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I hope you 35 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:48,880 Speaker 5: enjoy the message. 36 00:01:50,200 --> 00:01:51,160 Speaker 4: Well, God bless you. 37 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:54,400 Speaker 5: It's a joy to come into your homes. If you're 38 00:01:54,440 --> 00:01:57,400 Speaker 5: ever in our area, please stop buying. Be a part 39 00:01:57,440 --> 00:02:00,360 Speaker 5: of one of our services. I promise you will make 40 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 5: you feel right at home. I like to start with 41 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:06,000 Speaker 5: something funny, and I heard about this man. He was 42 00:02:06,120 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 5: driving through an intersection that was monitored by cameras. If 43 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:12,640 Speaker 5: he ran the light or broke the law in any way, 44 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:15,720 Speaker 5: you'd receive a ticket in the mail, so he made 45 00:02:15,760 --> 00:02:18,840 Speaker 5: sure to go through it extra slowly. But he noticed 46 00:02:18,840 --> 00:02:21,919 Speaker 5: the camera flashed and took his picture. He thought, that's 47 00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:25,160 Speaker 5: not right. He turned around and drove through it even 48 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:28,400 Speaker 5: more slowly. Once again, the camera flashed. 49 00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:31,880 Speaker 4: He thought, this thing is messed up. They cannot give 50 00:02:31,919 --> 00:02:32,560 Speaker 4: me a ticket. 51 00:02:32,800 --> 00:02:35,519 Speaker 5: Out of spite, he drove through it three more times, 52 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:38,480 Speaker 5: each time waving at the camera with a big smile. 53 00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:42,000 Speaker 5: A week later, he received five tickets. 54 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 4: In the mail for not wearing his seat belt. Say 55 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:46,360 Speaker 4: it like you mean it. 56 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:49,799 Speaker 5: This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 57 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:52,720 Speaker 5: I have what it says I have. I can do 58 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 5: what it says I can do. Today I will be 59 00:02:55,560 --> 00:02:59,400 Speaker 5: taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind 60 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:02,680 Speaker 5: is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 61 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 5: the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 62 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:11,640 Speaker 5: to talk to you today about pruned for promotion. We 63 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:15,079 Speaker 5: all go through times where it feels like we're going backwards. 64 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:19,560 Speaker 5: We were doing so good. Business was strong, our family 65 00:03:19,680 --> 00:03:22,919 Speaker 5: was happy. We knew we had God's favor, but then 66 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:27,160 Speaker 5: things turned. We lost a major client, our child didn't 67 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:30,040 Speaker 5: get the scholarship, a friend walked away. 68 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:32,639 Speaker 4: We wonder what happened? What did we do wrong? 69 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:37,080 Speaker 5: But just because you're having difficulties and things you don't 70 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:42,080 Speaker 5: understand doesn't mean you're not in God's will. God is 71 00:03:42,320 --> 00:03:47,880 Speaker 5: ordering our steps. Sometimes he will order a cutback. Just 72 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,560 Speaker 5: as there are seasons of growth, there are seasons of pruning. 73 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:56,240 Speaker 5: Without the pruning, we won't become all we were created 74 00:03:56,280 --> 00:03:59,960 Speaker 5: to be. And God won't allow a cutback if it's 75 00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:02,600 Speaker 5: not going to eventually work for your good. 76 00:04:03,480 --> 00:04:03,960 Speaker 3: It may be. 77 00:04:04,040 --> 00:04:08,360 Speaker 5: Uncomfortable, you don't understand it. You lost a contract, you 78 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:13,000 Speaker 5: lost a relationship, lost an opportunity. God wouldn't have let 79 00:04:13,040 --> 00:04:15,600 Speaker 5: you lose that if he wasn't going to give you 80 00:04:15,680 --> 00:04:19,359 Speaker 5: something better. He may have proned a friend out of 81 00:04:19,400 --> 00:04:22,719 Speaker 5: your life. There's a better friend coming. You may have 82 00:04:22,839 --> 00:04:25,960 Speaker 5: lost a job. There's a better job on the way. 83 00:04:26,120 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 5: You suffer to setback in your health, Better health is 84 00:04:29,440 --> 00:04:33,599 Speaker 5: in your future. Don't be discouraged by the cutback. It's 85 00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 5: a sign new growth is coming. Jesus said in John fifteen, 86 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:40,200 Speaker 5: I am the vine. 87 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:43,560 Speaker 4: You are the branches. My father is the gardener. 88 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:49,040 Speaker 5: Every branch that doesn't produce fruit he cuts away. This 89 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:51,920 Speaker 5: makes sense when we have things in life that are 90 00:04:51,960 --> 00:04:55,880 Speaker 5: not productive. A friend pulling us down, a job not 91 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:59,800 Speaker 5: leading anywhere. He'll cut those things away so we can 92 00:04:59,839 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 5: put our attention and focus on the things that are 93 00:05:02,720 --> 00:05:07,760 Speaker 5: moving us forward. We can understand losing something that's not 94 00:05:07,839 --> 00:05:12,479 Speaker 5: adding value. But he goes on to say, every branch 95 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:17,240 Speaker 5: that does bear fruit, the gardener cuts back so it 96 00:05:17,279 --> 00:05:18,800 Speaker 5: will bear more fruit. 