WEBVTT - Taking Control Of Your Mind 0:00:02.120 --> 0:00:04.640 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation 0:00:04.920 --> 0:00:07.120 Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank 0:00:07.160 --> 0:00:10.479 you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope 0:00:10.480 --> 0:00:12.560 it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to 0:00:12.560 --> 0:00:16.920 see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message. 0:00:17.239 --> 0:00:22.439 And today I am starting a new teaching that is 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:26.560 really just a continuation of what I've been teaching. I'm 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:29.720 gonna talk about the free best questions that you can 0:00:29.800 --> 0:00:36.560 ask in your life. Only if you're confused, uncomfortable, or uncertain. 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:39.519 If you are none of those three things, check your 0:00:39.560 --> 0:00:43.720 pulse and watch something else. But if you've been asking 0:00:43.800 --> 0:00:46.800 some questions lately and the answers are slow in coming, 0:00:47.280 --> 0:00:49.800 God has a word for you. And this begins a 0:00:49.840 --> 0:00:53.440 new teaching today. And to introduce it to you, I 0:00:53.560 --> 0:00:56.240 wanted to show you a video that I made with 0:00:56.320 --> 0:00:59.800 Abby when I showed her what my next sermon was 0:00:59.800 --> 0:01:02.639 going went to be and I caught her reaction on 0:01:02.680 --> 0:01:08.679 my iPhone. Check this out. Many sermon series. Run Control, 0:01:10.280 --> 0:01:18.199 Run Control, Run Control. Look at it again? Are you 0:01:18.240 --> 0:01:28.000 in control? Are you paid? My gosh, Oh my gosh, 0:01:28.240 --> 0:01:34.399 that's awesome. It's awesome. Put it on the screen. Let's 0:01:34.440 --> 0:01:40.360 go are you in control? Because haven't we kind of 0:01:40.360 --> 0:01:46.240 wonder that lately? Are you honest? Are you? Are you? 0:01:46.319 --> 0:01:48.520 Are you? Are you money? And you don't really say 0:01:48.520 --> 0:01:50.160 it like that, You don't. You don't ask the Lord 0:01:50.160 --> 0:01:52.000 if he's in control. You're scared to give you a 0:01:52.040 --> 0:01:54.600 lightning bolt or a flat tire or hemorrhoid or something 0:01:54.640 --> 0:01:57.040 like that, So you don't really say, Lord, are you 0:01:57.080 --> 0:02:03.840 in control? You just kind of secretly wonder, like, Lord, 0:02:03.880 --> 0:02:05.480 is still you on the thrown up there? Right? They 0:02:05.480 --> 0:02:09.400 didn't They didn't kick you off, because it can make 0:02:09.440 --> 0:02:12.720 you wonder. And even though we don't really put those 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:16.799 words around it, the question that we want to talk 0:02:16.800 --> 0:02:20.840 about today is are you in control? And I want 0:02:20.840 --> 0:02:22.560 to write it down just like that how it said 0:02:22.680 --> 0:02:24.880 put it up one more time? Are you? And that's 0:02:24.880 --> 0:02:28.160 how the Lord gave it to me. I put my phone. 0:02:28.360 --> 0:02:30.600 I made a list of questions on my phone. I 0:02:30.639 --> 0:02:33.000 was like, I wonder, what are the best questions in 0:02:33.040 --> 0:02:36.480 the Bible? Because I got on this trajectory of realizing 0:02:36.520 --> 0:02:40.120 that watch this, making progress in your relationship with God 0:02:40.400 --> 0:02:48.880 usually looks like having less answers and better questions. So 0:02:48.919 --> 0:02:51.480 how do I know if I'm growing in my relationship 0:02:51.480 --> 0:02:54.640 with God? Usually you will know you're growing in your 0:02:54.680 --> 0:02:58.160 relationship with God and your maturity in this world when 0:02:58.160 --> 0:03:04.239 you have less answers and better questions. So the way 0:03:04.240 --> 0:03:05.880 that I wanted to give it to you one more time, 0:03:06.280 --> 0:03:09.760 I did it like that, are you in control? Because 0:03:09.880 --> 0:03:13.520 it looks like run And the Lord showed me that 0:03:13.560 --> 0:03:18.600 there are three questions that are running in the background 0:03:18.800 --> 0:03:22.600 of your mind all the time, that are determining or 0:03:22.720 --> 0:03:27.560 driving your state of mind. And to get there, we've 0:03:27.560 --> 0:03:31.960 got to go all the way back to the prison 0:03:32.800 --> 0:03:37.040 where Paul wrote Philippians. And I don't know what my 0:03:37.080 --> 0:03:39.920 favorite book in the Bible. You know we're talking about questions. 