S1: Coming to you from the Morning Star Mission sponsored studio.
S1: This is Carl and crew on Moody Radio.
S2: Give him praise on this Freedom Friday. Boy, we love
S2: a good freedom Friday. Come on now. Come on. Ali.
S2: Freedom Friday, sister.
S3: Freedom Friday.
S2: Come on. See there. She can put some mustard to it.
S2: She had a little, little twang on that Friday.
S3: Friday.
S2: Little something there.
S4: I don't know what it is about Freedom Friday, but
S4: you gotta have a little twang to it. I don't know.
S4: I don't know. Do you? It seems right. It seems right.
S2: I'm becoming like Ali. I just said, do you? I
S2: never said that before.
S4: That is very true. You have.
S2: None.
S3: Oh no question. Everything.
S2: Oh, no. Oh, yeah. That's. Yeah. Ali. Yeah. She's got
S2: a question mark hanging over her head, which is good. Um.
S2: I have a fear.
S3: Oh.
S2: I have a lot of fears. I'm not jumping out
S2: of a plane, by the way. That's crazy.
S3: No skydiving for you.
S2: I don't call that fear. I just call that wisdom.
S3: A little apprehension with heights.
S2: Yeah, especially these guys that take these full body glider
S2: suits and jump off cliffs and then.
S4: Oh, I can't imagine that, man.
S2: No, I just don't get it, man. I just I
S2: love watching the videos on their GoPros, but no, I'm
S2: not doing I'm not going there. I'm staying on the ground.
S3: I'm with.
S2: You. Oh my goodness. But my fear revolves around something
S2: that happened at lunch in Portland, Oregon, on the river.
S2: Downtown Portland, nice little restaurant. Beautiful lunch out with a
S2: few friends. My bride, great waitress, comes out boldly coming
S2: up to the table. She says to me, fresh mahi
S2: mahi as she's coming at terminal velocity.
S4: Oh, no.
S2: Tried to set that plate down, but it didn't work.
S2: The entire entree. Rice. Fish. Vegetables. Lemon wedges. Plop right
S2: in my lap.
S3: Oh, boy.
S2: The whole thing. Oh, I mean, they're out scrambling. Here
S2: comes the general manager. Mr. Claussen, can we launder your clothes?
S2: I said they're jeans, bro. It's okay.
S4: It's gonna be fine.
S3: Oh, man.
S2: It's okay, it's fine. But ever since then, when somebody
S2: brings out food to the table, I not any food.
S2: You bring out a burger or whatever. I'm not yipping
S2: about that. But I got one of my favorite joints
S2: in Des Plaines is called. I think it's called Jo
S2: Cho Dong, but it's spelled Cho dang. You know, it's
S2: one of those things. Okay, but Cho Dang has these
S2: hot pots where they come out. No kidding. They are
S2: absolutely bubbling with boiling brew. So it's a tofu beef spices.
S2: Super spicy, man. I mean, it's great. It'll clean you out.
S2: No one walks out of there. It gets regular spice
S2: or hotter. That isn't absolutely blowing their schnozzle. It's great.
S2: Decongestant on steroids.
S3: Wow.
S2: But every time they set that down, I go back
S2: to Portland, Oregon. In my.
S3: Mind.
S4: You just get a little nervous. Well, I mean, mahi
S4: mahi I mean, does mahi mahi come hot or is
S4: it one of those. It was.
S2: It was it was pretty hot. It wasn't the heat factor.
S2: It was just the dump in my lap factor. So
S2: when I see a boiling cauldron of goodies, I'm like,
S2: now aim that sucker. Oh, don't drop it. Oh, good.
S2: She touched down. And sometimes they walk up like, yeah,
S2: this ain't nothing but a thing, right?
S4: Because they've done it a million times.
S2: Yeah. And they're looking around. One time she's plopping it down.
S2: She's looking at her manager saying something to her. And
S2: I'm like, pay attention to the boiling cauldron that is
S2: being placed six inches in front of my lap. Can
S2: you feel that with me?
