WEBVTT - Empty Out the Negative 0:00:00.200 --> 0:00:02.880 No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.040 Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:07.760 in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.360 you could unlock insights about your finances in less than 0:00:10.400 --> 0:00:12.840 five minutes, with a clear picture of where you stand 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:15.720 today and where your money can work harder. Now you 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.759 can visit facet dot com to take the free quiz 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:23.400 and get your financial wellness score today. That's Facet dot com. 0:00:23.400 --> 0:00:25.360 This ad is sponsored by Facet. Fast Wealth in Corporated 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.280 is an sec registered investment advisor. This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.760 --> 0:00:33.960 You're ready for a comeback, and with Purdue Global you 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:37.200 can do more than take classes. You can take charge 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:41.520 of your story, of your career, of your life, Earn 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:43.559 a degree you can be proud of, and get an 0:00:43.680 --> 0:00:48.559 education employer's respect. It's time, your time, not just to 0:00:48.560 --> 0:00:50.960 go back to school, but to come back and move 0:00:51.040 --> 0:00:55.840 forward with Purdue Global, Purdue's online university for working adults. 0:00:56.440 --> 0:00:59.920 Start your comeback at Purdueglobal dot edu. 0:01:00.280 --> 0:01:02.240 He'll forget about the video game you gave him on 0:01:02.280 --> 0:01:02.840 his birthday. 0:01:03.160 --> 0:01:05.039 Wow, thanks Grandpa. 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:07.280 But He'll never forget how you invested in his future 0:01:07.319 --> 0:01:11.840 with the units stapp. Wow. Thanks Grandpa. The units stap 0:01:11.840 --> 0:01:14.360 makes it easy for grandparents and family friends to give 0:01:14.440 --> 0:01:17.160 funds to a child's investment account for a limited time. 0:01:17.280 --> 0:01:19.440 Download the uns stap and use the code I heeart 0:01:19.440 --> 0:01:21.720 fifty at sign up to receive a fifty dollars bonus 0:01:21.720 --> 0:01:24.280 when you fund your account. That's code iHeart fifty when 0:01:24.319 --> 0:01:27.280 you sign up at unest dot co for a fifty 0:01:27.319 --> 0:01:30.120 dollars bonus. See terms and conditions at UNEs dot co. 0:01:31.120 --> 0:01:34.880 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for downloading our podcast. 0:01:35.160 --> 0:01:37.920 We enjoy spending this time with you. I hope you'll 0:01:38.000 --> 0:01:41.360 leave Inspire. Make sure you subscribe to get new messages 0:01:41.400 --> 0:01:44.440 every week. We appreciate your support. It helps keep the 0:01:44.480 --> 0:01:45.280 ministry going. 0:01:45.720 --> 0:01:57.880 Enjoy the message. 0:02:00.720 --> 0:02:03.040 It's a joy to come into your homes. If you're 0:02:03.080 --> 0:02:05.480 ever in our area, please stop by and be a 0:02:05.480 --> 0:02:08.079 part of one of our services. I'll promise you we'll 0:02:08.080 --> 0:02:10.680 make you feel right at home. I like to start 0:02:10.720 --> 0:02:13.080 with something funny, and I heard about this lady that 0:02:13.200 --> 0:02:16.160 died and she was at the Pearly Gates and Saint 0:02:16.200 --> 0:02:18.640 Peter said, you can't come in yet. You have to 0:02:18.720 --> 0:02:22.360 correctly spell a word. She said what word? He said, 0:02:22.440 --> 0:02:25.799 any word, So she spelled the word love lo ovee. 0:02:26.240 --> 0:02:29.799 He said, welcome to heaven. Then Peter asked her if 0:02:29.840 --> 0:02:32.560 she would take his place for just a moment. He 0:02:32.600 --> 0:02:34.920 instructed her if anybody came up, just to follow the 0:02:34.919 --> 0:02:38.919 same procedure. A few minutes, she sees her ex husband 0:02:38.960 --> 0:02:41.600 walking up. She can't believe it, says, what are you 0:02:41.680 --> 0:02:44.000 doing here? He said, I just had a heart attack. 