WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.480 Psalm 139 says, Lord, you have searched me and 00:00:03.480 --> 00:00:06.120 known me. You know when I sit down and when I 00:00:06.120 --> 00:00:08.720 get up. You understand my thought from far away. 00:00:09.240 --> 00:00:12.160 You scrutinize my path, that means he looks closely, 00:00:12.380 --> 00:00:15.859 and my lying down and are acquainted with all 00:00:15.859 --> 00:00:18.620 my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, 00:00:18.800 --> 00:00:21.739 behold, Lord, you know it all. You have encircled 00:00:21.739 --> 00:00:24.820 me behind and in front and placed your hand upon 00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:28.359 me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It 00:00:28.359 --> 00:00:31.980 is too high. I cannot comprehend it. Where can 00:00:31.980 --> 00:00:34.579 I go from your spirit or where can I flee from 00:00:34.579 --> 00:00:37.320 your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are 00:00:37.320 --> 00:00:39.939 there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you 00:00:39.939 --> 00:00:42.780 are there. If I take up the wings of the dawn, 00:00:42.920 --> 00:00:45.140 if I dwell in the remotest parts of the sea, 00:00:45.299 --> 00:00:48.259 even there your hand will lead me and your right 00:00:48.259 --> 00:00:51.179 hand will take hold of me. If I say, surely the 00:00:51.179 --> 00:00:53.520 darkness will overwhelm me and the light around 00:00:53.520 --> 00:00:57.740 me will be night, even darkness is not dark to 00:00:57.740 --> 00:01:00.960 you. And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness 00:01:00.960 --> 00:01:03.920 and light are alike to you. For you create my 00:01:03.920 --> 00:01:06.640 innermost parts. You wove me in my mother's womb. 00:01:07.060 --> 00:01:09.780 I will give thanks to you because I am awesomely 00:01:09.780 --> 00:01:13.480 and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works 00:01:13.480 --> 00:01:17.340 and my soul knows it very well. My frame was 00:01:17.340 --> 00:01:19.480 not hidden from you when I was made in secret 00:01:19.480 --> 00:01:21.780 and skillfully formed in the depths of the earth. 00:01:21.920 --> 00:01:24.739 Your eyes have seen my formless substance and 00:01:24.739 --> 00:01:27.439 in your book were written. All the days that 00:01:27.439 --> 00:01:32.319 were ordained for me. When as yet there was not 00:01:32.319 --> 00:01:35.319 one of them. How precious also are your thoughts 00:01:35.319 --> 00:01:40.280 for me, God. How vast is the sum of them. Were 00:01:40.280 --> 00:01:42.560 I to count them, they would outnumber the sand. 00:01:42.780 --> 00:01:46.379 When I awake, I am still with you. And then we're 00:01:46.379 --> 00:01:50.519 skipping to verse 23. Search me, God, and know 00:01:50.519 --> 00:01:54.019 my heart. Put me to the test and know my anxious 00:01:54.019 --> 00:01:57.209 thoughts. And see if there is any hurtful way 00:01:57.209 --> 00:02:03.849 in me. And lead me in the everlasting way. God 00:02:03.849 --> 00:02:08.689 knows you completely. Verse 1. Oh Lord, you have 00:02:08.689 --> 00:02:13.050 searched me and known me. Think about a journal, 00:02:13.169 --> 00:02:16.250 right? Who's got a journal in the room? Somebody's 00:02:16.250 --> 00:02:21.069 got one. Alright, can you hold it up? You keep 00:02:21.069 --> 00:02:22.729 one electronically? That doesn't quite count 00:02:22.729 --> 00:02:25.009 in this case. Alright, so that's a journal. Think 00:02:25.009 --> 00:02:29.689 about a journal. God knows every page that will 00:02:29.689 --> 00:02:32.250 be, or if it will be long lost before it's finished, 00:02:32.250 --> 00:02:35.870 or whatever. He knows every page of that journal. 00:02:35.969 --> 00:02:37.990 He knows what will be written on every page. 00:02:38.270 --> 00:02:42.990 Our life's a little like that. The book represents 00:02:42.990 --> 00:02:45.909 your life. Most people only see the cover of 00:02:45.909 --> 00:02:48.310 your journal. A few might know a chapter or a 00:02:48.310 --> 00:02:51.800 page or two. But Psalm 139 tells us God knows 00:02:51.800 --> 00:02:55.080 every page, every margin note, even the words 00:02:55.080 --> 00:02:58.259 that you crossed out. And here's the good news. 00:02:59.080 --> 00:03:05.080 He still loves the author's work. God knows what 00:03:05.080 --> 00:03:08.060 others miss. Verses 1 to 3, he knows when you 00:03:08.060 --> 00:03:10.319 sit and rise, when your thoughts are from afar, 00:03:10.699 --> 00:03:13.000 when your paths, he knows your paths and resting 00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:17.599 places. Parents may know when a child is quiet. 00:03:18.599 --> 00:03:22.099 Teachers know when a teen is distracted, but 00:03:22.099 --> 00:03:26.960 God knows why. God knows kids in the room, which 00:03:26.960 --> 00:03:29.280 not too many of kids, but there's one. Zayden, 00:03:29.280 --> 00:03:33.300 I see you. You hear me? God knows. God knows 00:03:33.300 --> 00:03:40.659 when you're scared, but don't say it. Teens, 00:03:40.659 --> 00:03:43.840 God knows when you smile, but feel pressure on 00:03:43.840 --> 00:03:50.009 the inside. God knows the weight we adults carry 00:03:50.009 --> 00:03:55.069 silently and say nothing about. But God knows. 