Increase V // Pastor Chuck Colegrove // December 7th

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Well listen, I'm ready to preach God's word.
Are you ready to receive ittoday?
The year was 1978, and I was ayoung lad growing up in
Michigan, and uh in 1976 a newtoy came on the market that was
all of the rage.

(00:21):
And I would say that by 1978, myfamily, we weren't like the
trend centers when it came tolike uh purchasing things.
I was like the last to geteverything.
I was the last to get uh thegame systems in the 80s.
I was the last to get a bicyclewhen I was 12.
I mean, we were like the slow wewere on the slow pace.

(00:41):
We got the I always got thehand-me-downs.
So like my first bike was a hada big flowery banana seed on it,
you know.
So, uh because I was the baby ofthe family.
But in 1978, this this toybecame all the craze, and we
didn't have the options likey'all have now, where you see it
on your phone and and you cantext pictures of what you want

(01:02):
or go on to Amazon.
We had to open up the JCPenneyor the Montgomery Ward catalog.
Oh, I'm preaching now.
You ever opened a MontgomeryWard catalog, and we'd have to
we'd have to find our way to thetoy section, and then you would
circle the toy that you wantedand fold the page over so that

(01:24):
when your parents went backthrough the the the catalog,
they would know what you wantedfor Christmas.
And it was in 1978 that I gotone of the greatest toys ever
made on the planet.
And his name is StretchArmstrong.
And the reason why Stretch issuch a besides his outfit, is a

(01:45):
little risky.
I think my mom wanted to sewlike a full-on like jogging suit
for him.
Like that's the first thing shedid.
She was like, that's a littlebit too much skin showing.
But uh, we love StretchArmstrong because you could
literally stretch him in anydirection and he would just
bounce right back.
And it is the toy that wouldlater teach us the year that

(02:07):
year we would learn the realityof it's okay for you to be
stretched in all the waysbecause you're actually made to
bounce back.
So um, so just turn to yourneighbor and say, it's a joy to
be stretched.
And uh let everybody else knowthe one next you just let them

(02:28):
know because I got that bounceback.
Today we begin uh a brand newseries that will carry us
through the month of December.
It's it's called ThrowbackChristmas.
And uh we're we're not justgonna deck the halls, although
doesn't this building lookbeautiful?
And just want to thank uh PastorUrsh and the whole team for the

(02:52):
whole team that made thispossible.
It looks tremendous and uh sofestive.
And I mean I've I've beendriving down the street.
I don't know, I guess it's allthis snow this year that has
made me absolutely love thisseason.
Like it feels like Christmasseason.
We got a lot of snow, andlisten, if it's gonna be cold,
there might as well be snow onthe ground.

(03:13):
Like you can't change it, so wemight as well just let it snow,
let it snow, let it snow.
So it looks amazing, but we'renot just ducking the halls this
holiday season.
We're gonna um we're gonna bringback some of our favorite
childhood uh toys, and and we'regonna learn that even old toys
can reveal new truths for us.

(03:35):
And um, so we're gonna startwith this one, Stretch
Armstrong.
I don't know how many ever had aStretch Armstrong when you were
a kid, a few of you.
You guys have no clue.
It it it relaunched, I think, inlike 2002 or something like
that, and and this is a new andimproved version of Stretch
Armstrong because he wasn'tquite this muscly when uh he

(03:56):
came out in 1978.
So uh anyway, it's anincredible, incredible uh
illustration for us todaybecause it's not just a toy that
we're looking at, but we'relooking at a parable.
Because when we think of StretchArmstrong and we we we we work
it around and stretch stretchthem around, we realize that

(04:17):
what looks like would break us,God is able to actually use uh
to build within us somethingstronger.
And so the big idea for thisseries, this this today's
message of this series is thisthere is joy in stretching
because God is working throughyour trials to produce something

(04:40):
greater in you, through you, andfor his glory.
So that's the big idea, andthat's what I want you to walk
away with, and especially inthis season, because in this
season you may be stressed withfinances and you may be stressed
with the schedule.
Like, does everybody have toplan a Christmas party on the

