WEBVTT - Staying Filled in the Spirit – Part 1 0:00:00.880 --> 0:00:03.360 Today on Bold steps, Mark Jobe shows us how to 0:00:03.400 --> 0:00:05.200 stay spiritually charged. 0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:09.160 Well, God is telling us is examine yourself. You need 0:00:09.160 --> 0:00:10.760 to make sure that if you're going to be filled 0:00:10.760 --> 0:00:12.959 with the spirit and walk in the spirit, you don't 0:00:12.960 --> 0:00:15.840 have anything in your life that's going to sabotage your 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:19.720 walk in God. So examine. Make sure you leave behind 0:00:19.720 --> 0:00:22.320 stuff that shouldn't be there or you will not walk 0:00:22.320 --> 0:00:23.280 in the spirit. 0:00:36.040 --> 0:00:39.479 Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Mark is president 0:00:39.479 --> 0:00:41.920 of Moody Bible Institute and the senior pastor of New 0:00:41.920 --> 0:00:45.040 Life Community Church in Chicago. And Mark, here's an out 0:00:45.080 --> 0:00:47.159 of the blue question for you. Have you ever forgotten 0:00:47.159 --> 0:00:49.239 to charge your phone overnight? 0:00:51.120 --> 0:00:53.760 And there's panic the next day, believe me. 0:00:53.800 --> 0:00:55.240 Can I make it on 2%? 0:00:55.480 --> 0:00:58.560 Not as panicky as my kids get, but there is 0:00:58.560 --> 0:00:59.680 panic in my. 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:02.440 We depend on them, don't we? But there's an analogy 0:01:02.440 --> 0:01:04.640 to being charged with the Holy Spirit, too, isn't there? 0:01:04.680 --> 0:01:08.520 There is. And I believe it was D.L. Moody that, um, 0:01:08.560 --> 0:01:10.960 was approached by a woman who said, well, why do 0:01:10.959 --> 0:01:13.679 we have to be filled over and over with the spirit? 0:01:13.680 --> 0:01:19.360 And I think in his iconic, good, gritty, D.L. Moody way, 0:01:19.360 --> 0:01:23.440 he said, lady, because I leak. And, uh, that's a 0:01:23.480 --> 0:01:27.440 bit of the idea there, is that it's not a 0:01:27.440 --> 0:01:30.039 one time filling that lasts the rest of our life. 0:01:30.040 --> 0:01:33.759 In fact, it's not really a suggestion in this scripture. 0:01:33.760 --> 0:01:37.920 It's a command. Keep being filled with the spirit over 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:38.679 and over and over. 0:01:38.720 --> 0:01:42.080 We are in Ephesians chapter five, continuing our series. When 0:01:42.080 --> 0:01:46.280 you believe Everything Changes. Here's Mark Jobe with today's bold steps. 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:52.800 Have you ever been in a crowded party? Or at 0:01:52.800 --> 0:01:57.520 a place where you get a cup and you fill 0:01:57.520 --> 0:02:00.560 it up and you try to make your way across 0:02:00.560 --> 0:02:04.610 the room. But people are dancing, moving. It's crowded. So 0:02:04.610 --> 0:02:06.730 you make your way across the room. They're bumping you 0:02:06.730 --> 0:02:10.170 and hitting you and spilling and knocking you. And you say, 0:02:10.169 --> 0:02:12.770 watch it and you make your way across. Someone hits 0:02:12.770 --> 0:02:14.930 you and spills a little bit. Someone bumps you and 0:02:14.930 --> 0:02:17.530 spills a little bit more, and you're just trying with 0:02:17.530 --> 0:02:20.329 all your might to keep from spilling what you have. 0:02:20.370 --> 0:02:22.330 But by the time you get to the other side 0:02:22.330 --> 0:02:24.650 of the room, there's been so many people that have 0:02:24.690 --> 0:02:27.290 bumped you and hit you that you're wearing it on you. 0:02:27.330 --> 0:02:30.609 You've you spilled it. And and your glass, when you 0:02:30.610 --> 0:02:33.370 reach the other side of the room is half empty. 0:02:33.889 --> 0:02:37.410 You started full on that side of the room. But 0:02:37.410 --> 0:02:39.450 by the time you reach this side of the room, 0:02:39.450 --> 0:02:45.369 it's half empty because you've been bumped so many times. Well, 0:02:45.370 --> 0:02:48.810 that's the way it is. Oftentimes in our spiritual walk 0:02:48.810 --> 0:02:53.210 with God on Sunday morning, many of you look at 0:02:53.210 --> 0:02:58.169 this time, you get a real fuel up experience. You 0:02:58.169 --> 0:03:01.489 get all filled up with the spirit and worship in 0:03:01.490 --> 0:03:04.650 the word and praise. And so you walk out of 0:03:04.650 --> 0:03:07.649 this place. Your cup is full. Some of you are 0:03:07.650 --> 0:03:11.850 practically levitating out of this place, walking in the spirit. 