WEBVTT - I'm Confused About My Calling

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, this is Stephen Ferdik.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>I wanted to thank you for joining us today. Hope

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<v Speaker 1>this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith.

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<v Speaker 2>Hope it gives your perspective to see God is moving

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<v Speaker 2>in your life.

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<v Speaker 1>Enjoy the message.

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<v Speaker 2>There is a passage of scripture that has always fascinated me,

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<v Speaker 2>and I knew it was the one to start this

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<v Speaker 2>series with because most of my sermon ideas come from

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<v Speaker 2>a text, usually a text in the Bible. But this

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<v Speaker 2>whole series came to me through a text on my

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<v Speaker 2>phone and somebody texted me, but I didn't have their

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<v Speaker 2>number in my contacts, but they had texted me before

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<v Speaker 2>and their name was in the text. So you know,

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<v Speaker 2>Steve Jobs is so smart, even from beyond the grave.

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<v Speaker 2>He made a suggestion on my iPhone and he said maybe,

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<v Speaker 2>and then it said it could be this person. And

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<v Speaker 2>when I saw it on my phone, I realized that

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<v Speaker 2>that would make an amazing way to spend several weeks

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<v Speaker 2>in the Word of God talking about those times where

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<v Speaker 2>we don't know if it's God or not, and so

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<v Speaker 2>we're trying to lead our families some of us, or

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<v Speaker 2>we're trying to get our education, or we're trying to

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<v Speaker 2>decide about jobs or dates, or trying to decide about

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<v Speaker 2>moving to a new house or new apartment, or just

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<v Speaker 2>trying to figure out what it is that we were

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<v Speaker 2>put here on earth for. But the series is called

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<v Speaker 2>Maybe God, Maybe God. We worship a God who can

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<v Speaker 2>be best explained as mystery, and yet we live in

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<v Speaker 2>a culture that worships certainty. And so I want to

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<v Speaker 2>talk about that for several weeks with you. And I'm

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<v Speaker 2>so glad you're here. Touch somebody and say he's so

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<v Speaker 2>happy you're here. That preacher, That preacher is happy you're here.

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<v Speaker 1>That's true. I'm so glad you're here.

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<v Speaker 2>And what I need you to do right now is

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<v Speaker 2>give you attention just to this text in First Samuel,

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<v Speaker 2>chapter three, where we will encounter a young man who's

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<v Speaker 2>encountering God. And I pray that we will encounter God

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<v Speaker 2>in the process today. First Samuel three, verse one. The

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<v Speaker 2>boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days,

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<v Speaker 2>the word of the Lord was rare. There were not

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<v Speaker 2>many visions. One night, Eli, whose eyes were becoming so

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<v Speaker 2>weak that he could barely see was lying down in

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<v Speaker 2>his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet

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<v Speaker 2>gone out touch somebody say, there's still time, There's still time.

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<v Speaker 2>I know you might have got off track in your life,

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<v Speaker 2>but there's still time. I know there might be some

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<v Speaker 2>things out of order in your house, but there's still time.

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<v Speaker 2>I know you might have wasted some years chasing your

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<v Speaker 2>own ways, but God brought you here because there's still time.

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<v Speaker 2>God left you here because there's still time. If you're

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<v Speaker 2>still breathing, there's still time. I got a friend named

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<v Speaker 2>Perry Noble. His favorite quote is, if you're not dead,

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<v Speaker 2>God's not done.

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<v Speaker 1>And I just believe that. I believe it.

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<v Speaker 2>So the light had not yet gone out out, and

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<v Speaker 2>Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord,

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<v Speaker 2>where the ark of God, which symbolized the presence of

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<v Speaker 2>God was, And then the Lord called Samuel, and Samuel answered,

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<v Speaker 2>here I am. And he ran to Eli and said,

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<v Speaker 2>here I am. You called me, but Eli said I

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<v Speaker 2>didn't call go back to sleep, man, wake me up

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<v Speaker 2>in the middle of the night. I didn't call you.

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<v Speaker 2>Go back and lie down. So he went and lay

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<v Speaker 2>down again. The Lord called Samuel, and Samuel got up

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<v Speaker 2>and went to Eli and said, here, I am. This

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<v Speaker 2>is really strange, right like, because you expect when God

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<v Speaker 2>calls it'll sound so deep. So baritone Samuel apparently it sounded.

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<v Speaker 2>It sounded so much like what he was used to

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<v Speaker 2>being that he ran to the place where he normally

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<v Speaker 2>went and he was like, here, I am, you called me,

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<v Speaker 2>my son. Eli said, I did not call, go back.

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<v Speaker 1>And lie down, but you need an ambient, a weighted.

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<v Speaker 2>Blanket, some milk, a cookie.

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<v Speaker 1>Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord.

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<v Speaker 2>The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed

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<v Speaker 2>to him. A third time, the Lord called Samuel, and

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<v Speaker 2>Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, here,

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<v Speaker 2>I am, you call me. I know you're messing with me.

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<v Speaker 2>Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy.

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<v Speaker 2>So Eli told Samuel go and lie down. If he calls,

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<v Speaker 2>you say speak Lord, for your servant is listening. The

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<v Speaker 2>title of this message is something that I have heard

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<v Speaker 2>people say to me of all ages, of all ethnicities,

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<v Speaker 2>of all econom status positions. And I want you to

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<v Speaker 2>look at the screen for the title of my message.

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<v Speaker 2>It goes like this, I'm confused about my calling. I'm

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<v Speaker 2>confused about my calling. I love God and I love

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<v Speaker 2>my family and I want to make a difference. But

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<v Speaker 2>look at somebody next to you and say you look confused.

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<v Speaker 2>Tell them I am, I'm confused about my call. Lord

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<v Speaker 2>have your way, speak your word. We're listening in Jesus' name. Amen,

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<v Speaker 2>Now be seated. You are forgiven. If when I say

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<v Speaker 2>calling you roll your eyes a little bit. It is

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<v Speaker 2>one of these terms that is so popular in culture

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<v Speaker 2>that it almost means nothing anymore, and it can be

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<v Speaker 2>frustrating the older you get when people talk about lofty

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<v Speaker 2>ideals like finding your calling. You need to find your calling,

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<v Speaker 2>and you know, well, for most of us, that's way

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<v Speaker 2>outside of the realm of our everyday life where we're

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<v Speaker 2>trying to pay bills. It's like, you know, you need

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<v Speaker 2>to find your calling, and you're like, well, I'm doing

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<v Speaker 2>good to find my keys in the morning, and you

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<v Speaker 2>want to talk about finding your calling. And as much

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<v Speaker 2>as I understand that, I also understand that there's a

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<v Speaker 2>reason that the majority of questions that I have been

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<v Speaker 2>asked as a pastor in these thirteen years going on

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<v Speaker 2>fourteen years, the reason for it is that there is

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<v Speaker 2>something inside of you that wants to find the thing

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<v Speaker 2>that you were made to do, and you will never

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<v Speaker 2>be satisfied with anything else. And no matter how much

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<v Speaker 2>sex you have, money you make, friends you meet, no

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<v Speaker 2>matter how big the house is that you build, no

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<v Speaker 2>matter how many cars you park in the driveway, there

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<v Speaker 2>will always be something unsatisfied in you until you find

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<v Speaker 2>that thing that we call a calling.

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<v Speaker 1>And yet, and yet, so much damage.

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<v Speaker 2>Has been done in popular culture by the concept of

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<v Speaker 2>calling that it actually makes us discontent with our lives

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<v Speaker 2>because rather than understand the real nature of a calling,

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<v Speaker 2>we have a concept of a calling, and often we

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<v Speaker 2>spend our lives wishing that we were doing something that

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<v Speaker 2>God did not tell us to do.

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<v Speaker 1>So to break this first sermon down.

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<v Speaker 2>Today, and there will be several in this series, I'm

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<v Speaker 2>praying that you come.

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<v Speaker 1>To all of them.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm praying if you can't come to all of them,

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<v Speaker 2>you'll watch them all because they're all online for free.

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<v Speaker 2>And I can't figure out a reason in the world

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<v Speaker 2>why you couldn't spend forty minutes with me on YouTube

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<v Speaker 2>each week, even if you have to do it while

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<v Speaker 2>you're walking the dog, even if you have to do

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<v Speaker 2>it while you're falling.

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<v Speaker 1>Asleep, I'll put you to sleep. I don't mind whatever

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<v Speaker 1>I can get.

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<v Speaker 2>I'll help you run on the treadmill, whatever you have

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<v Speaker 2>to do to get these messages. The Bible says in

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<v Speaker 2>verse one that in those days, while Samuel, the twelve

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<v Speaker 2>year old who was apprenticing in the tabernacle because his

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<v Speaker 2>mother Hannah, prayed that she could have a son, and

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<v Speaker 2>she had trouble conceiving. And when she finally had the son,

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<v Speaker 2>she dedicated him to the Lord, and she dropped him

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<v Speaker 2>off at age four and only saw him once a year,

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<v Speaker 2>and she put him under Eli, who wasn't doing a

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<v Speaker 2>very good job. He was letting his sons run around

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<v Speaker 2>in the tabernacle and have sex with women at the

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<v Speaker 2>entrance to the tabernacle, and he knew about it, but

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<v Speaker 2>he wouldn't do anything about it. And he was letting

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<v Speaker 2>his sons beat people up who had brought their sacrifice

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<v Speaker 2>to the temple, and they brought their sacrifice to God,

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<v Speaker 2>but the priests took it for themselves. Hofney and phineas

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<v Speaker 2>Eli's sons, would send their messenger out to the tent

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<v Speaker 2>and say, hey, Hoffney said, you got to give him

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<v Speaker 2>the fat portion, And the people who came would be like, well,

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<v Speaker 2>that's for the Lord. They can get the portion after

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<v Speaker 2>it burns off, that's the priest portion. But they had

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<v Speaker 2>gotten confused about what it meant to honor God, and

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<v Speaker 2>they had started honoring themselves and their opinions and their desires,

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<v Speaker 2>and they started treating God as common. And so the

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<v Speaker 2>Bible says something interesting in verse one. It says, in

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<v Speaker 2>those days, with all of that going on, the word

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<v Speaker 2>of the Lord was rare because they treated the Lord

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<v Speaker 2>as common.

