WEBVTT - Support System 0:00:02.040 --> 0:00:04.880 Welcome to Elevation Church. Due to Hurricane Florence that came 0:00:04.920 --> 0:00:06.920 through the Carolinas this week, we weren't able to have 0:00:07.000 --> 0:00:09.520 church at many of our locations. We shared a special 0:00:09.560 --> 0:00:12.320 online experience this weekend, but today we wanted to share 0:00:12.320 --> 0:00:15.160 with you a message preached by Holly Ferdict. Holly preached 0:00:15.160 --> 0:00:17.639 this message at Reflect twenty eighteen, which is an event 0:00:17.680 --> 0:00:20.520 for the ladies of Elevation Church. This message is centered 0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:23.360 around the subject of friendships. It's the kickoff message to 0:00:23.360 --> 0:00:26.080 a study that Holly has recently written called Building Friendships 0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:28.520 That Fit. You can get more information on how to 0:00:28.560 --> 0:00:30.600 purchase the study or how to join an eGroup at 0:00:30.600 --> 0:00:33.320 Elevationchurch dot org. But right now we're going to jump 0:00:33.360 --> 0:00:37.360 into the message from Holly during Reflect. Hope you guys enjoy? 0:00:39.560 --> 0:00:42.040 Are that any grateful lady? Then I have to day, 0:00:45.600 --> 0:00:48.280 is there anyone expecting God to speak to them tonight? 0:00:48.400 --> 0:00:53.720 Cot your head? As I was studying, I came across 0:00:53.800 --> 0:00:57.160 this psalm its Psalm one, verse six. It says I 0:00:57.360 --> 0:01:01.960 stretch out my hands to you. My soul yearns for 0:01:02.080 --> 0:01:05.360 you like a parched land. And I was just wondering 0:01:05.360 --> 0:01:08.840 if anybody came in here tonight. Thirsty. You want to 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:12.880 hear from God tonight. So let's do what the psalm says. 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:16.280 Let's stretch out our hands to the Lord. And so, Lord, 0:01:16.319 --> 0:01:19.600 we come to you, and we are thirsty for you. 0:01:20.040 --> 0:01:24.759 We invite you into this place. We're excited. We're expecting 0:01:25.200 --> 0:01:29.320 to hear from you. We give our hearts to you, God, 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:32.119 and we claim what James says, that if we will 0:01:32.200 --> 0:01:34.920 draw near to you, you will draw near to us. 0:01:35.240 --> 0:01:42.960 Speak to us now in Jesus' name, we pray, Amen, Amen, 0:01:43.160 --> 0:01:48.160 work great night so far, Oh my goodness, thank you. 0:01:48.240 --> 0:01:54.560 Worship Team was amazing. I am so excited and I 0:01:54.600 --> 0:01:56.720 don't know what it's like at the other campuses, but 0:01:56.880 --> 0:02:03.360 it sounds so good in here, Babe. I was thinking 0:02:03.400 --> 0:02:05.760 that the next time that you're the Worship Team does 0:02:05.840 --> 0:02:14.280 a live recording, you should just let women come. You 0:02:14.360 --> 0:02:17.280 guys sound awesome and you look great. Don't sit down yet. 0:02:17.520 --> 0:02:21.160 Help me welcome all of our campuses. Ladies here with Valentine. 0:02:21.320 --> 0:02:26.560 You're gonna have to help me out. Welcome you see Matthews, 0:02:27.040 --> 0:02:31.200 Lake Norman, Riverwalk, Blakeney lady, Why are you with me? 0:02:31.280 --> 0:02:37.400 A Lakey? Hello mea Melbourne, Toronto, Asheville and all of 0:02:37.480 --> 0:02:40.239 the ladies that are joining us online with our EPHAM 0:02:42.520 --> 0:02:47.200 welcome to reflect. Thank you for braving the weather. It's 0:02:47.360 --> 0:02:53.240 just so terrible here in Charlotte. Sun was shining most 0:02:53.320 --> 0:02:56.480 of the day. I think this has been our best 0:02:56.480 --> 0:03:03.160 reflect so far. Yeah, okay, while you're still clapping, will 0:03:03.160 --> 0:03:11.240 you help me thank our pastor, Pastor Stephens. I was thinking, 0:03:11.840 --> 0:03:14.200 I was thinking of different things that we could thank 0:03:14.240 --> 0:03:16.440 you for. You know. I was thinking we could thank 0:03:16.480 --> 0:03:20.480 you for the basic standard, like having the amazing faith 0:03:20.560 --> 0:03:23.160 to start at a church that's reached so many people. 