Cultivating a Teachable Heart

• Message Notes

  A Teachable Heart

  Pillar #2 - A Teachable Heart

  Proverbs 27:19 NKJV
  As in water face reflects face, So a man’s heart reveals the man.

  Proverbs 28:26 NKJV
  He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But whoever walks wisely will be delivered.

  Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

  1. A Teachable Heart is a Listening Heart

  Proverbs 1:8 NKJV
  My son, hear the instruction of your father.

  Proverbs 7:24 NKJV
  Now therefore, listen to me, my children; Pay attention to the words of my mouth

  Proverbs 13:1 NKJV
  A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

  Proverbs 19:27 NKJV
  Cease listening to instruction, my son, And you will stray from the words of knowledge.

  When we deal with our hearts God will open our ears!

  Proverbs 1:5 NKJV
  A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel

  Proverbs 1:33 NKJV
  But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil.

  Proverbs 8:6 NKJV
  Listen, for I will speak of excellent things, And from the opening of my lips will come right things;

  Proverbs 8:32 NKJV
  Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep my ways.

  Proverbs 8:34 NKJV
  Blessed is the man who listens to me…

  2. A Teachable Heart is a Receptive Heart

  Proverbs 10:8 NKJV
  The wise in heart will receive commands, But a prating fool will fall.

  Proverbs 10:8 - The wise in heart [are willing to learn so they] will accept and obey commands (instruction), But the babbling (chattering) fool [who is arrogant and thinks himself wise] will come to ruin. - AMP

  Proverbs 18:2 AMP
  A [closed-minded] fool does not delight in understanding, But only in revealing his personal opinions [unwittingly displaying his self-indulgence and his stupidity]. - AMP

  STOP TALKING YOURSELF OUT OF THE PRINCIPLES and START WALKING OUT THE PRINCIPLES

  3. A Teachable Heart is a Pliable Heart

  Proverbs 2:1-2 NKJV
  My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, 2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding;

  Proverbs 19:3 AMP
  The foolishness of man undermines his way [ruining whatever he undertakes]; Then his heart is resentful and rages against the Lord [for, being a fool, he blames the Lord instead of himself]. - AMP

• Transcript

  There's been a core of intercessors that have been praying 10 consecutive days. You might have been on this with us, praying and fasting, reading a proverb a day, which we committed to as well. But I'm expecting 2025 to be 10 times better than 2024. All right. And 2024 was a good year.

  Even though my dad passed away towards the end of the year, it was still a great, come on, a great year. And I'm believing for a year that's 10 times better. How many of you are with me to believe for a year that's 10 times better than it was last year? So listen, if you've been engaged in this fast, listen, we're still reading a proverb a day.

  And so with that, we created, I wrote a devotional for every day of this month, all 31 days. We released the first 15 devotionals. And then when we hit the 16th, you're reading chapter 16 in Proverbs. And then the rest of 16 through 31 will be released this week on our website.

  So just be mindful of that. If you say, man, there's no more chapters, it'll be released the rest of the week. So make sure you go on the website and do that. If you have your YouVersion app or our YouVersion app, you can go to Real Life Church Sacramento events and then go, all the notes are right there to encourage, to strengthen.

  Also share them. When you share them, you spread the word and the message of Real Life Church to everybody that needs to hear it. Amen? Are you guys ready to jump into the word today? We'll continue our series, The Principles of Powerful Living.

  When I was in high school, it wasn't that I was dumb, but I was not disciplined. And so my grades reflected somebody who didn't have any discipline. I never did my homework. Anybody with me? All right. I never read a book throughout high school.

  I was that kid that thought they were going to outsmart the teacher by buying the cliff notes only to know that the teacher was going to put questions on the test that weren't in the cliff notes. Oh, it was just me. Okay. And so when I got saved, when I was 18, I went into a two-year discipleship program in Sonoma County and I learned discipline.

  I read books and books upon books. My first book was after high school, read through, was excited about that, got disciplined, got my life in order. And so when I got to college, or when I graduated from that two-year discipleship program, I decided to stay there and go to the local junior college, Santa Rosa Junior College.