0:03:11.850 --> 0:03:15.490 God has touched you. Good things are happening. You go home, 0:03:15.490 --> 0:03:17.889 there's a smile on your face, you go to sleep 0:03:17.889 --> 0:03:21.770 and there's a big sense of, hey, God spoke to me. 0:03:21.930 --> 0:03:28.609 It's great. And then Monday morning comes. And you get 0:03:28.610 --> 0:03:31.690 up and you're a little late. You have one cup 0:03:31.690 --> 0:03:34.930 of coffee and you still feel tired. You pour that 0:03:34.930 --> 0:03:37.930 second cup of coffee, and someone's trying to get in 0:03:37.930 --> 0:03:40.250 the bathroom at the same time that you're trying to 0:03:40.290 --> 0:03:42.650 get in and someone's taking too long. And if you 0:03:42.650 --> 0:03:45.450 have kids, then they're running around trying to get their 0:03:45.450 --> 0:03:48.690 things together, and then they forget their notebook from their backpack. 0:03:48.970 --> 0:03:51.450 And then one of them says, oh, I forgot, I 0:03:51.450 --> 0:03:54.210 have homework that I forgot to do last night. You 0:03:54.210 --> 0:03:57.930 have what? And you're running around trying to get them ready, 0:03:57.930 --> 0:04:02.140 and it's just harried and fast paced, and then finally 0:04:02.140 --> 0:04:04.540 you get in your car to go to work and 0:04:04.540 --> 0:04:07.100 you're running a little bit late, get on the expressway, 0:04:07.100 --> 0:04:10.660 there's traffic and you're trying to go downtown and people 0:04:10.660 --> 0:04:12.980 are cutting you off, and it seems like everybody's in 0:04:12.980 --> 0:04:16.620 a nasty attitude. And and by the time that you 0:04:16.620 --> 0:04:19.100 get to your job a little bit late and get 0:04:19.100 --> 0:04:21.420 into work, then there's a whole bunch of work in 0:04:21.420 --> 0:04:25.500 front of you and there's bad attitudes and nasty responses. 0:04:25.500 --> 0:04:28.700 And this was due yesterday. How come it's not done 0:04:28.980 --> 0:04:36.180 by the time Monday afternoon arrives, you're on empty. On 0:04:36.180 --> 0:04:41.700 Sunday you were on full. By Monday afternoon, you're already 0:04:41.740 --> 0:04:47.500 on empty. Wishing that you could recapture that sense of 0:04:47.500 --> 0:04:51.220 fullness that you had on Sunday. And then some of you, 0:04:51.220 --> 0:04:55.620 by the time that the next Sunday rolls around, you're 0:04:55.620 --> 0:04:58.820 so empty, you're like dragging yourself into your pastor. I've 0:04:58.820 --> 0:05:01.779 had a real rough week. Let me get filled up again. 0:05:04.820 --> 0:05:08.500 And what the Apostle Paul is teaching us is that 0:05:08.500 --> 0:05:12.100 it doesn't have to be that way. We need to 0:05:12.100 --> 0:05:16.740 learn to stay full of the spirit, even though we're 0:05:16.740 --> 0:05:21.820 going to be bumped and knocked by life. So today 0:05:21.820 --> 0:05:23.420 I'm going to talk to you about how to stay 0:05:23.420 --> 0:05:27.979 full of God even when you're at your job or 0:05:28.020 --> 0:05:31.260 stay full of God, so that by Friday you're still 0:05:31.740 --> 0:05:34.940 full of God. So that's what the Apostle Paul is 0:05:34.940 --> 0:05:40.740 talking to us about. Let's begin reading in Ephesians chapter five. 0:05:41.460 --> 0:05:43.740 For those of you that are new with your Bibles, 0:05:44.260 --> 0:05:46.420 you can always look at the front of your Bibles. 0:05:46.420 --> 0:05:50.500 There's an index there. Ephesians is in the New Testament, 0:05:51.180 --> 0:05:54.300 and it was written by the Apostle Paul. And we're 0:05:54.300 --> 0:06:00.180 in chapter five beginning with verse 15. He says, be careful, then, 0:06:00.550 --> 0:06:07.190 how you live. Not as unwise but as wise, making 0:06:07.190 --> 0:06:12.310 the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 0:06:13.110 --> 0:06:18.270 Verse 17 therefore do not be foolish, but understand what 0:06:18.270 --> 0:06:21.909 the will of God is. Do not get drunk with wine, 0:06:21.910 --> 0:06:28.390 which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the spirit. 