S3: A little? A little bit of PTSD from.
S2: Oh my goodness, isn't that funny how that works?
S3: Oh, yeah.
S2: I mean, it's just crazy. You know, it's one thing
S2: when you're worried about someone else, but when you've got
S2: control over things yourself. I really hope that you have
S2: a question mark about, am I going to miss the
S2: mark for eternity in life today? I really do. I
S2: hope that there is a holy gut check in you
S2: where you ask, wow, am I born again? Apostle Paul said,
S2: examine yourself to see if you're in the faith. And
S2: by the way, this isn't about being freaked out about
S2: whether or not you're born again. An imperfection in followers
S2: of Christ. It happens. This is about when you're when
S2: you're born again. There is conviction. And I tell most
S2: people who go, man, I'm just freaked out. I don't
S2: know if I'm born again. And I tell them, first off,
S2: your concern is one of the greatest evidences that you are,
S2: because all that then fills in the blank is by faith.
S2: You ready to surrender all to Jesus Christ. And they're like, oh,
S2: I've done that. You know what you struggle with? You
S2: struggle with condemnation or conviction not dealt with in your life.
S2: But my greater concern are the people that suffer from
S2: some barriers to salvation. This morning on this Freedom Friday,
S2: I want to give you the three barriers to salvation
S2: and what God wants to do with you. This morning
S2: he brought you here for a reason. Some of you
S2: have been praying for loved ones or wondering how to
S2: pray for loved ones. That's the bigger thing, isn't it, Ali?
S2: It's kind of like, oh, what do I do? I've
S2: got a I've got a child, I got a husband,
S2: I got a wife, I got a friend, I got
S2: a neighbor, I've got this person. I go to church
S2: with someone, but they they don't know Christ. And what
S2: do I do? Well, it's it's the Holy Spirit's work.
S2: But there are things that we can do. And as
S2: we look at these three barriers to salvation, I pray
S2: that lights go on and that liberty reigns supreme on
S2: this Freedom Friday.
S1: Your shot of hope to help you through the day.
S1: This is Carl and crew on Moody Radio.
S2: I love this story out of acts 16. It's about
S2: the missionary journey. Paul and Silas actually find their way
S2: via a vessel through Neapolis on to Philippi. And then
S2: they go into the city, and they sit down with
S2: a group of women, and they sat down and spoke
S2: to the women who had come together. And then it
S2: says in verse 14, this really cool one who heard us.
S2: Isn't that funny? So they spoke to a group of women.
S2: One who heard us was a great woman named Lydia.
S2: She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira.
S2: And the Lord opened her heart to pay attention. So
S2: they're speaking to these women. But one heard, isn't that great?
S4: I love that distinction.
S2: Oh, isn't that beautiful?
S4: I wish more heard, but at the same time, I love.
S4: I love the this one person. The Lord cut through
S4: her heart and she said, hey, I'm all in.
S2: So there's a few things here going on, but one
S2: is when we preach the gospel or when we share
S2: with a friend. I've had this happen many times when
S2: I've been preaching the clear gospel of Jesus, and I
S2: see people. This last Sunday I was preaching the gospel
S2: at our church in the campus in Elk Grove, and
S2: I saw three high school boys. In fact, I was
S2: talking to some guys afterwards. They say, you see those
S2: high school boys, they just know no mom or dad
S2: in the church. They just join 180 Chicago.
S4: That's great.
S2: Three high school boys, they are sitting on the. And
S2: when I say, you know, sitting on the edge of
S2: your seat, usually that's a you know, that's.
S3: An expression.
S2: An expression there on the edge of their seat. One
S2: guy I felt like saying to him, dude, go back
S2: a couple inches, you're about to do a face plant
S2: just leaning in.
S3: Wow.
S2: But then in the audience you can see some people
S2: that are hearing, but they're not hearing. Isn't that something?
S3: And can you observe even in the body language?
S2: I think I know in the spirit and the body
S2: language what's going on? I don't always get it right.