97 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:22,640 Speaker 4: The only way to go from fruit to more fruit 98 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:24,119 Speaker 4: is to be cut back. 99 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,679 Speaker 5: There are times in life where we will lose something 100 00:05:28,760 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 5: that doesn't make sense. You're going to work with a 101 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:37,320 Speaker 5: good attitude, helping others, faithfully raising your children. You're doing 102 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:40,960 Speaker 5: the right thing, but the wrong thing happens. Instead of 103 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:47,080 Speaker 5: being discouraged, slacking off, having no passion, recognize it's a 104 00:05:47,200 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 5: pruning season. Without that cutback, you won't see new growth. 105 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:56,120 Speaker 5: You may be satisfied to stay where you are, not 106 00:05:56,240 --> 00:06:00,000 Speaker 5: be uncomfortable, not rock the boat. But God is not satisy. 107 00:06:00,839 --> 00:06:04,160 Speaker 5: He loves you too much to let you miss your destiny. 108 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:08,880 Speaker 5: He has new levels in front of you. Will you trust. 109 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:10,520 Speaker 4: Him in the cutback seasons? 110 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:13,800 Speaker 5: Will you keep doing the right thing in the times 111 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:17,200 Speaker 5: of pruning, when things have gone backwards, when. 112 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:18,320 Speaker 4: You could be discouraged. 113 00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:23,400 Speaker 5: Jesus said, if you abide in Me, you will bear 114 00:06:23,880 --> 00:06:24,520 Speaker 5: much fruit. 115 00:06:25,400 --> 00:06:26,280 Speaker 4: He talks in this. 116 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:31,039 Speaker 5: Passage about fruit, more fruit, and much fruit. The way 117 00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:36,400 Speaker 5: to increase is simply by abiding. He was saying, when 118 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:40,200 Speaker 5: things happen you don't understand, things that don't make sense. 119 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:44,240 Speaker 5: When you could be bitter, you could slack off instead. 120 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:48,440 Speaker 5: If you'll trust me, if you'll believe I'm still directing 121 00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:52,000 Speaker 5: your steps, if you'll praise me even when it's not fair. 122 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:55,960 Speaker 5: If you'll stay faithful when you could be frustrated, If 123 00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:59,560 Speaker 5: you'll abide, that means you keep doing the right thing, 124 00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:02,640 Speaker 5: keep a smile on your face, you keep being good 125 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:06,840 Speaker 5: to people, you keep expecting God's favor. Then you're passing 126 00:07:06,920 --> 00:07:11,160 Speaker 5: the test. You'll come into more fruit. When you prove 127 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:15,640 Speaker 5: to God that you'll be faithful in the cutback seasons, he'll. 128 00:07:15,440 --> 00:07:17,400 Speaker 4: Release you into much fruit. 129 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:20,480 Speaker 5: He'll take you where you could not go on your own. 130 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:24,240 Speaker 5: But we're not going to see these new levels without 131 00:07:24,280 --> 00:07:29,000 Speaker 5: going through seasons of losing things. We don't understand, seasons 132 00:07:29,000 --> 00:07:32,320 Speaker 5: that are uncomfortable, seasons where what worked in the. 133 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:36,000 Speaker 4: Past is not working now. Don't be discouraged. 134 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:39,640 Speaker 5: The cutback season is all a part of the process. 135 00:07:40,040 --> 00:07:44,280 Speaker 5: It's a sign that new growth is coming. I talked 136 00:07:44,320 --> 00:07:47,800 Speaker 5: to a man. The company he worked for sold. They 137 00:07:47,880 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 5: let all the employees go, and for the longest time 138 00:07:51,520 --> 00:07:54,559 Speaker 5: he couldn't find a new job. He ended up having 139 00:07:54,600 --> 00:07:57,960 Speaker 5: to move back home to another state. He was living 140 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:01,200 Speaker 5: with his mother. He's in his field, he said. I 141 00:08:01,240 --> 00:08:03,160 Speaker 5: never dreamed I'd be here at my age. 142 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:04,480 Speaker 4: I don't know what happened. 143 00:08:05,120 --> 00:08:08,320 Speaker 5: I told him what I'm telling you. You came into 144 00:08:08,360 --> 00:08:12,480 Speaker 5: a cutback season. It's not a surprise to God. Now, 145 00:08:12,520 --> 00:08:15,560 Speaker 5: whether you stay there or not depends on what you do. 146 00:08:16,360 --> 00:08:18,840 Speaker 5: If you get better, complain. 147 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:21,880 Speaker 4: Talk about how bad life is, then you'll get stuck. 