Don’t Wait To Put God First | Peter Tan-Chi Jr. | October 11, 2026

0:00 Ever told yourself after exams I'll get serious with God or I'll stop that bad habit when I'm ready? Maybe you keep saying later when God is calling you to make a change. In the book of Hagi, God challenged his people because they kept putting off what he wanted them to do while prioritizing their own comfort. And as young people, we can fall into the same trap. So here's the challenge. Don't wait to put God first. Learn to reflect on your priorities. Reorder your life and rebuild with God and for God. Watch this video and discover what Haggi teaches us. [music]

0:45 You know, we continue the series. It's youth month. As I shared, I have before I have four children all the way from two years old to 16 and uh everything in between. And the youth are really the hope of our nation. You know, maybe we cannot change the older people that are in government, but if we raise a generation of people who love Jesus, surely our nation will be blessed. So that's our prayer, right? That's our hope. And last week, my dad gave a wonderful message. It was so timely. So many people are struggling. So many people are discouraged. And it was on Habacook. You guys remember and his point was when we are

1:30 disappointed when we are disillusioned what should we do focus on God and how do we do that we turn to God we wait on God and then what's the last point we worship him in in our difficulties so today we are going to look at another rarely used book it's Haggi and Hagi poses a different question to us. It's not. Yes, there's disappointment in Haggi and we'll cover it. But the question I want to focus on is this. Has God told us to do something and we are making God wait? So is God waiting on us? And the point here is don't let God

2:16 wait. Put him first. And before I open in prayer, I want to read the first two verses so that you have an idea where we're going. In the second year of Darius the king, on the first day of the sixth month, the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggi. It's only two chapters in the whole book and we'll go through all of them. This is the time when the Jews in Habacook, you know, they were they were disappointed and God had judged them. There was problems and then Babylon conquered Israel and the temple was destroyed and they were exiled. And then later on

3:04 Cyrus conquered Babylon. And Cyrus allowed the Jews to go back to Israel to their to their homeland because they wanted to rebuild the temple. They even said that right we will build the temple and then the word of God came to them and this is 16 years later from that time when they went back and it came by the prophet Haggi to Zerubbabel and we'll look at him more the son of Sheliel governor of Judah and to Joshua the son of Jehosedac the high priest saying thus says the Lord of hosts this people says the time has not come even the time

3:53 for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt. So the beginning of Haggi, the people are telling God, not yet time. And the question in Haggi is not, you know, they're not rebelling. They're not um running away from God. They're just saying tomorrow because I'm too whatever the reason, right? And in my introduction, I have this picture. This is my wife and I with our 16-year-old. Remember 16 years, I said, since the Jews went back. My 16-year-old was 2 years old back then, one and a something. And that's her. That's Tegan.

4:40 She's not here today. She attended yesterday. And my how the years go by. And the other day, um, she asked me if I could drop her off at a friend's house. It was literally a minute or two minutes away. And I get in the car and she gets in the car, but she gets in the back. And I'm like, why are you sitting in the back? You know, you want to sit in front with daddy? And she says, my stuff is in the back. She was guarding her stuff. And I'm thinking, what's what why is your stuff more important than me? So, I make tempo. You know, dads, as you get older, you want more and more of your children's time. You know, when they're really little, all they want is your time. And you're so busy and you're

5:28 like, "I'm so busy. You're so malo. Spend time with mommy." But as they get older, you start to realize, "Oh my gosh, you know, she's a junior in high school. She's going to be in college next in not yet. She's going to be a senior next year." And Lord willing, she'll go to school here in life college or something. But who knows, right? Nowadays where people go to school I'm like maybe I don't have so many days with her. So I felt bad that she would not sit in the front. So I said oh I said you know in my entire life I have driven many people and no one has ever sat in the back without first asking me do you want me to sit with you? I said but why why did you sit there? I said that's not nice. I made tempo. You guys

6:14 know the feeling parents when you feel bad. So she said, "Okay, Dad, I won't do it. You know, I'll remember." And I'm like, "What? You can just jump to the front." She didn't say that. So I start driving, but I'm not happy. And parents, when you're not happy with your children and they start talking, what do you do? You don't want to answer. She's like, "So dad, tell me." Da da da da. I didn't say anything. Just quietly driving for one minute. And then she says, "Are you okay?" And I stop the car and I say, "I'm not okay." you know, I don't I'm not a dramatic guy, guys. I'm very simple. But this time, I became the dramatic dad. I said, I'm not okay. She's like, why? I said, because it's just one step to the front and you're

