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Speaker 1: And we know that all things work together for good

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Speaker 1: to them that love God, to them who are called

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Speaker 1: according to His purpose Romans eight twenty eight. Lord, when

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Speaker 1: I am walking in obedience to your word, I trust

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Speaker 1: you are in control of my life. Whatever circumstances you

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Speaker 1: allow to challenge me will be turned for my good.

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Speaker 1: Your goal is to restore my understanding of who I

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Speaker 1: am as a child of God and mature me spiritually

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Speaker 1: and emotionally. All the situations I confront are designed to

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Speaker 1: help me grow and exercise your word and my faith.

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Speaker 1: At first, they may seem overwhelming, but as I press

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Speaker 1: into you in prayer and search your word for answers,

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Speaker 1: I gain the strength I need to rise above what

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Speaker 1: I am facing. Thank you for the new freedom on

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Speaker 1: the other side of my difficulties. Amen, Thank you for

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Speaker 1: listening to today's daily Prayer for more inspiration and an

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Speaker 1: incredible message from our feature Pastor. Stay tuned to pray

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Speaker 1: dot COM's Sunday service.

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Speaker 2: Welcome. Thanks for joining Pastor Rick Warren to hear Pastor

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Speaker 2: Rick's free daily Bible teaching program, download free sermon notes,

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Speaker 2: or sign up for his free daily devotional Visit pastorig

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Speaker 2: dot com now let's join Pastor Rick.

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Speaker 3: One of the most beloved verses in the Bible is

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Speaker 3: Romans eight twenty eight. So verse you've probably heard many, many,

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Speaker 3: maybe hundreds of times. It's one of the great promises

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Speaker 3: of the Bible, and it says this at the top

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Speaker 3: of your outline, we know that in all things God

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Speaker 3: works for the good of those who love him. And

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Speaker 3: usually we stop right there, we leave off the second

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Speaker 3: half of the verse, and we say, what a great promise.

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Speaker 3: We know that in all things, not just the good

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Speaker 3: things in life, but even in the bad things, the

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Speaker 3: ugly things, the terrible, the tragic things of life. In

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Speaker 3: all things, God works for the good of those who

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Speaker 3: love Him. Doesn't say they're good. There's a lot of

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Speaker 3: bad in life. There's a lot of bad things happen

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Speaker 3: in your life, not all things that happen to your good.

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Speaker 3: But God says all things God works them together for good.

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Speaker 3: He can bring good out of even bad for those

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Speaker 3: who love God. And usually we stop the verse right there.

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Speaker 3: But the rest of the verse says this, We know

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Speaker 3: that in all things God works for the good of

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Speaker 3: those who love Him, who have been called circle the

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Speaker 3: word called, who have been called according to his purpose

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Speaker 3: and circle the word purpose, circle called and circle purpose,

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Speaker 3: and draw a line between them because calling and purpose

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Speaker 3: go together. And that's what we're going to look at

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Speaker 3: for the next six weeks. Now, if I were to

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Speaker 3: say to you, what do you think of first when

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Speaker 3: I say the word call, make a call, get a call,

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Speaker 3: be called, you think of a telephone and maybe they

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Speaker 3: calling out for pizza, you know, something like that. When

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Speaker 3: I have to be honest with you, a little true confession,

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Speaker 3: as your pastor, I don't like telephones. I never have

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Speaker 3: because telephones to me represent two things. Number One, they

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Speaker 3: represent an interruption. And maybe they don't seem like an

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Speaker 3: interruption to you, but if you were a pastor, you

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Speaker 3: would be on call twenty four hours a day, like

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Speaker 3: doctors are. I get calls twenty four hours a day,

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Speaker 3: often in the middle of the night, and so when

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Speaker 3: the phone rings, it usually means it rings when I'm

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Speaker 3: busy or I'm relaxing, or I'm studying, or I'm sleeping,

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Speaker 3: or I'm talking with somebody else or whatever. But it

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Speaker 3: represents an interruption. The second thing reason I don't like

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Speaker 3: it is because in my case, it often or normally

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Speaker 3: means bad news. Somebody's calling and tell me about somebody's

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Speaker 3: just died, somebody's just lost a loved one, somebody's gone

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Speaker 3: been rushed to the hospital, somebody's just found out a

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Speaker 3: cancer test. And as a pastor, of course, I deal

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Speaker 3: with people in pain literally every day of my life.

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Speaker 3: And so when the phone rings, I'm not thinking I

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Speaker 3: wonder if I just won the lottery. First place, I

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Speaker 3: don't use the lottery, which you shouldn't either. By the way,

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Speaker 3: if you want to do the lottery, here's what you do.

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Speaker 3: Come outside and just give me the money, Okay, because

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Speaker 3: you're not going to get anything out of it. I

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Speaker 3: might as well put it to use and use it

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Speaker 3: for the peace plan. Uh. But you know, let's say

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Speaker 3: the phone rang one day and you thought this is

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Speaker 3: an interruption or it's going to to be bad news.

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Speaker 3: But somebody who's calling to tell you had just inherited

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Speaker 3: fifty million dollars, You would not want to miss that call.

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Speaker 3: What if God called you? Let me give you a

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Speaker 3: little tip. When God calls, you do not use call waiting.

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Speaker 3: When God calls, you do not put it on the

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Speaker 3: answer voicemail. When God calls, you do not let it

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Speaker 3: ring and ring and ring and ring. Pick it up

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Speaker 3: on the first call. When God calls you. Now, the

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Speaker 3: Bible says you have already been called. You have been

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Speaker 3: called according to His purpose. A couple verses down from

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Speaker 3: that verse Romans eight thirty, it says this, look here

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Speaker 3: on the screen. Those that God predestined he also called,

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Speaker 3: and those he called he also justified, and those he

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Speaker 3: justified he also glorified. Now that's a lot of big

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Speaker 3: theological words, and we're going to cover some of those

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Speaker 3: weeks ahead. But the word I wants to focus on

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Speaker 3: as we begin live your calling is that word called.

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Speaker 3: The Bible says you have been called by God. What

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Speaker 3: does that mean? The word in the Greek is the

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Speaker 3: word kalao ka l eo calaoh. It's almost like calleaioh call,

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Speaker 3: And the word calao means God is calling you. And

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Speaker 3: it's used about one hundred times in the New Testament,

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Speaker 3: over one hundred times, and most of the time it's

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Speaker 3: talking about your assignment in life, your purpose in life,

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Speaker 3: your mission in life, the reason God created you. It

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Speaker 3: is called your calling. Now in purpose driven Life forty

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Speaker 3: Days of Purpose, we looked at the word purpose, but Actually,

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Speaker 3: the word calling, which refers to the same thing, is

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Speaker 3: used ten times more than the word purpose in the Bible,

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Speaker 3: ten times more to refer to your assignment, your purpose,

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Speaker 3: the reason you exist, why God made you? What on

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Speaker 3: earth am I here for? And in the next six

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Speaker 3: weeks we're going to look at why am I alive?

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Speaker 3: And what am I supposed to do with my life?

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Speaker 3: And if forty days of purpose was kindergarten, now we're

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Speaker 3: moving a step up and we're going into the advanced

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Speaker 3: class on God's calling on your life. Now, the Greek

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Speaker 3: word is the word caleao for calling. The Latin word

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Speaker 3: is another word you've heard of for calling, and it

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Speaker 3: is the word vocation. You've heard of that a vocation.

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Speaker 3: Vocation comes from the Latin word vos vosera. It means

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Speaker 3: to speak, It means to call. We get the word voice,

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Speaker 3: we get the word vocal, vocalized comes from the word vocation.

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Speaker 3: It is your calling. So your vocation and your calling

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Speaker 3: are the same thing. Now here's the problem. Today. The

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Speaker 3: word vocation has been so reduced and so minimized to

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Speaker 3: just mean job, my career. Your calling is not your career.

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Speaker 3: I'm going to explain that in detail in the weeks ahead.

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Speaker 3: But your calling is not your career. Your calling is

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Speaker 3: far far, far far far far far more significant, far larger,

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Speaker 3: far more all encompassing than your career. So your vocation

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Speaker 3: is misused when you say my vocation is my job. No,

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Speaker 3: you have a job. But your vocation is your calling

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Speaker 3: in life. And we are going to study that. The Bible,

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Speaker 3: this book is the story of God calling people, and

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Speaker 3: the whole Bible is about God calling Noah, God calling Abraham,

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Speaker 3: and Abraham responding, God calling Moses for a purpose in life,

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Speaker 3: and Moses responding. God calling Nehemiah, who was a builder,

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Speaker 3: God calling Isaiah and Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Daniel and

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Speaker 3: Isiah and Joel, and God calling David, and God calling Solomon.

