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Speaker 1: This is Joel and Victoria. Thanks so much for listening

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Speaker 1: to the podcast.

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Speaker 2: We appreciate your support, and we have a brand new

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Speaker 2: resource we'd like to send you this month.

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Speaker 1: It's called Playing with Confidence. I'll tell you more about

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Speaker 1: it at the end of the podcast.

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Speaker 2: We love you and we sure hope you enjoyed the message.

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Speaker 2: Have you ever watched a movie or a show and

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Speaker 2: you'd seen it before you knew the end of the story.

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Speaker 2: Maybe you were watching it with a friend and they

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Speaker 2: knew They didn't know the end of the story, but

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Speaker 2: you did so when all the suspenseful parts were coming,

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Speaker 2: you weren't anxious or concerned because you.

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Speaker 3: Knew the end of the story.

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Speaker 2: You see, today, you and I are living in the

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Speaker 2: end of the resurrection story.

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Speaker 3: See, we know.

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Speaker 2: What happened the day that Jesus died. We know what

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Speaker 2: happened when he was buried he rose again. We're living

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Speaker 2: at the end of the story.

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Speaker 3: But see, two.

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Speaker 2: Thousand years ago there was disciples and followers of Jesus

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Speaker 2: that they're actually living in the story.

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Speaker 3: They didn't know what was gonna happen.

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Speaker 2: You know the interesting thing about a story when you're

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Speaker 2: watching it, That's one thing but when it's happening to

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Speaker 2: your own life, that's an entirely different thing.

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Speaker 3: You see, when it's.

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Speaker 2: Happening to you and you face difficulties and challenges and

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Speaker 2: suspenseful plots, it's difficult. You can't always remember the end

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Speaker 2: of the story. You can't always remember what has been promised.

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Speaker 2: See today, I want to talk about a band of women,

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Speaker 2: one being Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and

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Speaker 2: a few others.

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Speaker 3: You see, they live.

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Speaker 2: They were living the story two thousand years ago. In fact,

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Speaker 2: they saw Jesus as he walked the earth. They saw

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Speaker 2: him do tremendous miracles. They saw him open blind eyes

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Speaker 2: and death ears. In fact, Mary Magdalene her life was

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Speaker 2: completely changed, radically changed by Jesus.

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Speaker 3: She had a miserable life. The Bible says that she

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Speaker 3: was full of.

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Speaker 2: Darkness, but Jesus touched her and she became full of life. See,

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Speaker 2: she was living the story of this grand savior, Jesus.

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Speaker 2: But she also lived the story of his death. She

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Speaker 2: walked through the story when he hung on the cross.

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Speaker 2: She saw him as he died slowly on that cross.

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Speaker 2: She saw when they took him down, and Joseph asked

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Speaker 2: for his body so that he could wrap him in

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Speaker 2: linen and take him to a tomb. And that tone

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Speaker 2: was seal that day with a huge, huge stone. She

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Speaker 2: saw it all, and as Jesus lay in that tone,

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Speaker 2: her hopes, her dreams lay there with him.

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Speaker 3: You see, she saw it all. She was living in

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Speaker 3: the story.

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Speaker 2: One day after the Sabbath, she woke up early in

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Speaker 2: the morning, the Bible says, the sun had just come up,

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Speaker 2: and she in.

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Speaker 3: That band of women, they gathered spices.

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Speaker 2: They wanted to anoint Jesus's body one last time.

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Speaker 3: They were on their way to the tomb.

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Speaker 2: I can imagine it was still misty in the air,

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Speaker 2: that was still dew on the grass. They had all

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Speaker 2: their stuff. They knew their assignment, they knew what their

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Speaker 2: heart was beating for, and.

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Speaker 3: They were on their way. But on that path to

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Speaker 3: the tone.

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Speaker 2: They remembered something. They remembered the large stone that sealed

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Speaker 2: the entrance of that tomb. And they began talking among

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Speaker 2: themselves about that big obstacle. They began thinking, how in

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Speaker 2: the world are we going to move that stone? The

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Speaker 2: Bible says in Mark sixteen fourth, they set among themselves,

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Speaker 2: who will help us roll away?