6:59 not moving. I said, you know, why don't you move to the front to be with me? She's like, Dad, we're almost there. I said yeah but are you proud? Who was being proud? Is me. So, you know, I felt bad and I I reflected on that and I thought to to myself later I told my wife, you know, I was sensitive and I think one of the reasons is I feel like the time has passed so much and I'm trying to spend more time with her the older she gets. And if we're not careful, my little story is the story of our lives. You know, reasons, they become seasons. And what happens to seasons or seasons they become reasons and reasons become

7:45 years? Yes. And if you're not careful, right? How many of you are young? Young people are feeling young. Raise your hand. Yeah. Right. If you're not careful, what happens? The years pass you by. And when you're young, you think, "I will live forever. I've got tomorrow." But tomorrow never comes, guys. If we're not careful, tomorrow, when you get there, it's today. And how many of you have said, "I will start eating healthy tomorrow. I will begin my workout tomorrow." But how about putting God first? Lord, I'm so busy today. I'll adjust my priorities tomorrow. And that's why

8:31 today's message is very simple. one point with three sub points. Don't wait to put God first. Can you tell your seatmate, don't wait to put God first. Let us bow our heads and pray. Our heavenly father, we love to procrastinate because we it's our nature. But there are certain things we ought not to procrastinate and one thing above all else. And I pray today as I speak, it won't be my words. Your Holy Spirit will speak to everyone here that you will speak to each person individually wherever they are and also

9:17 those watching us online. And whenever this is watched in the future, that we would remember not to wait to put you first. Will you speak to us in Jesus mighty name we pray. Amen. So don't wait to put God first. And I love co-preparing with Pastor Bong because he likes acronyms. So we have three Rs. First, reflect. What is reflect in the verse? You will see consider your ways. It's said five times. So consider your ways. So be honest. Look at your life. The second point is when you have looked at your life and you see something that needs to change, don't wait. Reorder it. Do it immediately. Put God first,

10:04 stop procrastinating. And then the third point is when you put God first, it's not always immediate that the results come. Rebuild with God for God. And just, you know, let's not be impatient. Let's not be discouraged. So this connects to the message last week. So these are the three points and we'll dive right back in to where we started. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the time has not the people say the time has not come. So time even the time for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt. Then the word of the Lord came by Hagi the prophet saying, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your panled houses while this house lies desolate?"

10:50 Houses are not sinful. God is not anti-work, anti-career, anti-f family. He's not against education, enjoying your gifts. The problem God is talking about is the order of their heart. He's saying, "You are doing all the normal things, but you have forgotten the most important thing. You have forgotten me." And God knows we need to build houses. God knows we need to cook food. But he's saying, "Make sure that I am in the middle in the first part of your life." Right? It's the direction of our heart. You know, work can get busy.

11:35 Sorry. Things can happen in our lives, but if we're not careful, God just gets the the the remaining time. So then what does God say to them? Now therefore, says the Lord of hosts. By the way, this verse that that word Lord of hosts, it's Lord of armies. And you will see it 18 times out of 34 verses. This is a very powerful word that God uses in that time because they had no army. They were a people that had nothing. They just rebuilding their city. And God keeps reminding them, I am the Lord of armies. Yes, you were conquered by another nation, but I am the Lord of armies. So, as you every time you see Lord of Hosts, God is

12:21 reminding them, I am bigger than all of this. But what does he say to them? Thus says the Lord of our country. Thus says the Lord of the nations. Thus says the Lord of the universe to you. Consider your ways. Reflect on your life. Consider your ways. So nudge your seatmate, right? Cuz it's after lunch. Oi. Consider your ways. Tell them consider your ways, right? Not consider your friend's ways. not look at your your spouse's ways. Whose ways do you look at your own? Then he says, you have sown much but harvest little. That's saying, look

13:08 what's happening in your life. You work so hard, so little comes. You eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied. So you eat, but you're not full. You drink, there's not enough to become drunk. You put on clothing, but no one is warm enough. And he who earns earns wages that put into a purse with holes. Do you ever feel this about life? We work so hard and there's so little to show for it. And God is telling the Israelites, you know why this is happening? He's telling them, look at your life. What is going on? Why is this happening in your life? Why are you experiencing

13:55 dis disappointment in all the stuff you're doing? Why does it feel like you do so much and you have so little? He says, consider your ways. Think about it. Why does it feel like in English, your pockets have holes? You ever feel that? So when we consider our ways, people will say, "Well, I put God first." But I love this quote. Don't tell me your priorities. Tell me or show me your calendar. Show me your uh viewing history, your screen time. Show me your transaction history. So you

14:42 know nowadays before the quote is checkbook. Now it's your GCash and your uh bank transactions, your pesonet and what I'll tell you what you value. So if we want to be honest, let's look at our lives. Yes, we tell God he's first, but how do I spend my money? How do I spend my time? Now maybe our time is so full. I go to work and I work because I have to take care of my family. I'm a very busy businessman. I have a multi multi-x company I have to run and then I spend time I do this with my family. Da da da da. But I will say consider your waves.