  And so I was going to apply my smarts now. And so I thought I was at a certain level. And so when I went to enroll in my classes, I was looking at the catalog and I'm like, oh yeah, college English. I'm going to take college English. I'm at college level. I know I am.

  So when I tried, it wouldn't allow me to register for college English because there was what they call a prerequisite, a class that was necessary to prepare you for college. I was already prepared in my mind, but there was a prerequisite that I had to take in order to get me to the next level that I thought, come on, that I should have been at.

  Last week, we learned that applying God's principles in your life is a prerequisite, come on, to experience the promised result of that proverb. You see, many believers desire the promised result of God's principles without the required application or the prerequisite of applying those principles to their lives. Amen. And so we learned, listen, that Proverbs works for anyone and everyone who are willing to apply them.

  Proverbs, listen, and the principles of Scripture can be learned. Listen, you could be not saved, not know Jesus your entire life and come to know him and learn by applying the principle. Listen, and you will experience the blessing of God's word. Amen. Amen.

  But Proverbs, listen, they are not unconditional promises from God for the chosen few. They are principles of God's word for anyone who applies them, learns them, and understands them so that they will produce powerful results and their lives will reflect heaven on earth. You see, our vision is not about real life. Our vision is about your life, that your life, listen, would look like heaven, you would live like heaven, come on, and you would lead like heaven.

  This is the vision of real life. It's not just about real life. It's about your life. So if you missed that first message on the first pillar, we talked about the fear of the Lord. Did you sense something different today? Yes. Come on, did you sense something in the atmosphere today?

  Come on, did you sense that God was in this place? Come on, did you sense, listen, the reverence and the awe that we came ready today for something different? We came ready, listen, not, listen, just to attend the 1130 and check the box, but we came today to encounter the Holy Spirit and the power of his presence.

  So if you missed that first message, you go back to our YouTube channel, RLC SAC TV. Make sure you get caught up and watch that. I promise you it will encourage you. But once we understand the fear of the Lord, we're walking in reverence. We're walking in awe. We're respecting and acknowledging the word of God in every area of our life.

  Listen, there's a second pillar of wisdom according to chapter nine. Again, a second pillar of wisdom in our heart or in our lives, which I believe is this. Here's the second pillar, a teachable heart. Biblically, the heart includes our will, our intellect, our emotions, our desires. It is the core of our being. It is the seat of our deepest thoughts and motivations.

  The heart reflects. Everybody say reflects. Reflects. The heart reflects our true self, who we are at the core of our being, whether renewed by God's spirit or unrenewed in its natural state, separated from God. Our heart reflects who we really are.

  Proverbs 27 verse 19 says, as in water, face reflects face, so a man's heart reveals the man. You see, the word heart, if you guys know how I got here in Proverbs chapter 9, says there's nine pillars of wisdom. It doesn't say what they are. And so I've just been asking the Holy Spirit, hey, what are the pillars of wisdom that you want set up in our lives?

  Listen, so we'll be set up for success in 2025. And so I did a word search on the words that were repeated most in the book of Proverbs. And the one that stood out to the most was obviously the fear of the Lord, because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. So if there's no reverence, if there's no awe, if there's no respect for God's word in your life, come on, how many know there's no wisdom?

  Come on, because you're not receiving it. Come on, you're not receiving God at his word. But the word heart, check this out, is mentioned 86 times in Proverbs. 86 times. Many times when reading Proverbs, you'll observe the contrast between a foolish heart and a teachable heart.

  Look at Proverbs 28, 26, for example. It's on the screen, but if you're following in your Bible or on your YouVersion app, that'll do as well. It says, he who trusts in his own heart is a fool. Whoever walks wisely will be delivered. Proverbs 3, 5, we know this one by heart. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding and all your ways. Acknowledge him and he will. Not he might. He will direct your paths.

  Here's one of the key principles of powerful living in 2025. Listen, that we need to learn, that we need to grasp, that we need to understand. And here it is. Listen, God wants all of your heart. Let me try this side over here. God wants all of your heart. Let's try this side again. Give them another chance. Thank you. God wants all of your heart.

  He doesn't want you to live this life that he's called us to live half-heartedly. He can't do much with a half a heart. He can give you a half a life. Come on, he can give you a half a blessing. He can give you a half of a good thing. Come on, how many of you want all of what God has for you?

