WEBVTT 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:19.780 Proverbs chapter 3. Proverbs chapter 3. I have 00:00:19.780 --> 00:00:24.480 said this many, many times, and I will say it 00:00:24.480 --> 00:00:27.559 many more times. If you've not read the Proverbs, 00:00:27.760 --> 00:00:31.489 you need to read the book of Proverbs. There's 00:00:31.489 --> 00:00:34.009 31 of them, so you can start the first day of 00:00:34.009 --> 00:00:36.189 the month and you can finish it up in about a 00:00:36.189 --> 00:00:40.250 month. And there's a lot of good wisdom there. 00:00:40.530 --> 00:00:44.770 And for me at least, and maybe for you too in 00:00:44.770 --> 00:00:47.969 your experience, when I read through the book 00:00:47.969 --> 00:00:50.990 of Proverbs, it's kind of like a test for me 00:00:50.990 --> 00:00:54.070 in some way because it'll tell me about all the 00:00:54.070 --> 00:00:58.240 stuff the wise person does and should do. But 00:00:58.240 --> 00:01:00.100 it'll also tell you all the stuff that the fool 00:01:00.100 --> 00:01:05.939 does and should not do. And I wish that more 00:01:05.939 --> 00:01:08.299 times than not I could put a check mark in the 00:01:08.299 --> 00:01:13.079 wise column. But too many times I end up saying, 00:01:13.219 --> 00:01:15.299 golly, I'm the fool. You know, we don't like 00:01:15.299 --> 00:01:18.500 to think of ourselves as fools. But God's word 00:01:18.500 --> 00:01:21.159 is true and it's good. And if we read through 00:01:21.159 --> 00:01:24.980 scriptures and it says one thing, and that's 00:01:24.980 --> 00:01:27.579 what our life lines up with, then that's the 00:01:27.579 --> 00:01:32.579 truth. And so Proverbs is a good test for us. 00:01:32.700 --> 00:01:36.640 It's a good gauge for us as to where we rise 00:01:36.640 --> 00:01:39.040 on the wisdom meter. Are we close to the top 00:01:39.040 --> 00:01:43.099 or are we closer into that foolish zone? Now 00:01:43.099 --> 00:01:46.400 you've probably, if you've read Scripture much 00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:50.040 or heard Scripture much, it's a good chance that 00:01:50.040 --> 00:01:53.379 you've heard Proverbs chapter 3 verses 5 and 00:01:53.379 --> 00:01:56.560 6 quoted at some point. Maybe you have not ever 00:01:56.560 --> 00:01:58.799 heard it in your life. Today may be the first 00:01:58.799 --> 00:02:02.599 time you ever hear Proverbs chapter 3 verse 5 00:02:02.599 --> 00:02:07.060 and 6. Praise the Lord. It is such a good verse. 00:02:07.379 --> 00:02:11.860 And there are some scriptures that really don't 00:02:11.860 --> 00:02:15.180 need a whole lot of explanation. And some of 00:02:15.180 --> 00:02:17.120 you are saying, well good, you won't talk very 00:02:17.120 --> 00:02:18.780 long today. You can preach and get on out of 00:02:18.780 --> 00:02:21.979 here. And it really doesn't need a whole lot 00:02:21.979 --> 00:02:25.900 of explanation. But it is a good scripture for 00:02:25.900 --> 00:02:28.659 us to consider and think about. And it's a good 00:02:28.659 --> 00:02:32.439 reminder. I think it's important for us to continually 00:02:32.439 --> 00:02:35.740 read the Word of God. Now, maybe you've read 00:02:35.740 --> 00:02:38.819 the Word of God. Maybe you sat down one season 00:02:38.819 --> 00:02:41.800 in your life and you started in Genesis and you 00:02:41.800 --> 00:02:44.099 read through Revelation and you said, well, I've 00:02:44.099 --> 00:02:48.610 read that book. I know what it says, but... The 00:02:48.610 --> 00:02:51.689 word of God is so good that we need to continually 00:02:51.689 --> 00:02:54.830 read it. We're always learning something. God 00:02:54.830 --> 00:02:57.969 can always speak to us through his word. And 00:02:57.969 --> 00:03:00.689 quite frankly, there's a lot in there. And sometimes 00:03:00.689 --> 00:03:03.389 we forget it. Sometimes we just need to be reminded 00:03:03.389 --> 00:03:07.090 of even verses that perhaps we've heard many 00:03:07.090 --> 00:03:10.729 times. Sometimes in our life, we just need that 00:03:10.729 --> 00:03:15.629 fresh reminder, that word of encouragement or 00:03:15.629 --> 00:03:18.639 that word of instruction or that word. of correction, 00:03:18.860 --> 00:03:22.159 whatever it may be. And maybe this is a verse 00:03:22.159 --> 00:03:25.539 that you've heard before, or maybe not, but maybe 00:03:25.539 --> 00:03:29.620 today we can find some strength in what this 00:03:29.620 --> 00:03:31.240 scripture says. So we're going to read these 00:03:31.240 --> 00:03:34.000 couple of verses, then we'll pray, and then we'll 00:03:34.000 --> 00:03:38.379 talk for just a moment. Proverbs chapter 3, verses 00:03:38.379 --> 00:03:41.840 5 and 6. Proverbs chapter 3, that's in the Old 00:03:41.840 --> 00:03:44.539 Testament, right after the book of Psalms, kind 00:03:44.539 --> 00:03:47.909 of in the middle of your Bible. Proverbs chapter 00:03:47.909 --> 00:03:55.949 3, verses 5 and 6. Trust in the Lord with all 00:03:55.949 --> 00:04:00.550 your heart and do not rely on your own understanding. 