Section 1: 3,000 Souls and the Blueprint of a Devoted Church
Acts 2: A supernatural harvest and a divine model—doctrine, fellowship, communion, and prayer.
Are we ready to Cooperate with God in prayer?
Acts chapter 2, starting in verse 40:
With many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” Then those who gladly received—sorry, I got sidetracked—gladly received his word were baptized. And that day, about 3,000 souls—everybody say souls—3,000 souls were added to them.
And what did they do with those 3,000 new souls that were added? They began to pour into them. They continued steadfastly in these four things. We’ve talked about them, but I want to finish it up today: in the apostles’ doctrine—the teaching, the doctrine of the apostles of the New Testament—and fellowship. Number two: the breaking of bread. Number three—you can go back if you have not caught up on any of those, those are all on our app. You can download those and listen to those—fellowship, breaking of bread. And number four: and in prayers. Everybody say prayers.
Section 2: The Power That Hell Fears Most: A Praying Church
Why the devil believes in prayer more than many believers do—and why he hates when we do it.
We’re going to talk about prayers today. And again, I believe this is going to be the last—um hang on, my iPad just went there. I thought I was going to have to cast a demon out of that thing for a second. Something happened. I still don’t know what happened. Hang on. Bear with me. We’ll get to it. It doesn’t matter. I’ll find it eventually.
So we’re talking about prayers. And when we were talking about the importance of prayer and what it means to us as a culture to value prayer, I found this quote by a guy named Guy H. King. And here’s what he said:
“No one is a firmer believer in the power of prayer than the devil. Not that he practices it—but he suffers from it.”
The devil hates it when you pray. Yes, he hates a people that love to pray, a church that loves to pray, homes that love to pray. He believes in the power of prayer, so he tries to talk you out of it as much as possible. He wants the church to be full on Sunday and empty on prayer meetings. Why? Because he does not want people to tap into the power of prayer.
Section 3: The ABCs of Prayer: Always, All Things, and Believe
From when to pray to how to believe—faith isn’t wishful thinking; it’s confident trust in God.
So this is something we want to emphasize. I started giving you the ABCs of prayer. “A” stood for Always and All things. Talks about: when do we pray? Always. What do we pray about? All things.
Then “B” was Believe. Good. Mark 11:24:
“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
Answers the question: how should we pray? The Bible teaches us that believing when we pray makes a difference. We shouldn’t just pray in hope, but we pray and believe. We’re supposed to believe when we pray. Faith is a part of the Christian walk. The just shall live by faith. We walk by faith and not by sight.
So that was important. That was a few weeks ago. You can go back and listen to that—faith. When we talk about believing and we talk about faith, faith does not deny the existence of a problem. It denies the problem a place of influence in our life.
Section 4: Faith Doesn’t Deny the Problem—It Denies It Influence
Real faith faces reality but refuses to let fear or doubt take the lead.
So when God asks us to believe, it’s not because He wants us to ignore. He wants to take whatever we’re believing God for and cause it to not have a place of influence in our life. So faith doesn’t ignore problems—it just doesn’t let them have the final say.
But that’s not today’s message—praise the Lord. Let’s get to the “C”.
“A, B, and C.”
“C” stands for Cooperate. Everybody say cooperate.
Talking about prayer. We need to always pray for all things. We need to believe when we pray. And then number three—we need to cooperate when we pray.
The word cooperate, in the Webster’s Dictionary, means:
“To act or work together with another in compliance. To associate with another or others for mutual benefit.”
Cooperate is made up of two parts: “Co,” which means with, and together. “Operate” means to work, to exert power, exert strength, to exert force—to operate.
So when they put those two together—we’re to work together, exert force together. So we’re together and we start to work.
Section 5: The “C” in Prayer: Co-Operate With Heaven
Prayer is not a solo act—it’s a divine partnership with God’s power and plans.