  Listen, he wants all of us, not some of us, not half-heartedly, not a part of my heart. God, you can have 93% of my life. This is why we're challenging people. Listen, to give God, 10% test God in 10% of your income. Listen, that's not between you and the preacher. That's between you and the Lord.

  But we're just doing our part and we're challenging you because we want you to walk in the blessing of honoring him with all that he's given you. Amen. So it's not just about the 10%. Listen, I talked to several people after last week saying, Pastor, I've got the 10% down. I need help how to manage the 90%. We do good with the 10%, but how about the other 90%?

  So many times we'll see this contrast between a foolish heart and a teachable heart. And God wants 100% of our heart. And today I want us to examine our hearts by looking at the qualities of a teachable heart. And the first one is this, a teachable heart is a listening heart. A teachable heart is a listening heart.

  This is how Proverbs begins, right in verse eight. It says, my son. Ladies, how many are thankful that God talks to God's guys a lot? I'm just saying. My son. My son. Hear the instruction of your father. Proverbs 7, 24. Now, therefore, listen to me. Now he's going to include all my children. How many God's children do I have in here today?

  Listen to me, my children. Pay attention. Pay attention. To the words of my mouth. You see, this is what I think about the body of Christ in general. We are hard of hearing and spiritually deaf. Now, I'm all into miracles and miracles. deaf ears open.

  I've been in meetings where a deaf ear is opened or someone who couldn't hear started to hear. I'm all about that, but I could only imagine what would happen in 2025 if God's people started clearly hearing his voice. Could you imagine? I'm so encouraged right now in this fast.

  I mean, we're maxed out on the YouVersion app. You can only have 151 people signed up. I know there's a lot more people reading a proverb a day than that, but it's so awesome to engage with community and what other people are, what God is, the Holy Spirit is speaking to them that morning. Listen, God is talking to me about this, and then another person over here, well, God's talking to me about this proverb.

  It's an awesome thing to build up one another together. in the Lord. Now, this is an entirely different message, but listening or not listening, hearing or not hearing is a heart issue. It's a heart issue. Again, let's contrast a listening heart with a foolish heart. Proverbs 13, one says, a wise son heeds his father's instruction. but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke or correction.

  Come on, how many know a lot of times we don't listen because we don't like to be corrected? Proverbs 19, 27, cease listening to instruction, my son. and you will stray from the words of knowledge. Listen, this is what I know. When we deal with our hearts, when we deal with our hearts, God will open up our ears.

  How many of you know there's all types of listeners? There's all types of listeners in life. You've experienced them, I've experienced them. There's the people that will tune you out. Anybody ever been tuned out before? actively ignoring or mentally checking out of a conversation? Anybody experience somebody that has selective hearing? Don't look at your neighbor. Don't look at your spouse.

  Choosing to hear only aligns with their desire or their interests. Anybody ever have somebody stonewall you? Straight out avoid you. Don't even give you an opportunity for a discussion. How about this? We all have this person in our lives. In one ear and? Out the other.

  They live with you, see? I told you. Hearing but not retaining anything that you said. Or how about this? You've talked to somebody and it's like talking to a brick. Man, you guys know these people. Talking to them feels futile because they don't absorb any or acknowledge any information.

  You see, the Bible refers to these kinds of folks as stiff-necked. Now, in both services, and we're going to do it again, we did a neck check. So can you just check your neck and see? Come on. Come on, roll your neck. Get it loose. Come on.

  The Bible calls people who don't listen stiff-necked or stubborn. They're resistant to correction or guidance or a hardened heart. Spiritually or emotionally close the truth. Dull of hearing, slow or uninterested in understanding or deaf spiritually, unable or unwilling to perceive the truth.

  Now, My dad had the coolest hearing aids. If he would have paid for them, he probably would have worn them. These were like $5,000 hearing aids. I mean, these things were amazing. He got them through the VA, and my dad, he liked to talk, man. But he did not like to wear these things at all.