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<v Speaker 1>The word of the Lord was rare.

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<v Speaker 2>Because we live in a day where it is so

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<v Speaker 2>easy to get information but so difficult to get truth.

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<v Speaker 2>I figured this verse would apply to us. Would you

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<v Speaker 2>agree with me that we are drowning in information, drowning

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<v Speaker 2>in opinion, drowning in agenda, drowning in projections, but starving

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<v Speaker 2>for truth.

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<v Speaker 1>You know I'm right about it.

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<v Speaker 2>It's such a crazy time. You don't know who to

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<v Speaker 2>trust anymore. You don't know if it's real, know if

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<v Speaker 2>it's fake. You don't know if it's inflated. You don't

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<v Speaker 2>know if it's a statistic. And let me give you

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<v Speaker 2>a statistic. Eighty three percent of statistics are made up.

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<v Speaker 2>That's a statistic. I made it up. It's a time

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<v Speaker 2>where truth is hard to find. And it doesn't mean

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<v Speaker 2>that there wasn't access to the Bible. God knows we

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<v Speaker 2>have access to the Word of God. You could pull

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<v Speaker 2>out your phone right now and a British person will

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<v Speaker 2>read you the Bible on the Bible at That made

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<v Speaker 2>me think of something real funny. One time, Graham asked

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<v Speaker 2>me do British people find American accents soothing?

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<v Speaker 1>Probably not.

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<v Speaker 2>But here's the thing about it. It's not access to

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<v Speaker 2>the Word of God. It's our attitude to the Word

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<v Speaker 2>of God.

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<v Speaker 1>It's our attitude.

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<v Speaker 2>It's why some people can come into church and look

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<v Speaker 2>narcoleptic in church. That's why some people can come into

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<v Speaker 2>church and leave during the invitation. God forbid it takes

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<v Speaker 2>you seven minutes to get the cracker barrel. It's why

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<v Speaker 2>some people can click around to different sermons and be like, Ah,

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<v Speaker 2>I don't know Fredi's not on today.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna go over here to this one and that one.

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<v Speaker 2>And that's what See, when the Word of God becomes

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<v Speaker 2>common to us, we will have access to the Word

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<v Speaker 2>of God, but it will not have impact on our life.

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<v Speaker 2>And so the first thing I wanted to mention is

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<v Speaker 2>the culture. The culture in Eli's time was a culture

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<v Speaker 2>of neglect, a culture where the value of who God

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<v Speaker 2>was and what he.

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<v Speaker 1>Said was negotiable.

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<v Speaker 2>Therefore there was an absence of that special presence of God.

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<v Speaker 2>The word of the Lord was rare because the Lord

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<v Speaker 2>of the Word had become common. And I just want

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<v Speaker 2>to say to you today that many of our cultural

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<v Speaker 2>concepts of calling are really just self help, individualistic, ambition

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<v Speaker 2>oriented delusions dressed up in Christian cliches. And because you

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<v Speaker 2>got a trophy when you were seven does not mean

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<v Speaker 2>you get to play Major League Baseball. And the culture

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<v Speaker 2>of our day is kind of like, instead of worshiping God,

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<v Speaker 2>we worship our idea of God's will, And rather than

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<v Speaker 2>being in relationship with God, we want God to be

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<v Speaker 2>a resource.

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<v Speaker 1>Who is more like Siri than he is like a savior.

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<v Speaker 2>I don't know if you come back next week the

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<v Speaker 2>way I'm starting to sermon, but we need to get

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<v Speaker 2>something straight right off the bat that until I treasure

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<v Speaker 2>the voice of God, tell you the voice of God,

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<v Speaker 2>hearken to the voice of God, make time for the

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<v Speaker 2>voice of God, consecrate myself, I can't get it by skimming.

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<v Speaker 2>I can't get it by just you know, running around

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<v Speaker 2>to this person and that person.

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<v Speaker 1>It is the revealed will of God that we're after.

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<v Speaker 1>It is the revealed will of God.

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<v Speaker 2>Now, when I was in my twenties, I did all

0:13:29.440 --> 0:13:32.480
<v Speaker 2>this teaching and preaching. And now you know, now that

0:13:32.520 --> 0:13:37.520
<v Speaker 2>I'm wiser, I turned forty next year, you'll better start

0:13:37.520 --> 0:13:42.040
<v Speaker 2>working on my gift now, because it's a big one.

0:13:41.160 --> 0:13:45.679
<v Speaker 2>It's kind of cringey for me to look back on

0:13:46.360 --> 0:13:52.200
<v Speaker 2>the way I spoke about calling in my twenties that

0:13:52.400 --> 0:13:59.600
<v Speaker 2>probably left people feeling at the very least confused, at

0:13:59.640 --> 0:14:03.880
<v Speaker 2>worse frustrated, and maybe even full of resentment because the

0:14:03.920 --> 0:14:05.560
<v Speaker 2>way it happened in my life is different for all

0:14:05.600 --> 0:14:11.400
<v Speaker 2>of us. Here's Samuel, who is receiving a revelation of God,

0:14:12.400 --> 0:14:15.200
<v Speaker 2>And in my life, I never heard anything audible that

0:14:15.240 --> 0:14:17.760
<v Speaker 2>God said to me. I never, you know, the Lord

0:14:17.800 --> 0:14:20.920
<v Speaker 2>never said Fardich Steve, what God called you by your

0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:23.320
<v Speaker 2>last name for someone don't know, but he said. He

0:14:23.360 --> 0:14:28.920
<v Speaker 2>never said, you know, preach to me out loud. There

0:14:28.920 --> 0:14:33.720
<v Speaker 2>were desires, there were opportunities. I noticed some effectiveness. It's

0:14:33.720 --> 0:14:36.280
<v Speaker 2>the weirdest thing. When I first got up to pray

0:14:36.920 --> 0:14:39.400
<v Speaker 2>for Pastor Mickey, who asked me to pray at a

0:14:39.440 --> 0:14:42.560
<v Speaker 2>Lions Club meeting. I noticed that people seem to be

0:14:42.640 --> 0:14:46.000
<v Speaker 2>blessed as I prayed, and they connected him. And it

0:14:46.080 --> 0:14:49.920
<v Speaker 2>took Pastor Mickey to explain to me that that was

0:14:49.960 --> 0:14:50.760
<v Speaker 2>the hand of God.

0:14:51.440 --> 0:14:53.400
<v Speaker 1>All my life I didn't know that.

0:14:53.880 --> 0:14:56.200
<v Speaker 2>If he hadn't been there to guide me, I would

0:14:56.240 --> 0:15:00.240
<v Speaker 2>have maybe thought I was just a charismatic speaker. He

0:15:00.120 --> 0:15:03.640
<v Speaker 2>helped me to see that there was something supernatural involved.

0:15:04.240 --> 0:15:09.320
<v Speaker 2>And I was sixteen years old, and I had someone

0:15:09.720 --> 0:15:12.800
<v Speaker 2>who had been around long enough to see some things

0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:15.640
<v Speaker 2>to tell me it was special. Otherwise I wouldn't have

0:15:15.680 --> 0:15:18.120
<v Speaker 2>known him. Now here's what I did with that knowledge.

0:15:18.880 --> 0:15:22.120
<v Speaker 2>I preached in my twenties that just like God called

0:15:22.160 --> 0:15:25.560
<v Speaker 2>me to preach, God has called each Christian.

0:15:25.320 --> 0:15:26.040
<v Speaker 1>To do something.

0:15:28.360 --> 0:15:33.040
<v Speaker 2>You agree with that, But here's the part that I

0:15:33.080 --> 0:15:36.280
<v Speaker 2>think was incomplete. While I'd be up there saying to people,

0:15:36.320 --> 0:15:37.760
<v Speaker 2>you need to find your calling. You need to find

0:15:37.760 --> 0:15:39.200
<v Speaker 2>your calling. You need to find your calling. You need

0:15:39.240 --> 0:15:40.760
<v Speaker 2>to find your calling. You need to find your calling.

0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:42.720
<v Speaker 2>You find your calling. You need to find your calling.

0:15:42.760 --> 0:15:44.840
<v Speaker 2>You need to find your calling. You need to find

0:15:44.840 --> 0:15:46.280
<v Speaker 2>your calling. You need to find your calling. You need

0:15:46.280 --> 0:15:48.440
<v Speaker 2>to find a calling, because he gets annoying after a while. Right,

0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:52.120
<v Speaker 2>It's like I'm just trying to like I need a job, man,

0:15:52.160 --> 0:15:53.200
<v Speaker 2>I don't know about a calling.

0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:56.960
<v Speaker 1>I've need a raise right now.

0:15:58.360 --> 0:16:00.960
<v Speaker 2>Is that it makes it sound as if it's something

0:16:01.840 --> 0:16:05.360
<v Speaker 2>that you can just get and just know. And yet

0:16:05.440 --> 0:16:09.880
<v Speaker 2>did you notice in the passage that even Samuel, who

0:16:10.040 --> 0:16:13.240
<v Speaker 2>was the link between the period of the Judges and

0:16:13.280 --> 0:16:16.640
<v Speaker 2>the monarchy of Israel a thousand years before Jesus, that

0:16:16.760 --> 0:16:20.320
<v Speaker 2>even Samuel, who none of his words fell to the ground,

0:16:20.440 --> 0:16:26.280
<v Speaker 2>even Samuel didn't get it right the first time. I

0:16:26.320 --> 0:16:29.960
<v Speaker 2>don't know why, but that encourages me just reading this

0:16:30.040 --> 0:16:33.480
<v Speaker 2>little story, to know that there's someone that God used

0:16:33.960 --> 0:16:35.280
<v Speaker 2>to do something great.

