WEBVTT - Developing A Tender Conscience | Joel Osteen 0:00:01.080 --> 0:00:03.840 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to 0:00:03.880 --> 0:00:07.040 our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you 0:00:07.120 --> 0:00:09.720 enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and 0:00:09.800 --> 0:00:12.440 share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:15.600 for God's very best in your life. Well, God bless 0:00:15.640 --> 0:00:19.000 you always a joy to come into your homes. We 0:00:19.120 --> 0:00:21.680 love you, we know that God has good things in 0:00:21.800 --> 0:00:23.920 store for you. And if you're ever in our area, 0:00:24.120 --> 0:00:25.840 I hope you'll stop by and be a part of 0:00:25.880 --> 0:00:28.120 one of our services. I promise you will make you 0:00:28.160 --> 0:00:30.240 feel right at home. I say it often, but these 0:00:30.240 --> 0:00:32.320 are the finest people in all of Houston right here, 0:00:32.360 --> 0:00:34.279 so we'd love to have you be apart, come out 0:00:34.320 --> 0:00:37.159 and join us sometime. Thanks for tuning in today, and 0:00:37.560 --> 0:00:39.360 you know I'd like to get started with something funny 0:00:39.440 --> 0:00:42.040 each week. And of course most of these jokes are 0:00:42.040 --> 0:00:45.120 not doctrinally correct, and especially today, it's just a joke 0:00:45.240 --> 0:00:48.000 just to make you laugh. But anyway, a woman died 0:00:48.080 --> 0:00:51.400 and found herself standing at the pearly gates. Peter said, 0:00:51.440 --> 0:00:53.920 you can't go in unless you correctly spell a word. 0:00:54.200 --> 0:00:57.160 What word she asked, Any word? Peter replied, So she 0:00:57.280 --> 0:01:01.160 spelled the word love l ovee and welcomed her to heaven. 0:01:01.480 --> 0:01:04.400 He then asked her to take his position. He instructed 0:01:04.400 --> 0:01:07.280 her to follow the same procedure should anyone arrive. A 0:01:07.360 --> 0:01:10.440 few minutes later, the woman sees her ex husband coming up. 0:01:11.000 --> 0:01:13.080 What are you doing here? He said, I just had 0:01:13.080 --> 0:01:14.920 a heart attack. Did I really make it to heaven? 0:01:15.160 --> 0:01:17.720 Not yet? She said, You've got to correctly spell a word. 0:01:18.040 --> 0:01:23.800 What word he asked? After a long pause, she replied, Czechoslovakia. 0:01:24.560 --> 0:01:26.680 All right, hold up your bible. Say it like you 0:01:26.800 --> 0:01:30.000 mean it. Are you ready? This is my Bible. I 0:01:30.040 --> 0:01:32.720 am what it says I am. I have what it 0:01:32.760 --> 0:01:35.280 says I have. I can do what it says I 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:38.320 can do. Today I will be taught the word of God. 0:01:38.800 --> 0:01:43.440 I boldly confess. My mind is alert, my heart is receptive. 0:01:43.800 --> 0:01:47.440 I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God 0:01:47.520 --> 0:01:50.760 bless you. I want to talk to you today about 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:55.400 developing a tender conscience. The conscience is just like an 0:01:55.440 --> 0:01:58.960 alarm when you're about to do something that's not beneficial 0:01:59.400 --> 0:02:01.840 or something that's going to get you into trouble. All 0:02:01.840 --> 0:02:04.720 of a sudden, you're going to feel uncomfortable, right down 0:02:04.800 --> 0:02:08.560 in here, there's going to be an unrest and uneasiness. 0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:12.680 That's God trying to warn you. Don't ignore that, don't 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:17.320 override that uneasiness. See, the conscience is like an inward monitor. 0:02:17.800 --> 0:02:21.079 It's called the compass of our souls. It helps us 0:02:21.120 --> 0:02:24.120 to know what is right and what is wrong. One 0:02:24.160 --> 0:02:26.079 of the best friends you can ever have is your 0:02:26.080 --> 0:02:29.840 own conscience. I like what Abraham Lincoln said. He said, 0:02:29.919 --> 0:02:33.120 when my presidency is over, I may not have one 0:02:33.160 --> 0:02:36.000 other friend on earth, but I will have at least 0:02:36.000 --> 0:02:39.040 one friend. And that friend is on the inside of me. 0:02:39.680 --> 0:02:41.840 He was saying, I'm going to listen to my conscience. 