Lord, Do It One More Time

This powerful message takes us into the story of Samson from Judges 16, revealing a profound truth about our spiritual identity: we have a 'top-shelf calling' on our lives. The sermon uses the image of valuable items kept on grandmother's top shelf—reserved for special occasions—as a metaphor for how God has set us apart for divine purpose. Yet many of us live like 'clearance aisle Christians,' allowing compromise, disappointment, and others' opinions to mark down our value. Samson's tragic journey illustrates this perfectly—he was consecrated as a Nazirite, separated for God's purposes, yet repeatedly lowered his standards by pursuing relationships in enemy territory. His pattern of 'situationships' with Philistine women, culminating in his relationship with Delilah, demonstrates how we can be anointed yet addicted to compromise, powerful in public yet powerless in private. The message challenges us to examine where we're trying to conquer what we're actually coloring—attempting to manage or make peace with the very things God called us to overcome. Whether it's unhealthy relationships, addictive behaviors, or compromising situations, we cannot conquer what we continue to sleep with. The hope emerges in Samson's final moments: even after losing everything, his hair began growing back while he was grinding at the mill. Grace grows in the grind. When we can no longer see what we desire, we can finally focus on our purpose. God is calling us back to top-shelf living, reminding us that what the enemy damaged, God can restore and restock.