WEBVTT 00:00:01.229 --> 00:00:03.950 Welcome to Healing Scars with Pastor Burton, 00:00:04.129 --> 00:00:07.269 the official podcast of Cross Christian Fellowship, 00:00:07.290 --> 00:00:10.769 Route 66, in the heart of Albuquerque, New Mexico, 00:00:10.990 --> 00:00:14.150 where Burton is the lead pastor. We're glad you're 00:00:14.150 --> 00:00:18.449 here. Hey everybody, welcome to the sanctuary. 00:00:18.670 --> 00:00:21.949 It's great to have you with us as always. This 00:00:21.949 --> 00:00:25.429 week, a little bit different. So on Sunday, you 00:00:25.429 --> 00:00:27.370 know, typically for the last few months, I've 00:00:27.370 --> 00:00:29.550 been recording everything live as I've been giving 00:00:29.550 --> 00:00:33.229 my sermon there in the sanctuary. And unfortunately, 00:00:33.329 --> 00:00:36.579 we had a little bit of a software update. And 00:00:36.579 --> 00:00:39.579 when it finished, it actually took out our audio 00:00:39.579 --> 00:00:43.020 and we didn't even know right away that we didn't 00:00:43.020 --> 00:00:46.119 have audio. So try, try, try as my guys might. 00:00:46.740 --> 00:00:48.880 Unfortunately, they weren't able to get the audio 00:00:48.880 --> 00:00:51.740 up and going for our online or our recording 00:00:51.740 --> 00:00:55.719 in time. However, rest assured that has been 00:00:55.719 --> 00:00:59.840 fixed. However. It actually kind of brings things 00:00:59.840 --> 00:01:02.039 home for me because I actually like being able 00:01:02.039 --> 00:01:05.980 to sit down and record like this. So I'm going 00:01:05.980 --> 00:01:08.120 to go back through my notes and everything. Of 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:09.260 course, it's going to be a little different than 00:01:09.260 --> 00:01:11.879 when it was live, unfortunately. You know how 00:01:11.879 --> 00:01:13.719 I am. Sometimes I go down rabbit trails, right? 00:01:14.459 --> 00:01:17.859 But with that said, we're going to get into it. 00:01:17.920 --> 00:01:21.540 And I am recording last Sunday's sermon. right 00:01:21.540 --> 00:01:24.780 here right now just for you here on the podcast 00:01:24.780 --> 00:01:26.099 if there's something that's a little different 00:01:26.099 --> 00:01:28.319 well that's a good thing that's a unique it means 00:01:28.319 --> 00:01:29.959 you're going to get a little something that uh 00:01:29.959 --> 00:01:32.099 you know we didn't have uh when we're there in 00:01:32.099 --> 00:01:33.840 the sanctuary so we'll see how this goes because 00:01:33.840 --> 00:01:36.859 you know it's me let's just be honest all right 00:01:36.859 --> 00:01:40.299 so again good morning everybody welcome um well 00:01:40.299 --> 00:01:41.560 i shouldn't even say good morning there's uh 00:01:41.560 --> 00:01:43.500 some of y 'all might be evening who knows but 00:01:43.500 --> 00:01:46.439 anyway the last few weeks they've been really 00:01:46.439 --> 00:01:50.750 gloomy for a number of reasons right So it was 00:01:50.750 --> 00:01:53.689 on my heart to look at something a little bit 00:01:53.689 --> 00:01:56.849 happier. And to do that, today what we're going 00:01:56.849 --> 00:01:59.090 to be doing is we're going to be looking at a 00:01:59.090 --> 00:02:04.420 song of praise. Before we do that though, I would 00:02:04.420 --> 00:02:06.200 like to give a couple of praise reports and a 00:02:06.200 --> 00:02:07.959 couple of shout outs because I know sometimes 00:02:07.959 --> 00:02:10.240 I kind of forget to do it when we're live. I 00:02:10.240 --> 00:02:12.520 do it beforehand when we're doing our praise 00:02:12.520 --> 00:02:14.680 and worship and everything and when we're praying 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:18.020 with each other. But I like to give those shout 00:02:18.020 --> 00:02:19.379 outs because they're due and these are people 00:02:19.379 --> 00:02:24.080 that we need to keep in prayer. So first up on 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:28.139 the checklist, Rico. Rico's surgeries have gone 00:02:28.139 --> 00:02:31.379 well. He's still at home. He's still recovering. 