0:03:39.920 --> 0:03:42.040 I have been asked before, what's your favorite book of 0:03:42.040 --> 0:03:44.640 the Bible. I don't know what's my favorite. I don't 0:03:44.640 --> 0:03:46.200 know if you're supposed to have a favorite book of 0:03:46.240 --> 0:03:48.840 the Bible. But the most functional for me in the 0:03:48.880 --> 0:03:51.800 last few years has been the Book of Philippians. Of 0:03:51.840 --> 0:03:54.640 all four chapters in the Book of Philippians, the most 0:03:54.680 --> 0:03:57.560 functional chapter. What I mean is it's been working for me. 0:03:58.560 --> 0:04:01.600 It's been working for me when I ran out of answers. 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:04.080 It helped me with my question. And I'm gonna show 0:04:04.080 --> 0:04:05.880 you today the three questions. We won't get to all 0:04:05.920 --> 0:04:08.880 of them today, but we're gonna look at three questions 0:04:09.200 --> 0:04:12.920 that are controlling your life. And so when I asked 0:04:12.960 --> 0:04:16.000 the question, are you in control? You're like, no, God's 0:04:16.040 --> 0:04:18.240 in control. Let's go home, let's go eat some pot 0:04:18.320 --> 0:04:21.400 roast and all that. But you do know that God 0:04:21.440 --> 0:04:27.360 is in control. You're like, you're sitting me up or something. Yes, 0:04:27.640 --> 0:04:30.320 I'm setting you up, because what I want to know is, 0:04:31.360 --> 0:04:34.039 if God is in control, then why would anybody ever 0:04:34.080 --> 0:04:38.480 be overweight? If God is in control, why would anybody 0:04:38.480 --> 0:04:40.080 be addicted? If God is in control, why would anybody 0:04:40.080 --> 0:04:42.440 ever be abused? And you wonder that too, but you 0:04:42.520 --> 0:04:44.600 just don't ask it. You don't ask it because you're 0:04:44.600 --> 0:04:46.440 scared to ask it because you think that God is 0:04:46.440 --> 0:04:48.200 insecure like you are, and if you question him, he 0:04:48.200 --> 0:04:49.599 won't have the answer. But God has the answer, so 0:04:49.600 --> 0:04:52.840 he's not intimidated by your questions. What insults God is 0:04:52.839 --> 0:04:54.320 when you think that he is so small and he 0:04:54.360 --> 0:04:56.440 has some kind of ego where he can't handle your questions. 0:04:58.279 --> 0:05:03.440 When you think about that question and I'm so excited 0:05:03.480 --> 0:05:05.839 to share this with you because I believe as we 0:05:05.880 --> 0:05:07.440 get this, it's going to be one of those series 0:05:07.440 --> 0:05:08.919 I want you to I want you to give me 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:11.839 all all three weeks. I think it's gonna take three weeks, 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:14.480 maybe two, maybe four. Maybe I'll just do it the 0:05:14.520 --> 0:05:16.440 rest of the year. But when I started asking the 0:05:16.520 --> 0:05:20.360 question are you in control? God? I realized that it's 0:05:20.640 --> 0:05:29.719 a complicated answer. Yes, he's sovereign. How can he be 0:05:29.839 --> 0:05:37.479 so sovereign and I feel so stuck? How can he 0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:43.240 be so sovereign and some suffer so much? How can 0:05:43.279 --> 0:05:50.040 he be so sovereign and some struggle so long? Of course, 0:05:50.080 --> 0:05:54.200 I'm not confident enough in my professional competence to answer that. 0:05:54.200 --> 0:05:56.440 That's why we're going to Paul in just a moment. 0:05:56.480 --> 0:05:59.719 But realize that, God, maybe I could give it you 0:05:59.720 --> 0:06:01.560 this way. Here's the first thing you could write them. 0:06:01.640 --> 0:06:06.200 God is always in control, but he doesn't always take control. 