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Speaker 3: In the New Testament, God calling Peter and Paul and Mary.

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Speaker 3: And if you laughed at that, you are incredibly old. Okay,

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Speaker 3: some twenty something Peter, Paul, Mary. I don't get it.

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Speaker 3: I don't get it. Okay, God calling Paul, and God

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Speaker 3: has a call on every person's life. What we're going

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Speaker 3: to do together is look at five specific dimensions, like

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Speaker 3: the five facets of a diamond, of God's call for

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Speaker 3: your life, why you are alive, and what you're supposed

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Speaker 3: to be doing with the rest of your life. How

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Speaker 3: do you specifically fulfill that calling now? As your pastor,

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Speaker 3: my prayer for you in the next six weeks is

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Speaker 3: going to be this verse there on your outline, Ephesians

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Speaker 3: chapter one. My prayer is that light will flood your hearts.

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Speaker 3: You know when we sing that song open the Eyes

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Speaker 3: of my Heart, Lord, you know that song that's from

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Speaker 3: this verse, that's from this verse. My prayer is that

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Speaker 3: light will flood your hearts and that you will understand

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Speaker 3: the hope, the hope that was given to you when

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Speaker 3: God called you. Now understand the calling on your life.

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Speaker 3: When you understand you, when you understand your call in life,

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Speaker 3: is going to give you incredible hope. And he says,

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Speaker 3: I want you to understand that. He says, when you do,

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Speaker 3: when you understand God's calling on your life, then you

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Speaker 3: will discover the glorious blessings that will be yours together

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Speaker 3: with all of God's people. He said, when you know

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Speaker 3: your calling, you understand, then you discover the incredible blessings

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Speaker 3: that you've been missing out on. The reason I'm so

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Speaker 3: excited about the next six weeks together is I'm going

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Speaker 3: to take you to a whole another level to understand

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Speaker 3: the glorious blessings that God wants to do in your life. Now,

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Speaker 3: what we're gonna do today is I'm just going to

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Speaker 3: introduce this subject and give you an overview of eight

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Speaker 3: things you need to know. I'm going to summarize one

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Speaker 3: hundred different verses on calling in the Bible and give

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Speaker 3: you the eight things you need to know about your

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Speaker 3: calling in life and why we're going to do this together.

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Speaker 3: So let's look at eight things I need to know

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Speaker 3: about my calling in life, Why God put me here

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Speaker 3: on earth? Write these down. Number one. The first thing

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Speaker 3: we learn from God's word is this, my calling is

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Speaker 3: a gift from God. My calling is a gift from God.

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Speaker 3: I don't earn it. I don't deserve it. I don't

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Speaker 3: work for it. I don't bargain for it. I don't

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Speaker 3: barter for it. It's just a flat out gift of

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Speaker 3: God's grace. It is His present to me. When He

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Speaker 3: created me, he called me, and it's all by grace.

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Speaker 3: Galatians Chapter one says this God, by his grace through Christ,

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Speaker 3: has called you to become His people now circle the

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Speaker 3: phrase by his grace. What is grace. Grace is undeserved kindness.

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Speaker 3: Undeserved kindness. It's when God gives you what you need now,

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Speaker 3: what you deserve. If we all got what we deserved,

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Speaker 3: we wouldn't be here. The fact is, God says, I

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Speaker 3: give you what you need, not what you deserve. Grace

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Speaker 3: is the fact that God knows every dumb mistake you're

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Speaker 3: going to make in life, and he still chose to

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Speaker 3: create you. He knew all the times you were going

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Speaker 3: to disobey him, and he still chose to create you.

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Speaker 3: That is the grace of God. The fact is grace

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Speaker 3: is that God knows all the things I've done. And

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Speaker 3: even when I was thumbing my nose to him and

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Speaker 3: rejecting him, God was saying, I love you, I love you,

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Speaker 3: I love you. Now is actually a part of your salvation.

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Speaker 3: The calling to Christ is also the calling to your purpose.

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Speaker 3: Two Timothy one nine says He has saved us and

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Speaker 3: called us notice they go together. Saved us and called

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Speaker 3: us to a holy life, not because of anything we've done,

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Speaker 3: but because of his own purpose and grace, His purpose

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Speaker 3: and his grace. So God gives gives me a calling

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Speaker 3: in life simply because he wants to give me a

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Speaker 3: calling life. I don't deserve it, He just gives it

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Speaker 3: to me. Now, circle the word purpose on that verse,

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Speaker 3: because that leads us to the second thing we learned,

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Speaker 3: and is this. I am called for God's purpose, not mine,

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Speaker 3: but God's. I'm not called for God's God's I'm not

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Speaker 3: called for my plan in life. I'm called for God's plan.

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Speaker 3: God did not make you for you. You think God created

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Speaker 3: you just to live a selfish little life of self

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Speaker 3: saying it's all about me, me, me, me, me. Are

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Speaker 3: you kidding me? No, God didn't make you for you.

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Speaker 3: You were made by God and you were made for God.

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Speaker 3: And until you understand that, life's never gonna make sense,

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Speaker 3: and you're gonna get bored, and you're gonna get frustrated,

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Speaker 3: you're gonna have all kinds of difficulty because you don't

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Speaker 3: understand you were made for God. I am called for

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Speaker 3: God's purpose. God's calling is about his plan for my life,

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Speaker 3: not my plan. His dream for my life, not my dream.

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Speaker 3: His purpose for my life, not my purpose, or my parents' purpose,

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Speaker 3: or my boyfriend's purpose, or my husband or wife's purpose

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Speaker 3: is for God's purpose for my life. Now, A good

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Speaker 3: example of this is the story of Jacob and Esau

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Speaker 3: in the Bible. They were twins. There was a guy

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Speaker 3: in the Bible named Abraham and he had a son

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Speaker 3: named Isaac, and Isaac had two sons who were twins,

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Speaker 3: Jacob and Esau. Now, in those days, the firstborn child,

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Speaker 3: particularly the firstborn son, got all of the credit, got

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Speaker 3: all of the glory, got all of the love. The

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Speaker 3: firstborn son was the one who he would inherit the

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Speaker 3: family inheritance. And it's like, you're special. Number one, you're great,

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Speaker 3: and number two, Oh, we're glad you're here too. It

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Speaker 3: was kind of like an aside. And God didn't like that.

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Speaker 3: And in the case of Esau and Jacob, Esau was

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Speaker 3: the firstborn son. And God said, you know what, I

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Speaker 3: have a calling for Esau's life, and I have a

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Speaker 3: calling for Jacob's life. But just because I want to

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Speaker 3: do this, we're going to reverse it. And I'm choosing

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Speaker 3: Jacob to get the blessing of the firstborn son, even

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Speaker 3: though he was born second. And he told this to

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Speaker 3: their mother, Rebecca before she even delivered. In Romans chapter nine,

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Speaker 3: it says this before the two boys were born. God

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Speaker 3: told Rebecca the older will serve the younger. Now, that's

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Speaker 3: exact opposite of culture. And this was before the boys

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Speaker 3: had done anything. In other words, they didn't deserve it.

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Speaker 3: They hadn't merit it anything good or bad. God said

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Speaker 3: this so that the one chosen would be chosen because

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Speaker 3: of God's own plan, it's his purpose. He was chosen

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Speaker 3: because he was the one God wanted to call, not

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Speaker 3: because of anything he did. I'm fortunate that I learned

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Speaker 3: my call in life at a pretty young age. I

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Speaker 3: hadn't done anything, I hadn't deserved anything. I certainly wasn't

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Speaker 3: worthy of any kind of call. But I learned what

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Speaker 3: I'm going to be teaching you in the next six weeks.

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Speaker 3: When I was sixteen years old, I was actually working

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Speaker 3: at a camp in northern California, up in the mountains

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Speaker 3: and the redwoods. And one night I went back to

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Speaker 3: my cabin and I got down on my knees and

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Speaker 3: I said, God, I don't understand it all, and if

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Speaker 3: you're there, I just I want to trust you, and

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Speaker 3: so God, I need to know what you want to

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Speaker 3: do with my life. And I pray a prayer that

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Speaker 3: night and said God, I'm signing my name on the chick.