00:02:32.060 --> 00:02:35.340 He's had a couple of little setbacks in there, 00:02:35.400 --> 00:02:39.229 but nothing. Too big for our Lord. But overall, 00:02:39.389 --> 00:02:42.590 though, he is recovering well. So keep him in 00:02:42.590 --> 00:02:47.330 prayer. Also, Josh Knight also had his big neck 00:02:47.330 --> 00:02:49.289 surgery that he'd been waiting on, waiting on, 00:02:49.389 --> 00:02:51.969 trying to deal with paralysis and everything, 00:02:52.270 --> 00:02:55.189 these issues he's been having. That went as well 00:02:55.189 --> 00:02:58.189 as could be. He is also at home now and recovering. 00:03:01.030 --> 00:03:05.110 Chaplain Ron out in Arizona, he also had a procedure 00:03:05.110 --> 00:03:08.550 done. He's back home and recovering now as well. 00:03:08.770 --> 00:03:13.750 So definitely keep them in prayer as well. There's 00:03:13.750 --> 00:03:17.069 a lot going on in their lives, and they can use 00:03:17.069 --> 00:03:22.110 it. As can we all, right? Also, here in Albuquerque, 00:03:22.110 --> 00:03:23.990 we're kicking off the Balloon Fiesta, the International 00:03:23.990 --> 00:03:25.569 Balloon Fiesta, which, if you don't know, is 00:03:25.569 --> 00:03:29.379 the biggest one in the world. So keep all of 00:03:29.379 --> 00:03:31.719 our balloonists, our pilots, the chase crews, 00:03:31.900 --> 00:03:34.379 the passengers, everybody who's traveling out 00:03:34.379 --> 00:03:36.900 here just to see it, as well as everyone locally 00:03:36.900 --> 00:03:42.180 because it does a lot. It backs up traffic. It's 00:03:42.180 --> 00:03:43.960 a great event, but unfortunately certain things 00:03:43.960 --> 00:03:47.199 happen. So just keep everybody in prayer that's 00:03:47.199 --> 00:03:55.860 out here being a part of this as well. a big 00:03:55.860 --> 00:03:58.439 event and a lot of things can go wrong as we've 00:03:58.439 --> 00:04:00.219 seen in the past, but also a lot of things can 00:04:00.219 --> 00:04:02.139 go right. So let's, let's pray for everything 00:04:02.139 --> 00:04:03.960 that can go right to go right and nothing to 00:04:03.960 --> 00:04:06.240 go wrong. And with that said, let's open our 00:04:06.240 --> 00:04:08.099 Bibles. Let's dive in. That's enough of a rabbit 00:04:08.099 --> 00:04:10.659 trail there. We're going to jump into Isaiah 00:04:10.659 --> 00:04:15.900 12. So Isaiah 12, the word says, and in that 00:04:15.900 --> 00:04:19.699 day, you will say, Oh Lord. I will praise you. 00:04:19.779 --> 00:04:23.160 Though you are angry with me, your anger is turned 00:04:23.160 --> 00:04:28.220 away, and you comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation. 00:04:28.620 --> 00:04:32.360 I will trust and not be afraid. For Yah, the 00:04:32.360 --> 00:04:35.839 Lord, is my strength and song. He has also become 00:04:35.839 --> 00:04:41.720 my salvation. Therefore, with joy, you will draw 00:04:41.720 --> 00:04:44.860 water from the wells of salvation, and in that 00:04:44.860 --> 00:04:48.160 day you will say, Praise the Lord. Call upon 00:04:48.160 --> 00:04:51.800 his name. Declare his deeds among the peoples. 00:04:51.939 --> 00:04:56.040 Make mention that his name is exalted. Sing to 00:04:56.040 --> 00:04:59.360 the Lord for he has done excellent things. This 00:04:59.360 --> 00:05:04.600 is known in all the earth. Cry out and shout, 00:05:04.800 --> 00:05:09.100 O inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One 00:05:09.100 --> 00:05:16.490 of Israel in your midst. As we get started here, 00:05:16.610 --> 00:05:18.269 I want to point out something here. You might 00:05:18.269 --> 00:05:20.529 have noticed it's a little bit different. When 00:05:20.529 --> 00:05:22.930 we go to verse 2, it says, for a Yah, right? 00:05:23.009 --> 00:05:25.930 Normally we see Yahweh. This right here is actually 00:05:25.930 --> 00:05:31.360 a very poetic way of writing it. So it actually 00:05:31.360 --> 00:05:34.639 is a way of giving reverence and still lifting 00:05:34.639 --> 00:05:37.459 the Lord's name up on high the whole bit. It's 00:05:37.459 --> 00:05:41.939 not meant as disrespect. It is very poetic in 00:05:41.939 --> 00:05:44.199 the way it's written. So that's why it's a little 00:05:44.199 --> 00:05:46.420 bit different, right? It's kind of like with 00:05:46.420 --> 00:05:47.980 me, right? So it's saying Bert and it's Bert, 00:05:48.120 --> 