00:03:57.509 --> 00:04:00.789 God knows before you speak. Even before there 00:04:00.789 --> 00:04:05.469 is a word on my tongue, it says in verse 4. So 00:04:05.469 --> 00:04:13.449 the other day I... What was I about to say? God 00:04:13.449 --> 00:04:19.810 knows. God knows everything I'm going to say. 00:04:20.810 --> 00:04:24.149 He is not limited in his knowledge. Have you 00:04:24.149 --> 00:04:28.069 ever said, I didn't mean to say that? Oops, I 00:04:28.069 --> 00:04:32.269 hurt his or her feelings. It just came out. God 00:04:32.269 --> 00:04:35.750 knew what you were about to say before you said 00:04:35.750 --> 00:04:40.089 it. And he still loved you. And he still stayed 00:04:40.089 --> 00:04:43.910 with you. And he's still working in your life. 00:04:46.410 --> 00:04:49.009 God's knowledge is comforting, not crushing. 00:04:49.470 --> 00:04:51.410 A lot of people think that knowing God, being 00:04:51.410 --> 00:04:53.230 with God, sometimes you feel, you act like, feel 00:04:53.230 --> 00:04:54.910 like it's some kind of a burden, like it's so 00:04:54.910 --> 00:04:57.970 difficult, so hard, it's crushing. It says, you 00:04:57.970 --> 00:05:02.170 hem me in before and behind, or behind and before. 00:05:02.649 --> 00:05:05.829 But this is talking about protection, not a trap, 00:05:05.949 --> 00:05:08.269 not like God has sealed you in some kind of a 00:05:08.269 --> 00:05:10.490 trap, he stuck you, making, forcing you to go 00:05:10.490 --> 00:05:13.149 a certain way. It's not like that. This is talking 00:05:13.149 --> 00:05:15.839 about protection. It's terrible to have an exposed 00:05:15.839 --> 00:05:20.579 back. One time years ago, we did a Belgarth event 00:05:20.579 --> 00:05:22.139 out in the side yard and there was a young man 00:05:22.139 --> 00:05:23.720 there and he was really good at Belgarth and 00:05:23.720 --> 00:05:26.439 I was okay, pretty good at Belgarth on that day 00:05:26.439 --> 00:05:28.879 anyway. And so everybody said, well, let's all 00:05:28.879 --> 00:05:30.639 fight everybody against them. And so we went 00:05:30.639 --> 00:05:32.939 back to back in the middle. And as soon as the 00:05:32.939 --> 00:05:35.660 fight started, he left me. And then soon he was 00:05:35.660 --> 00:05:38.160 dead and then I was dead too. Your back exposed 00:05:38.160 --> 00:05:41.180 is a terrible thing. But God hems us in behind 00:05:41.180 --> 00:05:45.379 and before. Protection. God's knowledge does 00:05:45.379 --> 00:05:49.279 not expose us to shame. Just because God knows 00:05:49.279 --> 00:05:52.060 and maybe even exposes what you did wrong doesn't 00:05:52.060 --> 00:05:54.579 necessarily mean you have to have shame. God 00:05:54.579 --> 00:05:57.560 doesn't do that. Rather, God's knowledge invites 00:05:57.560 --> 00:06:03.800 us to honesty. Psalm 139 doesn't just say God 00:06:03.800 --> 00:06:06.959 knows us, it says He stays with us. And that 00:06:06.959 --> 00:06:10.360 truth matters deeply when life feels confusing, 00:06:10.540 --> 00:06:13.860 overwhelming, or lonely. I want you to hear that 00:06:13.860 --> 00:06:16.879 next from one of our students. Come on Haley, 00:06:16.939 --> 00:06:22.680 don't forget to push your button. Oh my goodness. 00:06:29.819 --> 00:06:41.060 I can hear myself well. God is with you everywhere. 00:06:42.420 --> 00:06:54.600 Okay, I'm going to read a song. Where can I go 00:06:54.600 --> 00:06:56.899 from your spirit or where can I flee from your 00:06:56.899 --> 00:06:59.779 presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there. 00:06:59.879 --> 00:07:03.420 If I make my bed in Sheol, you behold, you are 00:07:03.420 --> 00:07:06.439 there. If I take up the wings of the dawn, if 00:07:06.439 --> 00:07:18.850 I dwell in the remote part of the sea. Okay, 00:07:18.889 --> 00:07:34.750 I lost the paper. There, okay, it's right there. 00:07:34.990 --> 00:07:42.449 Okay. Where is my glow from the spirit? Okay, 00:07:42.550 --> 00:07:45.149 the object lives in this flashlight in the dark. 00:07:45.629 --> 00:07:48.920 RJ, can you... off the light over there? Thank 00:07:48.920 --> 00:08:01.279 you. Okay. Okay. Thank you. Okay. Okay. Okay. 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:09.579 Okay. This light represents God's presence. No 00:08:09.579 --> 00:08:11.860 matter where I walk, the light goes with me. 00:08:13.360 --> 00:08:18.430 Okay. You can't outrun... God, which is verses 00:08:18.430 --> 00:08:22.290 7 and 10. Heaven, God is there. Lowest places, 00:08:22.509 --> 00:08:24.730 God is there. Even places where you shouldn't 00:08:24.730 --> 00:08:27.370 be, God is there. Sometimes that's comforting, 00:08:28.310 --> 00:08:30.149 sometimes that's convincing, but it's always 00:08:30.149 --> 00:08:33.429 loving. Darkness doesn't hide from us, verses 00:08:33.429 --> 00:08:38.570 12, or not 11 and 12. Even the darkness is not 00:08:38.570 --> 00:08:42.250 dark to you. Okay, so, okay, Zayden's another 00:08:42.250 --> 00:08:46.490 kid, and, oh, Ariana, God, God sees you even 00:08:46.490 --> 00:08:48.850 under your blanket at night, teens, which is 00:08:48.850 --> 00:08:52.990 mostly in there. God sees you, your late night 00:08:52.990 --> 00:08:55.629 thoughts and struggles, and adults, which is 00:08:55.629 --> 00:08:59.429 all around the room. God sees the places you 00:08:59.429 --> 00:09:04.450 don't post about. God's presence means you're 00:09:04.450 --> 00:09:07.769 never alone, even when friends leave, even when 00:09:07.769 --> 00:09:10.909 you feel misunderstood. There are moments when 00:09:10.909 --> 00:09:15.470 I feel like I don't measure up, but Psalm 139, 00:09:15.720 --> 00:09:20.059 reminds me, God never steps away. God knows us, 00:09:20.159 --> 00:09:24.379 and God stays with us, but Psalm 139 also says 00:09:24.379 --> 00:09:27.559 something amazing about how He made us, and I 00:09:27.559 --> 00:09:31.039 think a child can help us understand that better 00:09:31.039 --> 00:09:48.110 than anyone. Arianna. Okay. How do I... What 00:09:48.110 --> 00:10:01.789 button? Ah, okay. Can you hear me? Okay. It's 00:10:01.789 --> 00:10:03.610 not very close to my mouth, but that's fine. 00:10:04.009 --> 00:10:07.350 And I also can't see up here. That's all right. 