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Speaker 3: I don't even know what the amount is, but I'm

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Speaker 3: saying to you, I'm yours, and I'm going to serve

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Speaker 3: you the rest of your life, and I'm going to

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Speaker 3: fulfill the calling you have for me. And I prayed

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Speaker 3: that prayer and as soon as I finished praying that period,

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Speaker 3: do you want to know what's happened? Nothing? No angels

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Speaker 3: came down and flapped their wings. There's no blinding light,

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Speaker 3: no thunder, no lightning. My hair didn't turn white like

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Speaker 3: Charleston Heston. You know, It's like nothing happened. But that

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Speaker 3: was the turning point in my life when I recognized

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Speaker 3: God's rite and call on my life. And from that

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Speaker 3: moment on, I became by vocational, which means I would

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Speaker 3: have a job in which I would put food on

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Speaker 3: the table, and I would have a job in which

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Speaker 3: I would pay all my bills, but I would also

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Speaker 3: have a calling, and my career and my calling might

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Speaker 3: match sometimes but might not match other times, because my

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Speaker 3: calling was from God and the career was just how

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Speaker 3: I was making a living. At that point, Career makes

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Speaker 3: a living, calling makes a life. And so from that

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Speaker 3: point on. I was by vocational the rest of my life,

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Speaker 3: and I did a number of different jobs even though

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Speaker 3: I had this call on my life. At one point,

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Speaker 3: I was a dishwasher. At one point, I was a cook.

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Speaker 3: At one point, I was a lifeguard for three years.

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Speaker 3: At one point I worked in a butcher shop. That

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Speaker 3: was a whole lot of fun. At one point, I

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Speaker 3: picked fruit, I picked grapes, and I picked pears. At

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Speaker 3: one point, I was an editor of a magazine. Another point,

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Speaker 3: I taught college. I actually taught college. One point I

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Speaker 3: was a youth pastor. And then for the last thirty

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Speaker 3: years I've been a pastor. My job has changed many, many,

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Speaker 3: many times, but my calling has never changed. Regardless of

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Speaker 3: what my job was, you have a calling that is

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Speaker 3: unique to your life. The Bible says in Ephesians two ten,

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Speaker 3: for we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to

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Speaker 3: do good works. In other words, we're made for a

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Speaker 3: purpose to do good works, which God prepared in advance

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Speaker 3: for us to do. Now this verse is filled with

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Speaker 3: some important truth, so let's look at it. Versus says

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Speaker 3: we're God's workmanship. Circle that word the word there in

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Speaker 3: the Bible, and the Greek is the word poem. It's

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Speaker 3: the word we get poem from. You are God's poem.

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Speaker 3: You are God's work of art. You are God's craftsmanship, workmanship.

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Speaker 3: Many translations of the Bible translate this. You are God's masterpiece.

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Speaker 3: He said, well, I don't think I'm much of a masterpiece. Well,

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Speaker 3: then you don't realize how much value God has put

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Speaker 3: in your life. He said, well, I'm not a master

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Speaker 3: I'm pretty beat up piece of junk. You're not junk.

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Speaker 3: Jesus didn't die for junk. If you look at Jesus

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Speaker 3: on the cross, arms outstretched and his nail pierced hands,

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Speaker 3: and he's saying, this is how valuable you are. This

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Speaker 3: is how valuable I'm You're valuable enough to die for.

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Speaker 3: You're not junk because God doesn't create junk. Jesus doesn't

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Speaker 3: die for junk, and the Holy Spirit doesn't live in junk.

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Speaker 3: You are a masterpiece. You're God's masterpiece. But it only

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Speaker 3: shows when you fulfill your calling. If you try to

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Speaker 3: be what somebody else wants you to be, you're gonna

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Speaker 3: miss it, and your true beauty, your true greatness, won't

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Speaker 3: come out. You are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus

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Speaker 3: to do good works. Those good works are your contribution

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Speaker 3: to the world. You were not put on this planet

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Speaker 3: just to breathe and take up space and die. You

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Speaker 3: weren't put here to simply be a consumer. Oh I

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Speaker 3: know there's a new kind of makeup. I think I'll

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Speaker 3: get that. Oh, there's a new clothing. All get that. No,

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Speaker 3: put here to be a contributor, to make a contribution

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Speaker 3: with your life. And the Bible calls your life contribution,

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Speaker 3: your good works. It's part of your calling. And here's

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Speaker 3: the cool thing. We all have different good works. Your contribution,

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Speaker 3: your good works are going to be different than my contribution.

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Speaker 3: My good works and my contribution good works are going

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Speaker 3: to be different than the person sitting next to you.

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Speaker 3: And God makes us all different, gives us all different

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Speaker 3: callings so that everything in the world gets done. It's

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Speaker 3: all a part of it, your God's workmanship. Created to

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Speaker 3: make a contribution, which God prepared in advance. Circle That

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Speaker 3: prepared in advance for us to do. That means a

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Speaker 3: long time before you thought of it, God had thought

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Speaker 3: of your calling. In fact, here's the third principle. Number three.

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Speaker 3: God chose my calling before I was born. You need

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Speaker 3: to know that as we get ready to go in

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Speaker 3: to live your calling the next six weeks. My calling

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Speaker 3: is a gift from God. I'm called for God's purpose,

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Speaker 3: not mine, and my calling was before I was born.

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Speaker 3: God chose it. Let me show you some verses on this.

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Speaker 3: Galatians chapter one, verse fifteen. Paul says, it pleased God

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Speaker 3: in his kindness to choose me and call me even

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Speaker 3: before I was born. What undeserved mercy? Here's another example,

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Speaker 3: Jeremiah and Jeremiah chapter one, verse five. Before I shaped

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Speaker 3: you in the womb, I knew all about you before

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Speaker 3: you saw the light of day. I had holy plans

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Speaker 3: for you. God called you before you were even born,

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Speaker 3: and the Bible says God uniquely shaped you. You are

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Speaker 3: a custom made baby. Your prescription baby said, well, I

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Speaker 3: got all kinds of flaws. Isaiah forty four, verse two.

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Speaker 3: I am your creator. You were in my care even

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Speaker 3: before you were born. Now, this is going to be

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Speaker 3: our memory verse this week, so I want you to

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Speaker 3: look at it in detail. It says three things. First,

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Speaker 3: it says I am your creator. What does that mean?

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Speaker 3: It means you're not an accident. You were uniquely chosen

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Speaker 3: created and called by God. He said, why is it

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Speaker 3: important for me to not think I'm an accident? Because

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Speaker 3: if you think you're an accident, you're going to live

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Speaker 3: like it, and you're going to accidentally just kind of

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Speaker 3: go through life without any purpose, without any direction. You're

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Speaker 3: not an accident. I am your creator. You're not an accident.

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Speaker 3: You were in my care. That means you're deeply loved.

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Speaker 3: You were in God's care when you were in the womb,

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Speaker 3: he says, even while you were growing inside your mother.

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Speaker 3: You realize this is why abortion is wrong, because that's

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Speaker 3: not a fetus in that mother. That's a baby that

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Speaker 3: God has already numbered that baby's days. Chose that baby

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Speaker 3: to be born. Accidental parents, yes, accidental babies. No. God

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Speaker 3: chose to create and call you before you're even born.

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Speaker 3: So you weren't a fetus before you were born. You

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Speaker 3: were a baby already chosen, already called, and already created

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Speaker 3: by God for a purpose and a calling. And then

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Speaker 3: it says you were in my care before I was

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Speaker 3: even born. God planns you before you were born. Now,

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Speaker 3: I want you to memorize this verse because it will

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Speaker 3: encourage you on days you feel discouraged. When you feel

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Speaker 3: like your life's an accident. It's not. When you feel

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Speaker 3: like nobody cares. God does. When you feel like your

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Speaker 3: life doesn't have a purpose, God planns you before you

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Speaker 3: were born. So we're going to learn this now. The

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Speaker 3: important part of a memory verse, remember, is always learning

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Speaker 3: the address, that is, where it is in the Bible.

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Speaker 3: That's the hardest part to remember. The numbers, the chapter,

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Speaker 3: and the verse Isaiah forty four to two. So the

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Speaker 3: way you learn a Bible verse is you say it aloud.