0:06:28.990 --> 0:06:31.950 Speak to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. 0:06:31.950 --> 0:06:34.190 Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 0:06:34.190 --> 0:06:38.190 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in 0:06:38.190 --> 0:06:42.710 the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Just a few verses, 0:06:42.710 --> 0:06:47.029 but very powerful verses. If you're taking notes today, I'm 0:06:47.029 --> 0:06:48.589 going to talk to you about how to stay full 0:06:48.589 --> 0:06:51.670 with the spirit. Number one, write this down. Staying filled 0:06:51.670 --> 0:06:55.029 with the spirit means that I examine. First of all, 0:06:55.029 --> 0:06:58.910 I examine the way I live. He says, be very 0:06:58.910 --> 0:07:04.110 careful then, how you live? I think it was the 0:07:04.350 --> 0:07:11.190 philosopher Plato that said the unexamined life is not worth living. 0:07:12.510 --> 0:07:14.430 How many of you know that? Sometimes we have to 0:07:14.470 --> 0:07:18.830 pause and examine how we're living? We need to stop 0:07:18.830 --> 0:07:21.510 and ask ourselves, now, how am I doing? How am 0:07:21.510 --> 0:07:24.550 I living? He says, be careful then, how you live. 0:07:24.590 --> 0:07:28.750 In other words, watch how you live. Take an inventory 0:07:28.750 --> 0:07:34.590 of how you're living. Examine your lifestyle. Be careful about 0:07:35.390 --> 0:07:38.870 the way that you're going, about your relationships and your 0:07:38.870 --> 0:07:42.830 job and your education and your thinking and your attitude, 0:07:42.830 --> 0:07:46.070 he says. Be careful, then, how you live. In other words, 0:07:46.070 --> 0:07:50.270 take a close look at how you're living. And then 0:07:50.270 --> 0:07:53.790 he tells us exactly what to take a close look at. Why? 0:07:53.830 --> 0:07:57.630 Because when we're filled with something, if we're not careful, 0:07:57.630 --> 0:07:59.950 it's going to spill out of us. It's going to 0:07:59.950 --> 0:08:01.800 fall out of us. So we got to be careful 0:08:01.840 --> 0:08:04.000 how we live. If we want to stay full of 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:06.880 the spirit, then we have to be careful how we live. 0:08:07.000 --> 0:08:09.120 And he tells us three areas that we need to 0:08:09.120 --> 0:08:14.080 watch carefully. He says be careful how you live, not 0:08:14.080 --> 0:08:18.120 as unwise but as wise. Secondly, making the most of 0:08:18.120 --> 0:08:22.120 every opportunity because the days are evil. And thirdly, do 0:08:22.120 --> 0:08:25.080 not be foolish, but understand what the will of the 0:08:25.080 --> 0:08:29.200 Lord is. The image that comes to my mind as 0:08:29.200 --> 0:08:32.280 he says, be careful how you live. It's almost the 0:08:32.280 --> 0:08:38.720 image of, well, going to an airport, O'Hare airport and traveling. 0:08:39.240 --> 0:08:46.640 You have to go through the security process, the metal detectors. Unfortunately, 0:08:46.640 --> 0:08:50.000 I travel quite a bit with speaking engagements and missions 0:08:50.000 --> 0:08:53.480 opportunities and so forth, and every time I fly out 0:08:53.520 --> 0:08:59.760 of O'Hare airport, it's always the same routine, right? Once 0:08:59.760 --> 0:09:03.600 you wait in a long line to get through the 0:09:03.600 --> 0:09:08.120 airport security, you arrive to the to the, uh, to 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:12.080 the metal detectors, and you have to take off your shoes, 0:09:12.840 --> 0:09:17.320 take off your belt, take out your wallet, empty all 0:09:17.320 --> 0:09:22.400 your change. Take off your watch. Take off. Uh, anything 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:24.640 else that's in your pocket? Get ready. Get put your 0:09:24.640 --> 0:09:28.760 cell phone down there and once and take off your jacket. 0:09:28.760 --> 0:09:31.600 And then you walk through the detector and invariably it 0:09:31.640 --> 0:09:34.920 rings and you say, now what? Oh, I forgot a 0:09:34.920 --> 0:09:38.480 dime in this pocket here. And and while you're going 0:09:38.480 --> 0:09:41.560 through the detector, of course, you just left your wallet 0:09:41.559 --> 0:09:44.480 back there. People are pushing you forward, and you're watching 0:09:44.480 --> 0:09:46.719 the guy behind you, making sure he's not taking your 0:09:46.720 --> 0:09:48.960 cell phone or your wallet. And so you're walking through 0:09:48.960 --> 0:09:51.920 the security scanning. Now, why do they do all of that? Well, 0:09:51.920 --> 0:09:54.840 they do it for a purpose because they don't want 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:59.920 you to take anything you shouldn't be taking on your journey. 