00:04:01.849 --> 00:04:06.270 Think about him in all your ways. He will guide 00:04:06.270 --> 00:04:10.770 you on the right paths. Let's pray. God, we thank 00:04:10.770 --> 00:04:13.210 you for this word. We thank you for the truth 00:04:13.210 --> 00:04:16.699 of this word. And I pray, dear Lord, that you 00:04:16.699 --> 00:04:22.620 would help us to follow its instruction. God, 00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:24.399 I pray that you would help us to be a people 00:04:24.399 --> 00:04:26.300 today who would trust you. Maybe there are some 00:04:26.300 --> 00:04:28.860 in here and they've never trusted you in their 00:04:28.860 --> 00:04:32.240 life. Maybe they're going through this world 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:35.120 and they're struggling and they're seeking something 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:38.800 and they don't know what it is, but God, I pray 00:04:38.800 --> 00:04:40.620 today that they would know that it's you that 00:04:40.620 --> 00:04:43.639 they need. Maybe there are some that are yours 00:04:43.639 --> 00:04:46.550 today and they, Just need to be reminded of this 00:04:46.550 --> 00:04:49.810 truth, dear Lord, because life is so hard and 00:04:49.810 --> 00:04:52.769 it is full of difficulties and struggles and 00:04:52.769 --> 00:04:56.050 pains and hardships and tough decisions and bad 00:04:56.050 --> 00:05:00.290 days at work and a lot of stuff, dear Lord, that 00:05:00.290 --> 00:05:03.750 it's just hard to make it through or understand 00:05:03.750 --> 00:05:07.149 what's going on. But I pray, dear Lord, that 00:05:07.149 --> 00:05:11.449 this verse would be a call to us today to remind 00:05:11.449 --> 00:05:16.089 us to trust in you. God, I pray that you'd take 00:05:16.089 --> 00:05:18.629 away any fear or pride that's within me. I pray 00:05:18.629 --> 00:05:21.389 that you would hide me behind the cross, that 00:05:21.389 --> 00:05:23.449 I would preach and teach in a way that brings 00:05:23.449 --> 00:05:26.449 glory and honor to you. Let your Holy Spirit 00:05:26.449 --> 00:05:29.009 be among us today, free us of worries and distractions. 00:05:29.930 --> 00:05:35.410 In Jesus' name I pray it. Amen. When I was a 00:05:35.410 --> 00:05:38.829 young kid, I don't even know how old I was. I'm 00:05:38.829 --> 00:05:41.329 going to guess about four or five years old. 00:05:42.170 --> 00:05:44.889 We had a pastor of this church at the time. His 00:05:44.889 --> 00:05:47.649 name was Brother Frank Traylor. Some of you remember 00:05:47.649 --> 00:05:50.089 him. Some of you were here at that point in time. 00:05:50.329 --> 00:05:53.189 And he was the first pastor I ever remember in 00:05:53.189 --> 00:05:56.029 my life. But one Sunday morning, he had this 00:05:56.029 --> 00:05:58.769 big thing that he wanted to do. Now, he usually 00:05:58.769 --> 00:06:01.129 didn't do anything that I remembered as a kid, 00:06:01.170 --> 00:06:02.889 too out of the ordinary. But I was young, so 00:06:02.889 --> 00:06:06.110 I don't know. But one Sunday morning, he asked 00:06:06.110 --> 00:06:10.550 for my assistance. And we came to church that 00:06:10.550 --> 00:06:13.889 Sunday morning, and right here in this spot, 00:06:14.069 --> 00:06:17.129 set a table about this big. It was about this 00:06:17.129 --> 00:06:21.569 high. And he wanted me to come up and stand on 00:06:21.569 --> 00:06:23.850 that table, which I did. I was excited to get 00:06:23.850 --> 00:06:26.829 to come up front and center. And I came, and 00:06:26.829 --> 00:06:29.370 I stood on this table, and he talked about, I 00:06:29.370 --> 00:06:30.870 don't remember what the scripture was. It may 00:06:30.870 --> 00:06:33.610 have been this scripture. I don't know. And he 00:06:33.610 --> 00:06:38.250 talked about trust, that we need to. have trust 00:06:38.250 --> 00:06:40.410 in our life, that we need to trust the Lord. 00:06:40.529 --> 00:06:42.410 And he said, I want you to stand on the table 00:06:42.410 --> 00:06:45.990 and I want you to fall backwards and trust that 00:06:45.990 --> 00:06:48.410 I'm going to catch you. And I did just that. 00:06:48.449 --> 00:06:51.370 I stood on the table and fell and he caught me. 00:06:51.850 --> 00:06:56.009 And a simple illustration that was, but it was 00:06:56.009 --> 00:06:59.269 effective because I remember it 38 years later, 00:06:59.350 --> 00:07:02.129 what it means to trust. What it means to trust 00:07:02.129 --> 00:07:05.879 is that is that you have to have faith in something 00:07:05.879 --> 00:07:11.079 that you don't see. That's what faith is. Faith 00:07:11.079 --> 00:07:14.759 is trusting in something that you do not see. 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:18.220 Now, we come here every Sunday to praise the 00:07:18.220 --> 00:07:20.860 Lord. Now, we don't see the Lord sitting in a 00:07:20.860 --> 00:07:25.079 chair. We don't shake his hand, but we know that 00:07:25.079 --> 00:07:27.399 God is real, or we believe that God is real, 00:07:27.660 --> 00:07:29.939 or we trust that God is real. Or maybe you're 00:07:29.939 --> 00:07:32.579 not even sure if God is real today. Maybe that's 00:07:32.579 --> 00:07:34.500 why you come every Sunday. Maybe you're still 00:07:34.500 --> 00:07:37.879 trying to figure out, like, is God really there? 00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:41.360 Does he really exist? Is all this stuff really 00:07:41.360 --> 00:07:44.899 true? Well, keep seeking. If that's you today, 00:07:45.100 --> 00:07:47.480 then you need to keep seeking the word of God. 00:07:48.079 --> 00:07:51.959 And that's what God calls us to. Now, we have 00:07:51.959 --> 00:07:54.079 all the proof that we're ever going to have in 00:07:54.079 --> 00:07:57.259 the word of God. We have all the proof that we're 00:07:57.259 --> 00:08:00.720 ever going to have. in the life and the crucifixion 00:08:00.720 --> 00:08:02.980 and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That's 00:08:02.980 --> 00:08:06.839 the proof that God has given us. And we're called 00:08:06.839 --> 00:08:10.860 to trust that, to have faith in that, even though 00:08:10.860 --> 00:08:15.300 we don't see it. And that simple illustration 00:08:15.300 --> 00:08:18.160 that Brother Frank did all those years ago was 00:08:18.160 --> 00:08:22.560 something that stuck with me. He said he was 00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:24.399 going to catch me, but was he really