0:16:35.600 --> 0:16:38.160
<v Speaker 1>And he called him and he chose him.

0:16:38.480 --> 0:16:43.520
<v Speaker 2>But even this great prophet didn't get it right the

0:16:43.560 --> 0:16:47.920
<v Speaker 2>first time. I want to set you free today from

0:16:47.920 --> 0:16:52.280
<v Speaker 2>the feeling that you have to find your calling. That's

0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:55.520
<v Speaker 2>a cultural concept, it's not a biblical one. You don't

0:16:55.520 --> 0:16:59.920
<v Speaker 2>have to find your calling. In fact, if the tech

0:17:00.160 --> 0:17:05.600
<v Speaker 2>this correct, if Samuel is an illustration, then I don't

0:17:05.920 --> 0:17:09.520
<v Speaker 2>have to find my calling, because if I will serve

0:17:09.880 --> 0:17:13.359
<v Speaker 2>the purpose of the season that I'm in in my

0:17:13.480 --> 0:17:17.399
<v Speaker 2>life right now, watch this, get ready to shout.

0:17:18.200 --> 0:17:20.800
<v Speaker 1>My calling will find.

0:17:21.080 --> 0:17:27.640
<v Speaker 2>Me in that good news, Christian soldiers, aren't you glad

0:17:27.680 --> 0:17:29.359
<v Speaker 2>to know that?

0:17:29.480 --> 0:17:31.760
<v Speaker 1>When Samuel heard a voice and he didn't even know

0:17:31.800 --> 0:17:32.520
<v Speaker 1>whose voice it was.

0:17:32.560 --> 0:17:34.240
<v Speaker 2>And here's the thing about it, I want to talk

0:17:34.280 --> 0:17:36.800
<v Speaker 2>about the culture, and then I want to talk about

0:17:36.920 --> 0:17:42.000
<v Speaker 2>the contact, the contact, because when he first heard the voice,

0:17:42.160 --> 0:17:45.199
<v Speaker 2>it sounded like something he had heard before. Have you

0:17:45.240 --> 0:17:48.280
<v Speaker 2>ever noticed is hard to know the difference between when

0:17:48.640 --> 0:17:51.800
<v Speaker 2>you're speaking to you and when God is speaking to you.

0:17:52.200 --> 0:17:54.439
<v Speaker 1>And watch out for the Christians.

0:17:54.000 --> 0:17:57.160
<v Speaker 2>Who are running around so sure that it's God speaking

0:17:57.200 --> 0:18:00.320
<v Speaker 2>to them. Those are the weird ones. These are the

0:18:00.359 --> 0:18:03.160
<v Speaker 2>crazy ones. I mean, I'm serious. You gotta watch out

0:18:03.200 --> 0:18:05.080
<v Speaker 2>for him. And they're here at Elevation, just like they're

0:18:05.080 --> 0:18:07.320
<v Speaker 2>at every church. And they'll find you in the bathroom

0:18:07.400 --> 0:18:09.080
<v Speaker 2>and they'll have a word from the Lord for you,

0:18:09.240 --> 0:18:11.200
<v Speaker 2>and they don't even know you. And it's weird because

0:18:11.200 --> 0:18:11.880
<v Speaker 2>it's the bathroom.

0:18:11.880 --> 0:18:12.959
<v Speaker 1>Can I wash my hands?

0:18:13.080 --> 0:18:15.240
<v Speaker 2>If God spoke to you, he'll do it in the lobby.

0:18:15.280 --> 0:18:17.160
<v Speaker 1>Now, let me finish using the bathroom.

0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:19.479
<v Speaker 2>I'm serious, because I'm a preacher and people always think

0:18:19.480 --> 0:18:21.119
<v Speaker 2>I want to be spiritual, and people will stop me

0:18:21.119 --> 0:18:23.159
<v Speaker 2>in the bathroom sometimes at a restaurant and give me

0:18:23.200 --> 0:18:24.560
<v Speaker 2>a word from the Lord. But if it was really

0:18:24.600 --> 0:18:25.840
<v Speaker 2>the Lord, he would have told you it's weird to

0:18:25.840 --> 0:18:27.560
<v Speaker 2>talk to people in the bathroom and wait till a

0:18:27.560 --> 0:18:30.119
<v Speaker 2>man gets outside, because there is such a thing as germs,

0:18:30.160 --> 0:18:31.879
<v Speaker 2>and God doesn't cancel out germs. I don't want your

0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:37.560
<v Speaker 2>pphetic word. Well, I'm trying to so, but because he

0:18:37.600 --> 0:18:41.280
<v Speaker 2>gets weird, because he gets weird, we still have to

0:18:41.320 --> 0:18:47.920
<v Speaker 2>realize that the only way that the will of God,

0:18:49.480 --> 0:18:52.600
<v Speaker 2>or the word of God or the voice of God

0:18:53.520 --> 0:18:57.680
<v Speaker 2>can be recognized. That's what the Bible said that Eli

0:18:57.880 --> 0:19:01.879
<v Speaker 2>who was old, who couldn't see fys. I've been on

0:19:01.920 --> 0:19:04.639
<v Speaker 2>this thing lightly that we really need people in our

0:19:04.680 --> 0:19:06.399
<v Speaker 2>life who are older than us, who have been along

0:19:06.440 --> 0:19:09.240
<v Speaker 2>the journey and to respect the price that they paid,

0:19:09.600 --> 0:19:11.720
<v Speaker 2>and to not just think that because they don't go

0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:13.840
<v Speaker 2>on SoundCloud or because they don't have a lot of

0:19:13.880 --> 0:19:17.080
<v Speaker 2>Instagram followers, that they have nothing to teach us. I'm

0:19:17.119 --> 0:19:20.600
<v Speaker 2>really seeing the value and people who they may not

0:19:20.680 --> 0:19:22.600
<v Speaker 2>have the physical vision that they used to have, but

0:19:22.640 --> 0:19:25.480
<v Speaker 2>they can discern spiritual things. And Eli wasn't even a

0:19:25.520 --> 0:19:28.359
<v Speaker 2>perfect priest. In fact, God was in the process of

0:19:28.400 --> 0:19:32.240
<v Speaker 2>moving him out of the way. And even in that transition,

0:19:32.359 --> 0:19:36.840
<v Speaker 2>because the whole passage is about transition. It's Samuel transitioning

0:19:37.040 --> 0:19:42.000
<v Speaker 2>from a boy to a man, from boys to men.

0:19:42.080 --> 0:19:45.080
<v Speaker 2>I was just thinking, you know, it's hard to say goodbye.

0:19:45.119 --> 0:19:53.439
<v Speaker 2>But when Eli is transitioning out, and when Samuel is

0:19:53.440 --> 0:19:57.240
<v Speaker 2>transitioning up and he's ultimately stepping into the thing God

0:19:57.280 --> 0:20:01.960
<v Speaker 2>created him for. God deals with Samuel, but he does

0:20:02.000 --> 0:20:06.240
<v Speaker 2>it through Eli. And whatever God is going to speak

0:20:06.359 --> 0:20:09.680
<v Speaker 2>in your life is going to come in the context

0:20:09.760 --> 0:20:14.840
<v Speaker 2>of relationships. And I chose the word contact to describe

0:20:14.880 --> 0:20:20.520
<v Speaker 2>it because whoever you put around you the most will

0:20:20.560 --> 0:20:24.560
<v Speaker 2>start to affect the voice inside.

0:20:24.160 --> 0:20:27.600
<v Speaker 1>Of you that speaks to you. And have you ever.

0:20:27.480 --> 0:20:31.240
<v Speaker 2>Noticed that God's voice sometimes in your life sounds like

0:20:31.280 --> 0:20:35.439
<v Speaker 2>your wife. Sometimes for me, it sounds like my kids.

0:20:36.720 --> 0:20:40.640
<v Speaker 2>Sometimes in my life I've noticed that if I am

0:20:40.680 --> 0:20:46.919
<v Speaker 2>not selective about my contacts, I will start hearing I

0:20:46.920 --> 0:20:48.960
<v Speaker 2>don't mean like out loud voices. I don't want you

0:20:49.000 --> 0:20:50.879
<v Speaker 2>to send me off after I've preached today or anything

0:20:50.920 --> 0:20:51.280
<v Speaker 2>like that.

0:20:51.880 --> 0:20:54.760
<v Speaker 1>I mean the voice in my mind a lot of times.

0:20:54.520 --> 0:20:58.040
<v Speaker 2>When I was going through a counseling session to try

0:20:58.040 --> 0:21:02.080
<v Speaker 2>to understand myself better. The one thing that the therapist

0:21:02.119 --> 0:21:06.439
<v Speaker 2>would keep saying, is whose voice is that? You know

0:21:06.480 --> 0:21:08.760
<v Speaker 2>these things you say to yourself, You go like, uh,

0:21:09.000 --> 0:21:11.280
<v Speaker 2>you know, I'm so stupid and you never get anything right,

0:21:11.320 --> 0:21:12.880
<v Speaker 2>and well, of course you screwed it up, you screw

0:21:12.880 --> 0:21:13.840
<v Speaker 2>everything up, you know all that.

0:21:14.119 --> 0:21:16.240
<v Speaker 1>And she keeps saying, whose voice is that? Whose voice

0:21:16.240 --> 0:21:16.479
<v Speaker 1>is that?

0:21:17.359 --> 0:21:18.760
<v Speaker 2>And I didn't know if she was just trying to

0:21:18.760 --> 0:21:20.679
<v Speaker 2>get me to say, you know, it was my dad.

0:21:21.040 --> 0:21:23.879
<v Speaker 1>You know. Oh, like the point of all therapy. My

0:21:24.000 --> 0:21:26.080
<v Speaker 1>diapers were too tight. I dit it.