148 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:26,480 Speaker 5: But when you recognize that cutback is a sign that 149 00:08:26,600 --> 00:08:30,640 Speaker 5: new growth is coming, that more fruit is in your future, 150 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:34,600 Speaker 5: that God is getting you prepared for new levels, you 151 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:38,040 Speaker 5: make this decision to trust him, to believe that he's 152 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:42,199 Speaker 5: in control, then things are going to change in your favor. 153 00:08:42,600 --> 00:08:44,040 Speaker 4: You're going to see new. 154 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:47,800 Speaker 5: Doors begin to open. I saw him about a year later. 155 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:50,920 Speaker 5: He had a new job. He had just moved into 156 00:08:50,960 --> 00:08:54,480 Speaker 5: a beautiful new house. He said, Joel, I am happier 157 00:08:54,760 --> 00:08:58,200 Speaker 5: and more fulfilled than I've ever been. Don't let the 158 00:08:58,320 --> 00:09:01,920 Speaker 5: cutback fool you. The enemy didn't get control of the 159 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:05,880 Speaker 5: pruning years. He didn't overtake God, and now he's directing 160 00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:06,560 Speaker 5: your steps. 161 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:08,440 Speaker 4: God is still in control. 162 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:13,440 Speaker 5: You may not light the cutback, it may not make sense. 163 00:09:13,960 --> 00:09:15,640 Speaker 5: This is what faith is all about. 164 00:09:16,440 --> 00:09:19,160 Speaker 4: God. I don't understand it, but I trust you. 165 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:22,120 Speaker 5: I know you wouldn't have allowed it if you didn't 166 00:09:22,200 --> 00:09:22,920 Speaker 5: have a purpose. 167 00:09:23,280 --> 00:09:25,560 Speaker 4: I want to thank you that I'm not just going 168 00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:27,640 Speaker 4: to come out, but I'm going to come out better. 169 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:32,040 Speaker 5: But I wonder how many times we're fighting what God 170 00:09:32,080 --> 00:09:32,840 Speaker 5: has ordained. 171 00:09:33,600 --> 00:09:35,480 Speaker 4: Now. I believe in standing. 172 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:42,080 Speaker 5: Against sicknesses, addictions, dysfunction, But every difficulty is not the enemy. 173 00:09:42,520 --> 00:09:45,520 Speaker 4: It's the gardener. God prunes us. 174 00:09:45,920 --> 00:09:49,800 Speaker 5: He cuts things back, not to limit us, but to 175 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:54,280 Speaker 5: get us prepared for new growth. Are you discouraged over 176 00:09:54,360 --> 00:09:58,240 Speaker 5: something you lost, something that didn't work out, thinking the 177 00:09:58,400 --> 00:10:01,440 Speaker 5: enemy is hindering you, when in fact it's the hand 178 00:10:01,480 --> 00:10:05,240 Speaker 5: of God. We give the enemy too much credit. He 179 00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:10,200 Speaker 5: can't touch you without God's permission. We believe that God 180 00:10:10,320 --> 00:10:12,920 Speaker 5: is directing our steps When good things are happening. 181 00:10:13,559 --> 00:10:14,840 Speaker 4: It's easy to thank him. 182 00:10:14,960 --> 00:10:18,840 Speaker 5: In the harvest seasons, the growing seasons, the promotion seasons. 183 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:23,280 Speaker 5: But in the pruning seasons. You have to dig down deep. 184 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:28,079 Speaker 5: Your praise in the cutback seasons carries more weight than 185 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:33,160 Speaker 5: in the harvest seasons. You're not only showing God that 186 00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:35,359 Speaker 5: you trust him, but God. 187 00:10:35,240 --> 00:10:38,920 Speaker 4: Is doing a work in you. Your character is being developed. 188 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:43,720 Speaker 5: Your spiritual muscles are getting stronger. We may not like 189 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:48,800 Speaker 5: the pruning seasons, but God is the gardener. He knows 190 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:52,280 Speaker 5: when to cut something back or will get stuck. He 191 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:55,319 Speaker 5: is not going to cut something back without giving. 192 00:10:55,040 --> 00:10:58,120 Speaker 4: You more in return. Dare to trust him. 193 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:01,800 Speaker 5: A couple of years ago, I planted some trees along 194 00:11:01,880 --> 00:11:05,000 Speaker 5: my fence in the backyard to help block the view. 195 00:11:05,600 --> 00:11:08,240 Speaker 5: I bought the biggest ones I could find. They were 196 00:11:08,240 --> 00:11:11,400 Speaker 5: about fifteen feet tall, and they're the type that form 197 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:14,920 Speaker 5: a thick hedge that you can't see through. They're outside 198 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:18,600 Speaker 5: my kitchen window, and I was constantly checking their growth. 199 00:11:19,040 --> 00:11:21,559 Speaker 5: I could measure how close they were getting to the 200 00:11:21,600 --> 00:11:22,600 Speaker 5: telephone lines. 201 00:11:22,840 --> 00:11:24,040 Speaker 4: They were doing really good. 202 00:11:24,760 --> 00:11:27,520 Speaker 5: About six months later, the men that helps with my 203 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,840 Speaker 5: landscaping said it's time to trim the bushes, trim the 204 00:11:30,880 --> 00:11:32,080 Speaker 5: trees and ask if. 205 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:32,640 Speaker 4: It was okay. 206 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 5: I told him yes, but not to touch the trees 207 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:40,360 Speaker 5: along the back fence. I wanted that thick hedge. He said, okay, 208 00:11:40,800 --> 00:11:43,760 Speaker 5: but they're not going to grow like they should. I said, 209 00:11:43,760 --> 00:11:46,440 Speaker 5: what do you mean. He said, When we prune them, 210 00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:50,600 Speaker 5: it stimulates new growth. If we don't cut them back, 211 00:11:50,800 --> 00:11:53,720 Speaker 5: they won't be as tall and thick as they should be. 212 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:58,880 Speaker 5: I'm not a gardener. I thought, just the opposite. They're growing, 213 00:11:59,040 --> 00:12:03,000 Speaker 5: they're doing good. Don't bother them. The gardener knew if 214 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:05,920 Speaker 5: he didn't bother them, if he didn't take them through 215 00:12:05,960 --> 00:12:09,280 Speaker 5: a cutback, it would actually limit their growth. 