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Speaker 1: Life audio.

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Speaker 2: Prayer is not informing God of something he doesn't know.

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Speaker 2: Prayer is inviting God into something you can't handle. God

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Speaker 2: doesn't need your update. He already knows.

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Speaker 1: Question.

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Speaker 2: Do you have a hard time getting to sleep at night?

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Speaker 2: Want you to know you're not alone? Did you know

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Speaker 2: that over half of all Americans have a hard time

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Speaker 2: getting to sleep at night? And by the way, that's

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Speaker 2: not due to coffee or even screens. You know what

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Speaker 2: causes it? Worry Studies consistently point to worry about finances,

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Speaker 2: family concerns, health worries, work, stress, and the list goes on.

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Speaker 2: Many even worry about the state of the world. A

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Speaker 2: recent survey found forty seven percent of America can describe

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Speaker 2: themselves as being in a constant state of worry, with

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Speaker 2: young adults reporting even higher levels. So listen, I think

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Speaker 2: I can help you with this. And the answer to

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Speaker 2: your worries are worries is found in a book that's

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Speaker 2: thousands of years old. If you know what, you probably

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Speaker 2: have a copy of this book somewhere in your house.

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Speaker 2: Can you guess what book it is? Of course, I'm

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Speaker 2: talking about the Bible. The Bible is the autobiography of God.

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Speaker 2: The Bible is well the user's manual of life. Everything

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Speaker 2: you need to know about life is found in the Bible.

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Speaker 2: Everything that you need to know about God is found

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Speaker 2: in the Bible. And everything you need to know about

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Speaker 2: combating your worry and anxiety is also found in the Bible.

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Speaker 2: So let's just start with them. Talk about prayer. Prayer

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Speaker 2: is communicating with God, and that's where it all begins,

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Speaker 2: because in prayer, I can trade my worry for worship,

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Speaker 2: and I can trade my panic for praise. Now, after

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Speaker 2: we talk about that for a few moments, I want

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Speaker 2: to land on one of the most quoted, and I

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Speaker 2: would argue most misunderstood versus and all of the Bible.

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Speaker 2: It's Romans eight twenty eight. In case you don't know it,

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Speaker 2: Romans A twenty eight says, and we know that all

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Speaker 2: things work together for good to those that love God

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Speaker 2: another call according to his purpose. So before we dive

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Speaker 2: into that verse, let's talk about something that's just foundational,

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Speaker 2: back to the topic of prayer and what God says.

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Speaker 2: These two topics, prayer and Romans A twenty eight are

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Speaker 2: closely tied together in the Bible. What I'm about to

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Speaker 2: share with you is something the devil doesn't want you

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Speaker 2: to know. Don't you want to know what the devil

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Speaker 2: doesn't want you to know? Here's what Satan does want

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Speaker 2: you to be aware of. He doesn't want you to

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Speaker 2: know about the power of prayer. Why because prayer is

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Speaker 2: a Christian's secret weapon. Prayer can change circumstances, prayer can

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Speaker 2: change other people. Prayer, most importantly, can change you. This

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Speaker 2: might come as a surprise to you, but becoming a

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Speaker 2: Christian does not mean the end of your problems. The

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Speaker 2: Christian life is not a playground. It's actually a battleground.

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Speaker 2: I know sometimes we may think that once we become Christians,

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Speaker 2: all of our problems are gone, but that is not

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Speaker 2: what the Bible teaches.

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Speaker 1: Well.

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Speaker 2: Becoming a Christian means is that you now have a

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Speaker 2: powerful asset in dealing with your problems, and that asset

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Speaker 2: is called prayer.

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Speaker 1: Think about it this way.

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Speaker 2: Many of us are carrying burdens. God never intended for

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Speaker 2: us to carry worry, fear, anxiety, guilt, shame, regret, and

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Speaker 2: prayer is God's personal invitation to trend for those burdens

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Speaker 2: from our shoulders to his. Now, I want to tell

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Speaker 2: you a story from the Bible that illustrates us about

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Speaker 2: a king. And his name was Jojoseph Fat. By the way,

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Speaker 2: he started using those impagants, changes name briefly to Jojoseph Thin,

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Speaker 2: but that's another story anyway. Jehoseph Fat was the King

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Speaker 2: of Judah. He was facing a crisis that, by any

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Speaker 2: military calculation, was completely hopeless. A massive army, actually a

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Speaker 2: coalition of armies, was marching against him. Poor King Jojoseph

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Speaker 2: Fat was outnumbered, out gunned, and out of options.

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Speaker 1: So what did he do?

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Speaker 2: He pulled out the Christian secret weapon. King Jojoseph Fat

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Speaker 2: prayed because he believed deeply that God cared about what

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Speaker 2: he was facing. And that is the foundation of any

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Speaker 2: meaningful prayer life. Understand this, God cares about what you

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Speaker 2: are dealing with right now. I mean that makes all

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Speaker 2: the difference of the world. God cares, Jesus has compassion

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Speaker 2: on you and what you're facing at this moment. And

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Speaker 2: the apostle Peter tells us to do with our anxieties

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Speaker 2: and our cares. He says in one Peter five seven,

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Speaker 2: cast all your cares upon him, for he cares for you.

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Speaker 2: Now that word cast is important, So let me unpack

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Speaker 2: it for a moment, because it's not just a casual

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Speaker 2: cast has in tossing something like throwing a piece of

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Speaker 2: traction to garbage can as you walk by. The actual

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Speaker 2: Greek word that Peter uses here, for cast, describes a definite,

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Speaker 2: intentional act of the will. In other words, it's the

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Speaker 2: kind of word you'd use to describe throwing something with purpose,

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Speaker 2: deliberately throwing something with the full intention of letting it

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Speaker 2: go and not picking it up again. Okay, So applying

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Speaker 2: it to worry and anxiety, it means stop worrying about

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Speaker 2: whatever you're facing, Stop precursing it in your mind at

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Speaker 2: two o'clock in the morning, stop trying to manage it yourself,

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Speaker 2: stop trying to assume the weight of it, and cast

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Speaker 2: it on Jesus. And the verse continues on casting all

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Speaker 2: your care upon Him, for he cares for you. In

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Speaker 2: the original language, the word us there for care means

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Speaker 2: that God is.

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Speaker 1: Mindful of you.

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Speaker 2: He actively is attentive to what you're facing, what is

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Speaker 2: your concern. So, in other words, if it matters to you,

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Speaker 2: it matters to him. My friend Max Locato put it

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Speaker 2: this way, and I quote, God is not a harried

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Speaker 2: supervisor who gives you thirty seconds of his attention that

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Speaker 2: moves on. You are the only person in the universe

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Speaker 2: he is thinking about right now, end quote. Right now

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Speaker 2: God is concerned with what you're facing. He's listening to

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Speaker 2: what you are saying to him in prayer. God is

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Speaker 2: thinking about you.

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Speaker 1: You know.

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Speaker 2: I love that verse Jeremiah twenty nine eleven where God says,

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Speaker 2: I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says

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Speaker 2: the Lord. You know, if that first said God speaking,

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Speaker 2: I know the singular thought I had for a fleeting

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Speaker 2: moment about you, says the Lord, that would be enough

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Speaker 2: for me. But that's not what it says. I know

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Speaker 2: the thoughts that I think toward you. Notice it's personal,

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Speaker 2: not toward all y'all, but toward you. I know the

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Speaker 2: thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts

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Speaker 2: of peace and out of evil, to give you a

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Speaker 2: future and a hope. The thoughts of God are not

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Speaker 2: divided among seven billion people. His attention is fully, completely

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Speaker 2: and personally on you. So listen to this.

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Speaker 1: When you pray.

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Speaker 2: You're not interrupting God, You're not pulling them away from

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Speaker 2: something more important. You're not one number in a long line.

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Speaker 2: His attention is fully on you. So the apostle Paul

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Speaker 2: amplifies this and this very familiar statement from Philippians three.

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Speaker 2: Don't worry about anything, Pray about everything, and the peace

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Speaker 2: of God that passes all human understanding, will guard your

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Speaker 2: heart and mind.

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Speaker 1: In Christ Jesus.

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Speaker 2: Think of this as a conditioned reflex and contrast it

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Speaker 2: to a natural reflex. If you touch a hot stuff,

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Speaker 2: even if you're a small child, you'll pull your hand back.

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Speaker 2: That is a natural reflex. A condition reflex is when

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Speaker 2: you teach yourself to do something. As an example, remember

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Speaker 2: when you first started driving and you had to consciously

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Speaker 2: think about everything. If you at a standard transmission, putting

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Speaker 2: the clutch in, putting the car into gear, or oh no,

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Speaker 2: I have to turn my signal on, or I have

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Speaker 2: to look over my shoulder because I'm changing lengths. You

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Speaker 2: thought about it, but then after you drive for a while,

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Speaker 2: it's no longer conditioned reflex. They become natural reflexes you

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Speaker 2: do without thinking about it. Or like when we sing

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Speaker 2: the national anthem, we stand, we put our hand over

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Speaker 2: our heart. These are condition reflexes we've taught ourselves to

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Speaker 2: do it. So when worrying anxiety comes, you develop this

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Speaker 2: reflex don't panic, pray, don't worry. Worship again, don't worry

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Speaker 2: about anything, Pray about everything. And then this promise and

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Speaker 2: the peace of God that passes all human understanding will

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Speaker 2: guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. The word

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Speaker 2: that Paul uses there for God is interesting. It's a

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Speaker 2: describing a Roman sentry, a Roman guard standing at the

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Speaker 2: door of your heart and not letting anxiety and worry in. Sergeant,

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Speaker 2: Peace is guarding you because you've turned your anxiety into prayer.