0:06:11.320 --> 0:06:17.320 God is always in control, but he doesn't always take control. 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:22.520 It's like when I gained fifty pounds in the first 0:06:22.520 --> 0:06:26.680 eighteen months of being married. God never took any macaroni 0:06:26.720 --> 0:06:30.800 off my plate. He let me eat as much macaroni 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:33.880 as I wanted to eat, and I was thinking about eating. 0:06:33.920 --> 0:06:36.400 And I've said it a few times now because I'm 0:06:36.440 --> 0:06:38.400 a little hungry, as I preached to be honest with you. 0:06:38.680 --> 0:06:43.240 But the real reason I thought of it was portion control, right, Like, 0:06:43.640 --> 0:06:46.200 God's not going to control the portion of food that 0:06:46.240 --> 0:06:52.560 you eat or the portion of news that you consume. 0:06:55.400 --> 0:06:58.520 Are you ready? He's not going to control the portion 0:06:58.800 --> 0:07:03.359 of the Bible that you read. God will let you 0:07:03.600 --> 0:07:08.080 watch as many episodes. What's that show Outer Banks, He'll 0:07:08.120 --> 0:07:10.080 let you watch that is at the right show. He'll 0:07:10.160 --> 0:07:13.000 let you watch. He'll let you watch every episode and 0:07:13.040 --> 0:07:16.040 not read your Bible one time. God will let you watch. 0:07:16.400 --> 0:07:20.240 God will let you scroll Instagram until you throw up 0:07:20.320 --> 0:07:25.360 pictures of somebody else's vacation. He won't stop you. He's 0:07:25.400 --> 0:07:28.440 in control. That doesn't stop you from scrolling, even Instagram. 0:07:28.600 --> 0:07:31.120 I remember the first time God I felt sympathetic when 0:07:31.160 --> 0:07:35.160 Instagram told me you're all caught up. I was like, there, 0:07:35.480 --> 0:07:39.080 Facebook is trying to save me. They legally have to 0:07:39.120 --> 0:07:42.960 tell me you've seen this crap already. So God doesn't 0:07:43.000 --> 0:07:46.320 stop you from scrolling. God will not so so so 0:07:46.440 --> 0:07:52.560 God is always in control, and I'm grateful, but he 0:07:52.640 --> 0:07:55.640 doesn't always take control. Isn't that what we really want 0:07:55.760 --> 0:08:00.640 is like a remote control God who we can tell 0:08:00.720 --> 0:08:04.280 him what to do with other people, and from his 0:08:04.360 --> 0:08:07.560 holy heaven he will make everybody do everything we want 0:08:07.640 --> 0:08:10.040 to do. He is not a remote control God. He 0:08:10.160 --> 0:08:13.800 is the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us 0:08:14.160 --> 0:08:17.520 so that his spirit could live within us. And maybe 0:08:17.520 --> 0:08:20.480 I could illustrate it this way for everybody who is 0:08:20.560 --> 0:08:27.680 confused uncertain, like Paul was in prison. I came out 0:08:27.680 --> 0:08:30.600 earlier and I said, let's show them with the cameras 0:08:31.400 --> 0:08:34.640 to set up this idea of are you in control? 0:08:35.000 --> 0:08:37.360 Like in the room right now, there are I think 0:08:37.400 --> 0:08:41.760 eight cameras, maybe more. I don't know how many hidden 0:08:41.800 --> 0:08:45.160 cameras there are security cameras, but I think there's eight, 0:08:45.880 --> 0:08:47.120 so that this message can be brought to you you in 0:08:47.200 --> 0:08:49.640 high definition, high fidelity, the Word of God and all 0:08:49.640 --> 0:08:52.880 of his clarity. Right. But let's say like the way 0:08:52.920 --> 0:08:54.920 it works, like there's different cameras that I look at, 0:08:55.080 --> 0:08:56.880 and the way it works is like here's camera one, 0:08:56.920 --> 0:08:58.839 and I think that's Bowser on camera on. Yeah, hey, 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:01.880 Bowser taking a break from throwing hammers at Mario for 0:09:01.880 --> 0:09:06.120 a minute running the camera Jay Bowser, everybody. That's called 0:09:06.160 --> 0:09:07.480 camera one. And I don't know if they call it 0:09:07.480 --> 0:09:10.120 camera one because he's the most important one, but it's 0:09:10.200 --> 0:09:12.559 right there. And if they put a scripture up, I 0:09:12.559 --> 0:09:15.960 can see it and it's great. Okay, So that's camera one, 0:09:16.200 --> 0:09:19.040 all right. And then over here on this camera it's 0:09:19.120 --> 0:09:21.280 camera four or five or something like that doesn't matter. 