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Speaker 3: You learn through the ear, not through the You can

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Speaker 3: read something over and over and over and you still

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Speaker 3: won't memorize it. You only learn it by saying it.

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Speaker 3: And when you say it, you learn through the ear.

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Speaker 3: You memorize with the ear. So each week, for six weeks,

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Speaker 3: we're gonna memorize. Now, that's pretty short verse. It's like

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Speaker 3: ten words. You can get this. So let's say it

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Speaker 3: aloud together. We'll say the verse reference at the beginning

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Speaker 3: and at the end. Okay, read it with me, Isaiah

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Speaker 3: forty four to two. I am your creator. You were

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Speaker 3: in my care even before you were born. And where's

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Speaker 3: that verse? Isaiah forty four two. Okay, let's say it again.

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Speaker 3: By the way, where's this verse? Sorry? Ready, Isaiah forty

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Speaker 3: four to two. I am your creator. You were in

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Speaker 3: my care even before you were born, Isaiah forty four

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Speaker 3: to two. Now you remember in the past when you

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Speaker 3: used to do this thing where I'd say get it

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Speaker 3: and you'd say got it, and I would say good.

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Speaker 3: In this series, we're gonna add a fourth phrase because

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Speaker 3: I don't want you to just get it. I want

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Speaker 3: you to pass it on. So I'll say get it,

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Speaker 3: and you'll say got it, and I'll say good. And

425
00:26:11,760 --> 00:26:16,240
Speaker 3: then i'll say then you'll say give it away, okay,

426
00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:18,560
Speaker 3: and give it away. So I'll say i'll say get it,

427
00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:20,600
Speaker 3: you'll say got it. I'll say good, you'll say give

428
00:26:20,640 --> 00:26:26,400
Speaker 3: it away. Are you ready? Get it? Good? Very good? Class.

429
00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:29,480
Speaker 3: By the way, do you know what Isaiah forty four

430
00:26:29,520 --> 00:26:34,000
Speaker 3: to two is. Let's say it. I am your creator.

431
00:26:34,840 --> 00:26:39,399
Speaker 3: You were in my care even before you were born.

432
00:26:39,880 --> 00:26:43,280
Speaker 3: Isaiah forty four to two. Turn the next person next

433
00:26:43,280 --> 00:26:48,480
Speaker 3: to you, say you're a genius. All right, all right, congratulations,

434
00:26:50,359 --> 00:26:53,560
Speaker 3: all right, some of you. That's the first Bible verse

435
00:26:53,600 --> 00:26:56,400
Speaker 3: you've ever memorized. Now, by the end of this you're

436
00:26:56,400 --> 00:26:59,480
Speaker 3: gonna have six major verses of the Bible in your

437
00:26:59,520 --> 00:27:02,600
Speaker 3: mind to remember. Now, there's a fourth thing that the

438
00:27:02,600 --> 00:27:04,800
Speaker 3: Bible teaches us about your calling, and it is this.

439
00:27:04,800 --> 00:27:08,919
Speaker 3: This is a big one. My sins and my mistakes

440
00:27:09,720 --> 00:27:14,359
Speaker 3: don't change my call. Oh, I'm so glad for this one.

441
00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:19,640
Speaker 3: My sins and my mistakes don't change my call, God's

442
00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:23,320
Speaker 3: call for my life. It doesn't matter how messed up

443
00:27:23,400 --> 00:27:26,919
Speaker 3: your life has been, whether you messed it up or

444
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:29,800
Speaker 3: somebody messed it up for you. No matter how screwy

445
00:27:29,880 --> 00:27:33,720
Speaker 3: it got, how difficult it became, no matter how many

446
00:27:33,920 --> 00:27:38,000
Speaker 3: dumb decisions you've made in the past, it hasn't changed

447
00:27:38,040 --> 00:27:41,240
Speaker 3: God's call on your life at all. The call that

448
00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:44,080
Speaker 3: God gave you before you were born, the call that

449
00:27:44,119 --> 00:27:46,600
Speaker 3: God gave you when you were saved and reaffirmed when

450
00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:51,879
Speaker 3: you're saved, is a calling that God says it's there forever.

451
00:27:53,119 --> 00:27:57,720
Speaker 3: It's a permanent calling, and God doesn't change it now.

452
00:27:57,720 --> 00:28:00,800
Speaker 3: A good example this, of course, was Paul. I mean

453
00:28:00,840 --> 00:28:03,399
Speaker 3: he was Paul was a pretty rude dude in a

454
00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:08,880
Speaker 3: crude mood before before he before he became an apostle,

455
00:28:09,359 --> 00:28:12,159
Speaker 3: God called him to be an apostle and In One

456
00:28:12,320 --> 00:28:18,720
Speaker 3: Timothy Chapter one, Paul says this, by calling me into

457
00:28:18,720 --> 00:28:24,640
Speaker 3: his service, Jesus has judged me trustworthy, even though I

458
00:28:24,760 --> 00:28:32,600
Speaker 3: used to be a blasphemer and a persecutor and contemptuous. Mercy, however,

459
00:28:32,720 --> 00:28:36,719
Speaker 3: was shown me because while I lacked faith, I acted

460
00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:40,560
Speaker 3: in ignorance. I love that phrase, the honesty there. While

461
00:28:40,600 --> 00:28:43,640
Speaker 3: I lacked faith, I acted in ignorance. You know what

462
00:28:43,680 --> 00:28:46,120
Speaker 3: I'm saying, son, I did a lot of dumb stuff

463
00:28:46,160 --> 00:28:49,640
Speaker 3: growing up. How many of you would admit I did

464
00:28:49,680 --> 00:28:51,920
Speaker 3: a lot of dumb stuff growing up? Okay, I did

465
00:28:51,920 --> 00:28:57,560
Speaker 3: a lot of Okay, that's apostle training. Okay, congratulations. Okay.

466
00:28:57,880 --> 00:29:00,920
Speaker 3: Do you know what Paul was. He was going people's homes,

467
00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:03,600
Speaker 3: dragging him out in the street, throwing him into jail,

468
00:29:03,760 --> 00:29:08,520
Speaker 3: killing people. He was a murderer, God said Paul. That

469
00:29:08,520 --> 00:29:10,280
Speaker 3: didn't change the call that I had for you from

470
00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:13,240
Speaker 3: the day you were born. I had a plan for you,

471
00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:17,479
Speaker 3: and even the bad stuff fits into the plan. The

472
00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:20,440
Speaker 3: fact that I love most about God is that he

473
00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:23,680
Speaker 3: never wastes anything, and he fits it all into his plan.

474
00:29:24,640 --> 00:29:29,520
Speaker 3: Even my sin, even the stupid decisions that I've made

475
00:29:29,800 --> 00:29:32,480
Speaker 3: that I will regret. The rest of my life. God says,

476
00:29:32,520 --> 00:29:34,160
Speaker 3: you know what, I'm going to even put that in

477
00:29:34,200 --> 00:29:37,240
Speaker 3: the plan. We'll make it work. I can bring all

478
00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:41,520
Speaker 3: things can work together for good for those who love God,

479
00:29:41,600 --> 00:29:44,800
Speaker 3: who are called according to His purpose. I can fit

480
00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:46,960
Speaker 3: that in there too. And not only can God say,

481
00:29:47,480 --> 00:29:50,920
Speaker 3: your sins and your mistakes don't change your calling. The

482
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:54,800
Speaker 3: sins of other people against you don't change your calling.

483
00:29:57,040 --> 00:29:59,880
Speaker 3: Some of you may feel a little bruised, a little

484
00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:04,200
Speaker 3: bit battered, a little beat up by the world. Maybe

485
00:30:04,200 --> 00:30:07,400
Speaker 3: you had somebody who was unfaithful to you, You had

486
00:30:07,480 --> 00:30:09,640
Speaker 3: somebody walk out of your life. You had somebody be

487
00:30:10,200 --> 00:30:14,840
Speaker 3: but betray you, reject you. Some of you have been molested,

488
00:30:16,360 --> 00:30:20,960
Speaker 3: some of you have been raped. I'm sorry, I am,

489
00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:24,160
Speaker 3: but you know what, that did not change one bit

490
00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:27,120
Speaker 3: of your value. And that did not change one bit

491
00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:32,080
Speaker 3: of God's call on your life. It has not changed.