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Speaker 2: Then remind yourself of this simple fact. God is in

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Speaker 2: control in your life as a Christian. God is sovereign

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Speaker 2: right someone O three vers nineteen says God has established

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Speaker 2: his throne in heaven and his kingdom rules overall. So look,

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Speaker 2: whatever is happening to you right now, God has either

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Speaker 2: allowed it or he's done it. Think about that, for

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Speaker 2: a moment he's allowed it or done it. He may

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Speaker 2: have outright done it for some purpose you don't know

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Speaker 2: about yet that will be revealed in time where He's

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Speaker 2: allowed it for some purpose. So you're not facing something

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Speaker 2: that God is unaware of. But come back to this

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Speaker 2: God cares about what you're going through, and he isn't

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Speaker 2: going to take you beyond your breaking point. First Corinthian

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Speaker 2: Instant thirteen, one of my favorite verses, says, there is

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Speaker 2: no temptation or testing that you're facing that is not

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Speaker 2: common to man. But God, who is faithful, will not

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Speaker 2: allow you to be tested above but you are able.

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Speaker 2: But will with that temptation or test make a way

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Speaker 2: of escape that you may be able to bear it.

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Speaker 2: You might feel right now, I can't go on another day.

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Speaker 2: This is too much for me. It's going to destroy me.

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Speaker 2: Listen to this. God's aware of what you can handle.

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Speaker 2: God's aware of how long you can go with this

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Speaker 2: challenge you're facing. So just keep praying about it. So

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Speaker 2: back to going to sleep at night, when you lay

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Speaker 2: your kid on the pillow, remind yourself the things that

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Speaker 2: you need to remember. Remind yourself. God is in control

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Speaker 2: of my life. God loves me. God is going to

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Speaker 2: work all things together for good because I love him.

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Speaker 2: Another helpful tip is you might just listen to some

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Speaker 2: great podcasts as you're drifting off to sleep. Instead of

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Speaker 2: looking at the television set, listen to a message from

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Speaker 2: Chuck Smith or Chuck swynd Dollar or Charles Stanley, all

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Speaker 2: guys with the name of Charles. Maybe there's something to that.

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Speaker 2: Or listen to yours truly if you like. But you

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Speaker 2: know you listen to a podcast. Well, a word of

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Speaker 2: God is being taught and it just sort of readjust

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Speaker 2: your thinking and put your mind on the scripture. That's

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Speaker 2: what it means, as Colachians three tells us to set

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Speaker 2: our mind on things above. So let's go back to

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Speaker 2: old King Jojoseph Fat in his dilemma and actually look

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Speaker 2: at the prayer that he prayed. Remember, he's facing a

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Speaker 2: huge group of armies set out to destroy him. So

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Speaker 2: Jojoseph Fat gathers all of Juda together, he tells everyone

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Speaker 2: to fast, and he prays one of the most honest

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Speaker 2: prayers in the entire Bible. This is what King Jojoseph

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Speaker 2: Fat prayed. Oh Lord, we're powerless against this mighty army

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Speaker 2: that's about to attack us. We don't know what to do,

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Speaker 2: but our eyes are upon you. Don't you love that?

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Speaker 2: He actually says, Lord, we don't know what to do,

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Speaker 2: but our eyes are upon you. There's no false confidence,

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Speaker 2: there's no trying to impress God. With a big theological vocabulary.

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Speaker 2: It's just raw, honest desperation pointed in the right direction.

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Speaker 2: Sometimes the most powerful prayer you can pray is the

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Speaker 2: simplest one.

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Speaker 1: God.

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Speaker 2: I don't know what I'm gonna do, but I'm looking

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Speaker 2: to you God. If you don't come through for me,

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Speaker 2: I'm dead in the water. That's effectively what King Jejoseph

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Speaker 2: fat pray. Then the Lord directed a prophet to the

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Speaker 2: king who said, don't be afraid. The Lord says, this

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Speaker 2: battle is mine, not yours. And the next morning, when

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Speaker 2: the army of Judah went up to face their enemies,

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Speaker 2: they found the enemies had turned onto each other in

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Speaker 2: the night and destroyed themselves. Jojosepha and his men didn't

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Speaker 2: have to fight a single battle. They just had to

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Speaker 2: show up and collect the spoils. Now, let's be honest,

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Speaker 2: not every situation has resolved like that. There are times

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Speaker 2: we pray about something and seemingly nothing happens. So God

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Speaker 2: is always at work, perhaps behind the scenes, but there

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Speaker 2: are times when God will just intervene in a direct

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Speaker 2: overt way. The Bible does say you have not because

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Speaker 2: you asked not, So keep praying about whatever you're facing.

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Speaker 2: But I can't guarantee your problem will be resolved immediately.

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Speaker 2: But I can tell you this God is aware of

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Speaker 2: your problem. He cares about your problem. He's not indifferent,

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Speaker 2: and he is capable of doing what you cannot do

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Speaker 2: for yourself. You know what Jehoseph had prayed. He didn't

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Speaker 2: just lay out his problem. He spent time reminding himself

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Speaker 2: and the people that were joining him in prayer of

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Speaker 2: who they were talking to. Look at how he opens

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Speaker 2: this prayer. He says, O, Lord, God of our ancestors,

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Speaker 2: you alone are the God who is in heaven. You

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Speaker 2: are the ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth.

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Speaker 2: You are powerful and mighty. No one can stand against you.

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Speaker 2: That second Chronicles twenty verse six. Do you see what

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Speaker 2: he's doing there. He's not just informing God of this situation,

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Speaker 2: because God's.

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Speaker 1: Already aware of it. He's reorienting his own heart.

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Speaker 2: He's reminding himself of the size of his God before

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Speaker 2: he focuses on the the size of his problem. This

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Speaker 2: is one of the most important things I can tell

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Speaker 2: you about in prayer. Before you lay out your problem

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Speaker 2: or your petition before the Lord, if you have the

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Speaker 2: ability to do so, spend time worshiping God. Remind yourself

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Speaker 2: of who he is. Remind yourself of his power, of

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Speaker 2: his faithfulness, remind yourself of his track record, and of

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Speaker 2: his character. Because here's the thing. When you stare at

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Speaker 2: your problem long enough, it starts to look enormous, it

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Speaker 2: can fill your whole field of vision. But when you

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Speaker 2: spend time in worship first, your problem gets smaller. Now

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Speaker 2: not technically, but your comprehension of that problem get smaller

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Speaker 2: because your God has gotten bigger. Not that he's grown larger,

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Speaker 2: but you're seeing him for who he is. That is

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Speaker 2: why the Summer says, magnify the Lord with me, let

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Speaker 2: us exalt his name together a big God. You will

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Speaker 2: then have a relatively small problem. But if you have

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Speaker 2: a big problem, my question to you is, as you

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Speaker 2: God too small or the way you see him. This

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Speaker 2: is modeled in what we call the Lord's prayer, which

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Speaker 2: isn't just a prayer to pray, it's a template for

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Speaker 2: all prayer. It's what prayer should look like. You know,

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Speaker 2: if you've ever bought a home, you know that they'll

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Speaker 2: have model homes you can look at and you walk

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Speaker 2: through them. And these are like examples of it. Your home,

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Speaker 2: which probably is just dirt right now, will look like

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Speaker 2: one day. And they have pictures of people that don't

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Speaker 2: exist and furniture, and it's a model. It's an example.

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Speaker 2: This is what your home can look like. And so

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Speaker 2: the Lord's prayer is a model. This is what your

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Speaker 2: prayer should look like. So it's okay to pray the

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Speaker 2: Lord's prayer, repeat him, but it's also a great thing

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Speaker 2: to realize that it's a model for all prayers. So

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Speaker 2: what does Jesus teach us in the Lord's Prayer? He says,

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Speaker 2: after this manner, therefore you should pray, who are in heaven,

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Speaker 2: Hallow would be your name, your kingdom. Come, Your will

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Speaker 2: be done on earth as it is in heaven. And

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Speaker 2: then the petition comes, give us this stay our daily bread.

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Speaker 2: There's absolutely nothing wrong with asking God to give you

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Speaker 2: your daily bread. But notice that it begins with our

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Speaker 2: father word in heaven. Hollow would be your name, your kingdom. Come,

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Speaker 2: your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

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Speaker 2: In other words, God, you're awesome, You're powerful. I want

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Speaker 2: your rule and ren in my life. Now let me

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Speaker 2: come to my personal needs. That's a good way to

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Speaker 2: begin your prayers, because prayer is not informing God of

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Speaker 2: something he doesn't know. Prayer is inviting God into something

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Speaker 2: you can't handle. Let me repeat that again for emphasis.

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Speaker 2: Prayer is not informing God of something he doesn't know.

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Speaker 2: Prayer is inviting God into something you can't handle. God

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Speaker 2: doesn't need your update. He already knows this design. Prayer

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Speaker 2: is the mechanism, if you will, by which we bring

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Speaker 2: Him into our situation.

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Speaker 1: Not for his sake, but for ours.

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Speaker 2: There's something amazing that happens when we pray, something that

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Speaker 2: shifts in our heart, burdens suddenly, lift, perspective returns. Peace

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Speaker 2: comes as well. Again, the Bible calls it the peace

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Speaker 2: that passes all human understanding. Scripture reminds us you will

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Speaker 2: keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on

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Speaker 2: you because.

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Speaker 1: He trusts in you.