(05:02):
same day?
And we have to figure out how toget there, all of the school
programs that you have to gosee, the work parties, you're
stretched, you know, by how manypeople are driving on the
streets during December.
I feel like everybody parkstheir car all year until
December.
And then they decide they'regonna get out and drive, and

(05:23):
they drive like they've notdriven all year in December.
But maybe that's what'sstretching you.
Maybe it's uh relationallyyou're being stretched or all
the things that might bestretched.
Well, I'm gonna tell you, it'sokay to be stretched because
God's given you the ability tobounce straight back.
So let's look at today's passageof scripture and let's find out

(05:47):
how we uh get that bounce backwithin us.
You ready?
James chapter 1, verse 2 thatsays this consider it pure joy.
Everybody say pure joy.
Consider it pure joy, mybrothers and sisters, that
whenever you face trials of manykinds, because you know that the
testing of your faith producesperseverance, and let

(06:11):
perseverance finish its work sothat you may be mature and
complete and not lackinganything.
And in verse 5, he says, and ifany of you lacks wisdom, you
should ask God, who givesgenerously to all without
finding fault, and it will begiven to you.
So let's find out.
How do we get this bounce back?

(06:32):
Here we go.
Number one, three principles.
Number one is this joy beginswith a new lens.
So look at this first phrase ofthis passage, James chapter 1,
2.
We'll look at this first littlebit of the passage.
He's Paul says this consider itpure joy.
Consider it pure joy.

(06:53):
The Greek word for consider whenyou do a word study on it and
you break it down, and the bestword picture I can give you is
the word reframe.
Have you ever noticed if youhave a photo or a work of art
and you're you're you're chargedwith the opportunity to frame
that artwork or frame thatphoto, and you you go in, and

(07:16):
you know, sometimes you can justgo to Target and buy a frame and
put it on, and it's no big deal.
It's done.
But on elevated pieces of art orelevated photos of the family,
you you want to put a little bitmore into it.
So you want to you want to matit, you want to nice frame it,
and so you take it in somewhereand they help you frame it.
And they'll go through all thecolors of the frames.

(07:36):
And if you'll notice, if youhave a dark frame around a
photo, it highlights the darkfeatures of the photo.
And if you put a light framearound that photo, it will
highlight all of the lighterfeatures of that photo.
What I'm telling you is itreally does matter how you frame
and how you see what you'refacing.

(07:57):
Because many of us in life, weare actually probably wondering,
what is the breaking point?
What is the point?
And I'm gonna tell you, when Ihad this toy in 1978, I would
give one arm to my cousin and Iwould go as far as I could go,
all across, as far as I could goacross that living room.
And you know what?
It wouldn't matter how far westretched him, he always bounced

(08:17):
straight back.
And a lot of you are wondering,where's the breaking point?
And I'm gonna tell you what,instead of looking for the
breaking point, startconsidering like when is the
bounce back?
Because I know I'm gonna bounceback.
I'm just wondering, when's itgonna be?
When is it?
When is it gonna finally releaseand I'll bounce back because
I'll be better than I was at thebeginning.

(08:39):
Look at this scripture in 1Corinthians chapter 4.
It says that 2 Corinthians 4,17, says, For our light and
momentary troubles are achievingfor us an eternal glory that far
outweighs them all.
So we fix our eyes not on whatis seen, but what is unseen,
since what is seen is temporary,but what is unseen is eternal.

(09:00):
So if we can just learn toreframe what we're looking at in
the stretching process, you willunderstand that you can see a
better picture of what God isdoing in it.
I also thought about this.
I don't know if you've ever seenthe difference between a normal
lens of a camera and a wideangle lens.
In a normal lens, it just it youjust see just a fraction of the

(09:24):
real image.
But if you put a wide angle lenson there, the image expands the
width of the picture frame, andsuddenly you see so much more.
And that's what that's whatPaul's telling us to do.
Consider it joy, reframe how yousee it and see the bigger
picture.
Don't just look at what'shappening in the moment, but
look at the bigger picture.
Something good is about tohappen.

