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Speaker 1: Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to

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Speaker 1: our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you

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Speaker 1: enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and

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Speaker 1: share it with a friend, reappreciate you, and pray for

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Speaker 1: God's very best in your life. Well, God bless you

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Speaker 1: and welcome said joy to come into your homes and

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Speaker 1: here ever in our area. Please stop buying and be

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Speaker 1: a part of one of our services. These are the

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Speaker 1: finest people in all of Houston, Texas, right here at Lakewood.

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Speaker 1: But so glad to have you today. I like to

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Speaker 1: start with something funny, and I heard about this minister.

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Speaker 1: He was driving down the road when he got pulled

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Speaker 1: over by a policeman. The officer came up to the

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Speaker 1: window and smelled alcohol. He saw a thermist and said, sir,

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Speaker 1: what are you drinking. The minister said, just water. Officer,

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Speaker 1: he asked to see the thermiston. He took one sniff

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Speaker 1: and said, smells like wine to me. The minister said,

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Speaker 1: what do you know? Jesus did it again? Say it

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Speaker 1: like you mean? It says my Bible. I am what

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Speaker 1: it says, I am, I have what it says I have.

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Speaker 1: I can do what it says I can do. Today,

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Speaker 1: I will be taught the word of God. I boldly

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Speaker 1: confess my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. I

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Speaker 1: will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you.

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Speaker 1: I want to talk to you today about peaceful on purpose.

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Speaker 1: If you're going to live in peace, it's not going

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Speaker 1: to happen by accident. Every day we have opportunities to

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Speaker 1: get upset, to be offended, to live worried. Life happens,

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Speaker 1: people get on your nerves, unexpected bills of family members

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Speaker 1: in the hospital. If you wait for all your circumstances

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Speaker 1: to calm down, then you're going to have peace. Then

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Speaker 1: you're going to stop worrying. You'll be waiting your whole life.

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Speaker 1: God never promised that he would keep us from difficulties.

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Speaker 1: He never said that we wouldn't have storms. But he

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Speaker 1: did say he would give us peace in the midst

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Speaker 1: of the storms. He calls it a peace that passes understanding.

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Speaker 1: That means, despite what's going on around you, you still

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Speaker 1: have peace. The medical report wasn't good, but I'm not worried.

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Speaker 1: I know God has me in the palm of his hand.

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Speaker 1: I didn't get the promotion that I worked for. But

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Speaker 1: I'm not upset. I know God has something better come

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Speaker 1: in my way. My coworker was rude to me. I'm

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Speaker 1: not offended. God is my vindicator. He'll fight my battles.

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Speaker 1: You have to protect your peace. You weren't created to

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Speaker 1: live worried, uptight, on edge. This is the reason many

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Speaker 1: people have health issues. They can't sleep at night, their

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Speaker 1: food won't digest, they have ulcers. It's because their mind

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Speaker 1: is never at rest. They're constantly trying to figure everything out.

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Speaker 1: Worried about their health, upset about their job, stressed out

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Speaker 1: over the traffic. Your mind needs a break. It wasn't

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Speaker 1: meant to go all the time. The scripture says, cast

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Speaker 1: your cares on the Lord. You have to learn to

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Speaker 1: turn it over to God. You weren't designed to carry

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Speaker 1: that heavy load. It will frustrate you. Here's the key.

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Speaker 1: When you rest, God goes to work. But when you work,

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Speaker 1: God rest. If you try to be God, God will

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Speaker 1: step back and say, Okay, you figure it out, you

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Speaker 1: handle it all, and I'll take a break. But when

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Speaker 1: you come back to a place of peace and say, God,

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Speaker 1: I trust you, my life is in your hands. I'm

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Speaker 1: not going to worry. I'm not going to live stressed.

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Speaker 1: You have this all figured out, so I'm going to

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Speaker 1: be still and know that you are God. That's when

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Speaker 1: God goes to work. In the scripture, David faced all

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Speaker 1: kinds of opposition. People came against him. Enemies were trying

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Speaker 1: to take his life. He could have lived worried, stressed out,

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Speaker 1: but he understood this principle. He said, the Lord is

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Speaker 1: my shepherd. He leads me by the still waters. One

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Speaker 1: version says by the RESTful waters. He was saying, the

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Speaker 1: way I keep my sanity, the way I protect my peace,

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Speaker 1: is on a regular basis. I go down to the

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Speaker 1: still waters and I empty out all my worry, all

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Speaker 1: the fear, all the anxiety. He let his mind rest.