S3: Sure.
S2: But I often do. But here's what's amazing in this
S2: story here in acts 16, they spoke to these women
S2: and one heard. Now, there might have been more, but
S2: one heard. And they're they're focusing on Lydia. And they said,
S2: and the Lord opened her heart. Wow, is that awesome, Ali?
S3: And that's what has to happen. I mean, lest we
S3: think that it's us opening our own heart. I mean,
S3: we have a part in it, but ultimately it's the
S3: spirit that has to draw us. Yeah, yeah.
S2: I have such joy in my heart because, boom! Crew,
S2: you're off the hook. You share your story, you talk
S2: about the Lord. You sit down with the men and women.
S2: You sit down with those boys and girls, and you pray, Lord,
S2: open the heart of one cause. One to hear I'm
S2: speaking cause one to hear. Isn't that beautiful, guys?
S3: It is.
S2: I mean, isn't it beautiful? Okay, coming up here in
S2: three minutes, I'm going to share. I'm going to speak
S2: the gospel. Three barriers to salvation. And I'm going to
S2: ask the Lord to open your heart to hear.
S1: This is Curling Crew on Moody Radio.
S2: I'm going to speak the gospel here, and I am
S2: praying that the Lord causes you to hear. What a
S2: beautiful thing, man. Pressure's off here. There are three barriers
S2: to salvation, and I'm going to go through them quickly.
S2: The first is rebellion. Just good old fashioned rebellion, you
S2: might say. Well, really? Yeah. In Romans one we find
S2: for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against
S2: all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. And that makes sense,
S2: who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can
S2: be known about God is plain to them, because God
S2: has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely
S2: his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived
S2: ever since the creation of the world in the things
S2: that have been made. So they are without excuse. Here's
S2: an amazing reality of this text. All you got to
S2: do is look around at creation and go, oh my goodness.
S2: I mean, I put bird feed out in our feeders
S2: again and those things are coming back. And I just
S2: sat looking through the slats of our blinds yesterday for
S2: just a couple of minutes. These birds are so amazingly built.
S2: I mean, these guys are amazing and they can't see
S2: I see them, so I'm really up close and personal,
S2: you know what I'm saying? And and I'm watching these
S2: things and I'm like, man, how can you how can
S2: you not see God? You know what I'm saying? Yeah,
S2: but here's the reality. A heart that's hard can look
S2: at all of creation and go, I'm not going your way.
S2: Rebellion is one. Blindness is another. Second Corinthians four three
S2: through four says, and even if our gospel is veiled.
S2: This is Paul's preaching here. it is veiled to those
S2: who are perishing, in their case, the God of this world,
S2: that Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers. Great. We
S2: got a blinding problem going on here. Now I just
S2: want to speak to this one. Some of it is
S2: just straight up light pollution. You cannot see stars in
S2: the city of Chicago. Not well with all the light pollution.
S2: And sometimes we are blinded from the light of Jesus
S2: Christ because we've got so much stuff. Light polluting the
S2: ability to see the one who loves us. Maybe God
S2: is taking you out of town spiritually today. Maybe he's
S2: taking you to the woods and you're looking up, going, oh,
S2: you're speaking, but I think I'm hearing it for the
S2: first time, Carl. Another barrier to salvation is deception. We
S2: hear this a lot around here. Not everyone who says
S2: to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven,
S2: but the one who does the will of my father
S2: who is in heaven. On that day, many, many will
S2: say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in
S2: your name, cast out demons in your name, and do
S2: mighty works in your name? And then I will declare
S2: to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you
S2: workers of lawlessness. So this is really simple. I've just
S2: been speaking here for a few moments. We've just been speaking.
S2: And the question is, is someone hearing? Because just like Lydia,
S2: the seller of purple from the town of Thyatira, the
S2: Lord opened her heart. Maybe the Lord's open in your
S2: heart today. And I want to ask you, are you
S2: ready to surrender your life to Jesus Christ for the
S2: first time ever? No more rebellion. You look at creation
S2: today and go, I don't know how I didn't see
S2: it before, but this heart of stone you're turning into
S2: a heart of flesh. I see it and I surrender.