0:09:21.559 --> 0:09:28.400 The point is who's running this one today, Abraham, okay, Abraham. 0:09:28.720 --> 0:09:32.200 And Abraham is over here. And if I go to 0:09:32.240 --> 0:09:34.320 this camera right, you can see me. Now I'm looking 0:09:34.360 --> 0:09:36.559 at the camera, and this is the way God gave 0:09:36.600 --> 0:09:38.200 it to me, like a picture, just to make it 0:09:38.240 --> 0:09:40.440 simple for what we're going to talk about over the 0:09:40.440 --> 0:09:46.080 next few weeks. If Abraham's camera goes out of focus, 0:09:46.120 --> 0:09:48.840 go ahead and make it blurry real quick, because sometimes 0:09:48.840 --> 0:09:51.080 this happens as I'm moving around and everything like that, 0:09:51.120 --> 0:09:54.160 and they have to focus the camera right, okay, and 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:56.679 so you can't see me real good, and that's distracting, 0:09:56.800 --> 0:09:59.559 and you're like, oh God, that looks horrible. It was 0:09:59.600 --> 0:10:01.800 tithing elevation, but now I'm gonna give it somewhere else. 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:04.240 They don't even get the money in the equipment. So 0:10:04.360 --> 0:10:09.320 then so then I'm like Bowser and I'm looking at 0:10:09.320 --> 0:10:13.560 the camera, but nothing changed. What you have to understand 0:10:13.760 --> 0:10:22.760 is he's behind the camera, but he's not controlling the camera. Furthermore, 0:10:23.760 --> 0:10:25.760 let me come back over here where it's blurry. See 0:10:25.800 --> 0:10:27.360 how you can't really see it, Like how your life 0:10:27.360 --> 0:10:29.120 feels right now, how your plans feel right now, how 0:10:29.160 --> 0:10:31.559 your future feels right now, how the outcome of certain 0:10:31.559 --> 0:10:33.440 things in the United States of America feels right now, 0:10:33.600 --> 0:10:35.600 How what God is doing in the world feels right now. 0:10:35.720 --> 0:10:38.880 This house felt for a little while. And so Bowser 0:10:38.960 --> 0:10:41.960 is on camera one, and it's like, Bowser, come on, man, 0:10:42.200 --> 0:10:44.360 do your job. I'm looking at that camera. Give me 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:51.520 that camera. But he can't control that camera. That camera 0:10:51.679 --> 0:10:56.480 is controlled in another room. The name of the room 0:10:56.559 --> 0:11:01.320 is the control room. In the control room, somebody named Chelsea. 0:11:02.120 --> 0:11:05.480 Chelsea has a headset and Bowser does not have the 0:11:05.559 --> 0:11:09.520 capability to switch to that camera without Chelsea saying the 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:13.440 following words, take it. When Chelsea says take it, there 0:11:13.440 --> 0:11:17.360 it is in focus. Now he's on the camera, but 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:20.959 he doesn't control the camera. So if I'm over here, 0:11:21.000 --> 0:11:23.319 make it blurry again. Make it real, blurry, Abraham, make 0:11:23.360 --> 0:11:26.080 it real blurry and is blurry and I look over here. 0:11:26.200 --> 0:11:29.040 Come on, Bowser, do your job. Come on, Bowser, what's 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:32.320 wrong with you? Come on, Bowser? Are you distracted? Come on, Bowser, 0:11:32.440 --> 0:11:34.840 just sleep in today forget to show up front. Come on, Bowser, 0:11:35.000 --> 0:11:37.240 let's go, let's go. I can yell at him all 0:11:37.280 --> 0:11:42.760 I want, but he's not controlling the camera. Until Chelsea says, 0:11:42.800 --> 0:11:46.960 watch this, take it now. God says, you can stay 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:49.760 in a state of confusion. Make it blurry, Abraham all 0:11:49.800 --> 0:11:52.240 you want, and you can complain about me all you want. 0:11:52.280 --> 0:11:56.920 But God says, until see. God can give you a promise, 0:11:57.000 --> 0:12:00.840 but until you take it, you gotta God to give 0:12:00.880 --> 0:12:05.920 you peace. But you will feel unclear until you take it. 