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Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your

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Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Studyheadquarters dot com.

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Speaker 1: Grateful to be able to spend this day together with you.

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Speaker 1: This morning, we're going to take a break from our

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Speaker 1: look at the Book of Revelation, and today we're going

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Speaker 1: to be looking at a portion of scripture that I

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Speaker 1: don't remember ever hearing spoken about on Mother's Day. Now,

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Speaker 1: I'm sure in the history of Christianity that it has been,

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Speaker 1: but I've never heard it spoken on on Mother's Day.

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Speaker 1: And so today I want to take a look at

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Speaker 1: an interesting account that we see in Matthew Chapter fifteen.

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Speaker 1: In Matthew Chapter fifteen, starting with verse twenty one, that's

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Speaker 1: where we're going to pick up, and we're going to

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Speaker 1: see an example of a mother's persistent faith. So if

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Speaker 1: you take your Bibles and turn there with me, Matthew fifteen,

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Speaker 1: starting with verse twenty one, I'm going to read the

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Speaker 1: whole section Matthew twenty one, verse twenty eight, you'll notice

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Speaker 1: this persistence in this particular mother. This is what it says,

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Speaker 1: starting with verse twenty one says, and Jesus went away

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Speaker 1: from there and withdrew to the district of Tire and Sidon,

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Speaker 1: and behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out

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Speaker 1: and was crying, have mercy on me, o, Lord, son

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Speaker 1: of David, my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.

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Speaker 1: But he did not answer her a word. And his

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Speaker 1: disciples came and begged him, saying, send her away, for

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Speaker 1: she is crying out after us. And he answered, I

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Speaker 1: was sent only to the lost sheep of the House

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Speaker 1: of Israel. But she came and knelt before him, saying, Lord,

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Speaker 1: help me. And he answered, it is not right to

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Speaker 1: take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.

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Speaker 1: She said, yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the

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Speaker 1: crumbs that fall from their master's table. Then Jesus answer,

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Speaker 1: oh woman, great is your faith. Let it be done

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Speaker 1: for you as you desire. And her daughter was healed instantly.

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Speaker 1: Let's pray, Father, we thank you so much for the

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Speaker 1: opportunity on this mother's day to be able to look

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Speaker 1: at this portion of scripture, a portion that speaks to

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Speaker 1: us very clearly about a mother's persistent faith. The way

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Speaker 1: in which you divinely responded, Father, We're just so grateful

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Speaker 1: for the privilege to be able to look at these things. Today,

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Speaker 1: we pray that you'd help our minds and our hearts

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Speaker 1: to understand what we're reading and what we're studying, and

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Speaker 1: by your grace, we pray that you'd help us to

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Speaker 1: apply these things in our day to day lives. Father,

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Speaker 1: I recognize that some in my hearing are mothers and grandmothers,

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Speaker 1: some are not. And yet, Lord, as I look at this,

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Speaker 1: as all of us look at this portion of Scripture,

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Speaker 1: there are things that we learn from what you did

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Speaker 1: through this mother's example. So, Father, whether or not we

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Speaker 1: personally our mothers, Lord, we know that we are followers

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Speaker 1: of yours who can learn from the things that you

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Speaker 1: taught in a context like this. And so Father, we

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Speaker 1: pray that you would help us to understand this portion

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Speaker 1: of Scripture and then apply these principles and these truths

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Speaker 1: to our day to day lives and to our households,

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Speaker 1: and to our friendships and to our work context and

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Speaker 1: even as we relate to one another here within the

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Speaker 1: church fellowship, we're grateful for all of this, Lord, and

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Speaker 1: we thank you in Jesus' name. Amen. So it's kind

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Speaker 1: of interesting. I don't know if you do this. I'm

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Speaker 1: sure some of you definitely do this. But one of

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Speaker 1: the things that I like doing sometimes just as a

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Speaker 1: personal habit. Sometimes when I know that I'm going to

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Speaker 1: be speaking on a particular topic, I do this as well.

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Speaker 1: I like to look at statistics. I like to see

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Speaker 1: different things and every now and then, and I've done

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Speaker 1: this other Mother's Days in the past, but I don't

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Speaker 1: think i've done it for a while. I look at

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Speaker 1: different statistics that have been done because there's plenty of

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Speaker 1: studies on this, and they update them all the time.

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Speaker 1: But it's basically statistics on the impact of a mother's life,

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Speaker 1: and there's always new studies and there's always new data.

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Speaker 1: Often it comes back to some of the same principles.

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Speaker 1: But during the course of this past week, I looked

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Speaker 1: up to see if there were any updates on some

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Speaker 1: of those stats, or any new stats that someone had

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Speaker 1: taken the time to compile, and I put together some

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Speaker 1: that really caught my attention. I'll share several of them

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Speaker 1: with you here. So these are some statistics related to

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Speaker 1: the impact that mothers tend to have on the lives

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Speaker 1: of their children. The first is this one stat said

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Speaker 1: that children with highly involved mothers are more likely to

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Speaker 1: perform academically, including higher grades and stronger reading skills, and

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Speaker 1: that one stood out to me. I remember, I have

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Speaker 1: to give credit to my mom. She's the one who

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Speaker 1: taught me to read. And I remember I went to

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Speaker 1: kindergarten able to read because my mother had spent so

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Speaker 1: much time with me. I still remember my kindergarten teacher,

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Speaker 1: missus Durso saying to me, She's like, and they always

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Speaker 1: call me Johnny back then, She's like, Johnny, I know

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Speaker 1: you can read the instructions. We have to wait till

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Speaker 1: I read them to everybody else. You can't. You can't

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Speaker 1: do the worksheet that quickly. And I remember going home

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Speaker 1: and telling my mom. I was like, Mom, just so

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Speaker 1: you know, I can read the instructions before the teacher

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Speaker 1: reads them to us. Credit to you, mom. Another stat

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Speaker 1: said this research from the American Psychological Association has shown

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Speaker 1: that maternal warmth and affection in early childhood are strongly

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Speaker 1: linked to greater emotional stability and lower anxiety even later

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Speaker 1: in life. That's an interesting stat How about this one?

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Speaker 1: This one came from Harvard. Children who experience nurturing parental relationships,

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Speaker 1: especially for mothers, tend to earn higher incomes and enjoy

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Speaker 1: healthier adult relationships. Another study, this was in the journal

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Speaker 1: just called Pediatrics, and they found that children whose mothers

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Speaker 1: read to them regularly develop larger vocabularies and stronger literacy

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Speaker 1: skills before entering school. Another stats said this, mothers who

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Speaker 1: regularly eat meals with their children significantly reduce the likelihood

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Speaker 1: of risky behaviors among teens, including substance abuse and delinquency. Now,

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Speaker 1: mothers also know that you haven't eaten warm food for many,

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Speaker 1: many years, right, But even as you eat your cold food,

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Speaker 1: as you bless and serve your children, regularly eating meals

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Speaker 1: with them obviously has an impact children. Here's another stat

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Speaker 1: Children whose mothers demonstrate consistent spiritual practices are far more

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Speaker 1: likely to maintain their faith into adulthood. Another stat says

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Speaker 1: mothers who model perseverance and responsibility greatly influence a child's

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Speaker 1: future work, ethic, and personal discipline. Love that one another one.

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Speaker 1: This is another language one, but another stat said mothers

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Speaker 1: play a major role in language development. Studies show that

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Speaker 1: the amount of conversation mothers have with young children directly

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Speaker 1: affects vocabulary growth and cognitive development. Another one says maternal

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Speaker 1: encouragement strongly correlates with increased confidence and willingness in children

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Speaker 1: to attempt difficult tasks and pursue leadership roles. That's fascinating.

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Speaker 1: I have a couple examples of that. I'll share in

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Speaker 1: a little while. One other here. Mothers are often the

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Speaker 1: primary spiritual influences in Christian households. Multiple faith, multiple faith

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Speaker 1: based studies show that a mother's consistent example of prayer

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Speaker 1: and scripture engagement that it deeply shapes a child's view

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Speaker 1: of God. And I think that that's super super true.