(09:45):
And this is what I would tellyou this.
I would tell you this that uh ifyou look through the lens of
self-pity and fear, you'll be introuble.
Because you'll feel alone,you'll feel forgotten, you'll
feel overlooked, you feel likeyou'll never amount to anything,
you'll never make it.
But if you will look through thelens of God's promises and his

(10:06):
purpose, you will persevere tothe end.
And I would say, pray this.
If you're being stretched in asituation, I would encourage you
to pray this.
Pray, Lord, help me see this theway you see this.
There's a way that Joseph sawthat what his brothers meant for
evil, God meant for good.

(10:30):
There are situations in lifewhere if we can just see the way
God sees it, it will help us tomanage the stretching process
and realize when we bounce back,we'll be even better than
before.
Number two, perseverance isproduced through the process.
You don't pray for patience andthen things start to happen
suddenly.

(10:51):
My wife, when we're driving downthe street, she has to just like
tap my shoulder sometimes orjust put her hand on my arm and
just tap my arm because I get soimpatient for somebody to turn
left or turn right or get out ofmy way or just my God, do
something.
Just drive.
I don't know what you're doing.

(11:12):
And she's just like, it's gonnabe okay.
We're not in that big of ahurry.
But I I am in a hurry, butthat's you don't get patience by
things happening right away.
You get patience by waiting inthe process, waiting on what
God's doing.
And the question is not, willthis produce something in me?
It is when will this producewhat it's supposed to produce in

(11:34):
me.
John 15, 5 says this.
Well, let me give you thephrase.
Yeah, jump back to that phrase.
John uh James 1.3.
This is the passage, it says, weknow that the testing of your
faith produces perseverance.
That word perseverance is isabsolute is is like the best
word picture I could give you isthe ability to sustain.

(11:56):
The ability to have patience,but not just patience in the way
of sitting down and waiting, butworking your way through the
situation, sustaining yourselfuntil until God fulfills the
promise in you.
John 5, 15, 5 says this.
Jesus says, I'm the vine and youare the branches, and if you
remain in me and I in you, youwill bear much fruit.

(12:19):
And then this is the phrase,apart from me, you can do
nothing.
So this is what I know.
The the process will produceperseverance as long as you stay
connected to God.
Because as soon as we becomedisconnected, we're gonna dry
out, we're gonna get bitter,we're gonna be broken, we're
gonna miss out, we're not gonnabe able to be connected to what

(12:41):
God is doing in us because we'vedisconnected ourselves from the
vine.
This is what I was thinking.
Ursana had uh a few weeks agosomebody reach out to her and
say, This, you know, this iswhat life is, this is it's this,
it's this, it's this, it's this,and whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa.
And uh life's terrible.
And uh Urshana just spent amoment and she just took a

(13:03):
breath, and then I feel likethat breath out was her own
thoughts, and the breath in wasthe Holy Spirit, and she texted
her back a verse and someencouragement, and it was like
right in that moment of sendingthat verse, the the response
was, Oh, that's just what Ineeded, the word of God.
Oh, I feel so much better.
It wasn't it wasn't just wisdomthat Pastor Ursh was sending to

(13:27):
somebody, it was actually theHoly Spirit, and that is the
connection we need.
And most of us give up indiscomfort or disconnect in
discomfort because we we're notstaying true to the word of God
and filling our lives with theword, and so we feel left out
and alone and overlooked, butwe're really not, we just

(13:48):
disconnected ourselves, andwe're not able to persevere
because we're not connected, andso I I don't know.
I I had an idea that I shouldhave bought one of these and and
and left it out in the sun andlet it just bake.
Or cut a hole in it and let theinside ooze out, because the

(14:11):
reality reality is it likestretch Armstrong is able to do
what he's supposed to do becauseeverything is still connected
and in place.
And sometimes we getdisconnected and we cannot have
the bounce back in our lifebecause we're missing that key
connection with God's people,with God's word, and with God's
presence.

(14:32):
So let's let's think about this.
I was thinking about in strengthtraining and weight lifting, you
know, you can go lift a lot ofweights, but still not ever
really get stronger and notproduce a lot of muscle.
I'm kind of proof of it becauseI've been lifting weights for
years.
Like I like how many times yougo to the gym?