15:28 When you work, who do you work for? When you're busy, is God in the middle of your busyiness? You tell him, "I have a full day, but this full day is for you. And as I work, I will remember you. As I, you know, talk to people, as I negotiate, or as I talk to my children, when I correct them, when I spend time with my wife, you will be in the middle and you will be the center of my day." Do we do that right? That's very important. And consider your ways. God tells them consider your ways. So who is first in your life? That's the first point.

16:16 Then reorder. Put God first. Stop postponing. Why is it important to reorder? We we go back to this verse, right? Where is this? It it comes later. What does it mean to reorder here? God tells them when you realize your life is not in order. When you realize God does not have first part, what do you do now? My children are there and sometimes they fight. And why are you guys not sitting beside each other? Why is there a seat between you? Can you move over and sit by your sister? Well, you sit farther. No, no, no. Go closer there. So, those are my children, the younger ones. And when they fight, they feel bad. You know

17:04 this, when your kids fight and they say, "Dad, I fought with my sister or I fought my brother." And they're crying. And I sometimes as a dad, I'm like, "Oh my goodness, so much drama." I said, "Have you fought?" What do you do? You just say sorry. And then you do something good. Don't Don't just say I feel bad. Now they know I say sorry when I lose my temper. But what's my point? Many times when we look at our lives and we know we did something wrong, we we feel sad. But the Bible says to obey is better than sacrifice. And what God wants, yes, feel bad, but do something about it. God is about let's change. So the Jews, he told them,

17:50 look, consider your ways. You know, your pockets, they're empty. You're worried about life. You have not built my home. You've just taken care of your home. What should you do? He says, "Go then? Go to the mountains and what? Bring wood. Build a temple that I may be pleased and glorified." So in your life, do something. You know second point is when you see something wrong yes feel bad but immediately do something about it and we cannot change yesterday you know yesterday it's done even last hour I cannot go back and undo

18:36 anything I did in the last hour but you can change the present today is the day to reorder your ways not tomorrow because you don't know what happens tomorrow and honestly Tomorrow is a little discouraging sometimes because you worry about tomorrow. What if I have enough money? Will my business survive? Let God worry about tomorrow because you can worry about today. And that's what God wants today. Today you can serve him. So look what he tells them. You look for much and behold it comes to little. Again, remember that verse I said I will rehlight it. When you bring it home, I blow it away. Why? Declares

19:23 the Lord of hosts. Because of my house which lies desolate, while each of you runs to his own house. This is very clear. God says, remember I said, "Consider your ways. Your pockets have holes." This verse tells us why why do we struggle often in life? And he's telling them because you just build for yourself and you have forgotten me. And and those of you who have success, you know this. Even if you have money, when you build for yourself, your pockets still feel like they're empty because it's never enough.

20:09 So I want to encourage all of us. Let us be faithful in all areas of our life. Financially, let us put God first. Let us not deprive God of his tithes. Let us not deprive God of the first place in our heart. Let us work for God every day. He says, "Therefore, because of you, the sky has withhold held its dew and the earth hath withheld its produce." He's not saying, you know, God says, "It's not because of the weather." So sometimes we like to blame the environment. It's because of our country. It's because of this. And God is reminding us, no, no, no. It's because of you. Now, we all affect each

20:57 other. So trust me, bad politicians, they hurt us because they affect our country and we are affected. But God is more powerful than bad politicians. I called for a drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine, on the oil, on what the ground produces, on men. I called for a drought on men, on cattle, and on all the labor of your hand. So God is saying because you have not honored the covenant. You know God made a covenant with them. If you follow me, I will bless you. If you obey me, I will bless you and your descendants. But if you don't, I will curse you and your descendants. And he's telling them, I am

21:44 faithful to my promise. And the same God is the same God alive today. Let us not forget that. So how do we reorder? I I just one insert on reordering. Most of my verses we stay in Haggi. If you look at the first verse in Luke, this is Jesus. And he was saying, "If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me." The the first point I want to make about reordering is um sometimes you have to first let go of something and many of us this this is the hard part because all

22:29 of us want to say yes to Jesus. There is no one here in their right mind. If I say do you want to put God first? You'll ever say no. But the challenge we have is there's often something that gets between us and God. And it's different for all of us. Like for some people it's hobbies but for others it can be something healthy like a desire to succeed and be be rich. There's things in our heart. It can even be our certain people certain people can get between you and God like a a strained relationship. I was talking to someone some one sometime and they were even telling me when their parents challenge them to follow God, they they