0:10:02.050 --> 0:10:04.450 They want you to. They want to examine you to 0:10:04.450 --> 0:10:08.370 make sure you're not taking anything extra on the airplane. 0:10:08.370 --> 0:10:15.330 And I'm grateful they are doing that. And by the way, 0:10:15.330 --> 0:10:19.849 I would simply say that sometimes you think you're a 0:10:19.850 --> 0:10:24.490 little more safe than what you really are. I had 0:10:24.490 --> 0:10:27.770 an experience a little while back where we were in. 0:10:28.010 --> 0:10:32.490 We were in Spain, and my son, who was probably 0:10:32.530 --> 0:10:36.689 9 or 10 at the time, he really wanted to 0:10:36.730 --> 0:10:40.010 buy a decorative knife. 0:10:40.050 --> 0:10:40.850 Had kind of this. 0:10:40.850 --> 0:10:45.890 Spanish logo in. So I said, okay, you can buy 0:10:45.890 --> 0:10:49.130 it as a decoration piece. You can put like with 0:10:49.130 --> 0:10:51.450 a little sword or something there it's going to be. 0:10:51.890 --> 0:10:56.570 But remember, son, you cannot take this on the airplane. 0:10:57.929 --> 0:10:59.210 And so he lost it. 0:11:01.130 --> 0:11:01.730 And he was. 0:11:01.730 --> 0:11:04.450 All upset about it, I lost it, I can't find it. 0:11:04.450 --> 0:11:07.650 So we went through security checkpoint. We got on the 0:11:07.650 --> 0:11:12.130 airplane in Spain. We're flying from Spain to Heathrow. And 0:11:12.130 --> 0:11:17.810 he looks at me all excited with a smile on 0:11:17.809 --> 0:11:21.570 his face, and he says, guess what, dad, I found it. 0:11:24.370 --> 0:11:30.690 And I'm like, son, put that away fast. But. I'm like, 0:11:30.690 --> 0:11:36.290 how did that get through a four inch knife blade? 0:11:36.290 --> 0:11:38.730 So we got to Heathrow Airport and they had just 0:11:38.730 --> 0:11:42.210 had a terrorist attack in Heathrow Airport. And so they're 0:11:42.250 --> 0:11:46.850 on high, high red alert. We get to Heathrow Airport 0:11:46.850 --> 0:11:48.850 and to go into the airport, we have to go 0:11:48.850 --> 0:11:53.209 through another security checkpoint. And he says, dad, what should 0:11:53.210 --> 0:11:54.890 I do? I said, just leave it there. We'll be 0:11:54.929 --> 0:11:56.530 we'll just tell them the truth. If they find it, 0:11:56.570 --> 0:11:59.450 we'll tell them accidentally we got there. So we're going 0:11:59.450 --> 0:12:03.300 through security checkpoint. He takes it on high security alert. 0:12:03.300 --> 0:12:05.580 He takes his backpack, gets ready to put it through. 0:12:05.620 --> 0:12:07.900 I'm like, okay, I'm ready for the alarm to go off. 0:12:07.900 --> 0:12:12.020 I'm ready for them to pull us aside. Nothing. He 0:12:12.020 --> 0:12:17.020 gets right through a high security checkpoint into Heathrow Airport, 0:12:17.059 --> 0:12:21.740 two weeks after a major bomb had exploded in the 0:12:21.740 --> 0:12:30.459 subway station of Victoria station. I was shocked. So finally there, 0:12:30.460 --> 0:12:32.540 I said, I'm not going to go through another scanner. 0:12:33.220 --> 0:12:35.100 I took his knife. I went to the lady and 0:12:35.100 --> 0:12:41.180 I said, you know my son. Accidentally brought this knife. 0:12:41.179 --> 0:12:43.699 She was real nice and smiled. Oh, thank you sir. 0:12:43.980 --> 0:12:47.020 And then she called security. And within moments I had 0:12:47.020 --> 0:12:50.260 guys with machine guns on me and they were like, 0:12:50.300 --> 0:12:53.740 treating us as a terrorist. But, you know, thankfully we 0:12:53.780 --> 0:12:57.860 made it through that. But the reason you have scanners 0:12:57.860 --> 0:13:01.060 and the reason that's there is so that you can't 0:13:01.100 --> 0:13:05.660 take something you shouldn't on the journey that you're on. Well, 0:13:05.700 --> 0:13:08.340 God is telling us is examine yourself. 