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Speaker 2: See, this piece does not necessarily come because your circumstances

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Speaker 2: have changed, but it comes because you place your problems

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Speaker 2: of someone who is bigger than you. That's what we

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Speaker 2: call it, the peace that passes all understanding. Then there's

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Speaker 2: a matter of timing in prayer. God does not always

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Speaker 2: move as quickly as we would like him to. In fact,

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Speaker 2: most of the time. We wanted the answer yesterday. We

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Speaker 2: want the healing now, we want the relationship restored this week,

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Speaker 2: we want the financial pressure to lift immediately. And God says, hey,

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Speaker 2: I make all things beautiful in my time, not your time,

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Speaker 2: not my time.

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Speaker 1: His time.

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Speaker 2: And honestly, this takes time to learn. There are things

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Speaker 2: that I prayed about for years, even decades, and then

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Speaker 2: the Lord finally answered that prayer. As an example, my

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Speaker 2: mother's salvation. My mom was raised in a very strong

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Speaker 2: Christian home, and if you saw the Jesus Revolution movie,

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Speaker 2: you saw that she was away from God, and she

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Speaker 2: was an alcoholic and was married in divorced seven times,

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Speaker 2: and on it went. And so after I became a Christian,

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Speaker 2: I wanted to reach my mom, and she didn't seem

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Speaker 2: all that thrilled about me coming to Christ. Quite honestly,

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Speaker 2: she did not raise me in a Christian home. But

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Speaker 2: in a funny way, my mother engaged in her form

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Speaker 2: of pre evangelism. Let me explain, by living her life

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Speaker 2: and by me, as a young person, seeing the emptiness

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Speaker 2: of her life, I knew I did not want that

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Speaker 2: life for myself. So where a lot of times you

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Speaker 2: see people raising Christians homes, rebelling against it and walking

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Speaker 2: away from God. I was raised in the opposite of

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Speaker 2: a Christian home, and I rebelled against it, and I

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Speaker 2: went searching for God. Don't get me wrong, I'm not

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Speaker 2: encouraging you to raise kids in a horrible, dysfunctional, alcoholic

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Speaker 2: homb What I'm saying is God can work despite what

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Speaker 2: hand we're dealt in life, if you will. But I

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Speaker 2: prayed for her for years and years, and I said,

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Speaker 2: is my mom ever going to come to the Lord?

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Speaker 2: So now she's reached the age of seventy. Sadly, her

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Speaker 2: lifestyle had taken its toll on her. She was once

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Speaker 2: an incredibly beautiful woman, but drinking and smoking every single

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Speaker 2: day aged chur and all. Also, it caused her a

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Speaker 2: lot of medical issues. She was getting dialysis three times

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Speaker 2: a week. And then I kept praying for my mom

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Speaker 2: to come to Christ. And one day I was driving

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Speaker 2: the church and the Lord spoke to me as clear

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Speaker 2: as day. He said, go talk to your mother. Understand

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Speaker 2: this was an awkward situation because whenever I would talk

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Speaker 2: with her about spiritual things, she immediately changed the subject

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Speaker 2: and her go to line.

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Speaker 1: Was I don't want to talk about it. I don't

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Speaker 1: want to talk about it.

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Speaker 2: So the Lord directs me to go to her home

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Speaker 2: in the middle of the afternoon, and she's sitting there

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Speaker 2: at her kitchen table. She says, Greg, what are you

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Speaker 2: doing here. I want to talk to you.

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Speaker 1: Mom.

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Speaker 2: What what do you want to talk about? I said,

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Speaker 2: I want to talk to you about your soul. She said,

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Speaker 2: I don't want to talk about it. And I said, today,

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Speaker 2: we're going to talk about it. And we did. And

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Speaker 2: the result of that conversation was my mother made a

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Speaker 2: commitment to Christ, but it took forever. So what I'm

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Speaker 2: telling you is, don't give up on your loved ones

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Speaker 2: that you're praying for. Don't give up in that prodigal

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Speaker 2: son or daughter, or that prodigal mother or father. Don't

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Speaker 2: give up praying for that healing. Don't give up praying

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Speaker 2: for that door of ministry to open. Don't give up

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Speaker 2: on whatever it is you're praying about. Jesus said, asking

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Speaker 2: it shall be given, seeking he shall find.

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Speaker 1: Knocking, the door shall be open.

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Speaker 2: And in the original language, there's an ascending intensity in

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Speaker 2: those verbs, so it's like ask, seek knock. So first

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Speaker 2: I'm asking, maybe politely, then I'm seeking desperately. Now I'm knocking,

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Speaker 2: I'm pounding on the door.

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Speaker 1: Lord. I'm not going to take no for an answer.

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Speaker 2: Now, of course, God can answer your prayers as he chooses.

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Speaker 2: But I believe when you're praying for the salvation of someone,

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Speaker 2: you're praying for something that God wants to do. Because

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Speaker 2: the Bible says God is not willing that any should perish,

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Speaker 2: but that all should come.

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Speaker 1: To repent it.

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Speaker 2: So keep praying and be patient on the timing of

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Speaker 2: the Lord. Isaiah forty thirty one says, they that wait

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Speaker 2: upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount

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Speaker 2: up with wings as eagles. They shall run and up

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Speaker 2: be wary. They shall walk and not faint. So keep

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Speaker 2: waiting on the Lord. By the way, his timing is

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Speaker 2: not a sign of his indifference. His timing is a

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Speaker 2: sign of his wisdom. And my job is to keep

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Speaker 2: trusting well, like keep waiting. So Jesus told an interesting

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Speaker 2: story Luke chapter eighteen. And the reason he told this

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Speaker 2: story he is stated up front. The Bible says he

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Speaker 2: told his story to show his disciples that we should

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Speaker 2: always pray and never give up. So here's the story.

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Speaker 2: There's a judge in a certain city. This judge was

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Speaker 2: a corrupt guy. In fact, Luke's Gospel describes him as

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Speaker 2: he neither feared God nor cared about people. In fact,

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Speaker 2: the judge himself later said, I don't fear God and

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Speaker 2: I don't care about people. So he was owning that.

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Speaker 2: So here's this corrupt, indifferent judge. No, in contrast to

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Speaker 2: him is a widow who has a need. And by

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Speaker 2: the way, in the ancient world, a widow was among

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Speaker 2: the most vulnerable people in society. She had no husband

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Speaker 2: to advocate for her, no one was standing in the

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Speaker 2: court for her. She did not have an attorney, she

415
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Speaker 2: didn't have any money, she didn't have any political connections.

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Speaker 2: She just had a need and a cause that was just.

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Speaker 2: And she kept coming to this corrupt judge day after day, saying,

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Speaker 2: give me justice against my adversary. And this judge is

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Speaker 2: kept refusing her, blowing her off, didn't answer her. But

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Speaker 2: she wouldn't give up. She was relentless, she was persistent.

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Speaker 2: Finally she wore the judge down. The judge literally said, look,

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Speaker 2: I don't care about people and I don't care about justice,

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Speaker 2: but this woman is driving me crazy. And in the

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Speaker 2: original language, it can be translated she's leaving me black

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Speaker 2: and blue. Now, I don't know if that is speaking

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Speaker 2: symbolically that she was verbally houstling him, or if it

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00:25:05,165 --> 00:25:07,044
Speaker 2: means she literally I don't know. It was kind of

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Speaker 2: shaking him a little bit, but she was freaking him

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Speaker 2: out a little bit. In fact, her nymu's Karen, you

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Speaker 2: may not know that.

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Speaker 1: No, kidding, not really.

432
00:25:13,764 --> 00:25:17,605
Speaker 2: But anyway, finally this judge just gave in. Okay, fine,

433
00:25:17,764 --> 00:25:21,484
Speaker 2: I'm tired of you bothering me. I'll give you what

434
00:25:21,885 --> 00:25:24,604
Speaker 2: you asked for. Now we're thinking, wait, what kind of

435
00:25:24,645 --> 00:25:27,764
Speaker 2: an illustration is that? Is God like a corrupt judge

436
00:25:27,804 --> 00:25:30,524
Speaker 2: that is indifferent toward us and we need to just

437
00:25:30,604 --> 00:25:34,004
Speaker 2: berate him until he finally capitulates and gives us what

438
00:25:34,044 --> 00:25:37,365
Speaker 2: we pray for. No, it's the opposite of that. God

439
00:25:37,484 --> 00:25:41,605
Speaker 2: is not like the unjust judge who doesn't care about people.

440
00:25:42,084 --> 00:25:46,804
Speaker 2: God is the just judge. God is the loving judge

441
00:25:47,205 --> 00:25:51,524
Speaker 2: who cares about you. So the point is God is

442
00:25:51,524 --> 00:25:55,325
Speaker 2: not like this corrupt judge, but he's your loving, heavenly

443
00:25:55,445 --> 00:25:59,045
Speaker 2: father who will respond to you when you call out

444
00:25:59,205 --> 00:26:02,124
Speaker 2: to him. So the lesson of this parable is simple,

445
00:26:02,324 --> 00:26:06,244
Speaker 2: but it's profound don't give up, don't stop praying. Don't

446
00:26:06,324 --> 00:26:10,725
Speaker 2: let a silence seemingly from heaven convince you that Heaven

447
00:26:10,925 --> 00:26:17,805
Speaker 2: isn't listening. Keep praying, keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. Okay, now,

448
00:26:17,885 --> 00:26:22,044
Speaker 2: let's talk about that first that I referenced earlier, that

449
00:26:22,165 --> 00:26:27,724
Speaker 2: beautiful verse, that powerful verse, Romans eight twenty eight. Let

450
00:26:27,764 --> 00:26:30,004
Speaker 2: me say it again, and by the way, every Christian

451
00:26:30,284 --> 00:26:32,365
Speaker 2: should commit this verse to memory.