going to 00:08:24.399 --> 00:08:27.410 catch me? I had to. Trust him. We trust people 00:08:27.410 --> 00:08:30.470 all the time. You trust people when you go out 00:08:30.470 --> 00:08:32.590 to eat. You trust that they're going to cook 00:08:32.590 --> 00:08:34.289 your food properly, that you're not going to 00:08:34.289 --> 00:08:37.690 get food poisoning. In just a little while, you're 00:08:37.690 --> 00:08:39.230 going to leave these doors. You're going to go 00:08:39.230 --> 00:08:41.789 get into your car, and you're going to trust 00:08:41.789 --> 00:08:44.070 that all the cars you're going to pass from here 00:08:44.070 --> 00:08:46.649 until you get to your next destination are going 00:08:46.649 --> 00:08:49.389 to stay in their lane. You're going to trust 00:08:49.389 --> 00:08:51.070 that everybody's going to do what they're supposed 00:08:51.070 --> 00:08:53.350 to do, that they're not going to run the red 00:08:53.350 --> 00:08:56.830 light. Some of you have been to a doctor or will 00:08:56.830 --> 00:08:59.470 be going to a doctor at some point. And they're 00:08:59.470 --> 00:09:01.970 going to do some surgery on you. And they're 00:09:01.970 --> 00:09:03.850 going to say, here's what I'm going to do. I'm 00:09:03.850 --> 00:09:05.570 going to put you to sleep. And then I'm going 00:09:05.570 --> 00:09:08.990 to get all kind of crazy snips and pliers and 00:09:08.990 --> 00:09:11.769 knives and saws. And I'm going to cut you open. 00:09:11.889 --> 00:09:13.889 And I'm going to cut this. And I'm going to do 00:09:13.889 --> 00:09:16.409 that. And I'm going to set your heart out. And 00:09:16.409 --> 00:09:18.049 I'm going to fix this. And I'm going to patch 00:09:18.049 --> 00:09:20.230 this up. Or I'm going to put a new one in. Or 00:09:20.230 --> 00:09:23.309 whatever it is. It's amazing what technology 00:09:23.309 --> 00:09:26.230 can do in the medical field. And many of you 00:09:26.230 --> 00:09:27.909 have experienced that. They say, I'm going to 00:09:27.909 --> 00:09:29.620 put you to sleep. sleeping. I'm going to do this. 00:09:30.799 --> 00:09:33.259 And you have to trust that they're going to do 00:09:33.259 --> 00:09:34.740 what they say. You're going to have to trust 00:09:34.740 --> 00:09:38.799 that that doctor knows what he's doing. You're 00:09:38.799 --> 00:09:40.799 going to have to trust that you're going to wake 00:09:40.799 --> 00:09:44.899 up. And so there's many ways in our life that 00:09:44.899 --> 00:09:48.000 we have trusted this week, probably more than 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:49.620 you can think of. There's a lot of people that 00:09:49.620 --> 00:09:54.740 you have trusted this week. And if we trust all 00:09:54.740 --> 00:09:57.830 these people around us, if we trust our children 00:09:57.830 --> 00:10:00.210 and our spouses, if we trust those who we look 00:10:00.210 --> 00:10:03.889 up to, if we trust our doctors, then how much 00:10:03.889 --> 00:10:10.210 more so should we trust the Lord? And sometimes 00:10:10.210 --> 00:10:15.730 it's hard because life is hard. Now, if life 00:10:15.730 --> 00:10:18.779 was good, and we always had an abundance of money 00:10:18.779 --> 00:10:21.480 in our bank account, and our health was good, 00:10:21.659 --> 00:10:24.679 and we never had any issues, our family life 00:10:24.679 --> 00:10:27.639 was good, if all of these things were always 00:10:27.639 --> 00:10:31.539 good, then we wouldn't ever even have to preach 00:10:31.539 --> 00:10:33.480 from this verse because we would just trust God 00:10:33.480 --> 00:10:37.700 and would never think twice about anything. But 00:10:37.700 --> 00:10:41.879 that's not how life is. We have to trust God 00:10:41.879 --> 00:10:45.299 because... You don't know if you're going to 00:10:45.299 --> 00:10:48.700 have your job next week. You don't know if you're 00:10:48.700 --> 00:10:52.299 going to get a paycheck next week. You don't 00:10:52.299 --> 00:10:54.539 know if your car is going to be running next 00:10:54.539 --> 00:10:58.100 week. You don't know about that struggle you're 00:10:58.100 --> 00:11:01.279 having with family. You don't know about that 00:11:01.279 --> 00:11:03.460 diagnosis you got at the doctor. You don't know 00:11:03.460 --> 00:11:05.799 about your loved one who's struggling and who's 00:11:05.799 --> 00:11:08.440 suffering, who's in pain. You don't know what 00:11:08.440 --> 00:11:12.100 the future holds. And so it's hard because we 00:11:12.100 --> 00:11:16.000 say, okay, God. What are you doing, God? Why 00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:18.220 do you allow this to take place? Why are you 00:11:18.220 --> 00:11:21.980 allowing this to occur? And that's when it's 00:11:21.980 --> 00:11:26.639 hard to trust God. And that's our life. You may 00:11:26.639 --> 00:11:28.419 have a good season. You may have a bad season. 00:11:28.500 --> 00:11:30.460 You may be in a great spot right now. You may 00:11:30.460 --> 00:11:32.460 really be struggling with something right now. 00:11:33.860 --> 00:11:35.899 And if you're not struggling, then praise the 00:11:35.899 --> 00:11:37.879 Lord. Just put you a check mark by this verse 00:11:37.879 --> 00:11:41.820 and just tuck it away and hold on to it. Because 00:11:41.820 --> 00:11:44.759 one day you're going to need it. But maybe today 00:11:44.759 --> 00:11:47.620 you do come in here today and you're struggling 00:11:47.620 --> 00:11:50.399 in one of those ways that I've said are one of 00:11:50.399 --> 00:11:52.559 the many ways that we hadn't even scratched the 00:11:52.559 --> 00:11:55.080 surface of all the ways in which we may suffer, 00:11:55.299 --> 00:11:59.220 in which we may be struggling in our life. And 00:11:59.220 --> 00:12:01.440 maybe this verse is what God wants us to hear 00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:08.019 today. A call to trust Him. That God cares about 00:12:08.019 --> 00:12:12.370 us today. That He is not, forgotten you today. 