216 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:13,400 Speaker 4: Next year, they wouldn't be where they should In the 217 00:12:13,440 --> 00:12:14,480 Speaker 4: same way. 218 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:17,960 Speaker 5: God is your gardener. He's not going to cut you 219 00:12:18,080 --> 00:12:21,240 Speaker 5: back without a purpose. He's not going to prune you 220 00:12:21,600 --> 00:12:24,960 Speaker 5: if it's not leading to more fruit. It may not 221 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:27,920 Speaker 5: make sense to you. You feel like you're going the 222 00:12:27,960 --> 00:12:28,720 Speaker 5: wrong direction. 223 00:12:29,120 --> 00:12:30,439 Speaker 4: God knows what he's doing. 224 00:12:31,320 --> 00:12:34,480 Speaker 5: That landscaper said to me, let me trim them and 225 00:12:34,679 --> 00:12:36,480 Speaker 5: watch where they'll be next year. 226 00:12:37,080 --> 00:12:40,120 Speaker 4: You'll be surprised at how big and full they are. 227 00:12:41,160 --> 00:12:44,360 Speaker 5: You may have been cut back. God is saying, watch 228 00:12:44,440 --> 00:12:45,960 Speaker 5: where you're going to be next year. 229 00:12:46,679 --> 00:12:49,040 Speaker 4: Watch the people that are going to come into your. 230 00:12:48,920 --> 00:12:53,319 Speaker 5: Life, Watch the opportunities, the new doors that are about 231 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:56,640 Speaker 5: to open. You won't be complaining about the cutback. 232 00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:57,960 Speaker 4: You'll be saying, Lord. 233 00:12:58,000 --> 00:13:01,040 Speaker 5: Thank you for pruning me, thank you for getting me prepared, 234 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,480 Speaker 5: thank you for taking me to new levels. What I 235 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:07,680 Speaker 5: want us to see is the pruning is not because 236 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:11,240 Speaker 5: you've done something wrong. It's not because God has forgotten 237 00:13:11,280 --> 00:13:11,840 Speaker 5: about you. 238 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:16,520 Speaker 4: It's a test. Will you abide? Will you stay in faith? 239 00:13:17,600 --> 00:13:21,959 Speaker 5: Yes, the pruning seasons are not comfortable. We don't like it, 240 00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:25,200 Speaker 5: but it's all a part of the process. It's what 241 00:13:25,520 --> 00:13:29,079 Speaker 5: leads to much fruit. But you can't get too much 242 00:13:29,240 --> 00:13:32,800 Speaker 5: without being cut back. If you don't understand this, you'll 243 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:37,320 Speaker 5: be frustrated. Joel, I come every Sunday. I volunteer at 244 00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:41,280 Speaker 5: the hospital. I'm always cheering people up, and now I'm 245 00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:42,120 Speaker 5: the one that's down. 246 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:43,240 Speaker 4: I had a bad break. 247 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:47,880 Speaker 5: That's not the enemy trying to stop you. That's God getting. 248 00:13:47,600 --> 00:13:49,280 Speaker 4: You prepared for new levels. 249 00:13:50,040 --> 00:13:55,040 Speaker 5: The apostle Paul never prayed for God to remove his difficulties. 250 00:13:55,559 --> 00:13:59,160 Speaker 5: He prayed that God would give him strength to endure 251 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:02,920 Speaker 5: whatever came his way. And if we could pray away 252 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:04,960 Speaker 5: the cutback seasons. 253 00:14:04,840 --> 00:14:05,920 Speaker 4: Jesus would have done it. 254 00:14:06,559 --> 00:14:10,480 Speaker 5: The scripture says he endured the pain of the cross, 255 00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:13,240 Speaker 5: looking forward to the joy that was coming. 256 00:14:14,200 --> 00:14:16,360 Speaker 4: Some things we have to endure. 257 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,720 Speaker 5: The way to do it is to know that it's 258 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:23,080 Speaker 5: not permanent, and to know that you're going to come 259 00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:28,120 Speaker 5: out better. Keep reminding yourself that cutback is leading. 260 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:28,760 Speaker 4: To new growth. 261 00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:33,320 Speaker 5: And what's interesting is God cuts us back when we're 262 00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:37,680 Speaker 5: bearing fruit, not when we're off course doing things wrong, 263 00:14:37,920 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 5: but when we're doing things. 264 00:14:39,120 --> 00:14:41,160 Speaker 4: Right, when good things are happening. 265 00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:44,800 Speaker 5: Now, I could have taken the pruning shears and thought, 266 00:14:44,800 --> 00:14:46,400 Speaker 5: I'm gonna save some money this year. 267 00:14:46,560 --> 00:14:48,040 Speaker 4: I'm gonna trim my own trees. 268 00:14:48,720 --> 00:14:51,960 Speaker 5: The problem is I don't know when to prune, and 269 00:14:52,040 --> 00:14:55,280 Speaker 5: I don't know where to prove. Some plants need to 270 00:14:55,320 --> 00:14:58,280 Speaker 5: be cut back in the spring. Others cut back in 271 00:14:58,320 --> 00:14:58,760 Speaker 5: the fall. 272 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:01,080 Speaker 4: Sometimes you you may skip a season. 