452
00:26:32,445 --> 00:26:33,844
Speaker 1: Here it is, and.

453
00:26:33,844 --> 00:26:38,084
Speaker 2: We know that all things work together for good to

454
00:26:38,205 --> 00:26:41,204
Speaker 2: those who love God, to those who are the called

455
00:26:41,405 --> 00:26:44,725
Speaker 2: according to His purpose. Now, before we go any further

456
00:26:44,804 --> 00:26:47,604
Speaker 2: on this verse, let me address what the verse is

457
00:26:47,725 --> 00:26:50,965
Speaker 2: not saying, because I often heard Romans eight twenty eight

458
00:26:51,084 --> 00:26:55,405
Speaker 2: misquoted and misapplied people. You know, we have all these

459
00:26:55,445 --> 00:27:00,044
Speaker 2: scenes that we use to motivate people, or maybe in

460
00:27:00,084 --> 00:27:03,244
Speaker 2: our minds, to encourage them. We'll say things like, you know,

461
00:27:03,284 --> 00:27:06,644
Speaker 2: when life gives you lemons, make lemons, give me a break.

462
00:27:06,844 --> 00:27:10,125
Speaker 2: Who came up with that? That's not Romans eight twenty eight.

463
00:27:10,405 --> 00:27:13,325
Speaker 2: That's just a trite saying. Or someone might say, well,

464
00:27:13,365 --> 00:27:17,524
Speaker 2: everything happens for a reason. Well that's not entirely true either.

465
00:27:18,004 --> 00:27:23,124
Speaker 2: Bad things happen that honestly are completely inexplicable. There isn't

466
00:27:23,165 --> 00:27:28,484
Speaker 2: always a tidy reason behind every tragedy. Or another might say, well,

467
00:27:28,484 --> 00:27:31,725
Speaker 2: when the going gets tough, the tough get going, brother,

468
00:27:31,885 --> 00:27:35,364
Speaker 2: give me a break. Here's my favorite. Well, there's always

469
00:27:35,445 --> 00:27:38,804
Speaker 2: someone worself than you. Is that supposed to comfort me?

470
00:27:39,165 --> 00:27:41,484
Speaker 2: There's also a lot of people that are a lot

471
00:27:41,604 --> 00:27:45,445
Speaker 2: better off than me. So what does Romans eight twenty

472
00:27:45,524 --> 00:27:49,804
Speaker 2: eight mean? Does Romans eight twenty eight mean that whatever

473
00:27:50,004 --> 00:27:53,004
Speaker 2: happens in your life, if it's a bad thing, God

474
00:27:53,044 --> 00:27:55,884
Speaker 2: will turn it into a good thing. The answer to

475
00:27:55,925 --> 00:27:58,965
Speaker 2: that is no, that's not what it's saying again, Romans

476
00:27:59,004 --> 00:28:02,244
Speaker 2: a twenty eight, and we know that all things work

477
00:28:02,324 --> 00:28:05,365
Speaker 2: together for good to those that love God another call

478
00:28:05,604 --> 00:28:09,405
Speaker 2: according to his purpose. This is not saying that all

479
00:28:09,445 --> 00:28:13,524
Speaker 2: things are good. It's not saying that bad things won't.

480
00:28:13,244 --> 00:28:15,405
Speaker 1: Happen to you. Here's what it's saying that.

481
00:28:15,405 --> 00:28:20,564
Speaker 2: God, the sovereign, all knowing, all powerful, loving creator of

482
00:28:20,604 --> 00:28:24,165
Speaker 2: the universe, is at work in all things, and he's

483
00:28:24,205 --> 00:28:28,324
Speaker 2: working him toward a good end. It's for those who

484
00:28:28,685 --> 00:28:31,845
Speaker 2: love Him, who are the called according to his purpose.

485
00:28:31,925 --> 00:28:35,044
Speaker 2: In other words, Romans eight twenty eight isn't for everyone

486
00:28:35,685 --> 00:28:38,685
Speaker 2: it's for the believer. Again, we know that all things

487
00:28:38,685 --> 00:28:41,965
Speaker 2: work together for good to those who love God. Now,

488
00:28:42,005 --> 00:28:45,805
Speaker 2: the called according to His purpose Romans eight twenty eight

489
00:28:45,885 --> 00:28:48,924
Speaker 2: is not some kind of a cosmic guarantee that the

490
00:28:49,084 --> 00:28:52,765
Speaker 2: universe is friendly and everything will work out eventually. No,

491
00:28:52,925 --> 00:28:57,605
Speaker 2: it's a specific personal promise from God to his children. Now,

492
00:28:57,685 --> 00:29:02,364
Speaker 2: Notice how the verse begins. The apostle Paul says, we know.

493
00:29:02,525 --> 00:29:05,405
Speaker 2: He doesn't start with well, we hope, or we suppose,

494
00:29:05,925 --> 00:29:09,765
Speaker 2: or we wish. No, we know, But how can we

495
00:29:09,844 --> 00:29:13,084
Speaker 2: know that? Look ad verse thirty two. That obviously follows

496
00:29:13,205 --> 00:29:16,604
Speaker 2: verse twenty eight, which says he who did not spare

497
00:29:16,685 --> 00:29:19,605
Speaker 2: his own son, but gave him up for us all,

498
00:29:20,084 --> 00:29:23,285
Speaker 2: how will he not also, along with him, freely give

499
00:29:23,365 --> 00:29:27,325
Speaker 2: us all things. The argument goes as follow us, If

500
00:29:27,325 --> 00:29:30,405
Speaker 2: God was willing to give up his own son for you,

501
00:29:31,045 --> 00:29:35,364
Speaker 2: for me, for us, the most costly gift imaginable, the

502
00:29:35,405 --> 00:29:40,565
Speaker 2: greatest sacrifice possible, do you really think He's going to

503
00:29:40,645 --> 00:29:43,805
Speaker 2: hold out on you in some lesser matter? If he

504
00:29:43,925 --> 00:29:47,045
Speaker 2: gave you the greatest thing, can't you trust him with

505
00:29:47,205 --> 00:29:50,405
Speaker 2: everything else? When I begin to doubt the love of God,

506
00:29:50,645 --> 00:29:54,164
Speaker 2: In other words, when circumstances are hard. I find myself

507
00:29:54,205 --> 00:29:56,885
Speaker 2: wondering if things really are working for good. I take

508
00:29:56,925 --> 00:30:00,685
Speaker 2: a long look at the cross, and I see Jesus

509
00:30:00,765 --> 00:30:05,685
Speaker 2: Christ hanging there bearing my sin, dying for me. That

510
00:30:05,844 --> 00:30:09,045
Speaker 2: vantage point I can say with Paul, we know you

511
00:30:09,084 --> 00:30:12,005
Speaker 2: know there are certain things we all know. Heard a

512
00:30:12,045 --> 00:30:13,965
Speaker 2: story about a woman who walked into a pet store

513
00:30:14,005 --> 00:30:16,485
Speaker 2: to buy food for her cat, and there was a

514
00:30:16,565 --> 00:30:20,405
Speaker 2: parrot perched in the front of the store, and as

515
00:30:20,445 --> 00:30:23,005
Speaker 2: she walked in, the parrot said to her, you know

516
00:30:23,485 --> 00:30:27,684
Speaker 2: you are the ugliest woman I've ever seen. She was outraged,

517
00:30:27,885 --> 00:30:31,124
Speaker 2: so offended she demanded that the owner of the shop

518
00:30:31,205 --> 00:30:33,245
Speaker 2: come out, and he came from his back room. She said,

519
00:30:33,565 --> 00:30:36,965
Speaker 2: that bird insulted me. No under said, what did he say?

520
00:30:37,285 --> 00:30:39,645
Speaker 2: He said to me, you know you are the ugliest

521
00:30:39,685 --> 00:30:43,005
Speaker 2: woman he's ever seen. The man said, let me take

522
00:30:43,005 --> 00:30:45,045
Speaker 2: care of it. He took the bird in the back room,

523
00:30:45,125 --> 00:30:48,165
Speaker 2: slapped her around a little bit, feathers slain everywhere, told

524
00:30:48,165 --> 00:30:51,084
Speaker 2: the bird to never say that to the woman again.

525
00:30:51,685 --> 00:30:53,725
Speaker 2: He put the bird back on its perch in the

526
00:30:53,725 --> 00:30:55,924
Speaker 2: front of the store, and as she was leaving the

527
00:30:55,925 --> 00:30:59,405
Speaker 2: store with her cat food, the parrot called out hey, you,

528
00:30:59,525 --> 00:31:02,045
Speaker 2: And she turned in. She said what, and he said,

529
00:31:02,245 --> 00:31:06,485
Speaker 2: you know there are things we know. We know that

530
00:31:06,645 --> 00:31:10,604
Speaker 2: all things work together for good to those who love God.

531
00:31:10,925 --> 00:31:14,245
Speaker 2: Now here's something important. This verse does not say that

532
00:31:14,285 --> 00:31:15,965
Speaker 2: all things are inherently good.

533
00:31:16,445 --> 00:31:17,445
Speaker 1: It does not even.

534
00:31:17,245 --> 00:31:21,205
Speaker 2: Say that bad things will necessarily become good things in

535
00:31:21,245 --> 00:31:24,684
Speaker 2: and of themselves, because, frankly, there are some things in

536
00:31:24,725 --> 00:31:28,765
Speaker 2: this world that are bad, horribly bad, and they'll never

537
00:31:28,925 --> 00:31:33,485
Speaker 2: stop being bad. Like when a marriage falls apart, that's bad.

538
00:31:34,084 --> 00:31:36,765
Speaker 2: When a diagnosis comes back, can you find out you

539
00:31:36,805 --> 00:31:37,445
Speaker 2: have cancer?