We need the co and we need to operate. If we have the co and no operation—nothing gets done. If we have the operation with no co—we don’t get as much done. If we have a room full of people that are operating, that’s more powerful than two people.
One can put a thousand to flight, two can put—10,000. So this is the power of multiplication: co-operate.
So cooperating in prayer is about: will we act on, participate in, exert effort with God to accomplish what He wants in our lives? Will we exert force? Will we exert energy? Will we participate with what God wants to do in our life?
Martin Luther said these words:
“Pray as if everything depends on God. Then work as if everything depends on you.”
Yeah. Pray as if everything depends on God. And then work as if everything depends on you.
Section 6: Cooperation Means Action: Partnering With God’s Strength
It’s not just praying—it’s moving. God’s power meets us when we go.
Some people won’t like that quote because we’ve got to explain it. As soon as you hear “work as if everything depends on you,” people get nervous—like, no, everything depends on God.
That’s because we need to bust up some religious teaching that erroneously taught people the sovereignty of God means we have nothing to do. That God will do everything on His own. That God’s in complete control of every detail and I don’t have to do anything—God will make it happen.
That is not biblical. So we’re going to break that apart and begin to explain why we need to cooperate with God—not because He can’t do it on His own, but because He chose not to do it on His own.
Sovereignty—the issue of sovereignty is not questioning whether God can or can’t. It’s questioning whether He wants to do it a certain way or not.
Section 7: Martin Luther’s Secret: Pray Like It’s God, Work Like It’s You
Busting the myth of passive sovereignty and stepping into chosen partnership.
Sovereignty literally means that there’s none above you. That’s what sovereign means. Sovereign in itself as a word does not mean “I control everything.” Sovereign means “there’s no one above me.” So at this level of leadership, of sovereignty, He decides what happens under it.
And if He chooses to work through people—then that’s sovereignty. Sovereignty is not “I do it all by myself.” That’s the wrong definition.
Hope that makes sense.
All right, so I’m going to give you some biblical examples of this. Let me throw this other thought out at you:
Prayer is not about leading, but about following and yielding.
We’ll say it again:
Prayer is not about leading, but about following and yielding.
It almost rhymes—turn it into a rap song:
Prayer is not about leading but about following and yielding.
I’m trying to work. Anyway, let’s go on.
Section 8: Sovereignty Isn’t Solo: God Chooses to Work Through You
God doesn’t need you—but He wants you. That’s true sovereignty.
So I’ve got some biblical examples of people that God asked to cooperate with Him. All right, you ready for this? Let’s go to Exodus chapter 3.
Exodus chapter 3. I’m going to give you, Lord willing, three examples. I only got to two of them in the first service, but I feel the anointing of length on this service. (Just kidding.)
Exodus chapter 3—we’ll talk about Moses. And again, we don’t have them on the screen because now we bring our Bibles to church. So I just have the passage on there.
Exodus chapter 3 and chapter 4—that tells you how much scripture we’re going to use. No, that means I can go anywhere in those chapters and just tell you what verse and you can follow along with me. It’s going to be a great way for us to exegute the scriptures from an expository standpoint.
Boy, I just used some good theological words there. Sorry—my training coming up. Need to use simple words.
Section 9: Prayer Is Following, Not Forcing—Yield to God’s Heart
Stop trying to pull God to your plans—prayer pulls you to His.
Exodus chapter 2, look at verse 24:
“So God heard their groaning…” This is the children of Israel in bondage in Egypt. So God heard their groaning and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and with Jacob.
Whose covenant was it? God’s.
Maybe you’re not familiar with this, but if I asked this question: whose decision was it to make a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? It was God’s idea. It wasn’t their idea. They didn’t say, “God, make a covenant with us.” God said, “I’m going to make a covenant with you.” So it was God’s idea.
So He remembers His covenant and He looks down on the children of Israel, and He acknowledged them.
Then chapter 3—Moses is tending the flock. He’s a shepherd for his father-in-law Jethro. He goes around the back of the desert, and in verse 2, all of a sudden the angel of the Lord appears to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. God shows up in a bush—in a flame of fire.