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:27.200 And then I was thinking, like, you know, also thank 0:03:27.240 --> 0:03:30.320 you for bringing incredible messages that speak to our hearts 0:03:30.360 --> 0:03:35.880 every single week. You guys need to know that preparing 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:38.560 a sermon is no joke, and this man does it 0:03:38.600 --> 0:03:42.240 every week and it's so good every week. Okay, but 0:03:43.120 --> 0:03:45.040 this is really what I want you to help me 0:03:45.120 --> 0:03:47.680 thank Pastor Stephen for. So I want us to all 0:03:47.720 --> 0:03:53.480 stay together, So everybody say thank you Pastor Stephen for 0:03:53.640 --> 0:03:58.760 helping Holly with her sermon. If you live with the 0:03:58.760 --> 0:04:01.200 best coach in the world, to take advantage of her, 0:04:06.720 --> 0:04:10.880 all right, just stay standing while we read our scripture, 0:04:11.520 --> 0:04:15.760 and then we will get to the preaching part. We're 0:04:15.800 --> 0:04:19.719 going to be in Luke twenty three, starting in verse 0:04:20.120 --> 0:04:22.040 fifty five. If you have a Bible or you can 0:04:22.080 --> 0:04:26.120 follow along on the screens. It says the women who 0:04:26.160 --> 0:04:30.159 had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw 0:04:30.200 --> 0:04:32.560 the tomb and how the body was laid in it. 0:04:32.960 --> 0:04:36.440 Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But 0:04:36.520 --> 0:04:39.080 they rested on the sabbath and obedience to the commandment. 0:04:39.600 --> 0:04:41.440 On the first day of the week, very early in 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:44.360 the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared 0:04:44.520 --> 0:04:47.240 and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled 0:04:47.279 --> 0:04:50.039 away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did 0:04:50.080 --> 0:04:53.200 not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they 0:04:53.200 --> 0:04:56.359 were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that 0:04:56.520 --> 0:05:00.440 gleamed like lightning stood before them. In their fright. Women 0:05:00.520 --> 0:05:02.800 bowed down with their faces to the ground. But the 0:05:02.880 --> 0:05:05.039 men said to them, why do you look for the 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:09.159 living among the dead. He's not here. He has risen 0:05:13.920 --> 0:05:18.520 so great reserve risen saviyah. Okay, you guys made me 0:05:18.560 --> 0:05:23.080 lose my place. He is risen. Remember how he told 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:25.520 you while he was still with you in Galilee. He said, 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:28.479 the son of Man must be delivered over to the 0:05:28.520 --> 0:05:31.520 hands of sinners, be crucified, and on the third day 0:05:31.640 --> 0:05:35.120 raised again. Then they remembered his words. When they came 0:05:35.160 --> 0:05:37.560 back from the tomb. They told all these things as 0:05:37.600 --> 0:05:41.880 women do to the eleven, no detail left behind, and 0:05:41.960 --> 0:05:46.360 to all the others. It was Mary Magdalen, Joanna, Mary, 0:05:46.360 --> 0:05:49.160 the mother of James, and the others who were with them, 0:05:49.200 --> 0:05:52.480 who told this to the apostles. I want to talk 0:05:52.560 --> 0:05:59.560 to you tonight about your support system. As you take 0:05:59.600 --> 0:06:15.560 your sea, ask your neighbor how strong is your support system? 0:06:15.640 --> 0:06:21.400 So what do you think about when you hear the 0:06:21.440 --> 0:06:24.880 word support system or the phrase support system? I don't know. 0:06:24.920 --> 0:06:29.080 I mean, I guess if this was a men's conference. 0:06:29.200 --> 0:06:32.520 Men don't have events, they have conferences. But if this 0:06:32.640 --> 0:06:35.000 was a men's conference, a man might be thinking about 0:06:35.000 --> 0:06:41.280 maybe bridges or buildings, or maybe people. But I think 0:06:41.320 --> 0:06:42.960 of those things too. I'm sure you think of those 0:06:42.960 --> 0:06:53.000 things too. But I got to thinking about bras. Did 0:06:53.040 --> 0:06:56.480 you know. I'm sure you know because Oprah told us 0:06:56.520 --> 0:06:59.560 all of this, But eighty percent of women where the 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:04.640 wrongs size Bra, ask the person next to you, do 0:07:04.720 --> 0:07:17.120 you still feel supported? It wasn't that long, all right. 