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Speaker 1: And I can remember it is my grandmother who taught

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Speaker 1: me to follow along with music from a hymnal. She's like,

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Speaker 1: this is how a hymnal works. And I can think

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Speaker 1: of her spiritual influence and the spiritual influences of godly

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Speaker 1: women in my life. I said that was the last one,

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Speaker 1: but I forgot I had one more. So this is

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Speaker 1: a bonus one. This is from various economists. Economists have

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Speaker 1: estimated that if the labor involved in maternal caregiving was

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Speaker 1: financially compensated, its economic value would total trillions of dollars

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Speaker 1: annually worldwide. That might be an understatement. What do you

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Speaker 1: think so. I bring those up in light of the

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Speaker 1: scripture that we're looking at today because it's I think,

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Speaker 1: and I don't think I was sharing anything revolutionary there.

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Speaker 1: Even in just reading those stats. I don't think there's

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Speaker 1: a single one of those stats that surprised any one

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Speaker 1: of us, because I think we all know that mothers

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Speaker 1: have a great value in this world and have had

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Speaker 1: a great value in our lives. Mothers, grandmothers, aunts, all

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Speaker 1: these godly women that the Lord strategically and providentially places

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Speaker 1: in our lives. They make a huge difference. And when

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Speaker 1: you look at Matthew fifteen, Matthew fifteen, it's interesting because

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Speaker 1: you have one of the most touching moments in the

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Speaker 1: earthly ministry of Jesus involving a mother. And in this

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Speaker 1: context here you could even say she was like a

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Speaker 1: desperate mother who refused to stop praying for her child

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Speaker 1: and went to the one who could actually do something

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Speaker 1: about what she was what she was dealing with. And

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Speaker 1: it's interesting because this is a portion of scripture that

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Speaker 1: isn't commonly referenced. It's also a portion of scripture that

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Speaker 1: is not commonly referenced on a Mother's Day because This

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Speaker 1: woman wasn't fame famous, We don't know her name, we

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Speaker 1: don't know a lot of details about her. She wasn't powerful.

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Speaker 1: She also wasn't even part of the nation of Israel

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Speaker 1: if you're looking at some of the details that it's

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Speaker 1: said about her. But what we do know about her

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Speaker 1: is that she loved her daughter deeply, and she also

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Speaker 1: believed that Jesus could help. And when I look at

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Speaker 1: a portion of scripture like this, I think that in

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Speaker 1: many ways, this passage reminds us of the kind of

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Speaker 1: strength that God has often placed within mothers. I think,

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Speaker 1: long before others recognize what they're carrying emotionally or what

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Speaker 1: they may be carrying around relationally, I think mothers are

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Speaker 1: usually already praying. They're already sacrificing, they're already nurturing, they're

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Speaker 1: already encouraging, they're already fighting spiritual battles on behalf of

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Speaker 1: the people that they love. And a lot of times

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Speaker 1: they do that very quietly, and they do that very privately,

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Speaker 1: and sometimes the world doesn't really notice those things. I

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Speaker 1: think sometimes even their own families don't always appreciate the

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Speaker 1: nature of what's going on there. But the Lord sees

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Speaker 1: that even if people don't see it, the Lord sees it.

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Speaker 1: The Lord sees every act of compassion that comes from

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Speaker 1: a mother. He sees every exhausted prayer, every anxious tear,

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Speaker 1: every faithful effort that a mother invests in her child

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Speaker 1: to try and point that child in the right direction.

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Speaker 1: And when you look at this particular account here from

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Speaker 1: Matthew chapter fifteen, it also reminds us that Jesus welcomes that,

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Speaker 1: and he welcomes humble faith, and he delights to respond

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Speaker 1: to those who seek him with persistence. So in Matthew's

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Speaker 1: gospel here, when you look at verse twenty two, we

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Speaker 1: see this, It says, and behold, notice her background, it says,

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Speaker 1: and behold a Canaanite woman from that region. So she's

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Speaker 1: not Jewish, she's a gentile. And behold, a Canaanite woman

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Speaker 1: from that region came out and was crying, have mercy

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Speaker 1: on me, Oh, Lord, son of David, My daughter is

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Speaker 1: severely oppressed by a demon. That's a statement that she

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Speaker 1: makes to Jesus. And when you look at that, you

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Speaker 1: can tell that this is like an This is a

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Speaker 1: very emotionally weighty thing for this mother, This mother's heart

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Speaker 1: was broken because her daughter was suffering with some form

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Speaker 1: of demonic oppression or demonic possession, something like that. So

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Speaker 1: she looked at this and she realized, I don't have

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Speaker 1: a way to fix this myself. This is one of

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Speaker 1: those things that there isn't some sort of ointment that

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Speaker 1: I can apply. There isn't some sort of medicine, There

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Speaker 1: isn't some sort of natural treatment to something that obviously

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Speaker 1: has a spiritual origin. So she knows I can't fix

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Speaker 1: this myself. And so she's at a spot. And I

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Speaker 1: think it's actually healthy for all of us to get

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Speaker 1: to this spot quite frequently, where we realize we are

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Speaker 1: at the end of our own strength. She realizes she's

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Speaker 1: at the end of her own strength, and so in

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Speaker 1: the midst of that, she comes to Jesus and notice

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Speaker 1: that her request wasn't primarily for her. She wasn't like, Lord,

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Speaker 1: please help me to deal with this child who has

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Speaker 1: these issues. Her prayer request, her request of Jesus was

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Speaker 1: for her child. And I think that that's the kind

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Speaker 1: of love that's reflected in the hearts of many mothers.

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Speaker 1: I think this is my experience in so many conversations

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Speaker 1: that I've had with people through the years. But I've

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Speaker 1: noticed that mothers often carry burdens that nobody else fully sees.

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Speaker 1: They tend to worry quietly. They tend to pray a

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Speaker 1: bit privately. I've referenced this other mother's days. But I

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Speaker 1: will never, ever, ever forget when I was twelve years

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Speaker 1: old catching my mother praying out loud but not knowing

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Speaker 1: that anybody was around. And it's one of those moments

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Speaker 1: that totally anchors my mind. And she was praying for me,

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Speaker 1: and I think the Lord providentially wanted me to hear that.

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Speaker 1: But I think mothers are consistently thinking about the well

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Speaker 1: being of their children, even when their children are fully

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Speaker 1: grown adults. That doesn't stop just because they hit like

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Speaker 1: twenty one, or get married, or even if your children

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Speaker 1: all get married in the same week. You know, ask

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Speaker 1: me about that someday. But even when those children are

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Speaker 1: fully grown, you keep praying for them over and over

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Speaker 1: and over again. I think many mothers spend years of

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Speaker 1: their lives and possibly tell me if you think this

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Speaker 1: would be true. I was thinking about this this week.

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Speaker 1: I think they spend years of their life and possibly

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Speaker 1: I think it's true that the majority of their prayers

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Speaker 1: are on behalf of their children. Would you think that

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Speaker 1: that's a far stretch. I bet you that that's probably

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Speaker 1: true for many many women, what are they praying about.

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Speaker 1: Whether they're praying for the Lord to protect their children,

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Speaker 1: to guide their children, to heal their children. They're also

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Speaker 1: praying for the Lord to save their children if they

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Speaker 1: don't know the Lord, praying for the salvation of those children,

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Speaker 1: that the Lord would strengthen them, that the Lord would

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Speaker 1: even draw saved children closer to the Lord. And sometimes

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Speaker 1: those prayers are offered joyfully, and sometimes those prayers are

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Speaker 1: prayed through tears. And then you look at what scripture

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Speaker 1: shows us, and it repeatedly shows us that the Lord

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Speaker 1: listens carefully to humble prayers that are brought before his throne.

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Speaker 1: He delights to hear these things. And so you come

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Speaker 1: back to Matthew chapter fifteen. In this particular woman, she

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Speaker 1: approached Jesus in a very specific way. She has reverence

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Speaker 1: for him as she approaches him, she also has faith.

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Speaker 1: Notice what she called him. She calls them two things,

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Speaker 1: Lord and son of David. She calls him Lord and

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Speaker 1: son of David. Even though she's a gentile, even though

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Speaker 1: She's someone that you wouldn't expect to value those titles

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Speaker 1: or share that perspective. She wasn't a Jewish woman, she

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Speaker 1: wasn't growing up in that religious tradition. But she looks

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Speaker 1: at Jesus and she calls him Lord, and she calls

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Speaker 1: him son of David. She recognized something that many of

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Speaker 1: the people that were of Jesus's own heritage were failing

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Speaker 1: to see. Jesus was truly the promised Savior. And here

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Speaker 1: you have a gentile woman acknowledging that and noticing that.