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Speaker 1: I'm not talking about a physical place. I'm talking about

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Speaker 1: in your spirit. It can be chaotic all around you, traffic, people, problems, drama,

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Speaker 1: but on the inside there's a rest. You're at peace. Friends.

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Speaker 1: Worry is a thief. It will rob you of your

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Speaker 1: sleep at night. It will rob you of your joy,

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Speaker 1: rob you of your creativity. You don't make good decisions

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Speaker 1: when you're worried. If you allow it, worry can keep

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Speaker 1: you from your destiny, and the scripture says, we can't

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Speaker 1: add one inch to our life by worrying. If we could,

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Speaker 1: some of us would be twenty three feet tall. What

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Speaker 1: are you worried about? What's keeping you awake at night?

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Speaker 1: What's stealing your joy? It's time to come back to

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Speaker 1: the still waters. When you get quiet, when you're in peace,

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Speaker 1: it will help you to have the right perspective. But

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Speaker 1: when we worry, we're making our problem our God. What

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Speaker 1: you see as the biggest thing in your life, in

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Speaker 1: one sense, that's your God. If you worry about your

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Speaker 1: health night and day you can't sleep, that's all you

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Speaker 1: talk about, all you think about. You're making that sickness

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Speaker 1: your God. Do yourself a favor. Take the worry off

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Speaker 1: the throne, take the sickness off the throne, take the

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Speaker 1: financial difficulty off the throne, and put God back up

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Speaker 1: on the throne. Use that same energy to thank God

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Speaker 1: that he's still in control. Every time you're attempted to worry,

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Speaker 1: turn it around and thank Him that he's taking care

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Speaker 1: of that situation. Let the worry be a reminder to

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Speaker 1: switch over into praise. Switch over into things that are

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Speaker 1: of a good report. You have to guard your mind.

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Speaker 1: This is where the main battle is taking place, because

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Speaker 1: good thoughts, they don't automatically come into our mind most

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Speaker 1: of the time, especially in difficult situations. The first thoughts

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Speaker 1: are negative things like, oh man, that pain in your side.

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Speaker 1: That's dangerous, same thing your grandmother died from. You'll never

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Speaker 1: get married. You've been single so long, You'll never get

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Speaker 1: past this bad break. All the odds are against you.

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Speaker 1: The easy thing to do is to believe those lies.

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Speaker 1: Start dwelling on it. What if I don't get well,

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Speaker 1: what if the report isn't good, what if I can't

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Speaker 1: make those payments. Don't fall into that trap. Your life

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Speaker 1: is going to folly your thoughts. If you live worried, anxious, uptight,

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Speaker 1: you're inviting discouragement, bad breaks, negativity. You have to turn

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Speaker 1: your worry into worship. Thank God that he's fighting your battles.

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Speaker 1: Thank Him that no weapon formed against you will ever prosper.

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Speaker 1: When I look back over my life, most of the

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Speaker 1: things I worried about never came to pass. I wasted

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Speaker 1: a lot of time and energy being uptight. It's easy

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Speaker 1: to wake up in the middle of the night and

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Speaker 1: find something to worry about. And a lot of people

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Speaker 1: these days are professional worriers. They can multitask worry taking

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Speaker 1: a shower, worry brushing their teeth, worry driving to work.

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Speaker 1: Somebody asked me, if I could do anything over again,

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Speaker 1: what would I do differently? I told them I would

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Speaker 1: trust God more, I wouldn't lose sleep. Worried about the budgets,

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Speaker 1: Worried if I was able to minister, worried if people

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Speaker 1: are going to like me. None of that worrying helped

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Speaker 1: me to move one inch forward. I wonder how many

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Speaker 1: things you're worried about that are never going to come

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Speaker 1: to pass. Years ago, Victoria and I received to notice

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Speaker 1: that the city was going to put in speed humps

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Speaker 1: on the street where we lived. These are those humps

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Speaker 1: in the street that slow cars down. We had two

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Speaker 1: small children. Sometimes people would drive through the neighborhood really fast,

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Speaker 1: so we were all for it. We signed a petition

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Speaker 1: to help make it happen. A couple of other streets

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Speaker 1: in the subdivision already had speed humps. Now I noticed

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Speaker 1: that the city put up a sign to notify drivers.