492
00:30:33,200 --> 00:30:38,880
Speaker 3: You are still God's workmanship, God's masterpiece created in Christ

493
00:30:38,960 --> 00:30:41,800
Speaker 3: Jesus to do good works. And you know what, God says,

494
00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:44,360
Speaker 3: You know what, I can even take the ugly stuff,

495
00:30:45,040 --> 00:30:46,920
Speaker 3: and I'll take the stinger out of it, and you

496
00:30:46,960 --> 00:30:49,120
Speaker 3: know what, I'll even bring good out of it in

497
00:30:49,160 --> 00:30:54,520
Speaker 3: your life. If you'll let me. The Bible says, my

498
00:30:54,680 --> 00:30:57,400
Speaker 3: sins and mistakes don't change God's call. I want you

499
00:30:57,520 --> 00:31:00,280
Speaker 3: to write this down on your outline. God has no

500
00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:05,080
Speaker 3: Plan B for me. A lot of people think, you

501
00:31:05,160 --> 00:31:07,480
Speaker 3: know what, I really screwed up on that one. Therefore

502
00:31:07,600 --> 00:31:09,280
Speaker 3: I got to live with Plan B the rest of

503
00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:12,320
Speaker 3: my life. No, you don't, It's part of Plan A.

504
00:31:12,520 --> 00:31:16,880
Speaker 3: God has no Plan B for me. When I think

505
00:31:16,880 --> 00:31:19,840
Speaker 3: about this, I think about Chuck Coulson. Chuck Colson was

506
00:31:20,120 --> 00:31:21,840
Speaker 3: one of the most powerful men in the world in

507
00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:25,600
Speaker 3: his day. He was assistant to the President of the

508
00:31:25,680 --> 00:31:29,440
Speaker 3: United States of America, and then he got involved in

509
00:31:29,440 --> 00:31:32,440
Speaker 3: a scandal, Watergate, and he went to prison, and in

510
00:31:32,480 --> 00:31:36,080
Speaker 3: prison he found Christ, became a believer, saw the need

511
00:31:36,120 --> 00:31:39,520
Speaker 3: for people in prisons to know the Lord. Started prison Fellowship,

512
00:31:39,560 --> 00:31:42,040
Speaker 3: Whi's now in like one hundred and fifty sixty countries

513
00:31:42,680 --> 00:31:47,120
Speaker 3: has blessed millions of people. But when God created Chuck Colson,

514
00:31:47,320 --> 00:31:50,160
Speaker 3: he knew he would be going from the presidency to

515
00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:54,240
Speaker 3: prison and back out all in one life. And he said,

516
00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:56,959
Speaker 3: I'm going to fit it into the plan. I'm going

517
00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:00,240
Speaker 3: to fit it into the plan. Number five. The thing

518
00:32:00,240 --> 00:32:03,000
Speaker 3: we learned about God's calling is my calling is permanent.

519
00:32:03,760 --> 00:32:06,160
Speaker 3: This is a further extension of what I just said.

520
00:32:06,840 --> 00:32:09,400
Speaker 3: What I mean permanent means nobody can take it from you.

521
00:32:09,880 --> 00:32:12,120
Speaker 3: When you were growing up, your parents tried to probably

522
00:32:12,120 --> 00:32:13,840
Speaker 3: make you something that you didn't really want to be,

523
00:32:15,280 --> 00:32:17,360
Speaker 3: or your girlfriend or your boyfriend tried to make you

524
00:32:17,400 --> 00:32:20,440
Speaker 3: something you didn't want to be, or your boss or

525
00:32:20,480 --> 00:32:23,040
Speaker 3: somebody in your life always trying to pressure you and

526
00:32:23,120 --> 00:32:28,680
Speaker 3: conform you to take away your true calling. Your calling

527
00:32:28,760 --> 00:32:32,080
Speaker 3: cannot be taken from you. Satan can't take your calling

528
00:32:32,120 --> 00:32:35,600
Speaker 3: away from you. You can't take your calling away from you.

529
00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:38,440
Speaker 3: Other people can't take your calling away from you, and

530
00:32:38,480 --> 00:32:41,960
Speaker 3: God won't because he says I've given it to you permanently.

531
00:32:42,360 --> 00:32:46,400
Speaker 3: The Bible says in Romans eleven, verse twenty nine, God's

532
00:32:46,440 --> 00:32:51,520
Speaker 3: gifts and his callings are read it with me irrevocable

533
00:32:51,600 --> 00:32:55,800
Speaker 3: circle that they cannot be taken away. They are permanent.

534
00:32:56,440 --> 00:32:59,960
Speaker 3: The calling on your life has never ever been a change,

535
00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:02,440
Speaker 3: no matter what you've done, no matter what you've messed up.

536
00:33:02,600 --> 00:33:05,560
Speaker 3: The expression may change, the timing, the when, the where

537
00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:07,960
Speaker 3: of the how, but the calling will not change. You

538
00:33:08,040 --> 00:33:11,120
Speaker 3: still have the same gifts God gave you from the beginning. Now,

539
00:33:11,120 --> 00:33:13,920
Speaker 3: what does this verse teach us? If my calling is permanent,

540
00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:18,840
Speaker 3: it means this my job is not my calling because

541
00:33:18,880 --> 00:33:22,520
Speaker 3: your job changes. How many of you have ever changed jobs?

542
00:33:23,240 --> 00:33:25,680
Speaker 3: How many have ever lost a job? How many have

543
00:33:25,720 --> 00:33:28,880
Speaker 3: ever been unemployed? Yeah, you're going to have many, many

544
00:33:29,360 --> 00:33:32,800
Speaker 3: jobs in life. Your job is not your calling. Jobs

545
00:33:32,880 --> 00:33:37,320
Speaker 3: change all the time. Calling never changes. This is an

546
00:33:37,320 --> 00:33:40,440
Speaker 3: eye opener for some of you. The Bible says God's

547
00:33:40,440 --> 00:33:45,120
Speaker 3: gifts in his call can never be withdrawn, so no

548
00:33:45,120 --> 00:33:48,160
Speaker 3: matter what happens, they're permanent in your life. Number six

549
00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:54,440
Speaker 3: very important point. My calling is connected to others. My calling,

550
00:33:55,080 --> 00:34:00,840
Speaker 3: my assignment from God in life, my purpose, my vision,

551
00:34:00,880 --> 00:34:03,960
Speaker 3: the dream God has for my life is connected to

552
00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:07,040
Speaker 3: other people. What I mean by that you cannot fulfill

553
00:34:07,080 --> 00:34:11,960
Speaker 3: your purpose in life by yourself. It is impossible. You

554
00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:16,120
Speaker 3: can only do it connected to other people. Calling and

555
00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:20,200
Speaker 3: community go together. You cannot be what God wants you

556
00:34:20,280 --> 00:34:23,040
Speaker 3: to be. You cannot fulfill what God wants you to fulfill.

557
00:34:23,360 --> 00:34:28,600
Speaker 3: You cannot enjoy your destiny on your own. You have

558
00:34:28,680 --> 00:34:32,920
Speaker 3: to do it connected to other people. It's like the

559
00:34:32,960 --> 00:34:37,520
Speaker 3: parts of your body. They're worthless unless they're connected. You

560
00:34:37,560 --> 00:34:41,680
Speaker 3: have an eyeball, which is extremely gifted. He has the

561
00:34:41,719 --> 00:34:44,799
Speaker 3: ability to take light, translate that to your brain and

562
00:34:44,840 --> 00:34:48,120
Speaker 3: you see things. But an eyeball outside of a socket

563
00:34:48,560 --> 00:34:52,600
Speaker 3: is worthless. It can't see anything because it's not connected.

564
00:34:53,120 --> 00:34:56,000
Speaker 3: You have an ear, which is an amazing gift of God,

565
00:34:56,160 --> 00:35:01,480
Speaker 3: where your ear can take waves turn them into impulses

566
00:35:01,480 --> 00:35:05,040
Speaker 3: to your brain, and your brain here sounds. If your

567
00:35:05,080 --> 00:35:09,680
Speaker 3: ear is disconnected from your body, it's worthless. That ear

568
00:35:09,719 --> 00:35:14,040
Speaker 3: can't hear anything unless it's connected. You have a hand,

569
00:35:14,280 --> 00:35:17,800
Speaker 3: and that hand has an amazing ability to grasp, to write,

570
00:35:18,280 --> 00:35:21,600
Speaker 3: to fix things. But that hand, if it were cut off,

571
00:35:21,800 --> 00:35:25,840
Speaker 3: it has no use. A hand has no power, no talent,

572
00:35:26,160 --> 00:35:31,560
Speaker 3: no ability, no purpose without being connected to the body.