00:05:52.100 right? Okay, I probably diminish it a little 00:05:52.100 --> 00:05:54.639 bit when I put it like that, but it's still lifting 00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:58.120 it up and just trying to, you know. explain the 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:02.699 splendor and the beauty of the name. But anyway, 00:06:02.879 --> 00:06:06.040 when we come back to this, Isaiah, he wrote this 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:09.779 hymn of personal praise. It was a day of triumph 00:06:09.779 --> 00:06:12.939 that God had used to basically put these words 00:06:12.939 --> 00:06:15.500 into Isaiah's mouth and into his mind and therefore 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:19.800 to the pen as it got written out. If you would, 00:06:19.860 --> 00:06:22.480 you could say that this is a song from the hymn 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:26.339 book of heaven, right? You see, it's a strong, 00:06:26.979 --> 00:06:29.160 description of the joy that we as Christians 00:06:29.160 --> 00:06:33.699 will all have within us on the day that Jesus 00:06:33.699 --> 00:06:37.540 Christ returns to reign over the earth. These 00:06:37.540 --> 00:06:40.540 verses, they're a firm reminder that we need 00:06:40.540 --> 00:06:43.980 to have an attitude of gratitude towards God. 00:06:44.720 --> 00:06:46.399 We've all heard that before, that attitude of 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:48.819 gratitude. Basically, we need to be thanking 00:06:48.819 --> 00:06:51.060 Him. We need to be praising Him. We need to be 00:06:51.060 --> 00:06:53.790 telling Others basically telling anybody and 00:06:53.790 --> 00:06:57.529 everybody about him every single day. And remembering 00:06:57.529 --> 00:07:00.790 that it's important for our hearts to be filled 00:07:00.790 --> 00:07:04.350 with gratitude for the Lord. And I know someone's 00:07:04.350 --> 00:07:07.110 out there, why is that important, Pastor? What's 00:07:07.110 --> 00:07:08.790 the deal with this? Well, you know what, let's 00:07:08.790 --> 00:07:10.930 break it down. Let's start with a definition. 00:07:11.370 --> 00:07:14.709 And when I pulled it up, looking at Merriam -Webster, 00:07:14.990 --> 00:07:20.129 Merriam -Webster defines it simply as thankfulness. 00:07:20.430 --> 00:07:24.470 That's it. thankfulness. However, a quick Google 00:07:24.470 --> 00:07:27.170 search actually brought up a better definition. 00:07:27.209 --> 00:07:29.790 I'm going to share that with you now. It says, 00:07:29.910 --> 00:07:34.009 the quality of being thankful, readiness to show 00:07:34.009 --> 00:07:41.120 appreciation for, and to return kindness. Now, 00:07:41.160 --> 00:07:42.879 I like that more because it's actually a little 00:07:42.879 --> 00:07:45.259 bit more accurate, I want to say. I think Merriam 00:07:45.259 --> 00:07:47.639 -Webster tried to be a little too simple with 00:07:47.639 --> 00:07:50.959 theirs, whereas this definition that Google returned 00:07:50.959 --> 00:07:54.079 for me, I think, is much more rounded, much fuller. 00:07:55.620 --> 00:07:59.139 So when our hearts are filled with gratitude, 00:07:59.339 --> 00:08:01.860 basically it's saying our thankfulness is running 00:08:01.860 --> 00:08:08.420 deep. It's strong. Not only that, but we become... 00:08:08.839 --> 00:08:13.439 And in our love for the Lord, we find a strong 00:08:13.439 --> 00:08:17.860 desire to share the good news that is the gospel 00:08:17.860 --> 00:08:22.540 of Jesus Christ with others. We look forward 00:08:22.540 --> 00:08:26.850 to stepping out and answering the call. That 00:08:26.850 --> 00:08:29.290 is the Great Commission. You know, we get excited. 00:08:29.370 --> 00:08:31.449 It's like running up to a friend with something 00:08:31.449 --> 00:08:33.690 you can't wait to share, right? It's like, Bobby, 00:08:33.789 --> 00:08:35.789 Bobby, check this out. I found this great biker 00:08:35.789 --> 00:08:37.690 hangout. You have to come out. They've got all 00:08:37.690 --> 00:08:41.610 the root beer you can drink, right? Okay, maybe 00:08:41.610 --> 00:08:43.809 not. I mean, the excitement's there though, right? 