0:02:44.200 --> 0:02:46.760 Did I really make it to heaven? She said not yet. 0:02:47.040 --> 0:02:50.200 You have to spell a word correctly. He said what word. 0:02:50.720 --> 0:02:56.440 There was a long pause, and she said, Czechoslovakia. I 0:02:56.480 --> 0:02:59.560 want to talk to you today about emptying out the negative. 0:03:00.360 --> 0:03:03.040 It's easy to go through life holding on to things 0:03:03.080 --> 0:03:08.640 that are weighing us down. Guilt, resentment, doubt, worry. The 0:03:08.760 --> 0:03:12.360 problem is when we allow these things in, they're taking 0:03:12.480 --> 0:03:15.160 up space for the good things that should be there. 0:03:16.040 --> 0:03:19.840 Imagine your life is like a container. You are created 0:03:20.160 --> 0:03:24.840 to be filled with joy, peace, confidence, creativity. But if 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:28.919 you allow worry in, it pushes out the peace. There's 0:03:28.960 --> 0:03:32.480 not space for both. You can't go above one hundred percent. 0:03:32.880 --> 0:03:35.920 You have a limited amount of room. If you allow 0:03:36.040 --> 0:03:39.600 guilt to take up space, that's space that you don't 0:03:39.640 --> 0:03:42.760 have for the confidence you need. And the reason some 0:03:42.920 --> 0:03:48.120 people don't enjoy their lives is because their container, their heart, 0:03:48.360 --> 0:03:52.680 is contaminated with so many things. They have ten percent worried, 0:03:52.960 --> 0:03:56.680 stressed out over their job, twelve percent bitterness, mad at 0:03:56.720 --> 0:04:00.560 their neighbor, twenty percent guilt beating them solved up for 0:04:00.640 --> 0:04:04.920 past mistakes, nine percent jealousy their coworker is more beautiful. 0:04:05.440 --> 0:04:09.520 They don't realize seventy percent of their container is negative. 0:04:10.000 --> 0:04:13.720 They wonder why they don't have joy, creativity, passion. They 0:04:13.760 --> 0:04:16.919 only have room for thirty percent of what they should have. 0:04:17.920 --> 0:04:21.800 The scripture says give no place to the enemy. It's 0:04:21.839 --> 0:04:25.480 not just talking about forces of darkness. That means give 0:04:25.600 --> 0:04:29.320 no place to guilt, give no place to worry, give 0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:33.000 no place to bitterness. It can't come in and automatically 0:04:33.040 --> 0:04:37.680 take over. You control what's in your container. You control 0:04:37.760 --> 0:04:40.400 what you think about, what you choose to allow in. 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:45.320 And we all have negative emotions and negative feelings. You 0:04:45.360 --> 0:04:48.120 have to make the choice, I'm not going to give 0:04:48.279 --> 0:04:53.680 this jealousy, this bitterness, this anger valuable space and let 0:04:53.720 --> 0:04:56.680 it poison my life. I'm going to protect what I 0:04:56.720 --> 0:04:59.760 allow in me, and every morning when we wake up, 0:05:00.080 --> 0:05:03.200 we need to empty out anything negative from the day before. 0:05:04.040 --> 0:05:07.120 Somebody offended you at work, they didn't treat you right. 0:05:07.360 --> 0:05:10.600 It's easy to let that offense stay. Feels good to 0:05:10.640 --> 0:05:13.440 carry around a grudge, so you have to be disciplined. 0:05:13.760 --> 0:05:16.880 Say no, I am not giving this offense any room. 0:05:17.200 --> 0:05:19.160 I am not going to let it sour my day. 0:05:20.120 --> 0:05:23.560 They hurt you once, don't let them continue to hurt 0:05:23.600 --> 0:05:27.520 you by holding on to the offense. Being offended is 0:05:27.560 --> 0:05:31.440 not harming them, it's harming you. It's taking up space 0:05:31.560 --> 0:05:34.120 you need for the good things that move you toward 0:05:34.200 --> 0:05:37.240 your destiny. Or you wake up in the morning and 0:05:37.360 --> 0:05:39.920 thoughts of worry come. How are you going to pay 0:05:39.960 --> 0:05:43.280 your bills? What if the medical report's not good? You'll 0:05:43.279 --> 0:05:45.880 never get out of this problem. Don't allow that in. 0:05:46.640 --> 0:05:49.680 Don't make the mistake of dwelling on it. Just say no, thanks. 