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Speaker 3: The stone.

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Speaker 2: You see, that stone represented a block to them. As

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Speaker 2: long as that stone was there, they couldn't enter the

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Speaker 2: tomb and anoint.

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Speaker 3: The body of Jesus. That stone was too big for

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Speaker 3: them to move themselves. Have you ever felt that way before?

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Speaker 2: Has something ever blocked your life? Maybe you've heard your

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Speaker 2: own self saying, who's going to help me move this thing?

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Speaker 3: Have you ever had a block in your life?

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Speaker 2: Maybe you wanted to start a new business, but you

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Speaker 2: kept hitting obstacles, draining your resources. Maybe you had a

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Speaker 2: stone of an unwanted divorce, a stone of a bad

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Speaker 2: medical report, stone of fear, stone of debt. See those stones,

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Speaker 2: they're real. They come in different shapes and different sizes.

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Speaker 2: Maybe the stone you're not facing you're facing today, is

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Speaker 2: not as big as the.

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Speaker 3: One of the tone. Maybe it is, but can I

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Speaker 3: tell you it's a stone that wants to block you.

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Speaker 3: It's real.

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Speaker 2: They come in different shapes, they come in different sizes.

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Speaker 3: But you know what the purpose is, the purpose is

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Speaker 3: to stop us.

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Speaker 2: The purpose is to trap us thinking that will never

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Speaker 2: overcome that stone. It's too big, the challenge is too hard.

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Speaker 2: We might as well quit. Now, you know what I

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Speaker 2: loved about Mary and Martha, Mary and Mary was the

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Speaker 2: fact that when they remembered the stone, they didn't stop.

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Speaker 2: They kept going. And when they got to the tomb,

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Speaker 2: the Bible says that they looked up and they were

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Speaker 2: so surprised. The stone had been rolled away. The stone

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Speaker 2: was not blocking the tomb anymore. The obstacle that was

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Speaker 2: trying to defeat them had been rolled away.

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Speaker 3: Think about that just a minute. What they were worried about,

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Speaker 3: what was there is now gone. Mary walked into the.

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Speaker 2: Tomb and saw the angel, and the angel declared to her,

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Speaker 2: are you looking for Jesus.

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Speaker 3: He's not here. He's risen. He's risen. You see.

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Speaker 2: The problem that she was facing that day was met

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Speaker 2: with the promise, the promise of the resurrection. As soon

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Speaker 2: as the angel told her, he's not here, he's risen.

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Speaker 3: The Bible says that she was.

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Speaker 2: Reminded of the promises of Jesus. He said, I'll rise again.

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Speaker 2: He said the temple will be built back in three days.

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Speaker 2: See when she heard it, she remembered the promise. Sometimes

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Speaker 2: when you're walking through a difficult situation and there's obstacles

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Speaker 2: in your path, it's hard to remember those resurrection promises.

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Speaker 2: But can I tell you today stones are meant to

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Speaker 2: stop you. Sometimes there are stones in reality that you

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Speaker 2: cannot move on your own. They are impossible, they're out

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Speaker 2: of your control. But can I tell you today that

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Speaker 2: Jesus is alive and he's still rolling away the stars.

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Speaker 2: He's still have been stones in your life.

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Speaker 3: It was Easter Sunday and Mary didn't even know it.

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Speaker 3: I hope this is each Easter Sunday makes you take

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Speaker 3: a look.

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Speaker 2: At those blocks in your life, those stones, those things

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Speaker 2: that are trying to weigh you down, cause fear and anxiety,

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Speaker 2: those things that would like to stop you from fulfilling

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Speaker 2: your destiny. I hope you look at those stones differently,

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Speaker 2: and next time you run into one of those things,

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Speaker 2: I hope you look at it and you say, he

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Speaker 2: has risen and I will stand on the resurrection promises

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Speaker 2: of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you are facing the

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Speaker 2: stone of discouragement today, I want to remind you that

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Speaker 2: he kills the broken heart and he binds up their wounds.