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Speaker 1: And I look at that, and I think, you know,

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Speaker 1: her theology probably wasn't very fully developed. There are a

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Speaker 1: lot of things that if you questioned her a she

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Speaker 1: probably wouldn't be able to answer. But one thing I

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Speaker 1: do know about her is that her faith was genuine.

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Speaker 1: So whether or not her theology was as deep as

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Speaker 1: some of the people that she interacted with, her faith

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Speaker 1: was genuine and genuine faith is something that's always mattered

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Speaker 1: to Christ when you look throughout scripture. This is something

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Speaker 1: that the Lord desires from from each of us, genuine faith.

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Speaker 1: And with that in mind, I actually think the next

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Speaker 1: thing that happens in this passage the very next verse

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Speaker 1: might feel like a very surprising initial statement or outcome

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Speaker 1: to have been made. But Matthew says this. In verse

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Speaker 1: twenty three, it says, so let me come back to

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Speaker 1: verse twenty two, she says, have mercy on me, O

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Speaker 1: Lord's son of David, And then she explains the prompt.

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Speaker 1: She says, my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.

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Speaker 1: And then when you get to verse twenty three, it says,

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Speaker 1: but he did not answer her a word. Let me

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Speaker 1: just pause there for a second. But he did not

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Speaker 1: answer her a word. He didn't say anything to her.

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Speaker 1: In response, she says this desperately to Jesus, acknowledging who

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Speaker 1: he is, showing reverence and respect to him, expressing faith,

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Speaker 1: and it says, but he did not answer her a word.

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Speaker 1: He said nothing. And I imagine at first, when you

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Speaker 1: look at a statement like that, and in his case,

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Speaker 1: you would say a lack of statement, right, Matthew's talking

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Speaker 1: about it, But Jesus said nothing. I imagine that that

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Speaker 1: seems a little off to many people when they first

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Speaker 1: read that, meaning you kind of wonder was Jesus bothered

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Speaker 1: by her? He wasn't bothered by her, but you wonder

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Speaker 1: that at least for a second when you read that,

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Speaker 1: or was he just saying was he just being dismissive?

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Speaker 1: He wasn't. But these are things that kind of go

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Speaker 1: through our heads initially when we look at that, you

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Speaker 1: have this grieving mother crying out to Jesus and he

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Speaker 1: remains silent, at least at first. And I think many

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Speaker 1: believing mothers understand what that moment in her life actually

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Speaker 1: felt like, because I think that there are times when

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Speaker 1: you bring your prayers before the Lord, and initially it

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Speaker 1: seems like those prayers are unanswered, almost like you're getting

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Speaker 1: silence from Heaven. Right, you keep bringing that prayer before

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Speaker 1: the Lord, and you feel like, I'm not hearing anything. Background,

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Speaker 1: I'm not seeing a change quite yet. So maybe you've

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Speaker 1: spent years praying for a wandering child and you think,

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Speaker 1: does he hear me? Like I've been praying for this child, like, Lord,

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Speaker 1: do you hear me? Or maybe you've been praying years

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Speaker 1: for some sort of physical healing and you don't see

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Speaker 1: a healing yet, and you wonder, Lord, do you hear me?

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Speaker 1: Or maybe you've been praying for years for reconciliation. You're like,

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Speaker 1: am I just in this pause? Like, do you hear

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Speaker 1: me right now? I'm bringing this before you, or maybe

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Speaker 1: you just in general pray for years and years and

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Speaker 1: years for the spiritual growth of someone that you love,

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Speaker 1: and you feel like you're in that pause. So it

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Speaker 1: feels like, all right, is the Lord just being quiet

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Speaker 1: with me? Is he choosing not to answer this? Is

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Speaker 1: Heaven just in general kind of quiet? But when you

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Speaker 1: look at this passage, especially as you watch how it

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Speaker 1: develops here, you'll notice that silence is an absence. The

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Speaker 1: Lord is not ignoring this woman every intention of saying

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Speaker 1: something to her in the right way, at the exact

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Speaker 1: right time, the exact right moment he's going to say it.

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Speaker 1: He's going to do something, but it's going to be

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Speaker 1: done a very specific way for a very specific reason.

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Speaker 1: He's not ignoring her. His silence isn't absence. Now, why

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Speaker 1: am I suggesting that? Well, Jesus obviously, with his ears,

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Speaker 1: heard every woman or every word that this woman spoke.

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Speaker 1: He saw her heart. He saw her heart completely, and

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Speaker 1: this delay that he's causing her to experience, it wasn't

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Speaker 1: a rejection. What he was doing was he was preparing

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Speaker 1: to reveal something beautiful about the depth of her faith

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Speaker 1: and about the greatness of his mercy. And I think

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Speaker 1: that this is a lesson that he wanted us to

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Speaker 1: learn from. So he caused this to play out a

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Speaker 1: very specific way. But in the meantime, while it's all

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Speaker 1: still developing, the disciples start to get irritated. Now, the

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Speaker 1: disciples become in time very mature men of faith, but

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Speaker 1: in the Gospels you can see the messy parts of

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Speaker 1: their growth, and then there's all sorts of things like that,

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Speaker 1: which should give us some hope if you feel like

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Speaker 1: your growth spiritually has had messy moments. The disciples had

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Speaker 1: moments that were messy and probably moments that they look

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Speaker 1: back on with some level of embarrassment, including this one

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Speaker 1: because look at their response. It says he did not

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Speaker 1: answer her a word. And then it says and his

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Speaker 1: disciples came and begged him, saying, send her away, for

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Speaker 1: she's crying out after us, basically like she's a nuisance.

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Speaker 1: Can you just send her away. She's not even from Israel.

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Speaker 1: Just send her away, tell her to go. She just

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Speaker 1: keeps whining and crying like nobody wants to hear. Cry

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Speaker 1: baby woman. Just deal with your own problems. Very compassionate

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Speaker 1: disciples in this moment, right, can you just send her away?

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Speaker 1: Aren't you glad that the Lord doesn't operate like they

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Speaker 1: were asking him to operate. Can you just send her away?

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Speaker 1: She's asking you for a miracle? Can you just send

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Speaker 1: her away? Really you want things to work that way?

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Speaker 1: It's like, hey, guys, just so you know, I'm recording

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Speaker 1: this in the scriptures, okay, and we're gonna make sure

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Speaker 1: the whole church learns from your immaturity right now, but

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Speaker 1: make sure in a few decades is as you continue

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Speaker 1: leading the church and suffering for your faith, that you

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Speaker 1: own up to this moment because their faith is not

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Speaker 1: very mature. And in fact, other places in the gospel

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Speaker 1: tells us that the disciples had hearts that were kind

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Speaker 1: of hard at this season. And I've experienced that in

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Speaker 1: my own life. You have as well. All of us

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Speaker 1: go through those seasons where our faith isn't really that

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Speaker 1: sharp and really not that mature. This is one of

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Speaker 1: their more immature moments, and they're saying, Lord, just send

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Speaker 1: her away. She's crying after us. We're tired of hearing

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Speaker 1: her whine. Just send her away. Now here's the thing.

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Speaker 1: The disciples in that moment are showing that a lot

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Speaker 1: of people don't always understand persistent prayer. This woman was

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Speaker 1: effectively in the moment praying persistently. She's being persistent as

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Speaker 1: she's beseeching Jesus to do something on behalf of her daughter.

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Speaker 1: But people don't always understand when we do that. When

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Speaker 1: you do that, people won't always understand. Some might be dismissive,

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Speaker 1: like the disciples were to this woman. Some might grow

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Speaker 1: impatient with it, meaning like, just give it up, just

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Speaker 1: give it up. Why do you keep praying about that situation.

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Speaker 1: Some might actually fail to appreciate the emotional weight that

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Speaker 1: you I'll say this to mothers, that faithful mothers are

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Speaker 1: caring for those that they love. But I'll tell you

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Speaker 1: something about the heart of Christ. Jesus never despises humble

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Speaker 1: dependence on him. He does not despise that. The Lord

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Speaker 1: is not annoyed by your repeated prayers. The Lord is

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Speaker 1: not annoyed by the prayers of godly women. He welcomes

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Speaker 1: your prayers. So that means every prayer that you pray,

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Speaker 1: you know, as you're falling asleep in the evening, every

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Speaker 1: burden that you've brought to the Lord repeatedly over and over,

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Speaker 1: because you feel like you're in that moment where he's

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Speaker 1: operating through silence, teaching you, stretching your faith through that silence.