573
00:35:31,680 --> 00:35:34,960
Speaker 3: You have to be connected to the body to fulfill

574
00:35:35,040 --> 00:35:39,120
Speaker 3: your calling. The Bible calls the church the body of Christ,

575
00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:43,280
Speaker 3: the family of God, but it calls it the body,

576
00:35:43,600 --> 00:35:46,520
Speaker 3: and we're all members like a hand, eye, nose, feet,

577
00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:51,400
Speaker 3: everything connected to the body. Look at this verse on

578
00:35:51,440 --> 00:35:54,719
Speaker 3: the screen Roman's fourteen seven. None of us lives to

579
00:35:54,800 --> 00:35:59,480
Speaker 3: himself alone, and none of us dies to himself alone.

580
00:36:00,080 --> 00:36:03,080
Speaker 3: You gotta be connected. How do you get connected through

581
00:36:03,280 --> 00:36:06,040
Speaker 3: a church? Family. It's why we talk about small groups

582
00:36:06,040 --> 00:36:08,239
Speaker 3: all the time, because in that small group there's a

583
00:36:08,280 --> 00:36:11,480
Speaker 3: connection there where you learn from other people. They help

584
00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:14,800
Speaker 3: you in your weakness, you help them in their weakness.

585
00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:17,839
Speaker 3: Let me show you a couple verses Fesians four to four.

586
00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:22,920
Speaker 3: We are all one body, circle, that all one body.

587
00:36:23,800 --> 00:36:29,080
Speaker 3: We all have the same spirit, circle, same spirit, and

588
00:36:29,160 --> 00:36:33,000
Speaker 3: we have all been called circle that all been called

589
00:36:33,239 --> 00:36:36,080
Speaker 3: We're all one body, all have the same spirit, all

590
00:36:36,120 --> 00:36:40,440
Speaker 3: been called to the same glorious future. Hope. It is

591
00:36:40,480 --> 00:36:43,320
Speaker 3: only in connection, in community that I will fulfill my

592
00:36:43,400 --> 00:36:48,319
Speaker 3: calling Hebrews three to one. Brothers and sisters, you are

593
00:36:48,400 --> 00:36:52,760
Speaker 3: a holy You are holy partners in a heavenly calling.

594
00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:56,360
Speaker 3: The other people in your small group are partners in

595
00:36:56,440 --> 00:37:00,200
Speaker 3: a heavenly calling. We're better together, We're better as a team.

596
00:37:00,239 --> 00:37:03,399
Speaker 3: That's why church, you have to be connected. We'll talk

597
00:37:03,400 --> 00:37:07,120
Speaker 3: about this more in the future. Number seven. God empowers

598
00:37:07,800 --> 00:37:11,399
Speaker 3: what he calls me to do. That's the seventh thing

599
00:37:11,520 --> 00:37:13,960
Speaker 3: I need to know about my calling that whatever God

600
00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:16,480
Speaker 3: calls me to do, He's going to empower me to do.

601
00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:22,120
Speaker 3: God empowers what he calls me to do. In other words,

602
00:37:22,160 --> 00:37:24,359
Speaker 3: if God has given me an assignment in life. He's

603
00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:26,239
Speaker 3: going to enable me to do it. He's going to

604
00:37:26,239 --> 00:37:28,360
Speaker 3: equip me to do it. He's going to empower me

605
00:37:28,440 --> 00:37:30,719
Speaker 3: to do it. He's going to strengthen me to do it.

606
00:37:30,880 --> 00:37:33,319
Speaker 3: He's going to give me the ability to do it.

607
00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:35,880
Speaker 3: God would never ask you to do anything with your

608
00:37:35,920 --> 00:37:38,160
Speaker 3: life that he doesn't give you the power to do.

609
00:37:39,760 --> 00:37:44,000
Speaker 3: So here's how it works. Once I understand that God

610
00:37:44,040 --> 00:37:48,160
Speaker 3: has a calling on my life, okay, and I understand that,

611
00:37:48,400 --> 00:37:52,279
Speaker 3: what I do is I commit myself to him. And

612
00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:55,880
Speaker 3: when I commit myself to God's calling for me, God,

613
00:37:56,840 --> 00:37:59,399
Speaker 3: whatever time I've got left on this earth, I want

614
00:37:59,400 --> 00:38:02,279
Speaker 3: to use it to fulfill your calling for me. Whether

615
00:38:02,320 --> 00:38:06,040
Speaker 3: it's a week, a month, years, or whatever decades, I

616
00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:10,480
Speaker 3: commit to your calling for my life. God commits his

617
00:38:10,640 --> 00:38:14,839
Speaker 3: resources to help you do it. He said, I don't

618
00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:17,400
Speaker 3: even know what it is. I commit to your calling

619
00:38:17,480 --> 00:38:19,960
Speaker 3: for my life. God says, Then I will commit the

620
00:38:20,000 --> 00:38:24,120
Speaker 3: resources what you need to get it done. Look at

621
00:38:24,160 --> 00:38:28,680
Speaker 3: this verse Ephesians four to one. I urge you to

622
00:38:29,000 --> 00:38:35,040
Speaker 3: live the life to which God called you. Now notice

623
00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:38,680
Speaker 3: the calling is a lifestyle, and you are to live

624
00:38:38,760 --> 00:38:42,040
Speaker 3: the life to which God called you. And what we're

625
00:38:42,080 --> 00:38:44,520
Speaker 3: going to do during Live Your calling is learn how

626
00:38:44,520 --> 00:38:46,399
Speaker 3: to do it? Now? Those of you here last week,

627
00:38:46,440 --> 00:38:50,279
Speaker 3: remember we talked about five ways to learn. Here they

628
00:38:50,280 --> 00:38:54,160
Speaker 3: are on the screen. Listen to God's word every day.

629
00:38:54,840 --> 00:38:59,239
Speaker 3: That's how I learned my calling. Enlist friends who challenge me.

630
00:39:00,280 --> 00:39:01,799
Speaker 3: That's how I learned my call. And that's called a

631
00:39:01,800 --> 00:39:03,839
Speaker 3: small group. In other words, you're going to be wise.

632
00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:07,440
Speaker 3: You got to hang out with wise people, ask questions

633
00:39:07,440 --> 00:39:10,280
Speaker 3: and accept correction. The more I do that, the wiser

634
00:39:10,320 --> 00:39:15,080
Speaker 3: I become. I learned God's calling, remember and reinforce what

635
00:39:15,239 --> 00:39:17,080
Speaker 3: I learned. By the way, do you know what Isaiah

636
00:39:17,160 --> 00:39:24,560
Speaker 3: forty four two is? I am your creator? You were

637
00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:30,600
Speaker 3: in my even before. All right, you need to go

638
00:39:30,640 --> 00:39:32,880
Speaker 3: home and read your little verse again. Okay, read your

639
00:39:32,960 --> 00:39:37,240
Speaker 3: verse again. That's why you got to remember and reinforce.

640
00:39:37,480 --> 00:39:39,960
Speaker 3: Saying it one time in church doesn't mean you got it.

641
00:39:41,040 --> 00:39:45,040
Speaker 3: You gotta remember and reinforce it. Remember and reinforce it,

642
00:39:45,320 --> 00:39:49,279
Speaker 3: and then now do it. Now. How many of you

643
00:39:49,320 --> 00:39:51,680
Speaker 3: did forty days purpose? Gus your hands? All right? A

644
00:39:51,719 --> 00:39:55,480
Speaker 3: lot of you did. That was like phase one, forty

645
00:39:55,560 --> 00:39:58,480
Speaker 3: days of purpose. It was the foundation. Now we're going

646
00:39:58,520 --> 00:40:02,760
Speaker 3: to phase two. We're going to the advanced course to calling.

647
00:40:02,840 --> 00:40:06,799
Speaker 3: What is God's calling on your life? He said, Rick,

648
00:40:06,840 --> 00:40:09,000
Speaker 3: I'm already doing these habits. I'm having a quiet time,

649
00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:10,920
Speaker 3: I'm in a small group. Great, Then let me tell

650
00:40:10,920 --> 00:40:12,399
Speaker 3: you what God wants you to do in phase two.

