Boot Camp

Victory Over Fear, Doubt, And Unbelief

Message Notes

Intro.
1. “Is faith a choice or a feeling?”
  1. I made a choice when I married Melanie. I chose her as the most beautiful lady in the world. As the mother of our children. As the one I would look at all day and sleep with every night. It is a CHOICE to believe in someone. There was no turning back, wavering, or backing up.
  2. Satan hates your power to choose to believe. He tries to influence you to WAVER in your choice, to DRAW BACK from your commitment to believe God. Faith is a choice to go forward.
Text:
1. “Therefore do not throw away your CONFIDENCE, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.” “But my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he SHRINKS BACK, my soul has no pleasure in him.” (Heb. 10:35-36, 38)
  1. We can’t draw back, shrink back, pull back, retreat. This phrase is used for a dog tucking it’s tail or a ship lowering it’s sail. This is a picture of fear, doubt, and unbelief: “tucking tail.” Faith is a CHOICE to believe God’s Word.
  2. We have to go FORWARD: “But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, 'Let us go up at once and occupy it, for WE ARE WELL ABLE to overcome it.’ Then the men who had gone up with him said, “WE ARE NOT ABLE to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” (Num. 13:30-31).
  3. People say, “Well, it must not have been the will of God.” It had nothing to do with the will of God; it was their faith that was SHRINKING BACK after seeing the giants and walls. They wanted to GO BACK to Egypt. Faith is a choice, a decision to back up or go forward.
2. “I’m a soldier in the army of the Lord.”
  1. The Bible calls us “soldiers.” Our family in Christ is called our “fellow soldiers.” A soldier can’t shrink back and retreat. I am commissioned to GO FORWARD.
  2. DAVID “RAN quickly” forward to meet Goliath. Fear paralyzed the entire army. He spoke the Word of God to himself and to the enemy: “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head.” (1 Sam. 17:45)
  3. ABRAHAM PURSUED five armies with 318 men. Odds don’t matter. One of us will chase a thousand and two of us will chase ten thousand.
  4. Paul said, “God has not given us a spirit of fear and COWARDICE, but of power, and love, and a sound mind.” (2 Tim. 1: 7). When he and Silas were in jail, they were “soldiers. They had the high praises of God in their mouth and a two edged sword in their hand.
  5. Jehoshaphat had no army compared to three armies. He made a choice, a decision: “The battle is the Lord’s. I have no need to fight in this battle but I send out praise ahead of me.”
  6. Ex. 14:15: The LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to GO FORWARD.”
How to recover your “confidence” in warfare
1. “Be strong in the LORD”
  1. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of HIS might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” (Eph. 6: 10-11)
  2. Every day, put on your prayer armor piece by piece: helmet, breastplate, belt, shoes, sword, and shield. Realize that Satan has no power over that armor, it is the ARMOR OF GOD. Pray in the Spirit (in your prayer language) every day to strengthen your Spirit when you feel weak.
2. Be strong in your FRIENDS (Heb. 10:24)
  1. "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to MEET TOGETHER, as is the habit of some, but ENCOURAGING ONE ANOTHER, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
  2. Your friends are critical in a battle. You need a squad, a circle of friends who know the Word and know the Lord. They will encourage you when others will discourage you. (David and Jonathan exhanging weapons and armor).
  3. Be at every service where the Word is preached and the Spirit is ministering. Find your small group and share your life with them. “Two of you will chase ten thousand.”
3. Be strong in your THOUGHT LIFE
  1. “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not SETTING YOUR MIND on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Mt. 16:23)
  2. Jesus told His disciples He was about to die. Peter was trying to tell Jesus that He would not die. Jesus was a soldier. He knew that thought was not sent from the Lord. He rebuked the thought.
  3. Thoughts and imaginations are the battleground. Thoughts of defeat and fear come at night and from random sources. You must “take them captive” by calling them lies OUT LOUD.
  4. Don’t fight thoughts with thoughts, fight thoughts with WORDS. “Fear, leave me now. Every lying thought, GO from my mind.”
  5. Faith is a CHOICE. You choose to believe and do the will of God. You choose to GO FORWARD and not “shrink back, pull back, or lay back.” Put on your armor, get connected with your squad, and cast down wrong thoughts!
Invitation
1. Joshua said, “Choose this day whom you will serve.” Faith is a choice, not an emotion. Will you choose Jesus? Will you take Him as you Lord, your Savior? Will you follow Him the rest of your life until death brings you to Him?

Boot Camp

Get ready for Boot Camp—a powerful 4-week series led by Pastor Larry Stockstill, focused on basic training for believers. In a world filled with spiritual battles, fear, doubt, and opposition, this series will equip you with the Word of God to stand strong and walk in victory.

4 Part Series

All the files in the included packages below have been stripped of dates and church branding. Feel free to adjust, change, or tweak as needed. Include your own church logo or swap out the photos.

Full package also available on Dropbox.

Assets & Files

Part 1: The Ten Toes Of Victory

You were never meant to live on the defensive, God has given you authority to take ground and walk in victory. In Week 1 of our new series Boot Camp, Pastor Larry Stockstill kicks off with a bold reminder: the enemy fears you when you're standing on the Word of God.

Part 2: Victory Over Poverty

Poverty isn't a virtue, it's a weapon the enemy uses to steal, kill, and destroy. But Jesus came so that we could have life in abundance. In Week 2 of our Boot Camp series, Pastor Larry Stockstill unpacks the Biblical foundation for abundance, not greed, but God's provision to meet your needs and empower you to bless others.

Part 3: Victory Over Fear, Doubt, And Unbelief

Fear is paralyzing. Doubt is deceiving. Unbelief is disabling. But God has called us to live by faith, not shrink back in defeat. In Week 3 of our Boot Camp series, Pastor Larry Stockstill teaches how to fight back against the internal battles that hold us hostage, reminding us that faith is a choice, not a feeling.

Part 4: In Christ

What if the greatest victory isn't something you fight for, but something you already have? In the final message of our Boot Camp series, Pastor Larry Stockstill takes us into the highest understanding of faith: knowing what it means to live "In Christ."