0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:20.120 You know. One thing that I love about women's events 0:07:20.120 --> 0:07:21.960 is that we can talk about things that really matter 0:07:22.040 --> 0:07:25.080 from the stage, like Bras. Okay, I'm sorry. There are 0:07:25.120 --> 0:07:27.480 just a few men here tonight, and this part of 0:07:27.520 --> 0:07:30.360 the sermon may make you feel a little bit embarrassed. 0:07:30.360 --> 0:07:33.720 But I just couldn't stop thinking about Bras. And I 0:07:33.840 --> 0:07:37.200 promise you. I had decided on my title for the message. 0:07:37.240 --> 0:07:39.600 I really wanted to be called support System, and I 0:07:39.600 --> 0:07:42.320 was thinking about Bras and I promise you, honest to god, 0:07:42.400 --> 0:07:48.280 I got this email in my inbox. It says your 0:07:48.400 --> 0:07:52.880 support system just got better. And I don't know if 0:07:52.880 --> 0:07:55.400 you can see this, but you see. If you need 0:07:55.440 --> 0:07:59.840 to reply, you reply to support at fabletics dot com. 0:07:59.680 --> 0:08:02.200 I think they did that on purpose, but it's pretty funny. 0:08:02.280 --> 0:08:05.040 So I went to Fabletics. We have a store here 0:08:05.080 --> 0:08:06.520 in Charlotte. If you don't know what that is, it's 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:08.200 like a I don't know. It's kind of like a club, 0:08:08.320 --> 0:08:10.520 like a CD club, but for workout clothes. But then 0:08:10.560 --> 0:08:12.600 they also have a store. If you want to join, 0:08:12.840 --> 0:08:15.160 just put my name in the referral because I get 0:08:15.160 --> 0:08:18.720 twenty dollars for every person that does it. So I 0:08:19.080 --> 0:08:28.720 went to Fabletics and I got some bras, just a few, 0:08:28.760 --> 0:08:31.240 and I know I had to get different sizes and everything, 0:08:31.280 --> 0:08:33.720 but I know that I had kind of like an 0:08:33.760 --> 0:08:35.839 activity like this last year and I held up a 0:08:35.880 --> 0:08:38.360 bunch of ladies things I just I was thinking about. 0:08:38.400 --> 0:08:40.800 I could not talk about bras without holding a couple up. 0:08:40.880 --> 0:08:43.040 So sorry if it feels a little bit repetitive. I 0:08:43.040 --> 0:08:46.320 only preach once here anyway, So I don't have that 0:08:46.360 --> 0:08:50.319 many tricks in my bag. Okay, I just I picked 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:52.160 out a few to look at. I mean, they're all 0:08:52.280 --> 0:08:55.400 all different colors and patterns. I like this one. That's 0:08:55.440 --> 0:08:57.840 the color blocking thing going on. Okay, this is the 0:08:57.840 --> 0:09:00.559 first one. No, that's not it. It's Ver's the one 0:09:00.559 --> 0:09:02.400 I want. Okay, this is the one I want. Now, 0:09:02.720 --> 0:09:04.679 when when I look at a braw like this, I 0:09:04.720 --> 0:09:07.199 think that there should be like an age an age 0:09:07.280 --> 0:09:14.240 limit for this, and I just want to read you 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:17.559 what it says on the tag. It says it says 0:09:17.679 --> 0:09:21.200 light support, and then it says a little mesh goes 0:09:21.240 --> 0:09:26.480 a long way. Then then I had one that was 0:09:26.520 --> 0:09:30.560 more that was. This one's called the Medium Support Okay, 0:09:31.040 --> 0:09:33.760 and I don't think they really say anything special about it, 0:09:33.880 --> 0:09:39.199 Medium Support Sports SPRA. It's called the Kobe. I don't know. Anyway, 0:09:39.200 --> 0:09:42.319 there's that one. Okay, Now that this one, this one's 0:09:42.360 --> 0:09:51.400 my favorite. Okay, this this one, This one is called 0:09:52.080 --> 0:09:57.959 the Zoe High Impact Sports Bra. And when I love 0:09:58.040 --> 0:10:01.480 what it says in the description it says and an 0:10:01.520 --> 0:10:05.760 easy on and off zip closure in the front. Now, 0:10:07.000 --> 0:10:09.240 if you're not a woman, you're not gonna understand what 0:10:09.280 --> 0:10:11.400 I'm about to say about this bra. But if you 0:10:11.480 --> 0:10:14.800 have ever been sweaty and tried to take off a 0:10:14.880 --> 0:10:26.160 sports bra, a woman invented this bra. Okay, So while 0:10:26.160 --> 0:10:28.080 I clean up my mess, check out this little meme 0:10:28.120 --> 0:10:31.839 that I found. It's so cute. You can do it. 0:10:32.520 --> 0:10:43.640 You're awesome support bras. Okay, tonight is all about friendship. 