0:21:28.480 --> 0:21:32.160
<v Speaker 2>But what I realized is that most of us who

0:21:32.160 --> 0:21:39.000
<v Speaker 2>are not clinically insane don't actually hear voices. We process thoughts, right,

0:21:39.160 --> 0:21:40.600
<v Speaker 2>so we say the voice of God? How does the

0:21:40.640 --> 0:21:42.320
<v Speaker 2>voice of God come into your life?

0:21:42.359 --> 0:21:44.439
<v Speaker 1>Through thoughts? Through thoughts?

0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:48.679
<v Speaker 2>And that's why Samuel was confused, right because he heard something,

0:21:49.600 --> 0:21:51.919
<v Speaker 2>so he went where he knew to go. And I

0:21:51.960 --> 0:21:55.480
<v Speaker 2>want to point out something about this. He did the

0:21:55.560 --> 0:21:59.679
<v Speaker 2>right thing, He did the right thing. He ran. I

0:21:59.720 --> 0:22:02.160
<v Speaker 2>noticed the Bible said that when he heard his name

0:22:02.200 --> 0:22:07.280
<v Speaker 2>called Samuel first of all. It didn't sound it didn't

0:22:07.320 --> 0:22:09.720
<v Speaker 2>sound strange to him. It sounded like what he was

0:22:09.840 --> 0:22:14.080
<v Speaker 2>used to. So he ran because that's what he did,

0:22:14.640 --> 0:22:16.520
<v Speaker 2>because he had the right passion.

0:22:17.800 --> 0:22:19.399
<v Speaker 1>But he ran to the wrong person.

0:22:22.040 --> 0:22:24.880
<v Speaker 2>Some of you right now, you had the right passion,

0:22:26.119 --> 0:22:30.040
<v Speaker 2>but you're running to the wrong person or the wrong place.

0:22:30.800 --> 0:22:33.359
<v Speaker 2>Now this is not only true in the case of Samuel.

0:22:33.560 --> 0:22:36.880
<v Speaker 2>It was true of Moses. God called him to deliver

0:22:37.000 --> 0:22:40.680
<v Speaker 2>his people from the Egyptians. Moses had the right passion,

0:22:41.320 --> 0:22:43.320
<v Speaker 2>but where he messed up. Listen to this, U see

0:22:43.720 --> 0:22:46.840
<v Speaker 2>when he killed the Egyptian. It was the right passion,

0:22:47.359 --> 0:22:50.640
<v Speaker 2>but it was misplaced. He tried to do it his way.

0:22:51.080 --> 0:22:53.840
<v Speaker 2>He didn't get it right the first time. And some

0:22:53.920 --> 0:22:56.200
<v Speaker 2>of the things that you've gotten wrong in your life,

0:22:56.640 --> 0:22:59.600
<v Speaker 2>some of the mistakes that you've made, it was God's

0:22:59.640 --> 0:23:02.679
<v Speaker 2>stirley you up. But it was Eli that you ran to.

0:23:03.960 --> 0:23:06.119
<v Speaker 2>You ran to the thing that God was trying to

0:23:06.160 --> 0:23:08.880
<v Speaker 2>remove out of your life because that's what you were

0:23:08.960 --> 0:23:11.240
<v Speaker 2>used to. You ran to the thing that you were

0:23:11.240 --> 0:23:14.800
<v Speaker 2>familiar with because it's all your mind could understand. And

0:23:14.840 --> 0:23:17.359
<v Speaker 2>so God gave you a gift, but you used that

0:23:17.440 --> 0:23:19.240
<v Speaker 2>gift for you for a little while.

0:23:19.280 --> 0:23:20.360
<v Speaker 1>Until you found out.

0:23:20.680 --> 0:23:23.520
<v Speaker 2>Unless I offer the gift back to the giver, it's

0:23:23.560 --> 0:23:26.320
<v Speaker 2>going to come back empty. But God brought you here

0:23:26.359 --> 0:23:29.960
<v Speaker 2>today to let you know. That was my voice calling you.

0:23:30.800 --> 0:23:33.520
<v Speaker 2>That was me that gave you that talent. That was

0:23:33.600 --> 0:23:36.000
<v Speaker 2>me that made you good at that. That was me

0:23:36.119 --> 0:23:38.639
<v Speaker 2>that opened the door for you. That was me that

0:23:38.720 --> 0:23:41.960
<v Speaker 2>gave you that responsibility. That was me that gave you health.

0:23:42.200 --> 0:23:44.399
<v Speaker 2>That was me that gave you strength. That was Me

0:23:44.560 --> 0:23:50.199
<v Speaker 2>that gave you that connection. It was him the whole time.

0:23:52.359 --> 0:23:55.720
<v Speaker 2>It was It was the Lord that called Samuel, but

0:23:55.880 --> 0:23:58.119
<v Speaker 2>it was Eli that Samuel ran to.

0:23:58.680 --> 0:24:02.440
<v Speaker 1>What are you running to? If you're run if you're.

0:24:02.400 --> 0:24:06.840
<v Speaker 2>Running to something that is not your purpose, you feel it.

0:24:07.160 --> 0:24:08.879
<v Speaker 2>You feel it in several ways. But one of the

0:24:08.880 --> 0:24:11.440
<v Speaker 2>things I want to mention is I'm trying to surround

0:24:11.480 --> 0:24:13.360
<v Speaker 2>myself in this stage.

0:24:13.080 --> 0:24:15.880
<v Speaker 1>Of my life with people who bring out the God

0:24:15.920 --> 0:24:18.320
<v Speaker 1>in me. And that's just me.

0:24:18.800 --> 0:24:18.879
<v Speaker 2>Now.

0:24:18.960 --> 0:24:20.600
<v Speaker 1>I don't mean I'm going to be mean to people

0:24:20.720 --> 0:24:22.520
<v Speaker 1>who don't know the Lord, or I'm going to go

0:24:22.600 --> 0:24:22.840
<v Speaker 1>out and.

0:24:22.880 --> 0:24:25.040
<v Speaker 2>Live in a monastery or something like that.

0:24:25.359 --> 0:24:29.600
<v Speaker 1>But you know, there are some there are some texts.

0:24:29.200 --> 0:24:31.720
<v Speaker 2>That I don't return in this stage of my life

0:24:32.440 --> 0:24:35.480
<v Speaker 2>because I feel like I'm in a season where I'm

0:24:35.560 --> 0:24:40.080
<v Speaker 2>trying to do important things and my calling is valuable,

0:24:40.680 --> 0:24:45.960
<v Speaker 2>and so my contacts are very important because certain stuff

0:24:46.000 --> 0:24:49.600
<v Speaker 2>is contagious, and I know there are certain people. When

0:24:49.640 --> 0:24:53.600
<v Speaker 2>I get around them, I feel something rising me that

0:24:53.720 --> 0:24:56.360
<v Speaker 2>lets me know I can overcome. And I need them

0:24:56.400 --> 0:24:58.720
<v Speaker 2>around me. I need them to rub off on me.

0:24:59.040 --> 0:25:01.520
<v Speaker 2>I need them to speak into my life. I need

0:25:01.560 --> 0:25:04.879
<v Speaker 2>them to encourage me. I don't need people who are

0:25:04.960 --> 0:25:07.199
<v Speaker 2>laying back on the last thing God did in this

0:25:07.359 --> 0:25:08.439
<v Speaker 2>season of my life.

0:25:08.760 --> 0:25:15.600
<v Speaker 1>I need people to push me forward. Yes I do, Yes,

0:25:15.720 --> 0:25:16.200
<v Speaker 1>I do.

0:25:17.520 --> 0:25:21.280
<v Speaker 2>I gotta be careful reading the comments on my Instagram

0:25:21.359 --> 0:25:24.639
<v Speaker 2>in this season because whatever I may contact with I

0:25:24.800 --> 0:25:25.960
<v Speaker 2>catch and see.

0:25:26.000 --> 0:25:27.280
<v Speaker 1>I need the word of the Lord.

0:25:27.600 --> 0:25:30.760
<v Speaker 2>I need vision, I need hope, I need purpose, I

0:25:30.800 --> 0:25:31.720
<v Speaker 2>need security.

0:25:37.400 --> 0:25:37.720
<v Speaker 1>And so.

0:25:39.320 --> 0:25:43.720
<v Speaker 2>He runs to Eli, but Eli tells him is God

0:25:43.760 --> 0:25:46.720
<v Speaker 2>you need to speak to and the right contact in

0:25:46.760 --> 0:25:49.440
<v Speaker 2>your life will always point you back to the only

0:25:49.440 --> 0:25:50.480
<v Speaker 2>one who has real power.

0:25:52.400 --> 0:25:54.520
<v Speaker 1>Thank you God for this word. I feel your spirit

0:25:54.600 --> 0:25:55.240
<v Speaker 1>on this one.

0:25:55.560 --> 0:25:57.600
<v Speaker 2>This is gonna help you because one the concept of

0:25:57.640 --> 0:25:59.639
<v Speaker 2>calling that most of us have is that you're going

0:25:59.680 --> 0:26:02.320
<v Speaker 2>to go on a forty day fast in the Holy Land,

0:26:02.480 --> 0:26:04.800
<v Speaker 2>and God's gonna speak to you when you walk where

0:26:04.880 --> 0:26:07.480
<v Speaker 2>Jesus walked and the Sea of Galilee. But the Lord

0:26:07.560 --> 0:26:08.920
<v Speaker 2>is not going to speak to you on the Sea

0:26:08.960 --> 0:26:10.960
<v Speaker 2>of Galilee from a voice on the water.

0:26:11.200 --> 0:26:12.320
<v Speaker 1>He's gonna speak to you.