0:13:14.660 --> 0:13:17.020 This is bold steps. You're listening to Mark Jobe, and 0:13:17.020 --> 0:13:18.980 we will get back into the second half of today's 0:13:18.980 --> 0:13:22.220 message in just a moment. Mark, you've been talking today 0:13:22.220 --> 0:13:24.940 about getting the daily recharge from the Holy Spirit. One 0:13:24.940 --> 0:13:27.020 of the ways we can do that, maybe not daily, 0:13:27.020 --> 0:13:29.100 maybe on a weekly basis, is the bold step or 0:13:29.100 --> 0:13:31.700 weekly that we put out from your office every Monday morning. 0:13:32.059 --> 0:13:34.060 Yeah, it's a little bit of a booster at the 0:13:34.059 --> 0:13:36.780 beginning of the week just to remind us. I don't 0:13:36.780 --> 0:13:40.340 know about you, Wayne, but I need regular reminders. 0:13:40.380 --> 0:13:41.500 Especially on Monday morning. 0:13:41.540 --> 0:13:45.420 Especially on Monday morning. And so The Bold Stepper Weekly 0:13:45.420 --> 0:13:48.340 is that if you haven't signed up, we've just have 0:13:48.380 --> 0:13:51.100 tons of people that are signing up. And this number 0:13:51.100 --> 0:13:54.380 is growing week over week. So we would encourage you. 0:13:54.380 --> 0:13:58.380 It's free, it's weekly and I think it will encourage 0:13:58.380 --> 0:13:58.900 your heart. 0:13:59.100 --> 0:14:01.270 So to sign up for The Bold Stripper weekly. Just 0:14:01.270 --> 0:14:04.949 visit Bold steps.org. There, you can also check out all 0:14:04.990 --> 0:14:08.030 of Mark's previous weekly devotionals, and you can even request 0:14:08.030 --> 0:14:11.070 a copy of this month's special Bold Step gift, which 0:14:11.070 --> 0:14:13.830 I'll tell you more about later in the program. But 0:14:13.830 --> 0:14:15.870 right now, let's get back into the second half. Mark 0:14:15.910 --> 0:14:19.310 titled this message Staying Filled with the spirit. 0:14:25.270 --> 0:14:26.870 You need to make sure that if you're going to 0:14:26.870 --> 0:14:28.990 be filled with the spirit and walk in the spirit, 0:14:28.990 --> 0:14:31.150 you don't have anything in your life that's going to 0:14:31.190 --> 0:14:35.310 sabotage your walk in God. So examine. Make sure you 0:14:35.310 --> 0:14:38.070 leave behind stuff that shouldn't be there or you will 0:14:38.070 --> 0:14:41.470 not walk in the spirit. Stuff like what? Well, stuff 0:14:41.470 --> 0:14:46.070 like being unwise. Sometimes we live our lives and we're 0:14:46.110 --> 0:14:49.710 unwise with how we make bad choices. Do you know 0:14:49.710 --> 0:14:53.230 the amount of people that I've been a pastor for 0:14:53.230 --> 0:14:56.350 a long time? Counseled a lot of people. The amount 0:14:56.350 --> 0:15:04.560 of people that make dumb choices. over and over. And 0:15:04.560 --> 0:15:06.720 then when they're in a really bad choice and a 0:15:06.720 --> 0:15:10.080 bad mess, they look to the heavens and they say, God, 0:15:10.080 --> 0:15:13.560 why have you done this to me? And I want 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:16.880 to say, hey, God had nothing to do with this. 0:15:16.920 --> 0:15:20.160 You made your own choices, dug your own hole. Don't 0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:23.120 blame it on God. He's been trying to warn you 0:15:23.120 --> 0:15:30.440 about it all the time. Now, thank God he's a 0:15:30.480 --> 0:15:32.880 God of second chances and a God that digs us 0:15:32.880 --> 0:15:35.040 out of our own holes. And a God that puts ladders. 0:15:35.040 --> 0:15:37.520 Once we've made our own messes, and a God that 0:15:37.520 --> 0:15:39.600 really helps us out. But most of the problems that 0:15:39.600 --> 0:15:42.600 we face in life are problems of our own making. 0:15:42.880 --> 0:15:46.400 So he says, be wise, not unwise. Secondly, make the 0:15:46.400 --> 0:15:50.440 most of every opportunity because the days are evil. Listen, 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:51.920 we live in a time. If you're going to be 0:15:51.920 --> 0:15:54.760 filled with the spirit, you have to make wise choices, 0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:57.360 make the most of the opportunities God is going to 0:15:57.400 --> 0:16:00.760 open doors and those doors are going to close. You 0:16:00.760 --> 0:16:03.040 need to be ready to walk through the doors that 0:16:03.040 --> 0:16:05.640 God opened, because you may not have another chance to 0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:10.320 