0:10:43.640 --> 0:10:46.480 If you haven't clued into that, you know, you probably 0:10:46.480 --> 0:10:49.800 weren't paying attention. Maybe you got here late. But it's 0:10:49.800 --> 0:10:53.640 about friendship, it's about support, and I just I want 0:10:53.679 --> 0:10:57.600 you to leave here knowing that you were never intended 0:10:57.880 --> 0:11:02.280 to go through this life alone. God wants every one 0:11:02.320 --> 0:11:08.000 of us to have thriving, healthy, life, giving relationships. You 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:11.319 should have an arsenal of friends that you can pull 0:11:11.400 --> 0:11:15.359 out to provide the support that you need for whatever 0:11:15.640 --> 0:11:19.160 situation that you're in. And I want to ask you tonight, 0:11:19.600 --> 0:11:24.720 what is your support system? Like we've all heard it's 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:29.679 on all everybody's newsfeed, whether you read BuzzFeed or flipboard 0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:33.439 or Apple or whatever. We've all heard that loneliness has 0:11:33.520 --> 0:11:39.640 reached epic proportions that it's actually causing a health epidemic. 0:11:40.040 --> 0:11:44.480 And I'm not just talking about depression and anxiety and suicide, 0:11:44.480 --> 0:11:48.480 which are at all time highs. I'm talking about cardiovascular 0:11:48.559 --> 0:11:53.160 problems and sleep deprivation and premature deaths are being linked 0:11:53.280 --> 0:11:58.440 directly to loneliness. And what's strange about this which blows 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:00.680 my mind, is that we live in a world where 0:12:00.720 --> 0:12:05.200 communication has never been easier. But it's like the more 0:12:05.240 --> 0:12:09.800 communication we got, the less connection that we got, and 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:13.679 our connection has just become so complicated. So tonight, I 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:17.480 want you to take a look at your support system. 0:12:17.880 --> 0:12:20.880 The reason that this is so important is because and 0:12:21.320 --> 0:12:23.320 hear me on this, because this is this is this 0:12:23.400 --> 0:12:25.720 is so important. If you're taking notes, this is maybe 0:12:25.760 --> 0:12:28.560 one little thing you might want to write down. While 0:12:28.600 --> 0:12:32.280 we may not get to choose what we go through 0:12:32.360 --> 0:12:36.079 in life, we do get to choose who we go 0:12:36.120 --> 0:12:40.520 through it with. Life is not a game of tennis. 0:12:40.760 --> 0:12:42.880 I don't know if any of you watch tennis or 0:12:42.880 --> 0:12:45.680 play tennis. I attempted to play tennis. I'm not good 0:12:45.760 --> 0:12:48.800 at all. Like like, I'm on this little team and 0:12:48.840 --> 0:12:50.920 we played Queen City League. I don't know if anybody 0:12:50.920 --> 0:12:52.840 ever plays Queen City League. You've probably never played me. 0:12:53.280 --> 0:12:57.920 Because there's ten divisions, Division one all the way through ten, 0:12:58.040 --> 0:13:01.440 one being the worst, the best ones, the best, ten's 0:13:01.440 --> 0:13:04.720 the worst. I'm in Division ten, So I'm just out 0:13:04.720 --> 0:13:07.079 there for the fun of it in the sunshine and anyway. 