00:10:08.850 --> 00:10:19.279 I'm very short. Okay. We need to read Psalms 00:10:19.279 --> 00:10:25.779 139, 13 -16, which I was not given. Would someone 00:10:25.779 --> 00:10:32.000 like to read that for me? Psalms 139, 13 -16. 00:10:33.639 --> 00:10:36.480 For you created my innermost parts, you wove 00:10:36.480 --> 00:10:39.440 me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to 00:10:39.440 --> 00:10:42.720 you, because I am awesomely and wonderfully made. 00:10:43.220 --> 00:10:45.779 Wonderful are your works, and my soul knows it 00:10:45.779 --> 00:10:49.360 very well. My frame was not hidden from you when 00:10:49.360 --> 00:10:51.899 I was made in secret and skillfully formed in 00:10:51.899 --> 00:10:56.299 the depths of the earth. Verse 16. Your eyes 00:10:56.299 --> 00:10:58.779 have seen my formless substance, and in your 00:10:58.779 --> 00:11:01.419 book were written all the days that were ordained 00:11:01.419 --> 00:11:05.500 for you, when as yet there was not one of them. 00:11:08.559 --> 00:11:13.580 Okay. So, in part of the verse, it says, I am 00:11:13.580 --> 00:11:16.330 fearfully and wonderfully made. Right here I 00:11:16.330 --> 00:11:21.870 have a box. This box has a quite intricate puzzle 00:11:21.870 --> 00:11:28.190 in it. 350 pieces. And I have one piece of it. 00:11:28.409 --> 00:11:31.470 This isn't the whole picture. When pieces are 00:11:31.470 --> 00:11:35.169 missing, the picture isn't right. This is just 00:11:35.169 --> 00:11:39.809 a small swab of the photo. It's not even close 00:11:39.809 --> 00:11:46.049 to the entire thing. God made you himself, as 00:11:46.049 --> 00:11:51.309 the verse says, you formed my inner parts. Let's 00:11:51.309 --> 00:11:53.289 explain this in a way that children may understand 00:11:53.289 --> 00:11:56.710 better. God didn't just make your body, he made 00:11:56.710 --> 00:11:59.470 your heart and mind too. He makes good stuff, 00:11:59.649 --> 00:12:03.190 and you are good stuff. God doesn't make mistakes, 00:12:03.590 --> 00:12:07.850 like we heard in verse 14. I praise you, for 00:12:07.850 --> 00:12:10.470 I am fearfully and wonderfully made. We have 00:12:10.470 --> 00:12:13.149 a reason to praise God. Talk about Him. Song 00:12:13.149 --> 00:12:21.330 about Him. He made us so good. Okay. I have a 00:12:21.330 --> 00:12:25.090 couple of questions. These are some pretty easy 00:12:25.090 --> 00:12:28.269 ones. I'm sure we can get this. Just shout it 00:12:28.269 --> 00:12:33.049 out if you know it. Who made you? God did. God 00:12:33.049 --> 00:12:37.409 did. Okay. We're going to say that a couple of 00:12:37.409 --> 00:12:40.289 times. I say it. You answer it. Who made you? 00:12:40.549 --> 00:12:44.730 God did. Who made you? God did. Who made you? 00:12:44.809 --> 00:12:49.610 God did. God has a plan for your life, verse 00:12:49.610 --> 00:13:12.250 16, and all the days are ordained for me. It 00:13:12.250 --> 00:13:14.330 doesn't do me any good to ask me not to if I 00:13:14.330 --> 00:13:19.009 didn't mean to. Okay. So God already knows. He'll 00:13:19.009 --> 00:13:21.389 know when you learn. He'll know when you will 00:13:21.389 --> 00:13:24.669 learn. He'll know when you grow. He'll know when 00:13:24.669 --> 00:13:29.049 you will grow. How he'll use you, maybe only 00:13:29.049 --> 00:13:33.429 God knows. You might have thoughts about how 00:13:33.429 --> 00:13:35.850 God's going to use you. You might have ideas 00:13:35.850 --> 00:13:39.549 like what you're expecting. God knows the truth. 00:13:40.190 --> 00:13:43.149 You matter to God. And God doesn't make junk. 00:13:46.110 --> 00:13:51.110 Our response to a God who knows, stays, and shapes. 00:13:51.269 --> 00:13:54.590 Look then again at verses 23 and 24. Can I have 00:13:54.590 --> 00:14:00.389 somebody read them? Verses 23 and 24. Psalm 139, 00:14:00.429 --> 00:14:12.980 yeah. Nice and loud. and see if there be any 00:14:12.980 --> 00:14:16.039 purple way of being, and lead me in the everlasting 00:14:16.039 --> 00:14:21.639 way. Amen. He says, search me, O God, dot, dot, 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:26.360 dot, lead me in the everlasting way. It's about 00:14:26.360 --> 00:14:29.879 being open to God. I mean, listen, He's going 00:14:29.879 --> 00:14:32.299 to see anyway, right? You can do everything in 00:14:32.299 --> 00:14:34.779 your power to try to cover up or conceal, but 00:14:34.779 --> 00:14:38.059 you cannot fool Him. So it's about being open 00:14:38.059 --> 00:14:40.720 to the Lord. When I first read this when I was 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:42.980 a young Christian, I thought, you know, that's 00:14:42.980 --> 00:14:45.679 pretty bold to say to God, go ahead, check me 00:14:45.679 --> 00:14:49.220 out. See if there be any fault in me, right? 00:14:50.139 --> 00:14:51.980 I'm like, I'm thinking, yeah, there's fault in 00:14:51.980 --> 00:14:55.740 me. I've got troubles. I do things I shouldn't 00:14:55.740 --> 00:14:59.639 do. But it isn't about me saying, God, look at 00:14:59.639 --> 00:15:02.620 me. I'm not doing anything wrong. It's about 00:15:02.620 --> 00:15:05.200 me being willing to be open to God looking at 00:15:05.200 --> 00:15:07.620 me. So I'm not making any efforts to cover up 00:15:07.620 --> 00:15:09.820 to the Lord. I'm not talking to the Lord with 00:15:09.820 --> 00:15:12.279 haughtiness or pride or false humility. I'll 00:15:12.279 --> 00:15:15.100 say, oh God, I know I'm so stupid. I'm so wicked. 