S2: Maybe it's been blindness. I don't know what kind of
S2: light pollution I had, but I did not see the
S2: light of the world. And I see him right now
S2: so clearly. And maybe it's deception. I thought all my
S2: Christian stuff could get me right with God. And it hasn't.
S2: And you're hearing the voice of God. You're not hearing
S2: my voice. You're not hearing alleys or Young Thunder's voice.
S2: You're hearing the voice of God saying, come on, give
S2: me your life. And I want to tell you how.
S2: Jesus said to a troubled heart, I am the way,
S2: the truth, and the life. No man can go to
S2: the father but through me. No woman can get there
S2: but through Jesus he said, I am the way. He
S2: got to turn around. Repent. Surrender your life and follow
S2: Jesus Christ today. All in. It's not looking over your
S2: shoulder saying, hey, I know you're there. It's turning around. Saying,
S2: I'm going with you today. Too many people in church saying, hey,
S2: I know he's there. He's a good man. Today you're
S2: surrendering all that you are to Jesus. I am the way.
S2: I'm the truth, he said. The truth is this we're
S2: sinners born with our backs to God. Alli born with
S2: your back to God. Right.
S3: Every single one of us. Yes. I was born with
S3: my back to God.
S2: Born with your back to God. And it means you
S2: gotta repent. Turn around. And in order to repent, you
S2: got to know that there's a reason to turn around. Yeah.
S2: You gotta admit I'm a sinner. I'm missing the mark.
S2: I admit it. I'm not doing it. It's not working.
S2: I give my life to Jesus. See, belief in Jesus
S2: real biblical belief is the full and total surrender of
S2: your life to him. It sure ain't perfection, but it's
S2: just surrender. It's like saying, I'm jumping in your arms
S2: right now and he's got you. And I'm asking you
S2: right now, is that you? I've been speaking, but have
S2: you been hearing. And if you have, the Lord has
S2: opened your heart. And I want you to pray with
S2: me right now. This is a prayer of faith. I
S2: don't care where you are in this world right now.
S2: I don't care where you are. What state, what burg.
S2: I don't care if you are. You might have us
S2: on Wi-Fi at 30,000ft. You might. I don't care where
S2: you are right now. Today is your day of salvation.
S2: It's a cry of the heart. You might whisper along.
S2: You might shout aloud. You don't have to say a word.
S2: Your heart surrendered to God is an act of faith.
S2: And it's putting words to your soul just like this.
S2: Say it with me today I give up, God, I surrender.
S2: I'm turning around today. You've had a heart of rebellion.
S2: Maybe you've been blind. Maybe you've been deceived. But today
S2: you're going in a new way. No more barriers. Is
S2: that you? All in with Jesus, holding nothing back. Count
S2: the cost. Think about it. It's going to. This is
S2: going to change some things now, friend. Whole new direction.
S2: It's the best life ever. I can testify to that.
S2: But this is a new day. Is that a new
S2: day for you? Is it good? All in with Jesus today? Good.
S2: Holding nothing back, right? Brand new. Never had this kind
S2: of surrender before. The surrender before maybe was just cries
S2: to God with, you know, giving him one hand. He
S2: wants both hands, both feet, all in with Jesus today.
S2: Is that you? Good. I'm going to pray for you.
S2: And then we're going to give you a link to
S2: help you. God. Thank you. We've been speaking, summer hearing
S2: because the Lord opens the heart and I give you
S2: thanks in the name of Jesus that you're still working
S2: miracles today. God, you're still taking rebels with hard hearts,
S2: and you're taking, uh, blind people with light pollution. And
S2: you're you're showing them the the light of the world,
S2: and you're taking those in deception and you're showing them
S2: the truth. That you are the way, the truth and
S2: the life. Now God flood them with life. Flood this
S2: young lady with life, this older gentleman with life, this
S2: teenager listening right now. Flood them with life. And I
S2: give you praise in Jesus name. Amen. We want to
S2: help you, Ali. Walk them through what they're going to
S2: get here.