Section 10: Moses and the Burning Bush—A Divine Encounter
So Moses looks, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. In other words, there was a fire in the bush, but the bush itself wasn’t burning—it wasn’t burning up, right? So this is a phenomenon that Moses looked at. Because if it was just a bush on fire, he’d probably just go, “Huh, that bush is on fire,” but he noticed that the bush was burning, but it wasn’t being consumed. So he’s like, “That’s weird…”
Lost my spot there. Verse 3:
Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So he turns aside.
Verse 4:
So when the Lord saw that Moses turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”
Look, notice what happened. Notice the progression: When Moses turned aside, and God saw that he turned aside to look, then God began to speak.
Section 11: Turning Aside—When We Give God Our Attention
Here’s a good prayer initiative that we need to have in our life: Sometimes, God won’t speak until we turn aside to look. That’s good. Until we give Him our attention. Until we get our attention off of Facebook, off of TikTok, off of Netflix, off of the screen. Until we put the phone down and actually turn to God—go into our room, kneel at our bed, go into our prayer closet—when we turn to Him, all of a sudden God says, “Oh, you want to pay attention to me? I’ve got something to say to you.”
But God’s not going to interrupt our passion for TikTok…
(I’m not saying He can’t ever do it, or that it won’t ever happen. He might speak through TikTok. There are good things on TikTok. Hopefully, I’ll be on TikTok someday. I’m just kidding.)
Section 12: God Speaks When We Listen—Moses’ Assignment
The point is that when we turn aside to give God our attention, He will speak to us. And so that’s what happens: Moses turns aside. So when God says, “Hey, Moses, Moses,” Moses said, “Here I am.”
And He said, “You know, don’t draw near. Take your sandals off. You’re standing on holy ground.” I’m summarizing a little bit.
Says, “I’m the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and God of Jacob.” He’s introducing Himself from the bush—letting Moses know who He is. Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.
Section 13: A New Calling: God’s Heart for His People
And the Lord said, “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and I’ve heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.”
So verse 8, pay attention to this part:
“So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians.” Who’s come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians? God has.
He says, “I’ve come down to do it. Take them to a land, to a good, large land, flowing with milk and honey, a place where all the Ites are there…” And verse 9—I’m just wasting time saying those.
Verse 9:
“Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me…”
Again, this is still God talking, and He says, “I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppressed them.”
So God has a plan.
Everybody say, “God has a plan.”
Section 14: God’s Plan Revealed—But He Wants Our Cooperation
God has a plan, and He’s communicating that plan to Moses. Did Moses ask Him about this plan? No. Did Moses bring up this plan to God? No. God’s telling it to Moses.
Burning bush—“Come over here, I’ve got something I want to tell you. I’m going to put it in our modern-day language: Moses, there’s something on My heart I want to share with you. I’ve got something that’s troubling Me. I want to talk to you about it. I know you’re busy with all your sheep and stuff, but if you don’t mind, I’d like to share with you a little bit of what’s on My heart today, if you’re not too busy.”
Section 15: Moses Responds—“Who Am I?”
And what’s on His mind is the people of Israel. He says, “You see, I made a covenant with them. And they’re in agony. They’re in pain right now. They’re in anguish. And I hear their cries, it’s coming up to Me, and I’d like to talk to you about it.”
Moses is like, “Okay.” So He says, “I’ve come down to deliver them. I’m going to deliver them from the hands of the Egyptians.”
If you’re Moses, put yourself in that position. You’re like, “Cool. That’s awesome. I can’t wait to see that, because I grew up there. Remember, I was raised by Pharaoh. I was raised by that dude. He’s got it coming to him. Man, they’ve got a huge army. They’re the most powerful army on the planet at the time. And You’re going to free Israel from them? Man, I can’t wait to see this.”