00:15:15.159 --> 00:15:17.940 I'm such a bad person. I feel so bad about it. 00:15:17.960 --> 00:15:20.620 I want to change. But when I know actually I 00:15:20.620 --> 00:15:24.399 don't want to change at all. Or I know the next 00:15:24.399 --> 00:15:25.720 day I'm just going to keep doing those things. 00:15:25.820 --> 00:15:27.779 Those same things that I just called wicked and 00:15:27.779 --> 00:15:30.840 bad, I'm going to keep doing those things. So 00:15:30.840 --> 00:15:32.860 when I say search me, oh God, what I mean is, 00:15:32.980 --> 00:15:37.029 Lord, I get it. You see everything. And then 00:15:37.029 --> 00:15:39.330 I say, lead me in the everlasting way. I want 00:15:39.330 --> 00:15:42.509 to be on that highway of holiness, that road 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:44.789 that God has laid out for us that takes us from 00:15:44.789 --> 00:15:47.029 where we presently are to where God sees us going. 00:15:47.570 --> 00:15:50.490 That's what I want to be. And if your life becomes 00:15:50.490 --> 00:15:55.529 about that, then there is an eternal success 00:15:55.529 --> 00:15:58.490 that's available. On the other hand, if your 00:15:58.490 --> 00:16:01.590 life becomes about thinking you're okay, thinking 00:16:01.590 --> 00:16:03.990 you're good enough, thinking you're going to 00:16:03.990 --> 00:16:07.610 get by today, or maybe like you're going to fool 00:16:07.610 --> 00:16:11.629 God somehow. It's going to lie, sneak, cheat, 00:16:11.690 --> 00:16:14.250 steal, and then praise God for your victory, 00:16:14.389 --> 00:16:18.450 right? If it becomes about that, that road of 00:16:18.450 --> 00:16:22.309 lying, cheating, sneaking, and stealing is also 00:16:22.309 --> 00:16:25.149 an infinitely long road. It just ends a place 00:16:25.149 --> 00:16:27.470 that we don't want to end. It goes to a, I should 00:16:27.470 --> 00:16:29.210 say it never ends, but it goes to a place that 00:16:29.210 --> 00:16:31.879 we don't want to end, right? And so we know that 00:16:31.879 --> 00:16:34.899 there are people who went before us, and demons, 00:16:35.139 --> 00:16:38.539 who went before us who were, in some sense, a 00:16:38.539 --> 00:16:41.779 lot smarter than us. They know the word a lot 00:16:41.779 --> 00:16:45.039 better. They can make a better argument. They 00:16:45.039 --> 00:16:47.100 probably can sing a better song, write a better 00:16:47.100 --> 00:16:49.980 book, create a better painting. They can do all 00:16:49.980 --> 00:16:51.720 of that. They can create a more complicated and 00:16:51.720 --> 00:16:54.120 more successful plan. They can do all of that. 00:16:54.200 --> 00:16:57.539 And yet their road ends in hell away from God 00:16:57.539 --> 00:17:00.899 for eternity. So do you want to be like them? 00:17:02.220 --> 00:17:04.079 Is that what we want to do? We want to be the 00:17:04.079 --> 00:17:06.500 wisest person in our generation, or the wealthiest, 00:17:06.500 --> 00:17:08.299 or the most successful, or everyone thinks that 00:17:08.299 --> 00:17:10.200 we're the mighty, powerful Christian, loves God, 00:17:10.299 --> 00:17:12.920 does all the right things? That will really not 00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:15.619 benefit in the long run. It really does not matter. 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:17.940 There's a lot of times in life where you want 00:17:17.940 --> 00:17:20.180 to say to yourself, it doesn't matter what other 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:22.119 people say about me. There's a lot of times when 00:17:22.119 --> 00:17:23.859 you want to say that, it'll give you the strength 00:17:23.859 --> 00:17:25.380 to go on, it'll give you the strength not to 00:17:25.380 --> 00:17:28.079 be stuck in people defining you and things like 00:17:28.079 --> 00:17:29.950 that. But there is a time in life where you say, 00:17:29.990 --> 00:17:32.049 I want to have a good witness. I want to represent 00:17:32.049 --> 00:17:34.950 God and be good. I want to be as good as I know 00:17:34.950 --> 00:17:37.630 how to be. But the moment you start thinking 00:17:37.630 --> 00:17:41.630 that you're already good, you're already there, 00:17:41.829 --> 00:17:45.130 and you can kind of haughty say, I'm arriving, 00:17:45.329 --> 00:17:47.369 I'm doing a good job, then arrogance has become 00:17:47.369 --> 00:17:51.029 your friend. So we say to God, no, search me, 00:17:51.069 --> 00:17:53.490 meaning I am open to be examined. If there is 00:17:53.490 --> 00:17:56.009 a wicked way in me, I want it dealt with. I'm 00:17:56.009 --> 00:17:57.769 not trying to hide it or put it away in my back 00:17:57.769 --> 00:18:00.369 pocket for later. I'm trying to let it go. God, 00:18:00.529 --> 00:18:03.710 help me let it go. And then we say, and lead 00:18:03.710 --> 00:18:06.710 me in the way everlasting. We know now on this 00:18:06.710 --> 00:18:08.329 side, the psalm was written a long time before 00:18:08.329 --> 00:18:11.109 Jesus was born, by the way. We know now on this 00:18:11.109 --> 00:18:14.869 side that there is a Lord and he will lead you 00:18:14.869 --> 00:18:19.369 daily. that the Holy Spirit of God, because of 00:18:19.369 --> 00:18:21.369 the sacrifice of Jesus, comes and lives in Christians 00:18:21.369 --> 00:18:23.490 and we can be led, we can be convicted of our 00:18:23.490 --> 00:18:26.210 sin, led to do the right thing, empowered spiritually, 00:18:26.390 --> 00:18:28.970 trained through spiritual gifts and spiritual 00:18:28.970 --> 00:18:31.769 disciplines. We can do things. I have already 00:18:31.769 --> 00:18:34.250 done things that now I look back at them and 00:18:34.250 --> 00:18:37.789 go, what? I did that? I can't believe that. That's 00:18:37.789 --> 00:18:40.769 crazy. First of all, because I never would have 00:18:40.769 --> 00:18:42.470 done that before. And then secondly, because 00:18:42.470 --> 00:18:45.829 I can't do that. I couldn't do that. Right? It's 00:18:45.829 --> 00:18:48.589 not possible. And yet, with God, all things are 00:18:48.589 --> 00:18:50.970 possible. And so there is a God who will lead 00:18:50.970 --> 00:18:53.269 us and actually lead us in the everlasting way. 00:18:54.190 --> 00:19:01.329 So your journal then, Psalm 139, says, it ends 00:19:01.329 --> 00:19:06.309 not with fear, but with an invitation. We say, 00:19:06.390 --> 00:19:12.390 God, you already know me, so lead me. You already 00:19:12.390 --> 00:19:15.509 know me, so lead me. For the children and young 00:19:15.509 --> 00:19:17.730 people in the room, you are loved and you are 00:19:17.730 --> 00:19:21.309 safe with God. Even if your parents get it wrong, 00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:23.769 your grandparents, your teachers, and you will 00:19:23.769 --> 00:19:26.269 have teachers who will get it wrong. They are 00:19:26.269 --> 00:19:28.450 not your parents or grandparents. You will probably 00:19:28.450 --> 00:19:31.450 have parents. Ariana, I will probably get it 00:19:31.450 --> 00:19:34.549 wrong. Right? We've had that conversation before. 00:19:35.269 --> 00:19:39.029 And so we know that. And yet, even as we know 00:19:39.029 --> 00:19:41.619 that. We know that God is taking care of it. 00:19:41.660 --> 00:19:44.519 Sometimes we learn from other people's bad examples 00:19:44.519 --> 00:19:46.700 as much as we learn from people's good examples. 00:19:47.099 --> 00:19:49.359 And so when your teacher tries to teach you something 00:19:49.359 --> 00:19:52.160 that is contrary to what God says, you side with 00:19:52.160 --> 00:19:54.140 what God says and realize that it's possible 00:19:54.140 --> 00:19:56.680 for even somebody that you know that's maybe 00:19:56.680 --> 00:20:01.079 honorable or good or caring or educated to be 00:20:01.079 --> 00:20:07.880 wrong. You are loved and safe with God. Teens. 00:20:08.480 --> 00:20:13.380 You don't have to hide from God to belong. The 00:20:13.380 --> 00:20:16.319 truth is that there are a lot of people already 00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:20.539 in your social groups, already Christians. Maybe 00:20:20.539 --> 00:20:23.240 they're a little quirky, but then if you have 00:20:23.240 --> 00:20:25.660 a true sense of yourself, you're a little quirky 00:20:25.660 --> 00:20:28.880 too. And you're all trying to be not quirky, 00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:33.460 not your odd self, not different, not unique. 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:35.960 But at the same time, outwardly say, but I am 00:20:35.960 --> 00:20:37.880 different. I am different. I'm not like them. 00:20:38.299 --> 00:20:40.779 So you're different but not different. It's a 00:20:40.779 --> 00:20:44.539 confusing choice to make as a teenager. The truth 00:20:44.539 --> 00:20:47.079 is, you don't have to hide from God to belong 00:20:47.079 --> 00:20:50.579 in your set, in your circle, in your section, 00:20:50.799 --> 00:20:55.220 in your hobbies, in your recreation. In our church, 00:20:55.299 --> 00:20:57.380 we've got artistic people, we've got gamers, 00:20:57.559 --> 00:21:00.440 we've got hard workers, we've got every kind 00:21:00.440 --> 00:21:02.839 of creative mind. And we're not that big of a 00:21:02.839 --> 00:21:06.240 church to have all of that. We're very blessed. 00:21:06.730 --> 00:21:11.690 You do not have to hide from God to belong. We 00:21:11.690 --> 00:21:13.769 have a young person that goes to Bowling Green, 00:21:13.910 --> 00:21:16.970 and she said she was sitting in her school class, 00:21:17.109 --> 00:21:19.529 and one of the students in her class is a devout 00:21:19.529 --> 00:21:22.630 atheist, and will argue the point to no end. 00:21:22.829 --> 00:21:24.690 And so she would sit there day after day and 00:21:24.690 --> 00:21:26.329 say nothing, because she didn't want to start 00:21:26.329 --> 00:21:29.150 a fight. She wouldn't say, God bless you. She 00:21:29.150 --> 00:21:32.170 wouldn't pray for people, talk about Jesus, whatever, 00:21:32.329 --> 00:21:33.549 because she didn't want to start a fight with 00:21:33.549 --> 00:21:36.680 that person. Only to find out later that of the 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:40.920 five people, three of the five, her, the other 00:21:40.920 --> 00:21:44.019 three, all Christians, all doing the exact same 00:21:44.019 --> 00:21:47.539 thing. All four of them. One devout atheist was 00:21:47.539 --> 00:21:50.099 shutting up four Christians who loved the Lord. 00:21:51.500 --> 00:21:55.240 It's not necessary. You do not have to hide from 00:21:55.240 --> 00:21:58.480 God to belong. And ultimately, those who are 00:21:58.480 --> 00:22:00.900 fighting against God will not belong with God. 00:22:01.140 --> 00:22:06.019 And we do, in the end. So choose your way according 00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:10.119 to his love for you. Adults, let the God who 00:22:10.119 --> 00:22:13.420 knows everything lead everything. And now at 00:22:13.420 --> 00:22:15.759 that point where the truth is, tomorrow you're 00:22:15.759 --> 00:22:16.859 going to get up and you've got to make your own 00:22:16.859 --> 00:22:20.420 decisions. What you wear, where you go, your 00:22:20.420 --> 00:22:23.119 schedule, your finances, your work, what you 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:24.980 do for work, whether or not you work, do you 00:22:24.980 --> 00:22:26.700 work hard, do you work just as hard as you have 00:22:26.700 --> 00:22:30.009 to, do you not work very hard at all? Will you 00:22:30.009 --> 00:22:31.730 take the medicine? Will you get the diagnosis? 