00:12:12.470 --> 00:12:14.769 Sometimes it feels as though God has forgotten 00:12:14.769 --> 00:12:18.529 us today or that God does not have our best interest 00:12:18.529 --> 00:12:20.830 in mind, but I want to tell you that that is 00:12:20.830 --> 00:12:24.789 a lie from the devil. That God does love you, 00:12:24.830 --> 00:12:26.970 that God has not forgotten about you, that God 00:12:26.970 --> 00:12:30.210 does have your best interest in mind, but there's 00:12:30.210 --> 00:12:32.250 also another truth I want to tell you and that 00:12:32.250 --> 00:12:36.509 is life is hard. And God could spare us from 00:12:36.509 --> 00:12:40.059 everything And sometimes he does spare us. Sometimes 00:12:40.059 --> 00:12:43.279 he does deliver us. And sometimes he allows us 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:46.820 to walk through the fire. Like Shadrach, Meshach, 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:48.799 and Abednego. Boy, that's a good story if you 00:12:48.799 --> 00:12:51.320 never heard it. They're living for the Lord. 00:12:51.399 --> 00:12:53.360 They're standing up for the Lord. And they get 00:12:53.360 --> 00:12:55.860 tossed into the fire. And who is in the middle 00:12:55.860 --> 00:12:59.500 of the fire with them? The Lord. There's three 00:12:59.500 --> 00:13:01.340 people that get tossed into the fire. The people 00:13:01.340 --> 00:13:03.320 looking on say, wait a minute, I thought we threw 00:13:03.320 --> 00:13:05.259 three people in there. Why is it that we see 00:13:05.259 --> 00:13:09.440 four people in the fire? It's because the Lord 00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:13.279 was with them. That was the closest they had 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:15.019 ever been to the Lord was in the middle of the 00:13:15.019 --> 00:13:18.019 fire. And some of you can testify to that today. 00:13:19.179 --> 00:13:21.720 That maybe the closest you've ever drawn to the 00:13:21.720 --> 00:13:24.620 Lord, the most you've ever trusted in the Lord 00:13:24.620 --> 00:13:27.820 was a result of the fire that you went through. 00:13:28.519 --> 00:13:32.289 That hardship and that struggle. that pain that 00:13:32.289 --> 00:13:35.309 you've gone through physically or just with life 00:13:35.309 --> 00:13:38.309 and it's been a fire and you've just wanted to 00:13:38.309 --> 00:13:40.769 give up and throw your hands up and some of you 00:13:40.769 --> 00:13:44.309 are there today maybe. You're in the middle of 00:13:44.309 --> 00:13:45.990 that fire and you feel like, man, I'm fixing 00:13:45.990 --> 00:13:50.210 to get burned up. But I want to let you know 00:13:50.210 --> 00:13:52.629 that the Lord is with you today in the middle 00:13:52.629 --> 00:13:55.789 of the fire. Boy, if you would just trust him, 00:13:55.809 --> 00:13:59.289 if you would just seek him, I'm not telling you 00:13:59.289 --> 00:14:01.629 that he's going to... keep you from going into 00:14:01.629 --> 00:14:05.350 the fire. But I'm going to tell you that if you're 00:14:05.350 --> 00:14:07.169 in the fire, he's going to be in there with you. 00:14:08.350 --> 00:14:10.509 And you might discover that your faith grows 00:14:10.509 --> 00:14:15.049 more in the Lord in the midst of the fires than 00:14:15.049 --> 00:14:18.610 in the good seasons of life. And maybe that's 00:14:18.610 --> 00:14:21.870 why God allows us to go through the fires. He 00:14:21.870 --> 00:14:24.110 wants to make us and mold us and strengthen us 00:14:24.110 --> 00:14:27.830 and harden us and use that fire to get the impurities, 00:14:27.909 --> 00:14:31.740 just boil them right out of there. Because, man, 00:14:31.799 --> 00:14:35.159 we come through those things sometimes so much 00:14:35.159 --> 00:14:39.080 stronger than we were going in if we would just 00:14:39.080 --> 00:14:42.580 trust in the Lord. And so it's hard to trust 00:14:42.580 --> 00:14:45.899 in the Lord, but who else are we going to trust 00:14:45.899 --> 00:14:49.840 in? If you're not trusting in God today, who 00:14:49.840 --> 00:14:53.179 or what are you trusting in? And we can make 00:14:53.179 --> 00:14:56.460 a long list of things that we trust in. But I 00:14:56.460 --> 00:14:59.529 want to ask you this, is it helping you? What 00:14:59.529 --> 00:15:02.509 are you trusting in? Is it helping you? Yeah, 00:15:02.529 --> 00:15:04.409 maybe it's giving you some momentary relief, 00:15:04.529 --> 00:15:06.470 some momentary comfort. It's getting your mind 00:15:06.470 --> 00:15:09.029 off of your struggle for a moment. But is it 00:15:09.029 --> 00:15:13.690 really helping you? It's not. You know it's not. 00:15:13.730 --> 00:15:17.870 I know it's not. We all have those things. So 00:15:17.870 --> 00:15:21.450 many times we trust in the wrong thing. And we 00:15:21.450 --> 00:15:23.590 wonder why we can't find any comfort and peace 00:15:23.590 --> 00:15:25.830 and help and guidance. It's because we're trusting 00:15:25.830 --> 00:15:31.440 in the wrong thing. But the scripture says, trust 00:15:31.440 --> 00:15:36.019 in the Lord with all your heart. So some of you 00:15:36.019 --> 00:15:39.019 may say today, okay, I trust in the Lord. I believe 00:15:39.019 --> 00:15:41.039 that God exists. I believe that God is good. 00:15:41.879 --> 00:15:45.960 Life is still hard. I trust in the Lord. But 00:15:45.960 --> 00:15:47.559 do you trust in the Lord with all your heart? 