540
00:31:37,765 --> 00:31:38,485
Speaker 1: That is bad?

541
00:31:39,084 --> 00:31:43,844
Speaker 2: When a child dies that is unimaginably bad, and it

542
00:31:43,885 --> 00:31:48,084
Speaker 2: will never be good ever. But what the versus saying

543
00:31:48,205 --> 00:31:51,765
Speaker 2: is that God is able to bring good despite those things.

544
00:31:51,805 --> 00:31:56,005
Speaker 2: Not necessarily that he'll make a bad thing a good thing,

545
00:31:56,125 --> 00:31:59,765
Speaker 2: though he does do that in certain occasions, but rather

546
00:32:00,084 --> 00:32:03,765
Speaker 2: despite the bad thing that will always remain a bad thing,

547
00:32:04,084 --> 00:32:08,205
Speaker 2: God can then bring a good thing. Why because God

548
00:32:08,325 --> 00:32:12,285
Speaker 2: is more powerful than any evil that touches our lives.

549
00:32:12,765 --> 00:32:16,844
Speaker 2: Someone in nineteen ninety one says, all things are your servants.

550
00:32:17,165 --> 00:32:20,245
Speaker 2: Back to that statement, we know that all things work

551
00:32:20,285 --> 00:32:23,844
Speaker 2: together for good, all things, not some things, not just

552
00:32:23,925 --> 00:32:28,325
Speaker 2: the pleasant things all things, even the painful things, are

553
00:32:28,445 --> 00:32:32,765
Speaker 2: ultimately in service to God, if you will. Ephesians one

554
00:32:32,805 --> 00:32:35,604
Speaker 2: to eleven says that all things are done according to

555
00:32:35,645 --> 00:32:39,245
Speaker 2: God's plan and decision. So here's what we need to know.

556
00:32:39,805 --> 00:32:40,405
Speaker 1: There are no.

557
00:32:40,485 --> 00:32:44,604
Speaker 2: Accidents in the life of a Christian. As Christians, we

558
00:32:44,685 --> 00:32:48,325
Speaker 2: don't believe in dumb luck. We believe in God's guidance.

559
00:32:48,645 --> 00:32:53,525
Speaker 2: We don't believe in mere coincidence. We believe in providence.

560
00:32:54,045 --> 00:32:57,884
Speaker 2: Let me illustrate now. Our son Christopher went to be

561
00:32:57,965 --> 00:33:02,405
Speaker 2: with the Lord in a tragic automobile accident eighteen years ago.

562
00:33:03,725 --> 00:33:06,685
Speaker 2: He was only thirty three years old. When I heard

563
00:33:06,685 --> 00:33:09,285
Speaker 2: the news, it was the worst moment of my life.

564
00:33:09,365 --> 00:33:14,765
Speaker 2: I was devastated. That was an unimaginably bad thing, and

565
00:33:14,805 --> 00:33:17,285
Speaker 2: there is nothing that has happened since then that will

566
00:33:17,325 --> 00:33:20,205
Speaker 2: ever make it a good thing. So I have to

567
00:33:20,205 --> 00:33:23,045
Speaker 2: see that it's just a bad thing in my life.

568
00:33:23,045 --> 00:33:27,285
Speaker 2: But despite that really bad thing, have I seen good

569
00:33:27,325 --> 00:33:29,005
Speaker 2: things happen in my life?

570
00:33:29,245 --> 00:33:30,805
Speaker 1: Yes? I have.

571
00:33:30,805 --> 00:33:34,085
Speaker 2: Have I changed as a result of it? I certainly

572
00:33:34,165 --> 00:33:40,205
Speaker 2: have have I grown more homesick for Heaven? Absolutely? Did

573
00:33:40,205 --> 00:33:42,644
Speaker 2: it cause me to want to redouble my efforts to

574
00:33:42,685 --> 00:33:46,325
Speaker 2: preach the gospel without question. Did it cause me to

575
00:33:46,405 --> 00:33:49,164
Speaker 2: want to take some bold steps of faith and do

576
00:33:49,285 --> 00:33:53,165
Speaker 2: things I would have never even considered previously. The answer

577
00:33:53,245 --> 00:33:56,005
Speaker 2: to that is yes as well. So my point is,

578
00:33:56,125 --> 00:33:59,885
Speaker 2: despite a really bad thing, God has brought some good

579
00:33:59,965 --> 00:34:03,884
Speaker 2: things as well. Why because we know that all things

580
00:34:03,965 --> 00:34:08,085
Speaker 2: work together for good loved God. Now they called according

581
00:34:08,285 --> 00:34:10,964
Speaker 2: to his purpose. Let me illustrate. I want to show

582
00:34:10,965 --> 00:34:15,005
Speaker 2: you how disappointment can become an appointment from God. So

583
00:34:15,125 --> 00:34:18,245
Speaker 2: I read the story. But a man who was out

584
00:34:18,725 --> 00:34:21,925
Speaker 2: swimming in the ocean and he was attacked by a

585
00:34:21,965 --> 00:34:25,565
Speaker 2: great white shark. So he was rushed to the hospital,

586
00:34:25,765 --> 00:34:29,805
Speaker 2: and during the examination and surgery, doctors discovered that this

587
00:34:29,965 --> 00:34:33,885
Speaker 2: man had cancer. In fact, he had a tumor that

588
00:34:34,005 --> 00:34:37,085
Speaker 2: had not yet spread, but because they caught it early,

589
00:34:37,405 --> 00:34:40,285
Speaker 2: they were able to remove it completely. And the men

590
00:34:40,365 --> 00:34:44,245
Speaker 2: later said he was, believe it or not, thankful this

591
00:34:44,405 --> 00:34:48,525
Speaker 2: shark attacked him, because otherwise his cancer might have never

592
00:34:48,645 --> 00:34:51,925
Speaker 2: been discovered. Now, they wanted to give the shark an

593
00:34:51,965 --> 00:34:54,405
Speaker 2: a word, but he was unavailable. He was out looking

594
00:34:54,405 --> 00:34:57,405
Speaker 2: for other people to bite. That's another story. So I'm

595
00:34:57,445 --> 00:34:59,485
Speaker 2: not saying the shark attack was a good thing. That's

596
00:34:59,525 --> 00:35:02,445
Speaker 2: a horrible thing. But I'm saying, despite this bad thing,

597
00:35:03,165 --> 00:35:06,565
Speaker 2: a good thing came, a really good thing. Why because

598
00:35:06,565 --> 00:35:09,085
Speaker 2: we know that all things can work together for good.

599
00:35:09,205 --> 00:35:13,685
Speaker 2: So here's the ultimate illustration of this verse, and it's

600
00:35:13,725 --> 00:35:18,085
Speaker 2: found in the Old Testament story of Joseph. You know,

601
00:35:18,125 --> 00:35:21,525
Speaker 2: it's interesting to note that the Bible says virtually nothing

602
00:35:21,565 --> 00:35:25,125
Speaker 2: critical about Joseph. I mean, look, if he did anything wrong,

603
00:35:25,645 --> 00:35:29,725
Speaker 2: maybe he was guilty of, you know, rotting out his brothers,

604
00:35:30,325 --> 00:35:34,485
Speaker 2: and maybe he shouldn't have, you know, trotted around in

605
00:35:34,525 --> 00:35:37,005
Speaker 2: his beautiful robe that his father made for him in

606
00:35:37,005 --> 00:35:39,685
Speaker 2: front of his brothers. Of those other worst things he did,

607
00:35:39,725 --> 00:35:43,885
Speaker 2: they're pretty minor. But nothing really negative is said about Joseph.

608
00:35:43,965 --> 00:35:44,725
Speaker 1: But here's what we know.

609
00:35:45,125 --> 00:35:48,445
Speaker 2: He was the favorite son of Jacob, and as I mentioned,

610
00:35:48,605 --> 00:35:52,485
Speaker 2: he was given a special coad. So Joseph had these

611
00:35:52,605 --> 00:35:56,805
Speaker 2: god given dreams about his future. So maybe he was

612
00:35:56,845 --> 00:36:01,285
Speaker 2: a little overly enthusiastic in telling his brothers about those dreams,

613
00:36:01,325 --> 00:36:05,005
Speaker 2: which basically presented him as a man of great power

614
00:36:05,205 --> 00:36:08,285
Speaker 2: and now he had submission to him. Probably should have

615
00:36:08,285 --> 00:36:11,365
Speaker 2: not said that. Sometimes it's best to keep your dreams

616
00:36:11,365 --> 00:36:13,165
Speaker 2: to yourself and see.

617
00:36:13,005 --> 00:36:14,085
Speaker 1: If they're from the lord.

618
00:36:14,085 --> 00:36:17,205
Speaker 2: They'll really happen, of course, But whatever it was, his

619
00:36:17,285 --> 00:36:21,205
Speaker 2: brothers grew very angry with him. They grew resentful of him.

620
00:36:21,205 --> 00:36:25,085
Speaker 2: They were so jealous of the attention the father showed

621
00:36:25,365 --> 00:36:29,485
Speaker 2: toward their brother. So one day they decided to kill him.

622
00:36:29,725 --> 00:36:32,884
Speaker 2: A little extreme, I would say, yeah, let's just kill him.

623
00:36:33,365 --> 00:36:36,485
Speaker 2: But then they noticed some slave traders are passing by

624
00:36:36,525 --> 00:36:38,725
Speaker 2: on their way to Egypt, and one brother said, well,

625
00:36:38,765 --> 00:36:42,325
Speaker 2: why don't we just sell him to the slave traders instead.

