I Want To Believe, But…Goosebump God

Calvary Grace Assembly of God
Mar 19 – 25, 2017

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I WANT TO BELIEVE, BUT… Goosebump God
It can be difficult to believe in a God we cannot see. We wonder why God didn’t answer our prayers, why God allows suffering, or why we can’t feel His presence. God may not meet all your expectations—but that’s good news! Find out why in this series: I Want to Believe, But….
In this four-week series, we’ll discuss four different versions of “God” which don’t exist—they’re fabrications people often want to believe about the nature of God. But when we start to put God in a box, we create our own ideas about Him and what He’s supposed to do for us.
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Psalm 88:13-14
But I cry to you for help, LORD; in the morning my prayer comes before you. Why, LORD, do you reject me and hide your face from me?

John 6:30-31
So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”

Matthew 13:14-15
In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’

Acts 17:26-27
From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.

Jeremiah 29:13-14
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

Series: I Want to Believe, But…”
Message: “Goosebump God”
Text(s): Psalm 88:13-14, John 6:30-31
Matthew 13:14-15, Acts 17:26-27
Pastor Tom Cogle
Sunday, March 19, 2017

It can be difficult to believe in a God in which we cannot see, hear, or feel His presence.

If you don’t always feel God’s presence, You’re not alone.

But I cry to you for help, LORD; in the morning my prayer comes before you. 14 Why, LORD, do you reject me and hide your face from me? Psalm 88:13-14

WHY DON’T WE ALWAYS FEEL GOD?

1. MAYBE YOU ARE OVER SENSATIONALIZING IT.
John 6:30-31

Feelings are not the only evidence of the presence of God.

2. MAYBE YOUR HEART HAS HARDENED.
Matthew 13:14-15

The number one cause of a hard heart is sin in our life that separates us from God.

3. MAYBE GOD WANTS TO DRAW YOU CLOSER.
Acts 17:26-27

You may not feel God because God wants to bring you to a place where you have more of a desire for Him.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 29:13-14