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Speaker 1: It was a big yellow, permanent sign like a stop sign,

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Speaker 1: that said speed humps up ahead. One day, while I

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Speaker 1: was out running, it dawned on me they always put

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Speaker 1: the sign in front of the second house in from

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Speaker 1: the corner. Well, it just so happened we lived in

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Speaker 1: the second house from the corner on our street. Now

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Speaker 1: I was no longer for those feet humps. I did

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Speaker 1: not want that big, ugly sign in front of our house.

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Speaker 1: I went to these other houses and I measured the

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Speaker 1: distance from the corner, got the exact length. Sure enough,

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Speaker 1: that sign was going to be right by our driveway,

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Speaker 1: in the front of our house. For months, I worried

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Speaker 1: about that sign, thought about how bad it was going

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Speaker 1: to be. I can't believe this is happening. Then I

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Speaker 1: had an idea. I thought, I'm going to get a

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Speaker 1: big bush and planet a few feet from where that

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Speaker 1: sign is supposed to go, so at least it will

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Speaker 1: block it from our point of view. And I got

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Speaker 1: a big six seven foot tree planeted it out there

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Speaker 1: way by the driveway. Looked like a random bush in

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Speaker 1: the middle of nowhere. I know our neighbors thought, boy,

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Speaker 1: those people are strange. But I knew it's gonna help

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Speaker 1: take care of this problem. Month after month went by,

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Speaker 1: my bush grew bigger and bigger. About two years later,

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Speaker 1: the city finally came and put the speed humps on

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Speaker 1: the street, But instead of installing the sign in front

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Speaker 1: of my house like the others, they put it four

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Speaker 1: houses down on the other side of the street. I

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Speaker 1: spent two years trying to fix a problem that never happened.

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Speaker 1: Every time I drove up to my house, I thought,

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Speaker 1: there's my worry tree. Are you trying to solve a

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Speaker 1: problem that hasn't happened. Well, Joe, what if I get

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Speaker 1: laid off next year? What if you don't, but you

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Speaker 1: spend a whole year worrying about it? What if I

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Speaker 1: never get married? What if you do? How much time

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Speaker 1: are you wasting worrying? What if this pain in my

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Speaker 1: side is something serious, go to the doctor, get checked out,

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Speaker 1: but don't spend three years worried then find out it

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Speaker 1: was nothing. Jesus put it this way. Don't worry about tomorrow,

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Speaker 1: for tomorrow will have enough worries of its own. God

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Speaker 1: has given you grace for today. You don't have grace

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Speaker 1: for tomorrow. Don't try to figure out the next five years,

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Speaker 1: play out all the what ifs. The what ifs will

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Speaker 1: depress you. The truth is if a what if does

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Speaker 1: come to pass, God will give you the grace to

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Speaker 1: handle it. What if the report's not good? What if

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Speaker 1: my loved one doesn't make it? What if I do

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Speaker 1: get laid off? Joel, then the peace that passes understanding

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Speaker 1: will be right there waiting for you. God promises he

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Speaker 1: will arm you with strength for every battle. We may

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Speaker 1: not know what the future holds, but we do know

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Speaker 1: who holds the future. Now, don't miss today worried about tomorrow.

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Speaker 1: Today is a gift. We can never get this day back.

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Speaker 1: I believefe with me. Many of the things you're worried

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Speaker 1: about are not going to happen. If they do, it's

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Speaker 1: not going to be as difficult as you think. You

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Speaker 1: don't have the grace for it today. And sure we

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Speaker 1: should plan, we should use common sense, but at some

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Speaker 1: point you have to turn it over to God and say, God,

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Speaker 1: you know what's best for me. You said you'd give

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Speaker 1: me grace for every season. Just like you clothe the

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Speaker 1: lily of the fields, just like you feed the birds

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Speaker 1: of the air. I know you will take care of me.