0:26:12.480 --> 0:26:14.119
<v Speaker 2>And I know you don't want to hear it because

0:26:14.119 --> 0:26:17.159
<v Speaker 2>it's sexy to thing that someday there's going to be

0:26:17.200 --> 0:26:19.280
<v Speaker 2>a voice that speaks from heaven. It's not going to

0:26:19.359 --> 0:26:25.800
<v Speaker 2>be like that. It's gonna sound like Eli. It's gonna

0:26:25.800 --> 0:26:31.320
<v Speaker 2>sound like Eli. And it is through Eli that God

0:26:31.359 --> 0:26:38.200
<v Speaker 2>calls Samuel Eli. This isn't Billy Graham. This is the

0:26:38.320 --> 0:26:41.199
<v Speaker 2>dude who blew it. And this is how bad he

0:26:41.240 --> 0:26:45.280
<v Speaker 2>blew it. Watch what ultimately happens when Samuel laughter three times?

0:26:46.119 --> 0:26:49.719
<v Speaker 2>Everybody say three times? How many times do I have

0:26:49.760 --> 0:26:52.240
<v Speaker 2>to tell you? One time, Holly, she loses her temper

0:26:52.280 --> 0:26:55.639
<v Speaker 2>with our kids a lot. Y'all pray for her. It's kiddy.

0:26:55.960 --> 0:26:58.199
<v Speaker 2>It's a very patient mom. But one time she was

0:26:58.200 --> 0:26:59.960
<v Speaker 2>so mad at Elijah. He was only about four.

0:27:00.359 --> 0:27:03.399
<v Speaker 1>She said, how many times do I have to tell you? You?

0:27:03.440 --> 0:27:05.280
<v Speaker 2>Got this real fear look in his eyes? He goes

0:27:05.520 --> 0:27:14.600
<v Speaker 2>three times. Look at the verse eight again a third time.

0:27:15.640 --> 0:27:19.960
<v Speaker 2>How many are glad that God has called, waiting that

0:27:20.040 --> 0:27:23.720
<v Speaker 2>God will call you again? Ask Jonah. Jonah wasn't even

0:27:23.760 --> 0:27:27.520
<v Speaker 2>a talented preacher. He didn't have funny stories, he didn't

0:27:27.520 --> 0:27:31.080
<v Speaker 2>have good charisma, he didn't even like people. But God

0:27:31.200 --> 0:27:36.000
<v Speaker 2>used him because when God calls you, he will call back.

0:27:36.520 --> 0:27:38.600
<v Speaker 2>You know how there are some people when you call them,

0:27:38.600 --> 0:27:41.080
<v Speaker 2>you have to call them, and so you're secretly hoping

0:27:41.080 --> 0:27:43.359
<v Speaker 2>you get their voicemail because you really don't want to

0:27:43.400 --> 0:27:45.800
<v Speaker 2>talk to them anyway. Some of you think God is

0:27:45.880 --> 0:27:48.520
<v Speaker 2>like that, like he really wants someone else and he's

0:27:48.560 --> 0:27:50.320
<v Speaker 2>really glad that he doesn't have to deal with you.

0:27:50.640 --> 0:27:54.600
<v Speaker 2>But God wants you. God wants you. God shows you.

0:27:54.880 --> 0:27:57.359
<v Speaker 2>God put the genetics in you, the DNA in you,

0:27:57.800 --> 0:28:01.359
<v Speaker 2>the passion in you, the opportunity is for you. What

0:28:01.400 --> 0:28:04.560
<v Speaker 2>God has for you, it is for you. That's why

0:28:04.560 --> 0:28:07.919
<v Speaker 2>you don't have to be jealous, insecure, bitter, resentful.

0:28:08.080 --> 0:28:09.520
<v Speaker 1>That's why you don't have to get back.

0:28:09.680 --> 0:28:12.320
<v Speaker 2>That's why you don't have to take revenge, because what

0:28:12.400 --> 0:28:14.600
<v Speaker 2>God has for you is for you.

0:28:18.040 --> 0:28:21.440
<v Speaker 1>Y'all awake, Somebody shout here.

0:28:21.280 --> 0:28:29.200
<v Speaker 2>I am and that was really the answer, because it's

0:28:29.240 --> 0:28:32.639
<v Speaker 2>not only the culture that confuses us in our calling.

0:28:33.640 --> 0:28:39.880
<v Speaker 2>It's not only our contacts sometimes, but it's the conflict

0:28:39.920 --> 0:28:46.960
<v Speaker 2>of calling. The conflict of calling is great on an

0:28:46.960 --> 0:28:52.480
<v Speaker 2>internal and an external level. Now what Samuel did next,

0:28:53.320 --> 0:28:55.600
<v Speaker 2>What a beautiful little story right to show us that

0:28:56.720 --> 0:29:02.080
<v Speaker 2>God repeats things.

0:28:59.800 --> 0:29:01.040
<v Speaker 1>Way I know he's speaking.

0:29:01.520 --> 0:29:03.760
<v Speaker 2>You ever notice this when God is trying to get

0:29:03.800 --> 0:29:05.880
<v Speaker 2>your attention. It's kind of like when you're shopping for

0:29:05.920 --> 0:29:10.520
<v Speaker 2>a certain car and you start seeing them everywhere. When

0:29:10.560 --> 0:29:12.320
<v Speaker 2>God wants to get a message across to you, he'll

0:29:12.360 --> 0:29:16.240
<v Speaker 2>he'll put you in the market for it, and you

0:29:16.320 --> 0:29:19.120
<v Speaker 2>never even looked at anybody else's beats. But now you're like, well,

0:29:19.120 --> 0:29:20.880
<v Speaker 2>what's that one? How's that one different than that one?

0:29:20.920 --> 0:29:23.720
<v Speaker 2>And this one and the other one? Because I'm in

0:29:23.760 --> 0:29:25.560
<v Speaker 2>the market for God. When you get in the market

0:29:25.600 --> 0:29:29.120
<v Speaker 2>for God, you start noticing that He's He's been speaking

0:29:29.160 --> 0:29:34.280
<v Speaker 2>all along, just like just like there was there was confirmation.

0:29:34.840 --> 0:29:36.760
<v Speaker 2>I didn't have time to put this word in the sermon.

0:29:36.800 --> 0:29:38.240
<v Speaker 2>It starts with the letter see, so it could be

0:29:38.280 --> 0:29:41.760
<v Speaker 2>a bonus point confirmation God. God will speak something over here,

0:29:41.840 --> 0:29:44.200
<v Speaker 2>over here, over here, and you'll start noticing it. You'll

0:29:44.200 --> 0:29:46.760
<v Speaker 2>start noticing little things, and then it'll you hear it

0:29:46.800 --> 0:29:48.760
<v Speaker 2>in the sermon, and then you hear it in a movie,

0:29:48.880 --> 0:29:50.520
<v Speaker 2>and then you hear it in a song, and then

0:29:50.520 --> 0:29:52.160
<v Speaker 2>you hear it you see it on somebody's the back

0:29:52.200 --> 0:29:55.360
<v Speaker 2>of their window, and then you hear it through your husband,

0:29:55.480 --> 0:29:57.160
<v Speaker 2>and then you hear it through and you just see

0:29:57.160 --> 0:29:59.400
<v Speaker 2>it and just hear it, and you start seeing it

0:29:59.400 --> 0:30:01.360
<v Speaker 2>and you start hear and then you have to discern,

0:30:01.440 --> 0:30:04.200
<v Speaker 2>which is to separate. That's what Eli did. He discerned.

0:30:04.200 --> 0:30:07.000
<v Speaker 2>The Hebrew word is being. He discerned, he separated. He

0:30:07.000 --> 0:30:09.640
<v Speaker 2>made a distinction. He had a discernment to know. This

0:30:09.840 --> 0:30:15.120
<v Speaker 2>is the Lord calling the boy. So he said, when

0:30:15.160 --> 0:30:17.600
<v Speaker 2>it happens again, and this is the word of the

0:30:17.600 --> 0:30:20.920
<v Speaker 2>Lord for you when it happens again. When it happens again,

0:30:21.000 --> 0:30:24.240
<v Speaker 2>if it happens again, just say speak Lord.

0:30:24.640 --> 0:30:28.000
<v Speaker 1>Your servant is listening, and I want to show you

0:30:28.040 --> 0:30:29.000
<v Speaker 1>something that the Lord.

0:30:29.080 --> 0:30:39.120
<v Speaker 2>Just show me. His greatest revelation happened in rest. Eli

0:30:39.160 --> 0:30:42.440
<v Speaker 2>didn't say, Oh, that may be God.

0:30:43.040 --> 0:30:46.440
<v Speaker 1>You better run out and catch him before he leaves. Well,

0:30:46.480 --> 0:30:48.760
<v Speaker 1>if God spoke to you, better chase him now. No.

0:30:49.320 --> 0:30:52.160
<v Speaker 2>If it was God's speaking, he'll come back. All you

0:30:52.200 --> 0:30:55.120
<v Speaker 2>got to do is be in position for it. That's

0:30:55.200 --> 0:30:58.120
<v Speaker 2>all you've got to do. You don't have to find it,

0:30:58.200 --> 0:31:01.680
<v Speaker 2>it'll find you, trust me. God is not playing hide

0:31:01.680 --> 0:31:05.240
<v Speaker 2>and seek in the Tabernacle. God is not running around

0:31:05.240 --> 0:31:05.520
<v Speaker 2>the tent.

0:31:05.640 --> 0:31:07.280
<v Speaker 1>Haha.