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:52.240 I know God's in control. He's got me in the 0:05:52.279 --> 0:05:54.440 palm of his hand. He'll get me to where I'm 0:05:54.440 --> 0:05:59.320 supposed to be. Take inventory of what you're giving space to. 0:06:00.200 --> 0:06:03.000 Life is too short to go through it with negative 0:06:03.040 --> 0:06:07.160 things holding us down. David said in Psalm one three. 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:11.200 God fills my life with good things, so I stay 0:06:11.240 --> 0:06:14.760 young and strong. Now I've learned if you'll empty out 0:06:14.800 --> 0:06:17.919 the negative, if you'll make room, God will fill you 0:06:18.000 --> 0:06:21.240 with good things. You empty out the worry, God will 0:06:21.240 --> 0:06:25.560 fill you with peace. You empty out the insecurity, negative 0:06:25.560 --> 0:06:28.200 things people have said about you. God will fill you 0:06:28.279 --> 0:06:32.760 with confidence. My question today is is God trying to 0:06:32.800 --> 0:06:36.240 fill you with good things but there's no room. Your 0:06:36.279 --> 0:06:41.560 container is full of worry, regret, bitterness, jealousy. Why don't 0:06:41.560 --> 0:06:45.440 you start emptying that out? Somebody did you wrong? You 0:06:45.480 --> 0:06:48.880 could hold on to that bitterness. Instead, God, I forgive them. 0:06:49.160 --> 0:06:52.599 I let it go. You didn't just forgive. You made 0:06:52.680 --> 0:06:55.880 room for God to fill you with good things. That's 0:06:55.920 --> 0:06:59.080 when he'll give you beauty for ashes, joy for morning. 0:07:00.120 --> 0:07:03.599 In a tough season, the medical report wasn't good, You 0:07:03.680 --> 0:07:07.800 should be stressed worried. Instead, God, I trust you. You 0:07:07.839 --> 0:07:11.080 said you would restore health. Beckon to me. You just 0:07:11.200 --> 0:07:14.440 made room for God to fill you with healing. You 0:07:14.480 --> 0:07:17.160 empty out the worry. God will give you peace in 0:07:17.200 --> 0:07:20.720 the midst of the storm. Perhaps a coworker got the 0:07:20.760 --> 0:07:25.119 promotion that you work so hard for envy, jealousy will come. 0:07:25.760 --> 0:07:28.280 I wish that was me. I'm smarter than they are. 0:07:28.400 --> 0:07:32.559 I don't understand that. Instead of letting that stay, God, 0:07:32.600 --> 0:07:35.640 I know you're no respector a person's You did it 0:07:35.680 --> 0:07:37.560 for them, I know you can do it for me. 0:07:38.320 --> 0:07:41.120 The good news is God doesn't run out of favor. 0:07:41.760 --> 0:07:45.280 He doesn't have a limited supply. If you will empty 0:07:45.320 --> 0:07:48.720 out the jealousy, then when it's your time to be promoted, 0:07:49.000 --> 0:07:52.120 God will open doors that no man can shut. If 0:07:52.120 --> 0:07:56.160 somebody got what you wanted, that simply means it wasn't 0:07:56.200 --> 0:08:00.200 supposed to be yours. If they got the promotion, be 0:08:00.280 --> 0:08:04.000 happy for them. God has something better for you. If 0:08:04.080 --> 0:08:06.600 they got the man you wanted to date, let's make 0:08:06.640 --> 0:08:09.600 it real. If they got the girl you were interested in, 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:13.240 don't be upset. God knows what he's doing. If it 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:16.720 worked out your way, it would be second best. Bottom line, 0:08:17.080 --> 0:08:19.400 what has your name on it is not going to 0:08:19.440 --> 0:08:23.520 go to anyone else. Don't go around bitter with jealousy 0:08:23.560 --> 0:08:27.600 and self pity. That will poison your life. Empty it out. 0:08:28.440 --> 0:08:31.880 God is in control. He's directing your steps and at 0:08:31.920 --> 0:08:34.480 the right time. What has your name on it will 0:08:34.480 --> 0:08:38.240 show up. God promises, if we will make room, he 0:08:38.320 --> 0:08:41.240 will not only fill us with good things, but he 0:08:41.280 --> 0:08:44.720 will keep us young and strong. And the reason some 0:08:44.880 --> 0:08:47.679 people are not young and strong, and I don't mean 0:08:47.760 --> 0:08:52.240 just young physically, but young in their spirit, vibrant, passionate 0:08:52.280 --> 0:08:56.480 about life is because they're filled with the negative. Worry 0:08:56.600 --> 0:09:00.480 will make you weak. Living stressed out will make you old, 0:09:00.920 --> 0:09:06.760 give you wrinkles, take your passion. Being bitter, angry, resentful 0:09:07.160 --> 0:09:13.160 will shorten your life. Proverb says, a relaxed attitude Lengthdin's life. 0:09:13.320 --> 0:09:15.680 You can be eighty years old and young at heart. 