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Speaker 1: It's very freeing when you learn to turn things over

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Speaker 1: to God. You're not supposed to go through life weighted

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Speaker 1: down by worry, stress, anxiety. Start lightening your load, go

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Speaker 1: back to the still waters, empty all that out. Really,

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Speaker 1: it's important every morning you should start the day off

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Speaker 1: in peace, not stressed, hurried rushing around. Look at the sunrise,

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Speaker 1: Listen to the birds singing, Breathe in God's goodness, Thank

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Speaker 1: Him for his blessings in your life. Hebrews talks about

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Speaker 1: entering into the rest of God. That means you have

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Speaker 1: a problem, but you're not losing sleep over it. You

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Speaker 1: know God is still in control. This is one of

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Speaker 1: the main ways we show God we're trusting him by

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Speaker 1: staying in peace, not up when your circumstances are up,

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Speaker 1: down when they're down. You're stable, you're consistent. You're in

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Speaker 1: the rest of God. Two thousand and two, the Houston

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Speaker 1: City Council members voted for us to have this facility.

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Speaker 1: It was a two year battle and we'd worked hard

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Speaker 1: and convinced different council members and God caused everything to

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Speaker 1: fall into place. The vote was on a Wednesday morning.

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Speaker 1: That evening we had a great celebration at the church.

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Speaker 1: The next morning, Victoria and nine, our two small children

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Speaker 1: went out of town to take a few days off.

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Speaker 1: We were on cloud nine. We couldn't believe that it happened.

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Speaker 1: We got to the hotel and started unpacking our bags

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Speaker 1: and my brother in law, Kevin called, he's our administrator.

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Speaker 1: He said, Joel, a large company just filed a federal

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Speaker 1: lawsuit to try to keep us from moving into the

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Speaker 1: Compact Center. They said we violate the deed restrictions. I

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Speaker 1: asked him what that meant. He said, it means that

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Speaker 1: we can't move into the property because it's tied up

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Speaker 1: in the legal system, and the attorneys say it can

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Speaker 1: take up to ten years to resolve, and there's no

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Speaker 1: guarantee that we could win. I hung up the phone

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Speaker 1: and Victoria overheard the conversation. She stopped unpacking and said, Joel,

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Speaker 1: what are you gonna do? I said, I'm gonna go

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Speaker 1: down to the beach. She said, what are you gonna

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Speaker 1: do there? I said, I'm gonna swim. She said, aren't

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Speaker 1: you worried? Aren't you stressed? Aren't you upset? I said, no, Victoria,

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Speaker 1: We've done what we can do. Now it's in God's hands.

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Speaker 1: And I told her I'm not going to worry about

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Speaker 1: something that I can't change. I learned my lesson. I'm

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Speaker 1: not putting up another worried tree. I'm gonna stay at

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Speaker 1: rest and trust God to fight my battles. Are you

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Speaker 1: losing sleep over something you can't do anything about. As

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Speaker 1: long as you're honoring God, be in your best, then

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Speaker 1: you can rest. You may be facing an illness you

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Speaker 1: can't make yourself get well. Of course, do what you

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Speaker 1: can use common sense, but at some point you have

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Speaker 1: to turn it over to God and say, Lord, I

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Speaker 1: trust you to bring the healing. But in the meantime,

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Speaker 1: I'm going to enjoy my life. Worrying doesn't help you

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Speaker 1: to heal. Living stressed uptight. Studies show that weakens the

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Speaker 1: immune system. Come back to a place of peace. Or

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Speaker 1: you may have people in your life that are not

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Speaker 1: making good decisions. You can't make people do what's right.

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Speaker 1: Don't let their poor choices sour your life. You have

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Speaker 1: to protect your peace. Don't go the next twenty years

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Speaker 1: all worried about somebody else. Turn them over to God.

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Speaker 1: If you'll get off the throne, so to speak, and

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Speaker 1: stay at rest, then God will get on the throne

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Speaker 1: and do what you can't do in his own way,

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Speaker 1: his own timing. He'll make things happen. But really, if

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Speaker 1: God is not changing them yet, what makes us think

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Speaker 1: we can change them in our own strength? And sure,

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Speaker 1: we should be good examples, we should pray. But what

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Speaker 1: I'm saying is you shouldn't live stressed out over somebody

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Speaker 1: else's poor choices. You have a destiny to fulfill. You

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Speaker 1: need your energy, your wisdom, your creativity to become all

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Speaker 1: God's created you to be. Are you trying to change

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Speaker 1: things that only God can change? Your load will get

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Speaker 1: a whole lot lighter if you'll turn it over to

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Speaker 1: Him and enter into his rest. Act Chapter twelve, King

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Speaker 1: Herod had Peter arrested and put in prison. He didn't

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Speaker 1: like the fact that Peter was a follower of Christ.

