Hello, my friends. Wow! There has been some hell in our lives over the last week or so. I'm talking about Hurricane Ida. I live on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and like many of you, we had some anxiety. That happens when we see old Jim Cantore from the Weather Channel anywhere on TV- and especially anywhere near this area. So, today I really have a good show. I am the guest. No, my guest is going to be God. Because I must admit- I must tell you- that no matter with all my faith, all my trust in God, all my beliefs in the power of Jesus Christ, that came Friday last week before Katrina. (I wanted to say Katrina. I'm still scarred in my mind from Katrina because I was wiped out from eight feet of water.) So, I see the storm Ida in the Gulf of Mexico, and anxiety just pours in. This also happens any time I see a storm, and I'm thinking, “I don't need this. What am I going to do? Do I need to just move away? Where am I going to run?” But, can we ever run from any storm in life?

We may be able to relocate into areas that don't get hurricanes, but what about the other storms in life? Sickness, cancer, loss of a job, COVID. Storms of life are just something that we deal with. I think today is even more important to help you “Get the Hell out of Your Life” because I saw the hell creeping up in my life through Hurricane Ida, and I said, "Lord, I don't like this." I had one prayer from Friday all the way through Monday of Hurricane Ida. “Lord, I will prepare to have the power go off. But Lord, my prayer is that you do not turn off the power. Don't let the power go out.” And friends, I lost power at our house a few times, but it came right back on within five to ten minutes. So, when all is said and done, it's Tuesday, and I'm looking over everything. We had very, very little damage, no power outages, and I'm sitting in a chair in my garage and reflecting over the last few days.

And, of course, it is my nature to begin asking God, "God, what did I learn in this? What is it that I need to learn other than that I need a lot of pills or other things to deal with anxiety,"-which I didn't have any, but boy, is it tempting to run to the nearest package store! But I said, “No, I've got to deal with this on my own because I want to master the storms in my life, and what God told me was really something that was earth shattering that I want to share with you:  The power of God that works in your life and my life never leaves us; and when we are in the storms of life, we may live in the dark outer world.

But if we remind ourselves, we need to ask God to ignite that power inside of us to a higher level- a power that will melt away the anxiety, a power that will make us strong when we feel weak, a power that will just remind us that we are in the hands of God, and He is going to protect us.

1 Chronicles 29:11 says, ““Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all.”

Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.”

Now, obviously that sounds a lot easier than it is, but it's true. And right now, in this world, there are storms in epic proportions, but there is one thing that is constant. One thing that is perfect. There is one thing that each of us need- some accept it, and some refuse it- and that is to acknowledge there is a God, a real God, a really good God that sent his son Jesus to give us access to the power of God in heaven. He is our mediator.

1 John 4:15 says, “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.”

God is our “go-to guy.” So, as I'm reflecting over everything going on with the storm, it's coming to me- what I need to share with you today and for you to share this with other people that are in dire straits today. They're scared, and they're worried. But during the transition (and this is a transition because we will come back), we will be back with power, water, sewage, and everything else is going to be coming back. But the one thing that is instant right now, if we acknowledge it and we receive it from God, is that His son, Jesus Christ, and the power in our lives will give us a peace that surpasses all understanding.

In other words, we can look at the storm around us and all the things that are missing, things that are just upside-down in our life, but with the power of Jesus Christ radiating in our mind and our spirit and our soul, we can believe and trust that He is going to put the pieces together. In the meantime, He will give us peace. A peace so we can sleep, a peace so we can have hope. Isn't that what we all want in storms of life whether it's a hurricane, tornado, cancer, death, or the loss of a loved one? Isn't that what we want so much is some peace and some hope, and we will pay anything for that?

One of the things that has hurt a lot of people that go through these trials and storms of life is the fact that they are self-made people. And what I mean is this- they have accomplished many wonderful things. They've built companies; they built a house; and they've got a great investment portfolio. Their kids are in college. They took control of their life, and they did well. But when a storm comes in, they think they are going to fix it. They're going to move. They're going to get a bigger house. They're going to get a stronger house. They're going to get an army tank, so they can drive through the storms of life. But friends, it doesn't work that way. Self-made people are sometimes their worst enemy because they are used to solving problems themselves, gaining their own peace or the meditation of a positive mindset, but it is only temporary.