626
00:36:42,485 --> 00:36:46,605
Speaker 2: That's what they did. They sold their brother to slave traders,

627
00:36:46,805 --> 00:36:50,005
Speaker 2: and then torrip is beautiful robe of many colors, covered

628
00:36:50,045 --> 00:36:53,005
Speaker 2: in in animal blood, and said, hey, Dad, sorry, your

629
00:36:53,045 --> 00:36:58,045
Speaker 2: beloved son got killed, and it broke Jacob's heart. Meanwhile,

630
00:36:58,085 --> 00:37:02,125
Speaker 2: here's Joseph. He's a slave, and he sold to a

631
00:37:02,165 --> 00:37:06,685
Speaker 2: man named Potiphar. Now Potiphar was basically the head of

632
00:37:06,765 --> 00:37:11,845
Speaker 2: Pharaoh's security forces. He ran the secret service detail for

633
00:37:11,965 --> 00:37:14,885
Speaker 2: the Pharaoh, if you will, and so he put Joseph

634
00:37:14,925 --> 00:37:18,605
Speaker 2: to work. And Joseph was so diligent, so honest, so

635
00:37:18,765 --> 00:37:21,725
Speaker 2: hard working, that before you knew it, he was running

636
00:37:21,925 --> 00:37:25,685
Speaker 2: Potiphar's estate. So we might say, okay, now this isn't

637
00:37:25,725 --> 00:37:30,365
Speaker 2: so bad. He's sold by his brothers to slave tratters.

638
00:37:30,445 --> 00:37:32,805
Speaker 2: That's a bad thing. But now he's in charge of

639
00:37:32,845 --> 00:37:35,205
Speaker 2: this guys, this date and living a fairly good life.

640
00:37:35,365 --> 00:37:37,485
Speaker 2: That's a good thing. But the story is not over.

641
00:37:37,845 --> 00:37:41,565
Speaker 2: Potiphar had a wife. Her name was Missus Robinson. No

642
00:37:41,725 --> 00:37:44,445
Speaker 2: wrong story, that's the Graduate. But she was like Missus

643
00:37:44,565 --> 00:37:48,085
Speaker 2: Robinson in The Graduate. If you saw the movie, which

644
00:37:48,125 --> 00:37:51,005
Speaker 2: is the story of an older woman seducing a younger man.

645
00:37:51,685 --> 00:37:56,685
Speaker 2: This older woman Missus Cougar. No, she's not Missus Couger,

646
00:37:56,925 --> 00:38:01,605
Speaker 2: she's Missus Potiphar comes to Joseph and basically says to him,

647
00:38:01,965 --> 00:38:04,925
Speaker 2: I want you to have sex with me. He refuses her,

648
00:38:05,565 --> 00:38:08,205
Speaker 2: comes again, says it again. And the fact is she

649
00:38:08,365 --> 00:38:11,725
Speaker 2: was probably a very attractive woman. So one day she

650
00:38:11,765 --> 00:38:15,285
Speaker 2: has all of the servants leave, she's alone with Joseph

651
00:38:15,525 --> 00:38:19,125
Speaker 2: and she pulls him down on the bed, saying, have

652
00:38:19,325 --> 00:38:23,005
Speaker 2: sexual relations with me. And he did what any clear thinking,

653
00:38:23,125 --> 00:38:26,885
Speaker 2: red blooded young man should do under such circumstances.

654
00:38:27,005 --> 00:38:28,485
Speaker 1: He ran like crazy.

655
00:38:29,125 --> 00:38:32,365
Speaker 2: Then she falsely accused him of rape and he was

656
00:38:32,485 --> 00:38:35,485
Speaker 2: arrested and sent to prison. Okay, now wait a second,

657
00:38:35,925 --> 00:38:38,565
Speaker 2: So the bad thing is he's sold by his brothers

658
00:38:38,605 --> 00:38:42,365
Speaker 2: into slavery. The good thing is he's running Potiph's or state.

659
00:38:42,685 --> 00:38:46,844
Speaker 2: The bad thing is a Potiphar's wife tries to tempt him.

660
00:38:46,885 --> 00:38:49,765
Speaker 2: The good thing is he resists her temptation, but then

661
00:38:49,805 --> 00:38:53,205
Speaker 2: she accuses him of rape and he's sent to prison.

662
00:38:53,965 --> 00:38:56,645
Speaker 2: So here he is now sitting in a jail cell

663
00:38:56,725 --> 00:38:59,205
Speaker 2: for doing the right thing, not the wrong thing. He

664
00:38:59,205 --> 00:39:02,445
Speaker 2: could have given in to her temptation, but he did not.

665
00:39:03,045 --> 00:39:05,364
Speaker 2: He said, how can I do this thing and sin

666
00:39:05,765 --> 00:39:09,285
Speaker 2: against God? And he sat in that prison cell for

667
00:39:09,325 --> 00:39:10,445
Speaker 2: eleven years.

668
00:39:10,565 --> 00:39:11,445
Speaker 1: That's a long time.

669
00:39:11,885 --> 00:39:17,485
Speaker 2: Eleven years of injustice, eleven years of being forgotten, eleven

670
00:39:17,565 --> 00:39:21,805
Speaker 2: years of having done nothing wrong, in suffering everything wrong.

671
00:39:22,285 --> 00:39:26,205
Speaker 2: But Joseph did not turn against God. Joseph trusted God.

672
00:39:26,325 --> 00:39:32,165
Speaker 2: Joseph prayed, and Joseph waited and then literally overnight, literally overnight,

673
00:39:32,405 --> 00:39:35,165
Speaker 2: he went from a prison cell to the second most

674
00:39:35,165 --> 00:39:38,645
Speaker 2: powerful position on earth. So what happened is the pharaoh

675
00:39:38,685 --> 00:39:42,245
Speaker 2: has this dream. No one can interpret his dream. Well, Joseph,

676
00:39:42,325 --> 00:39:44,965
Speaker 2: by the grace of God, has amazing dreams that he

677
00:39:45,005 --> 00:39:48,125
Speaker 2: can interpret. So he summoned to the palace. Let me

678
00:39:48,165 --> 00:39:50,805
Speaker 2: explain to the people that work for the king were

679
00:39:50,845 --> 00:39:53,445
Speaker 2: sent to prison, and we're in the cell with Joseph.

680
00:39:53,685 --> 00:39:55,685
Speaker 2: And he said to them, if you ever get out

681
00:39:55,685 --> 00:39:58,685
Speaker 2: of here, don't forget your old buddy Joseph, because they

682
00:39:58,765 --> 00:40:01,965
Speaker 2: too had dreams that he interpreted. So now the pharaoh

683
00:40:02,205 --> 00:40:05,364
Speaker 2: has a dream that he can't figure out. And someone says,

684
00:40:05,485 --> 00:40:07,925
Speaker 2: does anyone know what this dream means? And the guy

685
00:40:08,165 --> 00:40:11,085
Speaker 2: who was in the prisons of what Joseph said, Hey,

686
00:40:11,325 --> 00:40:14,205
Speaker 2: your majesty, I remember this dude I met in a

687
00:40:14,205 --> 00:40:18,005
Speaker 2: prison cell and he can interpret dreams. And pharaoh said,

688
00:40:18,045 --> 00:40:20,765
Speaker 2: bring him up here. So enter Joseph. He probably had

689
00:40:20,845 --> 00:40:23,485
Speaker 2: long a long beard and long hair, and he was

690
00:40:23,525 --> 00:40:27,884
Speaker 2: all scruffy. So they clean him up. They shaved his hair,

691
00:40:28,045 --> 00:40:31,125
Speaker 2: they put on that little Egyptian eyeliner so he could

692
00:40:31,165 --> 00:40:34,565
Speaker 2: walk like an Egyptian. And he goes into the court pharaoh.

693
00:40:34,765 --> 00:40:37,005
Speaker 2: The pharaoh tells him his dream. Joseph says, yea, I

694
00:40:37,085 --> 00:40:40,045
Speaker 2: know what that dream means, because God gave him the interpretation.

695
00:40:40,765 --> 00:40:44,765
Speaker 2: And Joseph interpreted the dream of the pharaoh and was

696
00:40:44,885 --> 00:40:49,485
Speaker 2: made the second most powerful man in the entire nation. Okay,

697
00:40:49,565 --> 00:40:52,805
Speaker 2: let's put it all together. So good thing. He's favored

698
00:40:52,805 --> 00:40:55,925
Speaker 2: by his father. Bad thing, resented by his brothers and

699
00:40:56,005 --> 00:40:59,445
Speaker 2: sold into slavery. Good thing, hired by Potterphard to run

700
00:40:59,445 --> 00:41:00,085
Speaker 2: his estate.

701
00:41:01,685 --> 00:41:04,685
Speaker 1: Bad thing. Potiphar's wife is hitting on him.

702
00:41:04,765 --> 00:41:08,405
Speaker 2: Good thing. He resists her advance. This bad thing he

703
00:41:08,525 --> 00:41:12,525
Speaker 2: sent to prison for eleven years. Good Thing. In prison,

704
00:41:12,685 --> 00:41:15,285
Speaker 2: he meets someone that works of the Pharaoh. That gets

705
00:41:15,325 --> 00:41:18,365
Speaker 2: him into the Pharaoh's court and he interprets the dream

706
00:41:18,445 --> 00:41:21,364
Speaker 2: and now he is in a position of power. Now

707
00:41:21,405 --> 00:41:24,165
Speaker 2: let's see how this all comes together. This is the

708
00:41:24,205 --> 00:41:27,525
Speaker 2: best part of the story. So the brothers of Joseph

709
00:41:27,645 --> 00:41:31,085
Speaker 2: show up. This is years after they sold him into slavery.