S3: Yeah. We have a resource that we're going to send
S3: to you. If you text the word new to 855
S3: five 7898. Just text new to 855 five 7898. You're
S3: going to get an auto reply to your phone. Click
S3: the link. Read through it very carefully. There's some hyperlinks
S3: embedded in there. What to look for in a church.
S3: How to make sure that I've got a Bible in
S3: my hands, and an opportunity to get a resource sent
S3: to your home from us. So if you today, today
S3: you are turning to Jesus for salvation. There's no other
S3: name by which men will be saved. Just text the
S3: word new to 855 7898, new to 800, 555 7898.
S2: And if you listen closely, there's angels celebrating what God's
S2: doing in you. It's a new day, friend.
S1: He was sharing the gospel on the radio and then
S1: he got saved. Young thunders in the crew. It's Carl
S1: and crew on Moody Radio.
S2: Okay, this is a big aha moment here. And this
S2: is a great inductive study on this Freedom Friday. I
S2: want you to know the pressure is off. Imagine what
S2: Paul and Silas would have felt if they were called
S2: by God to head on a voyage through Neapolis, Samothrace,
S2: first Neapolis, and then on to the district of Macedonia
S2: into Philippi, and to plop down with a group of
S2: women and share the gospel. Imagine if they were commissioned
S2: by God, saying, you got to go save people. Man,
S2: that pressure would have been heavy.
S4: Oh goodness. Yeah, you would have been thinking about it
S4: all the time. Every time someone didn't listen to you,
S4: you would have been like, oh man, I didn't get
S4: that one. I think I was supposed to get that one.
S2: Oh, yeah? Yeah. And I didn't say that just right.
S4: Yep.
S2: You ever had that before?
S3: Oh, yes.
S2: I didn't say that just right.
S3: Boy.
S4: It's such a common one. That's like, every time, every
S4: time I go, oh, I don't know, I don't know.
S4: I could have done better there. I could have done better.
S2: And you know, how you do better is when you
S2: realize the pressure's off.
S4: Amen.
S2: So this story from Lydia, from Thyatira, who was a
S2: seller of purple, is one awesome example because I don't
S2: know who else heard, but they spoke. And the way
S2: the narrative goes until the story. Ali. And then you
S2: can read what you want to read. But this is
S2: a great story. I mean, this is they sat down
S2: and what did they do? They began to speak the gospel. Right?
S3: And Lydia heard.
S2: She heard.
S3: She heard and her heart was opened.
S2: Yeah. And the coolest thing here is found in verse 14.
S2: And it says the Lord opened her heart to pay
S2: attention to what was said. Isn't that awesome?
S4: Yeah, I love that.
S2: Have you ever sat down with someone that you really love?
S2: And you're like, they're hearing me, but they are not
S2: hearing me?
S4: Yeah. You just feel like. You feel like it's kind
S4: of going in one ear and out the other.
S2: Oh, yeah. Or you feel like it's like they've got this, um,
S2: it's kind of like an airfoil, like a race car.
S2: And it's like your message is like air over a
S2: race car. It's like.
S4: Yeah, just kind.
S2: Of over the top and back.
S4: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. And there's nothing you can do about that.
S4: That's not up to you. It's up to what God's
S4: going to do in them.
S2: The pressure's off. Well, Carl, what do I do? You
S2: know what? I'm going to boil it down here. Matthew 516.
S2: Let your light so shine before men and women, boys
S2: and girls, that they may see your good deeds and
S2: glorify your father who is in heaven. That's for sure.
S2: Something we can do, right, Ali?
S3: Yeah. I mean, and when you have good information, you
S3: have good intercession. You always say that.
S2: Yes, yes, yes.
S3: When you have good information, then you pray rightly.
S2: Yeah.
S3: For people.