23:16 feel a a resistance and they're not sure why. Maybe it's because they're they're they're upset at their parents for pushing God on them. So there's things in our lives, right? And the Bible says, "Let him deny who?" Himself. We are naturally selfish. That is our nature and God knows this. We make idols of ourself and God says the first thing that must be let go of is yourself and denying yourself it different for each of us. Sometimes it's saying I'm sorry. Sometimes it's forgiving someone. Sometimes it's letting go of a habit. Sometimes it's letting go of something that you know isn't evil but it gets between you and

24:04 God. So we each of you are different. That's consider your ways. What is that? Deny yourself. Take up your cross. And how do we do this daily? I want to encourage you. Don't worry about tomorrow. Don't don't regret you regret yesterday. But to change you, right? You can't change it. But today, is there anything today that God is asking you to lay aside? You know, you can do it today. You don't have to worry. Am I going to be strong enough tomorrow that God promises to be with you tomorrow? Today. Can you do it between now and your bedtime? You know, 10:00, 11:00. Can I be faithful? You can because God promises I will be with you. Well, look

24:50 at that. And then you follow. So that's that's always and then in Hebrews, sorry, in Hebrews, he's writing to to the Jewish Christians. What does he say? Therefore, since we have a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, what do we do? Let us lay aside every encumbrance. It's not even a sin. The sin is later and the sin which so easily entangles us. And let us run the race with endurance that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of faith. So lay aside an encumbrance, whatever it is. And remember, God is not KJ. He's not He does not saying don't watch TV at night. He's not I just want to remind

25:36 you guys, if we're not careful, we become legalistic. But you know, if there's something you need to lay aside and whatever that is, lay it aside. This is my my wife and I is I I'll explain this in a second. My wife when she was younger, she can eat anything. I tell you, I have never seen anyone with a better metabolism. She can eat nothing but Oreos and M&M's and she never gains weight. Me, if I look at an Eminem, I gain weight. So different. I have all the bad jeans. My mom's not here. I think it came from uh the American side, but um

26:21 my wife has no uh like she can eat anything, but lately she's noticed a change. I'm 52. She's getting closer to 50. She's a few years behind me. And she said, "It's so hard to lose weight now after our last son, the two-year-old." And I said, "Welcome to my life. Now you have to work." And then she doesn't want to stop eating her M&M's, her popcorn, and she eats it at night. And so I keep telling her, "You're not you're never going to succeed, but she won't listen to me." But she had to go to the doctor with my daughter two days ago for just a regular eye check. And

27:08 the doctor said, "There's something I notice about your eyes. It it the blood vessels, they remind me of someone who has high blood sugar." So, she bought a blood sugar tester. And two days ago, this was her score after two hours um of her meal. She had pasta, bread, you name it, right? And I said, "Oh, that's not good." I said, "Dad, that that I would be worried because high sugar is not good for your body. You want to be below, you know, 120 after 2 hours." So, she started changing her diet. After

27:53 all these years, you know, I've been telling her, "Eat less sugar." She keeps honoring the verse, "Wives don't submit to your husband." She's like, "No, no." But now, that's a joke, by the way. That's not in the Bible. Now, she listened to me. She finally said, "How what should I eat?" So, I told her, "I have a suggestion for your lunch. We'll have some salad and some chicken, cleaned, cooked with some quinoa." And you know what? She did it. And that's her blood sugar. 92. What's my point? Did she have to deny herself? Yes.

28:41 And when you deny yourself, you can say yes to better things. See, we think when we deny ourselves, we're costing ourselves. It's not true. You're giving up something that either hurts you or you'll never be able to keep anyway. And you're saying yes to something far greater. So that's the principle of reordering. Remember that it comes at a price, but it's worth it. So back to our passage. Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shel, and Joshua, the son of Jehosedac, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, what did they do? Look at this. So beautiful. They obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the

29:26 words of Haggi the prophet. as the Lord their God sent them and the people showed reverence for the Lord. You know, obedience is worship. There are some songs we sing and you hear them. Lord, all I have to offer is a song. You know, I like the song, it's nice to hear, but it's not true. God says obedience is better than sacrifice. You don't have just songs to offer God. You can offer him an obedient life. So that is the point of of that second idea. Reorder your life and obey. And God tells them, we'll look at this in a second. Then Hagi, the messenger of the Lord, spoke

30:13 to the commission of the by the commission of the Lord to the people, saying, I am with you. So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, the son of Shel, the governor of Judah, the spirit of Joshua, and the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people, and they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God. So God said, "Look, I am with you." So God didn't just say, "Oh, you obey me. That's up to you now." He said no. When they obeyed, God reminded them I am with you and he stirred their spirit and this is when they did it. So the third point is this. Reflect. Consider your ways. Reorder. Put God first. Stop postponing