651
00:40:13,000 --> 00:40:15,839
Speaker 3: He wants you to help somebody else out. That's how

652
00:40:15,840 --> 00:40:18,640
Speaker 3: you're going to grow from this one. Growing by sitting

653
00:40:18,680 --> 00:40:20,640
Speaker 3: in the same small group you were in during forty

654
00:40:20,719 --> 00:40:23,760
Speaker 3: days Perpose, it will help you this much, But helping

655
00:40:23,800 --> 00:40:26,720
Speaker 3: somebody else will help you this much. We always grow

656
00:40:26,840 --> 00:40:30,319
Speaker 3: fastest when we pass it on. You get it, got

657
00:40:30,360 --> 00:40:34,040
Speaker 3: it good, give it away, all right? And when you

658
00:40:34,080 --> 00:40:36,640
Speaker 3: give it away, then you're going to grow faster. So

659
00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:38,799
Speaker 3: if you did forty days of Purpose, here's what I

660
00:40:38,800 --> 00:40:42,960
Speaker 3: anchourage you do. Stay in the group you're in, watch

661
00:40:43,000 --> 00:40:47,160
Speaker 3: the videos, do the discussion, read the book, memorize the verses,

662
00:40:47,200 --> 00:40:50,120
Speaker 3: all those kinds of things. But go out and find

663
00:40:50,160 --> 00:40:54,719
Speaker 3: one person yourself that you will invest in yourself and

664
00:40:54,760 --> 00:40:57,880
Speaker 3: say I'll do it with you one or two other people.

665
00:40:58,400 --> 00:41:02,480
Speaker 3: So you, sir, share in one group and you serve

666
00:41:02,640 --> 00:41:05,520
Speaker 3: a friend. Just find a friend, a few friends for

667
00:41:05,560 --> 00:41:08,799
Speaker 3: a few weeks. Why should you do that? Because you

668
00:41:09,080 --> 00:41:13,640
Speaker 3: will grow faster and God will give you power. God

669
00:41:13,680 --> 00:41:16,800
Speaker 3: doesn't give you power to sit and learn. God gives

670
00:41:16,800 --> 00:41:19,799
Speaker 3: you power when you help somebody else. And so if

671
00:41:19,800 --> 00:41:21,919
Speaker 3: you want to go to the next level, you need

672
00:41:21,960 --> 00:41:25,359
Speaker 3: to get somebody for you to pour into to say,

673
00:41:25,440 --> 00:41:27,920
Speaker 3: let's do this together. It's not going to hurt you

674
00:41:27,960 --> 00:41:30,959
Speaker 3: to do that for six weeks and just step out

675
00:41:31,160 --> 00:41:36,600
Speaker 3: in faith. Now here's my prayer. Second Tessalonis, chapter one.

676
00:41:37,280 --> 00:41:41,040
Speaker 3: This is why we always pray for you, asking our

677
00:41:41,080 --> 00:41:45,840
Speaker 3: God to help you that's in power to help you

678
00:41:46,360 --> 00:41:49,240
Speaker 3: live the kind of life he called you to live.

679
00:41:49,719 --> 00:41:51,359
Speaker 3: God says, if I call you to live this kind

680
00:41:51,400 --> 00:41:53,040
Speaker 3: of life, I'm going to help you with the power.

681
00:41:53,760 --> 00:41:58,040
Speaker 3: We pray that with his power, God will help you

682
00:41:59,200 --> 00:42:03,680
Speaker 3: do the good things you want and perform the works

683
00:42:03,960 --> 00:42:06,720
Speaker 3: that come from your faith. Notice, do the good things

684
00:42:06,760 --> 00:42:09,040
Speaker 3: and perform the works. That's the good works we were

685
00:42:09,080 --> 00:42:12,040
Speaker 3: talking about earlier. And God says, I will give you

686
00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:13,960
Speaker 3: the power. You can count on God to give you

687
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:16,920
Speaker 3: the strength you need. First Tesaloni is five. The one

688
00:42:16,960 --> 00:42:20,319
Speaker 3: who calls you is faithful and he will do it.

689
00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:22,480
Speaker 3: He'll give you the power to help that person. He said,

690
00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:25,000
Speaker 3: I've never helped anybody. He'll give you the power to

691
00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:29,040
Speaker 3: help somebody else. Now there's one more truth that I

692
00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:31,160
Speaker 3: want to cover as we start this week. Let me review.

693
00:42:31,920 --> 00:42:35,719
Speaker 3: My calling is a gift from God. I'm called for

694
00:42:35,840 --> 00:42:41,120
Speaker 3: God's purpose, not my own. God chose my calling before

695
00:42:41,160 --> 00:42:42,840
Speaker 3: I was born, so I didn't have anything to do

696
00:42:42,880 --> 00:42:47,120
Speaker 3: with it. My sins and my mistakes don't change my calling.

697
00:42:48,480 --> 00:42:51,080
Speaker 3: My calling is permanent. Satan can't take it away, and

698
00:42:51,160 --> 00:42:54,160
Speaker 3: nobody else on earth can take it away. It's irrevocable.

699
00:42:54,880 --> 00:42:57,279
Speaker 3: My calling is connected to others. I got to be

700
00:42:57,320 --> 00:43:00,680
Speaker 3: connected to the body or it doesn't work. God will

701
00:43:00,680 --> 00:43:02,839
Speaker 3: empower me to do what he calls me to do.

702
00:43:03,200 --> 00:43:07,279
Speaker 3: And here's the last point. There's a prize. There's a

703
00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:11,560
Speaker 3: prize for living out my calling. And this is why

704
00:43:11,600 --> 00:43:15,640
Speaker 3: I'm very excited about this campaign. There is a prize

705
00:43:15,920 --> 00:43:19,920
Speaker 3: for living out my calling. God has promised a reward

706
00:43:20,880 --> 00:43:25,160
Speaker 3: for those people who discover and live the calling He

707
00:43:25,200 --> 00:43:27,279
Speaker 3: made them for here on earth, and that reward's going

708
00:43:27,360 --> 00:43:32,040
Speaker 3: to last forever Philippians three fourteen. I press toward the

709
00:43:32,080 --> 00:43:36,799
Speaker 3: goal to win the prize. Circle that to win the

710
00:43:36,880 --> 00:43:42,160
Speaker 3: prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus,

711
00:43:42,840 --> 00:43:46,640
Speaker 3: What is the prize? Oh man? It would take me

712
00:43:46,760 --> 00:43:49,399
Speaker 3: months to explain all that God wants to do in

713
00:43:49,440 --> 00:43:53,960
Speaker 3: Heaven for eternity with you, But let me just say this.

714
00:43:54,800 --> 00:43:58,480
Speaker 3: The prize is that you get to share in everything

715
00:43:58,600 --> 00:44:02,600
Speaker 3: God has in heaven. You get to share in his kingdom,

716
00:44:02,920 --> 00:44:05,279
Speaker 3: you get to share in his glory, you get to

717
00:44:05,280 --> 00:44:09,480
Speaker 3: share in His power. It all becomes yours. You. See,

718
00:44:09,680 --> 00:44:13,400
Speaker 3: life on earth is a test. Why didn't God just

719
00:44:13,440 --> 00:44:14,880
Speaker 3: create you and take you to heaven? If you're going

720
00:44:14,920 --> 00:44:17,360
Speaker 3: there anyway, why didn't just take you there first? Because

721
00:44:17,360 --> 00:44:20,279
Speaker 3: He puts you here on earth to test your faithfulness.

722
00:44:21,280 --> 00:44:23,560
Speaker 3: And he gives you a few things and puts them

723
00:44:23,560 --> 00:44:26,839
Speaker 3: in your care opportunities, relationships, things, and he says, let's

724
00:44:26,880 --> 00:44:28,720
Speaker 3: see what you do, and if you're faithful of the little,

725
00:44:28,960 --> 00:44:31,680
Speaker 3: then I can trust you with all of my riches

726
00:44:31,760 --> 00:44:34,120
Speaker 3: and all of my power and all of my glory

727
00:44:34,320 --> 00:44:38,040
Speaker 3: in heaven for eternity. Faithful, little, you'll be faithful much.