0:31:07.720 --> 0:31:10.000
<v Speaker 2>If I hide behind this table of chowbred, Samuel will

0:31:10.000 --> 0:31:19.320
<v Speaker 2>never find me back here. God's not hiding behind the

0:31:19.400 --> 0:31:24.320
<v Speaker 2>labor you know, He's not hiding. And even though God

0:31:24.360 --> 0:31:28.160
<v Speaker 2>is always moving, he's never hiding. That's what the Tabernacle

0:31:28.200 --> 0:31:29.760
<v Speaker 2>was was a portable structure, and they set it up

0:31:29.760 --> 0:31:31.560
<v Speaker 2>in the wilderness because they never knew when God was

0:31:31.600 --> 0:31:33.040
<v Speaker 2>going to say stop and when God was going to

0:31:33.080 --> 0:31:36.280
<v Speaker 2>stay go. Why Because God does not want you to

0:31:36.360 --> 0:31:39.120
<v Speaker 2>depend on his will. He wants you to depend on him.

0:31:39.320 --> 0:31:42.040
<v Speaker 2>There's a difference. One is God, just show.

0:31:41.920 --> 0:31:43.840
<v Speaker 1>Me what to do. That way I won't need you.

0:31:44.600 --> 0:31:47.480
<v Speaker 2>The other one is God, I want you wherever you

0:31:47.600 --> 0:31:50.640
<v Speaker 2>lead me, wherever you take me, whatever it means, whatever

0:31:50.720 --> 0:31:57.640
<v Speaker 2>it costs, and whatever it looks like. But here's the conflict.

0:31:57.680 --> 0:32:04.480
<v Speaker 2>Because Samuel goes in and he lays down Bible says

0:32:04.520 --> 0:32:08.320
<v Speaker 2>he didn't know the Lord yet he knew. He knew

0:32:08.360 --> 0:32:11.080
<v Speaker 2>how to bake the bread in the tabernacle, that was

0:32:11.080 --> 0:32:13.320
<v Speaker 2>his job. He knew how to open the doors so

0:32:13.360 --> 0:32:16.320
<v Speaker 2>people could come worship. He knew how to follow Eli

0:32:16.360 --> 0:32:19.240
<v Speaker 2>around and get me this and get me that. But

0:32:19.280 --> 0:32:23.200
<v Speaker 2>there's a big difference between the rituals of religion and

0:32:23.240 --> 0:32:29.560
<v Speaker 2>a relationship with God. And if you're going through the motions,

0:32:29.640 --> 0:32:34.920
<v Speaker 2>like you know, singing songs, not really thinking about the words,

0:32:34.960 --> 0:32:37.560
<v Speaker 2>just kind of singing them, or just kind of like

0:32:37.640 --> 0:32:40.360
<v Speaker 2>hearing little forgettable things that I say in my sermon,

0:32:41.280 --> 0:32:44.920
<v Speaker 2>you know, you won't even remember what it was about

0:32:45.840 --> 0:32:51.160
<v Speaker 2>fifteen minutes after I'm done. It's possible that you don't

0:32:51.200 --> 0:32:55.040
<v Speaker 2>know the Lord yet. I don't mean you're not a Christian,

0:32:55.040 --> 0:32:58.160
<v Speaker 2>not necessarily. I don't mean you don't believe in God.

0:32:58.440 --> 0:33:01.800
<v Speaker 2>Don't mean not necessarily. But to know him is to

0:33:02.080 --> 0:33:06.760
<v Speaker 2>know his voice. And when you know him like that,

0:33:08.320 --> 0:33:12.120
<v Speaker 2>you can hear things that are hard to hear. But

0:33:12.160 --> 0:33:14.520
<v Speaker 2>you can know that even when he says things that

0:33:14.560 --> 0:33:17.520
<v Speaker 2>are hard for you to hear, he says them from

0:33:17.520 --> 0:33:24.560
<v Speaker 2>a spirit of love, grace purpose. One of my friends

0:33:26.160 --> 0:33:31.160
<v Speaker 2>is a real overtext. I can't keep up with him

0:33:32.200 --> 0:33:36.600
<v Speaker 2>and I love him, but my thumb's hurt and I

0:33:36.640 --> 0:33:38.800
<v Speaker 2>can't do it. And I don't voice text because it's

0:33:38.800 --> 0:33:41.160
<v Speaker 2>annoying because it corrects the wrong words the wrong way,

0:33:41.200 --> 0:33:42.760
<v Speaker 2>and you can get in trouble that way and say

0:33:42.800 --> 0:33:45.560
<v Speaker 2>something you didn't mean to say, end up firing somebody

0:33:45.560 --> 0:33:47.480
<v Speaker 2>you meant to hire. But it changes. It doesn't know

0:33:47.520 --> 0:33:51.880
<v Speaker 2>because your voice anyway. One time he texted me, he said,

0:33:52.560 --> 0:33:58.080
<v Speaker 2>how come our conversation is all gray on iPhone when

0:33:58.120 --> 0:34:00.480
<v Speaker 2>they text you, it's gray when you text back blue.

0:34:01.600 --> 0:34:05.040
<v Speaker 2>When he said that, I wondered if sometimes my relationship

0:34:05.080 --> 0:34:10.280
<v Speaker 2>with God is all gray to where he is speaking

0:34:11.840 --> 0:34:17.160
<v Speaker 2>and he is prompting and he is provoking. But God

0:34:17.200 --> 0:34:20.560
<v Speaker 2>can speak, speak speak. Three times he did it. God

0:34:20.600 --> 0:34:24.520
<v Speaker 2>didn't say anything different the third time except this when

0:34:24.560 --> 0:34:28.440
<v Speaker 2>he said, speak Lord, your servant is listening, and he

0:34:28.600 --> 0:34:30.000
<v Speaker 2>laid down in his place.

0:34:30.400 --> 0:34:32.040
<v Speaker 1>I got to hit that real quick. I know we're

0:34:32.080 --> 0:34:32.680
<v Speaker 1>running out.

0:34:32.520 --> 0:34:36.759
<v Speaker 2>Of time, but it says Samuel went and laid down

0:34:37.360 --> 0:34:38.080
<v Speaker 2>in his place.

0:34:38.120 --> 0:34:39.279
<v Speaker 1>That's first nine. Put it up.

0:34:39.520 --> 0:34:44.040
<v Speaker 2>Samuel went and lay down in his place, in his place,

0:34:44.719 --> 0:34:48.520
<v Speaker 2>in his place. You will realize God's purpose when you

0:34:48.680 --> 0:34:51.759
<v Speaker 2>get in your place, touch somebody next to you and say,

0:34:51.800 --> 0:34:55.200
<v Speaker 2>get in your place, because if God is dropping off

0:34:55.239 --> 0:34:57.399
<v Speaker 2>the mail but you're not home, you won't get it,

0:34:57.760 --> 0:34:59.520
<v Speaker 2>and you'll think he didn't send it, and you'll think

0:34:59.520 --> 0:35:02.680
<v Speaker 2>he didn't. But I learned something with my friend. It

0:35:02.880 --> 0:35:05.760
<v Speaker 2>was it was not just the conflict of the calling.

0:35:06.080 --> 0:35:09.279
<v Speaker 2>It was the color. It was all gray. But the

0:35:09.320 --> 0:35:14.040
<v Speaker 2>breakthrough is in the blue. It's not just when God speaks.

0:35:14.440 --> 0:35:17.120
<v Speaker 2>It's when you get in your place and say, God,

0:35:17.520 --> 0:35:20.640
<v Speaker 2>here I am the real me, the honest me, the

0:35:20.719 --> 0:35:23.920
<v Speaker 2>open me, the ready me, the humble me, the broken

0:35:24.000 --> 0:35:24.480
<v Speaker 2>down me.

0:35:24.760 --> 0:35:26.399
<v Speaker 1>The meat that is ready to do your will.

0:35:26.440 --> 0:35:28.480
<v Speaker 2>Because I've done my will and I saw how that

0:35:28.560 --> 0:35:31.399
<v Speaker 2>worked out, and I'm ready to do your will. That's

0:35:31.440 --> 0:35:34.480
<v Speaker 2>what Isaiah said. He said, I'm an unclean man with

0:35:34.680 --> 0:35:37.640
<v Speaker 2>unclean lips. But if you'll take that coal and touch

0:35:37.680 --> 0:35:41.200
<v Speaker 2>my lips, I'll speak for you. Because Holy, Holy, Holy

0:35:41.560 --> 0:35:42.880
<v Speaker 2>is the Lord God Almighty.

0:35:43.160 --> 0:35:46.600
<v Speaker 1>So here I am. I'll go. Moses stood at a bush.

0:35:46.840 --> 0:35:49.279
<v Speaker 2>He turned aside, took off his shoes and said, God,

0:35:49.480 --> 0:35:52.439
<v Speaker 2>I'm slow of speech, I'm not eloquent, and you saw

0:35:52.480 --> 0:35:54.640
<v Speaker 2>the things I did that put me in this predicament.

0:35:54.800 --> 0:35:57.799
<v Speaker 2>But if it's you calling here, I am somebody shout here.

0:35:57.840 --> 0:35:58.560
<v Speaker 1>I am.

0:35:59.120 --> 0:36:02.080
<v Speaker 2>Jeremiah said, I'm too young for this, and your people

0:36:02.120 --> 0:36:04.600
<v Speaker 2>are stubborn and you know they're not gonna listen. But

0:36:04.680 --> 0:36:07.839
<v Speaker 2>if this's you calling me here, I am somebody shout here.

0:36:07.920 --> 0:36:09.279
<v Speaker 1>I am.

0:36:09.480 --> 0:36:12.360
<v Speaker 2>And the reason I'm confused about my calling is because

0:36:12.400 --> 0:36:18.880
<v Speaker 2>I don't just have one. This is what I didn't

0:36:18.920 --> 0:36:23.080
<v Speaker 2>know in my twenties, because I felt like God called

0:36:23.080 --> 0:36:25.080
<v Speaker 2>me to preach. You felt like God called you to

0:36:25.120 --> 0:36:27.479
<v Speaker 2>do something, put you somewhere. I mean, maybe it wasn't

0:36:27.480 --> 0:36:30.640
<v Speaker 2>something big spectacular. Maybe you're not gonna do a halftime

0:36:30.719 --> 0:36:33.360
<v Speaker 2>show at the super Bowl with it, but God called

0:36:33.400 --> 0:36:35.480
<v Speaker 2>you to do something. I just saw your Patriots gear

0:36:35.520 --> 0:36:37.440
<v Speaker 2>made me think of the super Bowl. God bless you man.