00:08:44.409 --> 00:08:47.190 The difference though is, you know, as Christians, 00:08:47.269 --> 00:08:48.669 we go out about it a little bit differently. 00:08:49.309 --> 00:08:53.470 As Christians, when we get lit up on fire like 00:08:53.470 --> 00:08:55.289 this, when we're fired up and we have this passion, 00:08:58.360 --> 00:09:05.120 We're more like Andrew in John 1, verses 40 through 00:09:05.120 --> 00:09:07.940 42. So let's turn there real quick. So in John 00:09:07.940 --> 00:09:14.220 1, verses 40 through 42, the word says, One of 00:09:14.220 --> 00:09:17.639 the two who heard John speak and followed him 00:09:17.639 --> 00:09:23.490 was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found 00:09:23.490 --> 00:09:26.669 his own brother, Simon, and said to him, We have 00:09:26.669 --> 00:09:29.730 found the Messiah, which is translated the Christ. 00:09:30.409 --> 00:09:34.470 And he brought him to Jesus. Now, when Jesus 00:09:34.470 --> 00:09:37.570 looked at him, he said, You are Simon, the son 00:09:37.570 --> 00:09:42.409 of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas, which is 00:09:42.409 --> 00:09:46.090 translated a stone. You see, when we're like 00:09:46.090 --> 00:09:49.730 Andrew running to Simon Peter, we're like, Bobby, 00:09:49.809 --> 00:09:51.710 Bobby, Bobby, check it out. I have to tell you 00:09:51.710 --> 00:09:55.610 something. This is amazing. Dude, I found Jesus. 00:09:55.970 --> 00:09:59.690 Actually, Jesus found me. He found me, man. And 00:09:59.690 --> 00:10:01.889 he's looking for you, too. He wants to have a 00:10:01.889 --> 00:10:03.850 relationship with you, too. You've got to meet 00:10:03.850 --> 00:10:06.409 him. Dude, he loves you so much that he died 00:10:06.409 --> 00:10:08.409 for your sin. He rose. He ascended to heaven. 00:10:08.509 --> 00:10:10.669 And he's coming back for all who believe in him. 00:10:11.029 --> 00:10:14.149 Would you like to know more? Come to church service 00:10:14.149 --> 00:10:16.629 with me at The Cross 6 -6 next Sunday at 1030 00:10:16.629 --> 00:10:20.129 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Okay, I died. Little 00:10:20.129 --> 00:10:22.490 rabbit trail there, yes. You get the point. That's 00:10:22.490 --> 00:10:26.470 the trail that we go. We're pumped, right? It's 00:10:26.470 --> 00:10:28.149 like that little kid coming home from school. 00:10:28.590 --> 00:10:30.649 Mommy, mommy, check it out. I got my first day 00:10:30.649 --> 00:10:33.509 ever. I thought I was going to fail and I got 00:10:33.509 --> 00:10:38.269 an A. I aced it. Filled with passion. We're excited. 00:10:38.389 --> 00:10:40.389 We're absolutely on fire for the Lord. And it's 00:10:40.389 --> 00:10:43.350 amazing. It's beautiful. It's wonderful. And 00:10:43.350 --> 00:10:47.549 we want to tell everyone about Him. Right? It's 00:10:47.549 --> 00:10:49.049 one of those things where, you know, the old 00:10:49.049 --> 00:10:51.029 term is like, go out and shout it from the rooftop. 00:10:51.269 --> 00:10:53.409 I mean, that's where we are. That's what we want 00:10:53.409 --> 00:10:57.909 to do. All right? That's how we're filled. Going 00:10:57.909 --> 00:11:03.090 back to Isaiah 12, verse 2. Isaiah 12, verse 00:11:03.090 --> 00:11:18.730 2, it says, Behold, God is my salvation. I want 00:11:18.730 --> 00:11:23.070 to bring everybody's attention to this verse 00:11:23.070 --> 00:11:26.590 specifically because this verse is also part 00:11:26.590 --> 00:11:29.509 of a scene in Jerome Hines' opera, I Am the Way. 00:11:30.730 --> 00:11:32.070 Those of you who know me, I'm not a big opera 00:11:32.070 --> 00:11:34.330 guy. I learned about this, and this is pretty 00:11:34.330 --> 00:11:35.690 cool, and I want to share it because it actually 00:11:35.690 --> 00:11:39.870 pertains to what we're talking about here. So 00:11:39.870 --> 00:11:45.230 Jerome Hines, he wrote I Am the Way, and it's 00:11:45.230 --> 00:11:47.970 an opera about Jesus. Now, Hines, for those of 00:11:47.970 --> 00:11:50.570 you who are like me and aren't familiar with 00:11:50.570 --> 00:11:54.210 him, I had to look him up. He was a famous operatic 00:11:54.210 --> 00:11:58.269 bass singer, and he was a composer. Now, all 00:11:58.269 --> 00:12:02.470 the way back in the early 90s, around 1991, he 00:12:02.470 --> 00:12:06.629 had already had this play out. It was going well, 00:12:06.710 --> 00:12:09.490 but he felt this weight on his heart. He felt 00:12:09.490 --> 00:12:12.309 a calling on it. And it basically was saying, 00:12:12.389 --> 00:12:17.090 hey, this opera needs to go to Moscow's Bolshoi 00:12:17.090 --> 00:12:21.830 Theater. Now, the Bolshoi at this point had never 00:12:21.830 --> 00:12:25.950 allowed an American opera to be performed. It 00:12:25.950 --> 00:12:30.169 wasn't even a consideration. It was a big thing. 