. It’s like when Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish and he multiplied because the favor of God was there. God says, during this time, the favor of God wants to be on the church and wants the favor of God also be on your life and what you have to just say. You just had to come to the point that you say, man, I’m ready to follow the filling. Amen? I’m to get ready to close, but I want to give a quick summary. Okay? You ready? They gladly received the word because they could see the results by 3000 people getting saved. Okay, here’s what you do. Look for opportunities starting this week to invite people to come to church and tell them about Jesus every day.

James Greer: 26:14 When you’re following the filling, God will open the doors like never before. For you to minister to invite and to witness here will be the key. When people are hurting and when people are happy, God through the Holy spirit will prompt you to minister to them or you invite them to come to church. Alright, so be committed to gladly receiving the word 21 days. Fast during lunch, except for liquids. Ask God to fill you with the Holy spirit, but only that you can follow him. Fellowship. I want to encourage you, if you’ve never been in a small group, I understand it can be scary at first. We have people in the back can help you. If you want to try one for four to six weeks and you don’t like it, there’s no pressure. If you don’t like that group, they’ll put you in another group. Haley will be in the back. She’ll be glad to help you find a group. I want to encourage you to think about it, if you’d never done it. This is the time in the year to do it. You need each other and they’re there. Richie will be back there, Haley, will be back there. I really want to say, Hey, if you’ve never done it, step across your comfort zone and try to do that.

James Greer: 27:14 Expect to experience wonders like you’ve never done. I want God to put wonders in your life that are so great, you not only know it, but those people around you all know that God’s doing something in your life. Enjoy the unity that’s available to you, not only in your family, but every area of your life. Practice being, you ready? Unselfish. Understand by nature everybody’s selfish. I’m selfish. You’re selfish. Practice being unselfish and do unselfish deeds. Starting in your own home.

James Greer: 28:10 Find ways to give not only financially, but physically by helping people emotionally by saying kind words. Okay, you ready? It starts by making a choice. You’ve got to make a choice this morning, first of all, that you accept Christ. You’re ready. Second of all, that you want to have a better 2020. You have to say, I want to choose today. I want 2020 to be the best year I’ve ever had. I’ve got to choose right now that I’m going to fill my life with the right things. Nobody else can do it. Your mate can’t do it for you. Your pastor can’t do it for you. Nobody else could do it for. I can tell you, you can continue to live like this and fill your life with the world, and you will respond just like this did. Or you can come today and you can say, hey, today wants to be. This is the day God, I’m going to start today by rededicating and recommitting my life. I want to be filled with your spirit. I want to join the church. I want to follow through in baptism. I want you to help me fall. Find a small group, but God, I don’t want to go home today. The same way that I came. I want 2020 to be the best year I’ve ever had. Would you stand? Let me pray with you and pray for you.

James Greer: 29:09 God, I just thank you for your word. I thank you for your power. I thank you for your presence. God, I pray for every single person here. I pray for every single person that’s watching online. God, I pray that lives would be changed, that’s so radically changed. God, that will people would be drawn to you. God, you’ve got the power. You’ve got the filling. We’ve got to make the choices. I prayed. The choices are started right here. Right now. It’s in your name. We pray. Amen.

Recorded in Pineville, Louisiana.