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Speaker 1: Peter was in the dungeon, chained between two soldiers. The

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Speaker 1: next morning he was going to be brought to trial.

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Speaker 1: Herod had already killed James. It looks like Peter would

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Speaker 1: be next. You can imagine what Peter must have been thinking.

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Speaker 1: But that night, an angel appeared in the prison. He

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Speaker 1: went to wake Peter up, but Peter was sleeping so soundly.

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Speaker 1: The scripture says the angel had to shake Peter to

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Speaker 1: awaken him. Now, if you knew the next day your

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Speaker 1: life may come to an end. You were in great danger.

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Speaker 1: Would you be sleeping soundly or would you be pacing

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Speaker 1: the floor stressed out? God, please help me, God, Please

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Speaker 1: don't let them kill me. It's good to pray, it's

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Speaker 1: good to ask for God's health, But at some point

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Speaker 1: we all have to do like Peter say, God, I've

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Speaker 1: honored you, I prayed, I believed I've done my best.

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Speaker 1: Now God, I'm going to rest. I'm not gonna worry

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Speaker 1: about the medical report, not gonna live stressed out over

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Speaker 1: the situation at work, not gonna be upset because I

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Speaker 1: don't see anything happening. God, I trust you. If Peter

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Speaker 1: would have been stressed worried, maybe the angel wouldn't have

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Speaker 1: showed up, maybe he wouldn't have been freed. But when

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Speaker 1: God saw him resting, God said, all right, let me

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Speaker 1: go to work. I wonder if you would see situations

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Speaker 1: turn around, if you'd simply come back to a place

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Speaker 1: of peace. Worry doesn't make anything better. Being frustrated doesn't

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Speaker 1: get God's attention. Begging God reminding him what's wrong that

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Speaker 1: only makes us depressed. Take the problem off the throne

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Speaker 1: and put God back up on the throne. If you're

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Speaker 1: talking more about your problem than you are about God,

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Speaker 1: you have the wrong thing on the throne. I saw

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Speaker 1: saying the other day. It said, dear problem, My God

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Speaker 1: is so much bigger than you. But even in prayer,

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Speaker 1: instead of praying in faith, sometimes we complain about what

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Speaker 1: we don't like God. These people at work, they get

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Speaker 1: on my nerves. You better do something God, my back

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Speaker 1: it's been hurting for six years. God, these processes are

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Speaker 1: so high. I need your help. Instead of begging God,

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Speaker 1: instead of reminding him of everything that's wrong, why don't

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Speaker 1: you try a different approach. Do like Peter, go to sleep,

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Speaker 1: enter into his rest. Sometimes when I pray, I say, God,

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Speaker 1: you already know what I need, You already know what

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Speaker 1: I want. You know all about me. So Lord, I

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Speaker 1: just want to tell you that I love you, I

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Speaker 1: trust you, and I thank you forgetting me to where

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Speaker 1: I'm supposed to be. Not begging God, but praying from

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Speaker 1: a place of rest, talking to him from a place

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Speaker 1: of peace. Our actions speak louder than our words. When

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Speaker 1: you can sleep soundly like Peter in a time of

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Speaker 1: great need, you're showing God that you trust him. You're saying, God,

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Speaker 1: I know you're bigger than this problem. You said you

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Speaker 1: would never sleep, so I'm going to go to sleep.

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Speaker 1: Even though things aren't perfect in my life, I'm a

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Speaker 1: relax knowing that you're on the throne and you were

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Speaker 1: fighting my battles. It's a very freeing way to live.

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Speaker 1: My message to you today is very simple. Go to sleep,

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Speaker 1: enter into his rest. Quit worrying about everything, Quit trying

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Speaker 1: to figure it out, turn it over to God. I

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Speaker 1: see six people already asleep, Jesus said, I'm sending you

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Speaker 1: out as sheep among wolves. Sheep are very calm, peaceful animals.