  In fact, the last several years of his life, he couldn't hear anything. And I noticed it because my dad would be sitting at the table, instead of telling the story and everybody listening to him, the last few years of his life, he would just sit at the end of the table with this big, sheepish grin, just smiling at everybody. Right? And I noticed this and I said, dad, you can't hear a thing we're saying, can you? And he just looked at me and said,

  I mean, we would come up to the door and the TV would be blaring. I mean, I knew what he was watching before I even walked in the door. And I said, dad, we finally get in the door. Dad, turn down the TV. He said, I can't hear it. I said, dad, you've got these hot rods for hearing aids. I mean, these things were like voice activated. I mean, these things connect to your phone.

  I mean, these things, my mom has a pair. And man, she's acting like she's walking in the, she'll go to the lamp. She'll say, Google, turn off the kitchen. Boom, off. My mom thinks she's powerful. She's like, hey, turn on the light in the bedroom. Boom, it turns on. I mean, these things are amazing.

  And so for the last couple of years, my dad would just be, have this big grin on his face. And he would say, you know, we said, dad, put them on. I mean, these things are costly. He said, I'm not wearing them. They're hurting my ears. I'm like, dad, you not wearing them is hurting our ears. He said, those things hurt my ears.

  You know, sometimes I think we're afraid to listen because those things that God has for us, those things that he wants to speak to us to bring correction in our life, those things that God wants us to act on will actually hurt our ears. And so the very principles that were meant to bless us the very principles that were meant to grow us, man, the very principles that were meant to prosper us, they go ignored.

  Can I encourage you today, if you're struggling with your hearing, a open heart will open your ears. This is why it's so important when we're having times up here at the altar that you come, listen, and you allow the Holy Spirit to reign on your heart. You say, I don't understand it. I'm just saying, just do it. And just allow the Holy Spirit to come upon you. And listen, he will soften your heart with the reigns of his presence.

  Amen. And he will cause your ears to open. The next thing is open the Bible and allow the Holy Spirit to open your ears. Listen, we're not talking about just an audible voice or a quiet voice in your heart. I'm talking about just read the word. Read a proverb a day and let the Holy Spirit speak to you. You say, I've read this Bible for a long time. I still can't. Let me just trust you. When you're reading it, just say, God, breathe on

  it. God, breathe on your word. Breathe on my life, and I promise you he'll open up your ears. This is what I know. When you open up your ears, God will open up the heavens in your life. Proverbs 1.5 says this, a wise man will hear and increase learning. A man of understanding will attain wise counsel.

  Verse 33 of the same chapter says, but whoever listens to me, how do we know there's a prerequisite? You got to listen. Everybody say, I got to listen.

  Whoever listens to me will dwell safely and be secure without fear of evil.

  Chapter eight says, listen, everybody say listen.

  For I will speak of excellent things and from the opening of my lips will come right things.

  Verse 32, now therefore listen to me, my children, for blessed are those who keep my ways.

  Verse 34, blessed is the man who hears or who listens to me.

  Again, we like the blessing, but can I ask you, are you listening?

  The blessings of God, listen, are predicated upon listening to God.

  Let me say it again.

  The blessings of God are predicated upon listening to God.

  A teachable heart is first and foremost a listening heart.

  Secondly, a teachable heart is a receptive heart.

  Proverbs 10, 8 says, the wise in heart will receive his commands.

  Come on.

  How do you know you can hear something and not receive it?

  You can hear something and not do anything with it.

  You can hear something and listen to something and not act on it.

  He says this, the wise in heart will receive commands, but a prating fool will fall.

  You see, to have a receptive heart means one has a willingness to consider or accept new suggestions or ideas.

  Let me be clear, the principles of God's word are not great suggestions or good ideas for your life.

  They are necessary for living a powerful and purposeful life, especially in 2025.

  And the receptivity of your heart to hear God's word in your life has everything to do, listen, with the productivity in your life.

  You're not seeing much productivity.

  How's your receptivity to the things of God?

  How is your receptivity to the word of God?

  Come on, we're so worried if we're connected or if this place has got Wi-Fi or if this place has enough bars.

  How are your spiritual bars?

  Amen.

  Come on, how is your spiritual Wi-Fi connection?

  Notice Solomon says, the wise in heart will receive, everybody say receive, but a prating fool.