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Speaker 1: Every time you're pleading for the next generation to come

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Speaker 1: to know Jesus. These are things that clearly matter to

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Speaker 1: the Lord. He's about to demonstrate it. Jesus said this

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Speaker 1: as he's bringing this issue out. When you look at

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Speaker 1: verse twenty four of Matthew fifteen, he answers her and

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Speaker 1: he says this, I was sent only to the lost

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Speaker 1: sheep of the House of Israel. So she wasn't from

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Speaker 1: she wasn't an Israelite, she was a Canaanite. She was

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Speaker 1: a gentile. And Jesus says, this is a test, this

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Speaker 1: is a test statement to see what she will say

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Speaker 1: to this. I was sent only to the lost sheep

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Speaker 1: of the House of Israel, meaning you're a Canaanite. I

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Speaker 1: was sent to the people of Israel. So, at this

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Speaker 1: stage in his earthly ministry, have Jesus emphasizing that aspect

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Speaker 1: of his mission. Now, the message of the Gospel is

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Speaker 1: also going to be proclaimed to the gentiles, But at

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Speaker 1: this point he's stressing something he's stressing that his mission

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Speaker 1: was to first fulfill the Covenant promises that had made

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Speaker 1: been made to the Jewish people, to the people of Israel.

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Speaker 1: But again this woman refuses to walk away. Discouraged, She's like, nope,

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Speaker 1: I got him right here, and this is probably like

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Speaker 1: my one chance that I'm gonna see him face to

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Speaker 1: face and be able to ask him to do this.

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Speaker 1: He's the only one that could do something. And so

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Speaker 1: it says the woman came before him and she does

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Speaker 1: something very interesting. He says, but she came before, but

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Speaker 1: she came and knelt before him, saying, Lord help me.

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Speaker 1: She kneels before him and she says, Lord help me. Now,

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Speaker 1: I love that prayer. It's a simple prayer. It's a

429
00:23:24,119 --> 00:23:26,240
Speaker 1: very powerful prayer. If you're a new Christian, by the way,

430
00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:28,400
Speaker 1: and you're wondering, oh, like, I don't know how to pray.

431
00:23:28,520 --> 00:23:31,160
Speaker 1: I hear these seasoned Christians that they give such long

432
00:23:31,200 --> 00:23:33,480
Speaker 1: and flowery prayers. I don't know if i'd ever be

433
00:23:33,520 --> 00:23:35,240
Speaker 1: able to do that. Well, look at the example from

434
00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:37,399
Speaker 1: the Gospel. If you came before the Lord and just

435
00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:41,480
Speaker 1: simply said Lord help me, it's a very biblical prayer.

436
00:23:42,600 --> 00:23:45,160
Speaker 1: It's a prayer model directly after something shown to us

437
00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:47,439
Speaker 1: in scripture. That's all she's able to She doesn't know

438
00:23:47,480 --> 00:23:49,800
Speaker 1: what else to say. She's not from the religious tradition

439
00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:54,560
Speaker 1: of everybody around her. She just says, Lord help me. Now,

440
00:23:55,400 --> 00:23:58,359
Speaker 1: have you ever prayed that kind of prayer? You ever

441
00:23:58,400 --> 00:24:01,560
Speaker 1: prayed that exact prayer? Lord help me? Sometimes you can't

442
00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:03,199
Speaker 1: even think of the other words to say, You're like,

443
00:24:03,200 --> 00:24:05,520
Speaker 1: I don't even know, Lord, I'm just I feel solow

444
00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:07,040
Speaker 1: right now. This is the only thing I could think

445
00:24:07,080 --> 00:24:09,600
Speaker 1: to pray. I could tell you there are multiple times

446
00:24:09,640 --> 00:24:11,240
Speaker 1: in my life that I've tried to come up with

447
00:24:11,359 --> 00:24:14,760
Speaker 1: creative words to incorporate my prayers and more details as

448
00:24:14,800 --> 00:24:16,840
Speaker 1: if God needs all those details. I know he doesn't

449
00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:19,919
Speaker 1: need those details, but they're sometimes that the only thing

450
00:24:19,960 --> 00:24:24,399
Speaker 1: that I could get out was Lord help me. Many times,

451
00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:28,399
Speaker 1: Lord help me, I don't And sometimes I'll even just

452
00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:30,560
Speaker 1: say to him, Lord, I know there's other things that

453
00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:33,280
Speaker 1: if my emotions were calmed down right now, I'd be

454
00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:35,600
Speaker 1: able to articulate this better. And I can't really think

455
00:24:35,640 --> 00:24:37,760
Speaker 1: of the other things I should be saying or even

456
00:24:37,800 --> 00:24:41,560
Speaker 1: what I'm asking you to do. So Lord, just please

457
00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:45,879
Speaker 1: help me and then I'll know. In time, I'll know.

458
00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:48,480
Speaker 1: But Lord, please help me. You've prayed that, haven't you.

459
00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:52,400
Speaker 1: I've prayed that many times. Many mothers have prayed those

460
00:24:52,440 --> 00:24:57,800
Speaker 1: exact words when their children are struggling, when household finances

461
00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:01,480
Speaker 1: are tight, when emotions are feeling over overwhelming. You just

462
00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:04,359
Speaker 1: feel completely exhausted, but you know there's really no end

463
00:25:04,400 --> 00:25:07,240
Speaker 1: in sight to your responsibilities. When certain aspects of the

464
00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:10,879
Speaker 1: future feel a bit uncertain, Lord help me. And the

465
00:25:10,920 --> 00:25:13,359
Speaker 1: scripture consistently reminds us that the Lord is near to

466
00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:15,879
Speaker 1: those who humbly call upon him, those who come to

467
00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:19,040
Speaker 1: him and say, Lord, help me. And this woman here

468
00:25:19,119 --> 00:25:22,000
Speaker 1: tells us that she knelt before Jesus. So what does

469
00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:25,960
Speaker 1: her posture indicate. Her posture here is indicating that she's

470
00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:29,119
Speaker 1: surrendering herself to his lordship. She calls him Lord, but

471
00:25:29,160 --> 00:25:32,880
Speaker 1: she kneels before him. I see humility here, I see

472
00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:38,080
Speaker 1: trust here. She knew and his reputation had reached her

473
00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:40,639
Speaker 1: ears and reached her life. She knew that Jesus alone

474
00:25:41,480 --> 00:25:43,919
Speaker 1: was the only one that could change her her daughter's condition.

475
00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:46,879
Speaker 1: Nobody else could really change it like he could. By

476
00:25:46,920 --> 00:25:49,520
Speaker 1: the way, that's still true for us, right now you

477
00:25:49,520 --> 00:25:51,479
Speaker 1: know if you're a parent, that's in the thick of things,

478
00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:55,840
Speaker 1: whether with your young children or adult children. No parent

479
00:25:55,920 --> 00:25:59,280
Speaker 1: can ultimately control the heart of a child. You may

480
00:25:59,320 --> 00:26:03,000
Speaker 1: want to, but you can't do that. No mother can

481
00:26:03,040 --> 00:26:06,280
Speaker 1: single handedly guarantee the outcome of her family. You may

482
00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:09,760
Speaker 1: want to, but you don't get the opportunity to do that. However,

483
00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:12,600
Speaker 1: you look at a portion of scripture like this, and

484
00:26:12,640 --> 00:26:15,800
Speaker 1: you discover that faithful mothers can continually bring their loved

485
00:26:15,840 --> 00:26:20,320
Speaker 1: ones before Jesus Christ, who can do something miraculous. And

486
00:26:20,320 --> 00:26:22,560
Speaker 1: that's something that matters more than people realize. And I

487
00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:25,000
Speaker 1: mentioned earlier that there were a couple historical examples that

488
00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:26,600
Speaker 1: I wanted to share of this, so I'm going to

489
00:26:26,640 --> 00:26:30,160
Speaker 1: share them right now. I think some of the greatest

490
00:26:30,480 --> 00:26:35,560
Speaker 1: spiritual moments, and I'd even use the word movements in history,

491
00:26:35,960 --> 00:26:39,359
Speaker 1: we're actually shaped through the prayers of godly women. And

492
00:26:39,400 --> 00:26:41,680
Speaker 1: I want to give you two examples. If I use

493
00:26:41,720 --> 00:26:44,320
Speaker 1: the name Monica, do you know who I might be referencing.