0:09:16.200 --> 0:09:19.400 Your spirit never ages. I met a woman in the 0:09:19.480 --> 0:09:23.240 lobby a while back. It was her one hundredth birthday. 0:09:23.360 --> 0:09:28.840 She was standing there, dressed impeccably beautiful, hardly had any wrinkles, 0:09:28.960 --> 0:09:32.360 full of joy, her mind was as sharp as can be. 0:09:33.200 --> 0:09:35.960 I ask her what her secret was so I could 0:09:35.960 --> 0:09:42.920 tell Victoria. She said, I don't worry. I let things 0:09:43.000 --> 0:09:47.520 go and I laugh a lot. She's lived by this principle. 0:09:47.880 --> 0:09:51.160 You know, in one hundred years she's had trouble. People 0:09:51.280 --> 0:09:56.480 have hurt her, She's made mistakes, life has happened, offensives 0:09:56.720 --> 0:10:00.200 have come. But she hasn't held on to them. He's 0:10:00.280 --> 0:10:04.560 kept emptying them out, and God promised He's filled her 0:10:04.600 --> 0:10:08.280 life with good things, kept her young and strong. I 0:10:08.320 --> 0:10:11.240 don't want to get old, grouchy, grumpy, fall apart. I 0:10:11.320 --> 0:10:14.640 want to stay young, strong, good looking, full of faith 0:10:14.720 --> 0:10:19.480 and joy and energy. The way this happens is give 0:10:19.640 --> 0:10:22.880 no place to the negative. Get in a habit of 0:10:22.960 --> 0:10:27.600 emptying out the offenses. Empty out the worry you make 0:10:27.640 --> 0:10:31.160 a mistake. Empty out the guilt you didn't do your best. 0:10:31.400 --> 0:10:35.040 Empty out the regret, do better next time. Nobody gave 0:10:35.080 --> 0:10:38.240 you credit. Empty out the self pity you had a 0:10:38.240 --> 0:10:41.560 bad break, you don't understand it. Empty out the questions. 0:10:42.080 --> 0:10:45.360 If you'll get good at emptying out the negative, you'll 0:10:45.400 --> 0:10:49.360 be like this lady, strong, young, vibrant, full of faith, 0:10:49.640 --> 0:10:53.640 and full of joy. Jesus said, blessed are the pure 0:10:53.800 --> 0:10:57.560 in heart. They will see God. That word pure in 0:10:57.640 --> 0:11:01.359 the original language is where we get our word cathartic. 0:11:02.000 --> 0:11:07.200 It means cleansing, releasing. You have surgery, sometimes the doctor 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:10.720 will put in a catheter, same root word. It's a 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:14.720 tube that drains out the impurities of the body. You 0:11:14.760 --> 0:11:19.200 can't get up to use the facility. That catheter automatically 0:11:19.280 --> 0:11:24.240 takes what's not beneficial, the toxins, the infections, the waste, 0:11:24.559 --> 0:11:28.200 and flushes them out of the body. The doctor knows 0:11:28.360 --> 0:11:31.920 there will be contaminants. He's not alarmed that the body 0:11:31.960 --> 0:11:36.600 has waste and infection. He's only alarmed when it's not 0:11:36.720 --> 0:11:40.160 being released, when we're holding on to things that should 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:43.960 be flushed out. When God says blessed are the pure 0:11:44.040 --> 0:11:47.719 in heart, he's saying you're going to be blessed when 0:11:47.760 --> 0:11:51.800 you learn how to release the impurities of life. When 0:11:51.840 --> 0:11:55.040 you get in a habit like this catheter of emptying 0:11:55.120 --> 0:11:59.200 out things that will infect you. You know what bitterness 0:11:59.280 --> 0:12:06.400 is to our spear, It's infection. Guilt is infection, worry, doubt, self, pity. 0:12:06.679 --> 0:12:11.280 These things are not unusual. Impurities come. You have to 0:12:11.360 --> 0:12:15.240 push them out. It's when we