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Speaker 1: They don't get upset. I've never seen a sheep having

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Speaker 1: a nervous breakdown, never seen one pacing the fields stressed

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Speaker 1: out uptight. They're always at ease. Last summer, Victoria and

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Speaker 1: I went to Colorado and we were riding four wheelers

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Speaker 1: up in the mountains and we came around a corner.

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Speaker 1: There were about three hundred sheep in our path. We

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Speaker 1: couldn't get by. I thought the equipment would scare them off,

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Speaker 1: but they didn't move. I put my four wheeler in neutral,

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Speaker 1: rev the engine real loud two or three times, and

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Speaker 1: those sheep just looked at me, like, why are you

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Speaker 1: making all that racket no more affected them? What's interesting

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Speaker 1: is sheep are basically defenseless animals. They can't run fast,

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Speaker 1: they don't have sharp teeth, they can't really kick. They

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Speaker 1: rely on the shepherd to take care of them. The

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Speaker 1: shepherd keeps them from danger. The shepherd protects them from

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Speaker 1: wild animals. The shepherd tells them where to go. They

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Speaker 1: don't worry. They know as long as they're with the shepherd,

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Speaker 1: everything will be fine. We can take a lesson from

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Speaker 1: the sheep. Stay in peace. The good Shepherd is watching

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Speaker 1: over you. The God who knew you before you were born,

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Speaker 1: the god who breathed life into you. He's guiding you.

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Speaker 1: He's protecting you. And yes, there will be some wolves

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Speaker 1: in our path, some attacks, things we don't understand. Don't

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Speaker 1: fall apart, don't start complain. Be like a sheep. Stay

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Speaker 1: in peace. You don't have to run, You don't have

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Speaker 1: to get all worked up. The good shepherd will fight

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Speaker 1: your battles. He will lead you into green pastures. He'll

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Speaker 1: restore your soul. You may go through some valleys and

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Speaker 1: difficult seasons. You don't have to fear any evil for

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Speaker 1: the Lord. You're a God, the good Shepherd is right

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Speaker 1: there with you. But sometimes the reason we're not seeing

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Speaker 1: God work in our life is we're not acting like sheep.

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Speaker 1: We're worried, living, stressed out, trying to change things that

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Speaker 1: we can't change. Why don't you come back to a

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Speaker 1: place of peace, come back to the still waters. You

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Speaker 1: worried about that problem long enough, Let your mind take

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Speaker 1: a break. Some people never let their mind rest. They

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Speaker 1: go on vacation for their body, but their mind is

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Speaker 1: still worrying. They worry on the beach just like they

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Speaker 1: worry at home. That doesn't help us to move one

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Speaker 1: inch forward. In the scripture, when God told Annius to

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Speaker 1: go pray for Saul, an Annius didn't want to go.

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Speaker 1: Saul was having believers arrested and put in prison. He

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Speaker 1: was the greatest enemy of the church. But on the

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Speaker 1: road to Damascus, when that light shine down bright, he

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Speaker 1: became blind. A voice boomed out and said, Saul, why

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Speaker 1: do you persecute me? He said, who are you? The

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Speaker 1: voice said, I am Jesus. That moment was a turning

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Speaker 1: point in Saul's life. He left there a changed man.

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Speaker 1: But Anonius didn't know anything about what had happened on

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Speaker 1: the road to Damascus. He still thought Saul was a

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Speaker 1: huge threat. He said, Lord, I've heard many reports about

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Speaker 1: this man and all the harm that he's causing. Anonius

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Speaker 1: was worried. He came up with a lot of reasons

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Speaker 1: why he shouldn't pray for Saul. I'm sure he spent

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Speaker 1: some restless nights thinking I must not have heard God right.

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Speaker 1: This man is dangerous. He didn't realize he was worried

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Speaker 1: about something that God had already taken care of. He

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Speaker 1: didn't know that Saul had already had a change of

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Speaker 1: heart on the road to Damascus. When he finally went

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Speaker 1: to pray for him, he found out that Saul was

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Speaker 1: an ally instead of an enemy. Some of the things

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Speaker 1: you'll worried about, just like with Anonius, you can't see

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Speaker 1: it yet, but God has already changed it. He's already

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Speaker 1: spoken to the right people. He's already lined up your healing.