0:36:37.440 --> 0:36:39.239
<v Speaker 2>Congratulations on that. I hope you're happy. Now.

0:36:39.280 --> 0:36:40.719
<v Speaker 1>How many is a it gonna take for you guys to.

0:36:40.640 --> 0:36:43.160
<v Speaker 2>Shut up about it? But there's a there's a blessing

0:36:43.200 --> 0:36:46.359
<v Speaker 2>in it. There's a blessing in it, even if it's

0:36:46.360 --> 0:36:48.040
<v Speaker 2>a small thing. And you say, okay, God called me

0:36:48.080 --> 0:36:49.839
<v Speaker 2>to do this. But then what happens is, look, I

0:36:49.920 --> 0:36:51.719
<v Speaker 2>was called to preach, right, so I start preaching. I

0:36:51.719 --> 0:36:54.080
<v Speaker 2>start going on preaching. I'm preaching everywhere, preaching everywhere. They

0:36:54.080 --> 0:36:55.600
<v Speaker 2>asked me to come preaching. I'm preaching at the lock

0:36:55.640 --> 0:36:57.719
<v Speaker 2>in I appreach. So I preached some one time, so

0:36:57.800 --> 0:36:59.680
<v Speaker 2>late at the night. It was three am, and I

0:36:59.719 --> 0:37:01.920
<v Speaker 2>had this sermon illustration where I would take a mirror

0:37:01.960 --> 0:37:04.160
<v Speaker 2>and I'd break the mirror, and I preach Genesis one

0:37:04.280 --> 0:37:06.799
<v Speaker 2>twenty six about the image of God. And Holly can

0:37:06.840 --> 0:37:09.200
<v Speaker 2>tell you we knew where the mirrors were in every

0:37:09.239 --> 0:37:11.919
<v Speaker 2>walmart in the state of South Carolina, because every time

0:37:11.920 --> 0:37:13.520
<v Speaker 2>we get to a new little town to preach the

0:37:13.560 --> 0:37:15.520
<v Speaker 2>fifteen kids, I'd go in and get a mirror and

0:37:15.520 --> 0:37:17.200
<v Speaker 2>then I'd break it with a hammer, and I say,

0:37:17.280 --> 0:37:19.399
<v Speaker 2>this is what send us to you, you know, put

0:37:19.440 --> 0:37:21.200
<v Speaker 2>the condemnation on the young people.

0:37:21.640 --> 0:37:23.640
<v Speaker 1>Just put it on them. Are breaking mirrors.

0:37:23.760 --> 0:37:26.040
<v Speaker 2>And one boy went to the emergency room because the

0:37:26.040 --> 0:37:27.880
<v Speaker 2>glass flew up and hit him in the eye, and

0:37:27.880 --> 0:37:29.840
<v Speaker 2>I had to call his parents and tell him not

0:37:29.880 --> 0:37:30.320
<v Speaker 2>to sue me.

0:37:30.440 --> 0:37:32.040
<v Speaker 1>I'm a man of God and I got a.

0:37:32.000 --> 0:37:34.240
<v Speaker 2>Ministry, and if you assume me, God's going to curse

0:37:34.280 --> 0:37:36.279
<v Speaker 2>you and make you. But I didn't say that, But

0:37:36.719 --> 0:37:39.880
<v Speaker 2>I was running around preaching right but then I married Holly,

0:37:39.880 --> 0:37:42.080
<v Speaker 2>and I realized I'm called to be her husband too.

0:37:43.640 --> 0:37:49.440
<v Speaker 2>Come on, it's the conflict of calling. It's complicated. You

0:37:49.480 --> 0:37:53.160
<v Speaker 2>can make it sound sump. We find your calling which one?

0:37:53.320 --> 0:37:56.000
<v Speaker 2>Because then I was called to be a preacher and

0:37:56.040 --> 0:38:00.880
<v Speaker 2>a husband, and sometimes they needed different techniques. What if

0:38:00.920 --> 0:38:03.319
<v Speaker 2>I walked home, I said, Holly, give him a seal

0:38:03.360 --> 0:38:12.960
<v Speaker 2>of praise. It's different callings. That's three people, just I guess,

0:38:13.120 --> 0:38:22.080
<v Speaker 2>just does. And then by the time I'm getting these callings,

0:38:22.080 --> 0:38:23.560
<v Speaker 2>you know, I got how many? You got at least

0:38:23.560 --> 0:38:25.279
<v Speaker 2>two callings in your life, at least two things that

0:38:25.280 --> 0:38:28.520
<v Speaker 2>you're responsible for, and they're in conflict. Sometimes Here she

0:38:28.640 --> 0:38:31.920
<v Speaker 2>comes pregnant four years into marriage.

0:38:32.320 --> 0:38:34.840
<v Speaker 1>Here she turns up pregnant. Now I'm called to be

0:38:34.880 --> 0:38:38.640
<v Speaker 1>a parent. Now I'm called to.

0:38:40.160 --> 0:38:42.160
<v Speaker 2>You feel like you're not just putting on different hats,

0:38:43.360 --> 0:38:48.120
<v Speaker 2>but you actually have like different heads. I read that

0:38:48.200 --> 0:38:49.960
<v Speaker 2>in that Sitser book, The Will of God is a

0:38:49.960 --> 0:38:51.920
<v Speaker 2>way of life. He said, I felt like I didn't

0:38:51.960 --> 0:38:56.000
<v Speaker 2>just have different hats. I had different heads. And this

0:38:56.080 --> 0:39:07.200
<v Speaker 2>is the conflict of calling. But the answer is always availability, presence, access.

0:39:08.480 --> 0:39:10.680
<v Speaker 1>When he said, speak Lord, your servant is listening.

0:39:11.600 --> 0:39:16.000
<v Speaker 2>It created access not only for God's word to come

0:39:16.080 --> 0:39:19.560
<v Speaker 2>to him, but for God's work to come through him.

0:39:21.600 --> 0:39:25.239
<v Speaker 2>And what God said was difficult. He said, I'm transitioning.

0:39:25.440 --> 0:39:29.640
<v Speaker 2>Not only am I transitioning you from an apprentice to

0:39:29.719 --> 0:39:31.600
<v Speaker 2>a priest, from a priest to a prophet, but I'm

0:39:31.600 --> 0:39:34.719
<v Speaker 2>transitioning Eli and his Son's out of the earth so

0:39:34.760 --> 0:39:36.239
<v Speaker 2>that my purpose can be fulfilled.

0:39:37.640 --> 0:39:38.560
<v Speaker 1>I'm transitioning.

0:39:38.719 --> 0:39:40.680
<v Speaker 2>I'm transitioning, and you're going to have to go through

0:39:40.680 --> 0:39:43.560
<v Speaker 2>a difficult transition right now. But by the time we

0:39:43.600 --> 0:39:49.160
<v Speaker 2>get to First Samuel four, verse one, the Bible says

0:39:49.200 --> 0:39:54.200
<v Speaker 2>that Samuelil's word came to all Israel. I was curious

0:39:54.239 --> 0:39:58.719
<v Speaker 2>why I didn't say God's word through Samuel. But by

0:39:58.760 --> 0:40:03.960
<v Speaker 2>this point in First Samuel four, because Samuel said, here

0:40:04.000 --> 0:40:07.680
<v Speaker 2>I am speak Lord, we have now gone from the

0:40:07.719 --> 0:40:11.400
<v Speaker 2>word of the Lord was rare. To the word of

0:40:11.480 --> 0:40:15.719
<v Speaker 2>Samuel came to all Israel because he had gotten to

0:40:15.760 --> 0:40:19.000
<v Speaker 2>a point where he heard God's voice on the level

0:40:19.520 --> 0:40:24.560
<v Speaker 2>that when he spoke, what he spoke came directly from

0:40:24.560 --> 0:40:28.160
<v Speaker 2>the throne of God. God wants to get us to

0:40:28.239 --> 0:40:31.200
<v Speaker 2>the place where we are not running around all the

0:40:31.239 --> 0:40:35.600
<v Speaker 2>time talking about what we're gonna do one day. Some

0:40:35.680 --> 0:40:39.640
<v Speaker 2>of you are using the concept of a calling as

0:40:39.680 --> 0:40:43.479
<v Speaker 2>a crutch to not fully embrace the season of life

0:40:43.560 --> 0:40:45.200
<v Speaker 2>that you're in, and that is not the will of

0:40:45.239 --> 0:40:48.480
<v Speaker 2>God for you. And you may be called to be

0:40:48.520 --> 0:40:50.239
<v Speaker 2>a mom one day, but if you're not a mom

0:40:50.360 --> 0:40:53.120
<v Speaker 2>right now, can you say, here I am to this season.

0:40:53.640 --> 0:40:55.760
<v Speaker 2>And you may be called to own your own business

0:40:55.760 --> 0:40:58.200
<v Speaker 2>one day, but can I just say that in the meantime,

0:40:58.600 --> 0:41:02.000
<v Speaker 2>the only thing that God has ever wanted from you

0:41:02.400 --> 0:41:05.239
<v Speaker 2>was all of you. The only thing that God has

0:41:05.320 --> 0:41:08.560
<v Speaker 2>ever asked of you is here I am. It's what

0:41:08.680 --> 0:41:13.080
<v Speaker 2>Jeremiah said, It's what Moses said, it's what Isaiah.

0:41:12.600 --> 0:41:14.680
<v Speaker 1>Said, It's what Samuel said.