00:12:30.370 --> 00:12:35.830 And this is at the tail end there of when the 00:12:35.830 --> 00:12:38.129 USSR was falling and everything. So it was a 00:12:38.129 --> 00:12:42.370 very chaotic time as well. So what Hines did 00:12:42.370 --> 00:12:45.950 is having this wait, he called another opera 00:12:45.950 --> 00:12:47.809 director that he knew who lived in the D .C. 00:12:47.830 --> 00:12:53.679 area by the name of Patrick Cavanaugh. And basically 00:12:53.679 --> 00:12:57.980 he called him up, he told him about this weight 00:12:57.980 --> 00:13:00.299 on his heart, this calling that he had on it, 00:13:00.340 --> 00:13:03.320 and basically said, hey, do you know of a way 00:13:03.320 --> 00:13:07.120 to make this come into fruition? Can you help 00:13:07.120 --> 00:13:09.759 me out with this? Can we make this happen? And 00:13:09.759 --> 00:13:13.220 they had a nice conversation about it. Matter 00:13:13.220 --> 00:13:16.179 of fact, it was so good that Kavanaugh himself 00:13:16.179 --> 00:13:18.960 felt this calling fall onto his heart as well. 00:13:19.500 --> 00:13:23.580 And so he's like, you know what? We'll find a 00:13:23.580 --> 00:13:28.399 way. And so what Kavanaugh did is he got on a 00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:32.460 plane to Moscow. And keep this in mind. Like 00:13:32.460 --> 00:13:35.000 I was just saying, this is at the time USSR had 00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:37.700 just collapsed. The dissolution was just being 00:13:37.700 --> 00:13:40.960 finalized. So it was a very turbulent time to 00:13:40.960 --> 00:13:43.360 be over there. Not that Americans are exactly 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:46.159 welcome over there today, but this time especially 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:51.309 was... It was huge. We weren't friends with them. 00:13:53.730 --> 00:13:57.950 So to put it lightly, Kavanaugh, he got on this 00:13:57.950 --> 00:14:00.029 flight and he went over on a wing and a prayer. 00:14:00.789 --> 00:14:05.389 He didn't know anybody there. He didn't speak 00:14:05.389 --> 00:14:11.090 any Russian. All he had with him, aside from 00:14:11.090 --> 00:14:13.909 his passport, was a handful of phone numbers 00:14:13.909 --> 00:14:17.720 to go over with. So he flies over. He's landed. 00:14:18.299 --> 00:14:21.620 He's truly a foreigner in a foreign land. So 00:14:21.620 --> 00:14:23.740 he takes out this list of phone numbers when 00:14:23.740 --> 00:14:26.820 he gets to where he's going. He had four phone 00:14:26.820 --> 00:14:30.840 numbers. So he calls the first one. Nope, not 00:14:30.840 --> 00:14:34.659 going to happen. Calls the second one. Hard no. 00:14:35.659 --> 00:14:40.559 Calls the third number. D, Reich 3. Nope, not 00:14:40.559 --> 00:14:42.820 going to happen. You've got to be kidding me, 00:14:42.860 --> 00:14:45.600 man. No, dude. No way. Get out of here with that. 00:14:45.740 --> 00:14:48.740 No, go back to America, right? So things aren't 00:14:48.740 --> 00:14:53.759 looking good at this point. He's down to his 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:58.259 last number. Things are looking really grim. 00:14:58.519 --> 00:15:00.700 This is already looking like it's about to turn 00:15:00.700 --> 00:15:05.320 into an expensive washout of a trip. So he pulls 00:15:05.320 --> 00:15:07.940 himself back. He pulls out this last number. 