0:02:42.000 --> 0:02:45.320 I'm going to heed what it's saying to me. And really, 0:02:45.320 --> 0:02:47.840 there's no telling how much trouble that we could avoid, 0:02:47.880 --> 0:02:51.160 how much heartache we could avoid, if we'd simply pay 0:02:51.200 --> 0:02:54.000 more attention to what we're feeling right down in here. 0:02:54.600 --> 0:02:57.000 I hear people say all the time, I know I 0:02:57.040 --> 0:03:00.919 shouldn't do this, but I know I shouldn't say this butt. No, 0:03:01.040 --> 0:03:04.080 I shouldn't buy this butt. See, they know what they 0:03:04.120 --> 0:03:07.519 should do. The alarm is going off. They can feel 0:03:07.560 --> 0:03:11.400 that sense of disapproval. But the problem is many times 0:03:11.440 --> 0:03:15.680 we don't obey our conscience. The truth is much of 0:03:15.720 --> 0:03:19.160 the trouble that we get ourselves into. If we look back, 0:03:19.280 --> 0:03:21.639 we can see how God tried to warn us again 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:25.000 and again and again. Now, don't make the mistake of 0:03:25.080 --> 0:03:29.880 overriding your conscience. Respect it, just like you respect your boss, 0:03:30.360 --> 0:03:33.160 or you respect someone that has authority over you. You wouldn't 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:36.240 disobey them. We'll learn to treat your conscience in the 0:03:36.320 --> 0:03:39.839 same way. That's God leading you and trying to keep 0:03:39.840 --> 0:03:42.560 you out of trouble. How many times have you been 0:03:42.600 --> 0:03:45.600 in a conversation with your spouse and things get a 0:03:45.600 --> 0:03:48.720 little heated up and you can feel yourself getting aggravated, 0:03:48.760 --> 0:03:50.960 ready to want to argue, and all of a sudden 0:03:50.960 --> 0:03:53.960 that check goes off. Something right down in here says, 0:03:54.280 --> 0:03:57.080 let it go, drop it, bite your tongue, walk away, 0:03:57.200 --> 0:03:59.920 keep the peace. Well, that's your conscience trying to keep 0:04:00.160 --> 0:04:03.280 out of trouble. That's God trying to warn you. But 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:05.440 too many times we just ignore it, We do our 0:04:05.480 --> 0:04:08.760 own thing. We end up having a big argument, getting 0:04:08.800 --> 0:04:11.920 all upset, ruining the rest of the evening, and really 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:14.240 it all could have been avoided if we just paid 0:04:14.280 --> 0:04:18.120 attention to what our conscience was trying to say to us. Friends, 0:04:18.200 --> 0:04:22.320 Learn to be sensitive. Stop when your conscience says stop. 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:25.840 Quit having to have the last word. Men, Quit looking 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:29.919 at your wives. Somebody said, a woman always has the 0:04:30.000 --> 0:04:33.000 last word in an argument. Anything after that is a 0:04:33.040 --> 0:04:37.520 brand new argument. But pay attention to what you're feeling 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:41.279 right down in here. Don't ever override your own conscience. 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:44.040 This will spare you so much heartache and pain. I 0:04:44.080 --> 0:04:46.520 know one time my father was driving down the Feeder 0:04:46.600 --> 0:04:49.000 Road about to get on the freeway. He was in 0:04:49.040 --> 0:04:51.520 a big hurrys running late to this meeting, and he 0:04:51.640 --> 0:04:54.160 was going well over the speed limit, and just as 0:04:54.200 --> 0:04:56.320 he came up to this big curve in the road, 0:04:56.680 --> 0:04:59.600 that alarm went off. Right down in here. Something said 0:04:59.600 --> 0:05:02.760 to him, you better slow down. There's a policeman around 0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:05.640 the corner. And Daddy told how it was so distinct, 0:05:06.080 --> 0:05:08.760 he felt it so strongly, but he was in that 