0:13:07.120 --> 0:13:09.320 But I like to watch tennis. And even if you 0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:12.680 don't watch tennis, I'm sure that in your news feed 0:13:12.760 --> 0:13:17.800 this week you heard about Serena's match at the US Open. Now, 0:13:17.840 --> 0:13:21.200 I'm not going to share my opinion about Serena except 0:13:21.240 --> 0:13:24.079 that I think that she is the greatest women's tennis 0:13:24.120 --> 0:13:28.720 player to have ever played the game. So that's my 0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:32.160 two cents about that. But in the championship match, Serena 0:13:32.320 --> 0:13:34.840 received three penalties, and there's a lot of controversy going 0:13:34.920 --> 0:13:37.400 on about these penalties, but I just want to talk 0:13:37.440 --> 0:13:39.680 to you about the first penalty that she received, because 0:13:39.920 --> 0:13:43.440 the first penalty that she received was for illegal coaching. 0:13:44.280 --> 0:13:48.840 And so you see, in tennis, it is actually against 0:13:48.960 --> 0:13:52.400 the rules to be coached during a tennis match. It 0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:57.200 is all up to you or to Serena. So if 0:13:57.200 --> 0:13:59.920 you're a tennis player, let's just imagine that you're a Serena. Okay, 0:14:00.120 --> 0:14:04.400 you have to encourage yourself, you have to correct yourself, 0:14:04.840 --> 0:14:09.080 you have to read your opponent all by yourself. And 0:14:09.160 --> 0:14:12.240 I think that this is the mental model that some 0:14:12.320 --> 0:14:16.440 of us just go through life with. Something happens to us, 0:14:16.520 --> 0:14:20.560 something you didn't expect. Maybe your child is getting in 0:14:20.600 --> 0:14:23.760 trouble at school, or maybe your marriage is beginning to struggle, 0:14:23.800 --> 0:14:26.760 or maybe you even lost your job, and often our 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:31.840 immediate response is nobody needs to know. I need to 0:14:31.920 --> 0:14:36.400 keep this a secret, and we fight alone, thinking that 0:14:36.840 --> 0:14:41.120 if I admit that I need help, then everybody's going 0:14:41.160 --> 0:14:43.880 to think less of me. What are people going to 0:14:43.920 --> 0:14:48.080 think of me? You were not meant to be Serena. 0:14:48.160 --> 0:14:51.160 I mean, thank good, there's only one Serena. Okay, you're 0:14:51.280 --> 0:14:53.760 not meant to be like you are meant to be 0:14:53.960 --> 0:14:58.040 like a fighter. And you know what fighters have. They 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:01.880 have a corner. They're out there and they're throwing their 0:15:02.120 --> 0:15:04.720 punches and their kicks, depending on what kind of fighter 0:15:04.760 --> 0:15:06.760 you are. I live in a house with a lot 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:09.960 of boys, so we watch MMA and the bloody you 0:15:10.000 --> 0:15:13.280 know stuff and all that. But when the bell rings, 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:17.640 the fighter goes to their corner, and in your corner, 0:15:17.920 --> 0:15:21.240 you have someone who's dressing your wounds, your cuts, and 0:15:21.280 --> 0:15:23.920 your blood and your bruises and everything, and you have 0:15:24.160 --> 0:15:27.080 someone who's giving you feedback and saying, oh, you know, oh, 0:15:27.160 --> 0:15:29.040 like in Was It Rocky where they were like he's 0:15:29.120 --> 0:15:31.480 drinking water? Was that the one they told him to 0:15:31.480 --> 0:15:33.000 punch him in the stomach? I don't know one of 0:15:33.000 --> 0:15:36.320 those fighter movies that that people we were watching. Am 0:15:36.320 --> 0:15:42.320 I losing them with the fighting illustration? Okay, you are 0:15:42.360 --> 0:15:44.640 not meant to do this alone. You were meant to 0:15:44.680 --> 0:15:48.320 have a corner that you can go back to and 0:15:48.360 --> 0:15:52.720 then go back out and fight your fight. Okay, let's 0:15:52.760 --> 0:15:55.120 get back to the to Mary Magdalen and her friends. 