S2: So you pray. So you pray. How can you pray
S2: according to this Lydia story? How can you pray?
S3: Well, you can pray that someone would first listen, that
S3: they would be willing to sit down and have the conversation. Okay.
S3: You can pray that they would not just hear the
S3: words and that it would go into their ears, but
S3: that they would actually hear it and it would go
S3: into their heart.
S2: Yeah.
S4: You can also pray that God would take the pressure
S4: off of you and just allow His Spirit to speak
S4: through your words.
S2: Okay, that's a cool implication from the text, isn't it?
S4: Absolutely.
S2: Here's what's cool. Paul and Silas came in. They sat down.
S2: They knew this is the Lord's work because that's what
S2: is written by Doctor Luke in Acts 16. And the
S2: Lord opened her heart. Yeah. How cool that we don't
S2: have to open our kids hearts to the Lord.
S3: It's so freeing, because when we feel like the pressure's
S3: on us and we. We start to strive, we start
S3: to beg and plead, and it becomes more about us.
S2: Us. I mean, we're panicked.
S3: And it's not that we don't. It's not like about
S3: us in terms of a selfishness aspect, because our heart,
S3: our heart's desire, is to see our unsaved loved one
S3: come to know Jesus. But it becomes about, okay, how
S3: can I do this better?
S2: Yeah, it really can. Yeah. So coming up, we're going
S2: to do something crazy here. We're going to pray that
S2: the pressure is off of you today. We're going to
S2: pray for you. We can pray for you as Christ followers,
S2: that the freedom that you would feel today is that
S2: the Lord has opened their heart. Okay, you know what
S2: that gives you? It gives you the latitude to tend
S2: to your own lordship, to tend to. All right. If
S2: I don't have that pressure on me, I now can
S2: actually tend to me shining brightly rather than me getting
S2: it rightly. Little iteration there for you. And that's liberty,
S2: isn't it, Ali?
S3: It is. It is. Because then you're trusting in the
S3: Lord who opens hearts. Yes. And you're not trusting in
S3: your own ability to convince somebody of something.
S2: Who has felt the pressure to save a loved one,
S2: a friend or a neighbor. And you've carried it around
S2: for years. You've thought, I got to get this right.
S2: Just text in. We're not going to read out numbers.
S2: I just want to hear how many of you have
S2: suffered with that. We know we get tip of the iceberg,
S2: but who here has suffered with that? That's what I thought.
S2: Or that's me just texting something like that. 855 five
S2: 7898 you thought it was on you, or maybe you
S2: knew it wasn't, but today, now it's like, all right,
S2: this Lydia's story makes it clear the Lord opened her heart. Boom.
S2: Now I can pray. 855 five 7898. Who thought it
S2: was on you? Or at least you felt the weight
S2: of something being on you that God never intended? And
S2: today may be your freedom is is that it's not
S2: on you who was stuck there. And today you're getting it.
S2: Just text us 805, 55, 78, 98, 805, 55, 78, 98.
S2: We're not going to read out numbers, and we don't
S2: have names and we're just going to celebrate this. They're
S2: coming in now 805 55 Five, 7898. Somebody said yep.
S2: When someone says I have, that's me. See? They're coming
S2: in here and can I. Big confession. Are you ready
S2: for this? That's me. And you know what? You can
S2: be clear on this today. And like a banana peel
S2: on a sidewalk, you can slip back into it tomorrow.
S2: You got to hold on to these truths. Look at
S2: the responses pouring in here.
S3: I mean, so many people have felt this, this sort
S3: of pressure of, I have to get them saved me.
S3: I got to do it.
S2: And if they don't follow Jesus, that's my.
S3: Fault.
S2: We're going to pray for you coming up on this
S2: Freedom Friday, because the greatest powerful witnesses in light shining
S2: know that it's God who saves souls. All you do
S2: is shine and share. That's it.
S1: She's a choreographer extraordinaire and everything is Greek to her.
S1: Super di is in the crew. It's Carl and crew
S1: on Moody Radio.