walk through those doors. Many of us miss the opportunities 0:16:10.320 --> 0:16:13.600 that God has given to us, because we're not wise 0:16:13.600 --> 0:16:17.200 enough to see those opportunities. Listen to me, high school students, 0:16:17.200 --> 0:16:20.400 you have an opportunity to finish high school. Finish it. 0:16:21.680 --> 0:16:24.000 I don't know. I'm not learning anything important. You know, 0:16:24.040 --> 0:16:26.280 I think I'm going to go work at a 7-Eleven. Listen, 0:16:26.280 --> 0:16:28.440 nothing bad about a 7-Eleven, but listen, if you have 0:16:28.440 --> 0:16:31.840 an opportunity to finish high school, finish it. Follow through. 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:34.640 You got an opportunity to go to college, go to college, 0:16:34.640 --> 0:16:37.280 follow through. Some of your parents are saying, I wish 0:16:37.280 --> 0:16:39.440 I would have had the opportunities that you had at 0:16:39.440 --> 0:16:43.360 this time. There are opportunities that close and open in 0:16:43.360 --> 0:16:46.040 front of us. There are opportunities to do good that 0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:48.720 open and close in front of us. There are opportunities 0:16:48.720 --> 0:16:51.560 to make choices that open and close in front of us. 0:16:51.560 --> 0:16:55.600 We live in some days. It says the days are evil. 0:16:55.640 --> 0:16:59.840 There are windows of opportunity, and so make sure that 0:16:59.840 --> 0:17:02.520 if you're walking in the spirit, you make the most 0:17:02.520 --> 0:17:05.240 of the opportunities that are in front of you, and 0:17:05.240 --> 0:17:09.040 you don't squander your life by missing all the open 0:17:09.040 --> 0:17:14.080 doors that God's trying to give you. And then lastly, thirdly, 0:17:14.080 --> 0:17:16.600 he says, therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what 0:17:16.600 --> 0:17:20.720 the will of the Lord is. Don't be foolish. Start 0:17:20.720 --> 0:17:24.320 asking God, what is your will? I want to understand 0:17:24.320 --> 0:17:28.480 what you have for my life. Don't be unwise. Don't 0:17:28.480 --> 0:17:33.040 miss the opportunities and don't be foolish. Say, God, how 0:17:33.040 --> 0:17:35.040 do you want me to live my life? Not what 0:17:35.040 --> 0:17:36.800 do I want to do? But. Oh, God. What do 0:17:36.800 --> 0:17:39.640 you want me to do with my life? How many 0:17:39.640 --> 0:17:41.400 of you know? There's a big difference in that question. 0:17:42.240 --> 0:17:43.840 Some people are asking, what do I want to do? 0:17:43.880 --> 0:17:45.639 Other people are asking, God, what do you want me 0:17:45.640 --> 0:17:48.520 to do? And when you do what God wants you 0:17:48.520 --> 0:17:50.960 to do, you will end up doing what is most 0:17:50.960 --> 0:18:00.650 fulfilling for your life because God knows you best. How 0:18:00.650 --> 0:18:02.730 do we stay full of the spirit, first of all. 0:18:04.330 --> 0:18:08.250 We examine the way we live. We're intentional about how 0:18:08.250 --> 0:18:11.850 we live, so that we can make the most of 0:18:11.890 --> 0:18:17.090 the opportunities that God has given us. There's nothing worse 0:18:17.090 --> 0:18:26.570 than wasted potential. There's nothing worse than someone with great 0:18:26.570 --> 0:18:34.250 opportunities and great options wasting their potential on frivolous, inconsequential, 0:18:35.130 --> 0:18:40.369 wasteful things. There is power in this room. Do you 0:18:40.369 --> 0:18:47.650 know that? There's talent, ability, intellect? There's gifting influence in 0:18:47.650 --> 0:18:51.770 this room? The sad thing about most of us in 0:18:51.770 --> 0:18:55.250 any congregation, in any crowd, is that most of us 0:18:55.290 --> 0:19:00.300 operate at probably about 20% of our God given potential. 0:19:00.540 --> 0:19:02.979 They tell us that most of us only use about 0:19:03.020 --> 0:19:06.859 really 10 to 15% of the capacity of our brain. 