  That word prating means they talk too much.

  Again, don't look at your neighbor, but how many of you know somebody that talks too much?

  It means literally somebody who chatters.

  Anybody know a chatterbox?

  Yes.

  Or someone who babbles.

  Anybody know a babbler?

  Look, everybody's just laughing under their breath.

  I like it from this angle.

  The Amplified looks at Proverbs 10.8.

  It says, the wise in heart are willing to learn.

  This is what I want us to understand.

  Anyone can learn a proverb, apply it to their life, and walk in the blessing of the principle.

  So much so, Solomon says, even a fool, if they listen to it, receive it, and apply it to their life, they will see that blessing manifest in their life.

  Amen.

  So it's not just again for the chosen and the few and the pastor.

  Come on, and the staff.

  It's for you too.

  You just have to be willing to learn.

  Listen, you want to learn to raise up your children in a godly way?

  There's a proverb for that.

  Listen, you want to learn how to manage your money?

  There's a proverb for that.

  Listen, you want to learn, listen, how not to fly off the handle?

  Listen, there's a proverb for that.

  Everybody, come on, help all your neighbors say, there's a proverb for that.

  They're willing to learn, so they'll accept and obey commands, instruction, but the babbling, chattering fool who is arrogant and thinks himself wise will come to ruin.

  Here's what happens to many good church-going folks.

  We babble and we talk ourselves out of submitting ourselves to biblical principles.

  We chatter when biblical principles challenge us otherwise.

  Just like I said last week, the Bible, listen, when you read Proverbs, it will challenge you to raise the standard of your living, come on, according to the word.

  But listen, our culture teaches us opposite.

  It says, no, no, no, no, no.

  The word is not authoritative.

  The word is not inspired.

  This is what culture says.

  It says, no, no, no.

  Lower the word to the standard of your living.

  We come with excuse after excuse instead of accepting responsibility for violating the principle of God's word that we're designed to bless our lives.

  And this is where we're at.

  We're just being honest as we step into 2025.

  It's okay.

  Everybody just say it's okay.

  Listen, it's okay if you've blown it.

  It's okay if you're not living right or if you got a certain of your area of your life that's not submitted to the Lord.

  But can we just start off 2025 in repentance?

  And just begin honoring God in that area.

  Whatever it is, we all got areas.

  We all got areas, including me, that need to be submitted.

  Listen, that need to be challenged by the word.

  And what happens when we don't do that is we look to blame somebody else for our stubbornness.

  We look to blame somebody else, come on, for that stiff neck.

  Man.

  Proverbs 18.2 says, a closed-minded fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his personal opinions, unwittingly displaying his self-indulgence and his stupidity.

  Now, I didn't say stupid.

  God did.

  Many of you guys might know Chubbs and Lisa.

  They were in our last service.

  Chubbs serves on our security team.

  They've been friends for a long, long time.

  And he has this amazing gift with youth and young people.

  You see this guy anywhere, and he's like a youth magnet, young adult magnet.

  And not only do the people flock to Chubbs and Lisa, they'll start pouring their hearts out to Chubbs and Lisa, right?

  I mean, things that they would never tell anybody else.

  All of a sudden, they're telling Chubbs their whole life story.

  And I've seen this.

  And all of a sudden, he's making them laugh.

  And the next thing, they're telling him his life, their deepest, darkest secrets.

  They're telling Chubbs.

  And the deeper they go, all of a sudden, this is what I've noticed.

  Chubbs will just put up his hand.

  He says, stop talking.

  That's enough.

  Stop talking.

  Everybody say, stop talking.

  Stop talking.

  This is what I've learned from Chubbs.

  Listen, if your heart is going to be receptive, you have to stop talking and let God's word do the talking.

  Listen, we are not in negotiation with God's word.

  Come on, we're not at the bargaining table with God's word.

  Come on, we're not trying to haggle with God.

  Come on, on his word.

  Well, God, I can give you 4% of my strength.

  No, he said he wanted all your strength.

  God, you could have 50% of my thinking.

  No, he wants all your mind.

  He wants all your body.

  He wants every single part of you.

  Everybody say, stop talking.

  We've got to stop talking and start walking out

  Come on, the principles for powerful living.