00:22:32.049 --> 00:22:34.609 Will you get the procedure? All of that. You 00:22:34.609 --> 00:22:38.369 have to make all of those decisions. If you submit 00:22:38.369 --> 00:22:40.150 yourself to the doctor, the doctor makes all 00:22:40.150 --> 00:22:43.549 of those decisions for you, then they're going 00:22:43.549 --> 00:22:45.609 to make them based on the input that you give 00:22:45.609 --> 00:22:47.250 them. And if you go in telling them that you 00:22:47.250 --> 00:22:49.569 have pain, then they're going to give you diagnoses 00:22:49.569 --> 00:22:52.529 and medicines for pain because you have pain. 00:22:53.130 --> 00:22:55.309 And that's what they treat. If you go in and 00:22:55.309 --> 00:22:57.490 you say, well, something's not right in my body, 00:22:57.960 --> 00:23:00.079 then they're going to keep searching, ordering 00:23:00.079 --> 00:23:01.859 tests, whatever, until they find the thing that's 00:23:01.859 --> 00:23:04.240 not right in your body. And that's a good thing 00:23:04.240 --> 00:23:08.220 about doctors. But that's all they are. They're 00:23:08.220 --> 00:23:11.240 a sounding board for patients. So this I learned 00:23:11.240 --> 00:23:13.279 when I was a teenager. I was a young teen, and 00:23:13.279 --> 00:23:15.259 I busted my knee up pretty good playing side 00:23:15.259 --> 00:23:17.819 yard football. I caught an interception and ran 00:23:17.819 --> 00:23:20.140 it back, and the all -time QB, who was the 350 00:23:20.140 --> 00:23:23.180 -pound junior linebacker for Northwood High School, 00:23:23.400 --> 00:23:29.029 he tackled me. And as he tackled me, Their receiver 00:23:29.029 --> 00:23:30.990 also tackled me, and the receiver hit me on the 00:23:30.990 --> 00:23:32.869 top, and the big guy hit me on the legs, and 00:23:32.869 --> 00:23:36.170 I went to the emergency room. Long story short, 00:23:36.250 --> 00:23:37.630 I sat with the specialist, and he said, you've 00:23:37.630 --> 00:23:39.609 got to have this special surgery for your knee 00:23:39.609 --> 00:23:41.230 because you've got a bone in there that doesn't 00:23:41.230 --> 00:23:42.730 belong. You've got to get it removed. It's going 00:23:42.730 --> 00:23:44.349 to be six months recovery, but if you don't do 00:23:44.349 --> 00:23:48.049 that, it's going to be bad. And I wasn't a Christian 00:23:48.049 --> 00:23:50.670 at the time. My dad was a Christian, but he was 00:23:50.670 --> 00:23:52.430 backslidden out with the Lord. My mom wasn't 00:23:52.430 --> 00:23:53.809 a Christian. We didn't have anybody to appeal 00:23:53.809 --> 00:23:56.440 to for our higher knowledge. But we didn't know. 00:23:56.539 --> 00:23:57.740 So my parents said, well, it's up to you, Dan. 00:23:57.980 --> 00:24:00.980 Do you want the surgery or not? I'm a young teen. 00:24:02.339 --> 00:24:05.539 I'm in pain. I mean, you say no, you don't want 00:24:05.539 --> 00:24:07.000 the surgery, but you don't want the pain either, 00:24:07.160 --> 00:24:09.740 right? So I didn't know what to do. So he says, 00:24:09.819 --> 00:24:12.380 well, let me talk to him alone. And the doctor 00:24:12.380 --> 00:24:14.259 told me, he stood in the room, and I'm sitting 00:24:14.259 --> 00:24:16.000 on the bed, and he's towering over me. He was 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:17.859 like 6 '2", looking down at me with kind of a 00:24:17.859 --> 00:24:19.400 mean look on his face. And he said, you don't 00:24:19.400 --> 00:24:21.819 have this surgery. By the time you're 19, you'll 00:24:21.819 --> 00:24:24.019 be going pooping your pants every day. You will 00:24:24.019 --> 00:24:26.359 lose control of your bowels. You will not be 00:24:26.359 --> 00:24:28.059 able to take care of yourself. You'll be an invalid 00:24:28.059 --> 00:24:30.660 by the time you're 25. That's what he told me. 00:24:30.720 --> 00:24:32.680 Now, you imagine you're 13, 14 years old hearing 00:24:32.680 --> 00:24:36.839 that from a medical professional. As I was sitting 00:24:36.839 --> 00:24:39.539 there, I'm saying to myself, this doesn't seem 00:24:39.539 --> 00:24:41.119 right. This doesn't seem right. This doesn't 00:24:41.119 --> 00:24:43.960 seem right. This can't be right. So my parents 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:45.319 came back in the room and they said, well, what 00:24:45.319 --> 00:24:46.220 do you want to do? And I said, well, I'll tell 00:24:46.220 --> 00:24:48.619 you one thing for sure. I'm not letting that 00:24:48.619 --> 00:24:50.640 man operate on my knee. If I need a surgery, 00:24:50.839 --> 00:24:52.720 if I really need a surgery, somebody else can 00:24:52.720 --> 00:24:54.650 do it, but I'm not letting him do it. And I said, 00:24:54.670 --> 00:24:56.269 but I really need it. I said, at the very least, 00:24:56.269 --> 00:24:57.769 we need a second opinion. About a week later, 00:24:57.829 --> 00:25:00.710 my needs started to feel better. We kept putting 00:25:00.710 --> 00:25:02.789 it off and putting it off, as you tend to do 00:25:02.789 --> 00:25:05.109 when you need a surgery. And about six months 