00:15:49.740 --> 00:15:53.440 Maybe you do. But then again, maybe you don't. 00:15:54.840 --> 00:15:56.419 Maybe you trust in the Lord with some of your 00:15:56.419 --> 00:15:58.590 heart. Well, God, I trust you, and I know you're 00:15:58.590 --> 00:16:01.509 pretty good, and I know I'm praying to ask you 00:16:01.509 --> 00:16:04.509 to do this thing, but, God, you're not really 00:16:04.509 --> 00:16:06.590 doing it as quick as I want or in the way that 00:16:06.590 --> 00:16:09.549 I want, so I'm going to also help you out a little 00:16:09.549 --> 00:16:11.929 bit, God. I'm going to keep praying to you that 00:16:11.929 --> 00:16:14.690 you'd do this, but just in case you can't do 00:16:14.690 --> 00:16:16.730 it, I'm going to go ahead and I'm going to start 00:16:16.730 --> 00:16:18.750 making arrangements to get it done my way too, 00:16:18.830 --> 00:16:21.769 just in case. Now, we would never say those words 00:16:21.769 --> 00:16:25.549 to God, but we do those actions to God. We'll 00:16:25.549 --> 00:16:28.129 pray and we'll seek God. But then we really don't 00:16:28.129 --> 00:16:30.389 trust in the Lord with all of our heart because 00:16:30.389 --> 00:16:32.830 there's still a part of our heart that's trusting 00:16:32.830 --> 00:16:35.169 in our own abilities or trusting in somebody 00:16:35.169 --> 00:16:40.049 else or trusting in something else. What does 00:16:40.049 --> 00:16:43.769 the proverb say? Trust in the Lord with all your 00:16:43.769 --> 00:16:50.309 heart. And here's the key to the call here. And 00:16:50.309 --> 00:16:55.100 do not rely on your own understanding. Now this 00:16:55.100 --> 00:16:58.379 is where it's tough for us as human beings. It's 00:16:58.379 --> 00:17:02.899 to not rely on our own understanding. Because 00:17:02.899 --> 00:17:04.500 we have been born and we have been raised and 00:17:04.500 --> 00:17:08.519 we have been taught. What you see, you can believe 00:17:08.519 --> 00:17:12.619 what you see. What do you see? That's what you 00:17:12.619 --> 00:17:16.960 go by. What you see, what's before you. And sometimes 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:21.200 the things we see before us don't make any sense 00:17:21.200 --> 00:17:24.259 to us. And since they don't make any sense to 00:17:24.259 --> 00:17:27.359 us, we just begin to assume or we begin to question 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:31.119 whether or not God knows what he's doing. Well, 00:17:31.180 --> 00:17:35.299 God, I want to trust you, but God, none of this 00:17:35.299 --> 00:17:38.599 makes sense. God, I see what your word says. 00:17:38.720 --> 00:17:40.920 I hear what the preacher says. I see what other 00:17:40.920 --> 00:17:43.000 brothers and sisters in Christ say about you, 00:17:43.039 --> 00:17:45.779 God. But I know what you say and I know what's 00:17:45.779 --> 00:17:49.539 going on. And what my eyes see do not line up 00:17:49.539 --> 00:17:53.430 with what your word says, God. And we have to 00:17:53.430 --> 00:17:55.369 be careful that we don't fall into that trap. 00:17:57.089 --> 00:17:59.730 Because the scripture calls us to trust in the 00:17:59.730 --> 00:18:02.150 Lord with all of our heart and do not lean on 00:18:02.150 --> 00:18:06.430 our own understanding. When I think about God, 00:18:06.529 --> 00:18:10.269 I think about the big picture. I've used this 00:18:10.269 --> 00:18:12.009 illustration. I've wore it out. That's the problem 00:18:12.009 --> 00:18:13.730 when you have a preacher that's preached at a 00:18:13.730 --> 00:18:15.890 place for 11 years. You've heard all of his good 00:18:15.890 --> 00:18:18.490 illustrations. So I'll say it again because you've 00:18:18.490 --> 00:18:20.369 heard it already. But I think about the plan 00:18:20.369 --> 00:18:24.369 of God. is a puzzle. Now, when you get a puzzle, 00:18:24.470 --> 00:18:27.009 you get a box, and on the front of that box, 00:18:27.029 --> 00:18:28.849 you see the picture of what the puzzle's going 00:18:28.849 --> 00:18:31.349 to be. Now, you open the box up, you pour out 00:18:31.349 --> 00:18:34.009 a thousand pieces onto your table, but you've 00:18:34.009 --> 00:18:37.289 got some guidance. All the pieces individually 00:18:37.289 --> 00:18:41.359 don't look like a whole lot. But over time, you 00:18:41.359 --> 00:18:44.359 can kind of study those pieces and you see the 00:18:44.359 --> 00:18:46.779 final picture. You see the finished product. 00:18:46.900 --> 00:18:49.599 You know what you're working toward. And even 00:18:49.599 --> 00:18:52.220 if it's kind of frustrated, you keep on working 00:18:52.220 --> 00:18:54.799 on the puzzle and twisting those pieces because 00:18:54.799 --> 00:18:57.220 you know that they have to fit because you can 00:18:57.220 --> 00:18:59.720 see what the finished product is supposed to 00:18:59.720 --> 00:19:04.619 be. But our life is kind of like having a bunch 00:19:04.619 --> 00:19:08.299 of puzzle pieces without seeing the big picture. 00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:12.880 Now God, he sees the big picture. God knows exactly 00:19:12.880 --> 00:19:15.440 why everything that's occurred in this world 00:19:15.440 --> 00:19:18.220 has occurred the way it has. He knows exactly 00:19:18.220 --> 00:19:21.180 why he allows this bad thing to happen or this 00:19:21.180 --> 00:19:23.559 good thing to happen or this person to get the 00:19:23.559 --> 00:19:25.900 promotion or this person to get fired or this 00:19:25.900 --> 00:19:28.200 person to be healthy or this person to be sick, 00:19:28.279 --> 00:19:30.680 this person to live long and this person's life 00:19:30.680 --> 00:19:33.859 to be cut short. God sees the big picture of 00:19:33.859 --> 00:19:36.680 why he allows every one of these things to occur 00:19:36.680 --> 00:19:42.779 in some way. So God knows what he's doing. Every 00:19:42.779 --> 00:19:46.440 piece in your life, as