Section 16: God’s Surprise Twist—“I’m Sending You”
So Moses is probably telling his sheep, “Hey, God’s saying He’s going to deliver Israel. This is going to be awesome!”
Then verse 10 happens:
“Come now therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”
Can you imagine? Moses is cheering, “Take them out, God! This is going to be awesome! Kill them all!”
(You know how we sometimes get a little fired up for vengeance without the heart of God…)
And then God says, “Yes. So come on. I’m now going to send… you.”
Moses: “Me? One versus the most powerful nation on the planet? You’re going to send me?”
God: “Yep. I’m going to send you. And you’re going to deliver My people out of Egypt.”
Section 17: From Agreement to Anxiety—Moses Questions Himself
Whose plan was this? God’s plan.
Was it Moses’s plan? 100% not his plan.
But what did God do? He asked Moses if he would cooperate with Him for His plan.
“I’ve got a plan. I want to free My children, Israel, and I want you to go do it.”
How many times does God have a plan that seems impossible, and He talks to us about it?
How many times are we asking God, “What’s Your plan for my school? For my family? For my job? For my city?”
Are we really asking Him what’s on His heart—or are we just too busy blabbing about what’s on our heart that He doesn’t get a word in edgewise?
Prayer is not about leading—it’s about surrendering and yielding.
Section 18: God Answers Our Insecurity With His Presence
So He says, “I got this plan. And I’m going to send you to do it. I want you to cooperate with Me. I’m going to work with you. I’m going to do it.”
And look what Moses said. As soon as God tells him His plan—I get too long on these things, but I like to roleplay stuff too much—
Moses says to God:
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
Isn’t that just like us? God tells us His plan and asks us to participate.
Whose plan is it? God’s plan.
And then who do we immediately start to focus on? Us.
“How’s this going to affect me and my life?”
God’s like, “I just want to share My heart with you. I’ve got this plan—I want to deliver Israel, and I want to send you.”
Moses: “Who am I? Who am I?”
Section 19: The Power of “I Will Be With You”
How many times has God told you something and you said, “Who am I?”
I know I have.
So the Lord responds. He says,
“I will certainly be with you.”
Notice the progression here. God tells Moses His plan. Moses says, “Who am I?”
And the Lord doesn’t spend any amount of time telling Moses who he is.
He doesn’t say, “You’re great! You’re wonderful! You can do it, Moses!”
He doesn’t give Moses a pep talk.
He simply says,
“I will be with you.”
In other words—it’s not about you.
“I’ll be with you.”
And that one statement—“I’ll be with you”—is supposed to cover all your excuses.
Section 20: Shift the Focus—It’s Not About You
Because we’re too focused on ourselves instead of who’s with us.
If we’ll concentrate on who is with us, then what He’s telling us to do becomes insignificant.
Because my emphasis is not on what He asked me to do—but who is with me while I do it.
If God is for me, who can be against me?
So when God begins to speak His plans to you and wants you to cooperate, what’s going to be your excuse?
“Who am I?”
God spends the rest of chapter 3 telling Moses not who he is—but who God is.
He says, “I AM who I AM.”
In other words: “I’m everything you need and more to accomplish what I’ve asked you to do.”
Section 21: Excuses, Excuses—Moses Doubts Again
Chapter 4 now.
Then Moses answered and said,
“Suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice. Suppose they say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’”
Moses is like, “What if they don’t believe me? What if they say I’m making this up?”
So the Lord says, “Okay—what’s that in your hand?”
Moses: “A rod.”
God: “Throw it on the ground.”
Boom—it becomes a serpent.
“Now pick it up.”
He picks it up—it turns back into a rod.
God says, “Cool trick, right? Show them that one. They’ll believe you.”
Still not convinced? God says, “Put your hand inside your shirt.”
Moses does—pulls it out—leprous!
“Put it back in.”
Pulls it out again—healed!
God’s like, “There. Now you’ve got two signs.”
Section 22: When Signs Still Aren’t Enough
So God is trying to encourage Moses—who’s still full of doubt.