hold onto them that 0:12:15.320 --> 0:12:19.920 it contaminates our spirit and causes us problems. You weren't 0:12:19.960 --> 0:12:26.559 created to carry around guilt, regret, bitterness, anger that poisons 0:12:26.600 --> 0:12:29.520 your life. Well, Joel, I'm bitter because I had a 0:12:29.559 --> 0:12:32.840 bad break. I'm sour because somebody walked out on me. 0:12:33.480 --> 0:12:38.520 I say this respectfully. That's simply an impurity. Why don't 0:12:38.520 --> 0:12:41.520 you release it so it doesn't infect the rest of 0:12:41.559 --> 0:12:46.280 your life. Don't let a disappointment, a divorce, a layoff, 0:12:46.360 --> 0:12:50.839 a loss poison your future. Well, Joel, I'm worried about 0:12:50.880 --> 0:12:54.400 my health, worried about my finances, worried about my children. 0:12:54.840 --> 0:12:57.920 Worry is a part of life. Those thoughts come to 0:12:58.000 --> 0:13:01.720 us all The key is to not hold onto them. 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:06.840 Recognize they're not beneficial. They're not moving you forward. That's 0:13:06.880 --> 0:13:10.960 an impurity that wasn't meant to stay. You have to 0:13:11.000 --> 0:13:13.760 release it. God, I don't see a way, but I 0:13:13.800 --> 0:13:16.200 know you're still on the throne. I know you're bigger 0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:19.000 than this problem. I know you're supplying all of my needs. 0:13:19.240 --> 0:13:24.400 You just released the toxin. Are you holding on to infection? 0:13:25.120 --> 0:13:30.720 To impurities? Angry? Jealous, worried, discouraged. Maybe you had a disappointment, 0:13:31.080 --> 0:13:36.120 something didn't work out. Imagine there's an angel that has 0:13:36.120 --> 0:13:40.160 a delivery with your name on it. It says beauty 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:45.480 for ashes, new beginning, new opportunities, new friendships. He's in 0:13:45.679 --> 0:13:49.240 route with one of those good things. The problem is, 0:13:49.679 --> 0:13:52.960 if you're holding onto the old, there's no place for 0:13:53.040 --> 0:13:56.760 him to deliver it. I wonder how many things are 0:13:56.760 --> 0:14:00.280 in route right now. The Angel is standing by with 0:14:00.320 --> 0:14:04.120 our joy, our peace, our confidence, our creativity, our spouse. 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:08.760 But because there's no room, because we're not releasing the toxins, 0:14:08.800 --> 0:14:12.360 the anger, the bitterness, the jealousy, the worry, then he 0:14:12.400 --> 0:14:16.720 can't deliver those good things. Instead of living blessed, excited 0:14:16.720 --> 0:14:21.000 about our future, we become infected. The good news is 0:14:21.560 --> 0:14:25.080 you can get rid of that infection. It is not permanent. 0:14:25.400 --> 0:14:30.040 If you'll start releasing the regret, the worry, the bitterness, 0:14:30.240 --> 0:14:33.600 the anger, then it's just a matter of time before 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:37.240 that angel shows up with your delivery. When you make room, 0:14:37.600 --> 0:14:41.120 God promises he will fill your life with good things. 0:14:42.040 --> 0:14:45.560 This is what David did. He was an expert at 0:14:45.560 --> 0:14:49.200 emptying out the negative. His family looked down on him, 0:14:49.560 --> 0:14:52.520 treated him like he was second class. He could have 0:14:52.640 --> 0:14:57.560 let that infection take root, lived insecure. Instead, he let 0:14:57.560 --> 0:15:00.160 it go in one ear and out the other. He 0:15:00.240 --> 0:15:02.640 knew if he held on to it, it would keep 0:15:02.680 --> 0:15:06.680 him from his destiny. David went to the palace served 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:10.520 faithfully King Saul. He would play the harp when Saul 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:14.720 was sick to make him feel better. In return, Saul 0:15:14.760 --> 0:15:18.240 tried to kill him. Saul was jealous of David and 0:15:18.360 --> 0:15:21.440 chased him through the desert, made him his life miserable. 