31:01 and rebuild with God for God. It takes time. But God is with us. Don't wait to put God first. So let's look at that verse. God says, "I am with you." And then he is the one, right? The Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the people. That is so powerful because I want to remind all of you honestly, if you try to follow God on your own strength, you might succeed, but you will not last. You might succeed for a moment. We really need God's help. So, one of the first things I want my children to learn and I want to apply in my life is every day you wake up, God, I want to put you

31:47 first today. And I'm not the best at it, but will you live in me today? Will you fill me? Will you help me to say no to the things that I ought to so I can say yes to you? And every day you worry about today only. If we can do that then every day we put God first and before we know it 16 years have passed and it's not sang it's 16 years of oh Lord by your grace every day has been a beautiful journey and we'll fail we'll make mistakes that's why when we get to Haggi 2 on the 21st of the seventh month the word of the Lord came by Hag Haggi the

32:35 prophet saying, "Speak now to Zerubbabel remember the son of Shelto, Joshua, and the remnant, and what do you tell them? Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? The temple was originally built by Solomon and they they had gold here, gold there, they had this and that embroidery. But this temple, what did they do? They went to the mountains and got the wood. So he's saying, "Who remembers the old temple? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? The people when they obeyed God, they worked with what they had. And

33:22 naturally there is some discouragement." And so many of us have experienced this. When you obey, you you don't always experience the the result you expected because one, we could compare, right? We could compare to others. How come that person when he obeyed this happened? How come how come that person their kids are following Jesus? But I I I try to do the same thing and it's not the same or my marriage it's not the same. If we're not careful, we compare. And trust me, I compare all the time. And in today's age because of our phone, I don't have my phone with me, but is it easy to compare? So easy. Everyone's posting a

34:09 picture of the best life they have, and you're like, "What about my life?" And I think that's why today, even in the workplace, right, people resign so fast because they're always comparing the work they have with what they see online. And if we're not careful, comparison can make us feel insignificant or discouraged. So don't be discouraged when you obey God. Sometimes the results don't seem what you expect. But God tells them to what? He says, "But now take courage." Zabel, remember him. It's important, declares the Lord. Take courage, Joshua the take courage all the people of the land, declares the Lord.

34:55 For why? For I am with you. God doesn't say take courage because things will change. God says take courage because I'm with you and you have chosen the most important thing. You have put first me and that's enough. He says, "As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, this was a long time ago. This is before they built the whole nation of Israel when when they left Egypt back in uh Joseph's time." He says, "What? My spirit is abiding in your midst. Do not fear." I want to remind all of you who have followed Jesus for many years. From the day you left Egypt, whenever that

35:44 was, decades ago, a few years ago, God is always trying to remind you. My spirit is with you. Maybe there are days you didn't feel it, but I have been watching over you for good. And that's why sometimes problems happen this and that. He's saying because what I I am working in your life to help you keep me first because this life is not the only life we are living. It is just the beginning of eternity. So he says he reminds them take courage I am with you. And then for thus says the Lord of hosts, remember this ver this word again, the Lord of armies, once more in

36:30 a little while I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. I will shake all the nations and they will come with the wealth of all the nations and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. So these three verses in summary God says you know what I am with you right take courage I have been with you I will shake everything. So in this world expect tribulation. Our world will be shaken and it has been shaken and our nation has been shaken.

37:18 But God says, "I will be the one to glorify the house you're building." The shaking, the craziness we have, guys, does not affect God's ability to glorify himself. He calls us to be faithful in the middle of all of it. The hard days will come, good days will come, the whole world will be shaken, but God says, "I own it all and I'm in charge." So, just let's rest in that. Honestly, in today's age, it moves so fast. I always feel like I'm behind. I'm behind AI. I'm behind all of this. And the world is being shaken. There's wars

38:04 going on. But I'm so glad we have a God we can lean on. We can rest in. He says, "The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former." How's that possible? If it's built with wood and the old one was built with gold and stones and all the precious stuff, how is this possible? But he says and we'll see that and later on and in this place I will give peace. So he says I will give peace. This is the Lord of armies 14 times out of 38 verses. Uh I think I misqued at the start. So on the 24th day of the ninth month in

38:52 the second year of Darius when is this? The word of the Lord came to the people. This is now 3 months after um verse 15. So they started to build the temple and guess what? 3 months have gone by and what is God telling them? Okay, a short review. Thus says the Lord of hosts, ask now the priest for a ruling. So 3 months later asked the priest, "If a man carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches bread with this fold or cooked food, wine, oil or any other food, will it become holy?" And the priest answered, "No." So what's he saying? If if um you have holy food in your garment and then

39:39 it touches something, does that become holy? Says no. So I tell my children, you cannot inherit a relationship with God from me. I can teach you about God, but God has no grandchildren. When you go to church, you do not inherit the spiritual condition of your seatmate. You are we are all accountable to journey with God and be faithful in our own personal walk with God. And holiness is not something you can pass on. Each person becomes holy by God bringing holiness into their life through Jesus Christ and that relationship. And each