0:15:56.480 --> 0:16:00.760 I have spent the last several months one wondering about 0:16:00.840 --> 0:16:03.920 these women that were at the resurrection. And then I 0:16:04.000 --> 0:16:07.400 began to ask my husband some questions about them, and 0:16:07.440 --> 0:16:10.840 I began to study them, and he gave me this 0:16:11.040 --> 0:16:14.200 He has this seminary professor that he emails and asks 0:16:14.280 --> 0:16:16.320 questions too, and so he gave me the poor man. 0:16:16.680 --> 0:16:18.720 He gave me his email address. So I kept asking 0:16:18.800 --> 0:16:21.680 him all these questions about these women, because it can 0:16:21.760 --> 0:16:25.560 get very confusing. If you combine all of the accounts together, 0:16:26.240 --> 0:16:31.760 you find this girl gang made up of Mary, Magdalene, Joanna, 0:16:32.640 --> 0:16:37.880 Mary the mother of James, and silomeg And there's also 0:16:37.960 --> 0:16:39.840 maybe a few others that could have been in this 0:16:39.880 --> 0:16:42.720 group whose names weren't mentioned. But I just was wondering 0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:45.640 who were these women and why were they the ones 0:16:45.640 --> 0:16:48.480 at the tomb and why were they the ones that 0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:51.760 the angel came to first. Were they there together by 0:16:51.880 --> 0:16:56.400 chance or were they there together by choice? And I 0:16:56.480 --> 0:16:59.560 know that this is a scripture about the resurrection of Christ, 0:17:00.080 --> 0:17:04.480 but all four of the Gospels give us details about 0:17:04.680 --> 0:17:07.960 these women, and I think that there's something really some 0:17:08.119 --> 0:17:12.320 really important lessons that we can learn from them tonight. 0:17:12.880 --> 0:17:16.520 Who are you going through life with? Are you going 0:17:16.560 --> 0:17:19.320 through it with the wrong people? Are you going through 0:17:19.320 --> 0:17:23.240 it alone. Do you have the support system to get 0:17:23.280 --> 0:17:27.800 you through a tough time, because we're all either This 0:17:27.840 --> 0:17:29.920 is not anything I've ever made up. Of course, I've 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:31.399 heard a lot of preachers, and I've heard a lot 0:17:31.440 --> 0:17:33.760 of preachers say this. You know, you're you're either going 0:17:33.800 --> 0:17:36.160 into a storm, or you're in a storm, or you're 0:17:36.160 --> 0:17:39.639 coming out of one. Right, So, trouble is a part 0:17:39.920 --> 0:17:42.640 of life. And it doesn't matter if you are sixty 0:17:42.720 --> 0:17:46.160 years old and you've basically just given up on having friendship. 0:17:46.200 --> 0:17:48.879 It doesn't matter if you've been hurt by someone before 0:17:49.160 --> 0:17:52.720 and you're scared to put yourself out there again. God 0:17:52.840 --> 0:17:56.800 has given us many beautiful gifts in this life, and 0:17:56.880 --> 0:18:03.240 one of them is the gift of friendship. Yes, friendship 0:18:03.320 --> 0:18:06.880 is messy. I mean this women that we're talking about. Okay, 0:18:07.080 --> 0:18:11.040 it's messy, it's complicated. But if you're going at it 0:18:11.119 --> 0:18:14.360 alone and you feel like something is missing, that's because 0:18:14.720 --> 0:18:19.240 it is. God is our provider, and yes, he meets 0:18:19.600 --> 0:18:23.080 our every need. But have you ever stopped to think 0:18:23.119 --> 0:18:26.679 about all the ways that He has provided for you 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:34.960 through someone else, whether it was encouragement, resources, a meal, 0:18:35.480 --> 0:18:39.440 a listening ear, a wise word, somebody who says to you, 0:18:39.440 --> 0:18:41.240 you know, I had a friend that told me that 0:18:41.320 --> 0:18:43.919 I needed to stop breastfeeding one of my children and 0:18:43.960 --> 0:18:47.160 just go straight to the bottle. I needed to hear that. Okay, 0:18:47.520 --> 0:18:51.560 I wasn't making enough milk. Look at me, Okay, I 0:18:51.680 --> 0:18:54.400 just stat up here and talked about bras. Anyway, tonight, 0:18:56.720 --> 0:19:00.480 I want to challenge you to examine your support system, 0:19:00.520 --> 0:19:03.000 and so I'm going to give you a framework three 0:19:03.160 --> 0:19:07.400 characteristics of a solid support system, and the first one 0:19:07.480 --> 0:19:11.119 is that your support system must be based on the 0:19:11.240 --> 0:19:16.080 right thing. Look with me at Luke twenty three fifty five. 0:19:18.320 --> 0:19:19.840 Let's see. I