“The Road Back” (The Refill)
Pastor Jim Lowe III
Sunday Morning, 9:30am Stream 01/25/26 (4th Sunday Message)
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{All scriptures are NIV84 unless stated}
2026: The Year of the Comeback!
If someone asks:
Here is our foundation scripture:
2 Chronicles 7:14
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
If God’s people who are called by his name will:
Position themselves differently. The Lord Will Heal
How Will He Heal?
Through Restoration and Replenishing.
“In 2026 If We Turn More To Him, We Are Believing He Will Restore What We’ve Lost and Replenish What Is Empty!”
Now that we’ve gotten it all out… let’s break it down fully.
Because we are talking about restoring and replenishing… this series will be titled
The Refill
and the message for today:
Message Title:
“The Road Back” (The Refill)
Let’s go back to our foundation scripture and start in v13.
2 Chronicles 7:13-14
13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Let’s talk about this scripture.
We explained last week that this was a future promise. So the Lord is saying to Solomon:
“If situations happen…here’s what you do, and here’s what I do.” Now that we are finishing this series let’s bring it all back.
the rain.
the Rain represents the blessing of the Lord.
it is something that ONLY the Lord can provide. it takes the things you’ve planted.
it takes the effort you’ve done. and it’s what makes it grow.
Lack of Rain:
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When You’re Always Busy But Never Refreshed
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When You Come To Church Every Sunday But Don’t See Change
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When You Pray But Don’t Feel Close To The Lord
You may have done the work.
you might have provided effort.
but this doesn’t “grow” like it used to.
The Locusts represent what you have that is diminishing. because it’s getting eaten.
things that lose their value.
things that don’t last like they used to.
No matter how hard you try…
you seem to be standing still.
or end up back at square one.
Examples Of Locusts:
There are differences between these.
The Rain Stops Growth
The Locusts Eat What Is Stored
Now let’s talk about the next one.
2 Chronicles 7:13
13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people…
What Does The Plague Represent?
The plague is the 3rd of things the Lord says he could do. You could look at them in terms of severity.
Once You Don’t Produce Like You Used To And Your Loss Becomes Ignored, The Next Thing Comes A Disease That Spreads!
“Disease” doesn’t necessarily mean “sickness.”
When we think of plague… we think of being sick.
Just because you’re sick doesn’t mean plague.
and just because you are dealing with a plague means you get sick.
Not Every Sickness Is A Form Of Judgment, Not Every Plague Is A Form Of Punishment
What we do see plagues as is something that involves us.
Plagues Are Things That Involve or Influence “Us”
They might not be sickness…but they affect us on the inside.
The drought talks about lack of growth
the locusts talk about diminishing of what you have.
but plagues deal with decay, weakening or decline.
Taking something that’s healthy…and causing it to deteriorate. Ever noticed a NEW bad habit you have you didn’t have before?
we have to learn to identify how these things show themselves.
Examples of a Plague:
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Growing Addictions to Unhealthy Things
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Growing In More and More Anger
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Allowing More and More Fear to Influence Your Faith
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Never Truly Being Satisfied and Happy
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Chasing Your Own Desires Over The Lord’s
These things are a form of decay that spreads. It starts one way but evolves past that.
One bad habit can turn into 3.
Because we walk in unchecked anger in one area
we now tend to have a shorter fuse with everyone.
Because we allow fear to keep us from our calling… we begin to do even less…
because we find more to be fearful about. We chase what we want over what the Lord wants for us.
then eventually we stop seeking him more and more.
These things start when we allow something… and it gets worse.
it begins to decay.
Plagues Reveal The Things We’ve Tolerated
When we were doing the Under Construction series.
and we said we may have had “mold behind the walls.” these are things we may or may not see
but leaving them only WORSENS the condition.
There are other specific examples:
Are We Guilty Of Examples Like This?
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Increasing In Gossip About Others?
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Increasing Levels Of Division In Groups Of Others?
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Feeling Like Many Others Are Against Us?
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Being Known As The Complainer?
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Carrying Unforgiveness In Our Hearts Towards Others?
These things started somewhere.
but they continue to degrade US.
So what do we do if we’re dealing with a spiritual plague? In 2 Chronicles 7:14:
the plague comes AFTER the drought and locusts.
And these things are the Lord’s way of getting our attention. How do we deal with them?
The Lord doesn’t tell us to fight that thing… he tells us to turn to him.
Dealing With A Spiritual Plague Requires More Than Prayer - It Requires Better Positioning!
So let’s go back to our scripture:
1 Chronicles 7:13-14
13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Now that we’ve talked about rain. what that looks like.
and HOW we can apply this to our 2026.
This Year If Something Feels Like It’s Missing:
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Lower Yourself
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Look Up
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Live Different
Humble yourself.
Change your hearts and your ways.
James 4:8 {used whole month}
8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
{2026: The Year of the Comeback}
Restore and Replenish
This is how the Lord said he will respond to returning to him.
How The Lord Will Heal:
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He Will Restore:
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He Will Replenish:
We have talked the last few weeks on how he will do it. Today I will give a story about Job.
Job 1:1-3
In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
The Lord allows Satan to attack the man.
Job 1:13-15
13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, 15 and the Sabeans attacked and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
Job has lost part of his livestock as well as many servants.
Job 16-17
16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the sky and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” 17 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
Now the sheep and camels are gone…as well as many more servants!
Job 1:18
18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
His sons and daughters were all having a party together… the house fell down on them.
all 10 of his children are gone.
He has lost his entire estate… he’s bankrupt…
and NOW he has no future!
This was all his FIRST TEST!
The SECOND TEST was what was done to him. Satan asked to be able to attack the man’s health.
Job 2:7
7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. 8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.
His own physical health was challenged at this point. he was attacked with a skin disease.
he was in such bad shape that his friends didn’t recognize him when they saw him.
But never did he blame the Lord.
even when his friends were talking crazy… Job never turned away from the Lord.
Job 42:10
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before.
It shows that the Lord was capable of giving back everything he had lost before…but even MORE than before!
Job 42:12
12 The LORD blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. 13 And he also had seven sons and three daughters.
This is just Job’s story!
All of the things that had been taken from him were given back!
What Has Been Robbed From You? We Are Believing In 2026 You Can Get It Back!
The Lord says plainly he will give back to us what we’ve lost!
Joel 2:25
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten— the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm— my great army that I sent among you.
The Lord is saying that return is possible! But he won’t JUST return it.
Proverbs 3:7
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. 8 This will bring
health to your body and nourishment to your bones. 9 Honor the LORD with your
wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
Fearing the Lord will bring health.
he will replenish and restore health.
But doing these things out of obedience…returning to him. it’s more than just getting back.
Joel 2:12
12 “Even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”
Just like in Chronicles…
return to him… seriously…
be serious about it
Joel 2:13
13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Rend your heart…not your clothes.
don’t just change your clothes - like you do every day. if you’re gonna change anything…
change your heart.
get serious.
Someone has to make a choice to bring it back.
2026 Can’t A Comeback For You Until You Fully Come Back To Him!
So the question is….
If The Lord is going to do amazing things for you this year….
What Are You Going To Do Differently?
We have just finished our fasting… many of us have fasted foods.
many of us have fasted watching things. fasted saying things.
fasted DOING things. now that the fast is over…
What do you intend to pick back up?
and what do you intend on leaving where it was?