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:11.720 big hurry and he just ignored it, didn't pay any attention. Well, 0:05:11.760 --> 0:05:13.800 sure enough, when he got around the corner, there was 0:05:13.839 --> 0:05:16.920 a police officer standing there holding his radar gun out 0:05:17.120 --> 0:05:19.760 and he just flagged my dad over. He came up 0:05:19.800 --> 0:05:21.520 to the window and Daddy had a big smile on 0:05:21.560 --> 0:05:24.080 his face. He said, officer, you're never gonna believe this, 0:05:24.279 --> 0:05:28.960 but God told me you were up here. That officer 0:05:28.960 --> 0:05:31.719 looked at him like he was from another planet. He 0:05:31.760 --> 0:05:34.000 took Daddy's license and went to his car, and he 0:05:34.080 --> 0:05:36.120 came back a couple of minutes later. He's kind of 0:05:36.120 --> 0:05:38.760 shaking his head. He said, listen here, preacher. I'm gonna 0:05:38.800 --> 0:05:41.520 let you go, but the next time God speaks to you, 0:05:41.520 --> 0:05:48.680 you better listen. This friend of ours was a Methodist 0:05:48.680 --> 0:05:51.159 minister for many years, and he told how one time 0:05:51.160 --> 0:05:53.200 he got pulled over by the police, and he has 0:05:53.240 --> 0:05:56.440 a real big Southern draw and he said, oh, officer, 0:05:56.520 --> 0:05:58.919 please don't give me a ticket. I'm just a poor 0:05:58.960 --> 0:06:01.440 old preacher. The officer said, I know that I heard 0:06:01.480 --> 0:06:05.800 you on television last Sunday. My boy, it is don't 0:06:05.800 --> 0:06:10.520 override your own conscious when you feel uncomfortable down in here, 0:06:10.960 --> 0:06:14.080 when you have that uneasiness, just pull back and see 0:06:14.120 --> 0:06:16.360 what God is trying to say to you. You may 0:06:16.400 --> 0:06:19.120 be in the middle of a conversation all of a 0:06:19.120 --> 0:06:21.560 sudden the alarm goes off, and you know you need 0:06:21.600 --> 0:06:23.480 to button it up, or you know you need to 0:06:23.520 --> 0:06:26.560 walk away. Don't ignore that you may be just about 0:06:26.560 --> 0:06:29.080 to buy something, just about to eat something, just about 0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:32.120 to make some plans, and that check goes off right 0:06:32.160 --> 0:06:35.039 down in here. Will be sensitive. If you'll learn to 0:06:35.120 --> 0:06:38.120 listen to your conscience, God will keep you out of trouble. 0:06:38.320 --> 0:06:40.880 He'll even protect you from danger. I remember this young 0:06:40.920 --> 0:06:43.440 man that used to do some work for us. One 0:06:43.520 --> 0:06:45.600 day I saw him and it looked like he had 0:06:45.600 --> 0:06:48.719 been in some type of accident. His face was all bruised, 0:06:48.720 --> 0:06:51.040 he had these black eyes, and he had some stitches 0:06:51.080 --> 0:06:53.279 on this arm. I said, man, what in the world 0:06:53.360 --> 0:06:55.360 happened to you? Were you in a wreck or something? 0:06:55.760 --> 0:06:58.360 And he began to explain how, on his way home 0:06:58.400 --> 0:07:01.839 from work he had gotten card. He'd stopped at this light, 0:07:01.880 --> 0:07:03.600 and these guys came and pulled him out of his car, 0:07:03.720 --> 0:07:05.680 and he didn't have a wallet, and so they just 0:07:05.760 --> 0:07:08.000 ended up beating him up and leaving him there. Then 0:07:08.040 --> 0:07:10.640 he said something so interesting, He said, you know, Joel, 0:07:10.720 --> 0:07:14.000 the funny thing was on my way home that night, 0:07:14.280 --> 0:07:17.800 something told me to not go that way right down 0:07:17.840 --> 0:07:20.600 in here. As distinct as it could be, he said, 0:07:20.840 --> 0:07:23.440 something said you better go another way. And it was 0:07:23.480 --> 0:07:26.280 so strong that he even debated it in his mind. 0:07:26.520 --> 0:07:28.640 He thought, I always go this way, this is the 0:07:28.680 --> 0:07:31.800 quickest way. Why should I go another way? And understand, 0:07:31.800 --> 0:07:33.720 this young man was not what you'd considered to be 0:07:33.800 --> 0:07:36.880 a religious type person, But he said, I know that 0:07:36.960 --> 0:07:38.920 was God