  A teachable heart is a receptive heart, and I close with this.

  A teachable heart, lastly, is a pliable heart.

  That word pliable means easily bent, flexible, easily influenced.

  God wants our hearts to be postured in such a way that it is easily influenced by his word.

  Proverbs 2, one and two says this.

  My son, if you receive my words, if you treasure my commands within you, you see this?

  You gotta listen.

  You gotta receive.

  Listen, so that you incline your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understand it.

  I love the picture of our hearts being pliable because it's an indicator that our lives can be shaped and molded by his word, easily bent towards the ways of God, that he can correct you.

  Come on, that he can guide you.

  Come on, that he can rescue you from going down the wrong path.

  And I love this picture because he longs for us today to make the adjustments that we need to make to align ourselves with the word of God.

  Listen, so that we'll have a heart that is easily influenced by God.

  And Solomon tells us, listen, apply your heart to understanding.

  The word apply there in the original language means, listen to this, to spread out and to be stretched out and extended.

  In other words, listen, your heart has to be pliable or listen, it's going to be breakable.

  Listen, you can't, listen, if God's word, if you're going to allow God's word to break you, it will.

  But I'd rather go to him, listen,

  With a heart that is ready to receive.

  Come on, a heart that is ready to listen.

  I don't want to learn from the school of hard knocks.

  How many of you have been to that school?

  Come on, how many got your degree?

  Go ahead.

  I don't always want to learn that way.

  I want to learn because my heart is soft.

  My heart is willing to be stretched.

  Amen.

  Listen, it's willing to extend.

  Lord, I can't do it.

  He said, oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

  Your heart, I'm going to extend it so you can receive all that I have for you.

  You see, the principle of God's word in 2025, they're going to stretch your heart.

  Listen, things that you could have never fathomed God doing in your life.

  Listen, can I just say this?

  He's about to do.

  Why, why?

  Because you're about to allow him to stretch your heart.

  Come on, you say, I can never dream of that.

  Oh yeah, yeah, he's gonna extend your heart so you can begin to embrace the dream that he has for your life.

  You can begin to embrace the ministry that he has for your life.

  Maybe the career that he has for your life.

  You see, the principles of God's word are gonna extend you to places that it hasn't had to go.

  And if your heart is pliable, can I just tell you, God's word will always be reliable.

  The application of God's word is never comfortable if your heart is not pliable.

  See, if your heart is not soft, if your heart does not have the ability to stretch, bend, or flex, and if I could get the worship team to come up or be influenced easily by the word, listen, in 2025, you've got to get to the why.

  Why?

  Why isn't my heart listening?

  Why isn't my heart receptive to the things of God?

  Why is my heart not pliable?

  In Matthew 13, Jesus told a story about a farmer sowing seeds.

  Real quickly, I can't go into all of it, but comparing it to how our hearts respond to hearing the word.

  Talked about the wayside where the enemy comes and takes truth from their heart before it could grow.

  Talked about rocky ground.

  Listen, where they sprouted quickly because they had no roots.

  When the sun grew hot, they withered.

  It talked about thorny ground where when the seeds landed, listen, the thorns choked it out.

  And then it talked about the good soil.

  Yeah.

  Then it talked about the fertile heart.

  How many want a fertile heart for 2025?

  And when the seed, listen, when the seed grew in the good soil, it produced a plentiful harvest, 30, 60, or even 100 times more that was sown.

  This is what I'm believing.

  In 2025, real life church is good ground.

  Come on, tell your neighbor, listen, I'm good ground.

  Come on, just prophesy over yourself right now.

  Turn to your neighbor and say, I'm good ground.

  Say it to your other neighbors.

  Say, I'm good ground.

  I'm worth sowing into.

  Hallelujah.

  I'm believing that in 2025, real life church is good ground.

  And when we hear the word, when we receive the word, when we understand the word.

  When we apply the word, we will walk, listen, in the blessings and the power and the purpose of the word, some 100, some 60, and some 30-fold.

  Come on.

  If you want that for your life, will you give God praise?

  Hallelujah.

  Listen, as we conclude this message today,

  Maybe the lack of obedience in your life is the lack of a listening heart.