Even after God said, “I will be with you.”
Even after He gave him signs and miracles.
And still—Moses isn’t convinced.
He says:
“Oh Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant. I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
Basically: “God, I’m not a good speaker. I stutter. I’m awkward. I’m not your guy.”
God’s response:
“Who made man’s mouth? Who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?”
Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth, and teach you what you shall say.”
Section 23: God Covers Every Excuse—But Will You Still Say No?
He’s saying: “Cut the excuses, Moses. I made your mouth. I know what you’re capable of. And I will be with you.”
It’s not about you, Chad.
It’s not about you, Roads Church.
It’s about who’s with you.
And still—still!—Moses says:
“Oh my Lord, please send by the hand of whomever else You may send.”
Translation: “Can You send literally anyone else?”
And here’s the moment…
So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses.
It’s like, Come on, Moses!
God’s been so patient. So reassuring. So generous. But finally—He’s like, “Really? After all this?”
Section 24: Cooperation Through Apprehension—Obedience When You’re Scared
So this first part is about cooperating with God through apprehension.
Moses didn’t feel qualified. He didn’t feel capable. He didn’t feel ready.
But God called him anyway.
God didn’t need someone perfect. He needed someone willing.
He didn’t need someone eloquent. He needed someone obedient.
He wasn’t looking for polish—He was looking for participation.
You don’t have to have it all together. You just need to say yes.
Section 25: Next Up—David’s Breakthrough Moment
Let’s fast forward.
2 Samuel chapter 5—another example of cooperation through prayer.
This one is David.
When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king of Israel, they came out to attack him.
Here’s a word:
Whenever God begins to elevate you—be prepared. The enemy may try to take you out.
New levels, new devils.
You start leaning into God, and suddenly—it feels like all hell breaks loose.
Why? Because the enemy doesn’t want you to move forward.
But if you’ll stick with God—He will be with you.
Section 26: Breakthrough & the Battle Plan—David Seeks God
2 Samuel 5:18:
Then the Philistines went and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.
So here comes the enemy, camped out against David.
And what did David do?
He inquired of the Lord.
That’s key. David asked God first—he didn’t assume, didn’t react, didn’t jump into battle mode. He stopped and prayed.
He asked:
“Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?”
And the Lord said:
“Go up, for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into your hand.”
There it is: cooperation through prayer.
David didn’t say, “Bless what I’m already doing.”
He said, “What do You want me to do, God?”
Section 27: If God Is in Control, Why Ask?—Because He Invites Us In
Notice this moment.
God could have said, “Just sit back, David. I’ll handle it. I’ve got this.”
But instead, God said, “Go up.”
He invited David into the process.
If God is in complete control of every detail, why does He ask us to move?
Because it’s not about whether He can—it’s about how He chooses to work.
And He chooses to cooperate with us.
So David went. He obeyed.
And guess what? Victory.
He defeats the Philistines and says:
“The Lord has broken through my enemies before me like a breakthrough of water.”
And he names the place Baal Perazim, which means Master of Breakthroughs.
Section 28: The Enemy Comes Back—Will You Assume or Ask Again?
But then—verse 22—the Philistines come back.
You ever had that happen?
You get a breakthrough… and then the enemy circles around and tries again?
You finally got peace in your mind—then the depression tries to creep back.
Your marriage turns a corner—then another fight.
Finances start looking up—then an unexpected bill hits.
The enemy came back.
So what does David do?
Does he say, “Well, I beat them last time—I’ll just do what I did before”?
Nope.
He inquired of the Lord again.
Section 29: Cooperating Through Assumption—Don’t Just Replay the Last Victory
This is where many of us slip.
We assume God wants to do it the same way again.
“Last time we anointed with oil, and it worked.”
“Last time I fasted, and it broke through.”
So we hit replay—without ever asking God.
But God says:
“Don’t go up. Circle around behind them.”
Wait, what?
He changed the strategy.