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Speaker 2: If you're looking at the stone of fear today, I

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Speaker 2: want to remind you what the promise that says.

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Speaker 3: It says that I have not given you a.

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Speaker 2: Spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.

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Speaker 2: Do you know with every stone there's a promise, Just

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Speaker 2: like that day that Mary walked to that tone, that

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Speaker 2: problem was resolved by the promise of the resurrection. Know today,

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Speaker 2: whatever you're facing, there's a promise to help you overcome,

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Speaker 2: there's a promise to strengthen you. He still heals, he

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Speaker 2: still delivers, and he still sets free today by the

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Speaker 2: power of the resurrection. But it's up to us to

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Speaker 2: remember the power of the resurrection and the promises that

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Speaker 2: he made to us and attach the promise to it.

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Speaker 2: A friend of mine the other day was working on

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Speaker 2: a project and she was so excited about the end result.

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Speaker 2: She said to me, Victoria, I want to send you

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Speaker 2: but before and after picture of my project. I said,

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Speaker 2: I'd love to see it. She sent it to me.

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Speaker 2: I'll open the attachment and came the before picture. It

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Speaker 2: didn't look too good. I went to find the after

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Speaker 2: picture and it wasn't there. I emailed her back and said, hey,

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Speaker 2: where's the after picture. She emailed me back and she said,

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Speaker 2: oh my goodness, I forgot to attach it.

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Speaker 3: She sent it to me and I opened it up.

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Speaker 3: It was magnificent.

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Speaker 2: Can I tell you today you may have a before picture,

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Speaker 2: but if you will attach the promises of God, you

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Speaker 2: will open up a picture of the after and then

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Speaker 2: will read magnificent.

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Speaker 3: Because he's alive and he's risen.

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Speaker 2: You see that day that Mary walked to the tomb,

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Speaker 2: history was changed. Her life was changed forever, and so

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Speaker 2: was ours. He's risen and he's still moving stones today.

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Speaker 3: Amen. Amen.

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Speaker 4: Sometimes life can make you feel like you were just

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Speaker 4: living in the dark. Even your prayers don't feel like

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Speaker 4: they are making it to heaven. But God is listening

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Speaker 4: and his light is about to shine.

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Speaker 1: We know God is all powerful that he can answer

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Speaker 1: any prayer, but sometimes we don't know what to pray.

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Speaker 1: We don't think we deserve God's goodness. Maybe we're inconveniencing him,

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Speaker 1: or he has more important things to deal with. But

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Speaker 1: God is concerned about every detail of your life. He's

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Speaker 1: waiting to hear your prayers. I have a new resource

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Speaker 1: called Praying with Confidence, guided prayers for life's moments. When

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Speaker 1: you face challenges or obstacles that seem too big, you'll

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Speaker 1: find prayers that will build your faith, prayers that will

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Speaker 1: move the hands of God. There are prayers you can

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Speaker 1: pray for peace and comfort, prayers for your family and hell,

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Speaker 1: prayers for your dreams and goals. As you make these

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Speaker 1: prayers your own, pray with confidence, that's when you'll see

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Speaker 1: the creator of the universe go to work. I hope

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Speaker 1: you'll bequest your copy today.

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Speaker 4: With a gift of any amount this month, you would

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Speaker 4: like to immediately send you a copy of Praying with

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Speaker 4: Confidence Guided Prayers for Life's Moments. In this new resource,

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Speaker 4: Joel shares how to pray when you need a breakthrough,

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Speaker 4: when you need strength. Yes, when life's moments happen and

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Speaker 4: you're not sure how to pray. Praying confident prayers will

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Speaker 4: put you on the right path. You'll enter new seasons

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Speaker 4: in your prayer life that will turn challenges to victory's

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Speaker 4: heartache to hope, frustration to new found favor. Be sure

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Speaker 4: to request your copy of Praying with Confidence Guided Prayers

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Speaker 4: for Life's Moments today. Visit Joeloustein dot com or call

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Speaker 4: eighty eight five six seven.

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Speaker 3: Joel