The the kids all want to go back there the next day. I said that's fine, let's go back there and have some fun, but let's move forward, there's other things God wants you to have as well, so if you just lock in on one thing God did, you can't move forward to experience new things. The Bible says His mercies are new every day, so there's something new for every day, so let's be open to the new things that God wants to do aye? Let God do some new things [laughs] do some new things in your life.
How open would you be to new things though? Or is your mind sort of set, this is how God works: I come to church - this is what God does. Listen, it's not like that at all. Actually I never quite know what'll happen when I come to a meeting. Sometimes I'm crying as I come here, sometimes I'm laughing as I come here, sometimes I'm just still as I come here. Sometimes I'm really praying loud in tongues. There's all kinds of different ways of expressing what we're feeling with God. It's fantastic [laughs] so you need to learn to rejoice. The Bible tells us to rejoice, and that word rejoice is a word for leaping up, twirling around, getting excited. Now that's a bit of the opposite to the old Kiwi staunch thing isn't it aye? See, Kiwi staunch is completely opposite to actually being able to rejoice and celebrate, but I've watched staunch Kiwis absolutely lose it [laughs] at a football match! I've got to watch them. You look at them and you see them, they're absolutely going berserk - seen my brothers in law in front of a television when the All Blacks are playing, and I didn't watch the TV, I wasn't watching the game. I was watching them. [Laughter] That's a sight to behold, you know, these conservative people, not even filled with the Holy Ghost, and they're jumping up in their seats, and screaming and yelling. I thought well, why can't you do that for the Lord, you know? I can YES! OH YES! you know, someone gets a - YES! - excited you know. Well, you think well, you don't have to feel anything to get excited. You don't have to feel anything at all.
The Bible says there's joy inside us, the kingdom of heaven is righteousness, right standing, right relationship, being connected with God, getting short accounts with the sin, righteous peace inside because we're right with God - then JOY OF THE HOLY GHOST! You say well I don't feel joyful. Well you don't have to be joyful. You don't have to feel it. You've got to rejoice! [Laughter/applause] Yes! There's joy inside you, you've just got to give expression to it. You want to learn to do it, you know? You want to learn to do it sometimes, just run around and YES! I did it the other day in the staff room, and they all said oh, what's up? I said well nothing's up, I'm just rejoicing, full of joy. It's got to come out of you some way doesn't it? [Laughs] Well you've got to - some of you really need to loosen up like that. See, we've lost the simplicity.
The Bible says - Pauls writing in 2 Corinthians 11, he says, you know I'm really concerned that you lose the simplicity of just a passionate devotion to Jesus. You just love Him. It sort of kind of blows everyone away you see, because everyone wants an intellectual God. He's not an intellectual God, He's a personal God, and so if it's personal, then we can enjoy it. We can enjoy Him, well it should be coming out of your face somewhere you know? First place you see it is on your face - see, joy! Yes! YES! You'd be surprised when you start to give expression to joy, how you begin to start to feel it. You don't have to wait to pray in tongues, you just begin to decide, I'm going to pray in tongues. As you pray in tongues, and express praise to God, and let your mind begin to focus on His benefits, His blessing, begin to magnify God, then pretty soon you find, your whole life is overflowing with the joy of the Lord.
Sometimes I've come down here, I've come down to work sometimes. Sometimes I'm speeding up, I've got so excited. Sometimes I'm slowing down, I'm weeping so much. [Laughs] People - if anyone was watching me drive to work, they would really wonder what is with this guy? What's happening today? Let's have a look, what's today? [Makes crying sound] I've got to drive slowly, or I'll go off the road you know, I'm feeling the presence of God - and other times YES! OH YES! Oh come on, slow down, slow down - YES! [Laughter] Got to find expressions, you've got to learn to express. See one of the things in our nation, there's many things in our nation are a bastion, but there's some strongholds in the nation; one of them's a sort of staunch thing, that guys are all staunch, and they won't show any emotion or feeling or anything - except at a rugby match of course, so it's kind of a controlled staunch. It's okay in rugby, but it's not okay anywhere else. YES! Oh yes! See, give expression to what's inside you. There's joy in there - let it come out! Let it get on your face, and smile, and come out! You'll look much better, much happier when you're smiling, laughing, see. So we've got to learn how to just have a simplicity - not be simple; God doesn't want us to be simple, but it's simplicity. It's actually just a simple heart that loves God, and passionate love with God, and stirred up to keep loving God you know?