hard as it may be, the 00:19:46.440 --> 00:19:49.460 good pieces and the bad pieces, to us, we don't 00:19:49.460 --> 00:19:52.319 see how those pieces go together, but God knows 00:19:52.319 --> 00:19:56.299 exactly how to put the puzzle together. But for 00:19:56.299 --> 00:19:59.599 you and I today, we sit on this pew and we're 00:19:59.599 --> 00:20:01.839 looking at this piece and this looks bad and 00:20:01.839 --> 00:20:06.000 there's no way that this piece This is ugly and 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:10.240 dirty and bad and painful. There is no possible 00:20:10.240 --> 00:20:13.640 way that this peace could do anything good or 00:20:13.640 --> 00:20:17.900 make anything beautiful. And we come to that 00:20:17.900 --> 00:20:23.019 conclusion based on our own understanding. But 00:20:23.019 --> 00:20:26.940 here's what God says in the scripture. My ways 00:20:26.940 --> 00:20:30.279 are higher than your ways. My thoughts are higher 00:20:30.279 --> 00:20:35.339 than your thoughts. Our minds are not capable 00:20:35.339 --> 00:20:40.079 of understanding why God does what he does. We 00:20:40.079 --> 00:20:43.799 just can't do it. We can ask God why and maybe 00:20:43.799 --> 00:20:47.599 he will tell you, probably not. He doesn't tell 00:20:47.599 --> 00:20:51.440 us why he does the things that he does. There's 00:20:51.440 --> 00:20:53.279 things that some of you are probably going through 00:20:53.279 --> 00:20:56.299 today and you want to know why. You don't understand. 00:20:58.880 --> 00:21:01.000 And I wish I could tell you the answer that you 00:21:01.000 --> 00:21:05.130 want to hear. But I can only tell you what the 00:21:05.130 --> 00:21:09.430 scripture says. Trust in the Lord with all your 00:21:09.430 --> 00:21:13.970 heart and do not rely on your own understanding. 00:21:15.809 --> 00:21:19.509 It's hard sometimes because life is tough and 00:21:19.509 --> 00:21:26.029 you don't know why that God has allowed it. But 00:21:26.029 --> 00:21:29.970 I want to tell you today that God is good. He 00:21:29.970 --> 00:21:33.420 is good. And it may be hard to hear that in the 00:21:33.420 --> 00:21:35.779 middle of our struggles and our pain and our 00:21:35.779 --> 00:21:38.019 suffering, but I want to tell you today that 00:21:38.019 --> 00:21:41.299 God is good. And sometimes we need to be reminded 00:21:41.299 --> 00:21:43.579 of that truth. We need to hear it even when we 00:21:43.579 --> 00:21:47.559 don't feel like hearing it, that God does care 00:21:47.559 --> 00:21:51.740 for you. So trust in the Lord with all of your 00:21:51.740 --> 00:21:56.460 heart. Do not rely on your own understanding. 00:21:58.059 --> 00:22:02.440 Think about Him. In all your ways. Boy, that's 00:22:02.440 --> 00:22:06.339 a good call for us today. To think about God 00:22:06.339 --> 00:22:10.180 in all of our ways. Do we do that? Maybe we do. 00:22:11.199 --> 00:22:13.619 Maybe every decision we make, we think about 00:22:13.619 --> 00:22:16.440 God. God, how is this going to glorify you? God, 00:22:16.480 --> 00:22:18.480 what do you desire me to do in this situation? 00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:21.279 God, how do you want me to act? How do you want 00:22:21.279 --> 00:22:24.079 me to respond? How do you want me to live? God, 00:22:24.240 --> 00:22:26.359 I want to think about you in every decision I 00:22:26.359 --> 00:22:29.099 make in work, in church, in my family. God, I 00:22:29.099 --> 00:22:31.299 think about you in every purchase I make, in 00:22:31.299 --> 00:22:34.880 everything I do, God. I think about you in all 00:22:34.880 --> 00:22:37.319 of my ways because, God, I want to serve you 00:22:37.319 --> 00:22:40.730 and glorify you. And maybe you wake up every 00:22:40.730 --> 00:22:42.769 morning and you do that and you do it throughout 00:22:42.769 --> 00:22:48.410 the day. But then again, maybe you don't. Maybe 00:22:48.410 --> 00:22:53.890 you think about God in some of your ways. Maybe 00:22:53.890 --> 00:22:58.069 you think about him in some of your ways. But 00:22:58.069 --> 00:23:01.609 maybe you think about yourself some too. You 00:23:01.609 --> 00:23:07.069 think about what you want. What you desire. How 00:23:07.069 --> 00:23:10.480 you're going to handle the situation. How you're 00:23:10.480 --> 00:23:12.319 going to respond to that person who does you 00:23:12.319 --> 00:23:15.799 wrong. What you're going to tell them next time 00:23:15.799 --> 00:23:18.839 you see them. You think about how you're going 00:23:18.839 --> 00:23:21.000 to be rich and famous. You think about how you're 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:22.920 going to make money and how you're going to use 00:23:22.920 --> 00:23:25.660 it on yourself. And you think about you a lot. 00:23:26.380 --> 00:23:31.839 Maybe. Maybe you don't. I don't know. Maybe we 00:23:31.839 --> 00:23:34.000 don't think about the Lord's ways hardly any. 00:23:35.230 --> 00:23:37.250 Maybe we just think about our ways and we do 00:23:37.250 --> 00:23:39.789 things our ways until, oh, guess what? Our ways 00:23:39.789 --> 00:23:42.750 don't work out too good. You know who we call 00:23:42.750 --> 00:23:46.970 when that happens? The Lord. Duh. Maybe if we'd 00:23:46.970 --> 00:23:48.490 have just called on Him first, we would have 00:23:48.490 --> 00:23:52.849 saved ourselves a lot of trouble. But some of 00:23:52.849 --> 00:23:54.809 these lessons we learn the hard way. All of us 00:23:54.809 --> 00:23:58.089 probably will attest to that. Boy, we should 00:23:58.089 --> 00:24:00.950 have done what was right to start with. Think 00:24:00.950 --> 00:24:03.490 about Him in all of your ways and He will guide 00:24:03.490 --> 00:24:08.410 you. Own the right paths. So what happens when 00:24:08.410 --> 00:24:12.529 we're the fool? We start thinking about ourselves 00:24:12.529 --> 00:24:17.329 and all of our ways. And we go down some bad 00:24:17.329 --> 00:24:21.309 paths. We make some bad decisions. We do some 00:24:21.309 --> 00:24:24.710 bad things. We say some bad things. We act in 00:24:24.710 --> 00:24:28.529 some bad ways when we live according to our will 00:24:28.529 --> 00:24:32.519 and our desires. And some of you today are walking 00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:34.900 down that path, and boy, you are down a bad path, 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:37.400 and you just, it keeps going from bad to worse. 