40:26 relationship is one-on-one mana mana of relationship. That's that first point. The second is if one who is unclean from a corpse touches any of these will the latter become unclean and the priest answered it will be. So the second point is it is harder to make something clean than to make something dirty. In other words, it is easier to impact something with corruption. So corruption spreads easier and this is very important to remember. That's why we are always commanded and taught about we must set ourselves apart

41:15 especially in our heart because it is easy to become corrupted by things. Then he says to them and so is this nation before me and so is every work of their hands and what they offer there is unclean. So he's saying because something is wrong in your heart before even if you offer something it's still unclean. Just because you go to the temple and you bring a sacrifice it is not clean. There's something more fundamental to the actions. So we must remember that. But now do consider from this day onward. So there's a big word here. It's but. He says, "But now

42:01 remember the issues they had, whatever they did was unclean. Consider from this day onward before one stone was placed on another in the temple of the Lord. From that time when one came to a grain heap of 20, there would be only 10. And when one came to the wine vat to draw 50 measures, there would be only 20." He's continuing to tell them, "Your pocket has holes. You want and you get less." He says,"I smote you and every work of your hands with blasting wind, mildew, and hail, yet you did not come back to me." Now, he's saying, "Look at your history. You had all of these problems, and you remembered that I told you that you should obey me, and yet when I

42:48 caused all these problems, you did not turn back to me." So, he's reminding them this was you before. But remember, they obeyed. So what is God going to tell them? Where is the good news? He said, "But do consider again the word consider from this day onward from the 24th day of the 9th month from the day when the temple of the Lord was founded." Consider is the seed still in the barn. So this is winter just to help understand because it's winter. There is no more seed in the barn because they had planted it all. Even including the vine, the fig tree and the pomegranate and the olive tree. it has not borne fruit. So he's saying, "Look, it's been 3 months. It's winter. You're wondering, Lord, we have no food.

43:34 What's going to happen to us? We're obeying you." Remember what my dad said last week? We're discouraged. Keep our eyes on Jesus or on God. He says, "Yet from this day, I will bless you." So God is saying sometimes right you you were waiting you were faithful for 3 months and nothing happened but from this day I will bless you. So God changed their their their their condition. He said I will bless you and what happened guys historically did he bless them? Look this is that 520 BC from this day I will bless you. So the promise trust me before you see the results. In 518 BC in Zechariah 8:12 he says

44:21 something similar. The seed will be prosperous. He says you know your seed will no longer be pockets with holes and the vine will lead its yield its fruit. The land will produce. He confirmed I made a promise and I am doing it. In 516 BC they finished the temple. The Jews built and prospered. The temple was completed and they celebrated its dedication with joy. So God was faithful. I mean that's four years. They needed food. They needed provision to build a temple and they did. So I want to remind all of us God is in charge of everything. Even in a world where it feels like there is no

45:08 more seed. Each of us, each of you, God can bless. Be faithful. And my dad wanted me to remind everyone, we are not ever teaching that when you follow Jesus, money will come. But money matters. We need money for food. You know, food doesn't fall from the heavens. Sometimes your neighbors bring food. You know, your droup will provide. But God promises, "I will take care of you." So surely part of the blessing does include finances. How and when that's all God's domain. But that's the reminder, right? So I want to encourage you guys hang in there. And now I would like to call up

45:53 my brother George Kang. So can we welcome George Kang to share his story. >> I am the youngest in a family of five kids raised in a Christian household by a single mother. I never met my father because he passed away while my mother was pregnant with me. At 8 years old, I had received Christ as my Lord and Savior and declared that I would commit to full-time ministry. I knew God church, the Bible, and actively participated in church. But something started to change in me. My faith became more of a practice than a relationship. Curiosity and peer pressure introduced

46:39 me to smoking at 10 years old and drinking alcohol at 14. In college, gambling and visiting casinos became my habit. Instead of focusing on my studies, I was failing deeper into bondage, enslaved by pornography, immorality, and chasing women. I began failing my classes and transferred schools. But I learned how to rely on myself, navigate situations, and follow my own judgment until I graduated. But what I was really learning was that I was becoming very good at living the life without depending on God. Over the

47:28 years, I was surrounded by people with influence and connections and enjoyed the advantages of influence, connections, money, and strategies. I thought I was better than others because I was a Christian. But my life was telling a different story. Even after I got married to my wife Ma, I still struggled with sin and infidelity. I was spiritually idol, but the Lord never stopped pursuing me. During a family trip in July 2023, my wife had a misunderstanding with her parents and I became involved. Instead