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:09.600 And I hear the spirit of God saying today I 0:12:09.640 --> 0:12:16.600 have given you retention, restoration, and purpose, but you got 0:12:16.640 --> 0:12:25.120 to take it. Are you in control? So there are 0:12:25.160 --> 0:12:29.880 three questions in Philippians one that I think will help 0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:34.080 us with our focus. For me, in the last six months, 0:12:34.640 --> 0:12:40.079 focus has been a matter of survival. For the first 0:12:40.120 --> 0:12:43.960 week of the global pandemic, I had news stations on 0:12:44.120 --> 0:12:49.040 all around. I had to turn them off because I 0:12:49.120 --> 0:12:51.840 realized that if I kept watching their news, I wouldn't 0:12:51.880 --> 0:12:58.680 be able to preach good news the gospel. And I 0:12:58.720 --> 0:13:02.640 found out why they call it breaking news, because it 0:13:03.520 --> 0:13:11.719 will break your brain. So Paul is going to talk 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:16.800 to us today in a situation where it seems like 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:20.720 God is maybe not in control? Are you in control? God? 0:13:21.800 --> 0:13:26.040 Because here I am in prison and here you are sovereign, 0:13:27.040 --> 0:13:31.880 and here I am stock. So this really helped me. 0:13:32.559 --> 0:13:34.040 All right, you'll pray for me. I can read the 0:13:34.080 --> 0:13:37.120 whole thing with no interruptions. How many believe that God 0:13:37.160 --> 0:13:40.800 will give me the willpower to read all fourteen verses 0:13:40.840 --> 0:13:44.360 and not stopping and rent around? Y'all don't believe I'm 0:13:44.360 --> 0:13:47.439 gonna prove you wrong? Okay? How many of y'all on 0:13:47.520 --> 0:13:49.800 the chat believe in me? Say? I believe in you, Pastor. 0:13:49.840 --> 0:13:52.280 I don't care about these other people. Fire them all, 0:13:52.600 --> 0:13:55.720 fire your staff. We believe in you. Believe in Steve. 0:13:56.280 --> 0:14:02.400 Here we go Philippians one twelve. Now, I want you 0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:04.160 to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to 0:14:04.160 --> 0:14:07.240 me has actually served to advance the gospel as a result. 0:14:07.440 --> 0:14:12.760 He's not okay, okay, just one, He's not focused on 0:14:12.840 --> 0:14:19.600 the resistance. He's focused on the results. It has become clear. 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:28.000 It has become clear, Abraham, it has become Take it clear. 0:14:30.280 --> 0:14:34.920 It has become clear. Situation is uncertain, but my purpose 0:14:35.440 --> 0:14:39.920 has become clear throughout the whole palace, guard and to 0:14:40.040 --> 0:14:43.320 everyone else, that I am in chains for Christ. And 0:14:43.360 --> 0:14:46.480 because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters 0:14:46.720 --> 0:14:49.880 have become confident in the Lord, and they're all the 0:14:49.960 --> 0:14:53.440 more to proclaim the Gospel, the Gospel, the good News 0:14:53.440 --> 0:14:57.720 without fear. It is true. Somebody say facts that some 0:14:57.840 --> 0:15:00.480 preach Christ out of envy, and right, I will read, 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:03.360 but others others out of good will. The latter do 0:15:03.480 --> 0:15:05.920 so out of love, knowing that I am put here 0:15:05.920 --> 0:15:08.640 for the defense of a gospel. The former preached Christ 0:15:08.680 --> 0:15:12.680 out of selfish ambition, not sincerely supposing they can stir 0:15:12.760 --> 0:15:15.320 up trouble for me while I am in chains. But 0:15:15.400 --> 0:15:18.080 what does it matter? The important thing is that in 0:15:18.160 --> 0:15:20.480 every way, and I've already given you the first question, 0:15:20.560 --> 0:15:22.400 there are three. I've already given you the first one. 0:15:22.440 --> 0:15:24.320 See if you can find all three. Two of them 0:15:24.320 --> 0:15:26.160 are right there in the text, and one is implied. 