want to read it too from my 0:19:19.960 --> 0:19:23.960 iPad because I highlighted exactly what I wanted to read. 0:19:24.400 --> 0:19:28.080 So Luke twenty three fifty five says, the women who 0:19:28.119 --> 0:19:32.400 had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw 0:19:32.480 --> 0:19:35.720 the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 0:19:36.640 --> 0:19:41.160 The resurrection takes place in Jerusalem, where Jesus was crucified, 0:19:41.840 --> 0:19:44.720 but these women were from if you read the verse, 0:19:44.800 --> 0:19:48.000 they had come from Galilee. When you read the Bible, 0:19:48.040 --> 0:19:50.639 sometimes it's really easy to skip over some of the 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:53.920 geography and stuff. But it brings so much light when 0:19:53.920 --> 0:19:58.080 you actually find out okay, wait, where are they Jerusalem? 0:19:58.119 --> 0:20:00.960 Where were they from Galilee? Well, what does that mean? 0:20:01.240 --> 0:20:05.000 I looked it up for you on Google. Okay, Galilee 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:10.919 is seventy miles from Jerusalem. And one little article that 0:20:11.000 --> 0:20:13.240 I read blog or something somebody wrote. I don't even 0:20:13.240 --> 0:20:14.359 know if this is true, but I read it on 0:20:14.400 --> 0:20:18.560 the internet. It said that a determined person could get 0:20:18.600 --> 0:20:23.000 from Galilee to Jerusalem in six days. Okay, So these women, 0:20:23.480 --> 0:20:28.240 they were serious followers of Jesus. But the thing about 0:20:28.280 --> 0:20:33.640 them was that they were brought together by Jesus. They 0:20:33.640 --> 0:20:37.960 were so into Jesus that they hopped on a week 0:20:38.359 --> 0:20:42.880 long hiking trip to follow him to Jerusalem and hear 0:20:42.960 --> 0:20:44.879 him teach. And these are women. And maybe that's why 0:20:44.920 --> 0:20:47.479 the disciples included them in this account, because they were 0:20:47.480 --> 0:20:50.440 impressed that these women, you know, went on this trip. 0:20:50.480 --> 0:20:52.680 I don't know, I'm just speculating there. When you look 0:20:52.720 --> 0:20:56.320 at your support system, you can look at every person 0:20:56.440 --> 0:20:59.639 in your life and you can identify one thing that 0:20:59.720 --> 0:21:03.200 brought you together. They could be your sorority sister. They 0:21:03.200 --> 0:21:05.359 could be somebody that you have kids at the same 0:21:05.400 --> 0:21:08.200 school with, or some when you take a yoga class 0:21:08.400 --> 0:21:11.000 together with all of these factors are great things. We 0:21:11.080 --> 0:21:14.240 all have some kind of connection. But if you want 0:21:14.240 --> 0:21:17.080 to have a support system that's going to help you 0:21:17.600 --> 0:21:20.960 on your faith journey, you're going to have to base 0:21:21.000 --> 0:21:24.720 it on the right thing. And I'm not necessarily talking 0:21:24.760 --> 0:21:27.240 about church, although church is a great place to start, 0:21:27.280 --> 0:21:29.720 because we all kind of have a common goal and 0:21:30.560 --> 0:21:34.159 we all kind of have a common idea of where 0:21:34.240 --> 0:21:38.159 we're going in life. But what I'm really trying to 0:21:38.200 --> 0:21:40.399 get you to think about is that you need to 0:21:40.520 --> 0:21:44.560 surround yourself with people who are like minded, who are 0:21:44.640 --> 0:21:49.000 growing in their relationship with God. Not perfect no perfect 0:21:49.040 --> 0:21:53.080 people allowed, but people who will help you find the 0:21:53.160 --> 0:21:57.440 answers that you need from the right sources. Right. Not 0:21:57.560 --> 0:21:59.960 only does your support system, though, need to be based 0:22:00.240 --> 0:22:03.800 on the right thing, it needs to be formed before 0:22:04.240 --> 0:22:09.240 your crisis. These ladies did not just meet up on 0:22:09.280 --> 0:22:13.800 this journey to Jerusalem. They have been together for a while. Okay, 0:22:13.840 --> 0:22:16.840 look back with me at Luke chapter eight. So we 0:22:16.840 --> 0:22:18.639 were in Luke twenty three, and now we're going to 0:22:18.680 --> 0:22:21.919 go back to Luke chapter