48:16 of responding with humility, I avoided conversing with them. I was hurt. I was angry and I held on to my pride. But little did I know, my wife was already praying for the Lord to work on my heart and teach me to forgive. She initiated praying together as a family in the mornings before leaving the house and at night before bedtime. We began reading devotionals together and listening to Christian worship songs more often. Looking back, God was already working. In July 2024, a relative sponsored us to attend our first IDC or intentional

49:03 disciplehip conference. It was so timely that the team was known by love and gave us clarity and proper spiritual understanding of what we were missing. We returned home to Davao humbled, joyful, and with purpose. On February 17 2024 during a solo ride after I had just finished my morning devotion and was heading back home, I was in a terrible bicycle accident. I was unconscious, sustained multiple rib fractures, a broken clavicle, shattered scapula, and a perforated

49:49 eardrum. Air and blood had also accumulated between my lung and chest wall. I had no recollection of the actual crash. But when I became conscious enough to understand what had happened, I prayed, "Lord, thank you." 6 days later I underwent a 14hour operation was incubated and placed in intensive care for further observation. The doctors told us that recovery could take 6 months to a year and there was no guarantee that my mobility would be completely restored. But even in that brokenness, God was in

50:37 control. I understood that I had been spared not by chance but by his sovereignty, love, grace, and mercy. He gave me a second chance in life, not just to simply live, but to live for him. I was reminded of First Peter 3:18. For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that he might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. In many ways, I saw myself like Barabas, a guilty man who deserved judgment, yet

51:23 was set free because Jesus took my place. I had been living as though my life belonged to me, but I finally understood what surrendering really meant. The physical recovery was painful. I underwent months of intensive physical therapy. After 4 months, I was able to ride my bike again. After 6 months, my perforated eardrum was completely healed. And after 10 months, I was able to swim again. God be praised. But the deepest recovery was not in my body. It was the healing of my heart. I

52:10 gave up my vices, surrendered my idols, and discontinued the business that had been built around wrong practices. God gave me a clearer purpose to honor him with my life and be a testimony of his grace and healing. I started attending a men's dgroup and today ma and I lead drgroups for men, women and couples. Our two kids, Jacob and Sophia, have started their own singles DGroups as well. Our family is actively serving as core volunteers in CCFchai Davo Ministry and our daughter Sophia also serves in

52:56 the praise and worship team. He placed people in our lives who have blessed, encouraged and walk with us as we grow together in Christ. Please pray for strength, perseverance, wisdom, and guidance as we grow God's kingdom by honoring him and making Christ committed followers who will make Christ committed followers. My brother who is a pastor shared a quote by city stud to me. Only one life will soon be passed. Only what's done for Christ will last. If if I were given a chance to speak to

53:41 my younger self, I would tell him this. Do not wait. Don't wait until you hit rock bottom. Don't wait until you lose something precious. Don't wait until life brings you to your knees before you surrender everything to God. Give your life to Jesus now while you still have the time, the strength, and the opportunity to serve him. The world may offer temporary pressure, but nothing compares to the joy, peace, and purpose of living for Christ. Come to him now. Surrender now. Live for him

54:29 now. Because we only have one life and what we do for Christ is what will last. Today my relationship with God is no longer about Lord what can you give me? It's about Lord I want to know you more. How can I live for you? My life is no longer my own. It belongs to Jesus. I am George Kong Jr. once wandering and enslaved. now restored by Christ and sustained by God's grace and mercy. All glory, honor, and praise belong to him and him alone.

55:15 Thank you, George. So for the young people, you heard him. Don't wait. Right. So as we close in Haggi 2-22, we only have four more verses. Then the word of the Lord came a second time to Haggi on the 24th day of the month. Same thing he said, "Speak to Zerubbabel. I am going to shake the heavens and the earth. I will overthrow the thrones of kingdoms and I will destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations and I will overthrow the chariots and their riders and the horses and their riders will go down everyone by the sword of another." Does that sound like today? Think about it. The sword of another. Who's

56:02 fighting? People are fighting themselves. There's wars. One country against another. You know, back then, I will overthrow chariots and their riders. That was their technology. Chariots, horses, riders. Today, we have missiles and AI. And God is saying, "I am bigger than all of that." So, take courage. Right? And how does he say to Zerubbabel, "On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, Zerubbabel, son of Shel, my servant, declares the Lord, and I will make you like a signate ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts."