0:41:15.239 --> 0:41:19.399
<v Speaker 2>And when he made himself available, the word of God

0:41:19.480 --> 0:41:24.080
<v Speaker 2>became abundant. I want you to stand to your feet,

0:41:24.800 --> 0:41:29.120
<v Speaker 2>because God has been speaking your whole life. He's been

0:41:29.520 --> 0:41:35.240
<v Speaker 2>speaking through hard things. He's been speaking through painful things.

0:41:36.120 --> 0:41:41.400
<v Speaker 2>He's been speaking through pleasure, passion, he's been speaking through rejection,

0:41:42.360 --> 0:41:47.719
<v Speaker 2>he's been speaking through restlessness. It wasn't that God wasn't speaking,

0:41:48.760 --> 0:41:52.000
<v Speaker 2>is that the people had lost their ability to listen.

0:41:52.800 --> 0:41:56.240
<v Speaker 2>And so God said to Samuel, before you can speak

0:41:56.280 --> 0:42:00.719
<v Speaker 2>for me. I need you to learn to listen. This

0:42:00.800 --> 0:42:03.200
<v Speaker 2>is what God wants to find tune in our lives

0:42:03.640 --> 0:42:06.719
<v Speaker 2>over the next few weeks. This is what God wants

0:42:06.760 --> 0:42:09.080
<v Speaker 2>to do in your heart over the next few weeks,

0:42:09.080 --> 0:42:12.360
<v Speaker 2>because honestly, some of you are still running to Eli

0:42:12.400 --> 0:42:18.000
<v Speaker 2>when it's really God. Some of you are running trying

0:42:18.040 --> 0:42:21.160
<v Speaker 2>to find something out there when God is trying.

0:42:20.920 --> 0:42:23.320
<v Speaker 1>To speak to you in your place.

0:42:25.040 --> 0:42:27.080
<v Speaker 2>That's what got me this time, because I didn't preach

0:42:27.120 --> 0:42:30.160
<v Speaker 2>that last night, but when I was speaking to you,

0:42:30.239 --> 0:42:32.400
<v Speaker 2>God was speaking to me, and I try to listen,

0:42:33.160 --> 0:42:36.640
<v Speaker 2>and he said, tell him stay in your place. Samuel

0:42:36.640 --> 0:42:39.799
<v Speaker 2>didn't wake up that morning looking for a calling. And

0:42:39.840 --> 0:42:43.600
<v Speaker 2>maybe that's the problem with us, Maybe that we've made

0:42:43.600 --> 0:42:46.680
<v Speaker 2>this thing about calling and what God has for my life.

0:42:47.480 --> 0:42:49.319
<v Speaker 2>What if what God has called you to first and

0:42:49.360 --> 0:42:50.680
<v Speaker 2>foremost is himself.

0:42:56.080 --> 0:43:00.160
<v Speaker 1>Wouldn't that set you free?

0:43:01.840 --> 0:43:05.840
<v Speaker 2>That the will of God is not which job, The

0:43:05.880 --> 0:43:07.520
<v Speaker 2>will of God is not which school you.

0:43:07.480 --> 0:43:09.759
<v Speaker 1>Put your kids in. My God.

0:43:09.800 --> 0:43:11.279
<v Speaker 2>I was talking to Buck the other day. One thing

0:43:11.320 --> 0:43:13.480
<v Speaker 2>I love about Monk's Corner better than Charlotte.

0:43:13.800 --> 0:43:17.560
<v Speaker 1>There was two schools you could go to. There was

0:43:17.640 --> 0:43:18.000
<v Speaker 1>just two.

0:43:19.280 --> 0:43:21.560
<v Speaker 2>It was the public one and the one that everybody

0:43:21.560 --> 0:43:23.960
<v Speaker 2>that smoked weed at the public one got.

0:43:23.800 --> 0:43:32.399
<v Speaker 1>Sent to the Christian school. But listen to me. We've

0:43:32.440 --> 0:43:34.880
<v Speaker 1>made the will of God a resource. It's not a resource.

0:43:34.920 --> 0:43:39.360
<v Speaker 1>It's a relationship. It's a relationship. It's a relationship.

0:43:44.480 --> 0:43:46.720
<v Speaker 2>So I want us to go through this next several

0:43:46.760 --> 0:43:51.279
<v Speaker 2>weeks not looking for clarity, certainty, but confidence to know

0:43:52.280 --> 0:43:55.720
<v Speaker 2>that if I will make myself available to this calling

0:43:55.760 --> 0:44:03.840
<v Speaker 2>in this moment, his speak, he will speak. Question is

0:44:03.920 --> 0:44:09.239
<v Speaker 2>will you respond? What I've learned to do now is

0:44:09.280 --> 0:44:12.959
<v Speaker 2>not necessarily say this is God or this isn't God.

0:44:13.400 --> 0:44:17.360
<v Speaker 1>I got this new thing. It may be God. I

0:44:17.360 --> 0:44:17.680
<v Speaker 1>don't know.

0:44:18.760 --> 0:44:21.799
<v Speaker 2>Only way for me to find out. The only way

0:44:21.840 --> 0:44:24.800
<v Speaker 2>I can experience the breakthrough is in the blue.

0:44:25.320 --> 0:44:27.640
<v Speaker 1>So speak, Lord. I'm listening.

0:44:28.719 --> 0:44:30.520
<v Speaker 2>Say that to your life, say that to your pain,

0:44:31.840 --> 0:44:33.960
<v Speaker 2>Say that to what you think was your mistake. You

0:44:34.000 --> 0:44:38.880
<v Speaker 2>know what your mistake may be, God, he may, I'm

0:44:38.920 --> 0:44:40.840
<v Speaker 2>gonna show you that next week. That's my sermon.

0:44:40.880 --> 0:44:41.279
<v Speaker 1>Next week.

0:44:41.280 --> 0:44:44.640
<v Speaker 2>I am gonna show you next week how your mistakes

0:44:45.000 --> 0:44:50.880
<v Speaker 2>are miracles in disguise. In disguise, the presence of the

0:44:50.880 --> 0:44:53.560
<v Speaker 2>Lord is in this place. Would you lift your hands

0:44:53.560 --> 0:44:54.160
<v Speaker 2>God is here.

0:44:54.480 --> 0:44:57.160
<v Speaker 1>Father. I thank you for the word that came forth today.

0:44:57.640 --> 0:45:00.440
<v Speaker 1>We receive it. Somebody, say see that.

0:45:01.600 --> 0:45:04.000
<v Speaker 2>Quit sitting there with your lips just puckered up, just

0:45:04.040 --> 0:45:06.400
<v Speaker 2>stressed out, open your mouth and say, I receive it.

0:45:06.480 --> 0:45:06.800
<v Speaker 1>Lord.

0:45:08.000 --> 0:45:11.000
<v Speaker 2>Everything that you're doing in my life, everything that you're

0:45:11.000 --> 0:45:13.000
<v Speaker 2>calling me to be, all the things that you're doing

0:45:13.000 --> 0:45:15.480
<v Speaker 2>that aren't really about me. Lord, I don't want to

0:45:15.520 --> 0:45:19.799
<v Speaker 2>be self centered and just self consumed. I thank you

0:45:19.880 --> 0:45:22.880
<v Speaker 2>that the wind of your spirit is blowing, so I

0:45:22.960 --> 0:45:26.640
<v Speaker 2>set my sales on this new series. God, I'm not

0:45:26.719 --> 0:45:29.160
<v Speaker 2>asking you just to speak to me. I'm asking you

0:45:29.200 --> 0:45:31.600
<v Speaker 2>to open my eyes, to see you in my ears,

0:45:31.680 --> 0:45:35.040
<v Speaker 2>to hear you. Open the eyes of my heart, open

0:45:35.120 --> 0:45:39.480
<v Speaker 2>my understanding, open my will to your will, and your

0:45:39.640 --> 0:45:46.280
<v Speaker 2>will be done in my life. Thank you for your presence,

0:45:47.520 --> 0:45:52.960
<v Speaker 2>Thank you for your purpose, Thank you for your provision.

0:45:54.719 --> 0:45:58.680
<v Speaker 1>Lift your hands high as you can say, speak Lord,

0:46:00.600 --> 0:46:02.040
<v Speaker 1>say it out loud, to speak Lord.

0:46:03.600 --> 0:46:07.200
<v Speaker 2>I'm listening. I'm gonna listen to my life this week.

0:46:07.719 --> 0:46:11.160
<v Speaker 2>I'm gonna listen to I'm gonna listen to the still

0:46:11.200 --> 0:46:14.640
<v Speaker 2>small voice this week. Too much noise, too much noise.

0:46:14.680 --> 0:46:16.440
<v Speaker 2>Word of the Lord is rare when the Lord of

0:46:16.440 --> 0:46:19.560
<v Speaker 2>the word becomes common. I'm gonna look for you this week.

0:46:19.560 --> 0:46:26.320
<v Speaker 2>I'm gonna find you. I'm gonna seek you, seeking you fine.

0:46:28.080 --> 0:46:29.200
<v Speaker 1>Thank you for joining us.

0:46:29.520 --> 0:46:31.960
<v Speaker 2>Special thanks to those of you who give generously to

0:46:32.040 --> 0:46:35.520
<v Speaker 2>this ministry. Is because of you that this ministry is possible.

0:46:35.960 --> 0:46:38.160
<v Speaker 2>You can click the link in the description to give

0:46:38.280 --> 0:46:42.200
<v Speaker 2>now or visit Elevation Church dot org slash podcast for

0:46:42.280 --> 0:46:46.240
<v Speaker 2>more information and if you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe.

0:46:46.520 --> 0:46:47.840
<v Speaker 1>You can share it with your friends.

0:46:48.120 --> 0:46:50.400
<v Speaker 2>You can click the share button, take a screenshot and

0:46:50.440 --> 0:46:52.560
<v Speaker 2>share it on your social stories and tag us at

0:46:52.600 --> 0:46:53.439
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0:46:53.520 --> 0:47:00.000
<v Speaker 1>Thanks again for listening. God bless you.