0:19:09.060 --> 0:19:11.100 And most of us think, well, I can't grasp it. No, no, 0:19:11.100 --> 0:19:13.820 you're only using about 1,015% of your brain. If you 0:19:13.820 --> 0:19:17.859 really used your brain, you could grasp it. The great 0:19:17.859 --> 0:19:23.060 majority live way beneath the power of our potential. Most 0:19:23.060 --> 0:19:27.500 of us are not living to our full capacity. Most 0:19:27.500 --> 0:19:32.620 of us clearly underestimate what we can do and what 0:19:32.660 --> 0:19:40.060 God could do through us. Most of us have greater power, intellect, talent, ability, 0:19:40.220 --> 0:19:46.700 and when submitted to God, the potential is undeniable. It's unlimited, 0:19:46.700 --> 0:19:49.739 but most of us never reach it because most of 0:19:49.740 --> 0:19:55.260 us live way beneath our calling and way beneath our potential. 0:19:56.100 --> 0:20:01.780 And Paul is simply saying, hey, You are people of God. 0:20:04.180 --> 0:20:06.580 You need to be different. You need to rise to 0:20:06.619 --> 0:20:09.939 the God given potential inside of you. You need to 0:20:09.980 --> 0:20:14.340 rise to your calling, to the gifting. Be full of 0:20:14.340 --> 0:20:17.700 the Spirit of God, because you could do things that 0:20:18.260 --> 0:20:21.100 will blow people's minds away if you just begin to 0:20:21.140 --> 0:20:24.900 live how God has called you to live. Amen. 0:20:33.900 --> 0:20:36.859 Learning to be filled with the spirit each day. That's 0:20:36.859 --> 0:20:39.460 the takeaway of our message from Mark Jobe today. And 0:20:39.460 --> 0:20:41.980 you're listening to Bold Steps. You can learn more about 0:20:41.980 --> 0:20:44.860 Mark and this ministry when you visit Bold Steps org. 0:20:45.140 --> 0:20:47.340 And when you visit our website, you'll discover our latest 0:20:47.340 --> 0:20:50.980 Bold Step gift, a thought provoking book by respected pastor 0:20:50.980 --> 0:20:54.060 Mike Fabares. We've got pastor Mike joining us in the 0:20:54.060 --> 0:20:56.619 studio today to share more about this hard hitting resource. 0:20:56.619 --> 0:20:57.860 So Mark, over to you. 0:20:58.180 --> 0:21:03.060 Proverbs tells us that envy makes the bones rot. I mean, 0:21:03.100 --> 0:21:07.060 that's a pretty, pretty direct, vivid image of rotting bones there. 0:21:07.340 --> 0:21:10.660 But a tranquil heart gives life. Mhm. Uh, you know, 0:21:10.700 --> 0:21:15.540 I went to school actually with a fellow student that, uh, 0:21:15.540 --> 0:21:18.620 we both grown up as pastors. He pastors a church 0:21:18.619 --> 0:21:23.100 in California in Aliso Viejo called Compass Church, a really 0:21:23.100 --> 0:21:26.659 dynamic church. If you live in that area, please check 0:21:26.660 --> 0:21:30.780 it out. But he's written a book called envy, a 0:21:30.820 --> 0:21:35.180 Big problem you didn't know you had. Mike, tell us 0:21:35.180 --> 0:21:37.500 what motivated you to write this book? 0:21:37.940 --> 0:21:39.740 Well, it was easy for me to look in my 0:21:39.740 --> 0:21:42.860 own heart. And like you, Doctor Joe, my son is 0:21:42.859 --> 0:21:45.899 a pastor, and I have no trouble looking at my 0:21:45.900 --> 0:21:48.660 son and hoping that he does far better than I 0:21:48.700 --> 0:21:51.379 ever have done. Yeah. Uh, and that's easy to do, 0:21:51.420 --> 0:21:54.100 because I love my son. Right. Both my sons are pastors, 0:21:54.100 --> 0:21:57.540 and I love them excelling. I found that it was 0:21:57.540 --> 0:22:00.630 not as easy for me to rejoice with my peers 0:22:00.630 --> 0:22:03.590 who do better than I do. And I realized, wow, 0:22:03.630 --> 0:22:06.150 how can that be? How can pastors look at other 0:22:06.150 --> 0:22:10.550 people doing ministry and have feelings that aren't the same? Uh, 0:22:10.550 --> 0:22:13.550 as I might have toward my own children? Of course 0:22:13.550 --> 0:22:15.670 I love God. I love the kingdom. But you see, 0:22:15.670 --> 0:22:18.430 I realize the difference is I don't love my fellow 0:22:18.430 --> 0:22:21.030 Christian the way I ought to. And if I did, 0:22:21.070 --> 0:22:23.830 I wouldn't be envious. I wouldn't start to think, well, 0:22:23.869 --> 0:22:25.629 you know, that was kind of handed to him, or 0:22:25.630 --> 0:22:27.629 he was in the right place at the right time. Or, 0:22:27.670 --> 0:22:30.270 you know, people opened doors for that guy. I would 0:22:30.270 --> 0:22:33.150 never think that about my own children. And so I've 0:22:33.150 --> 0:22:37.230 got to recognize this exists in pastors hearts, missionaries hearts, 0:22:37.230 --> 0:22:41.030 and certainly it exists in the business world. It exists everywhere. 