trying to warn me. I know that was 0:07:38.960 --> 0:07:41.880 God trying to protect me. These were his exact words, 0:07:42.000 --> 0:07:45.920 he said, Joel, if I had only just listened, And really, 0:07:46.080 --> 0:07:49.040 that's what I'm saying to all of us today, before 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:51.880 you get into trouble, before you make a poor decision, 0:07:52.200 --> 0:07:55.320 God is always going to warn you that alarm is 0:07:55.360 --> 0:07:57.400 going to go off right down in here. And it 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:00.560 may not be something as dramatic as this young man. 0:08:00.760 --> 0:08:03.320 It may just be an alarm to keep your mouth 0:08:03.360 --> 0:08:06.360 closed in order to avoid an argument. It may be 0:08:06.400 --> 0:08:09.760 alarmed to turn off the TV to keep your mind pure, 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:13.200 or an alarm to just change your attitude. But whatever 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:16.480 it is, if you'll be sensitive and pay attention to it, 0:08:16.600 --> 0:08:19.280 then God will lead you. Don't be like this young 0:08:19.320 --> 0:08:21.720 man and try to figure it all out. Well, why 0:08:21.760 --> 0:08:24.480 can't I go that way? Or why can't I say this? 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:27.320 She started it. It's her fault. Now you've got to 0:08:27.320 --> 0:08:29.640 get out of your head and start listening to your heart. 0:08:30.120 --> 0:08:32.280 If you will obey what you're feeling down in here, 0:08:32.320 --> 0:08:35.160 if you'll obey your conscience, God will help you to 0:08:35.200 --> 0:08:38.439 make good decisions. He'll help you live his abundant life 0:08:38.880 --> 0:08:43.160 and understand just because somebody else is doing something doesn't 0:08:43.240 --> 0:08:45.800 mean it's okay for you to do it. Well, Joel, 0:08:45.880 --> 0:08:48.240 all my friends are going to see this movie, and 0:08:48.280 --> 0:08:51.040 they're good people. They love God. I don't know why 0:08:51.040 --> 0:08:54.920 I shouldn't go. No, don't compare yourself to anybody else, 0:08:55.360 --> 0:08:58.080 and don't try to have to justify your actions. You've 0:08:58.120 --> 0:09:00.839 got to learn to listen to your own heart. If 0:09:00.840 --> 0:09:04.119 you have that uneasiness down in here, if your conscience 0:09:04.200 --> 0:09:07.440 is not clear, it doesn't matter what everybody else is doing. 0:09:07.840 --> 0:09:11.920 Follow how God is leading you. Every person is at 0:09:11.920 --> 0:09:15.240 different stages. You're not always going to understand why you 0:09:15.320 --> 0:09:18.160 can or can't do certain things, but you've got to 0:09:18.200 --> 0:09:21.720 go deeper than that and be obedient anyway. I know 0:09:21.800 --> 0:09:24.440 some pastor friends that do certain things that I don't 0:09:24.440 --> 0:09:27.480 feel comfortable with. It's not a sin, but it's just 0:09:27.559 --> 0:09:30.040 something that personally, right down in here, I don't feel 0:09:30.080 --> 0:09:33.200 good about doesn't mean they're bad people. I don't judge 0:09:33.240 --> 0:09:36.120 them and condemn them, but I know just because they 0:09:36.160 --> 0:09:38.640 do it doesn't mean that it's right for me. I've 0:09:38.720 --> 0:09:41.400 learned I've got to keep my own conscience clear. And 0:09:41.440 --> 0:09:43.960 in the same way, ladies, you may have some friends 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:47.200 at work that dress a little more revealing than you do. 0:09:47.760 --> 0:09:50.640 Maybe they're even in a position of leadership, and you 0:09:50.720 --> 0:09:52.760 kind of think, well, I guess that's okay for me. 0:09:53.440 --> 0:09:56.079 Now you've got to check with your own heart. God 0:09:56.160 --> 0:09:59.960 deals with us individually. You don't know all the details 0:10:00.040 --> 0:10:03.439 in that person's life. Who knows. Maybe God is speaking 0:10:03.480 --> 0:10:06.160 to them but they're not listening, or maybe they've come 0:10:06.200 --> 0:10:09.560 a long way. They're making progress. God is pleased, but 