273 00:15:01,920 --> 00:15:06,280 Speaker 5: Pruning shears in the wrong hands can be detrimental. I 274 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:09,840 Speaker 5: can have good intentions and cut at the wrong time 275 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:13,840 Speaker 5: at the wrong place and damage my trees. Do more 276 00:15:13,840 --> 00:15:17,240 Speaker 5: harm than good. When Victoria and I were first married, 277 00:15:17,600 --> 00:15:20,800 Speaker 5: she said, Joel, let me put some blonde highlights in 278 00:15:20,880 --> 00:15:23,560 Speaker 5: your hair, just to lighten it up and give you 279 00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:24,320 Speaker 5: a new look. 280 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:26,760 Speaker 4: You know this is not going to turn out good. 281 00:15:27,080 --> 00:15:30,200 Speaker 5: I was so in love and so dumb, I mean, 282 00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:31,080 Speaker 5: so respectful. 283 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:34,320 Speaker 4: I would let her do anything she asked. So she 284 00:15:34,440 --> 00:15:35,120 Speaker 4: put these. 285 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:38,360 Speaker 5: Blonde highlights in my hair. I had foiled all through it. 286 00:15:38,680 --> 00:15:41,320 Speaker 5: We had to wait thirty minutes. When she took the 287 00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:46,840 Speaker 5: foil off, Victoria started laughing and laughing. Now, when Victoria 288 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:51,560 Speaker 5: is nervous or afraid, she doesn't panic, she doesn't get upset. 289 00:15:51,760 --> 00:15:54,840 Speaker 4: She laughs. I knew this was not a good sign. 290 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:57,360 Speaker 5: When I looked in the mirror, my hair was as 291 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:01,920 Speaker 5: orange as conved Victoria, you have to put it back, 292 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:03,480 Speaker 5: She laughed and said. 293 00:16:03,400 --> 00:16:06,800 Speaker 4: I don't know how. Here's my point. 294 00:16:07,160 --> 00:16:10,720 Speaker 5: The right tools in the wrong hands can be dangerous. 295 00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:16,400 Speaker 5: The good news is God is your gardener. He's the 296 00:16:16,480 --> 00:16:20,200 Speaker 5: only one that can prune you. He's in control of 297 00:16:20,240 --> 00:16:24,200 Speaker 5: your cutbacks. When Satan wanted to test job, he couldn't 298 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:27,520 Speaker 5: go in and get the pruning shears do whatever he wanted. 299 00:16:27,920 --> 00:16:31,120 Speaker 5: He had to ask God for permission. When you go 300 00:16:31,240 --> 00:16:35,680 Speaker 5: through a cutback, a loss, things you don't understand, remind 301 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:37,440 Speaker 5: yourself God has. 302 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:38,240 Speaker 4: The pruning shears. 303 00:16:39,040 --> 00:16:41,680 Speaker 5: He is not going to prune you to where you 304 00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:46,160 Speaker 5: end up with less less joy, less strength, less resources 305 00:16:46,560 --> 00:16:51,120 Speaker 5: That may happen temporarily, but if you'll keep abiding, that 306 00:16:51,240 --> 00:16:55,640 Speaker 5: cutback is leading to more fruit. God wouldn't have allowed 307 00:16:55,680 --> 00:16:57,880 Speaker 5: it if he wasn't going to bring you out. 308 00:16:57,720 --> 00:17:00,760 Speaker 4: Better, stronger, wiser, with new growth. 309 00:17:01,440 --> 00:17:05,240 Speaker 5: You may be in a cutback season now, wondering how 310 00:17:05,280 --> 00:17:07,400 Speaker 5: you went from doing great to where you are. 311 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:09,480 Speaker 4: You were being your best. 312 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:12,760 Speaker 5: Looks like you've lost ground, yes, but. 313 00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:14,240 Speaker 4: That loss is not permanent. 314 00:17:14,800 --> 00:17:18,399 Speaker 5: What you can't see is that cutback is setting you 315 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:21,760 Speaker 5: up for new levels. You're about to come into a 316 00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:26,400 Speaker 5: season of much fruit, a season where you see increase 317 00:17:26,560 --> 00:17:31,679 Speaker 5: like you've never seen. Good breaks, promotions, relationships better than 318 00:17:31,720 --> 00:17:36,359 Speaker 5: you've imagined. A while back, a cable network that aired 319 00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:40,159 Speaker 5: our services on Sunday nights informed us that they were 320 00:17:40,240 --> 00:17:43,320 Speaker 5: going to start running movies. At that time, they had 321 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:46,600 Speaker 5: to cancel our contract. We had been on this network 322 00:17:46,680 --> 00:17:50,560 Speaker 5: for thirty five years. We had a loyal audience, people 323 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:53,560 Speaker 5: that watched us there faithfully each week. I thought, God, 324 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:55,960 Speaker 5: I don't want to go backwards. I want to go forward. 325 00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:59,200 Speaker 5: That was one of our best outlets here. We were 326 00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:03,960 Speaker 5: doing the right we were bearing fruit, people were being helped. 327 00:18:04,560 --> 00:18:08,480 Speaker 5: But sometimes God closes a door that we don't understand. 