00:25:05.109 --> 00:25:06.450 later, there was a girl in my high school who 00:25:06.450 --> 00:25:08.250 got the same diagnosis. She had a surgery and 00:25:08.250 --> 00:25:09.609 it took her a year and a half to learn to walk 00:25:09.609 --> 00:25:13.089 again. I never got the surgery. I didn't need 00:25:13.089 --> 00:25:15.789 the surgery. I was 55 years old now. That's over 00:25:15.789 --> 00:25:19.710 40 years ago. I didn't need the surgery. But 00:25:19.710 --> 00:25:22.559 that doctor... was saying all kinds of very harsh 00:25:22.559 --> 00:25:24.299 things about going to the bathroom in your pants 00:25:24.299 --> 00:25:26.160 and stuff like that to try to get me to take 00:25:26.160 --> 00:25:28.859 that surgery. And if I had given in in that moment, 00:25:28.960 --> 00:25:31.799 I'd have had a surgery. You have got to make 00:25:31.799 --> 00:25:34.000 the decisions of your life. And the great blessing 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:36.799 that Psalm 139 points out is that there is a 00:25:36.799 --> 00:25:39.660 God who knows everything, who made everything, 00:25:39.819 --> 00:25:42.799 and He is worthy to follow, and He will lead 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:49.529 you if you let Him. At this point in time, we're 00:25:49.529 --> 00:25:51.190 finishing up. We're going to pray together in 00:25:51.190 --> 00:25:53.750 a moment. But first, we're going to have just 00:25:53.750 --> 00:25:55.829 a moment's worship. So Brother Tim is going to 00:25:55.829 --> 00:25:57.069 come at this time and he's going to lead us in 00:25:57.069 --> 00:25:59.269 a song. We've got a PowerPoint coming up up here. 00:26:01.390 --> 00:26:08.309 It's on. I'll let it shut off. Alright, so you're 00:26:08.309 --> 00:26:12.250 going to stand. Stand, stand. We're all going 00:26:12.250 --> 00:26:14.690 to stand. And we're going to sing this song with 00:26:14.690 --> 00:29:16.819 Brother Tim. Come on! You can be seated for a 00:29:16.819 --> 00:29:28.640 moment. That same God who knows us best loved 00:29:28.640 --> 00:29:34.839 us most. Of all creation, elevated man to have 00:29:34.839 --> 00:29:38.500 dominion over everything ever made. And then 00:29:38.500 --> 00:29:42.099 when man misused that dominion and took sin as 00:29:42.099 --> 00:29:44.079 an alternative, that is to say, did not honor 00:29:44.079 --> 00:29:50.859 God with... His and her choices. God sent Jesus 00:29:50.859 --> 00:29:53.319 to bring us on. While we were yet sinners, Christ 00:29:53.319 --> 00:29:58.140 died for us. For those of you who are in the 00:29:58.140 --> 00:30:00.059 room who have already accepted Jesus Christ as 00:30:00.059 --> 00:30:01.740 your Lord, that means He tells you what to do. 00:30:02.660 --> 00:30:05.000 And your Savior, that means you know that He 00:30:05.000 --> 00:30:08.980 paid the price for your sins. This message is 00:30:08.980 --> 00:30:15.250 clear. Trust Him who knows. and still loves, 00:30:15.329 --> 00:30:18.910 and still saves, and still has the right to lead. 00:30:20.849 --> 00:30:22.950 For those of you who have not accepted Jesus 00:30:22.950 --> 00:30:25.170 Christ as your Lord and Savior, and I'm fully 00:30:25.170 --> 00:30:27.490 aware that someone could accept God as Savior, 00:30:27.630 --> 00:30:29.390 that means, oh, I'm so glad he saved me, yay, 00:30:29.470 --> 00:30:30.910 I get to go to heaven when I die, I accepted 00:30:30.910 --> 00:30:33.950 the free gift of salvation, and has not accepted 00:30:33.950 --> 00:30:36.190 him as Lord, except it is the quality of Lord, 00:30:36.289 --> 00:30:38.890 not the quality of Savior, that Romans 10 says 00:30:38.890 --> 00:30:41.079 we must embrace. And so if you have accepted 00:30:41.079 --> 00:30:42.900 Jesus just as Savior, and oh, thank goodness 00:30:42.900 --> 00:30:45.859 he paid the price for my sins, but not Lord, 00:30:46.019 --> 00:30:49.640 he has the right to lead me, then it is a message 00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:53.920 to trust his leadership. To commit yourself today 00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:57.380 to follow him. I think that Ariana and Haley 00:30:57.380 --> 00:31:01.619 and myself had to trust in God to do this lesson 00:31:01.619 --> 00:31:06.539 today. And we did. You had to trust in God at 00:31:06.539 --> 00:31:08.279 least a little bit to come here today, or maybe 00:31:08.279 --> 00:31:11.089 you trusted. The safety of the place, the friendliness 00:31:11.089 --> 00:31:13.410 of the people, the comfort of the chair, the 00:31:13.410 --> 00:31:16.369 warmth compared to the outside cold. I'm telling 00:31:16.369 --> 00:31:18.549 you that those things all come and go in life. 00:31:18.910 --> 00:31:22.009 But there is only one God. And you'll be saved 00:31:22.009 --> 00:31:24.750 by trusting Him with your life and having Him 00:31:24.750 --> 00:31:27.450 as your Lord. We're going to close in prayer. 00:31:27.549 --> 00:31:29.269 And as I pray, I'll pray a prayer of salvation 00:31:29.269 --> 00:31:31.950 that will include those two facets of this lesson. 00:31:32.430 --> 00:31:35.390 Then we are done in this room. We'll retreat 00:31:35.390 --> 00:31:38.859 to the cafeteria where we have... cake in honor 00:31:38.859 --> 00:31:45.640 of birthdays, and mini hot dogs. Right? Is that 00:31:45.640 --> 00:31:48.819 what we're calling them? Mini what? Chili dogs. 00:31:49.140 --> 00:31:52.079 Yeah, mini chili dogs. Not chili as in cold, 00:31:52.180 --> 00:31:54.160 but chili as in they have chili sauce on them. 00:31:54.400 --> 00:31:58.200 All right? So let's pray. Pray with me, because 00:31:58.200 --> 00:32:00.500 there might be somebody listening who's not saved. 