728
00:44:38,239 --> 00:44:42,280
Speaker 3: This is a test, and God is testing to see

729
00:44:42,520 --> 00:44:45,600
Speaker 3: if you are going to fulfill the calling he put

730
00:44:45,680 --> 00:44:49,160
Speaker 3: you here on earth to fulfill. And if you do,

731
00:44:49,560 --> 00:44:52,279
Speaker 3: then He's going to share with you everything that is his.

732
00:44:52,520 --> 00:44:55,000
Speaker 3: This is the most amazing thing. Look at the next verse.

733
00:44:57,000 --> 00:45:00,440
Speaker 3: First a salone as two twelve live the kind of

734
00:45:00,480 --> 00:45:07,160
Speaker 3: life that pleases God. Who calls you, who calls you

735
00:45:07,640 --> 00:45:09,799
Speaker 3: to share? And what are we going to share? Who

736
00:45:09,920 --> 00:45:15,080
Speaker 3: calls you to share in His own kingdom and glory?

737
00:45:15,760 --> 00:45:18,920
Speaker 3: That's amazing that for eternity God will share his kingdom

738
00:45:18,960 --> 00:45:23,040
Speaker 3: and his glory if I live out my calling. It's

739
00:45:23,080 --> 00:45:25,520
Speaker 3: hard to even explain this, get your wrap your head

740
00:45:25,520 --> 00:45:27,800
Speaker 3: around it. So let me just say, like this, imagine

741
00:45:27,800 --> 00:45:31,439
Speaker 3: on Broadway in New York City, a giant marquee lit

742
00:45:31,520 --> 00:45:34,760
Speaker 3: up at night with bright lights, and it says, now,

743
00:45:34,800 --> 00:45:44,120
Speaker 3: starring for eternity, Jesus Christ co starring your name, you

744
00:45:44,200 --> 00:45:48,560
Speaker 3: will share in His kingdom and glory. Now you got

745
00:45:48,600 --> 00:45:53,600
Speaker 3: my attention. Now I'm interested in fulfilling my calling. I

746
00:45:53,640 --> 00:45:55,759
Speaker 3: don't want to get Tavin go. Did you famil your

747
00:45:56,280 --> 00:45:59,719
Speaker 3: I didn't even know I had one. Well you do.

748
00:46:00,960 --> 00:46:04,400
Speaker 3: And if you fulfill your calling in life and you

749
00:46:04,520 --> 00:46:06,880
Speaker 3: do what God, you make the most of what you're giving.

750
00:46:06,920 --> 00:46:09,759
Speaker 3: God says you're going to share in my kingdom in

751
00:46:09,880 --> 00:46:17,319
Speaker 3: glory forever. Are you interested in that? I am I am.

752
00:46:17,480 --> 00:46:20,839
Speaker 3: That is a big time prize that goes on and

753
00:46:20,920 --> 00:46:27,919
Speaker 3: on forever. Now, we talked earlier about answering the phone

754
00:46:28,120 --> 00:46:31,240
Speaker 3: if God called. The fact is God has already called.

755
00:46:31,880 --> 00:46:35,440
Speaker 3: He's already called you. That phone has been ringing in

756
00:46:35,480 --> 00:46:38,920
Speaker 3: your life since the moment you were conceived. Are you

757
00:46:39,040 --> 00:46:44,080
Speaker 3: going to pick up the phone? It's been ringing. God's

758
00:46:44,160 --> 00:46:47,000
Speaker 3: call for you has been ringing from the point of

759
00:46:47,080 --> 00:46:52,840
Speaker 3: your conception, and something you've just been ignoring it ring, ring,

760
00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:59,600
Speaker 3: ring ring. God said, I'm not hanging up. Will you

761
00:46:59,680 --> 00:47:03,799
Speaker 3: pick up up the phone? And today say I'm going

762
00:47:03,880 --> 00:47:07,640
Speaker 3: to begin to discover, develop, and live the call that

763
00:47:07,719 --> 00:47:11,160
Speaker 3: God made for me. That I will learn what on

764
00:47:11,200 --> 00:47:13,480
Speaker 3: earth am I here for? And I will spend the

765
00:47:13,480 --> 00:47:17,719
Speaker 3: rest of my life learning to do that. Now, I'm

766
00:47:17,719 --> 00:47:19,920
Speaker 3: going to pray for you. In just second, We're going

767
00:47:20,000 --> 00:47:23,279
Speaker 3: to pray a prayer blessing. But you got to make

768
00:47:23,320 --> 00:47:27,719
Speaker 3: the decision. Am I going to answer God's call? I

769
00:47:27,719 --> 00:47:29,840
Speaker 3: don't know anything more important than what we're going to

770
00:47:29,840 --> 00:47:34,120
Speaker 3: talk about the next six weeks. The reason you exist,

771
00:47:35,120 --> 00:47:39,080
Speaker 3: the purpose for your life, the calling that God is

772
00:47:39,160 --> 00:47:43,080
Speaker 3: going to judge and evaluate and determine what rewards you

773
00:47:43,120 --> 00:47:45,640
Speaker 3: get in heaven. You don't want to miss any of this.

774
00:47:46,360 --> 00:47:48,160
Speaker 3: You want to get in a group, and you want

775
00:47:48,160 --> 00:47:54,120
Speaker 3: to be here every week. Let's vow for prayer as

776
00:47:54,120 --> 00:47:58,240
Speaker 3: we close, pray this prayer in your heart. Dear God,

777
00:47:58,840 --> 00:48:02,400
Speaker 3: thank you that you created me, that I'm not an accident.

778
00:48:03,920 --> 00:48:07,280
Speaker 3: Thank you that I've been in your care even before

779
00:48:07,320 --> 00:48:11,920
Speaker 3: I was born. Thank you that you not just created me,

780
00:48:13,080 --> 00:48:16,200
Speaker 3: but you have called me. You have a purpose and

781
00:48:16,200 --> 00:48:19,279
Speaker 3: an assignment for my life. I'm not here just to

782
00:48:19,280 --> 00:48:23,560
Speaker 3: waste time. Thank you that you called me for your purpose.

783
00:48:24,400 --> 00:48:28,839
Speaker 3: I want your plan, not mine. Thank you that that

784
00:48:28,920 --> 00:48:31,680
Speaker 3: plan began from the moment of my birth. And even

785
00:48:31,719 --> 00:48:36,040
Speaker 3: though I made many mistakes and I've sinned a lot

786
00:48:36,640 --> 00:48:39,360
Speaker 3: and other people have hurt me, it hasn't changed my

787
00:48:39,520 --> 00:48:43,640
Speaker 3: call one bit. Thank you that my calling is permanent.

788
00:48:45,719 --> 00:48:50,360
Speaker 3: And I realized today that I cannot fulfill my purpose disconnected.

789
00:48:50,920 --> 00:48:53,880
Speaker 3: I need to be connected to others in your body,

790
00:48:53,960 --> 00:48:58,160
Speaker 3: in your family, with the same spirit and the same calling.

791
00:49:00,120 --> 00:49:02,920
Speaker 3: I thank you Lord that you've promised to give me

792
00:49:02,960 --> 00:49:04,960
Speaker 3: the power to do what you've asked me to do.

793
00:49:05,880 --> 00:49:07,720
Speaker 3: That you won't ask me to do something, you won't

794
00:49:08,040 --> 00:49:12,520
Speaker 3: enable me, and strengthen me to do. Lord, I want

795
00:49:12,520 --> 00:49:17,399
Speaker 3: that prize in life. I want to live the rest

796
00:49:17,440 --> 00:49:21,040
Speaker 3: of my life that Monday I may share in your

797
00:49:21,120 --> 00:49:26,160
Speaker 3: kingdom and in your glory. If you've never invited Jesus

798
00:49:26,200 --> 00:49:28,719
Speaker 3: into your life, said Jesus Christ, come into my life now.

799
00:49:30,600 --> 00:49:32,319
Speaker 3: I want to learn to love you, and trust you

800
00:49:32,400 --> 00:49:37,160
Speaker 3: and serve you in your name. I pray Amen.

801
00:49:40,480 --> 00:49:43,719
Speaker 2: We hope you've been encouraged by this message. To hear

802
00:49:43,800 --> 00:49:48,040
Speaker 2: Pastor Rick's free daily Bible teaching program, download free sermon notes,

803
00:49:48,280 --> 00:49:51,600
Speaker 2: or sign up for his free daily devotional. Just visit

804
00:49:51,880 --> 00:50:02,800
Speaker 2: pastorick dot com. The comp