328 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:13,320 Speaker 5: I've been buying airtime way back with my father's ministry 329 00:18:13,320 --> 00:18:17,520 Speaker 5: for many years. There's nothing available on Sunday nights, especially 330 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:22,679 Speaker 5: commercial television. It looked like this cutback was permanent. About 331 00:18:22,680 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 5: six months later, a men we work with called said Joel, 332 00:18:26,200 --> 00:18:30,000 Speaker 5: I couldn't find another cable network on Sunday nights, but 333 00:18:30,119 --> 00:18:34,639 Speaker 5: I did get the broadcast networks like CBS and ABC. 334 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:39,359 Speaker 5: They agreed to move their programming Sunday nights after the 335 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:43,520 Speaker 5: news so they could air your program The audience on 336 00:18:43,600 --> 00:18:47,040 Speaker 5: the broadcast stations is three times what it was. 337 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 4: On the cable network. 338 00:18:48,880 --> 00:18:52,560 Speaker 5: I went from fruit to more fruit. Notice how it happened. 339 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:53,680 Speaker 4: I was cut back. 340 00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:57,280 Speaker 5: I didn't understand it. It didn't seem like a good 341 00:18:57,359 --> 00:19:00,240 Speaker 5: thing at the time. But now I say, Lord, thank 342 00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:03,080 Speaker 5: you for cutting me back. Thank you for opening doors 343 00:19:03,119 --> 00:19:06,880 Speaker 5: I never dreamed would open. Thank you for ordering my steps. 344 00:19:07,720 --> 00:19:12,520 Speaker 5: The cutback you're disappointed with now, if you'll keep abiding, 345 00:19:13,040 --> 00:19:17,280 Speaker 5: thanking God being your best, one day you'll look back 346 00:19:17,320 --> 00:19:19,000 Speaker 5: and say with me, Lord. 347 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:19,920 Speaker 4: Thank you. 348 00:19:19,920 --> 00:19:22,560 Speaker 5: Your ways are better than my ways. You could see 349 00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 5: things that I couldn't see. Trust him in the cutback seasons, 350 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:31,200 Speaker 5: believe that he's still directing your steps. Remember he has 351 00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:35,280 Speaker 5: the pruning shears. The enemy cannot cut you back. God 352 00:19:35,359 --> 00:19:39,160 Speaker 5: has a hedge of protection around you. In the Scripture 353 00:19:39,160 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 5: of God told Abraham to take his son Isaac on 354 00:19:43,080 --> 00:19:46,520 Speaker 5: top of a mountain and sacrifice him. We think of 355 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,919 Speaker 5: Isaac as being a little boy, but most scholars believe 356 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:53,479 Speaker 5: he was in his late teams. The scripture says he 357 00:19:53,560 --> 00:19:56,919 Speaker 5: carried a pile of wood on his shoulders for the fire. 358 00:19:57,680 --> 00:20:02,000 Speaker 5: He could have resisted laying on the alter, resisted letting 359 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:05,280 Speaker 5: his father tie him up, but he was willing to 360 00:20:05,359 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 5: go through with it. I believe one reason is because 361 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:10,520 Speaker 5: he knew. 362 00:20:10,600 --> 00:20:14,239 Speaker 4: The knife was in the right hands. He knew he 363 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:15,560 Speaker 4: could trust his father. 364 00:20:16,400 --> 00:20:20,080 Speaker 5: When you understand the pruning shears are in your heavenly 365 00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:23,720 Speaker 5: father's hands. When you know he won't cut you back 366 00:20:23,880 --> 00:20:28,919 Speaker 5: without a purpose, that whatever he takes away temporarily is 367 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:32,480 Speaker 5: so he can bring you out with more than Like Isaac. 368 00:20:33,119 --> 00:20:36,920 Speaker 5: You won't fight the cutback seasons. You won't be better. 369 00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:39,400 Speaker 4: God, I was doing my best. Why did this happen? 370 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:43,919 Speaker 5: You trust your father, You know he's in control of 371 00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:48,199 Speaker 5: the cutbacks. He wouldn't have taken you backwards if he 372 00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:48,920 Speaker 5: wasn't going to. 373 00:20:48,880 --> 00:20:50,720 Speaker 4: Bring you out with much fruit. 374 00:20:51,600 --> 00:20:55,760 Speaker 5: Now I've learned God's idea of much is very different 375 00:20:55,840 --> 00:20:59,280 Speaker 5: than our idea of much. You think you're blessed, now 376 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:02,840 Speaker 5: you haven't anything yet, you should see what God. 377 00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:03,600 Speaker 4: Has in store for you. 378 00:21:04,640 --> 00:21:08,520 Speaker 5: I thought I was doing good all those years working 379 00:21:08,560 --> 00:21:12,080 Speaker 5: behind the scenes with my parents, putting my father's ministry 380 00:21:12,119 --> 00:21:15,320 Speaker 5: on television. I never dreamed one day I would be 381 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:18,320 Speaker 5: up here, people would be watching all over the world. 382 00:21:18,480 --> 00:21:20,879 Speaker 5: I went from fruit to more fruit, to much fruit. 383 00:21:21,600 --> 00:21:25,720 Speaker 5: But what brought me here was it necessarily the good times, 384 00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:29,720 Speaker 5: the times everything fell into place. It was the cutbacks, 385 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:33,399 Speaker 5: the things I didn't understand, the loss of my father. 386 00:21:34,119 --> 00:21:37,160 Speaker 5: But in all those times that didn't make sense, I've 387 00:21:37,240 --> 00:21:41,080 Speaker 5: learned I can trust the one who has the crooning shares. 388 00:21:41,359 --> 00:21:44,960 Speaker 5: I know the enemy cannot cut me back. So I've 389 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:48,640 Speaker 5: done my best to just keep abiding, being faithful when 390 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:51,840 Speaker 5: I could be frustrated, doing the right thing when the 391 00:21:51,880 --> 00:21:56,080 Speaker 5: wrong thing was happening, Thanking God through the disappointments, through 392 00:21:56,119 --> 00:21:58,600 Speaker 5: the lass, through the times that didn't seem fair. 393 00:22:00,119 --> 00:22:01,000 Speaker 4: Keep abiding. 