710
00:41:31,325 --> 00:41:34,485
Speaker 2: For all they knew he was dead. And so they're

711
00:41:34,605 --> 00:41:38,965
Speaker 2: brought into this room and they're standing before their brother Joseph.

712
00:41:39,045 --> 00:41:42,645
Speaker 2: They didn't recognize him, and a femine had hit the

713
00:41:42,725 --> 00:41:46,405
Speaker 2: land because Joseph had predicted, I inspired by God, the

714
00:41:46,445 --> 00:41:49,485
Speaker 2: famine was coming to Egypt, and they had stored up

715
00:41:49,525 --> 00:41:52,725
Speaker 2: a grain supply to prepare for the lean years, and

716
00:41:52,805 --> 00:41:55,285
Speaker 2: he was in charge of running it. So here are

717
00:41:55,325 --> 00:41:58,285
Speaker 2: the brothers of Joseph in front of them. And this

718
00:41:58,325 --> 00:42:01,725
Speaker 2: could have been the ultimate payback move. This could have

719
00:42:01,765 --> 00:42:06,205
Speaker 2: been the greatest revenge movie you've ever seen. He could

720
00:42:06,245 --> 00:42:09,845
Speaker 2: have pulled off a full Liam Nissen moment, Remember the

721
00:42:09,885 --> 00:42:14,485
Speaker 2: movie Taken, and somebody kidnaps his daughter and he calls

722
00:42:14,565 --> 00:42:17,485
Speaker 2: him up and he says, I have a very particular

723
00:42:17,565 --> 00:42:21,365
Speaker 2: set of skills, skills I've acquired over a very long career,

724
00:42:21,765 --> 00:42:25,125
Speaker 2: skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. Yeah,

725
00:42:25,325 --> 00:42:27,685
Speaker 2: Joseph could have said that to his brothers had them

726
00:42:27,725 --> 00:42:30,245
Speaker 2: all put to death, but that's not what he did.

727
00:42:30,405 --> 00:42:33,605
Speaker 2: In fact, what he did illustrates Romans eight twenty eight

728
00:42:33,885 --> 00:42:37,325
Speaker 2: so perfectly. The first thing that happened is Joseph looked

729
00:42:37,365 --> 00:42:38,525
Speaker 2: at his brothers and he.

730
00:42:38,485 --> 00:42:41,205
Speaker 1: Began to weep. They're probably thinking, what on earth is

731
00:42:41,245 --> 00:42:41,565
Speaker 1: going on?

732
00:42:41,605 --> 00:42:43,605
Speaker 2: Who is this guy? Why is he crying? Does this

733
00:42:43,725 --> 00:42:47,645
Speaker 2: mean we're in trouble? Then he revealed himself. He said,

734
00:42:48,045 --> 00:42:53,165
Speaker 2: I am Joseph, whom you betray. Can you imagine that

735
00:42:53,845 --> 00:42:57,725
Speaker 2: I am Joseph. That must have reverberated I am Joseph something.

736
00:42:57,805 --> 00:43:00,245
Speaker 2: They thought, we are dead, dead, dead dead.

737
00:43:01,245 --> 00:43:02,245
Speaker 1: But here's what he said.

738
00:43:03,165 --> 00:43:07,125
Speaker 2: You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good,

739
00:43:07,685 --> 00:43:11,405
Speaker 2: to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of

740
00:43:11,565 --> 00:43:15,005
Speaker 2: many lives. There it is Romans eight twenty eight. You

741
00:43:15,085 --> 00:43:18,885
Speaker 2: meant to harmony. God intended it for good. Joseph lived

742
00:43:19,085 --> 00:43:22,725
Speaker 2: Romans eight twenty eight before it was written, because the

743
00:43:22,765 --> 00:43:25,245
Speaker 2: God of Romans eight twenty eight is the same God

744
00:43:25,285 --> 00:43:28,165
Speaker 2: who was with Joseph in the pit, in the slave market,

745
00:43:28,405 --> 00:43:31,285
Speaker 2: and pot of our house in the prison cell, and

746
00:43:31,325 --> 00:43:35,165
Speaker 2: then on the throne, and thousands, maybe even millions of

747
00:43:35,245 --> 00:43:40,165
Speaker 2: people lived because Joseph endured eleven years of suffering and

748
00:43:40,245 --> 00:43:43,404
Speaker 2: trusted God through all of it. So listen, I don't

749
00:43:43,405 --> 00:43:45,765
Speaker 2: know what you're going through right now, but your story

750
00:43:46,085 --> 00:43:49,645
Speaker 2: is not over. Whatever pict're in right now, God knows

751
00:43:49,685 --> 00:43:51,205
Speaker 2: where you are, and He has.

752
00:43:51,125 --> 00:43:52,765
Speaker 1: Not forgotten about you.

753
00:43:54,205 --> 00:43:56,765
Speaker 2: Now, let's pull the camera back and look at Romans

754
00:43:56,845 --> 00:43:59,485
Speaker 2: eight twenty eight, and then what follows. We know that

755
00:43:59,645 --> 00:44:02,685
Speaker 2: all things work together for good to those who love

756
00:44:02,765 --> 00:44:06,725
Speaker 2: God another called according to his purpose. Then verse twenty nine,

757
00:44:07,045 --> 00:44:10,205
Speaker 2: for whom he did for no, he also did predestined

758
00:44:10,245 --> 00:44:14,205
Speaker 2: to be conformed into the image of his own dear son.

759
00:44:14,845 --> 00:44:16,165
Speaker 1: So here's a big picture.

760
00:44:16,725 --> 00:44:19,885
Speaker 2: We think that whatever happens in life should always have

761
00:44:19,925 --> 00:44:23,405
Speaker 2: a tidy, little ending. All the loose ends are tied up,

762
00:44:23,445 --> 00:44:27,765
Speaker 2: everything works out and sometimes, honestly, things.

763
00:44:27,485 --> 00:44:28,325
Speaker 1: Do work that way.

764
00:44:28,405 --> 00:44:30,965
Speaker 2: There are things that maybe God said no to that

765
00:44:31,005 --> 00:44:33,405
Speaker 2: you prayed about early in life, and then later in

766
00:44:33,445 --> 00:44:35,605
Speaker 2: life you look back and you say, Lord, thank you

767
00:44:36,005 --> 00:44:39,365
Speaker 2: for not answering that prayer. In the affirmative, there was

768
00:44:39,405 --> 00:44:41,885
Speaker 2: a girl that I don't know if I fell in

769
00:44:41,885 --> 00:44:44,165
Speaker 2: love with her, but she was a very sweet Christian

770
00:44:44,205 --> 00:44:47,725
Speaker 2: girl and a very godly woman, and she had a

771
00:44:47,765 --> 00:44:50,605
Speaker 2: Volkswagen van and she let me borrow it. When I

772
00:44:50,685 --> 00:44:53,005
Speaker 2: was starting my ministry, I had this beat up old

773
00:44:53,085 --> 00:44:57,285
Speaker 2: corvet Corvette Corvert. That's the car that had the engine

774
00:44:57,325 --> 00:44:59,925
Speaker 2: in the back and was made out of aluminum foil.

775
00:45:00,205 --> 00:45:02,445
Speaker 1: Not literally, but it seemed like it. Anyway.

776
00:45:02,965 --> 00:45:06,285
Speaker 2: This Corvet was always breaking down as a driving from

777
00:45:06,485 --> 00:45:10,045
Speaker 2: Orange County to Riverside, where our church was beginning, And

778
00:45:10,525 --> 00:45:13,525
Speaker 2: so I asked this girl, could I borrow your van?

779
00:45:13,565 --> 00:45:14,885
Speaker 2: And she let me borrow it, and I thought the

780
00:45:14,925 --> 00:45:17,725
Speaker 2: school's amazing. So one day I said, Hey, would you

781
00:45:17,765 --> 00:45:20,085
Speaker 2: like to go out to dinner with me? Sometimes she

782
00:45:20,245 --> 00:45:23,565
Speaker 2: said no, Oh, well maybe some other thing we can

783
00:45:23,645 --> 00:45:24,085
Speaker 2: do together.

784
00:45:24,245 --> 00:45:24,325
Speaker 1: No.

785
00:45:24,725 --> 00:45:27,685
Speaker 2: Wow, So she wasn't interested in me at all. And

786
00:45:27,725 --> 00:45:30,805
Speaker 2: then I had the audacity to say, can I still

787
00:45:30,845 --> 00:45:33,525
Speaker 2: borrow your van. She said, yes, what an amazing girl.

788
00:45:33,805 --> 00:45:35,565
Speaker 2: So I borrowed her van a few more times. And

789
00:45:35,605 --> 00:45:38,605
Speaker 2: here's the point I'm making. If I thought that was

790
00:45:38,645 --> 00:45:40,805
Speaker 2: a girl I was supposed to end up marrying, God

791
00:45:40,845 --> 00:45:43,445
Speaker 2: said no to that. But that's because he had the

792
00:45:43,485 --> 00:45:46,245
Speaker 2: girl picked out for me that was going to marry

793
00:45:46,245 --> 00:45:47,445
Speaker 2: me named Kathy.

794
00:45:47,565 --> 00:45:47,925
Speaker 1: See.

795
00:45:48,045 --> 00:45:51,725
Speaker 2: So sometimes God says no, he closes a door, but

796
00:45:51,805 --> 00:45:53,885
Speaker 2: he's going to open another. Okay, let's come back to

797
00:45:54,005 --> 00:45:57,605
Speaker 2: Romans eight twenty nine. The big picture of your life

798
00:45:57,885 --> 00:46:01,325
Speaker 2: is that you become more like Jesus. Heaven is a

799
00:46:01,405 --> 00:46:06,325
Speaker 2: prepared place for prepared people. Remember, Jesus says, I go

800
00:46:06,525 --> 00:46:09,045
Speaker 2: to prepare a place for you.