00:15:08.519 --> 00:15:11.799 He looks at the phone and he dials it. Somebody 00:15:11.799 --> 00:15:14.100 picks up on the other end and they're able to 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:18.080 talk. It turns out that the person at this last 00:15:18.080 --> 00:15:22.519 phone number happened to be classmates with the 00:15:22.519 --> 00:15:24.980 current Bolshoi's director at that time when 00:15:24.980 --> 00:15:27.419 they were in school. He's like, you know what? 00:15:28.159 --> 00:15:31.220 Let me set up a meeting for you. Let's just sit. 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:34.799 We can sit down. We can talk about it. Ooh. So 00:15:34.799 --> 00:15:37.340 now there's a chance. You're telling me there's 00:15:37.340 --> 00:15:42.379 a chance, right? So the meeting's set for a couple 00:15:42.379 --> 00:15:44.340 days later. So Kavanaugh, he's able to go out, 00:15:44.419 --> 00:15:47.139 try to make the best of his trip that's there, 00:15:47.279 --> 00:15:49.019 see something he's probably never seen before. 00:15:49.399 --> 00:15:53.039 So a couple days go by, and Kavanaugh goes to 00:15:53.039 --> 00:15:56.200 the meeting to meet with these officials. And 00:15:56.200 --> 00:15:59.779 he sits down with them. He tells them about this 00:15:59.779 --> 00:16:03.080 opera that Heinz had written. He has their attention. 00:16:03.200 --> 00:16:08.549 Things are going... All right. Nothing exciting 00:16:08.549 --> 00:16:13.190 is happening yet. But then he does something 00:16:13.190 --> 00:16:16.830 that absolutely blows the minds of all these 00:16:16.830 --> 00:16:23.470 people. He tells them that not only was his company 00:16:23.470 --> 00:16:28.769 willing to go over and perform this opera, but 00:16:28.769 --> 00:16:30.669 that they were all willing to go over and do 00:16:30.669 --> 00:16:35.580 it. For free. That's right. Free. F -R -E -E. 00:16:35.820 --> 00:16:39.220 Free. This is astounding. It blows their minds. 00:16:39.320 --> 00:16:43.399 Like, what? Are you kidding? What? So it takes 00:16:43.399 --> 00:16:45.379 them a moment. They've got to get over the shock 00:16:45.379 --> 00:16:46.980 and then come back and make sure that they heard 00:16:46.980 --> 00:16:51.100 them right. Right? So they hear it and they come 00:16:51.100 --> 00:16:53.360 to terms. And you're like, you know what? We're 00:16:53.360 --> 00:16:56.500 going to allow this to happen. Not only are we 00:16:56.500 --> 00:16:58.159 going to allow it to happen, but we're going 00:16:58.159 --> 00:17:00.899 to allow you to do it. Twice. You get two shows. 00:17:01.580 --> 00:17:05.359 So basically, two years later, in 1993, you get 00:17:05.359 --> 00:17:09.240 two shows. You've got time to prepare. Oh, boy! 00:17:09.599 --> 00:17:13.160 So he gets back on a plane. He flies back to 00:17:13.160 --> 00:17:15.839 D .C. He gets his crew together, his troops, 00:17:15.960 --> 00:17:19.700 and he tells them, hey, great news. This is what's 00:17:19.700 --> 00:17:22.980 up. We've got two years to set this up. We're 00:17:22.980 --> 00:17:25.920 going to fly back over here in two years, in 00:17:25.920 --> 00:17:29.289 1993, and we're going to perform. This opera, 00:17:29.390 --> 00:17:37.210 just shy of 200 people, flew back over to rehearse 00:17:37.210 --> 00:17:39.210 and get things ready to go. And we're talking 00:17:39.210 --> 00:17:43.569 costumes, building the sets, rehearsing the play 00:17:43.569 --> 00:17:46.869 itself, getting everything down, the backups 00:17:46.869 --> 00:17:48.690 in case somebody gets sick and all that kind 00:17:48.690 --> 00:17:51.529 of stuff, advertising, the works. They're going 00:17:51.529 --> 00:17:55.470 to town. They're doing all this stuff. So fast 00:17:55.470 --> 00:18:00.910 forward July 1993. They get their two performances. 00:18:01.930 --> 00:18:06.309 First one goes, all right, cool. Second one goes, 00:18:06.390 --> 00:18:14.809 incredible. In the aftermath of this opera, nearly 00:18:14.809 --> 00:18:19.829 1 ,000 Russians gave their lives to Christ right 00:18:19.829 --> 00:18:24.960 there at the Bolshoi. If that wasn't enough, 00:18:25.319 --> 00:18:27.460 I mean, that's pretty incredible, right? I mean, 00:18:27.460 --> 00:18:30.099 that's right there. When I gave this sermon on 00:18:30.099 --> 00:18:32.619 Sunday, I said, oh, amen. And absolutely, amen 00:18:32.619 --> 00:18:36.200 indeed. But if that wasn't enough, a recording 00:18:36.200 --> 00:18:41.000 of this opera was