He told David to come around from behind, wait in front of the mulberry trees, and listen.
“When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the trees, then you shall advance quickly—for then the Lord will go out before you.”
God’s saying: “I’ve got an army. I’m marching ahead of you. Wait for My signal.”
And David did so, just as the Lord commanded—and won again.
Section 30: The Problem with Religious Routines
This is why prayer matters.
It’s not about routine—it’s about relationship.
We want predictable. Comfortable.
Sing three songs, take an offering, get a nice sermon, go home.
But God doesn’t want routine—He wants connection.
Sometimes He’ll mess up your comfort zone just to get your attention.
Tongues and interpretation?
A moment of silence in worship?
A different word than expected?
That’s not chaos—that’s cooperation.
God is saying, “You don’t lead this—I do.”
Section 31: Even Jesus Had to Yield—Praying Through Agony
Matthew 26:36:
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and He said to the disciples,
“Sit here while I go and pray over there.”
Wait—Jesus needed to pray?
Yes. Even the Son of God had to align His heart through prayer.
He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee with Him and began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed.
Those aren’t casual words.
“Sorrowful” in the Greek means sadness, grief, or heaviness.
“Deeply distressed” means troubled, dismayed, or in anguish.
Then Jesus says:
“My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”
Section 32: Cooperating Through Agony—When Obedience Hurts
This is the third way we’re called to cooperate: through agony.
Jesus fell on His face and prayed:
“Oh My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”
Can we pray that kind of prayer when we’re hurting?
When it costs us something?
When the cup is bitter, and the assignment feels unbearable?
Jesus said, “Here’s what I’d prefer—but not my will… Yours be done.”
That is full surrender. That is true prayer.
Section 33: The Spirit Is Willing, But the Flesh Is Weak
He came back to His disciples—they were sleeping.
And He said to Peter:
“Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
So here’s the choice:
Will I partner with my spirit—or will I partner with my flesh?
If I partner with my flesh, I choose weak.
If I partner with the spirit, I choose willing.
Jesus went away and prayed again. Same prayer:
“If this cup cannot pass unless I drink it, Your will be done.”
Section 34: Prayer Pulls Us Toward God—Not the Other Way Around
Let me give you this quote by E. Stanley Jones:
“Prayer is surrender—surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will.
If I throw out a boat hook and catch the shore, do I pull the shore to me? No. I pull myself to the shore.”
Prayer is not about pulling God toward our will.
Prayer is about pulling ourselves toward His will.
We throw out the rope and say, “God, align me with You. What’s on Your heart?”
Section 35: What If We’ve Been Praying the Wrong Way?
Are we asking, “God, what do You want me to do with my kids?”
Or are we just telling Him what we want?
“God, You need to fix this. Change that. Bless this.”
Or—are we saying: “Lord, what’s Your dream for them? What are Your plans?”
We pray so many “bless me” prayers…
But what God wants are cooperation prayers.
“God, I’ve got no plans. What are Yours?”
“What do You want to do in my family, in my workplace, in my city?”
Section 36: What Dreams Are We Missing Because We Didn’t Cooperate?
Let me ask you:
What are you missing out on because you haven’t cooperated with God’s plans for your life?
What if God has dreams for your life you’ve never even asked about?
We decide how much of His dream we get to be a part of.
Not because He’s holding back—but because we never asked to participate.
When God told me He wanted to reach other communities, I said,
“I’m good with one location.”
But He said, “I’ll be with you.”
Section 37: This Is Your Moment—Say Yes
So what’s God speaking to you?
Business idea? Career change? Ministry step? Reconciliation? Healing? Starting something new?
If He’s speaking it—He’s already committed to be with you.
And now it’s your turn to cooperate.
To lay down the idols.
To surrender the excuses.
To trust the “I AM” is with you.
Do it quickly. Don’t wait. Don’t overthink. Don’t punk out.
God’s saying, “I want to move—but I want to move through you.”