0:10:09.640 --> 0:10:12.320 you're just at a different stage. If you make the 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:15.960 mistake of comparing, and you have to justify your actions, 0:10:16.200 --> 0:10:19.160 before long, you'll be going against your contents and that 0:10:19.200 --> 0:10:23.200 will always keep you from God's best. And don't make excuses. Well, 0:10:23.280 --> 0:10:26.120 everybody speeds out there on the highway, Joel. I saw 0:10:26.200 --> 0:10:28.440 him going seventy five miles an hour, and he's even 0:10:28.440 --> 0:10:32.520 on staff at Lakewood. Now just because you saw my 0:10:32.559 --> 0:10:38.199 brother Paul speeding, Just because somebody else is doing it 0:10:38.240 --> 0:10:40.920 doesn't mean that it's okay for you. Keep your own 0:10:41.080 --> 0:10:44.600 conscience clear. And there may even be things that your 0:10:44.920 --> 0:10:47.560 husband or wife or your good friend does and it 0:10:47.600 --> 0:10:49.760 doesn't bother them a bit, but when you go to 0:10:49.800 --> 0:10:51.760 do it, it just doesn't feel right. You have that 0:10:51.880 --> 0:10:55.160 check or what I'm saying is only do what is 0:10:55.280 --> 0:10:58.319 right for you and something else that's important to understand. 0:10:58.640 --> 0:11:02.920 Don't judge that other person, don't condemn them. Let God 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:05.400 deal with them. Well, I can't believe you would see 0:11:05.400 --> 0:11:07.600 that movie. I can't believe you don't get up and 0:11:07.600 --> 0:11:09.960 pray every morning like I do. No, maybe they're not 0:11:10.040 --> 0:11:12.600 at that level. And God didn't call us to be 0:11:12.679 --> 0:11:16.680 somebody else's conscience. Quit judging and just focus on keeping 0:11:16.679 --> 0:11:19.520 your own conscience clear. And there's no telling how much 0:11:19.559 --> 0:11:23.480 God would bless us, no telling how happy and fulfilled 0:11:23.559 --> 0:11:26.480 our lives would be if we simply learn to maintain 0:11:26.520 --> 0:11:29.200 a clear conscience, if we just learn to not move 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:32.440 forward when we feel that sense of disapproval down in here. 0:11:32.800 --> 0:11:35.280 And it may not be something big, it may just 0:11:35.320 --> 0:11:38.280 be something small. But if we can't be faithful in 0:11:38.320 --> 0:11:40.600 the little things, how can God trust us? In the 0:11:40.600 --> 0:11:43.319 big things. If we can't keep our mouth closed to 0:11:43.400 --> 0:11:46.120 avoid an argument, or if we can't slow down on 0:11:46.160 --> 0:11:49.720 the freeway when our conscience is convicting us, then those 0:11:49.720 --> 0:11:53.600 seemingly small things will keep us from rising higher. And 0:11:53.640 --> 0:11:57.400 what's interesting is, most of the time, deep down in here, 0:11:57.600 --> 0:12:01.160 we know what we should do, but often we just 0:12:01.400 --> 0:12:04.000 make the mistake of not doing it. And what's happening 0:12:04.080 --> 0:12:08.800 is we're overriding our consciences. And understand, every time you 0:12:08.840 --> 0:12:11.400 ignore your conscience, every time you push it down, you 0:12:11.440 --> 0:12:14.800 don't pay any attention. The next time that voice will 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:18.040 speak a little softer, then the next time a little softer, 0:12:18.280 --> 0:12:21.920 the next time even more softly, And unfortunately, you can 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:24.400 get to the place where you have totally drowned out 0:12:24.440 --> 0:12:27.920 the voice of your conscience. For instance, maybe you're about 0:12:28.000 --> 0:12:30.640 to say something rude to someone and all of a sudden, 0:12:30.679 --> 0:12:33.240 that check goes off right down in here. You feel 0:12:33.240 --> 0:12:36.040 that uneasiness and something tells you bite your tongue, don't 0:12:36.040 --> 0:12:39.559 do it. But if you just ignore that, you override 0:12:39.600 --> 0:12:42.480 it and do it anyway. Number One, you're gonna feel guilty. 