494
00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:49,320
Speaker 1: See our executive pastor nodded right away. He knows you

495
00:26:49,359 --> 00:26:53,000
Speaker 1: know right where I'm going with this, don't you so, Monica,

496
00:26:53,160 --> 00:26:56,600
Speaker 1: that's become an actual like common name because of the

497
00:26:56,640 --> 00:26:58,520
Speaker 1: Monica that I'm about to reference. Do you ever hear

498
00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:04,080
Speaker 1: the name Augustine, or if you're more educated than I am, Augustine, right,

499
00:27:04,359 --> 00:27:06,840
Speaker 1: do you love people that are like I call him Augustine,

500
00:27:06,880 --> 00:27:13,200
Speaker 1: It's like, that's a nice nerd Augustine. But Augustine was

501
00:27:13,320 --> 00:27:16,560
Speaker 1: very rebellious. He was when he was young. He was

502
00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:21,119
Speaker 1: a very rebellious young person and for years before he

503
00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:23,200
Speaker 1: eventually came to faith in Christ and became one of

504
00:27:23,240 --> 00:27:27,760
Speaker 1: the most influential Christian thinkers and theologians in church history.

505
00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:33,520
Speaker 1: His mother, Monica prayed for him. She prayed for him,

506
00:27:34,840 --> 00:27:37,120
Speaker 1: and the Lord used his life in great and mighty ways,

507
00:27:37,119 --> 00:27:41,560
Speaker 1: and he's influencing people today and it's been centuries since

508
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:43,440
Speaker 1: he went to be with the Lord. Or how about

509
00:27:43,440 --> 00:27:47,400
Speaker 1: the name Susannah Wesley? Do you know the name Suzannah Wesley?

510
00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:51,880
Speaker 1: Do you ever sing the hymn Hark the Herald Angels sing?

511
00:27:52,960 --> 00:27:56,359
Speaker 1: Do you ever hear of Methodism or the Methodist church?

512
00:27:57,080 --> 00:27:59,800
Speaker 1: Susannah Wesley had I don't remember how many kids she had,

513
00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:03,159
Speaker 1: It a lot, and she would make a point to

514
00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:07,120
Speaker 1: be directly invested in the lives of all her kiddos,

515
00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:11,400
Speaker 1: and she had a lot of kids. She led them

516
00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:13,840
Speaker 1: to know the Lord, she walked with them in faithful ways.

517
00:28:14,200 --> 00:28:17,320
Speaker 1: But two of her children have made a huge impact

518
00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:19,919
Speaker 1: on church history. And it could even be said, just

519
00:28:19,960 --> 00:28:23,480
Speaker 1: like the history of Nations, two of her sons. So

520
00:28:23,520 --> 00:28:27,240
Speaker 1: you have John Wesley and you have Charles Wesley. John

521
00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:31,919
Speaker 1: became one of the primary evangelists and founders of the

522
00:28:31,960 --> 00:28:36,240
Speaker 1: Methodist Church in seventeen hundreds England, and a lot of

523
00:28:37,000 --> 00:28:40,280
Speaker 1: historians actually look at him and say, the evangelistic work

524
00:28:40,320 --> 00:28:43,000
Speaker 1: that he did there to reintroduce the people of England

525
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:47,719
Speaker 1: to the Gospel probably stopped England from experiencing a civil

526
00:28:47,760 --> 00:28:53,440
Speaker 1: war during that particular era because people's hearts were so changed.

527
00:28:53,920 --> 00:28:58,200
Speaker 1: And his brother Charles wrote hundreds, if not thousands of hymns,

528
00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:00,920
Speaker 1: and you know several of them, know many of them,

529
00:29:01,160 --> 00:29:03,520
Speaker 1: but probably his best known or one of his best

530
00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:05,920
Speaker 1: known as Hark the Herald Angels Sing. And I look

531
00:29:05,960 --> 00:29:07,640
Speaker 1: at that and I think, you know what, what did

532
00:29:07,640 --> 00:29:10,200
Speaker 1: they have? They had a godly mother who taught them,

533
00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:15,040
Speaker 1: trained them, prayed for them, and the ministries that she

534
00:29:15,240 --> 00:29:19,200
Speaker 1: helped inspire the ministries of these men. Those ministries have

535
00:29:19,240 --> 00:29:22,760
Speaker 1: outlasted their earthly lives and trust and touched the lives

536
00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:24,880
Speaker 1: of millions of people ever since and continue to have

537
00:29:24,920 --> 00:29:27,360
Speaker 1: an influence. And again, it's been hundreds of years since

538
00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:29,520
Speaker 1: they've all gone to be with the Lord. And I

539
00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:31,280
Speaker 1: look at that, and this is what it makes me think.

540
00:29:31,720 --> 00:29:34,800
Speaker 1: Makes me think that mothers never fully realized the eternal

541
00:29:34,920 --> 00:29:38,920
Speaker 1: impact that their prayers and their faithfulness may have, because

542
00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:40,600
Speaker 1: some of it is not going to be revealed to

543
00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:45,400
Speaker 1: you during your natural lifespan. Do you think Susannah Wesley

544
00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:52,040
Speaker 1: or Monica had any any thought that hundreds and thousands

545
00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:57,680
Speaker 1: of years later, right that we would be referencing their

546
00:29:57,760 --> 00:30:02,400
Speaker 1: names as godly women leading their children, praying for their children.

547
00:30:03,840 --> 00:30:06,880
Speaker 1: It's fascinating. Well, then you come back to Matthew fifteen,

548
00:30:08,040 --> 00:30:10,480
Speaker 1: and again you have Jesus saying something to this particular

549
00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:13,440
Speaker 1: mother that initially sounds abrasive, it might even sound harsh,

550
00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:16,520
Speaker 1: But look what he says in verse twenty six, and

551
00:30:16,520 --> 00:30:20,200
Speaker 1: he answered, it is not right to take the children's

552
00:30:20,280 --> 00:30:23,240
Speaker 1: bread and throw it to the dogs. Now, I'm going

553
00:30:23,320 --> 00:30:25,680
Speaker 1: to come back to the previous verse. She came before

554
00:30:25,760 --> 00:30:28,520
Speaker 1: him and says, Lord help me. That says she's kneeling

555
00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:31,240
Speaker 1: before him, and he says, it's not right to take

556
00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:36,720
Speaker 1: the children's bread and throw it to the dogs. Now,

557
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:40,240
Speaker 1: I don't know how that statement strikes you. I think

558
00:30:40,280 --> 00:30:42,840
Speaker 1: that Jesus is saying some of this tongue in cheek,

559
00:30:43,480 --> 00:30:47,760
Speaker 1: because this woman knows that she being a Canaanite one

560
00:30:47,760 --> 00:30:51,680
Speaker 1: of the biggest insults that the people of Israel would

561
00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:55,280
Speaker 1: oftentimes use to describe the gentile nations as they would

562
00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:59,000
Speaker 1: just refer to those humans, those people as dogs. And

563
00:30:59,040 --> 00:31:02,560
Speaker 1: so here ye Jesus saying to her, I'm here to

564
00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:06,440
Speaker 1: serve the children of Israel, and you're asking me to

565
00:31:06,480 --> 00:31:09,040
Speaker 1: do a miraculous healing for your daughter. So I'm supposed

566
00:31:09,080 --> 00:31:10,600
Speaker 1: to take the bread that I was supposed to give

567
00:31:10,600 --> 00:31:13,320
Speaker 1: to Israel, and you're saying, I'm supposed to throw it

568
00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:17,000
Speaker 1: to the dogs. They call you guys, dogs. Am I

569
00:31:17,000 --> 00:31:18,840
Speaker 1: supposed to throw it to the dogs? Now? Do you

570
00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:22,520
Speaker 1: suppose that Jesus thinks of this woman as a dog?

571
00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:25,400
Speaker 1: He'll show you in a moment that he doesn't. But

572
00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:28,640
Speaker 1: he's teasing this out on purpose, I think, in part

573
00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:31,800
Speaker 1: to teach his own disciples what it's like to have

574
00:31:31,880 --> 00:31:35,720
Speaker 1: compassion and stop treating people disrespectfully, like was the culture.