0:22:41.030 --> 0:22:42.869 And we've got to root it out when we find 0:22:42.869 --> 0:22:45.709 it and start to realize love and real, true love 0:22:45.710 --> 0:22:48.910 is the answer. And it brings great tranquility to our hearts. 0:22:48.950 --> 0:22:51.949 And pastor Mike, you say that confronting envy allows us 0:22:51.950 --> 0:22:54.910 to experience the peace and contentment that really God wants 0:22:54.910 --> 0:22:56.070 for us in the first place. 0:22:56.470 --> 0:22:58.630 Yes, if you think about it, in the Kingdom, we're 0:22:58.630 --> 0:23:00.389 going to have a lot of different people with a 0:23:00.390 --> 0:23:03.030 lot of different kinds of rewards. A lot of different 0:23:03.030 --> 0:23:06.390 ranks of of, you know, prominence in the kingdom. And 0:23:06.390 --> 0:23:08.910 we're always going to rejoice in those things. Right? We 0:23:08.910 --> 0:23:12.790 realize there'll be no envy, no coveting, no jealousy. None 0:23:12.790 --> 0:23:15.830 of those things will be active in the eternal state. 0:23:15.830 --> 0:23:18.950 We will really rejoice as though everyone actually is our 0:23:18.950 --> 0:23:22.070 brother and sister in Christ. And we've got to realize 0:23:22.070 --> 0:23:24.590 that's a different experience. I think we all intuitively know 0:23:24.590 --> 0:23:26.990 that than we have now. So let's try and enjoy 0:23:26.990 --> 0:23:30.030 a little bit of that peace and that contentment now. 0:23:30.030 --> 0:23:32.510 And that's going to I give the answers in this book. 0:23:32.510 --> 0:23:33.830 The second half of the book is all about how 0:23:33.830 --> 0:23:36.630 to fix this problem. Uh, the first half is about 0:23:36.630 --> 0:23:38.510 diagnosing it. And I think a lot of people don't 0:23:38.510 --> 0:23:40.030 look at this book or they wouldn't pick it up 0:23:40.030 --> 0:23:41.950 because they don't think I don't have that problem. That's 0:23:41.950 --> 0:23:43.550 why I tried to title this in a way that 0:23:43.550 --> 0:23:44.790 would kind of hook them into looking. 0:23:44.790 --> 0:23:46.270 At look a little deeper, huh? 0:23:47.150 --> 0:23:50.109 So good, so good, and such a big issue that's 0:23:50.109 --> 0:23:53.710 not talked about enough. People are silent on this issue. 0:23:53.710 --> 0:23:57.150 And so thank you, pastor Mike, for writing this book. Uh, 0:23:57.150 --> 0:23:59.760 we love this topic. And I believe that a lot 0:23:59.800 --> 0:24:02.720 of people will gain a lot of insight and maybe 0:24:02.760 --> 0:24:05.760 step into contentment through it. So there you have it, 0:24:05.760 --> 0:24:08.760 a big problem. You didn't know you had envy by 0:24:08.760 --> 0:24:10.640 pastor Mike Fabros. 0:24:10.960 --> 0:24:12.719 Yes. So let us know where to send you a 0:24:12.720 --> 0:24:15.240 copy of this bold step gift today. When you give 0:24:15.240 --> 0:24:18.119 a gift of any amount to support bold steps, call 0:24:18.119 --> 0:24:21.840 our team today at 800 Moody or give online at 0:24:21.840 --> 0:24:29.119 Bold Steps. Our address is bold. Steps 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, 0:24:29.160 --> 0:24:33.560 Illinois 606 ten. And as Marx teachings have made a 0:24:33.560 --> 0:24:36.480 difference in your spiritual journey, why not join our bold 0:24:36.480 --> 0:24:40.959 partner family by becoming a monthly supporter? Your consistent giving 0:24:40.960 --> 0:24:43.959 allows us to share these Bible based messages with others 0:24:43.960 --> 0:24:47.600 who are searching for spiritual guidance. 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We're listed as Bold Steps Radio 0:25:22.800 --> 0:25:27.200 on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok and on March YouTube channel. 0:25:27.560 --> 0:25:30.280 So log into your account today and connect with us. 0:25:30.840 --> 0:25:33.000 I'm Wayne Shepherd, thanks for joining us. Be sure to 0:25:33.000 --> 0:25:36.200 come back tomorrow when Mark continues this discussion on staying 0:25:36.200 --> 0:25:39.200 filled with the spirit. It's from our series When You 0:25:39.200 --> 0:25:43.120 Believe Everything Changes. And this coming up Tuesday on Bold 0:25:43.119 --> 0:25:47.320 Steps with Mark John. Bold steps is a production of 0:25:47.359 --> 0:25:50.440 Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.