00:24:38.019 --> 00:24:40.500 One bad decision after another bad decision. 00:24:41.319 --> 00:24:44.160 Man, we get in a bad shape. And it's because 00:24:44.160 --> 00:24:47.299 we're not trusting in the Lord with all of our 00:24:47.299 --> 00:24:50.200 heart. We're trusting in ourselves. We're seeking 00:24:50.200 --> 00:24:53.380 ourselves. We're doing what we desire instead 00:24:53.380 --> 00:24:56.440 of seeking what God desires. And that gets us 00:24:56.440 --> 00:24:59.119 down a bad place. And sometimes we say, God, 00:24:59.240 --> 00:25:01.980 I want to be in a better place. God, I don't 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:04.880 want to be where I'm at in life. I want things 00:25:04.880 --> 00:25:07.420 to change. I want my life to be better. God, 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:09.619 I need to know what to do. I need to know where 00:25:09.619 --> 00:25:12.420 to go. I need to know what choice to make in 00:25:12.420 --> 00:25:16.960 this decision that's before me. How do we know 00:25:16.960 --> 00:25:19.720 the answer to those questions? Where do we have 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:23.079 that guidance from? It comes when we trust the 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:26.119 Lord with all of our heart. When we think about 00:25:26.119 --> 00:25:29.240 him in all of our ways, he will guide you on 00:25:29.240 --> 00:25:32.950 the right paths. Some of you today may be saying, 00:25:33.029 --> 00:25:35.390 okay, I'm ready to get on the right path. I'm 00:25:35.390 --> 00:25:39.309 ready to get on the right path. Easy enough. 00:25:40.630 --> 00:25:42.609 Think about the Lord in all your ways. Trust 00:25:42.609 --> 00:25:46.029 Him with all of your heart. And He will guide 00:25:46.029 --> 00:25:52.390 you on the right path today. There's only two 00:25:52.390 --> 00:25:56.049 paths that we can choose and travel down. There's 00:25:56.049 --> 00:26:01.119 the right path. There's the narrow way. There 00:26:01.119 --> 00:26:03.880 is Jesus Christ. There is the word of God. There 00:26:03.880 --> 00:26:06.380 is the truth of God. There are the commands of 00:26:06.380 --> 00:26:10.339 God. And that's one way to say, okay, God, this 00:26:10.339 --> 00:26:13.559 is the path. I see that Jesus Christ is the path. 00:26:13.900 --> 00:26:16.839 I see that there is no forgiveness of sins. I 00:26:16.839 --> 00:26:20.039 see that there is no eternal life apart from 00:26:20.039 --> 00:26:22.559 Jesus Christ. I see that there is no peace, that 00:26:22.559 --> 00:26:25.039 there is no joy, that there is no comfort apart 00:26:25.039 --> 00:26:28.940 from Jesus Christ. God, that is the path I want 00:26:28.940 --> 00:26:32.400 to take. That's one path. That's a path you can 00:26:32.400 --> 00:26:34.400 take today. Some of you may be on that path. 00:26:34.980 --> 00:26:37.160 Sometimes we stray a little bit from the path. 00:26:37.700 --> 00:26:40.779 Sometimes we need passages like this to yank 00:26:40.779 --> 00:26:43.640 us back, to get us back on the path, going in 00:26:43.640 --> 00:26:47.599 the right direction. Maybe there are some of 00:26:47.599 --> 00:26:51.880 you today that's traveling another path, that's 00:26:51.880 --> 00:26:56.279 traveled a path of sin and rejection of God and 00:26:56.279 --> 00:27:00.839 disobedience to God's Word. And that path leads 00:27:00.839 --> 00:27:04.619 to destruction. Some of you have experienced 00:27:04.619 --> 00:27:08.259 that. You may be experiencing it today. There's 00:27:08.259 --> 00:27:09.880 some of you who have been down that path, but 00:27:09.880 --> 00:27:12.680 you got back on the right path. And praise the 00:27:12.680 --> 00:27:17.619 Lord, here's the good news for you today. Is 00:27:17.619 --> 00:27:19.480 that through Jesus Christ, you can get on the 00:27:19.480 --> 00:27:22.680 right path at any moment. That you don't have 00:27:22.680 --> 00:27:26.480 to keep going down the wrong path. That you don't 00:27:26.480 --> 00:27:29.319 have to keep living for yourself. That you don't 00:27:29.319 --> 00:27:32.160 have to keep living for the ways of the world. 00:27:33.339 --> 00:27:39.140 But that God calls you today to trust Him. That 00:27:39.140 --> 00:27:41.299 God says this world is going to let you down. 00:27:42.000 --> 00:27:44.119 This world will never give you the peace and 00:27:44.119 --> 00:27:46.200 the comfort and the strength that you so desperately 00:27:46.200 --> 00:27:49.220 need. This world will never give that to you. 00:27:51.259 --> 00:27:55.720 But God says, I know you can't see everything 00:27:55.720 --> 00:27:59.710 I'm doing. I know you don't understand everything 00:27:59.710 --> 00:28:04.529 that I'm doing. But would you just trust me? 00:28:05.670 --> 00:28:10.589 Would you just trust me? I'm standing here with 00:28:10.589 --> 00:28:14.269 open arms. And I want to tell you that I'm going 00:28:14.269 --> 00:28:16.650 to catch you. I want to tell you that I'm here 00:28:16.650 --> 00:28:20.769 for you. No matter what things look like, I just 00:28:20.769 --> 00:28:22.849 want to tell you that I've sent Jesus Christ 00:28:22.849 --> 00:28:26.059 to bring this message of good hope. To take care 00:28:26.059 --> 00:28:28.640 of everything that needs to be taken care of 00:28:28.640 --> 00:28:31.319 for you. So that your sins could be forgiven. 