801
00:46:09,165 --> 00:46:09,565
Speaker 1: Okay.

802
00:46:10,005 --> 00:46:12,405
Speaker 2: Romans eight twenty eight. God causes all things that work

803
00:46:12,445 --> 00:46:14,725
Speaker 2: together for good to those who love God. Now they

804
00:46:14,805 --> 00:46:17,445
Speaker 2: called according to us purpose for whom He for you.

805
00:46:17,925 --> 00:46:21,565
Speaker 2: He also did protestint to be conformed into the image

806
00:46:21,605 --> 00:46:21,964
Speaker 2: of his.

807
00:46:21,965 --> 00:46:24,485
Speaker 1: Own dear son. Here's the ont in lying.

808
00:46:24,965 --> 00:46:28,845
Speaker 2: God's endgame for you and his endgame for me is

809
00:46:28,885 --> 00:46:32,205
Speaker 2: to make us more like Jesus, to be conformed into

810
00:46:32,245 --> 00:46:35,605
Speaker 2: the image of his own dear son again, to prepare

811
00:46:35,685 --> 00:46:39,685
Speaker 2: us for heaven. So there are things that happen to

812
00:46:39,845 --> 00:46:44,605
Speaker 2: us in life that are inexplicable, things that never make sense.

813
00:46:44,645 --> 00:46:46,925
Speaker 2: But I believe one day, when we get to heaven,

814
00:46:47,245 --> 00:46:50,365
Speaker 2: all of those questions will be answered and we'll see

815
00:46:50,725 --> 00:46:53,445
Speaker 2: God's ultimate plan. But I do also think there are

816
00:46:53,605 --> 00:46:56,405
Speaker 2: things in your life that are bad at the moment

817
00:46:56,645 --> 00:47:00,005
Speaker 2: that will in time become good. And I also think

818
00:47:00,045 --> 00:47:02,645
Speaker 2: there are things that are bad that will always be bad.

819
00:47:02,685 --> 00:47:07,445
Speaker 2: But despite those really bad things, God will bring about good.

820
00:47:07,565 --> 00:47:10,605
Speaker 2: Here's the bottom line. God's aware of what you're going through.

821
00:47:11,125 --> 00:47:14,125
Speaker 2: God's in control of your life. Listen to this. The

822
00:47:14,205 --> 00:47:18,245
Speaker 2: word oops is not in God's vocabulary. Let me close

823
00:47:18,485 --> 00:47:22,325
Speaker 2: with this thought. These beautiful promises we've been talking about

824
00:47:22,365 --> 00:47:25,765
Speaker 2: together are only for the child of God. If you're

825
00:47:25,805 --> 00:47:28,364
Speaker 2: not a believer in Jesus Christ. In other words, if

826
00:47:28,365 --> 00:47:31,045
Speaker 2: you haven't asked God to forgive you of your sin,

827
00:47:31,125 --> 00:47:33,844
Speaker 2: and if you've not put your faith in Christ, you

828
00:47:33,885 --> 00:47:37,445
Speaker 2: cannot say, oh, well, this will work together for good, because.

829
00:47:37,445 --> 00:47:39,365
Speaker 1: Good chance it won't at all.

830
00:47:39,845 --> 00:47:42,685
Speaker 2: God is not directing your life because you have not

831
00:47:43,085 --> 00:47:45,925
Speaker 2: asked him to, but he wants to you. See, God

832
00:47:46,405 --> 00:47:50,005
Speaker 2: loves you and as a plan for your life, and

833
00:47:50,085 --> 00:47:52,725
Speaker 2: he wants to show you that plan when you ask

834
00:47:52,805 --> 00:47:54,965
Speaker 2: him to come into your life. And I want to

835
00:47:55,005 --> 00:47:58,125
Speaker 2: ask you, have you done that yet? Have you prayed

836
00:47:58,205 --> 00:48:01,245
Speaker 2: and asked Jesus Christ to come into your life to

837
00:48:01,285 --> 00:48:04,884
Speaker 2: be your savior and Lord. If not, you should do

838
00:48:04,925 --> 00:48:09,045
Speaker 2: that so you can enter into this relationship with God.

839
00:48:09,765 --> 00:48:12,325
Speaker 2: So you can go through life not alone, but with

840
00:48:12,405 --> 00:48:15,925
Speaker 2: the Lord working in you and through you and guiding you,

841
00:48:15,965 --> 00:48:18,805
Speaker 2: and best of all, knowing that when this life ends,

842
00:48:18,805 --> 00:48:22,125
Speaker 2: and yes it will end, will go immediately into the

843
00:48:22,165 --> 00:48:25,605
Speaker 2: presence of God because we put our faith in Christ.

844
00:48:25,725 --> 00:48:31,525
Speaker 2: That's the ultimate good that comes in life, because we've

845
00:48:31,565 --> 00:48:35,325
Speaker 2: put our faith in Him and we're ready to meet Him. So,

846
00:48:35,405 --> 00:48:38,245
Speaker 2: if you've never actually asked Christ to come into your life,

847
00:48:38,365 --> 00:48:42,285
Speaker 2: I'd like to close this podcast with a prayer, a

848
00:48:42,365 --> 00:48:45,245
Speaker 2: prayer that you can pray after me, A prayer that

849
00:48:45,285 --> 00:48:48,485
Speaker 2: we sometimes call the sinner's prayer, which is just an

850
00:48:48,565 --> 00:48:52,165
Speaker 2: admission of our sinfulness and our need of Jesus that

851
00:48:52,245 --> 00:48:54,325
Speaker 2: I've led people in all around the world.

852
00:48:55,125 --> 00:48:55,565
Speaker 1: Ayer.

853
00:48:55,605 --> 00:48:58,525
Speaker 2: There's no magic in this prayer, but what the prayer

854
00:48:58,565 --> 00:49:02,405
Speaker 2: is saying can bring about the greatest change imaginable because

855
00:49:02,445 --> 00:49:05,325
Speaker 2: the Bible says whoever will call upon the name of

856
00:49:05,325 --> 00:49:07,085
Speaker 2: Life the Lord will be saved.

857
00:49:07,325 --> 00:49:07,845
Speaker 1: So listen.

858
00:49:07,845 --> 00:49:10,645
Speaker 2: If you want your sin forgiven, if you want to

859
00:49:10,685 --> 00:49:13,045
Speaker 2: know you'll go to heaven when you die, if you

860
00:49:13,045 --> 00:49:16,325
Speaker 2: want to enter into this relationship with God and start

861
00:49:16,365 --> 00:49:20,165
Speaker 2: discovering his plan for your life, just pray this prayer

862
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Speaker 2: with me. You could pray it out loud if you like,

863
00:49:23,525 --> 00:49:27,085
Speaker 2: but pray this prayer. Pray, Lord Jesus. I know I

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00:49:27,165 --> 00:49:30,765
Speaker 2: am a sinner, but I know that you're this savior

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00:49:31,485 --> 00:49:34,884
Speaker 2: who died on the cross for my sin and rose

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00:49:34,925 --> 00:49:39,285
Speaker 2: again from the dead. I repent of my sin, and

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00:49:39,365 --> 00:49:43,685
Speaker 2: I choose to follow you from this moment forward. Thank

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00:49:43,725 --> 00:49:48,565
Speaker 2: you for hearing this prayer and answering this prayer. In Jesus' name,

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00:49:48,685 --> 00:49:53,325
Speaker 2: I pray, Amen. If you just pray that prayer minute,

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Speaker 2: I want you to know, in the authority of Scripture,

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00:49:56,325 --> 00:49:59,045
Speaker 2: God has heard that prayer. The Bible says, whoever will

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00:49:59,125 --> 00:50:01,365
Speaker 2: call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.

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00:50:02,205 --> 00:50:07,605
Speaker 2: Save from your sin, save from future. You just prayed

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00:50:07,645 --> 00:50:11,005
Speaker 2: that prayer. Christ turned it, and He's coming to your life.

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00:50:11,205 --> 00:50:13,285
Speaker 2: I have something I'd like to send you at no charge.

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00:50:13,285 --> 00:50:16,525
Speaker 2: It's called the New Believer's Bible. This is a special

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00:50:16,685 --> 00:50:19,285
Speaker 2: edition of the New Testament and what is called the

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00:50:19,365 --> 00:50:23,885
Speaker 2: New Living Translation, which means it's just very understandable, and

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00:50:23,965 --> 00:50:27,125
Speaker 2: it has thousands of notes that I wrote that will

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00:50:27,245 --> 00:50:31,005
Speaker 2: encourage you in this commitment you've just made to follow Christ.

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00:50:31,045 --> 00:50:35,485
Speaker 2: I will send you the New Believer's Bible, New Testament

882
00:50:35,685 --> 00:50:39,085
Speaker 2: Edition and no charge to help you get started on

883
00:50:39,165 --> 00:50:42,245
Speaker 2: the right foot. Get your copy of the New Believer's Bible,

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00:50:42,685 --> 00:50:45,205
Speaker 2: and God bless you. You've made the right decision. And

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00:50:45,285 --> 00:50:49,205
Speaker 2: remember God is in control of your life and whatever

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00:50:49,245 --> 00:50:52,005
Speaker 2: you're going through, He's going to get you through it

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00:50:52,445 --> 00:50:56,165
Speaker 2: and you're going to see ultimate good, so keep trusting him.

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Speaker 1: God bless you.