(14:54):
I go a lot.
Okay, well, they you just gotthis.
Well, they just say, well, yougot long muscles.
Because, you know, people withshort muscles, they can flex
their arms and muscles pop outand look great, but you got the,
you got, you got, and I'm like,listen, I've been going to the
gym.

(15:15):
And then you know what they say?
It's not just the it's it's it'snot just the weightlifting, but
it's the nutrition.
You can't put garbage in yourbody and expect better results.
It's nutrition.
What are you putting in?
And then it's not justnutrition, it's hydration.
Because the really, the reallywhat helps your muscles recover

(15:36):
and what helps them move freelyand and be the best muscle that
can be is to be hydrated, thewater, because the water is what
moves the nutrients to themuscles and helps repair them
and and and make them strongeras you lift those weights.
And then the last piece is rest.
Like you don't lift the sameweight every single day, every

(15:58):
single moment, and expect to bestronger and bigger because
you're never allowing the restframe to build that strength,
your muscle to recover out ofthat workout.
So I say all that to say thatwhen God is trying to produce
perseverance in you, it may feellike, oh, I don't know if I'll
ever survive this.

(16:19):
This is gonna be a real problemfor me.
No, just allow God to do theprocess in you and through you
and stay connected because aslong as you'll stay connected,
you'll be able to bounce back.
And then the third, the thirdthing is this oh, this is what
I'd say.
Pray this.
Ask for God's help to navigatethe tug, but stay connected in

(16:42):
the Word of God.
And then the last one, numberthree, perseverance produces
maturity, and maturity producesjoy.
I love this in verse 4.
It says, Let the perseverancefinish its work so that you may
be mature and complete, notlacking anything.

(17:04):
Mature and complete, it's it'show you become joyful or full of
joy in every circumstance, iswhen you're mature.
Because a mature person can seethe process, see the
perseverance that's that issustaining them, and then
understand that through all ofthat they're better, they're

(17:26):
more mature, their joy iscomplete.
They lack nothing because it'snot about what you gather in
life, it's about how you movethrough life and what you
experience in life and how yourespond to all of that.
I have some verses here, Hebrews12, too.
We do this by keeping our eyeson Jesus, the champion who
initiates and perfects our faithbecause of the joy awaiting him.

(17:48):
He endured the cross.
So, how we get joy through theprocess of perseverance and as
we mature is we realize we'renot going through this for
ourselves.
We're going through this so thatwe can help somebody else.
And if you want to keep joy asituation, don't ask yourself,
how am I gonna get through this?
Ask yourself, who can I help onthe other side of this?

(18:11):
All right, the next one, Romans8.18.
I consider that our presentsufferings are not worth
comparing with the glory thatwill be revealed in us.
Not for us, not by us, but inus.
And so we understand the processof perseverance that makes us
mature in life and full of joy,that what we're facing is just
temporary, but what we'llexperience will be eternal.

(18:34):
And then Philippians 1, 6, beingconfident of this, that he who
began a good work in you willcarry it on to completion until
the day of Jesus Christ.
Listen, the stretching processthat God begins in you, he will
complete it within you, and itwill be for his purpose, and it
will be for his promises to berevealed in your life.

(18:56):
I was thinking about the potterwho forms the clay on the
potter's wheel.
And, you know, man, that's not,that's just, we we don't really
recognize how much pressure andhow much movement and pulling
and tugging it takes as thepotter is working that piece of
art.

(19:16):
But I'm gonna tell you thatthough the pulling and process
of that clay may seem, it mayseem uncertain and it may seem
dis uncomfortable, but I'm gonnatell you when God has you on
that wheel and he's working inyou what he has formed inside of
you to be produced for everyoneelse to see.

I'm gonna tell you this (19:35):
every move is intentional, every move
has a purpose, and on the otherside, he's forming you into
something that he planned foryou from the beginning.
God is forming something in youthat comfort cannot cultivate
and ease cannot develop.