made. And it was shown a little 00:18:41.000 --> 00:18:44.779 bit later on Russian national television. So 00:18:44.779 --> 00:18:47.140 we went from never having an American play to 00:18:47.140 --> 00:18:49.720 the doors being blown off the hinges to now. 00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:52.099 Not only is it being done there on stage, but 00:18:52.099 --> 00:18:57.140 it's on TV. So more people are able to come to 00:18:57.140 --> 00:19:02.960 Christ. Kavanaugh was awarded a medal by Yeltsin's 00:19:02.960 --> 00:19:07.920 Ministry of Culture. The dream of Heinz that 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:11.440 became Kavanaugh's was a vision come true. It 00:19:11.440 --> 00:19:16.319 came to life. And talk about miracle after miracle 00:19:16.319 --> 00:19:19.779 after miracle, right? God's at work. And I say 00:19:19.779 --> 00:19:22.460 all this to make a point. When we trust in God 00:19:22.460 --> 00:19:26.359 and we step out in faith and take the passion 00:19:26.359 --> 00:19:28.579 that's within us and the thankfulness that we 00:19:28.579 --> 00:19:35.000 have for Him to the world, God will use us to 00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:38.680 do absolutely incredible things, to do amazing 00:19:38.680 --> 00:19:42.460 things. Looking back at our first few verses 00:19:42.460 --> 00:19:46.859 in Isaiah 12, God has shown us His love. He has 00:19:46.859 --> 00:19:50.559 shown us His desire, that desire for us all to 00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:53.900 be delivered back to Him from our sin. And when 00:19:53.900 --> 00:19:57.759 we have a relationship with Him and fill our 00:19:57.759 --> 00:20:01.359 hearts with gratitude for Him, it becomes so 00:20:01.359 --> 00:20:04.420 much easier for each and every one of us to share 00:20:04.420 --> 00:20:08.200 Him and to share our love for Him with the world. 00:20:09.240 --> 00:20:13.920 Your love for Him, your passion for Him, it's 00:20:13.920 --> 00:20:17.200 infectious. Some might even say it's contagious. 00:20:17.700 --> 00:20:22.380 You can be a contagious Christian, and because 00:20:22.380 --> 00:20:27.160 of that, it can soften even the hardest of hearts. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:31.819 Whether you see it or not, it makes a difference 00:20:31.819 --> 00:20:36.059 because it's planting a seed of faith in somebody 00:20:36.059 --> 00:20:38.960 who didn't have it before. When you let it float 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:42.640 out of you, instead of bottling it up, you become 00:20:42.640 --> 00:20:46.390 a walking... talking testimony pointing the way 00:20:46.390 --> 00:20:48.970 to Jesus. Yes, you are a walking, talking poster 00:20:48.970 --> 00:20:53.730 board. Right? It's like, well, those of you who 00:20:53.730 --> 00:20:56.250 have seen me at work or throughout the day, you 00:20:56.250 --> 00:20:59.250 know, I regularly wear Jesus shirts. You know, 00:20:59.309 --> 00:21:02.650 I like the carousel ones that are done up like 00:21:02.650 --> 00:21:04.490 the bottle of mustard and ketchup and the mayo 00:21:04.490 --> 00:21:07.369 and the relish and the barbecue sauce and all 00:21:07.369 --> 00:21:09.750 that stuff, right? And why? Because people see 00:21:09.750 --> 00:21:12.309 it and they're like, oh, that's cool. Oh, wow. 00:21:13.200 --> 00:21:16.339 I like that shirt. That's awesome. And it opens 00:21:16.339 --> 00:21:18.579 up the door so you're able to talk, right? And 00:21:18.579 --> 00:21:20.200 it's just little things like that. And when you're 00:21:20.200 --> 00:21:23.619 on fire for the Lord, something happens. You're 00:21:23.619 --> 00:21:24.819 going to say something. You're going to throw 00:21:24.819 --> 00:21:27.200 up that praise, you know, or whatever it is. 00:21:27.240 --> 00:21:29.000 You're going to do something that blesses somebody. 00:21:29.180 --> 00:21:31.839 And guess what? The doors are blown wide and 00:21:31.839 --> 00:21:34.180 you're able to give that testimony. You're able 00:21:34.180 --> 00:21:37.299 to talk to somebody about Jesus. And another 00:21:37.299 --> 00:21:42.579 miracle can happen. Another miracle can happen. 