575
00:31:36,040 --> 00:31:37,960
Speaker 1: He's like, am I supposed to take this bread that's

576
00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:40,440
Speaker 1: meant for the children of Israel and throw it to

577
00:31:40,480 --> 00:31:43,480
Speaker 1: the people that the children of Israel don't even care about?

578
00:31:43,920 --> 00:31:48,360
Speaker 1: They think you're less than human. And it's interesting because

579
00:31:49,040 --> 00:31:51,480
Speaker 1: the woman, I think she can read Jesus in this moment.

580
00:31:52,760 --> 00:31:56,240
Speaker 1: She responds to him with humility still but also confidence.

581
00:31:56,320 --> 00:32:00,240
Speaker 1: She's persistent about it, and she says this. She said, yes, Lord,

582
00:32:00,680 --> 00:32:03,720
Speaker 1: yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from

583
00:32:03,760 --> 00:32:09,640
Speaker 1: their master's table. It's like, ooh, good answer, good answer.

584
00:32:09,720 --> 00:32:12,560
Speaker 1: She didn't demand anything from Jesus. She simply appealed to

585
00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:16,560
Speaker 1: his mercy. Yesterday, we had a delightful lunch at my

586
00:32:16,680 --> 00:32:20,160
Speaker 1: son Jay's house. Jay and Abby Abby just graduating from college.

587
00:32:20,320 --> 00:32:24,320
Speaker 1: Congrats gradu. And so we were there and Jay was

588
00:32:24,360 --> 00:32:27,320
Speaker 1: grilling some burgers for us, and he made the mistake

589
00:32:27,440 --> 00:32:30,560
Speaker 1: of setting the wrappers for the burgers down right next

590
00:32:30,560 --> 00:32:32,520
Speaker 1: to the grill, his brand new grill. Fired up the

591
00:32:32,520 --> 00:32:36,240
Speaker 1: grill cooking some burgers for us, and their German shepherd

592
00:32:36,280 --> 00:32:38,560
Speaker 1: came up to that box and looked at it was

593
00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:43,360
Speaker 1: like that paper that was covering those burgers looks like

594
00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:46,840
Speaker 1: it's delicious, and swiped those papers and ran and we're like,

595
00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:49,240
Speaker 1: come back here, and the dog ate all the papers.

596
00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,120
Speaker 1: All the papers had been covering the meat. Were like, well,

597
00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:56,200
Speaker 1: that's delightful, you know, meaning like it's like dogs will

598
00:32:56,240 --> 00:32:59,000
Speaker 1: eat anything. Whatever falls to the ground is fair game,

599
00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:02,640
Speaker 1: you know. Now their dogs seem very happy, you know.

600
00:33:03,080 --> 00:33:06,440
Speaker 1: And in that moment, this is where my pastor brain

601
00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:09,880
Speaker 1: was going. I was like, oh, congratulations, Zoe, that's the

602
00:33:09,920 --> 00:33:12,959
Speaker 1: dog's name. You just made it to tomorrow's message, because

603
00:33:13,000 --> 00:33:15,600
Speaker 1: I knew I was gonna be referencing this scripture. Here.

604
00:33:15,640 --> 00:33:17,560
Speaker 1: You have the woman say yeah, but even the dogs

605
00:33:17,600 --> 00:33:20,480
Speaker 1: like they'll eat whatever falls to the ground, whatever falls

606
00:33:20,480 --> 00:33:23,080
Speaker 1: to the ground. So you're calling us dogs here, the

607
00:33:23,120 --> 00:33:25,720
Speaker 1: people call us dogs. And you say, all right, the

608
00:33:25,760 --> 00:33:28,200
Speaker 1: bread is meant for the children of Israel. But how

609
00:33:28,200 --> 00:33:30,480
Speaker 1: about this fine, call me a dog, but let me

610
00:33:30,520 --> 00:33:32,760
Speaker 1: even eat just the crumbs that fall to the ground.

611
00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:37,880
Speaker 1: What she's saying, just be merciful on me. Lord. If

612
00:33:37,920 --> 00:33:39,440
Speaker 1: you can't give me the bread, I'll just take the

613
00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:43,400
Speaker 1: crumbs whatever you can give me. And I love how

614
00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:46,239
Speaker 1: Jesus responds to her. In verse twenty eight, says then

615
00:33:46,320 --> 00:33:48,760
Speaker 1: Jesus answers to oh woman. And by the way, the

616
00:33:48,760 --> 00:33:50,600
Speaker 1: way he's saying this here, the way that term would

617
00:33:50,600 --> 00:33:52,920
Speaker 1: be used in a context like this, he would reference

618
00:33:52,960 --> 00:33:55,440
Speaker 1: his own mother. He'd reference Mary with that same kind

619
00:33:55,480 --> 00:33:59,200
Speaker 1: of phraseology. It's like a term of respect. He's showing

620
00:33:59,240 --> 00:34:03,200
Speaker 1: her intentionally that It's like, Oh dear lady, oh man,

621
00:34:05,040 --> 00:34:08,520
Speaker 1: O woman, great is your faith? Let it be done

622
00:34:08,520 --> 00:34:11,319
Speaker 1: for you as you desire, And it says, and her

623
00:34:11,400 --> 00:34:15,360
Speaker 1: daughter was healed instantly. Oh woman, great is your faith.

624
00:34:16,719 --> 00:34:19,359
Speaker 1: Let it be done for you as you desire. Her

625
00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:24,240
Speaker 1: daughter was healed instantly. Notice what Jesus praised. He praised

626
00:34:24,280 --> 00:34:27,520
Speaker 1: her faith, right it inm praised her status or influence,

627
00:34:27,560 --> 00:34:30,279
Speaker 1: her accomplishments or appearance, anything like that that this world

628
00:34:30,360 --> 00:34:33,600
Speaker 1: tends to value. He praises her faith. That should encourage

629
00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:36,160
Speaker 1: every godly woman, because this world is going to measure

630
00:34:36,200 --> 00:34:40,640
Speaker 1: your value differently. The world measures your value through visibility,

631
00:34:40,880 --> 00:34:43,200
Speaker 1: whether you're known, whether you have some sort of special

632
00:34:43,239 --> 00:34:46,840
Speaker 1: achievement or beauty or income or public recognition or something

633
00:34:46,880 --> 00:34:50,000
Speaker 1: like that. And the Lord sees something completely differently. He

634
00:34:50,040 --> 00:34:53,799
Speaker 1: sees things like faithful prayers, He sees sacrificial love, he

635
00:34:53,880 --> 00:34:58,200
Speaker 1: sees hidden acts of service, he sees quiet endurance, he

636
00:34:58,239 --> 00:35:01,719
Speaker 1: sees your spiritual influence over your household, he sees your

637
00:35:01,760 --> 00:35:05,000
Speaker 1: humble dependence on him. I'll tell you many mothers spend

638
00:35:05,520 --> 00:35:11,400
Speaker 1: years serving in ways that receive very little applause, preparing meals,

639
00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:18,279
Speaker 1: driving their children everywhere, comforting, hurting hearts, teaching biblical truth, listening, patiently,

640
00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:22,960
Speaker 1: correcting lovingly. Mothers actually care about your feelings when they

641
00:35:22,960 --> 00:35:29,520
Speaker 1: correct you. Isn't that nice? They pray constantly. I see

642
00:35:29,560 --> 00:35:33,360
Speaker 1: mothers frequently holding their families together through very difficult seasons.

643
00:35:33,360 --> 00:35:35,759
Speaker 1: I'll tell you, and I'll be quite anonymous about this,

644
00:35:35,840 --> 00:35:38,120
Speaker 1: but several days ago, I had an hour long conversation

645
00:35:38,600 --> 00:35:41,440
Speaker 1: with a family member who is doing everything that she

646
00:35:41,560 --> 00:35:43,799
Speaker 1: can to meet the needs of her children and to

647
00:35:43,840 --> 00:35:46,640
Speaker 1: hold her family together. And I know it's been completely

648
00:35:46,800 --> 00:35:50,440
Speaker 1: exhausting for her, and she's had to be very intentional

649
00:35:50,480 --> 00:35:53,600
Speaker 1: about forgiving some major offenses in the process. But I

650
00:35:53,640 --> 00:35:56,680
Speaker 1: can't tell you how impressed I have been as I've

651
00:35:56,680 --> 00:36:00,480
Speaker 1: witnessed her love and her Godliness in action. The other

652
00:36:00,560 --> 00:36:02,040
Speaker 1: day for about an hour, and at the end of

653
00:36:02,040 --> 00:36:04,920
Speaker 1: our conversation, I commented to her and I said, I

654
00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:06,640
Speaker 1: have to tell you, like, this is one of those

655
00:36:06,640 --> 00:36:09,120
Speaker 1: things that always amazes me about godly women. I've seen

656
00:36:09,120 --> 00:36:10,880
Speaker 1: other women do the things that you're doing right now.