0:12:42.760 --> 0:12:44.760 And if you don't go back and make things right 0:12:44.800 --> 0:12:48.239 and apologize. Then the next time you're in that situation, 0:12:48.679 --> 0:12:51.760 the alarm won't be quite as loud, the voice won't 0:12:51.800 --> 0:12:54.360 be quite so strong, and you can get to the 0:12:54.400 --> 0:12:57.960 place where you've done it so long you become desensitized 0:12:58.000 --> 0:12:59.920 to it. You can come to the point where you're 0:13:00.120 --> 0:13:02.560 acting a certain way or treating the people a certain way, 0:13:02.760 --> 0:13:05.560 and even though it's not right, you don't even realize 0:13:05.559 --> 0:13:07.920 that you're doing it. And you may be here today 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:10.719 and you're kind of hard and rude with people, and 0:13:10.800 --> 0:13:12.880 you've been that way so long, you're so set in 0:13:12.920 --> 0:13:16.160 your ways you don't really hear the alarm anymore. Or 0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:19.680 maybe you've been watching questionable things so long that it 0:13:19.720 --> 0:13:22.559 doesn't bother you much anymore. And that's why we need 0:13:22.600 --> 0:13:25.720 to pray every single day. God, help me to develop 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:29.120 a tender conscience. God, help me to be sensitive to 0:13:29.200 --> 0:13:31.880 your voice. I don't know about you, but I don't 0:13:31.920 --> 0:13:34.720 want to have areas in my life where I'm stuck 0:13:34.800 --> 0:13:39.040 in mediocrity all because I'm not obeying my conscience. The 0:13:39.040 --> 0:13:42.520 Bible talks about in One Timothy chapter four, how a 0:13:42.679 --> 0:13:46.920 conscience can become seared. That simply means that it becomes 0:13:47.080 --> 0:13:50.000 numb in that area. We don't have any feeling in it. 0:13:50.400 --> 0:13:53.440 Say you're at home watching TV one night, and you know, 0:13:53.520 --> 0:13:55.480 it kind of gets a little bit vulgar, kind of 0:13:55.480 --> 0:13:57.640 gets a little off color, and all of a sudden, 0:13:57.640 --> 0:14:00.880 that alarm goes off. Something says, get up, turn it off. 0:14:00.920 --> 0:14:03.240 Don't put that trash in your mind. But if you 0:14:03.400 --> 0:14:06.040 just sit there time after time and ignore it, month 0:14:06.080 --> 0:14:09.720 after month, before long, that won't bother you anymore. You 0:14:09.880 --> 0:14:12.440 become numb to that. It's like, it's no big deal. 0:14:12.520 --> 0:14:14.480 You know, what's it gonna hurt to watch this stuff. 0:14:15.120 --> 0:14:18.600 I know people today that are involved in a relationship 0:14:18.640 --> 0:14:21.800 outside of their marriage. They're not being faithful, and it 0:14:21.880 --> 0:14:25.160 really doesn't even bother them too much. And I can 0:14:25.200 --> 0:14:27.760 assure you when they first started to give into that 0:14:27.800 --> 0:14:31.360 temptation the alarm went off, I can guarantee you at 0:14:31.360 --> 0:14:35.080 first they felt uncomfortable down in here. They were uneasy, 0:14:35.120 --> 0:14:38.120 they knew it wasn't right. But month after month, as 0:14:38.160 --> 0:14:40.920 they turned the alarm off, now it's no big deal. 0:14:41.280 --> 0:14:44.920 They've sort of justified it in their mind. Everybody's doing it. See, 0:14:44.920 --> 0:14:47.880 they've totally drowned out the voice of their conscience. They 0:14:48.000 --> 0:14:51.600 pushed it down so much they don't feel the uneasiness anymore. 0:14:52.120 --> 0:14:54.640 And that's why I encourage it so strongly. To be 0:14:54.800 --> 0:14:58.200 quick to obey, don't be hard headed, don't be stubborn 0:14:58.200 --> 0:15:00.320 and have to do it your own way. That will 0:15:00.400 --> 0:15:03.280 only lead to heartache and pain. I met a man 0:15:03.320 --> 0:15:06.960 a few weeks ago. His family lives in another country 0:15:07.000 --> 0:15:09.320 and he's been here in the States for several years 0:15:09.800 --> 0:15:12.440 working with his company. And he began to tell how 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:15.040 he was involved with this other woman and they had 0:15:15.040 --> 0:15:17.600 been in this relationship for a couple of years, but 