eight and verse one. It 0:22:21.960 --> 0:22:25.359 says after this Jesus traveled about from one town and 0:22:25.440 --> 0:22:28.520 village to another, proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom 0:22:28.520 --> 0:22:32.240 of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some 0:22:32.400 --> 0:22:35.320 women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases, 0:22:35.640 --> 0:22:39.840 Mary called Magdalen, from whom seven demons had come out, Joanna, 0:22:39.920 --> 0:22:43.480 the wife of Choosah, the manager of Herod's household Susannah, 0:22:43.520 --> 0:22:47.680 and many others. These women were helping to support them, 0:22:47.760 --> 0:22:50.439 them meaning Jesus and the disciples. They were helping to 0:22:50.440 --> 0:22:54.720 support them out of their own means. When Luke first 0:22:54.760 --> 0:22:57.879 introduces us to these ladies, they're in Galilee, and he 0:22:58.040 --> 0:23:01.159 tells us that what brought them to together was that 0:23:01.280 --> 0:23:05.240 Jesus had healed them. That's what they had in common, 0:23:05.840 --> 0:23:07.960 and that's what we have in common in this room. 0:23:09.040 --> 0:23:13.159 They were women of means. They were joined together, and 0:23:13.200 --> 0:23:18.320 they were supporting Jesus's ministry, but they were doing life together. 0:23:19.119 --> 0:23:22.600 And at this point, when they're following Jesus and supporting 0:23:22.640 --> 0:23:26.560 his ministry, they didn't know how dark it was going 0:23:26.640 --> 0:23:28.840 to get. I mean, Jesus told them that he was 0:23:28.880 --> 0:23:31.520 going to be crucified, but nobody really understood what that meant. 0:23:31.520 --> 0:23:34.959 When he said that they were just following and supporting 0:23:35.160 --> 0:23:39.439 the one who had touched them. So when we catch 0:23:39.600 --> 0:23:44.040 up with them later in Luke twenty three, they're on 0:23:44.119 --> 0:23:49.320 a trip that has taken a terrible turn, a horrific turn, 0:23:49.480 --> 0:23:55.520 because Jesus is dead, their savior has just been crucified 0:23:55.920 --> 0:23:58.680 on the cross, which was a penalty that was reserved 0:23:58.880 --> 0:24:02.760 for the worst criminals. So here they are. Think about 0:24:02.800 --> 0:24:06.480 these women. They're in a foreign city, their heart broken, 0:24:07.040 --> 0:24:13.640 but where what are they? They're still together Luke twenty three, 0:24:13.720 --> 0:24:15.480 fifty five. We've already read it, but this ready one 0:24:15.480 --> 0:24:17.280 more time. The women who had come with Jesus from 0:24:17.320 --> 0:24:21.520 Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his 0:24:21.640 --> 0:24:24.280 body was laid in it. Then they went home and 0:24:24.359 --> 0:24:27.920 prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the sabbath 0:24:27.920 --> 0:24:30.440 in obedience to the commandment. On the first day of 0:24:30.480 --> 0:24:33.000 the week, very early in the morning, because women are 0:24:33.040 --> 0:24:35.639 not afraid, they get up early in the morning. Somebody's 0:24:35.640 --> 0:24:38.600 got to do it right. Very early in the morning, 0:24:38.640 --> 0:24:41.360 the women took the spices they had prepared, and they 0:24:41.400 --> 0:24:46.720 went to the tomb. They stayed together because they had 0:24:46.760 --> 0:24:50.480 been together. It was a natural thing of course they're 0:24:50.480 --> 0:24:52.680 going to stay together. But you know what, I think 0:24:53.040 --> 0:24:59.120 women instinctively band together in times of crisis. Where were 0:24:59.160 --> 0:25:05.199 the Disciples in all of this? Peter was here and 0:25:05.320 --> 0:25:08.840 John was there. The Disciples had been disbanded, but the 0:25:08.960 --> 0:25:17.760 women were together. That's right. Have you ever noticed that 0:25:17.840 --> 0:25:21.679 when you were together with people that you trust, that 0:25:21.760 --> 0:25:25.760 you can experience this collective courage and this collective faith. 0:25:25.920 --> 0:25:30.760 You can essentially like borrow faith from someone else. These 0:25:30.800 --> 0:25:33.800 women could have been should have been probably in fact, 0:25:33.840 --> 0:25:37.560