  Maybe the lack of promised results that you wanna see in your life is not there because there's no receptivity on your end.

  There's no connection.

  Maybe the lack of a harvest in your life is due to a hardened heart towards God.

  And all day long, listen, we've been examining our heart and people have just been saying, Pastor Dean, I'm going to get my heart right.

  And maybe you're here today and you don't know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.

  Can I just say, that's where you must start.

  Maybe you're here today and you've ran away from God's principles.

  You've been to church, but you left church and you're back for the first time.

  Listen, you're not right with God and you want to get right again.

  Listen, God wants to touch your life.

  With every head bowed and every eye closed, you say, Pastor Dean, I've distanced myself.

  I'm not listening.

  I'm not receiving.

  And my heart sure isn't pliable.

  I've hardened my heart towards God.

  I don't have a relationship with Jesus.

  Listen, we've had about 10 people give their hearts to Christ today.

  Is there anybody in this, before we close, is there anybody, you say, Pastor Dean, will you include me in your prayer for salvation at the end of this service?

  Just by the slip up of your hand.

  Thank you so much for your boldness.

  Yes, thank you so much for your boldness.

  Right up here up front.

  Keep your hand up just until the ushers come to you and put a card in here.

  I thank you back here, my left, your right.

  Anybody else, you say, Pastor Dean, will you include me in that prayer?

  Hallelujah.

  Thank you, Jesus.

  Thank you, Holy Spirit.

  This is what we're going to do.

  Whether you wanted to raise your hand, maybe you didn't, or you raised your hand and an usher put a card in it, this is what we're going to do.

  We're going to pray this prayer, and we're going to say, God, I'm ready to listen.

  Come on.

  God, I'm ready to receive.

  God, I'm ready to apply your word.

  If that is your heart, I want you to pray this prayer of salvation and deliverance over your life on the count of three.

  One, two, three.

  Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness.

  I believe you died for my sins and rose from the dead.

  Right now, I turn from my sins and invite you to come into my heart and life.

  I want to trust and follow you from this day forward.

  I confess you as my personal Lord and Savior.

  Thank you for saving me in Jesus' name.

  Amen and amen.

  Can we give God praise for those that lifted their hands?

  Listen, we believe if you prayed that prayer and you trusted the Lord with all your heart, we believe that you got born again.

  We would like to put in your hands an I Have Decided packet.

  It has a New Believers Bible in there as well as some next steps that you can take in your walk with God.

  We want to get you plugged in.

  We want to get you connected.

  We want to come around you as family.

  You can get these from my friend Jeff in the back as you exit.

  Just give him that card or if you didn't fill out the card, you can fill out a digital form that we have for you back there.

  But can we give God praise for all of those that just given their heart to Jesus?

  Secondly, some of us need to tend to our hearts.

  The lack of results, can I just say this to you in all love and sincerity?

  It's not because his word doesn't work.

  It's because we have failed to listen, to receive and apply it to our lives.

  Listen, if you want 2025 to be different than 2024, I'm not just believing for it to be different.

  Personally, I'm believing for it to be 10 times.

  If that's your prayer, will you just stand up and just throw up your hands and say, Lord, I'm believing to listen.

  You can stand up to your feet and say, Lord, I'm believing.

  I'm going to listen.

  God, I want you to open my ears.

  God, I want a better receiver.

  Come on in 2025.

  And God, I want to apply this.

  your word to my life so that it will bless my life.

  Let me just pray over you.

  I'm gonna ask our prayer partners or prayer ministers to come forward as well, and I'll get some instruction following this prayer.

  God, I pray that in 2025,

  God, as we present our hearts to you, God, as we've pledged our hearts, even in this service, Lord, we've pledged our hearts to you.

  God, we pray, Father, that there would be fresh fire on the altar of our hearts.

  God, that you would take every hard place.

  God, every thorny place.

  God, and you would turn it into good ground.

  God, I pray that your people would hear your word, that they would receive your word, that they would understand your word.

  And God, that they will experience a harvest from your word that produces a hundredfold, a 60-fold, a 30-fold harvest in Jesus' name in every area of their life.

  We pray these things in Jesus' name.

  And everybody said, amen, amen.