0:15:17.680 --> 0:15:20.320 he felt so badly about it. He said, Joel, I 0:15:20.400 --> 0:15:23.320 just feel terrible. I know that it's not right. I 0:15:23.360 --> 0:15:25.760 can hardly sleep at night, and I really want to change, 0:15:25.760 --> 0:15:28.040 but I just can't seem to do it. And I 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:31.680 told him, you're in a very interesting situation. You are 0:15:31.720 --> 0:15:35.360 the exception to the rule, because most people that have 0:15:35.440 --> 0:15:39.520 been overriding their consciences that long don't care anything about it. 0:15:39.720 --> 0:15:42.560 They don't feel anything, they're not concerned. And I said, 0:15:42.760 --> 0:15:45.880 you should thank God that you still have a tender conscience. 0:15:46.280 --> 0:15:49.040 You should be grateful that you still have that concern. 0:15:49.640 --> 0:15:52.360 And I challenged him to do his best to make 0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:57.120 the necessary changes before that uneasiness war off. And really 0:15:57.160 --> 0:16:00.440 that's the danger. That's what should concern us more than anything, 0:16:00.840 --> 0:16:03.320 that we're doing something wrong for so long that we 0:16:03.400 --> 0:16:06.440 don't even realize that we're doing it. We become numb 0:16:06.520 --> 0:16:08.720 in that area. And again, I think that's why we 0:16:08.760 --> 0:16:11.240 need to pray every day. God, help me to stay 0:16:11.280 --> 0:16:14.200 sensitive to your voice. God, don't let me to get 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:17.040 hard and cold and numb in any area of my life, 0:16:17.120 --> 0:16:20.120 in my attitude, in how I treat people, in what 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:22.680 I say and what I do, and what I watch. 0:16:22.760 --> 0:16:26.000 God help me to have a tender conscience. Friends, God 0:16:26.160 --> 0:16:30.240 rewards obedience. If you have things in your life, big 0:16:30.320 --> 0:16:32.800 or small, that you know in here are not right, 0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:35.720 I believe God is saying today is the time to 0:16:35.720 --> 0:16:39.800 make changes. Get into God's best path. Don't keep overriding 0:16:39.800 --> 0:16:42.600 your conscience. Some of you have been pushing that alarm 0:16:42.680 --> 0:16:45.160 down for a long time, and when you have ten 0:16:45.240 --> 0:16:48.400 or fifteen years of doing something a certain way, it's 0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:50.720 very easy to just want to stay right where you are. 0:16:51.440 --> 0:16:54.360 If you will be open and honest with yourself, and 0:16:54.400 --> 0:16:57.160 when you feel God convicting you in here, if you 0:16:57.280 --> 0:17:00.400 have the desire to change, God will help you to change. 0:17:00.680 --> 0:17:02.920 And it is better to go through a little pain 0:17:03.000 --> 0:17:05.840 of change than it is to go twenty or thirty 0:17:05.920 --> 0:17:09.600 years stuck in mediocrity. And I found the more obedient 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:13.720 we are, the easier it will be to obey. Obedience 0:17:13.880 --> 0:17:19.480 breeds obedience. Just the opposite is true. Disobedience breeds more disobedience. 0:17:19.960 --> 0:17:23.439 And you can increase the sensitivity of your conscience or 0:17:23.480 --> 0:17:27.320 you can decrease it. Every time you obey, your conscience 0:17:27.440 --> 0:17:30.560 is getting a little more sensitive. It's just like a window. 0:17:30.720 --> 0:17:33.080 When you obey, you're letting a little more light in. 0:17:33.680 --> 0:17:36.440 The Next time, it'll be a little easier, your heart 0:17:36.480 --> 0:17:38.679 will be a little softer, and you'll do it a 0:17:38.680 --> 0:17:41.880 little quicker. You can get to the point where you're 0:17:41.920 --> 0:17:46.159 so sensitive that when you first feel that uneasiness, you 0:17:46.200 --> 0:17:49.760 first feel that slight, uncomfortable feeling down in here, that 0:17:49.840 --> 0:17:52.280 will get your attention and cause you to make changes. 