657
00:36:10,920 --> 00:36:14,000
Speaker 1: I've seen other women do similar things, and it always

658
00:36:14,040 --> 00:36:16,839
Speaker 1: amazes me to see such godly examples. And I said,

659
00:36:16,880 --> 00:36:20,759
Speaker 1: and quite often it's among these godly women. And I

660
00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:22,520
Speaker 1: said to her, I think the Lord holds a special

661
00:36:22,560 --> 00:36:25,919
Speaker 1: place in his heart for women like you. I really do,

662
00:36:27,160 --> 00:36:30,279
Speaker 1: because others may overlook that sort of thing. And you

663
00:36:30,320 --> 00:36:31,799
Speaker 1: look at a portion of scripture like this, and you

664
00:36:31,840 --> 00:36:35,840
Speaker 1: realize Jesus doesn't. He doesn't overlook that the Lord sees

665
00:36:35,920 --> 00:36:39,279
Speaker 1: every unseen act of love and sacrifice and faithfulness and

666
00:36:39,360 --> 00:36:42,600
Speaker 1: intentional forgiveness and everything that goes along with it. And

667
00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:45,120
Speaker 1: I look at this passage and I was delighted to

668
00:36:45,160 --> 00:36:47,120
Speaker 1: be able to share it today because I think a

669
00:36:47,160 --> 00:36:50,960
Speaker 1: passage like this also reminds us how one person's faith

670
00:36:51,000 --> 00:36:55,200
Speaker 1: can so deeply impact the next generation. Because this particular

671
00:36:55,320 --> 00:36:58,440
Speaker 1: daughter experienced healing in this moment. It says she was

672
00:36:58,480 --> 00:37:02,920
Speaker 1: healed instantly. And why did she experience it? She experienced

673
00:37:02,960 --> 00:37:06,480
Speaker 1: it because her mother brought her need to Jesus. Her

674
00:37:06,520 --> 00:37:09,200
Speaker 1: mother did that for her. Her mother brought that need

675
00:37:09,480 --> 00:37:12,320
Speaker 1: to Jesus. Now, that doesn't mean that children are saved

676
00:37:12,400 --> 00:37:16,839
Speaker 1: automatically through their parents' faith. Each person we know has

677
00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:20,000
Speaker 1: to personally come to faith in Jesus Christ. Just because

678
00:37:20,040 --> 00:37:22,080
Speaker 1: your mother knew the Lord doesn't mean you know the Lord.

679
00:37:22,120 --> 00:37:24,520
Speaker 1: You need to come to know the Lord individually. But

680
00:37:25,080 --> 00:37:29,839
Speaker 1: Scripture repeatedly shows us that God often works powerfully through

681
00:37:29,880 --> 00:37:35,440
Speaker 1: the faithful influence of parents, oftentimes mothers. I think a

682
00:37:35,480 --> 00:37:39,520
Speaker 1: mother's compassion can shape a child's understanding of love. I

683
00:37:39,520 --> 00:37:42,520
Speaker 1: think a mother's prayers can become instruments that God uses

684
00:37:42,560 --> 00:37:45,759
Speaker 1: to soften hearts. I think a mother's example can help

685
00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:49,759
Speaker 1: children see what genuine faith looks like in everyday life.

686
00:37:49,800 --> 00:37:53,120
Speaker 1: Some of the strongest examples in my own life, some

687
00:37:53,160 --> 00:37:55,840
Speaker 1: of the people that made the deepest impression on me

688
00:37:55,960 --> 00:37:59,240
Speaker 1: from a faith perspective, were godly women that the Lord

689
00:37:59,600 --> 00:38:02,480
Speaker 1: providentially placed in my life, and they made a huge,

690
00:38:02,800 --> 00:38:07,680
Speaker 1: huge difference. Many people who now walk faithfully with Christ

691
00:38:07,719 --> 00:38:09,800
Speaker 1: on a day to day basis can trace their spiritual

692
00:38:09,840 --> 00:38:13,120
Speaker 1: foundation right back to a praying mother or a praying

693
00:38:13,160 --> 00:38:17,040
Speaker 1: grandmother who consistently pointed them back to Jesus over and

694
00:38:17,080 --> 00:38:19,920
Speaker 1: over again. So even if those efforts feel unnoticed in

695
00:38:19,960 --> 00:38:21,480
Speaker 1: the moment, and there are going to be moments where

696
00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:25,759
Speaker 1: you feel unnoticed, know that God is working through you

697
00:38:27,320 --> 00:38:29,560
Speaker 1: and that's something he continues to do. That's something he

698
00:38:29,600 --> 00:38:33,960
Speaker 1: will keep doing. So perhaps right now, as you think

699
00:38:34,000 --> 00:38:37,239
Speaker 1: about right now where you're at, this present day, maybe

700
00:38:37,239 --> 00:38:39,120
Speaker 1: you're in the process of doing the best that you

701
00:38:39,280 --> 00:38:43,239
Speaker 1: can but not seeing some immediate results like you would

702
00:38:43,320 --> 00:38:46,200
Speaker 1: like to see. Maybe you even feel a little bit

703
00:38:46,239 --> 00:38:50,240
Speaker 1: discouraged about that fact. Maybe you feel exhausted or unappreciated.

704
00:38:50,280 --> 00:38:54,480
Speaker 1: Maybe you wonder and question yourself often whether or not

705
00:38:54,560 --> 00:38:58,440
Speaker 1: your efforts are making any difference at all. And if

706
00:38:58,480 --> 00:39:00,960
Speaker 1: that's the case, if you've even with that even a

707
00:39:00,960 --> 00:39:04,200
Speaker 1: little bit, I hope you'll remember this particular passage from

708
00:39:04,239 --> 00:39:07,680
Speaker 1: the Gospel of Matthew. Because Jesus saw this mother completely,

709
00:39:08,760 --> 00:39:11,560
Speaker 1: he heard her cries, he honored her faith, he responded

710
00:39:11,560 --> 00:39:15,680
Speaker 1: to her prayers, and he carried her burden. And as

711
00:39:15,719 --> 00:39:18,600
Speaker 1: he did for this woman, I believe that he'll do

712
00:39:18,640 --> 00:39:22,120
Speaker 1: the same for you. Because ultimately, what's the point of

713
00:39:22,120 --> 00:39:24,840
Speaker 1: this passage. The passage is trying to point us to

714
00:39:24,960 --> 00:39:28,440
Speaker 1: Jesus as the solution and to show how he works

715
00:39:28,760 --> 00:39:31,800
Speaker 1: in individual lives that come to him humbly in faith.

716
00:39:32,480 --> 00:39:35,480
Speaker 1: This mother, she recognized she couldn't rescue her daughter on

717
00:39:35,520 --> 00:39:38,520
Speaker 1: her own. She needed the savior, one who was greater

718
00:39:38,680 --> 00:39:41,279
Speaker 1: than herself. And that is true for every single one

719
00:39:41,280 --> 00:39:43,880
Speaker 1: of us. That's true for every single family. That means

720
00:39:43,920 --> 00:39:47,440
Speaker 1: no mother or father, or pastor or teacher or mentor

721
00:39:48,000 --> 00:39:50,400
Speaker 1: can ultimately transform a human heart. If I had the

722
00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:53,280
Speaker 1: power to transform human hearts, my wife had the power

723
00:39:53,320 --> 00:39:57,160
Speaker 1: to transform human hearts, we would use that power instantly.

724
00:39:57,520 --> 00:39:59,520
Speaker 1: And it's not a power that we've been given, so

725
00:39:59,560 --> 00:40:02,000
Speaker 1: we can't do that, but we do know someone who can.