True, long-lasting peace, comfort, and happiness can only come through God himself, through His Son, Jesus Christ. When Jesus lives on the inside of you, it radiates peace, power, purpose, and passion. Now, you have to activate that. You have to ask Jesus, and you may have to be humbled and say, "I cannot do this God, without You. I'm scared. I'm worried. I don't know the future, but You know my future. So, if anything, will you please hold me, and give me some peace and understanding of what is going on in my life?" Sounds simple. Doesn't it? It is simple. We make it difficult. We want to fix everything that is broken in our life whether we move; we trade in our spouses; or we get a new car. When things don't work right, we think we can fix it, and we can't do anything.

In fact, we probably will make it worse because we have these little patches on our life; and temporarily, we feel good. "Oh, wow. I've got a stronger house. I can go through the next storm." Yeah. Well, you can probably go through the next hurricane, but what are you going to do when you get a bad doctor's report? What are you going to do when you get terminated? You see, storms are of all kinds, my friends, and we, those that call themselves children of God that have asked Jesus to come in their heart, this is our time to tap into the power of God. This is our time to show an unbelieving world where our hope is, where our peace is, and what power we have. Yes, we will rebuild again, but we will rebuild better and stronger with the grace of God. More on the power that you have after the break.

1 Peter 5:10 says, “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”

Today, I'm kind of scattered in my thoughts because I don't have a guest, but I'm glad I don't have a guest because it gives me an opportunity to bring to the forefront the star of “Get the Hell out of Your Life,” the star of my life, and that is Jesus Christ. Now, maybe you are just new to this program, “Get the Hell out of Your Life.” I need to tell you a few things about why it was even started. I know a lot of times you will hear preachers, people just like me, talking about God and the power of God and how God transforms. And you say, "Well, that's their job. Of course, they're going to say that. What else are they going to say?" But what I do is I find real people that had real struggles, and now, they have real hope.

They share their stories. I have hundreds of stories from different people from all walks of life, every shape, every color, everything you can imagine, totally different lives turned upside down. They had storms in their lives, and they have one constant thing in their life now. It was only through God they were able to overcome their addictions. They overcame their fear. They discovered a peace, a power, and an understanding that God is for them and not against them. So, I will share their stories. You need to hear from as many people as possible of who this God is. Who is Jesus? Who is the real Jesus? It is through stories like that, that sharpen your faith. They validate the power, the mercy, the grace, the goodness, the forgiveness, and the renewing of what God is all about. We are in an incredible time in life where the storms of this world are getting bigger and bigger and more dramatic.

But our God is bigger than COVID. Our God is bigger than hurricanes. Our God is bigger than cancer. Our God defeated death! So, maybe just perhaps, maybe this is the time for you to ask yourself, "How has my walk with God been going?" Are you afraid? You’re worried; you’re scared; you wonder what's going on; you worry about your children; and you worry about your future. Well, that is exactly the type of person that needs to understand that God understands where you are. He wants you to come to Him. He wants to invade your life and fill your entire body with His power, in His peace, in His understanding. Only in times of trouble, only in the storms of life do people become open to God. Now, you cannot rely on your intellect, your ingenuity, the government, and all the other people that are going to fix your problems because they're not going to. Oh no, they might make you feel good for a little while, but no, they can never fix what is broken in your life.

Only God can, and He only can when you invite Him in to share your life with Him and puts you on a path to understanding why you are here and why you go through those storms. There are lessons from storms. I was on the radio during Hurricane Katrina. I told the listeners that one day we will look back at Hurricane Katrina, and we will be thankful for it. Well, I had a lot of people call in and say, "Why would you say something like that?" I would respond, "Well, if you let me finish, or if you would have heard everything..." It was kind of a spiritual bootcamp, because my feeling was those of us that lived through Hurricane Katrina, if we could get through that and believe me, friends, it was terrible. I was totally, totally wiped out. But if we could get through that, we could get through anything.

So, when this new storm arrives into the Gulf Coast, even though I have anxiety and am nervous and wondering what's going on, I couldn't. Even my wife said, "You can't sit still. You're all over the place." And, I couldn't, and I'm praying to God, "Hey God, keep the power on. Don't let the power go out." I was worried about lights, and I was worried about the refrigerator. But, what I should have been worried about is the power of God in my life. I should have been focusing more on, "God, give me Your power. Give me Your strength. Give me Your wisdom. Let me see what I need to see. Let me walk through this storm. Let me walk on the water of difficulties of life, and let my puny, teeny weeny, little faith move the mountains of difficulty; so I can see what You're up to."