394 00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:04,880 Speaker 5: At one point you'll come out of the cutback season 395 00:22:05,200 --> 00:22:09,159 Speaker 5: into a growing season out of not having enough into 396 00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:12,919 Speaker 5: having more than enough. Steve Jobs was one of the 397 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:15,160 Speaker 5: most brilliant minds of our generation. 398 00:22:15,800 --> 00:22:17,280 Speaker 4: He founded Apple Computer. 399 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:21,720 Speaker 5: It grew larger and larger, became very successful, but over 400 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:26,280 Speaker 5: the years he had conflict with his board. Eventually they 401 00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:29,760 Speaker 5: voted him out. He was fired from the company that 402 00:22:29,840 --> 00:22:33,160 Speaker 5: he founded. It didn't seem fair. He could have lived 403 00:22:33,160 --> 00:22:37,960 Speaker 5: bitter upset. Instead, he went out and started another company. 404 00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:41,960 Speaker 4: It became so successful. A few years later. 405 00:22:42,160 --> 00:22:45,480 Speaker 5: Apple bought his company, brought him back. 406 00:22:45,280 --> 00:22:47,080 Speaker 4: And put him in charge. 407 00:22:47,119 --> 00:22:49,920 Speaker 5: He said, if I had not been fired by Apple, 408 00:22:50,359 --> 00:22:53,240 Speaker 5: I would have never developed these skills that have made 409 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:56,960 Speaker 5: me into who I am. God knows what he's doing. 410 00:22:57,480 --> 00:22:59,920 Speaker 4: He's not going to let you be cut back without 411 00:23:00,119 --> 00:23:00,680 Speaker 4: a purpose. 412 00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:03,600 Speaker 5: It may look like a bad break, but if you'll 413 00:23:03,680 --> 00:23:06,600 Speaker 5: keep the right attitude, you'll see how it will all 414 00:23:06,680 --> 00:23:11,560 Speaker 5: work to your advantage. He knows when to take something away. 415 00:23:11,720 --> 00:23:14,760 Speaker 5: It is not to limit us, it's to promote us. 416 00:23:15,800 --> 00:23:19,880 Speaker 5: If that person left you, it wasn't an accident. Their 417 00:23:19,960 --> 00:23:23,600 Speaker 5: part in your story was over. God pruned them. Now 418 00:23:23,680 --> 00:23:28,000 Speaker 5: keep moving forward. If that project didn't last, it wasn't 419 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:32,840 Speaker 5: supposed to. God closed the door don't sit around discourage thinking, 420 00:23:32,920 --> 00:23:37,120 Speaker 5: poor old me. Like Steve, You're being pruned to bear 421 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:40,520 Speaker 5: much fruit. Get ready for the new thing God is 422 00:23:40,520 --> 00:23:43,399 Speaker 5: about to do. Get ready for new levels of favor, 423 00:23:43,880 --> 00:23:47,960 Speaker 5: new levels of abundance. This is what my father did. 424 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:52,520 Speaker 5: Back in the nineteen fifties. He was pastoring a thriving church. 425 00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:56,240 Speaker 5: They had just built a beautiful new sanctuary. He had 426 00:23:56,320 --> 00:23:58,800 Speaker 5: seven hundred members. That was a big deal. 427 00:23:58,880 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 4: Back then. 428 00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:03,119 Speaker 5: He was on the state board for his denomination. His 429 00:24:03,240 --> 00:24:07,320 Speaker 5: future looked very bright. My sister Lisa was born with 430 00:24:07,359 --> 00:24:11,720 Speaker 5: something like cerebral palsy. My father began to search the 431 00:24:11,800 --> 00:24:15,439 Speaker 5: scriptures in a new light. He saw how God is 432 00:24:15,480 --> 00:24:18,520 Speaker 5: a healer and how he wants us to live a blessed, 433 00:24:18,680 --> 00:24:23,879 Speaker 5: victorious life. He thought the congregation would be excited about 434 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:25,280 Speaker 5: his new message. 435 00:24:24,880 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 4: Of faith and victory. It was just the opposite. 436 00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:32,480 Speaker 5: It didn't fit into their denominational teaching, and there was 437 00:24:32,560 --> 00:24:36,439 Speaker 5: a lot of opposition. They ended up asking my father 438 00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:41,600 Speaker 5: to leave. He was devastated. Lifelong friends never spoke to 439 00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:44,800 Speaker 5: my mother again. Didn't make sense. It didn't seem fair. 440 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:47,679 Speaker 5: He could have been bitter God, Why did this happen? 441 00:24:47,840 --> 00:24:48,960 Speaker 5: I was being my best. 442 00:24:49,119 --> 00:24:50,440 Speaker 4: Why did I go backwards? 443 00:24:51,119 --> 00:24:56,320 Speaker 5: He understood every branch that bears fruit will be cut back, 444 00:24:56,920 --> 00:24:59,760 Speaker 5: not to stay at a loss, not to live defeated, 445 00:25:00,080 --> 00:25:04,720 Speaker 5: but for one reason, to bear much fruit. Sometimes the 446 00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:09,760 Speaker 5: favor of God is disguised as a cutback. It takes 447 00:25:09,880 --> 00:25:13,760 Speaker 5: maturity to distinguish between the enemy trying to stop you 448 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:15,560 Speaker 5: and the gardener at work. 449 00:25:16,359 --> 00:25:18,520 Speaker 4: Too often we're discouraged over what. 450 00:25:18,600 --> 00:25:22,440 Speaker 5: God has ordained. Instead of being sour. My parents went 451 00:25:22,480 --> 00:25:26,920 Speaker 5: out and started Lakewood. They didn't have a beautiful new sanctuary. 