00:28:31.500 --> 00:28:34.339 And I'm standing here. And I'm calling out to 00:28:34.339 --> 00:28:37.059 you today. And you see my words. And you've seen 00:28:37.059 --> 00:28:40.279 my son. And I know that your life is tough. But 00:28:40.279 --> 00:28:42.500 I want to tell you that I love you. And I'm here 00:28:42.500 --> 00:28:45.539 for you. If you would just fall into my arms 00:28:45.539 --> 00:28:50.440 today. If you would just trust me. That's God's 00:28:50.440 --> 00:28:55.700 call to us today is to trust him. Have you trusted 00:28:55.700 --> 00:29:03.220 in God today? If not, you need to respond to 00:29:03.220 --> 00:29:07.759 his call. Let's pray. Dear Lord, we come to you. 00:29:07.779 --> 00:29:12.039 We thank you for these good words. God, maybe 00:29:12.039 --> 00:29:16.099 there are some in here and they have never trusted 00:29:16.099 --> 00:29:19.700 in you. Maybe they know about some of your scripture 00:29:19.700 --> 00:29:23.130 and they know about Jesus. But maybe they've 00:29:23.130 --> 00:29:25.210 been living their life their way for a long time, 00:29:25.390 --> 00:29:28.549 and man, it's got them down a path that's just 00:29:28.549 --> 00:29:32.690 rough, dear Lord. And everybody in here knows 00:29:32.690 --> 00:29:35.329 that path, God, every single one of us. We know 00:29:35.329 --> 00:29:40.250 that path. We've traveled that path. And there's 00:29:40.250 --> 00:29:42.509 some that's gotten off of it, dear Lord. There's 00:29:42.509 --> 00:29:46.630 some that have trusted you and trusted in Jesus 00:29:46.630 --> 00:29:50.809 Christ. But God, maybe there's some today that 00:29:50.809 --> 00:29:55.369 have never, trusted you maybe today god they 00:29:55.369 --> 00:29:57.750 are in the middle of the struggle and the pain 00:29:57.750 --> 00:30:02.990 and the heartache and the hardships of life i 00:30:02.990 --> 00:30:05.690 pray dear lord that they would hear you calling 00:30:05.690 --> 00:30:10.630 that they would fall into your loving arms today 00:30:10.630 --> 00:30:13.690 that they would fall into your arms of grace 00:30:13.690 --> 00:30:18.740 and love and mercy and gentleness They would 00:30:18.740 --> 00:30:20.619 know that there is forgiveness of their sins 00:30:20.619 --> 00:30:24.819 if they would only ask that through Jesus Christ's 00:30:24.819 --> 00:30:27.539 death and resurrection that they can be forgiven 00:30:27.539 --> 00:30:32.079 today. God, maybe there are some here today and 00:30:32.079 --> 00:30:34.119 they're just kind of wrestling with you, dear 00:30:34.119 --> 00:30:36.279 Lord. They don't understand what you're doing. 00:30:36.319 --> 00:30:39.500 They want to follow you, but there's a part of 00:30:39.500 --> 00:30:41.099 them, dear Lord, that they're still doubt. God, 00:30:41.220 --> 00:30:44.440 I pray. That you would be with that person today 00:30:44.440 --> 00:30:48.220 if there's one here in that situation, dear Lord. 00:30:49.099 --> 00:30:51.000 That they wouldn't give up on you, God, but they 00:30:51.000 --> 00:30:54.319 would continue to seek you. Continue to dig through 00:30:54.319 --> 00:30:58.079 your word. God, maybe there are some here today 00:30:58.079 --> 00:31:01.039 and they're yours. They've trusted you. Maybe 00:31:01.039 --> 00:31:03.099 they've been on the right path, but maybe they've 00:31:03.099 --> 00:31:06.619 started to wander in one way or another. Maybe 00:31:06.619 --> 00:31:08.680 there are some here today, God, and they trust 00:31:08.680 --> 00:31:12.490 you. They know that. Your God, they know that 00:31:12.490 --> 00:31:15.029 Jesus Christ has come for them, but God, maybe 00:31:15.029 --> 00:31:17.289 there's that one area in life that they're really 00:31:17.289 --> 00:31:21.109 struggling to trust you, to give it over to you, 00:31:21.150 --> 00:31:23.529 dear Lord. Maybe there's some worry or some fear 00:31:23.529 --> 00:31:30.369 or some doubt or uncertainty, God. I pray that 00:31:30.369 --> 00:31:33.410 wherever they are, that whatever struggle they 00:31:33.410 --> 00:31:36.710 have in life, that they would trust you today, 00:31:36.829 --> 00:31:40.640 God. That they would stop trying to understand 00:31:40.640 --> 00:31:45.559 something that's beyond our comprehension. But 00:31:45.559 --> 00:31:47.839 just trust to know that what you're doing and 00:31:47.839 --> 00:31:49.859 what you have done and will do in their life, 00:31:49.920 --> 00:31:54.160 God, is according to your will. That you have 00:31:54.160 --> 00:31:56.400 not forgotten about them. That you have not abandoned 00:31:56.400 --> 00:32:01.359 them today. But just let them trust you. God, 00:32:01.400 --> 00:32:03.960 as we have this song of invitation, if there's 00:32:03.960 --> 00:32:07.430 somebody in here that... wants to trust you today, 00:32:07.569 --> 00:32:09.509 I pray, God, that they would come forward as 00:32:09.509 --> 00:32:11.549 we sing. Maybe there are some that just want 00:32:11.549 --> 00:32:14.349 to pray where they are. God, I pray that if there 00:32:14.349 --> 00:32:16.470 are any souls that do not know Jesus Christ, 00:32:16.569 --> 00:32:19.950 that they would trust Him today and that they 00:32:19.950 --> 00:32:23.250 would come forward as we sing and make that commitment 00:32:23.250 --> 00:32:27.230 to Jesus that they are making today public so 00:32:27.230 --> 00:32:30.089 that we can rejoice with them. And I ask these 00:32:30.089 --> 00:32:32.349 things in Jesus' name. Amen.