S2: On this Freedom Friday. Couple things are happening. People are
S2: surrendering to Jesus. But here is the beauty. In acts 16,
S2: we get a story of Lydia. She's a seller of purple.
S2: She's a entrepreneur. And she happened to be huddled up
S2: with a group of ladies in Philippi. And Paul and
S2: Silas sailed into town by way of Neapolis and Samothrace first,
S2: and then Neapolis, into the district of Macedonia and then
S2: into Philippi. And they sit down and they speak. But
S2: at least one person heard what a huge thing, guys.
S2: They spoke. At least one heard. And that was Lydia.
S2: And you know why the Lord opened her heart. Were
S2: Paul and Silas swashbuckling gospel presenters. Actually, Paul was a
S2: little bit insecure about his ability to communicate well. So
S2: here's the deal. The pressure's off. God is the one
S2: who saves the Holy Spirit. Convicts of sin. It's the
S2: Lord that opens hearts. He pulls down blinders. He takes
S2: a heart of stone and turns it into a heart
S2: of flesh. We can pray. We can share. We can shine.
S2: We can get it all right. Actually, you can have
S2: a three point outline with a poem at the end.
S2: And that doesn't necessarily mean that anyone will really hear
S2: unless the Lord opens their heart, but he can. Ellie,
S2: I want you to pray this back over people. We've
S2: got so many responding, going, shoot, man, I felt so long.
S2: I just somebody said, I've. I've felt the weight of
S2: trying to save my sons for years. And this sets
S2: me free today. Isn't that awesome?
S3: Yeah, it really is. So let's pray. Lord, we come
S3: to you and just thank you that you are sovereign
S3: over all things. Lord. And I pray, Lord, that as
S3: you give us opportunities, first help us to be faithful
S3: as ambassadors, that we would be those who let our
S3: light shine before men, that people would see our good
S3: deeds and praise you in heaven. Help us to live
S3: those kind of lives. And Lord, when you lead us
S3: into moments where we have the opportunity to speak, I
S3: pray that you would remove pressure, that you would remove unbelief,
S3: that you would remove doubt, and that you would give
S3: us full freedom to speak as you would lead. And Lord,
S3: for the person who is going to hear us, Lord,
S3: allow hearts to be opened. Please, Lord, would you give someone,
S3: even today. Even this weekend. Give them ears to hear
S3: what you are saying through us. Open their heart. Help
S3: them to pay attention, Lord, not to our words, but
S3: to you, God. I pray that we would see people
S3: saved even this weekend. God, as we're gathering, as we're
S3: attending sporting events and family gatherings and other things that
S3: happen on the weekend. Lord, I pray that this verse
S3: would come to mind all across Chicagoland and beyond. This
S3: would come to mind that we would speak and that
S3: you would open hearts to pay attention. Lord, it's your
S3: work and not ours, and we thank you that you
S3: allow us to play even a small part in it.
S3: The pressure's off and we thank you. In Jesus name. Amen.
S2: Amen. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention. They
S2: were speaking. Lydia heard the pressure's off. Ali prayed. It
S2: gives you more freedom to shine more brightly and gives
S2: you more freedom to not get it perfectly. Isn't that.
S2: Isn't that I. I want to just I want to
S2: I want to jump in a pool somewhere, man. I mean,
S2: this is liberating stuff, guys.
S3: It really is. Because, you know, there's a lot of
S3: conversations around evangelism. And, you know, I think especially with
S3: young people, young people are always kind of like, you
S3: got to get out there. You got to share your faith.
S3: You got to share your faith. And I think if
S3: you've grown up in Christian, in kind of a Christian culture,
S3: you sort of absorb this low grade pressure of, okay, I.
S2: Got.
S3: To do it. I got to do it, I got
S3: to do it. They might not know Jesus. The Lord
S3: is the one who opens hearts.
S2: He does. Okay, cool. Fun little announcement coming up here.
S2: It's Freedom Friday, guys whom the son sets free is
S2: free indeed.