452 00:25:27,400 --> 00:25:31,159 Speaker 5: They had an old Rundown feed store. They didn't have 453 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:35,639 Speaker 5: seven hundred people. They only had ninety. A cutback looked 454 00:25:35,640 --> 00:25:39,240 Speaker 5: like they were going the wrong direction. There are times 455 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:43,400 Speaker 5: God will take you backwards before he thrust you forward. 456 00:25:44,119 --> 00:25:46,560 Speaker 4: The cutback season is a test. 457 00:25:47,240 --> 00:25:49,679 Speaker 5: He's seeing what are you going to do when you 458 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:53,720 Speaker 5: have a bad break. It didn't work out. You worked hard, 459 00:25:53,800 --> 00:25:56,159 Speaker 5: but the business didn't make it. You were good to 460 00:25:56,240 --> 00:26:00,159 Speaker 5: that person, but they walked away. What you do in 461 00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:04,040 Speaker 5: the pruning seasons will determine whether you stay there or 462 00:26:04,080 --> 00:26:10,560 Speaker 5: whether you come out better. My parents just kept abiding, giving, serving, loving. 463 00:26:11,000 --> 00:26:13,800 Speaker 5: They didn't focus on what they didn't have. They thanked 464 00:26:13,800 --> 00:26:17,400 Speaker 5: God for what they did have. This didn't happen overnight, 465 00:26:17,600 --> 00:26:20,720 Speaker 5: but like God promised, they went from more fruit to 466 00:26:20,880 --> 00:26:24,760 Speaker 5: much fruit. Lakewood grew to a church of many thousands. 467 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:28,240 Speaker 5: We're still going strong today, but we all want the 468 00:26:28,400 --> 00:26:29,000 Speaker 5: much fruit. 469 00:26:29,560 --> 00:26:32,800 Speaker 4: The question is are we willing to go through the process. 470 00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:36,000 Speaker 5: Will we do the right things in the time of 471 00:26:36,119 --> 00:26:40,639 Speaker 5: pruning when things don't make sense. My father would have 472 00:26:40,720 --> 00:26:44,760 Speaker 5: never come into much without the cutback. He would have 473 00:26:44,840 --> 00:26:48,400 Speaker 5: never become all he was created to be in that 474 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:49,879 Speaker 5: limited environment. 475 00:26:50,320 --> 00:26:51,920 Speaker 4: That's why God pushed him out. 476 00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:56,520 Speaker 5: And sometimes God will close a door because where you 477 00:26:56,600 --> 00:26:59,760 Speaker 5: are is too small. You may not be able to 478 00:26:59,760 --> 00:27:03,760 Speaker 5: see it's big. To you, it's fulfilling. But God's dream 479 00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:07,280 Speaker 5: for your life is much bigger than yours. His idea 480 00:27:07,359 --> 00:27:10,439 Speaker 5: of much is very different than our idea. 481 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:12,600 Speaker 4: I'm asking you to trust. 482 00:27:12,280 --> 00:27:16,560 Speaker 5: Him in the cutback seasons. We're not going to understand 483 00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:20,480 Speaker 5: everything that happens along the way. God knows what's best 484 00:27:20,480 --> 00:27:23,680 Speaker 5: for us. That's why the scripture says His ways are 485 00:27:23,760 --> 00:27:27,360 Speaker 5: not our ways. You may be in a time of pruning, 486 00:27:27,880 --> 00:27:31,080 Speaker 5: you've had some cutbacks, you've gone the wrong direction. Now 487 00:27:31,119 --> 00:27:35,280 Speaker 5: you'll kind of discourage recognize God is getting you in. 488 00:27:35,320 --> 00:27:39,400 Speaker 4: Position for new growth. He wouldn't have pruned you if 489 00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:40,840 Speaker 4: he didn't have something better. 490 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:45,400 Speaker 5: Now do your part, keep abiding, keep thanking him, keep 491 00:27:45,440 --> 00:27:48,840 Speaker 5: trusting him, keep staying faithful. If you'll do this, I 492 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:54,399 Speaker 5: believe and declare that cutback is not permanent. Like my father, 493 00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:58,640 Speaker 5: You're about to come in to much fruit. Abundance is coming, 494 00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:02,760 Speaker 5: Promotion is coming, breakthroughs are coming. The fullness of your 495 00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:06,640 Speaker 5: destiny in Jesus' name, and if you receive it, can 496 00:28:06,680 --> 00:28:10,520 Speaker 5: you say him in today? Well, I'd like to give 497 00:28:10,560 --> 00:28:13,879 Speaker 5: you an opportunity to make Jesus the lord of your life. 498 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:15,439 Speaker 4: Would you pray with me? 499 00:28:16,160 --> 00:28:21,680 Speaker 5: Just say Lord Jesus, I'll repent of my sins. Come 500 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:25,480 Speaker 5: into my heart. I make you my Lord and savior. 501 00:28:26,880 --> 00:28:29,120 Speaker 5: If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got 502 00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:32,720 Speaker 5: born again. Get in a good Bible based church, keep 503 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:33,840 Speaker 5: God first place. 504 00:28:35,359 --> 00:28:38,760 Speaker 6: Thank you for listening to the Joel Oustine podcast. Help 505 00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:41,600 Speaker 6: us continue to share the message of hope with those 506 00:28:41,680 --> 00:28:45,600 Speaker 6: all over the world. Visit Joeloustin dot com slash give 507 00:28:45,680 --> 00:28:47,360 Speaker 6: hope to give a gift today. 508 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:51,080 Speaker 4: Thanks so much for listening to today's message. 509 00:28:51,200 --> 00:28:53,960 Speaker 5: I hope you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest 510 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:57,040 Speaker 5: podcast to keep you inspired all through the week. 511 00:28:57,280 --> 00:28:59,960 Speaker 4: We're praying for you. 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