726
00:40:03,760 --> 00:40:06,640
Speaker 1: Only Jesus can do that, and that's something that he

727
00:40:06,719 --> 00:40:10,719
Speaker 1: delights to do in his time. You have to wait

728
00:40:11,760 --> 00:40:15,160
Speaker 1: for his perfect timing. You have to let him stretch

729
00:40:15,200 --> 00:40:17,879
Speaker 1: your faith while you wait for him to answer. How

730
00:40:17,920 --> 00:40:20,040
Speaker 1: he's going to answer, and when he's going to answer.

731
00:40:20,760 --> 00:40:22,920
Speaker 1: That parts up to him. The part that's up to

732
00:40:22,960 --> 00:40:25,560
Speaker 1: you is that you keep coming humbly before him and

733
00:40:25,600 --> 00:40:27,960
Speaker 1: then trust him to do the right thing at the

734
00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:30,240
Speaker 1: right time. Because he's the only one who can heal

735
00:40:30,600 --> 00:40:35,279
Speaker 1: and restore and forgive and deliver and save and he

736
00:40:35,360 --> 00:40:38,400
Speaker 1: welcomes those who come before him in humble faith and

737
00:40:38,440 --> 00:40:40,560
Speaker 1: ask him to do those things. And I think that's

738
00:40:40,600 --> 00:40:45,400
Speaker 1: why the prayers of godly mothers matter so much. I

739
00:40:45,480 --> 00:40:49,080
Speaker 1: think every sincere prayer that's offered to Christ is essentially

740
00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:53,280
Speaker 1: placing the next generation before the very one who actually

741
00:40:53,320 --> 00:40:57,320
Speaker 1: has the opportunity and the power to change lives eternally.

742
00:40:57,400 --> 00:40:59,400
Speaker 1: So think about this. As you pray for your children,

743
00:40:59,840 --> 00:41:03,520
Speaker 1: you are literally bringing them before Jesus, like this mother

744
00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:07,560
Speaker 1: in Matthew chapter fifteen was doing for her daughter. You're

745
00:41:07,600 --> 00:41:10,240
Speaker 1: bringing to the You're bringing them to Jesus, and you're saying,

746
00:41:10,320 --> 00:41:15,520
Speaker 1: Lord help me, Lord help me. You're bringing those kids

747
00:41:15,520 --> 00:41:19,120
Speaker 1: before him and you're saying, Lord help me. And what

748
00:41:19,160 --> 00:41:22,440
Speaker 1: do we see in a passage like this. He loves

749
00:41:22,480 --> 00:41:26,319
Speaker 1: that request, and this passage demonstrates that he loves to

750
00:41:26,320 --> 00:41:31,399
Speaker 1: say yes. He may seem silent for a little bit.

751
00:41:32,520 --> 00:41:34,640
Speaker 1: That's probably to stretch your faith and the faith of

752
00:41:34,680 --> 00:41:36,560
Speaker 1: those around you. And there may be even people in

753
00:41:36,600 --> 00:41:39,360
Speaker 1: your life who question your decision to be persistent and

754
00:41:39,360 --> 00:41:41,480
Speaker 1: praying about whatever you've been praying about. There may be

755
00:41:41,520 --> 00:41:43,359
Speaker 1: people in your life who tell you don't even bother,

756
00:41:44,000 --> 00:41:46,799
Speaker 1: just stop just give it up. Do not give it up.

757
00:41:47,239 --> 00:41:51,480
Speaker 1: Keep bringing it before the Lord. Lord help me, he

758
00:41:51,560 --> 00:41:54,440
Speaker 1: loves to say. Yes, don't lose heart. Your labor in

759
00:41:54,480 --> 00:41:57,719
Speaker 1: the Lord is not wasted. Your prayers are not being ignored,

760
00:41:57,960 --> 00:42:02,760
Speaker 1: your compassion is not unseen. Your faithfulness to God always matters.

761
00:42:04,400 --> 00:42:06,759
Speaker 1: And just as Jesus delighted in the persistent faith of

762
00:42:06,800 --> 00:42:09,120
Speaker 1: this mother in Matthew chapter fifteen, he still delights in

763
00:42:09,200 --> 00:42:12,680
Speaker 1: humble faith today. So I just want to say this

764
00:42:12,920 --> 00:42:18,480
Speaker 1: to godly women who choose to uplift us all and

765
00:42:18,800 --> 00:42:23,440
Speaker 1: encourage us all. Thank you for whomever you are praying

766
00:42:23,480 --> 00:42:26,000
Speaker 1: for right now that may not even fully realize the

767
00:42:26,000 --> 00:42:29,120
Speaker 1: burden that you carry in your heart for them. Someday

768
00:42:29,160 --> 00:42:32,040
Speaker 1: they may thank you themselves. Well, I'm just going to

769
00:42:32,080 --> 00:42:34,120
Speaker 1: say thank you for them, because maybe they're too young

770
00:42:34,160 --> 00:42:36,800
Speaker 1: to realize how they need to say thank you. Forty

771
00:42:36,880 --> 00:42:39,279
Speaker 1: nine year old me is going to say thank you.

772
00:42:40,040 --> 00:42:41,799
Speaker 1: My mother is with the Lord now, so I don't

773
00:42:41,920 --> 00:42:45,279
Speaker 1: have the opportunity to still thank her, but I'm going

774
00:42:45,320 --> 00:42:48,920
Speaker 1: to thank on her behalf, remembering the prayers that she

775
00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,719
Speaker 1: prayed for me and my siblings and my kiddos, and

776
00:42:52,760 --> 00:42:56,000
Speaker 1: how the Lord answered those prayers. I'm going to say

777
00:42:56,040 --> 00:42:59,480
Speaker 1: thank you to mothers who remember their kiddos and bring

778
00:42:59,520 --> 00:43:04,440
Speaker 1: them before the Lord and just be patient. Just be patient.

779
00:43:04,440 --> 00:43:09,239
Speaker 1: The Lord he is. I love the fact that he

780
00:43:09,360 --> 00:43:11,600
Speaker 1: reminds us in scripture that the big test that he

781
00:43:11,680 --> 00:43:14,319
Speaker 1: wants to bring you and me, all of us through,

782
00:43:14,960 --> 00:43:18,520
Speaker 1: is he wants your faith to be strong. So if

783
00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:20,879
Speaker 1: every prayer was answered the second you prayed it, that's

784
00:43:20,920 --> 00:43:23,520
Speaker 1: not a very stretching experience. Sometimes, in his mercy, he

785
00:43:23,560 --> 00:43:26,680
Speaker 1: answers prayers very quickly, and I'd delight to see that.

786
00:43:26,760 --> 00:43:28,520
Speaker 1: And sometimes he says, this is one that you're going

787
00:43:28,560 --> 00:43:31,279
Speaker 1: to have to bring before me for years, so get ready.

788
00:43:31,320 --> 00:43:33,520
Speaker 1: But we're going to ride the ride together. And what

789
00:43:33,560 --> 00:43:36,160
Speaker 1: you're going to discover is that your faith is going

790
00:43:36,160 --> 00:43:38,759
Speaker 1: to be stretched, and your dependence on Him is going

791
00:43:38,800 --> 00:43:41,680
Speaker 1: to grow, and you're going to be a stronger Christian

792
00:43:41,760 --> 00:43:44,040
Speaker 1: because of the experience he allows you to go through.

793
00:43:44,400 --> 00:43:46,759
Speaker 1: And at the end, when you look back at all

794
00:43:46,800 --> 00:43:48,680
Speaker 1: of it, you're going to say, Lord, I wouldn't change

795
00:43:48,840 --> 00:43:52,920
Speaker 1: even one second of your timeline. Your timeline was perfect.

796
00:43:53,440 --> 00:43:56,279
Speaker 1: Thank you for reminding me to bring my kids before you.

797
00:43:57,280 --> 00:44:01,160
Speaker 1: So again, moms, thank you for everything you do. And

798
00:44:01,200 --> 00:44:03,799
Speaker 1: I just hope you're reminded and encouraged today by this

799
00:44:03,840 --> 00:44:08,960
Speaker 1: particular portion of scripture. Jesus sees it, and he delights

800
00:44:09,000 --> 00:44:13,560
Speaker 1: in it, and he will never chase you away when

801
00:44:13,600 --> 00:44:17,200
Speaker 1: you come before him and humbly say, Lord help me,

802
00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:30,480
Speaker 1: let's pray, Lord help us in Jesus' name. Amen,