0:15:22.320 --> 0:15:25.800 David could have become bitter, thought, what's the use everybody's 0:15:25.880 --> 0:15:30.120 against me? Life is not fair. Instead, he kept his 0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:34.000 heart pure and emptied out the self pity. Like David, 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:39.440 we all have impurities, infections that come, people come against us. 0:15:39.880 --> 0:15:43.400 Our plans don't always work out. It's easy to think, 0:15:43.560 --> 0:15:47.720 why is this happening? It's just life. The scripture says 0:15:47.800 --> 0:15:51.960 offenses will come. They're not a problem unless you don't 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:55.000 know what to do with them. Too many people make 0:15:55.040 --> 0:15:56.480 the mistake of hold. 0:15:56.160 --> 0:15:57.000 On to them. 0:15:57.320 --> 0:16:00.520 They get bitter, live guilty with him. A chip on 0:16:00.560 --> 0:16:04.720 their shoulder that's going to poison your future. You have 0:16:04.840 --> 0:16:08.600 to release the toxins of life. You may not be 0:16:08.640 --> 0:16:11.440 able to keep them from coming, but you can keep 0:16:11.440 --> 0:16:15.840 them from staying. David had a pure heart. That means 0:16:16.000 --> 0:16:19.480 he kept the infections out. It doesn't mean that he 0:16:19.640 --> 0:16:24.400 was perfect. David made mistakes. One time he committed adultern, 0:16:24.880 --> 0:16:28.240 had the lady's husband killed. For one year, he tried 0:16:28.240 --> 0:16:31.760 to cover it up, swept it under a rug. He 0:16:31.880 --> 0:16:36.640 was so overwhelmed with guilt, condemnation, that he became sick 0:16:36.960 --> 0:16:41.160 and weak, that poison started to infect his life. He 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:45.720 finally admitted his mistake, he repented, asked God to forgive him, 0:16:45.960 --> 0:16:48.760 and things begin to turn around. Once he got the 0:16:49.200 --> 0:16:53.800 infection out, then his health was restored. When you make 0:16:53.840 --> 0:16:57.200 a mistake, and we all do, don't run away from God. 0:16:57.280 --> 0:17:00.920 Don't try to hide it. Go to God. Repent. That 0:17:00.960 --> 0:17:03.760 means don't keep doing the same thing, and then ask 0:17:03.840 --> 0:17:07.480 for forgiveness. And here's the key. You have to receive 0:17:07.680 --> 0:17:12.480 God's mercy. The enemy is called the accuser of the brethren. 0:17:13.040 --> 0:17:15.800 He'll remind you of every mistake you've made for the 0:17:15.840 --> 0:17:20.320 last thirty years. And it's easy to live life in regrets, 0:17:20.800 --> 0:17:23.480 thinking about what you should have done differently. And I 0:17:23.480 --> 0:17:26.160 should have raised my children better, should have been more 0:17:26.160 --> 0:17:29.800 faithful in my marriage, I should have finished college. Don't 0:17:29.880 --> 0:17:33.200 go through life looking in the rear view mirror, down 0:17:33.240 --> 0:17:36.800 on your cell, living in regrets. You can't do anything 0:17:36.840 --> 0:17:40.440 about the past, but you can do something about right now. 0:17:41.200 --> 0:17:45.000 Being against yourself doesn't help you do better. It pushes 0:17:45.040 --> 0:17:48.720 you down. The moment you ask God to forgive you, 0:17:49.320 --> 0:17:53.720 he forgave you. Why don't you forgive yourself. Why don't 0:17:53.720 --> 0:17:56.520 you empty out the guilt? Why don't you turn off 0:17:56.680 --> 0:18:02.199 the accusing voices? God doesn't remember mistakes anymore. If someone 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:05.120 is bringing up the negative things of your past, it's 0:18:05.160 --> 0:18:09.040 not God. That's the accuser trying to deceive you into 0:18:09.080 --> 0:18:13.240 living condemned. How much space are you given to guilt, 0:18:13.880 --> 0:18:18.480 to shame, to regret, to being against yourself, whatever it is, 0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:23.080 it's too much. You need that space for the good 0:18:23.160 --> 0:18:26.800 things God has to move you toward your destiny. If 0:18:26.840 --> 0:18:29.959 you're giving space to guilt, you will not have the 0:18:30.080 --> 0:18:33.879 confidence you need to move forward. That will cause you 0:18:33.960 --> 0:18:37.960 to fail again. It's a negative cycle. The only way 0:18:37.960 --> 0:18:40.400 you can break it is to rise up and say 0:18:40.480 --> 0:18:43.960 that's it. I am done living in the past, focused 0:18:44.000 --> 0:18:48.240 on my mistakes, reliving my failures, beating myself up. This 0:18:48.320 --> 0:18:51.760 is a new day. I'm emptying out all that infection. 