00:32:00.799 --> 00:32:02.740 Even if they're not in this room, this message 00:32:02.740 --> 00:32:07.180 will go out across the world. Father in heaven, 00:32:07.279 --> 00:32:12.759 great creator, giver of all good things, designer 00:32:12.759 --> 00:32:17.539 of all functional patterns, a layer out of the 00:32:17.539 --> 00:32:21.539 borders of all nations, assigner of all tasks, 00:32:21.759 --> 00:32:26.359 giver of all kings and presidents, sovereign 00:32:26.359 --> 00:32:33.960 God. We recognize that even in a day when to 00:32:33.960 --> 00:32:37.279 recognize, Who and what you are doesn't mean 00:32:37.279 --> 00:32:39.960 the same thing to everybody. Lord, we recognize 00:32:39.960 --> 00:32:45.880 that you are Lord. When light hovered just outside 00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:48.240 of existence, and that's hard for our minds to 00:32:48.240 --> 00:32:54.259 fathom, I understand, you said, light be. Let 00:32:54.259 --> 00:32:56.539 there be light, as the English translates it. 00:32:58.700 --> 00:33:00.900 And we are grateful that you did that because 00:33:00.900 --> 00:33:03.779 our eyes collect light. And by that we see as 00:33:03.779 --> 00:33:05.859 the light bounces off different colors and shapes 00:33:05.859 --> 00:33:08.680 and things. And then we know that there are those 00:33:08.680 --> 00:33:11.940 who suffer from blindness. From birth sometimes, 00:33:12.299 --> 00:33:17.339 later, or near the end, or while they still have 00:33:17.339 --> 00:33:22.720 a lot of time left. And we're kind of partial 00:33:22.720 --> 00:33:26.339 to being able to see. It's a great gift from 00:33:26.339 --> 00:33:31.420 you. It goes on. We turn down water in favor 00:33:31.420 --> 00:33:37.579 of coffee or soda or juice. But you made water 00:33:37.579 --> 00:33:42.980 the stuff that life needs. It's made of. There 00:33:42.980 --> 00:33:45.920 is a part of us, even as we recognize you as 00:33:45.920 --> 00:33:50.200 Lord, that fails to trust the pattern, the design, 00:33:50.460 --> 00:33:54.240 the plan that you have for us. We want to say, 00:33:54.440 --> 00:33:58.789 well, God knows best, but... Today, I know better. 00:33:59.869 --> 00:34:03.609 In this moment, I know what I want. God knows 00:34:03.609 --> 00:34:06.150 what I want, and if I wait around for him to 00:34:06.150 --> 00:34:10.289 give it to me, he may not. Lord, we need to trust 00:34:10.289 --> 00:34:13.570 you. And for the Christians in this room who 00:34:13.570 --> 00:34:15.389 have you as Lord, that means we're supposed to 00:34:15.389 --> 00:34:17.889 do what you say. And Savior, that means you paid 00:34:17.889 --> 00:34:22.289 the price for our sins. We commit ourselves to 00:34:22.289 --> 00:34:25.650 trust you now. It means we know that things are 00:34:25.650 --> 00:34:30.260 going to happen. That shake us a little. Make 00:34:30.260 --> 00:34:33.219 forward progress more difficult. Maybe even stop 00:34:33.219 --> 00:34:37.199 us in our tracks. Maybe even drop us in a pit. 00:34:37.940 --> 00:34:39.920 I think of the prophets and how they suffered. 00:34:39.980 --> 00:34:42.619 The apostles and how they suffered. One of us 00:34:42.619 --> 00:34:48.300 could wind up on a cross. Or in front of the 00:34:48.300 --> 00:34:55.570 barrel of a gun. Or worse. Lord, we commit ourselves 00:34:55.570 --> 00:34:59.230 to trust you with what is and with what's coming. 00:35:00.070 --> 00:35:02.650 And we are grateful to know that you already 00:35:02.650 --> 00:35:06.429 know what is and what's coming. For those of 00:35:06.429 --> 00:35:09.289 us in this room, Lord, who do not know you as 00:35:09.289 --> 00:35:14.449 Lord, moving in our spirits just now, I pray 00:35:14.449 --> 00:35:16.769 that that person, whether they're actually in 00:35:16.769 --> 00:35:19.710 this room with us or dialing in on Facebook or... 00:35:20.119 --> 00:35:21.739 whether they catch this later on one of the other 00:35:21.739 --> 00:35:23.719 social media outlets or whether it comes out 00:35:23.719 --> 00:35:25.840 on the podcast and they listen to it. Let's see 00:35:25.840 --> 00:35:28.300 if I can remember one of those cities, Bangladesh 00:35:28.300 --> 00:35:35.940 or Burma. I don't know. Lord, wherever they might 00:35:35.940 --> 00:35:37.679 be in the world, if they listen to this, I pray 00:35:37.679 --> 00:35:40.679 that right now that their soul will be crying 00:35:40.679 --> 00:35:44.340 out and saying, I need a savior, but I realize 00:35:44.340 --> 00:35:48.440 I'm being offered a Lord and I need that. And 00:35:48.440 --> 00:35:51.280 they would say, okay God, whether I ever talk 00:35:51.280 --> 00:35:54.559 to Dan Stevenson or Haley or Ariana or anybody 00:35:54.559 --> 00:35:56.559 else that was in that room that day singing that 00:35:56.559 --> 00:36:01.860 music, reading those verses, thinking of me, 00:36:01.980 --> 00:36:04.360 whether I ever talk to any one of them or not, 00:36:04.480 --> 00:36:07.179 I give my life to you to do with what you please. 00:36:07.940 --> 00:36:10.099 Because I realize now it was already yours in 00:36:10.099 --> 00:36:13.179 the first place. Father, go with us as we go 00:36:13.179 --> 00:36:16.780 out. Make us your messengers of mercy, your reconcilers 00:36:16.780 --> 00:36:20.079 of sinners. Help us bring people to you the best 00:36:20.079 --> 00:36:27.260 we know how. Go with us as the light. And let 00:36:27.260 --> 00:36:29.519 us serve you. And we pray it in Jesus' name. 00:36:30.079 --> 00:36:31.539 Amen. Thank you very much.