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Speaker 1: He's already arranged that breakthrough. It's just a matter of

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Speaker 1: time before you walk into it. No use losing sleep

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Speaker 1: over that child this off course anymore. No use being

404
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Speaker 1: frustrated over that negative medical reporter, over that situation at work.

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Speaker 1: The threat has already been canceled. The solution is already

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Speaker 1: en route. Stay in peace, and like Anonius, you'll come

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Speaker 1: in to what God has already done. Don't let worry

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Speaker 1: rob you. If a thief came into your home every

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Speaker 1: week and took your groceries, took your clothing, stole your furniture,

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Speaker 1: it wouldn't take long at all before you got fed

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Speaker 1: up and say no more, that's enough. You'd put a

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Speaker 1: stop to it real quickly. That's what you have to

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Speaker 1: do with worry. Don't go another five years letting worry

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Speaker 1: rob you of your joy, rob you of your peace.

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Speaker 1: Put your foot down and say that's it. This is

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Speaker 1: a new day. No more worrying for me. I'm gonna

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Speaker 1: guard my mind. I'm gonna stay by the still waters.

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna live from a place of peace. Remember, when

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Speaker 1: you rest, God goes to work. But when you work,

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Speaker 1: God rest. Whatever's bothering you, whatever you're tempted to worry about.

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Speaker 1: I'm asking you to take that off the throne and

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Speaker 1: put God back up on the throne. Make him bigger,

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Speaker 1: use that same energy to thank him that he's working

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Speaker 1: in your life. If you'll do this, I believe and

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00:26:04,359 --> 00:26:09,760
Speaker 1: declare you'll experience peace that passes understanding. No matter what

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00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:13,679
Speaker 1: happens on the outside, on the inside, you'll be at rest.

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00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:19,000
Speaker 1: You'll overcome obstacles, You'll accomplish your dreams and become everything

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00:26:19,359 --> 00:26:22,840
Speaker 1: God created you to be. In Jesus's name, if you

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Speaker 1: receive it, can you say them in today? We never

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00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:30,600
Speaker 1: like to close our broadcast without giving you an opportunity

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00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,600
Speaker 1: to make Jesus the lord of your life. Would you

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00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:38,320
Speaker 1: pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I'll repent of

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00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:43,399
Speaker 1: my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my

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00:26:43,520 --> 00:26:47,959
Speaker 1: Lord and savior. Friends, if you prayed that simple prayer,

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00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:50,880
Speaker 1: we believe you got born again. Get in a good

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00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:54,320
Speaker 1: Bible based church. Keep God in first place. He's going

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00:26:54,359 --> 00:26:56,439
Speaker 1: to take your places that you've never dreamed.

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00:26:57,840 --> 00:27:01,840
Speaker 2: It's a new year. Time to see them possible become possible.

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00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:05,480
Speaker 2: It's a new year. Life setbacks are about to become

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00:27:05,560 --> 00:27:10,040
Speaker 2: God's setups for new opportunity. It's a new year. Cherished

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00:27:10,080 --> 00:27:12,720
Speaker 2: dreams will become unexpected reality.

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00:27:13,440 --> 00:27:15,680
Speaker 1: The start of the new year is the perfect time

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00:27:15,720 --> 00:27:19,399
Speaker 1: to reset your focus, release disappointments of the past, and

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00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:22,000
Speaker 1: get ready for the new things. God has in store.

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00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:25,679
Speaker 1: Every January, we create a new three hundred and sixty

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00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:29,240
Speaker 1: five day devotional calendar. I'd love to send it to you.

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00:27:29,680 --> 00:27:34,040
Speaker 1: Each day is filled with inspiration, scripture, and uplifting declarations

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00:27:34,040 --> 00:27:37,040
Speaker 1: to fuel your faith. When you begin the day thanking

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00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:40,440
Speaker 1: God for what He's done, speaking victory over your future,

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00:27:40,920 --> 00:27:45,440
Speaker 1: you're positioning yourself for a blessed, favor filled year. Amazing

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00:27:45,480 --> 00:27:47,960
Speaker 1: things happen when you keep God first place.

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00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,119
Speaker 2: As our way of saying thank you for your gift

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00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:53,800
Speaker 2: of any amount this first month of the year, we

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00:27:53,840 --> 00:27:56,080
Speaker 2: would like to send you a copy of our brand

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00:27:56,119 --> 00:27:59,280
Speaker 2: new three hundred and sixty five day twenty twenty six

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00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:03,200
Speaker 2: devotional calendar. Do you want to overcome your most pressing

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00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:04,960
Speaker 2: challenges in twenty twenty six?