0:18:52.160 --> 0:18:55.960 I'm gonna receive God's mercy. You have to do this 0:18:56.160 --> 0:18:59.800 by faith, because every voice will tell you you're a 0:18:59.800 --> 0:19:02.880 hit for cript. God's not going to forgive you. Look, 0:19:02.920 --> 0:19:05.920 what you've done doesn't have anything to do with what 0:19:06.000 --> 0:19:08.720 you have or haven't done. It has to do with 0:19:08.760 --> 0:19:12.880 what Jesus has already done. But Joel, I made a 0:19:12.880 --> 0:19:16.040 lot of mistakes. I don't deserve to be blessed. None 0:19:16.080 --> 0:19:19.399 of us deserve it. This is what mercy is all about. 0:19:19.920 --> 0:19:23.240 That's why it's called the good News. Your sins have 0:19:23.359 --> 0:19:26.600 already been forgiven. You don't have to pay God back 0:19:26.600 --> 0:19:30.480 for your mistakes. The price has already been paid. When 0:19:30.520 --> 0:19:32.960 you fall down, don't stay down, get back up again. 0:19:33.760 --> 0:19:36.360 When you accuse or whispers, look at you. You blew 0:19:36.440 --> 0:19:39.320 it again. You'll never get it right. Just answer back. Yes, 0:19:39.640 --> 0:19:42.919 I know I'm not perfect, but I am forgiven. I 0:19:43.000 --> 0:19:45.760 may not be where I should be, but I'm making progress. 0:19:45.920 --> 0:19:47.760 I'm moving forward. I'm not where I used to be. 0:19:48.640 --> 0:19:53.720 Don't let guilt poison your future. Empty it out. Sometimes 0:19:53.800 --> 0:19:57.080 it's hard to empty out the negative when a person 0:19:57.160 --> 0:20:00.280 does us wrong. Human nature wants to hold on to 0:20:00.359 --> 0:20:04.160 the hurt, to come bitter, carry around a grudge who 0:20:04.160 --> 0:20:06.320 we think. We're not going to forgive them. They don't 0:20:06.320 --> 0:20:10.960 deserve it. You're not forgiving for their sake, You're forgiving 0:20:11.080 --> 0:20:13.879 for your sake. As long as you hold on to 0:20:13.960 --> 0:20:18.800 the hurt, the anger, the bitterness, it's not affecting them, 0:20:19.359 --> 0:20:25.080 it's infecting you. Unforgiveness is like a poisonous toxin. May 0:20:25.119 --> 0:20:27.120 feel good to hold on to it, but it will 0:20:27.160 --> 0:20:30.520 contaminate your life. Now. A lot of times, the reason 0:20:30.600 --> 0:20:34.160 we don't forgive is because what the other person does 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:38.560 was wrong. They were clearly at fault. But when you forgive, 0:20:39.119 --> 0:20:43.480 you're not excusing their behavior. You're not lessening the offense. 0:20:43.920 --> 0:20:47.600 You're simply getting the poison out of you. You have 0:20:47.720 --> 0:20:51.359 to forgive so you can be free. Quit looking at 0:20:51.400 --> 0:20:53.920 it like you're doing them a favor, You're doing yourself 0:20:53.960 --> 0:20:57.520 a favor. See, it takes a lot of emotional energy 0:20:57.880 --> 0:21:02.080 to hold a grudge, to live with unforgiveness. You wake up, 0:21:02.119 --> 0:21:04.480 it's always on your mind thinking about how they did 0:21:04.520 --> 0:21:09.000 you wrong. You may not realize you are spending emotional 0:21:09.160 --> 0:21:13.240 energy that you need for your dreams, for your goals, 0:21:13.280 --> 0:21:16.480 for your children. You won't become all you were created 0:21:16.520 --> 0:21:20.760 to be if you are wasting emotional energy on things 0:21:20.800 --> 0:21:25.280 that don't matter. That unforgiveness is an impurity. Yes, what 0:21:25.320 --> 0:21:28.479 they did was wrong, but you have to let it pass. 0:21:28.680 --> 0:21:32.239 You have to release it. When you do, you'll not 0:21:32.320 --> 0:21:36.200 only feel a new freedom, not only have more energy. 