(19:57):
The diamond doesn't just form.
And be beautiful without all thehard work to get through that
rock.
And so, as we close today, Iwould just say like you just
lean into this space of thestretching, that it's
intentional, that it haspurpose, and it's going to

(20:20):
produce in you the form that Godhad in mind from the beginning.
You ever think about a rubberband and how useless that rubber
band is until you stretch it?
And if you're only trying to tieup just a couple of pencils or a
couple of sticks or a couple ofthings with a rubber band, you

(20:41):
gotta stretch it, and that meansyou gotta pull it and twist it
and pull it again and twist it,and you gotta keep stretching
that until you get it to theright, the right stretch, the
right uh tension in order for itto hold those things in place.
And sometimes that's what thestretching is doing to us.
It's just holding us in placeuntil God is done with us.

(21:02):
Back to stretch Armstrong for aminute.
I want you to realize in thisseason, in this busy season,
this holiday season, when we canreally allow life to stretch us
beyond, and we just think, well,I'll just make it through this
time and then and then beginningin 2026, I'll get back into the
regimen of the things that Iwant to do for real.

(21:23):
But I'll just let myself, youknow, like I'll just be off
schedule, off, I'll just notmanage my life well.
I'll just let everything likelet the stress come, all the
things.
Listen, I'm gonna tell you, youcan get through this season with
flying colors much better and beready for 2026 and not have to
start over.

(21:44):
Just but you have to manage thetension, and this is this is
what I would tell you that youhave the capacity to stretch, to
bounce back.
You have that capacity, and thecapacity is what's inside of
you.
It's what's in you that causesyou to bounce back.
So you see from another lens,you you begin with a new lens,

(22:07):
you you allow perseverance towork through that process, and
then you allow it to bringmaturity and joy in you.
You do all of that, but it'sbecause of what's in you.
And I thought I would close withthis little acronym of shape.
It's what's in you, it's theshape that God has given you
within you.
And it's one, your spiritualgifts.

(22:30):
God's giving you gifts that willhelp you get through what's
stretching you.
Number two, it's your heart,it's your desire and your
passion.
And God, the Bible says that Godgives us the desires of our
heart.
And I've said this before, manyof you think that means God
gives us what we want.

(22:50):
But actually, what God is givingus is God is giving us the right
desires.
God gives us the desires of ourheart.
I want God to give me what.
I want to desire what God givesme.
I want to desire what Goddesires for me to have.
And so that's what God's puttingin you in these processes.

(23:10):
And this is how you come back tothe right shape is number one,
you have spiritual gifts.
Number two, you have heart, yourdesires and passion.
Number two, you have ananointing, the Holy Spirit on
you that separates you fromeverything else.
And so if you're separated fromeverything else in the process
but connected to Him, that'swhat you're gonna get to.

(23:31):
The anointing is what lifts thestandard in your life.
The anointing is what lifts theburden and destroys the yoke in
your life.
And he puts the anointing inyou.
Paul said, stir up the giftgiven you that was given when
the hand of God, the anointingof God, was placed on your life.
The next one, personality.

(23:55):
Literally, God has placed withinyou a personality that will help
you get through things.
And personality can be two ways.
It's generally in these twoways.
It's either task-driven orpeople-driven.
And if you are a task-drivenperson, God just placed within
you the capacity to keep gettingthings done, even though things
are difficult.

(24:15):
And if it's a people, if it'sdrawn to people, God will put
people around you to help youget through what is difficult
until it's done.
It's what God put in you, thatpersonality.
God gave that to you to help youget through the stretching
moments and the last thing, yourexperiences.

(24:36):
Because you've been stretchedbefore, and look how good you
look today.
Yeah.
You've been stretched before,but if I look at you, I wouldn't
know that you had a stretchingprocess in your life because you
look just the way God designedyou.
I wouldn't even know it.
And that is all to the glory ofGod.
And if he did it before in you,he'll do it again for you.

(25:00):
And so my thought today is thisin throwback Christmas, that we
we learn the parable assigned tothis toy is that there's joy in
stretching because God is goingto use our tests and our trials
to form in us, to form throughus, and to form for his glory

(25:23):
just what he's designed for ourlives.
Can you receive that word today?
Amen.
Let's pray.