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00:28:05,320 --> 00:28:06,320
Speaker 1: Do you want to see.

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00:28:06,119 --> 00:28:09,840
Speaker 2: Your life take off in new directions of influence, favor,

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00:28:10,080 --> 00:28:13,919
Speaker 2: and provision in the year ahead. With this daily encouragement,

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00:28:14,240 --> 00:28:17,520
Speaker 2: you'll not only smile at your day, You'll be reminded

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00:28:17,600 --> 00:28:21,280
Speaker 2: that God is smiling on your entire life. Each day

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00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:23,000
Speaker 2: will be a fresh new day.

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00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:26,399
Speaker 1: Turn discouragement to encouragement.

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00:28:26,240 --> 00:28:32,800
Speaker 2: Frustration to fulfillment, anxiety to overcoming. Start each morning knowing

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00:28:32,840 --> 00:28:35,800
Speaker 2: that It's God's desire to turn what seems like an

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00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:41,959
Speaker 2: ordinary life into extraordinary favor, strength, and opportunities. Using this

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00:28:42,040 --> 00:28:47,280
Speaker 2: devotional calendar is as easy as one, two three. One

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00:28:47,760 --> 00:28:51,880
Speaker 2: wake up with an expectancy in your heart. Two reflect

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00:28:51,960 --> 00:28:55,600
Speaker 2: on the daily scripture, verse and devotional from Joel. Three

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00:28:56,200 --> 00:29:01,000
Speaker 2: capture the Lord's promises to you on journaling lines and reflection.

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Speaker 1: Twenty twenty six is going to be one of your

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00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:06,720
Speaker 1: best years ever. We're going to help you stay in

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00:29:06,760 --> 00:29:09,360
Speaker 1: faith so you can see the goodness of God in

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00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:12,200
Speaker 1: new ways. Victoria and I pray for you and your

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00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:14,600
Speaker 1: family every day, and we want to thank you for

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00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:19,000
Speaker 1: your prayer and support. Your generosity is impacting lives around

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00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:21,680
Speaker 1: the world. A special thank you to our Champion of

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00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:24,880
Speaker 1: Hope partners for your monthly gifts. You're not a partner,

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00:29:24,920 --> 00:29:28,160
Speaker 1: I hope you'll consider becoming one. Remember you can watch

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00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:33,320
Speaker 1: the services online live every Sunday morning, download our daily podcast,

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00:29:33,720 --> 00:29:37,120
Speaker 1: watch on YouTube or the new Joel ostein Network twenty

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00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:39,920
Speaker 1: four hours a day. Of course, listen live on Serious

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00:29:40,080 --> 00:29:43,200
Speaker 1: XM as well. But until we meet again, May the

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00:29:43,200 --> 00:29:44,800
Speaker 1: Lord bless you and keep you.

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00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:48,480
Speaker 2: Be sure to request your copy of the twenty twenty

487
00:29:48,520 --> 00:29:52,880
Speaker 2: six devotional calendar available this month by simply visiting us

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00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:56,720
Speaker 2: at Joeloustein dot com or calling eight eight eight five

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00:29:56,840 --> 00:30:03,840
Speaker 2: six seven Joel. Also, no matter what season you're in joy, sorrow, waiting, growth,

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00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:08,000
Speaker 2: God wants to speak into each and every moment. God's

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00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:11,840
Speaker 2: Word for Every Season is a guided journal series designed

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00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:15,360
Speaker 2: to help you slow down, write out scripture, and reflect

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00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:18,440
Speaker 2: on its truth, one verse at a time. As you

494
00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:22,800
Speaker 2: engage with His Word, you'll discover fresh strength, deeper peace,

495
00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:27,040
Speaker 2: and timely encouragement for every step of your journey. You

496
00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:30,920
Speaker 2: can request these inspiring resources by calling eight eight eight

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00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:35,000
Speaker 2: five six seven Joel or logging on to Jolostein dot

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00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:39,200
Speaker 2: com today call or click anytime twenty four hours a day.

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00:30:39,680 --> 00:30:41,560
Speaker 2: Request these resources today