0:21:36.280 --> 0:21:39.640 But God will be your vindicator. He will make your 0:21:39.640 --> 0:21:42.840 wrongs right. You don't have to pay people back. You're 0:21:42.880 --> 0:21:45.760 not the judge. God is. Leave it up to him 0:21:45.960 --> 0:21:49.200 and he'll vindicate you better than you could vindicate yourself. 0:21:50.520 --> 0:21:53.520 This is what a lady did named Mary Johnson. She 0:21:53.680 --> 0:21:56.600 was the single mother of one son. When he was 0:21:56.640 --> 0:21:59.560 twenty years old, he was out late one night at 0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:02.360 a part. This young man came up that he had 0:22:02.359 --> 0:22:06.200 never met. His name was Oshe. He was sixteen years 0:22:06.240 --> 0:22:10.280 old and had been drinking. There was an altercation. In 0:22:10.359 --> 0:22:12.240 the heat of the moment, oh she pulled out a 0:22:12.280 --> 0:22:16.639 gun and shot Mary's only son. He was instantly killed. 0:22:17.400 --> 0:22:21.400 Mary was so filled with anger and hatred. She told 0:22:21.440 --> 0:22:24.680 the judge that sixteen year old boy was an animal 0:22:24.960 --> 0:22:28.040 and he needed to be caged. When he was only 0:22:28.160 --> 0:22:32.920 charged with second degree murder, Mary was even more angry. 0:22:33.040 --> 0:22:36.800 She became a recluse, stayed in her house, wouldn't look 0:22:36.840 --> 0:22:40.879 at her son's picture. Ten years passed, she knew it 0:22:40.920 --> 0:22:44.240 was time to forgive. She could hear the still small 0:22:44.320 --> 0:22:47.919 voice telling her to let it go. She contacted the 0:22:47.960 --> 0:22:51.600 prison to see if she could visit Oshe. They said yes, 0:22:52.080 --> 0:22:55.000 but oh, she said no, he wouldn't do it. She 0:22:55.160 --> 0:22:59.399 kept asking and asking. Finally he agreed. She showed up 0:22:59.400 --> 0:23:03.200 at the prison. When she saw Osh, he came around 0:23:03.600 --> 0:23:06.800 and gave her a big hug and held on to her. 0:23:07.119 --> 0:23:12.080 They wept and wept. Mary said, as I was embracing Oshe, 0:23:12.720 --> 0:23:16.600 I could feel hatred and bitterness rising up out of 0:23:16.680 --> 0:23:21.040 me and leaving my body. It was so strong that 0:23:21.119 --> 0:23:24.000 she fell over. Oh, she had to hold her up. 0:23:24.560 --> 0:23:29.840 That day, Mary not only emptied out the unforgiveness, but 0:23:29.920 --> 0:23:33.560 she found a new son. Seven years later. Oh, she 0:23:33.760 --> 0:23:36.320 was released on parole. Didn't have any place to live. 0:23:36.640 --> 0:23:39.399 Mary said, you can live next door to me. She 0:23:39.560 --> 0:23:45.159 calls him her spiritual son. Mary started an organization called 0:23:45.200 --> 0:23:48.880 from Death to Life to help mothers who have lost 0:23:48.960 --> 0:23:52.320 children to violence. Now, she and Oshe go out and 0:23:52.359 --> 0:23:57.719 speak at conferences and schools about unforgiveness and overcoming loss. 0:23:58.480 --> 0:24:02.600 Mary said what really helped her decide to forgive was 0:24:02.640 --> 0:24:06.760 a poem she heard about two mothers in heaven that 0:24:06.840 --> 0:24:10.840 had just become friends. One mother asked the other, who 0:24:10.920 --> 0:24:14.919 is your son? She said, my son is Jesus I'm Mary. 0:24:15.600 --> 0:24:19.159 Mary asked, who is your son, she said, my son 0:24:19.359 --> 0:24:24.920 is Judas. When Mary Johnson heard how in this poem, Mary, 0:24:25.000 --> 0:24:29.000 the mother of Christ had befriended the mother of Judas, 0:24:29.400 --> 0:24:31.960 she knew she had to reach out to that other family. 0:24:32.359 --> 0:24:35.600 Now she helps other mothers do the same thing. Out 0:24:35.600 --> 0:24:38.639 of your pain can come your purpose. I saw a 0:24:38.680 --> 0:24:42.800 lady on television recently. Several years earlier, her son had 0:24:42.840 --> 0:24:46.040 been killed in an accident. They asked her how she 0:24:46.160 --> 0:24:49.840 was doing it. She made the statement, you never really 0:24:49.880 --> 0:24:53.800 get over it, but you can get past it. She 0:24:53.960 --> 0:24:57.720 was saying, yes, it's difficult, Yes there was a season 0:24:57.800 --> 0:25:01.000 of mourning, but you don't have to stay in You 0:25:01.000 --> 0:25:03.440