0:15:26.360 --> 0:15:30.080 He said, what does it matter? The important thing is 0:15:30.080 --> 0:15:32.400 that in every way, whether from false motives or true, 0:15:32.440 --> 0:15:37.120 Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice, Yes, 0:15:37.200 --> 0:15:41.800 and I will continue to rejoice. I'll rejoice in my bathrobe, 0:15:41.920 --> 0:15:46.280 watching church in my living room. I will continue to rejoice. 0:15:46.320 --> 0:15:49.280 I will rejoice without a job cut back on hours. 0:15:49.560 --> 0:15:51.680 I will rejoice even as I wake up in the 0:15:51.720 --> 0:15:53.560 middle of the night, in the middle of a full 0:15:53.600 --> 0:15:56.720 blown panic attack. I will praise my way back to sleep. 0:15:56.760 --> 0:15:59.720 I will breathe my way into peace. I will continue 0:15:59.760 --> 0:16:03.880 to joye for I know that, through your prayers and 0:16:04.040 --> 0:16:07.760 God's provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has 0:16:07.800 --> 0:16:10.560 happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I 0:16:10.640 --> 0:16:13.800 eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:17.360 be a shame, will have sufficient courage so that now 0:16:17.400 --> 0:16:21.600 as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether 0:16:22.320 --> 0:16:25.400 by life or by death. For to me, to live 0:16:25.440 --> 0:16:28.120 is Christ and to die is Gain. If I'm to 0:16:28.160 --> 0:16:30.600 go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful 0:16:30.640 --> 0:16:33.360 labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do 0:16:33.440 --> 0:16:37.800 not know. Torn between the two. Kind of want to 0:16:37.800 --> 0:16:41.600 get out of here. It's crazy, but it's more necessary 0:16:41.640 --> 0:16:43.720 for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, 0:16:45.040 --> 0:16:47.960 I know that I will remain and I will continue 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:51.800 with all of you for your progress, enjoy and the faith. 0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:57.400 Isn't it funny that he calls it progress? Well, he's 0:16:57.440 --> 0:17:03.040 in prison. He must be measuring something, he must be 0:17:03.240 --> 0:17:09.600 asking a different question, and he does not give them 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:12.960 any of the answers that they would have asked for, 0:17:14.600 --> 0:17:16.560 because I'm going to tell you what they wanted to know? 0:17:17.320 --> 0:17:26.359 When are you getting out the church at PHILIPI is 0:17:26.440 --> 0:17:30.960 like your kids in the car. All they want to 0:17:31.000 --> 0:17:34.640 know is are we there yet? How many think that's 0:17:34.640 --> 0:17:38.840 the second most annoying question that your kids ask. You're like, well, 0:17:38.920 --> 0:17:43.680 what's the first? For me? Do we have to do? 0:17:43.760 --> 0:17:47.800 I have to? I feel the spirit of slap your 0:17:47.800 --> 0:17:50.720 tongue out of your mouth coming up? Do I have 0:17:50.800 --> 0:17:55.160 to unload the dishwasher? Okay, no, you don't have to. 0:17:55.760 --> 0:17:58.920 I will rip the dishwasher out, throw it in the yard. 0:17:59.160 --> 0:18:02.920 You can wash it all by hand, and then after that, 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:05.120 your mom will cook for me and you will watch, 0:18:08.119 --> 0:18:10.840 so you don't have to. I used to hate it 0:18:10.840 --> 0:18:12.960 when staff members would say, do we have to come? 0:18:14.080 --> 0:18:18.199 Do we have to comb to Saturday night service. And 0:18:18.480 --> 0:18:20.440 you know, sometimes the Lord just has to take stuff 0:18:20.480 --> 0:18:22.240 away for a minute for you to appreciate it to 0:18:22.240 --> 0:18:26.000 get it back, and it's like, do I have to 0:18:26.040 --> 0:18:28.200 be there? It's like, oh God, can I please come? 0:18:28.320 --> 0:18:31.120 Can I please? And so that happens, that that happens, 