00:21:44.299 --> 00:21:47.720 I know some of you are thinking, hey, Pastor, 00:21:47.880 --> 00:21:51.660 I don't have it in me to talk to a bunch of people. 00:21:51.759 --> 00:21:54.519 I'm not the kind of person who goes out and stands 00:21:54.519 --> 00:21:57.799 up in front of a big group. And guess what? You 00:21:57.799 --> 00:22:03.079 don't have to. How you live your life, how you 00:22:03.079 --> 00:22:06.460 talk to people, how you treat people does that 00:22:06.460 --> 00:22:10.059 for you because you're always being watched. 00:22:10.700 --> 00:22:14.940 And the biggest impact is when you speak to someone. 00:22:15.099 --> 00:22:20.200 And it only has to be one person. That one person 00:22:20.200 --> 00:22:23.960 that God has placed in front of you. If we turn 00:22:23.960 --> 00:22:28.019 to Luke 15 verse 7. So Luke 15 verse 7, Jesus 00:22:28.019 --> 00:22:32.779 said, I say to you that likewise there will be 00:22:32.779 --> 00:22:37.759 more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents 00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:41.599 than over 99 just persons who need no repentance. 00:22:42.730 --> 00:22:45.029 That's right. For every one sinner that turns 00:22:45.029 --> 00:22:48.329 to Jesus Christ, there's a party in heaven. When 00:22:48.329 --> 00:22:50.710 you turned your life over to him, there was a 00:22:50.710 --> 00:22:53.490 party in heaven. And every single person who 00:22:53.490 --> 00:22:55.470 turns their life over to him, there's a party 00:22:55.470 --> 00:22:58.950 in heaven. The angels rejoice. Every single person 00:22:58.950 --> 00:23:03.190 is precious to God. And he grieves every single 00:23:03.190 --> 00:23:06.190 loss and celebrates every single child who returns 00:23:06.190 --> 00:23:09.930 to him. So you don't have to speak to the masses. 00:23:09.970 --> 00:23:12.569 You don't have to speak to the crowds. You just 00:23:12.569 --> 00:23:16.390 have to speak to the one person that the Lord 00:23:16.390 --> 00:23:20.450 places in front of you. Share your story. What 00:23:20.450 --> 00:23:24.329 Jesus has done for you. So that they can come 00:23:24.329 --> 00:23:29.369 to know him too. Because your testimony is also 00:23:29.369 --> 00:23:34.990 a hymn of praise. A hymn of how Jesus has saved 00:23:34.990 --> 00:23:40.099 you. And why you have so much joy and so much 00:23:40.099 --> 00:23:44.039 thankfulness in your heart. And on that note, 00:23:44.099 --> 00:23:49.259 let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you. We 00:23:49.259 --> 00:23:51.359 thank you for reminding us of your greatness. 00:23:51.619 --> 00:23:54.900 We thank you that we should never take that greatness 00:23:54.900 --> 00:23:58.000 and what you've done for us for granted. As we've 00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:01.859 been reminded that you can and will work great 00:24:01.859 --> 00:24:06.519 things through us if we step out in faith. We 00:24:06.519 --> 00:24:11.799 ask that you help us to overcome the fears that 00:24:11.799 --> 00:24:14.480 hold us back, those chains that put us in bondage. 00:24:14.880 --> 00:24:17.700 We ask that you break those so that we can step 00:24:17.700 --> 00:24:20.640 out boldly into a world where we're able to proclaim 00:24:20.640 --> 00:24:24.400 your greatness and your truth and point the way 00:24:24.400 --> 00:24:26.859 to your light and your hope and your kingdom 00:24:26.859 --> 00:24:31.000 and your glory. Please look over us all as we 00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:34.299 go our own ways and walk the paths that you've 00:24:34.299 --> 00:24:37.480 laid out before us. Help us to take your word 00:24:37.480 --> 00:24:40.500 into those places that you've put out for us 00:24:40.500 --> 00:24:43.019 and share it with those that you place in front 00:24:43.019 --> 00:24:47.420 of us. We thank you and we love you. Amen and 00:24:47.420 --> 00:24:51.339 amen. And remember, as you go forward from here, 00:24:51.480 --> 00:24:56.720 you are loved and you are blessed. So go and 00:24:56.720 --> 00:25:02.140 be the church. Thank you for joining us at Healing 00:25:02.140 --> 00:25:22.910 Scars with Pastor Burton. Until next time, take 00:25:22.910 --> 00:25:24.470 care and God bless.