Now, I say that afterwards because I couldn't do that during the storm, I was too rattled. Now that the storm's over, the poor people in Louisiana are going through some trials and tribulations, and they will rebuild and will have their power on. But in the meantime, until that stuff is restored, they need to understand that God has not forgotten them. God doesn't forget you and I when we are going through storms, and we're sitting alone in the dark, or we're in a waiting room waiting for the surgeon to come in and give us a report. We are not alone. God is right there with us. In fact, I get to the point now that I just bring an extra chair with me and say, "God, pull up because I can't go through this storm without You." It's a mindset that Jesus is with me, Jesus is for me, and Jesus is not going to lead me to destruction.

In fact, He's going to give me a life that is an abundant life. And friends, you and I are going to encounter storms until we leave this world. What we must do is master the emotions that come with us- the emotions that come with the storm, the fear and the doubt- and we have to master them to the point that we turn it all over to God. Is there anything else you can do? Does it make a difference? I had a neighbor that was kind of sad. He had one of those $14,000 generators that were going to turn on as soon as the power went off. Guess what? He didn't get to use it. And those of us did not spend $14,000, we had the benefit of saving money, and we didn't lose power.

But for the Christians out there, for the ones that have God at the forefront of their life, you can never lose the power of Jesus Christ inside of you. That power will take and destroy every mountain of difficulty, every doubt, every fear, every ounce of anxiety and throw it into the sea of doom and gloom to never return. Now, it may rear its ugly head occasionally, but that's when you have to say, "I am a child of God. Be gone, fear and anxiety in the name of Jesus!" Remember when Jesus was in the boat with the disciples, and there was a storm? This is from Mark Chapter 4:37-39. Jesus was sleeping, and they woke him up, "Hey, what's going on here? Jesus, you're going to let us drown?" He says, "Hey, listen, here, you people have little faith." And then He said, "Peace be still." And the storm stopped. Sometimes, friends, you have to tell the storms in your life many times, "Peace be still. I am in the hands of God."

I remember after Katrina, one of the most humbling experiences was going to a food line a few days after Katrina, and I'm in line with judges, lawyers, and politicians. For that one day or a few days or a few weeks, we were all equal. We had no home. We had no underwear. We had no clothes. We lost everything, and it did not matter what our bank account showed. We could do nothing with it. We're all equal for a time, and we grabbed onto God with all we could- kind of like that wrestling match with Jacob and God. Jacob says, "God, I'm not letting go until I receive my blessing."

God blessed him. Sometimes, friends, when you are in that storm of life, you have to hold on to God with all your heart, your mind, and strength and say, "I am not letting go until you bless me. I am not letting go until I get to peace." This is the time to storm the gates of heaven and say, "I need help. I need answers. I need peace." I want to ask this to people listening. Were you one of them that prayed before the storm for God to do something or to protect you? We all pray when we get there- when we get into storms. But the question is when the storm's gone, do you honor the prayer and the commitment that you told God you would do if He would do this? It's always easy to go to God when things are bad.

But then when things become good, we kind of forget, and we put God back on the back burner.  Then, we go and complete the agenda that we have for our life instead of following the agenda that God has for our life until another storm comes, Then, we go back, and we're like the little hamster on the wheel. We just go around in circles and circles. The good news is this. God is alive and well, and He is sitting on the throne, and Jesus, the Lion of Judah, wants to be let out of the cage and roar and show the world through you that He is the Prince of Peace. He is the answer to the troubles in this world. This is your time.

Well, friends, my time is up, but I would be really a bad host not inviting you right this minute to say this prayer. “Dear Jesus, I have failed you with my worry, with my doubt, with my waywardness. I, today, will run into Your arms. Please forgive me for my doubt, for my mistakes, for the things that have hindered an intimate relationship with You. Jesus invaded my life. Invade my mind, ignite my dreams, ignite my soul. Give me a passion. Give me peace. I'm trusting you Jesus. If what you said in the Bible is true, well Lord, I need it now in my life. I'm trusting you. You are the real Jesus. Help me, guide me, protect me, and let me see what I need to see; so, I can become a disciple of yours. Amen.” Friends, you are not alone, and your friends are not alone. God has never forgotten you.

We forget God sometimes and shame on us. But the storms in life are to turn us around and run into the arms of our Heavenly Father in preparation for the one day when we'll leave this world, and we will be reunited again in heaven with our loved ones, with God for eternity. This is our time. I love you. I'm praying for you, and God has an incredible plan just for you. Only He can give you the plan. So, today is the day to let Jesus love the hell right out of your life and put you on a path to peace, purpose, and passion. Now share this message with others. And if you want to hear other podcasts with stories of hope, go to my website, thepromoter.org and click on podcasts. Plenty of stories of faith from individuals just like you. I'll see you next week. God bless you.