0:17:52.720 --> 0:17:55.080 And really, that's the kind of people God wants us 0:17:55.119 --> 0:17:57.960 to be. When we hear the still small voice, when 0:17:58.000 --> 0:18:00.919 we first feel that little nudge, we are quick to 0:18:01.000 --> 0:18:04.040 take action. See, don't be the kind of person that 0:18:04.160 --> 0:18:07.000 has to have ten warnings and twelve sirens go off 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:09.600 and you still don't get it. Be quick to obey 0:18:10.119 --> 0:18:13.359 and understand this. When you live an obedient life, you 0:18:13.400 --> 0:18:16.080 don't have to worry about being blessed. That's when God's 0:18:16.119 --> 0:18:19.720 blessings will chase you down and overtake you. When you obey, 0:18:19.880 --> 0:18:24.520 you cannot outrun the good things of God. And remember 0:18:24.600 --> 0:18:28.719 I'm talking about obeying your own conscience, not obeying what 0:18:28.760 --> 0:18:31.960 your neighbor does or what your coworker doesn't do. They 0:18:31.960 --> 0:18:34.919 don't set the standard. Obey what God is telling you 0:18:35.000 --> 0:18:37.600 right down in here. And as I said, God takes 0:18:37.680 --> 0:18:40.920 us all in stages. You may be here today and 0:18:41.119 --> 0:18:43.040 you kind of have a problem with your attitude. You've 0:18:43.040 --> 0:18:45.800 got a problem with being negative. Well, the good news 0:18:45.920 --> 0:18:49.439 is God does not expect you to change overnight. He 0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:51.439 is not going to be disappointed with you and just 0:18:51.480 --> 0:18:53.760 write you off if you don't turn it around in 0:18:53.800 --> 0:18:56.959 one week's time. No, God, all he asks is that 0:18:57.000 --> 0:18:59.800 you keep making progress. He doesn't want you to be 0:18:59.840 --> 0:19:02.960 at this same place next year as you are right now. 0:19:03.000 --> 0:19:06.159 He's gonna lead you in his own special way. And 0:19:06.200 --> 0:19:08.879 if you will be sensitive and just do your best 0:19:09.040 --> 0:19:12.399 to keep your own conscience clear, then God will be 0:19:12.520 --> 0:19:15.639 pleased and he'll begin to release more of his blessings 0:19:15.640 --> 0:19:18.080 in your life. And really, this is something that we 0:19:18.200 --> 0:19:21.840 all can do because God meets us at our own level. 0:19:22.400 --> 0:19:24.159 I don't have to keep up with you, and you 0:19:24.200 --> 0:19:26.040 don't have to keep up with me. I just have 0:19:26.119 --> 0:19:28.439 to be true to my own heart. I know the 0:19:28.480 --> 0:19:30.879 areas God deals with me in I can hear that 0:19:30.960 --> 0:19:34.320 alarm going on. I always do my best to not 0:19:34.520 --> 0:19:37.360 go against my own conscience, and that's what I'm challenging 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:39.840 you to do as well. I know this young man 0:19:39.880 --> 0:19:42.480 that I went to college with, and he was very 0:19:42.680 --> 0:19:45.320 short with people. I mean basically, he was just kind 0:19:45.320 --> 0:19:47.720 of hard and rude in a sense. He could be 0:19:47.840 --> 0:19:49.680 nice if you knew him, but if you didn't know him, 0:19:49.680 --> 0:19:52.200 he was just very matter of fact. And one day 0:19:52.240 --> 0:19:54.480 we were at this restaurant together with a group of 0:19:54.480 --> 0:19:57.359 the guys from the school, and the waiter got his 0:19:57.560 --> 0:20:00.480 order all mixed up and this young man just jump 0:20:00.520 --> 0:20:02.879 down his throat. I mean he let him have it. 0:20:03.160 --> 0:20:05.679 He embarrassed him in front of all of us, and 0:20:05.680 --> 0:20:07.840 it was so uncalled for. I mean, anybody can make 0:20:07.880 --> 0:20:10.360 a mistake, but he just didn't show him any mercy. 0:20:10.640 --> 0:20:13.200 And anyway, we got back to the dorm later that night, 0:20:13.600 --> 0:20:16.480 and he came into my room about an hour later, 0:20:16.760 --> 0:20:18.520 and he asked me if he could borrow my card. 0:20:18.720 --> 0:20:20.600 I said, sure, you can, but where are you going 0:20:20.680 --> 0:20:23.400 this late? He said, you know, Joel, I feel terrible. 0:20:23.800 --> 0:20:26.840