0:18:31.160 --> 0:18:35.520 that happens in our life. So the Lord was telling 0:18:35.520 --> 0:18:37.880 me that there are some really bad questions that I ask, 0:18:39.400 --> 0:18:42.480 questions that either he doesn't want me to know. My 0:18:42.560 --> 0:18:44.880 mom used to always say, if I would have wanted 0:18:44.920 --> 0:18:47.119 you to know, I would have told you. And so 0:18:47.200 --> 0:18:49.000 the way Paul started the text, go back to verse 0:18:49.000 --> 0:18:50.920 twelve real quick, he said, now I want you to know. 0:18:51.880 --> 0:18:54.000 And then he doesn't tell them what they want to know. 0:18:54.520 --> 0:18:57.320 When are you getting out? He tells them what he 0:18:57.359 --> 0:19:02.119 wants them to know. That's like God. He tells you 0:19:02.200 --> 0:19:06.040 what he wants you to know. God controls the flow 0:19:06.080 --> 0:19:09.600 of information to our lives, and he doesn't owe us 0:19:09.600 --> 0:19:15.120 an explanation for everything. My amens are fading fast. Oh, 0:19:15.240 --> 0:19:19.520 my amens are fading fast. My amens are shutting down 0:19:19.640 --> 0:19:21.879 right now. I feel like I'm gonna have to come 0:19:21.920 --> 0:19:24.159 over here and preach this to Jenna now Jenna. I 0:19:24.200 --> 0:19:26.399 specifically asked if you could be out on the stage 0:19:26.400 --> 0:19:29.480 today because I was watching you worship the other day 0:19:29.840 --> 0:19:33.200 and I realize that you are an example of someone 0:19:33.640 --> 0:19:37.480 who never really asks for the spotlight. That blessed me. 0:19:38.119 --> 0:19:40.239 It blessed me because a lot of singers want to know, 0:19:40.320 --> 0:19:42.399 like when am I going to get that? You know, 0:19:42.760 --> 0:19:45.359 it's a dumb question, And I realized that the better 0:19:45.440 --> 0:19:49.720 question isn't when am I going to get credit? It's 0:19:49.760 --> 0:19:55.720 what is God calling me to do? Now? When God 0:19:55.800 --> 0:19:58.080 does not give you an answer? How many of you 0:19:58.119 --> 0:20:01.719 are waiting for an answer from God about something in 0:20:01.760 --> 0:20:05.560 your life right now? Okay, if you won't give you 0:20:05.600 --> 0:20:11.480 the answer, ask him for a better question. You want 0:20:11.480 --> 0:20:16.600 an example of this, when Moses asked God in Exodus, 0:20:16.680 --> 0:20:19.400 chapter four, verse one. You remember he's called by God. 0:20:19.440 --> 0:20:21.760 We discussed Moses a couple of weeks ago. I kind 0:20:21.800 --> 0:20:25.160 of finished my sermon talking about Moses and how if 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:27.560 God asked you to do it, the proof that you 0:20:27.600 --> 0:20:28.760 have it in you is that He asked you to 0:20:28.760 --> 0:20:30.159 do it, because he won't ask anything from you that 0:20:30.200 --> 0:20:32.280 he didn't first put in you. And I'm just reminding 0:20:32.280 --> 0:20:34.720 you of that. But remember when Moses asked the first 0:20:34.720 --> 0:20:38.440 thing he asked, he said, he said, what if they 0:20:39.920 --> 0:20:44.440 do not believe me talking about the Israelites. Now, let's 0:20:44.480 --> 0:20:49.080 isolate those three words. What if they? Okay, that's a 0:20:49.119 --> 0:20:55.880 bad question. Anytime your question revolves around other people, it 0:20:55.920 --> 0:21:01.400 is outside of the realm of your sovereign control. What 0:21:01.600 --> 0:21:04.000 if they? I don't care what you say next, you 0:21:04.040 --> 0:21:08.119 can't control it. What if they is a bad question. 0:21:08.320 --> 0:21:12.159 So watch what God does. He answers Moses' question with 0:21:12.280 --> 0:21:15.280 a question, But it's an upgrade. When I saw this, 0:21:15.359 --> 0:21:18.399 I shouted, you ready, Moses, what if they? Look at 0:21:18.480 --> 0:21:22.439 verse two, The Lord said to him, what is that? 0:21:25.000 --> 0:21:31.280 So let's go. Moses said, what if they? God said, 0:21:31.520 --> 0:21:36.480 what is that? Moses is asking about what he can't control. 