56:50 This is a very beautiful promise God gave Zerubbabel. Do you know why? two generations ago, his grandfather was cursed. His grandfather is Jeconiah. And in Jeremiah 22, God said, "As I live, even though Kayiah, that's Jeconiah, the son of Jehoakim, king of Judah, wore a signate ring on my right hand, yet I would pull you off. For no man of his descendants will prosper sitting on the throne of David." So do you see God cursed Jeaniah because Jeconiah did not follow God. But Zerubbabel obeyed and God said

57:39 I will bless you. And he said I have chosen you. You are my servant and I will make you like a signate ring. And in the New Testament, we see that Jeconiah became the father of Sheliel, the father of Zerubbabel. And Zerubbabel was the father of D Jesus the Messiah. So he was in the line of Jesus on both the Matthew and the Luke genealogy. It's special for all of us who have made mistakes. Your mistakes don't have to define you. For all of us who have regrets, the regrets don't have to define you. What matters is what are you going to do today? Right? Will you put God first

58:28 today? In closing, in Haggi 2:9, the latter glory of the house, remember this house made of wood, will be greater than the former, and in this place I will give you peace. What What is that? When did peace come? When did they have a greater glory? Well, when Jesus walked in the temple in the New Testament, that house had glory greater than all the wealth that Solomon put in it. And we see that in Christ Jesus. You who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace. All of this is true for us

59:13 because of Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus Christ, all our mistakes God can use for good. I'd rather we not make them. I'd rather we not regret the past. But God can reroute your life because he is that powerful. So for all of us, those being faithful, those who struggle, put God first today. And for those of you who when I talk about putting God first, you're like,"Well, how do I do that, begins with a decision to trust Jesus?" Everything we talk about every Sunday begins here. For God so loved the world, he gave his only son that whoever believes in him shall not

1:00:02 perish but have everlasting life. All of these promises, they only apply if you have placed your faith in Jesus alone. Not in yourself, not in your good works, but in Jesus. And when you place your faith in Jesus, his sacrifice pays for our mistake. In Romans 6:23, for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. And because of Jesus, we can now put God first. So don't wait to put God first. Consider your ways. Reflect on your life. Then reorder it. Not tomorrow,

1:00:48 today. And then rebuild with God. Don't don't worry about the results. Let him work in your life. Do it for him. Enjoy his relationship with you. He is with you. Take courage. Don't be discouraged. Um let us bow our heads and pray. Our heavenly father, thank you for the reminder to put you first. I need this as much as every other person either watching or sitting here. Help us to do that. We need your help. And Lord, I pray for anyone here. If you have never placed your faith in Jesus, I want to say a prayer with you. Pray with me. Dear Lord, I admit I'm a sinner. I admit I cannot save myself. I need you and so I place my faith in

1:01:37 you alone in Jesus Christ. Thank you for dying for my sins and giving me eternal life. And Lord, I pray for everyone here that we will be able to put you first with your help. Thank you so much that you journey with us. Please encourage, [music] empower, and strengthen us each day, one day at a time. In Jesus mighty name we pray. Amen. God bless you all. >> Good day CCF family. Welcome to Sunday FastTrack where you ask real life questions and we give you biblical truths. I'm Nisha Gatrico from NextGen Kids Ministry and we're here with

1:02:23 brother Peter Tanchi Jr. to answer some of your questions. Happy youth month, brother Peter. Thank you for your message on the book of Haggi. Are you ready to answer our questions? >> Yes, I am. >> Question one. Haggi tells us that misplaced priorities have consequences. Does that mean that when we put God first, our problems will be fixed or solved? >> So, I think there's I'll answer this in two ways. first. A person with the wrong priorities, they actually have a big problem and that is the wrong priorities. And when we put God first, that problem is solved. But the consequences of all the mistakes we made, sometimes the the results of the

1:03:09 decisions that caused us, God doesn't promise to fix them immediately and sometimes they remain, but God promises to journey with us and to be with us and to cause it to work together for good. So, we have assurance that God will work it out. But sometimes we have to deal with the consequences and live through them. >> Okay, thank you for that. Question two, what would you say to young people who want to pursue their dreams now and plan to put God first later in life? >> I would say your dreams are too small because there is no greater dream than putting God first and then God says I will organize the rest of your dreams and journey with you. And so I would tell young people, you actually don't

1:03:55 need to put your dreams on hold. You should fix your dreams by by having the biggest dream possible, which is to put God first. And then God will say, "Okay, this dream you have of this job, let's pursue it. This dream you have of that that skill, let's do it together." But that way your life is in order. And you can pursue your dreams, but the dreams are in the right order. Question three, how do we remain faithful to where God has called us without comparing our calling to someone else's? >> This is very challenging because today, right, we always compare on our gadgets. We look at others. I think the best thing is to keep your eyes on Jesus. And the Bible tells us, right, we we focus on Christ and we trust that God is

1:04:40 faithful to do what he wants to do in our life when we do what he has called us to do. So I would always just look at God and the relationship and focus on on that and not what others are doing and and accomplishing. So that's what I would say. Just keep your eyes on Jesus and that'll help. >> Thank you, brother Peter, for answering our questions. And that's it for CCF Sunday FastTrack. God bless everyone. >> God bless.