0:21:37.840 --> 0:21:42.120 He's asking about a hypothetical scenario that involves others, and 0:21:42.200 --> 0:21:47.440 God says, what is that? What is that? In your hand? 0:21:48.640 --> 0:21:52.119 God will always point you to what is at hand. 0:21:52.600 --> 0:21:57.159 And the more your questions revolve around hypothetical situations that 0:21:57.280 --> 0:22:00.359 haven't happened and may not happen, the longer you are 0:22:00.359 --> 0:22:02.280 going to spend in the absence of an answer, which 0:22:02.320 --> 0:22:04.920 you will mistake for the absence of God. But God 0:22:04.960 --> 0:22:08.399 ask a better question. It's not what if they? What 0:22:08.600 --> 0:22:11.879 is that? When you focus on what God has given you. 0:22:11.960 --> 0:22:14.760 I love this. I spend so much time asking the 0:22:14.840 --> 0:22:17.680 question what if they or what if that? Or what 0:22:18.160 --> 0:22:20.760 if this? Or what if that? But God says, I've 0:22:20.800 --> 0:22:26.840 already given you a that no matter what they do. Ye, yes, 0:22:27.320 --> 0:22:31.119 all right. So that's an example of what I'm talking 0:22:31.119 --> 0:22:36.919 about the power of a better question. And so the 0:22:36.960 --> 0:22:39.639 proof of my progress and my relationship with God is 0:22:41.440 --> 0:22:50.200 I have less answers better questions. The three questions that 0:22:50.240 --> 0:22:55.600 are always running in your mind are what does it matter? 0:22:58.320 --> 0:23:05.120 What does it mean? And what shall I choose? All 0:23:05.160 --> 0:23:08.840 three are in the text. I'll be honest with you. 0:23:08.880 --> 0:23:11.879 The first one caught me off guard when I was 0:23:12.800 --> 0:23:16.960 just minding my own business preaching Philippians one, and I 0:23:17.040 --> 0:23:19.439 was standing on this stage. I will never forget I 0:23:19.560 --> 0:23:22.200 was standing on stage. I didn't study for it or anything. 0:23:22.880 --> 0:23:24.679 I was just reading through it. You know, there's some 0:23:24.720 --> 0:23:27.959 really good stuff in the Book of Philippians, some really 0:23:28.000 --> 0:23:32.480 famous verses. Being confident of this that he began a 0:23:32.520 --> 0:23:33.760 good work ca and you be faithful to complete it 0:23:33.800 --> 0:23:37.520 to the day of Christ. That's a great verse. One 0:23:37.560 --> 0:23:39.320 of them we read. For me to live is Christ, 0:23:39.359 --> 0:23:43.600 to die is game. How about this one? God has 0:23:43.600 --> 0:23:45.480 exalted Jesus the highest place, giving me the the names above, 0:23:45.480 --> 0:23:46.679 every name that at the name of ges every name 0:23:46.680 --> 0:23:48.159 to about and every time confessed geis Christ Lord, the 0:23:48.160 --> 0:23:50.360 glory of God the Father. These are like the famous 0:23:50.440 --> 0:23:54.080 verses in Philippians, and they're good. So I always thought 0:23:54.080 --> 0:23:58.040 those were the most important verses of the whole thing. 0:23:58.480 --> 0:24:01.040 And there's some other ones too that you know. You know, 0:24:01.119 --> 0:24:03.919 these verses I kind to myself to have apprehended. But 0:24:03.920 --> 0:24:05.359 this one thing I do forgetting what is behind and 0:24:05.440 --> 0:24:07.840 pressing toward was ahead. I pressed toward the margaret, the prize. 0:24:07.880 --> 0:24:09.280 You know how many times have you heard that on 0:24:09.280 --> 0:24:11.560 New Year's Eve or something like that. I'm forgetting what 0:24:11.680 --> 0:24:14.000 is behind, forget the past, pressed toward what's ahead. You know, 0:24:14.040 --> 0:24:17.440 I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. Right, 0:24:17.720 --> 0:24:20.719 great versus in Philippians. And My God shall supply all 0:24:20.760 --> 0:24:23.440 your needs according to His riches in glory. All those 0:24:23.520 --> 0:24:26.040 verses I love. The one that jumped up and bit 0:24:26.200 --> 0:24:30.119 me was in verse eighteen, or yeah, verse eighteen of 0:24:30.200 --> 0:24:34.679 chapter one, where Paul says, what does it matter? And 0:24:34.760 --> 0:24:37.399 the Lord arrested me in the middle of my sermon. 0:24:37.440 --> 0:24:39.320 I was trying to get to another verse, and the 0:24:39.320 --> 0:24:43.600